Welcome to My Blog... Again

Friends, Family & Curious Readers (who fall into neither category, and thus I question how you came upon this site),

I’d like to welcome you to the second part of the TBD-part series of my travel blogs: “Going to South America – Donde Esta El Bano?”

For those of you who shared in my adventure to South Africa during 2007 and 2008 (“Coming to South Africa – A Journey Back to My Roots”), I present you the opportunity to join me for a less-extensive, yet no-less-exciting excursion to the southern-most continent of the Americas (aptly named South America).

For three months I will be wandering around this enormous Spanish-speaking land, joined by my Scottish travel pal, one Ms. Laura Dykes -- a friend discovered on my flight from Nairobi to Cape Town 4 years ago, and with which I have stayed in touch ever since (despite the difficulty I have in translating Scottish --> English -- rumor has it they are the same language, although it has yet to be confirmed by reputable sources – i.e. Wikipedia). Although no plans have been set in stone, I envision spending about 2-3 weeks in each of the following countries:

Panama --> Colombia --> Ecuador --> Peru --> Bolivia --> Chile

While Argentina and Brazil both present amazing opportunities for exploration, I imagine these fine nations might find themselves beneath my feet another day. As for now, they will carry the label of TBD on my travel map, as I don’t imagine they are going anywhere.

Now, many of you may be wondering, “Mark, how do you manage to take these trips? Aren’t you concerned about your career? Your personal life? Your semi-flamboyant, and worryingly-mentally-troubled dog?” To those who wonder such notions, I provide the following:

Career = Haha, that’s a funny word

Personal Life = I must say, the addition a new-found girlfriend to my life has made this journey a bit more difficult to embark upon than I envisioned. I never before thought that the words “Hey, I’m going away for 3 months to travel with another girl” would inflict such anguish, although Julie has been more than amazing in supporting my trip. She even was kind enough to purchase for me a going-away gift, the perfect place to store all my “valuables” as she termed it: Here’s a photo: Julie's Gift . I can think of no better place to store my passport.

Dog = I imagine by letting a few flies or other insects free in the apartment, Kerby will be more than stimulated for the next three months.

I leave with you the following: Farewell Song

See you in Panama!