Central American & Caribbean - Trinidad & Tobago and Guyana, August 2016

 

With 10kg of minimalist belongings on our backs, Raquel and I headed west for some exploring of pastures familiar and new. Our first major stop was gorgeous Trinidad and Tobago, where the number one priority was extensive beach chilling. The sea temperature was perfect for carefree floating, and gazing up at the ever changing puffy white clouds and photogenic coconut palms. Around this time we would usually be coming towards the end of our school summer holidays, except this year we made this much dreamed about trip a reality.

For many people life goes something like this: after school and uni, find a job, work for the next 40+ years, retire, rest after working all your life, then die; it doesn't have to be that way!! Travelling is best experienced when you're young and fit. Society often acts surprised when you take time off and travel for months or years. Being unemployed fills minds with shock and fear. There is the expectation to build a family, and therefore working every year of one's life is a necessity. Better to spend less and avoid succumbing to image pressures like buying the latest/best gadgets, car, house, clothes, or 'stuff' in general. Money should be directed towards experiences rather than 'things', and memories and contentment will follow, as opposed to ultimately unsatisfying materialistic habits. 

Travelling can be expensive, but there are ways to travel for longer on less money. Longer trips allow for greater flexibility in flight dates and routes, hence saving money. Our outward budget flight gave us a Toronto stop for a few hours to hang out with Amanda, Raquel's Guyana friend. We visited Guyana for 8 days and mainly stayed with friends of Raquel, allowing us to enjoy home cooking and save on accommodation costs. We also stayed a week in Washington DC with another great Guyana friend, Ryan, again loving some home comforts on the road. Often though, the highlight of a trip is couchsurfing, which offers the opportunity to stay with locals free of charge, in exchange for good conversation and the promise to reciprocate when you return home. One strategy could be to host couchsurfers while you save for a big trip, then plan your journey to stay with those same people, wherever they're from. Trust and sharing are at the heart of the concept, and you meet some incredible individuals through it.

In Port of Spain we couchsurfed with an adventurous Trinidadian one weekend and joined him for a challenging climb up the second highest mountain on the island with his friendly hiking group. He, his housemates and all couchsurfers are super easygoing and welcoming, and it's a great opportunity to interact with the locals. In Miami we couchsurfed with a Venezuelan/American couple, who were super zen, and Chloe was a ballet dancer! Raquel joined them in their daily yoga class, they cooked us a meal, and we cooked them a meal. Another heartwarming experience meeting such lovely people through openness and kindness.

Guyana, which has a distinct Caribbean feel, was a trip down memory lane for Raquel after VSO volunteering there for 2 years in 2010 and 2011. I enjoyed the untouristy off the beaten track experience, full of fantastic tropical jungle. The country has an amazing mix of cultures and religions, all living in peace, which is an example to many places in the world. It is the only country in South America where English is the first language, although I struggled to understand most of the dialect and Raquel was often my translator!

Next up is Guatemala, Mexico and Cuba; happy days!