(seesawing our worries away by the strait of Magellan)

The Mantra

Things have a way of getting worked out. That’s the mantra I’m beginning to adopt. This fact became evident as Bjorn and I waited in the Santiago airport to board our flight to Punta Arenas. Somewhere between having to go to the bathroom and thinking about the exquisite taste of macadamia nuts were thoughts of what would happen when we stepped off the plane. No hotel reservations, no open arms waiting at baggage claim, no safety nets. Just packs on our backs and the exhilarating uncertainty of a blank slate.

As I sat there at gate 21 in the Santiago airport, an elderly lady leaned over and asked for a piece of gum. Being a gumaholic I naturally have several packs within reach at all times and gladly forked one over for her enjoyment (I’m a generous gum fiend). She seemed to be visibly happy with the particular flavor which led to an attempted conversation  that consisted of broken English on one side, broken Spanish on the other and wild gesticulations to fill the gaps. Bjorn speaks Spanish much better than me, but I can sometimes understand more and our gesticulation skills are roughly equal so our communication skill-sets were somewhat complimentary in that respect. After a few minutes of this vastly amusing interpretation exercise we had gathered that the couple lived in Punta Arenas. On hearing this our eyes lit up and we proceeded to procure as much information as possible that could aid us in our quest to find the traveler’s 3 basic needs: food, lodging , and transportation. At this point the couple discovered that we didn’t have much of a set plan regarding any one of these three details. Without hesitation they offered to give us a ride to town and drop us at a hostel they knew of, all for the price of a pack of gum and a few smiles….things get worked out.

Now I’m sitting in Ushuaia, a city proudly touted as el fin del mundo (the end of the world) with sights pointed north. I have a bus ticket and warm bed for the night and as for my plans beyond that, refer to the above stated mantra.

-weaver of tales