I'm glad that I spent the time the night before packing everything, my taxi driver called at 3:45 AM, just as I was stepping out of the shower.
The streets were deserted at 4AM in Miraflores.
The airport was surprisingly busy for 4:30AM.
On the plane, getting ready to leave Peru. Seems like I just got here...
Back to Panama City for a short layover. I had lunch at the airport, and spent an hour or so frantically trying to find someplace else I could fly for a day or two. I wasn't ready to go back! I finally gave up and begrudgingly got back on the plane for Boston.
After making my way through customs, I stopped to use the restroom. Just outside the restrooms were these drinking fountains, and I leaned over and took a big drink. Upon standing up, I realized just how fortunate we are to be able to drink from fountains without having to second guess if our water supply was clean enough to drink.
One bright spot upon my return was that a good friend of mine had just purchased one of my favorite cars: a Citroen DS. I made it back from Boston to Providence in just over an hour, a record for rush hour on a Friday night, and I immediately went to bask in the glow of a weird French car. If I had to come back to the US, at least this was waiting for me.
It was a blur of a trip, but one that I won't forget. As much as I have traveled, I realized that I have very rarely ever done it on my own. This trip was entirely me, and while it was nerve wracking at times, it was much more enjoyable than I ever could have expected. Even with the compressed time frame, I still accomplished almost everything that I wanted (even though I wasn't even sure at the outset what it was I wanted to do!).
