Youre riding a handsome white Jeep across Venezuela; mounting enormous ridges, with the motor roaring in your

ears; crossing gushing rivers, splashing mud everywhere, while the wind blows through your effluent hair. When night sets, you hang up the hammoc thats been dead!weight in your ruc sac ever since that titillatingly tedious boat ride across the "mazon #iver, swing the tropical nights away and dream of an adventurous $ourney that will ma e a man out of you. " few days ride west of %aracas lies the serene city of &erida, amidst the pea y toes of the colossal "ndes &ountains, whose limbs stretch across the entire continent. 'y the time you ride into town, the tropical has changed dramatically, turning into chilly alpine. #ain is pouring heavily on your hot and crac ed tin roof, as you par the Jeep behind a hostel popular among your fellow mochileros1 and unload yourselves into its warmth. "s it happens, you actually seem to have made such a heroic entrance, the rugged, mounted e(plorers that you are, that this plump "merican girl, bosomy and loose ali e, soon as s to be ta en for a ride in the hardy loo ing beast. )or a whole hour she wont shut her trap long enough for you to be able to ma e your move. *ventually, between a +you know and a couple of +its likes, you finally manage to s,ueeze in a iss. -hat, at least, eeps her mouth busy long enough for a ,uic ma e! out session in the bac of a mur y car par . ./h, 0m wet1 0m so wet down there23 she moans, to the delight of your manly ego. 'ut, as it turns out, she really is so very wet down there, simply +cause she happened to sit her ass right in the middle of a puddle of rainwater, which has tric led from a crac in the tin roof and collected on the passengers seat. -hat unfortunate turn of events seems to seriously dampen the mood for her, which is perfectly alright with you, as a single second more of her pointless $abbering might $ust as well drive you beyond the boundaries of mental stability.
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'ac pac ers 56panish7

"nd so, you drop her bac at the hostel and then resume the hunt for pussy, beaver and other beasts of fur, with renewed zeal and hunger for the con,uest. *ventually, you end up at the salsa club, where all bac pac ers spend their &eridian nights anyway, fending off sleep with a coc tail of buzz and zeal, while constantly struggling to eep their feet from getting entangled and their partners from being slung any all way. "cross the dance floor; at the opposite shore to an ocean of human tremor and ripples, you notice a short mane of spi y, yellow hair, held high above the heads of the crowd by a long, strapping torso. -his fair 8orse, a remnant of a bloodline of giants, gladly accepts your invitations9 first, for a long period of attempted salsa; then, after shes led you long enough around the dance floor, for a brief ma e!out session outside; and eventually, as the night reaches post!puberty, to accompany you to your room at the hostel. )irst thing, though, youve gotta get rid of your roommate and travel companion, who reluctantly agrees to uproot his carcass and go spend the night in her room instead. /nly then do you finally get to spend the remains of the night in the lovingly immersing arms of this great :ane. "s it turns out, the friend shes traveling with happens to be a gorgeous blonde, whom your companion was forced not $ust to spend the night with, but also to spend the night with, for he did not wish to offend by declining her advances. 'y lunchtime, you are all seated together to a table at the hamburguesa $oint across the street. -he two of you are en$oying a couple of $uicy ;opeye size burgers, while her petit friend is nibbling on an /live /yl. Your companion, on the other hand, as ever healthy of appetite, is wolfing down a 'luto double. -his cute little fling lasts for several days. 0t lasts $ust long enough to prove to the world at large that this timid kibbutznik,< whos been mas ing his lac of e(perience with over!confidence; this tender bris et, who has never even tasted anything other than osher meat before, does possess the right ind of global pi,uant after all.

