The Super Bock Chronicles: Ericeira

First off I want to apologize for not even writing bad crap... well, I always write crap but I would like to think that is good crap and not bad crap.

I had to take a look at what I wrote last year to know what was it what I wrote...

If you know me personally, you know that I love Estonia. Or loved Estonia? Nah, I still do but not as much as a few years ago. That all changed after I moved to Ericeira.

I would need to be a poet to describe Ericeira and even that wouldn't do justice to describe it. The first couple of weeks I was there it was very tough. The weather wasn't helping, spring forgot how to spring until maybe mid May. The hostel was empty so I had noone to talk to but as the days went by, I started to slowly meet new people that later on became my friends.

As all the places I've lived, it's not entirely of the place itself what makes me like it but the people I meet while I'm there. It can be ten people or it can be just one. 

So back to Ericeira, small fishing village by the Atlantic Ocean. Although I wouldn't say it's a fishing village anymore, instead I'd say that is a surfing village. Some world well known companies have branches there. Some well know companies sponsor surfing competitions there. I don't surf... yet.

One of the things I liked the most was that unlike The Algarve, which gets flooded by tourist and the order of languages you see on the signs are: English, German, French, Spanish, and maybe Portuguese, Ericeira gets a nice balance. Of course you see tourists and every Wednesday one of the bars dyed in blonde (lol). The balance was good enough to try to learn Portuguese.

I have my two favourite place to go for a bite and for a beer(s). I became somewhat friends with the owners... I have local friends! I didn't meet any Portuguese when I was in Lagos. Not saying that my times there were bad, of course not! Lagos was a great experience but Ericeira is a greater experience!

Overall, I will always cherish my times in Ericeira. Like I do with my lovely Graná. I will always go back over and over. 

Maybe next year I will write Sagres? kidding, from now on I will try to write more often.

is traveling a curse?

In 2012 I met a German guy that said "you are one of the few permanent travelers that I know and the only one from Latin America". I felt proud of that, very proud.

 I always thought of traveling as a blessing. As something not many have the chance or the courage to do it. 

That has changed...

Lately I have been finding out about some upsetting things that made me changed my views about my own travels. 

It all started to change when I went back home from Latin America in 2012. It was very intense, not what I wanted and definitely now what I expected. I spent a few months back home and that made me realize that I wanted to take things slower. Staying in one place and get to know the environment surrounding me. It worked and I loved it.

I got that part sorted. I think I have been successful when it comes to that. 

But there is one more important thing that long term traveling has prevented me from: to have a normal life and a routine and to have a partner. 

Yes, I escaped from that kind of life when I started this journey but after almost 7 years I can honestly say that I am tired. I still love hitchhiking but I don't feel the rush I used to feel  a few years back. Now I always get anxious when I'm about to start thumbing.

It always prevented me to have a partner. Traveling can be very romantic, I could brag about all the places I have been. But when I met someone special and she has to go or I have to go is when it stops being romantic.

Friends can also influence a lot saying things like "you don't have future with him, he's a traveler and eventually, he will end up leaving you".

Or it could be me the one actually leaving. Which has also happened in the past. 

I just did a small week-long trip. No hitchhiking, only buses and ride sharing. It was definitely more comfortable and faster (I didn't have enough time to hitchhike anyways) but I still got tired.

All in all, I think I'm ready to hang the backpack. Maybe this is just a temporary phase.  I don't know if this a common thing when you've on the road for so long. Only time will tell...

A lot going on lately

As some of may know, I'm about to go back home. It's been a while therefore I have a lot of things going on my head. A lot. 

I don't think I have been this nervous or anxious or stressed before. I had to take care of a lot of shit. I was supposed to fly on the 10th of this month but I had to change the flight. Twice. I was supposed to be in Mexico with someone I love. I told her I would take care of her, specially when she needed me and I my stupid job got in the way. I let her down. I tried my best to be with her in the distance, I swear I tried.

