Fun Fact No. 46: You have to ask for permission when you walk into a house. OK, that sounds silly written out like that, but what I mean is this: You knock on someone's door and they let you in, which you would think would be good enough, but then you still have to say "permiso" when you cross the threshold.
So Kami and Shun will be here in about a week and a half. Kami Meighan is my dear friend from back in the day at Bowling Green State University. We were glassblowing partners and then she lived in my house for a while, and then she took over my old job at Glass Axis, a non-profit public access glassblowing studio in Columbus, Ohio. She has since gone on to get her master's in glass at Ohio State, and she works in one of the most prestigious glass galleries in the world, Hawk Galleries in Columbus. We went to Ghana, West Africa together five years ago, and we had a wonderful time traveling together. Since then, we have had many adventures together, and now she's coming to Peru with our friend Shunsuke Tsuchiya. Shun is perhaps the goofiest kid I know. He also went to BGSU for art, although for computer art and graphic design instead of sculpture like Kami. We had a wild summer in 2001. The three of us were inseparable and since then, the bond has been formed. Anyway, they'll be here on the 12th and I'll be heading down to Lima and then we'll go to Cusco together. And at this moment is when the word TOURISM enters.
I'm a bad tourist. I'm an uncomfortable tourist. I generally don't like being a tourist because I am SO aware of the inequalities between my wallet and the wallets of the people in the country being visited. Although I am seriously hard-pressed for cash these days, I am still American with a savings account and a $500/month apartment. I can't seem to get over the bad parts of tourism: ignorant consumption of culture, essentialized people / places, etc. It just stresses me out. The ground is uneven and my guilt is tremendous and it's only gotten worse in recent years. I know that my dollar is helping so-and-so's economy, but I just don't let that enter in my guilt calculations.
Now I've never been to Cusco. I know that Machu Picchu is one of the most wonderful things on earth, blah blah blah, but to be in a city with more geriatric Germans than anything else just makes me uncomfortable. As a result I'm nervous. I know I need to get the hell out of dodge because I am sad and unhappy in Iquitos and I need a break, but still, I'm not sure how much less stressed I'll be in Cusco. Luckily my good friend Lilia is there, and she'll be pretty great to have as our tour guide. Regardless, I need to learn to relax and enjoy.
1 comment:
I totally know where you're coming from. Remember the Four Seasons hotel down the street in Ubud? Disgusting.
However, you are mindful of not being that person. It's time to get out of Iquitos and experience new sights and sounds and people. We all need a break from the same-old every once in a while, often more than we allow ourselves.
I lovelovelove you! I've thought of you tons in the past two weeks especially. I wish I could get down to visit you there... darn this going back to school. I can't wait to see you and catch up!
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