<

" member of a =ibbutz 5>ebrew7

When its time for them to be on their way, you iss her goodbye, wish them a good $ourney and a couple of days later, your own Jeep is also pac ed and ready for a ride to %?cuta, across the "ndes and the %olombian border. @@@ Without too specific a route in mind, or plans made not to be bro en, youre ma ing headway due east, in the general direction of %openhagen, hitchhi ing your way across )yn ! :enmar s third largest island. -he fantastically enormous and blond truc driver seems li e a friendly enough blo e, though all together not too much on the tal ative side of things. 0nstead of the customary chaffer, you gaze at the green meadows surrounding you, bas ing in the soft sunrays of early summer, and simply delight in your newly ac,uired, long awaited freedom. You let yourself off on the outs irts of a random little town, from which your Aonely 'ible claims an ancient Vi ing village is but a short trail away. "ll thats left is to tak3 the driver, cross town and locate that trail leading to said village. -he moment you set foot in this town, it feels as though reality in its entirety has turned so dazzlingly bright you find yourself involuntarily s,uinting. "s if youve $ust stepped onto the worlds largest omelet of pure yol , each and every thing your eye catches is brighter and more yellowy than the ne(t. " voluptuous blonde passes you by, her hair descending li e a floc of canaries. -his 8orse goddess is leading a 'londen #etriever across a dandelion carpeted lawn, where an elderly couple, their faded fla(en hair neatly combed to cover bleached s ulls, carefully follows her with their s,uinty eyes, ma ing sure that she pic s up the %ornish poop its ma er would have gladly left behind. )rom across the lawn, an enormous indergarten teacher in Vi ing ponytails is leading a procession of tiny duc lings, waddling hand in hand. 6uddenly, the dogs tail begins to wag vigorously, his owner looses her grip and it brea s away and playfully leaps at the yellowish infants, who scatter away, screaming and treading all over the dandy dandelions.
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-han s 5:anish7

You round a corner and enter a lively mar etplace, where 8ordic vendors sell their sandy merchandise to towheaded customers ! straw bas ets overflowing with corn; big $ars of freshly s,ueezed lemonade and a stand of mustard smeared hotdogs. /n the edge of town is a wide sunflower field. .Just follow this bric road across the field, and youll find the village youre loo ing for,3 says the braided light!haired girl of whom you en,uired the way. 6he then gives you a sunny smile, clic s the heels of her amber slippers three times and vanishes, leaving you to your yellow!braids!road and with an overwhelming urge to be rolling in the hay with her and the rest of her 6olaris ind. @@@ 0ts a couple of wee s into your layover in sunny %artagena, sweating the days away on its %aribbean beaches, feeding on its tropical fruit $uices and fine %olombian cannabis. " heaven on earth, if there ever was one, and wherever it feels this good, you might as well stay a while. )or someone who traveled half way across the globe in search of the new C different, you sure do seem to be spending a surprisingly substantial amount of time in the company of the usual suspects; fol s with whom you share the very same defining culture you allegedly see freedom from, while comfortably interacting in your mother tongue and stic ing to your habitual ways. 0ts not that you deliberately bloc interaction with travelers of other origins. 8evertheless, the thing about being a part of a massive and dominant migrant wave such as the 0sraeli one is that any other interaction is involuntarily bloc ed by the sheer force of intimidation. 'esides, the familiar is simply so much cushier. 0t is only natural that, in a country with an obligatory three yearlong military service, what these discharged pups would desire most of all is to brea away from that sense of duty, see ing freedom and a sense of individuality instead. /n the other hand, being trained to trust no one but our very own, everyone ends up brea ing away in unison and see ing said freedom as one.