A couple of years ago I made the promise to keep out personal stuff from the blog. I tried but I was going through some rough time at the time. Writing help me vent what I'm feeling at the moment, which is a log. While writing the blog back in 2012 I was listening to Vodka Juniors (some of you might know that it's my favourite band). Now I'm listening to their new triple album.

I still can't believe that I'm going home. I will be able to hug my mum for the first time in three years. I don't know how things are back home. I'm not the kind of person that look at the news online. Although this year I made an exception as I was following the election process and... well, no comments. I didn't vote, I get no opinion.

There is so much stuff I would like to write inside my head that I don't know what else to write. 

At the moment I'm in Granada where is still warm and sunny. I'm going to rainy season in Guatemala. Luckily one month left of that. Most of my friends that used to live here are gone. But I'm staying with one of my best friends and that is nice. This past few weeks I was also lucky to meet new people, the sad part is that I met just before I'm leaving.

I already started the job hunt in Guatemala, Mexico and Panama. 

Holy fuck, I feel the same pressure on my chest I felt exactly three fucking years ago. Breath in. Breath out. Hahahaha. I am actually behaving exactly like I did three years ago. And there were also a few time zones in between. Not hahaha. But is changing. Right fucking now! I'm going out for a walk.

I'm going to see my mum, my brothers, my nieces, my nephews, my family, my friends.  I'm actually already invited to my high school class reunion, a stag party and a bottle of Argentinian wine. Last time I was back I only met a handful of my friends. I hope this will be different. I really hope so.

Sorry that from now there will be no photos. My phone was robbed in Portugal along with my SLR camera and I gave away the small digital. Eventually I will get either a smarthphone o camera although it's not my priority. My priority is to be with that someone I love. Not sorry if this sounds cheesy. But what the hell. It's what I'm feeling, It's what I'm writing. It's like my fingers are possessed. I can't stop writing! Words are coming out quite fast. Unlike in other occasions. I remember that once I wrote one line in two days. I did eventually write something on the third day.

I got to say "see you later" to many of my friends hitchhiking back from Lithuania as I have already set the goal to go back home before the end of the year. I still have a few days left, perhaps I get the chance to say it to a few more. The thing is that summer just finished so people is barely coming back from holidays.

Holidays. Some people have told me that my life is like a big holiday. Maybe it is. On holidays you are always happy. There has been times that I was definitely not.

I watch The Motorcycle Diaries last night. There was a quote from the scene in the mine that caught my attention:

- Buscan trabajo?

- No, no buscamos trabajo.

- Entonces, por qué viajan?

- Viajamos por viajar.

- Benditos sean

It's something like this:

- Are you looking for work?

- No, we are not looking for work.

- Then, why are you traveling?

- We travel just because.

- Bless you.

PS. I am looking for a job.

Faith in humanity, restored

A few days ago something happened. I went to sleep at the beach and got robbed in the most stupid way. I'm supposed to be an experienced traveler, having been traveling for the past six years. But sometimes you just take things for granted or just fall deeply asleep. This incident made remember the "you're not in Europe anymore" quote I used extensively a couple years ago while I was traveling in Latin America...

So there I was, trying to get some sleep before sunrise and it was before sunrise that my small bagpack was gone. Alone with some important (but replaceable) stuff. What was not replaceable were the photos I took earlier that day in the next village to Lagos.

A few days went by when I received an email. I didn't know the sender and judging by the name, he was (is) Portuguese. I opened the email and start reading this: "Hello my friend, I am security and have your black bag on Lagos, Portugal Iberlagos please call me 9xxxxxxxx"... Wait, wuuuut!? Did I read correctly? Somebody found my bag!? So I go the following day and discover that indeed someone had left my backpack on the entrance of this apartment complex not far from the beach where this all happened.

