So many of our friends envy us for doing this Americas trip; they say
how happy we look in all the pictures…but, of course! The smiles in the photos
do reflect genuine joy, for there is no doubting the benefits, growth and
positive learning that travelling as a family for six months provide. Every
single day, we express gratitude, we interact with our teenage sons in a way
that would never otherwise happen, we have time for each other. Life is, in so
many ways, absolutely amazing!
BUT, there are challenges,
too! And in all fairness , I think we owe it to you dear Readers (sorry,
couldn’t resist that !) to share an honest insight into the more contrary
elements of Life on the Road…
Obvious complaints aside – such as wearing the same clothes for days on
end and not being able to find showers (let alone hot showers) – there are
three particular challenges that travelling through this austral continent have
nagged me: Communication, Driving and Money (fairly universal, hey?!)
Communication is a huge issue for me. One of the greatest joys in
travelling far and wide involves interaction with the interesting people one
meets, whether they be native dwellers of the host land, or fellow travellers
from anywhere else in the world. In South America, English is not widely known,
let alone used, so having even a basic knowledge of Portuguese and/or Spanish
helps a lot. I know neither beyond Greetings and a couple of basic phrases. These
don’t get me very far, let me tell you! I have been trying to learn Spanish on
the long drives, thanks to a trusty podcast, but the moment an Argentinian
opens his or her mouth, I find I cannot recall and match a single word that has
been taught in my slow, well-enunciated Spanish-for-Dummies podcast. The spoken
lingua in these parts is way too rapido, so
most of the time I pathetically flop back on my “Perdonne, no hablo espanol”
cushion. I am finding these failures very
frustrating! There is actually a bitter-sweet remedy to this problem, though,
which has emerged in the form of mi
marido Gus. His Spanish is very workable, but we (the boys and I) are far
too dependent on him in every public communication. That’s the
bitter-frustrating-disempowering part. Ultimately, however, it is undeniably
‘sweet’ having someone in the family who can fix us a bed for the night, or ask
the directions to the nearest panaderia (bakery)…
Driving: problem #2. Of the 4,000km we’ve covered in Argentina alone,
Gus has driven 3,800 of them! I should feel ashamed, except for the factors
that outweigh the shame. Namely, the difficulties for me driving a
left-hand-wheel vehicle with a dodgy clutch (sorry Robin) and, worst of all, my
inability to stay awake at the wheel for longer than a 2-hour stretch. I know!
Pathetic! However, I am somewhat appeased (aka not made to feel too guilty) by
Gus’ passion for driving, especially on muddy/sandy/stony tracks, and his
extraordinary ability to drive for HOURS on end quite effortlessly. Yes, I do
feel bad, and Yes, it is (once again) frustrating and disempowering not being
able to balance out our travel duties fairly. But it may well be the price I
have to pay to ensure my family reaches the end in safety?!
Thirdly: Money. Ouch, always a tetchy subject. But in our case on this
trip, not really an issue: we simply don’t have any to spare. Travelling on a
shoestring budget means we literally use our cash for food, accommodation, fuel
and museums. Oh, and beer for Gus and maybe some red wine for Mands. Ben and
Max have stoically refused to give up asking for helado (ice-cream) at every town we stop at, but they are sadly
rarely rewarded for their begging. In many ways, it’s so simple, so easy,
travelling this way. After all, it eliminates any temptation to try to buy
anything in the museum gift shops or at the craft markets. Most of the time.
Sometimes I waver. Sometimes, when my guard is down, I wish we could afford to
buy one special keepsake, or treat the boys to a fancy seafood lunch. And that
frustrates me, too.
But once I have regained a sense of rationale and reminded myself of
where we are as a family and what we are doing and giving ourselves, the nick
nacks lose their significance. Ultimately, my heart recognizes a deep sense of
gratitude of something far bigger than what can be purchased; that which has no
monetary price attached, that which is priceless.
It’s funny, but as I end this piece, I realize that it is ending on a
different note than what I set out to write. I guess what I’m really saying
after all, is that in spite of the inevitable frustrations and negatives, they’re
all for the good and none of them are insurmountable. Hooray!
In some parts down the loooooong road of
Patagonia, there are animals. Most common, is the guanaco, a smaller cousin to
the llama, covered in gorgeously warm and fluffy fur. We’ve also spotted the
odd desert fox, pangolin, hare and nandu,
an emu-like bird.