-herefore, wherever you turn, you can easily find 0sraeli dominated hostels, >ebrew spea ing travel guides and restaurants serving hummus and catering for the loud, vibrant and somewhat coc y chosen masses. -his way, you can wa e up to the familiar sound of your own fol music, playing throughout the entire hostel, have your -ur o!0sraeli coffee and first cigarette of the day, your falafel for lunch at the restaurant across the street, a discount on your banana y fresas con leche4 and get not to brea your teeth and sutul5 on any odd language but your very own during the evening smo ing circle. " true heaven on earth, if there ever was one2 /n one of these heavenly mornings, you wa e up to find a lost rib has reattached herself while you were visiting the foggy land of 8od. -hat $uicy, citric rib then forces her sweet tongue into your sour mouth, and before you are able to manage the slightest of recollections as to whos against who in this bewildering scenario, theres already lots of cuddling going down. >ow she found you, you do not now, yet are rather glad that she did. -o wa e up from ones slumber and find a companion has been created especially for you, so very blonde and luscious, warm and cuddly, sure is a pleasant surprise. -hat very morning, you also got to stroll into the common room, with your arm around a purebred Vi ing of your own, and the admiration you received from your fellow insmen allowed your ego to soar high above its rightful nesting place. 6uddenly, youre no longer $ust one of the team, but a prize stud grazing in foreign fields. )or an entire wee , you copulate as if the survival of the species depends on it, deluged in sweat and lust and very rarely coming up for air. 0n fact, she is so insatiable that you eventually realize why Vi ing men were only too eager to set sail and see places as far away from their homes and for as long as they possibly could. You abandon the dormitory and move into a private room $ust for the two of you, yet ma e sure to leave the window facing the second floor balcony, where all the guys would be having their nightly smo ing circles, an open testimony.

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'anana and strawberries with mil 56panish7 Fetting high 5>ebrew7

'y the time shes again pac ed and ready to go, you are already ,uite sore all over. &oreover, you also feel that youve had $ust about as much pretense of essence and meaning as youre willing to ta e; pretense of essence attributed to an affair that is $ust good fun, nothing more. You do li e her, though; you li e her enough to even finalize the theatrical with a loving goodbye iss and heartfelt wishes for a good $ourney. When shes finally gone, you even inda miss it all. /nce shes gone, %artagena rapidly loses its charm. -he tropical $uices dont taste as sweet, the sandy beaches dont feel as warm and you suddenly find yourself growing rather restless, while your traveling companion subsides more restful. @@@ "fter having hitchhi ed your way around the entire 6candinavian ;eninsula, youre currently ma ing headway due south, riding the train across )inland, in the most general direction of >elsin i. -he only other person sharing your train car is a gloomy loo ing girl in her early twenties, sitting at the opposite end and minding her own business. 6omeone once told you )inish people also have se( this way G from opposite sides of the room and without as much as ac nowledging one another. -he soft sunrays of early summer are slowly relin,uishing the world outside, leaving it in dus y dismal. -he hours of daylight are lengthy this time a year, spread across the day li e a bit of cream cheese over a large bagel. -hat leaves the few hours of nighttime in obscurity that is beyond the absence of light. Ai e a solar eclipse or a blac hole, its an event particular all to its own. 6ometimes, it feels almost as if these remains actually absorb light and delight from the world. You catch the girl snea ing a curiosity oozing pee in your direction, throw a reassuring smile her way, close the boo you were pretend!reading and simply wait. 6oon enough, she shuts her own boo and moves to the middle of the car. "nd so, you meet her halfway and ta e the seat opposite to hers. .0 noticed you are a foreigner,3 she finally says, with a funny accent.