I couldn't thank enough this guy. There were some things missing (obviously money, but it wasn't that much) but there was my wallet with all the crap I had inside, the book I bought earlier that day. The water was missing tho (inside joke).

I'm glad to know that there are still nice people in this fucked up world. I would like to think that the nice people outnumber the bad/mean/evil people.

The Wrong Way To Travel

I've been told, I've read and I've heard (when commenting other people's travels): "that is not the way to travel". What is then? What makes us travel experts that don't travel "the wrong way".

I was told once that I was scared of traveling because I like to go back to places I have been before. My friends in Poland, Holland and Belgium would agree on that. I was scared just because I like that? 

Everybody have their own way of travel. Some people like to pay for a week in an all inclusive, well I don't. Wouldn't mind if for some reason I end in one of those by any chance. I just wouldn't pay for it, even if I had the money. Some people like to live on a couple of euros a day. Some of my closest friends have this lifestyle, even tho they could live on 50€ a day.

Some us love to hitchhike. Some don't. It's not meant for everybody. Some like to pay for hostel and don't like CSing. I like both. Although in Europe I've only stayed in a handful of hostels (even counting the ones I've lived in). Not to brag about it but the few times I've hitchhiked between The Baltics and Spain, I didn't pay one single cent for accommodation.

While some people might say they've been somewhere just because they had an 18 hour layover at the airport and went sightseeing, I don't consider that being in one places, but that's my opinion. I actually had an 18 hour layover in Iceland but I don't consider having visited it.

My point is: there is no wrong way to travel.

There is a right way tho: the way you fucking want it not paying attention to stupid criticism.

part IV, all roads lead to: Granada

It took me a while to write because I was writing some shit for my friend's website. What do you know, I'm going to paid to write. I'm actually will get paid to write some shit about my traveling experiences. Eventually tho. Don't get upset at me, finally I'm writing something to keep you busy for a while.

I had a volunteer position lined up in one of the top rated hostels in Granada. It was going to be only for a few weeks. 

What can I say about Granada. My expectations were really high thanks mainly to Christian. He told all kind of marvelous things about this town that I was expecting only the best. Don't get me wrong, the city is very nice. 

There is an old neighborhood, Albayzín. It's the old arabic neighborhood situated on a hill overlooking The Alhambra, which honestly didn't amaze me at all. Both Albayzín and The Alhambra are UNESCO World Heritage Sites. It's actually not the first time that I'm living in World Heritage Site.

Since I started traveling I have been having snowy and non-snowy winters. This year's turn was not snow. I have to be honest tho, I really miss the sound the snow makes when you're walking. I miss a lot of things about winter. I was talking with my friend and she told me that she's a "north person". I think I'm also one of those weird people that likes cold winters. I miss Estonia. I miss the short winter days. I miss freezing my balls walking to Rimi to buy a frozen pizza. I miss going to Kodu. I miss you.

But Granada is also the shit. As much as I miss all those things, including the snow, I'm also enjoying very much that I can go for a walk wearing havaianas and wearing only a sweater. There's also snow and mountains! Yes, real mountains. And guess what, you can ski up there. The Sierra Nevada is covered in snow year round I think. I have to start getting fit, because I owe Justyna a hike to the mountains, but living in Albayzín will for sure get in shape... or kill me!

One thing that I can rally get use to is the whole tapas thing. The other night I went to a tapas place and with every beer you get to choose between 18 different types of tapas! You can order a different one each time you order a beer! One thing tho, the beers in this part of the world a cute: 20-25cl. I would rather have more alcohol than food but still, it's a fair offer.

So fellas, this is the place I'm going to be living for the next few months. Not sure how long I will stay. I mean, I wouldn't like to be here for summer. Like I said before, I more of a north person and I've heard that summers here can be quite hot ~45ºC. That is just too much for me. But then again, it's only january to be making future decisions. We'll see (with your lovely accent).

There is a street with my surname and a hotel and a restaurant!

And the streets are full of dogshit!