Anthems of Noll

We arrived in Taipei after a 18-hour flight, during which time I slept a total of 0 minutes. We'd left Mexico City 2 days earlier and spent less than 24 hours exploring Vancouver and you'd think I'd be too tired to stay awake. But the excitement was stronger than my desire to sleep, so I spent the entire plane ride watching movies and imagining the 8 month adventure we had now embarked on. We spent very little time in Taipei before making our way to Alishan National Park, a picturesque place high up in the mountains, surrounded by clouds, fog and the famous tea plantations. We walked through the paths of what felt like an enchanted forest on a cool misty day and saw trees that were thousands of years old. We discovered a small stall with delicious dumplings and noodles for dinner.  The next morning, we woke up at 4:00 a.m. to hike up to the summit to see the sunrise. The view at the top was breathtaking and we felt a sense of pride knowing that we...

Exactly a year ago, I was on my way to Guanajuato, Mexico to celebrate the Day of the Dead - El dia de los muertos, as they say. We drove through picturesque scenery of mountains, arriving at this colonial town (known as one of the pueblo magico -magical town- of the region) through a dark tunnel, only to come out on the other side to a whole other view. A pueblo magico is a town known for being picturesque, with rich architecture, legends, history, traditions and customs. Guanajuato is definitely a magical town. One of the first buildings that caught our eye was a bright yellow church with dark red trims, Parroquia de Basílica Colegiata de Nuestra Señora de Guanajuato, as well as the entourage of colourful houses stacked on the hills like lego. We visited the mummy museum, where we saw the carefully preserved bodies of inhabitants, including a fetus. Many were still wearing the same clothes as the day they met their fate, hair and jewelry intact and most had a hollow, sunken face wit...

I'm sitting in a coffee shop in the San Salvador airport. I didn't notice the name as I checked the menu and eagerly selected 3 different kinds of pupusas, corn-flour tortillas, filled with: cheese, beans and chicharron. I am writing this post after an extended blogging dry spell, completely leaving out my experiences from living at the Iguana Research and Breeding Station (IRBS) on the Bay Island of Utila in Honduras, and my trip to Nicaragua with fellow FBC intern B and her sis. I have a hard time finding a healthy balance between enjoying being in the moment of my new and exciting surroundings and taking the time to write about these experiences. Maybe one day I will master that art, but in the meantime I am too excited to backtrack to those stories in the past so that I can share what's happening in the present. I am in Central America. Again. Just when I thought living 6 months in Honduras would satisfy this constant urge to be immersed in Latino culture, I made the...

I realize my previous posts have been a bit pessimistic, critical and not painting Honduras in the best light. Aside from the two assaults and difficulty in making local friends here, this really is a beautiful country. Before starting the Christmas holidays I spent several of my weekends outside of La Ceiba to get away from the city. There are many places to see nearby, including Cayos Cochinos, only 45 minutes away by boat from the Sambo Creek beach and with some of the most turquoise and clear waters I have ever seen. I stayed on the island of Chachahuete with a Garifuna community, in a simple cabin just a few feet from the shore. I loved hearing the waves so close by at night. The coral reef is impressive and I saw lots of types of coral (brain, fan...) and fish snorkeling right off the shore. We asked one of the fishermen Naun to take us to the larger island Cayo Mayor so we could go for a hike and look for the endemic Hog Island boa...we saw three! The following weekend I we...

I was hoping to write a blog post on a more positive note than my last one this time but, as luck would have it, last night I was the victim of another robbery at gun-point. This is my second in 1.5 weeks (and counting?). I'm not sure whether to laugh or cry about the situation, or both, I just know that I have so many mixed emotions right now it's hard not to be pessimistic about my time so far in La Ceiba. When my boss from FBC first took me aside and asked me whether I was really sure I wanted to go to Honduras, because it is a dangerous place and very different from Mexico or Costa Rica, considering that I am "a softie" (a direct quote that I refuse to agree with as I stand by my argument that my reaction to e-coli poisoning in the water I was informed was safe to drink being more violent than others' is NOT a reflection of my personal strength), I was offended. Did she think I wasn't capable of living under difficult conditions? I've lived abroad for...

I'm starting this post on a bit of a sour note because, as of two hours ago, I am phoneless and $40 poorer. Yes, it finally happened. I was with A and M, who are visiting from out of town, and we were on our way to the Expatriados bar when a man on a bicycle approached us, flashing the gun he had tucked into his belt, told us not to scream and to give him everything we had. My first thought was: "Awww, shit." Ever since arriving in Honduras, I feel like I've been living a game of 'Gotcha!' every day, where I'm constantly looking over my shoulder, paranoid that someone is out there to get me. If you don't know this game, I should tell you it's very fun to play with friends but not in real-life as a daily threat. The rules are as follows: someone has your name as their "victim" and this person cannot "get" you unless it is just the two of you, with no witnesses. In general, I try to make sure that when I am walking, there is more ...

