I am grateful for this space to write and organize my thoughts.
There is a lot of preparation for each section of the trip and I think and re-think the best way to go about organizing and planning.
I am beginning to see that merely organizing this trip is going to be an interesting experience and learning process.
The year is divided into three trips:
1. Mexico, Chiapas (perhaps other parts of Mexico as well)
2. India, Ladakh
3. Bike Tour to Maine via Canada and then south to the Carolinas and West to Tennessee and then North to Michigan.
The part I feel the need to organize most is part three- bike Tour. I have already spent hours pouring over the Intentional Community Directory website making a list of contacts, referring to maps to figure out where and when I will need to stop.
I am anticipating the start of the bike tour to be intense, having just come back from Mexico and India, not giving myself much time between my return from India and the beginning of the bike tour I will need to have all my equipment ready to go. Which leaves me wondering exactly how much time to spend in Mexico, the first trip, the one I need to get a ticket for right now!!
In between Mexico and India I will be preparing for the bike tour quite a bit. I am beginning to see some disadvantages to trying to fit so much in in one year. I want to wholly experience each part of the trip without having to ponder the next leg too much. For this reason not only do I want to get the bike tour portion organized but I think that may be the part of the year I will find the most challenging, perhaps the most rewarding.
Not to get a head of myself or anything!
I am off to see about some tickets for Mexico and write the office of Learning from Ladakh with my resume and a letter about how I proposed to be involved while there.
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Anna-- I am so excited that you are doing this. I'd love to put you in touch with two people (who you may already know?)-- Deb Van Poolen in Ladakh, working with ISEC (www.isec.org.uk/index.html) Deb's email is dvanpoolen@yahoo.com. she's from GR-- did she ever work with you guys? I have a vague idea that I remember her saying that she knew you...
ReplyDeleteThe other is Chris Treter of Higher Grounds coffee, here in TC. He leads a group trip to visit the fair-trade coffee cooperatives in Chiapas who he works with, in january. Since you'll be there already, you might want to connect with him and his group (usually 5-10 peopls from northern Michigan-ish) if you're into meeting coffee growers and zapatistas.
You can reach Chris at Higher Grounds- 1-877-825-2262. I don't have his email.
Beyond that, since you're going to Chiapas, I want to recommend one of the most beautiful water landscapes I've ever seen (yes, even including Lake Superior!)-- Agua Azul, a long series of waterfalls, pools, and river. I can't remember what town it's near, but it's pretty popular and easy to get to-- amazing, amazing limestone parent material makes a neon-cloudy-blue river, and the waterfalls and resulting pools are gorgeous. The downriver part is a public park, and on weekends/holidays there are tons of people there, but if you hike uphill/upriver a bit, you come to some pretty solitary spots -- amazing. I hope you go there. Also, if you like waterfalls and swimming, Misol-Ha is not too far from there, a smaller spot, but with water caves!
Can you tell I love Chiapas? Will you get to San Cristobal? There's a pretty cool anthropological museum there, the Casa Na Bolom, and and and-- I could go on and on.... I am so excited for you!!! have wonderful travels. how long will you be in Mexico? happy solstice and everything else, Michelle