.What gave me awayH3 you as , with an accent that is rather indistinguishable by this stage of your $ourney. 6he nods at the *nglish boo youre holding in your hand, and thats that. .Yes, 0m $ust passing through,3 you admit. ."rent we allH3 is her turn to confirm now, yours to nod, and thats that. 6he wonders how come you chose to travel, and you tell her of the "rctic %entre and #egional &useum you visited in #ovaniemi, the capital of )innish Aapland, of reindeer and s ies glittering with stars, but shes seen it herself and finds nothing remar able enough about that e(perience to $ustify a lengthy $ourney. You tell her of a regional beer festival you happened to come across on your way down from Aapland, of how you managed to snea in, drin yourself silly, get invited to a sauna cabin in the middle of the woods and end up frizzing your butt off on your hummoc the rest of the night. 'ut, she apparently drin s, soa s and sleeps plenty herself, and finds no reason to go about it in such a rugged manner. .6o, what do you do for funH3 you in,uire. 'ut, it appears she does not do fun. "s it happens, shes currently on medical leave from her $ob as a secretary for a legal firm in >elsin i. " case of depression, it appears, which, according to her, is the most common form of sic ness in her country. 6hes now on her way bac . .:o you feel any better nowH3 you as . .8o,3 is her une,uivocal answer, .but life must go on.3 .&ust it, reallyH3 you wonder out loud, and while shes seriously contemplating that e(istential dilemma, you thin to yourself G Thats one cheerful girl alright. @@@ >ere you are, dwelling in an 0sraeli dominated hostel once again, only that this time its in Iuito, the *cuadorian capital. 6o far, your nine month long $ourney across 6outh "merican has been more of the getting stuc in main cities inda $ourney than a real adventurous one, but then again, you aint complaining. Whats eeping you busy this time around, aside from the usual preoccupation with food and entertainment, is the urgent need to sell your travel companions part of the Jeep

to as many unsuspecting new partners as it would ta e. "fter all, argues your long!lasting partner in strife, on top of the initial investment and mending e(penses, theres all that profit you should be ma ing by selling it down south. )or that purpose, you spend the best part of your days at the hostel, attempting to swindle every gullible loo ing bac pac er that comes your way, with fantastic stories of the wild beast and its glorious achievements in the field of off!road pioneering. -hough you are well aware that the truth is far from what youre portraying it to be, and that the Jeep is actually a devilish can of infernal worms, a part of you is convinced that you can ma e it wor ; ma e it function right and eep everyone happy, and that part is wor ing overtime to convince all the rest of you. /nce you manage to lure them to the point of actually laying their dreamy eyes on the magnificent loo ing piece of $un , youve got them hoo ed. " couple of days ago, you got a big, strong girl so hoo ed, in fact, that she herself convinced a big, strong guy to $oin in. -heyll do well for the fre,uent push starts, while the roc !climbing buff you lured today might also prove good for team moral. Fod, you sure are proving ,uite talented at this salesmanship business, deceit and manipulation included. /h well, one more share to sell; one last don ey to pin this tail on, and youre home free. 0f you manage to pull this little miracle off today, youll reward yourself with a night out on the town, and no doubt +bout it. 'ut first, a mans gotta do2 "s it turned out, that night on the town ended up ta ing place at the trendy 8o 'ar, where locals and foreigners ali e meet to drin , party and ma e whoopee. "nd there you were, mi(ing it in, salsa, reggae and whatnot, fa ing $olly and tipsy, though you havent actually touched a drop of alcohol the whole evening, when all of a sudden, powerful arms grabbed you from behind, swung you around and booze soa ed lips forcefully s,ueezed against your own. When you finally managed to focus your eyes on that, which stood right in front of them, recognition of that short mane of spi y, yellow hair finally settled in. "s is seemly under those circumstances, you then dove into the flesh of your Vi ing mistress.

"nd so commenced another wee of intensive love!ma ing, with a serial!lover fortune had you cross paths with for the third time in three months. %onsidering how big the continent is, and how small and insignificant the two of you are, the odds are ,uite remar able, yet rather mundane at the very same time. -his time around, though, shes all in love and shit. 8evertheless, in opposition; despite her flowing emotionality or maybe even because of it, you find yourself more detached, less aroused and all together more easily irritable than before. -he thought of this all!embracing range of scrumptious local chicas,J luscious foreign chic s and voluptuous 0sraeli babes out there for the pic ing, while you are stuc with this Folden :elicious youve already sun your teeth into countless times, gives the whole ordeal a bitter!sour taste and an altogether repetitive feel. 6oon enough, even the se( becomes somewhat of a burden. 6ometimes you wish you could replace this sweaty and lustless ordeal with the manual shooting of ones load, which at least doesnt necessitate any fa ing, cuddling or the pretense of giving a damn. 0n these moments of frustration and distress, you turn on her, blaming her for your own difficulty in getting aroused; your own mechanical malfunctions. /n the other hand, you are also appreciative at times, still do li e her and dont mind putting up a bit of a show for her sa e, as well as for the sa e of your own amour!propre. "ll in all, you feel rather relieved when your old travel companion finally wor s out the financial transaction with your new partners. >e may stay in Iuito for as long as hed li e, but you are off to 'aKos the moment the gang is ready to hit the road. You write down her home address and phone number bac in :enmar , willingly give her yours, as you do not e(pect to be bac home any time soon, e(change the warmest regards and best wishes for each others individual $ourney, and with one last iss, seal all the could haves, should haves and possible would haves and move on. "s you leave Iuito behind, with four new partners in a disaster on wheels which, at least for the time being, seems to behave itself impeccably, you feel as though you are also starting a brand new, fresh and promising lag of your $ourney. "nd so, you hit the road, and never loo bac .

