mymidlifegapyear: Conquering El Baul

Sarah is a softly spoken, petite 50 year old with a British accent, but she hasn’t been living there for years. In fact she has been travelling, almost constantly, for over a decade. She has lived with a tribe in Malaysia, trekked most of the world’s adventure spots, climbed some of the highest mountains and lived in Mexico, Australia, Cuba and the United States. She is also passionate about salsa dancing.

I am listening to her speaking about one of her mountain ascents. She is describing the exhilaration you feel as you are rewarded with a stunning view after a hard climb, and the camaraderie you share with fellow travellers, and there is a part of me that envies her. Then I am reminded of the reality (freezing cold, long periods without proper showers, sharing confined spaces, carrying heavy packs, limited food options) and my envy quickly dissipates. Beside I have my own mountains to climb.

I set off early for what I think is short walk to El Baul, a nearby hill which I have been told has a good view of Xela and decide to practice my Spanish. Ola! Que tenga buen dia (hi hope you have a good day) I call out to people that I pass, and most seem delighted and respond enthusiastically Gracias, tambien or ugulamente. Thanks, the same to you.

As I climb higher the air becomes cleaner and soon I am walking among tall pines and looking down to the vast sprawl that is Xela. It is Sunday so there are more church bells ringing than usual and more fireworks. (by now I am used to them going off every day early in the morning and late and night and don’t jump thinking it is gun fire!). Soon all I can hear is the occasional car horn, the rumble of distant traffic, the odd cock crowing and dog barking and my footfall on the pathway.

I am starting Escuela de Espanol (Spanish school) tomorrow morning at 8am. I have committed to 5 hours a day for one week and I want to make the best of the opportunity and focus on vocabulary that will be helpful/useful when I am at the Red Cross. So I prepare some phrases and questions for my teacher in the morning. I am due to meet the staff at Red Cross tomorrow afternoon and hang out at the clinic they run and perhaps even speak with any willing stressed patients or volunteers, so my Spanish will need to be much better than it is right now. Some days I can barely get a word out and others I can converse with relative ease. There must be a lot of activity in my neural networks connected to language learning at the moment!

I stop to look at the view down below and try to pick out the main square and I notice I am out of breath. The climb is higher and further than I thought but I am enjoying being out in nature again and feeling my heart beating in my chest. Although she is only a small mountain, she is making me work. I suspect that’s the beauty of climbing any mountain. The more you get to know it, the more it reveals itself to you and the higher you climb the more clearly you can see the world around you and yourself.

Hasta luego

Mon x