Firl 56panish7

@@@ /ver eight years have passed, since you first set foot in the Aatin "merican continent, but the $ourney has yet to have come to an end. -raveling has turned into participating; parta ing into investigating; learning into escaping; migrating into drifting, until vagabondage became more natural to you than anything else. -hats when you become a professional bum. -he wind of change has swept you away from *ngland, where a secure income has been abandoned for the sa e of the open road. 0t lead you across :enmar , through green meadows, yellow towns and gray piles of stones, pale remains of once Vi ing dwellings, until you find yourself in %openhagen. Auc ily enough, you are still using the very same $ournal you started eight years before, which, needless to say, you are not using all that often. 0n the bac of that $ournal, you now find the address and phone number of a certain lady, who was briefly also a lover so many years before, and curiosity ic s in. -herefore, you decide to give that remnant of the pre!0nternet era a call. -he person on the other side of the line opens a pathway, which leads into a long and obscure hallway. *ventually, you emerge on the other side of it, onto a terrace cafL, made luminous by a sunny mane of spi y, yellow hair. -he passing of the years shows on her face, as it surely does on yours $ust as well. -he younger, naMve and romantic girl has matured into a more composed, e(perienced and pragmatic woman. 'ut the light in her eyes remains the same, and so does her smile. 'y the soft sunrays of early summer, she tells you of a guy she once new G a ind, bright and warm guy, who nevertheless was so eager to prove himself; so driven by matters of self esteem, that at times he would emerge, and at times he would >yde. While strolling through the streets of %hristiania, in search of a bit of dope for the purchase, she tells the story of this guy, who was trying to prove himself with such a vengeance; with so much indignation, that he sometimes saddened her. While listening to her tale, you begin to see all the old layers that, through time and effort, you managed to shad, as well as accept the new layers that grew in their place.

You now see &anipulation for what it really is G a tool so crafty; so very useful in life, yet so very harmful for ones own character. 6o often, you realize, we need others to be allowed close enough so as to be able to reflect bac to us that, which we fail to notice in ourselves; to point out the na edness of our own forms of truth. /ver time, those loved ones are also the ones better capable of observing how much we ourselves have changed, for in our own minds eye, the self is too much a form of continuity. You li e who she has become, and so does she. 6he li es the ind of person you have become, and so do you. You are simply luc y to have been given a second chance; an opportunity to renew your friendship; to turn over a new leaf. -hen, her fiancL calls, and she says she needs to go. -herefore, you part ways as friends, and continue strolling on your own for a while, through this part of the city that is said to be a sanctuary for freedom and anarchy. When you return to your hostel, its time to deal with the dope she helped you purchase. -hat was the last you saw of your little Vi ing friend. -he ne(t day, she was out of town, and the day after that, you were already on your way to 6toc holm. 8evertheless, that single days reunion spawned a friendship that has lasted for years. -heres no such thing as islands in the stream of life, and the best one can possibly do is to go with its flow and sincerely try to en$oy whatever comes ones way. -he old +me would have tried to manipulate the stream his way. -he new +me is simply trying to become the stream.