This is my fourth week in Honduras and my placement here in La Ceiba is taking me a while to adjust. I have a small room, which is fine because I survived the woods in New Brunswick! I think I would sleep fine if it weren't for all the noise all. the. time: the crying baby and barking chow-chows next door, along with the loud traffic. I would close my windows but it gets so hot and stuffy in my room. Lately it's been cooler because it's the rainy season which is nice, except the streets are flooded. Someone on their bike the other day was riding in water halfway up to their tire! I am so glad I brought my boots with me (best $30 I ever spent at Canadian Tire). One thing I might complain about is that my work could be a bit more laid back...I live with my supervisor Juan Diego who's from Spain and away from his wife and son so works all the time to keep himself distracted I think. I wish I could be as excited as he is for me to go through 3 of the Honduras education ...

It's official. I've entered into the "culture shock" phase of my experience here in La Ceiba. I'm able to recognize this change because I am aware of the 4 different stages of one's experience abroad in a culture  with which they are unfamiliar, including: - the "honeymoon" stage: where everything is new, exciting and overall great - the "culture shock" stage: where everything isn't as great as it first seemed, you start to notice little (or big) things that are not "normal" in your own culture, or that you're not used to having to deal with back home - the "negotiation" stage: where you start to accept the differences in your new culture and try to embrace them as contributing to your unique experience, while starting to create a new niche for yourself - the "mastery" stage: where you've finally gotten into your "groove," you feel like you know your new home quite well and are confid...

My first week  at CREDIA, el Centro Regional de Documentación e Interpretación Ambiental, has been a very full one. So far, I've helped my boss JD with the revision of a chapter in the informe, or report, that will be sent to the EU to prove that their funds have, in fact, been used to develop beneficial environmental projects. The office space that I share with my coworkers is gorgeous, surrounded by a lush garden with avocado, mango and mangosteen trees, along with many other tropical plants. We've already taken advantage of the papaya tree in our garden to make smoothies and juices. I love having such easy access to fresh fruit and knowing exactly where they came from. It reminds me of FBC's community shared agriculture (CSA) garden, where we could gather all the ingredients we needed for the meal we were about to prepare. It's too bad they don't have any kale here, as I was starting get used to the idea of having the leafy super-vegetabl...

October is one of my favourite months of the year. I love the cool air, the changing red, yellow, orange and green colours of the leaves and the pixelated blend they create in the distant landscape. This year was special. Once again, I got to celebrate my dad and sister's birthdays at the same time. While last year we were in France having rabbit, foie gras, cheese and wine, this year's sushi and pizza in Montreal was just as memorable, if not more, because this time we were at "home," not on the go in a far away country. Apple-picking and baby goat-catching are also fond memories. I loved wearing my fall jacket, newly-crochet'd hat and llama wool gloves, especially because I knew that I could trade them off for T-shirts, a fedora and sandals within the next 48 hours. Now that I am in my new bungalow home in La Ceiba, I am wishing I could go back to a place where I didn't have to sit half-naked in my room with no fan while peeling my limbs from my bedsheet...

OK, blog, it's you, me and the world. Not to be down on myself but 6 posts in 2 years is less than impressive! The real truth behind my lacking updates is that I genuinely forget that I have a blog, which is quite sad because it has such great potential for me to share my travel experiences, my thoughts in general, and hopefully be of some inspiration to a reader somewhere out there in cyberspace. Ever since my 5-month-long Euro trip ended in March, I have kept busy holding administrative jobs in a field completely unrelated to my degree. Don't get me wrong. I learned lots about things like file sorting and processing, the procedure for medical retirement and pension buyback applications, which was all very interesting in its own way, but I have not had the chance to directly apply what I have studied in school (neoliberalism, environmental change, exploitation of natural resources, etc.) until right now. Since late July, I have been living and working at a demonstration an...

So it seems that I have a looooot of trouble taking the time to write about my travel experiences. I feel like there's so much I want to say, in so much detail, that I have no idea where to start. I feel overwhelmed and, in turn, I don't write anything at all, which is the both the easiest and the worst thing you can do as a traveller who intends to document her adventures. Oh well, better late than never, right? I've been in Europe for almost 4 months now and looking back, I have done and seen a lot of things. I have been to Edinburgh for the first time, where the architecture and landscape was beautiful. While I was visiting in late November, there was a Christmas market set up, filled with German holiday specialties including marzipan, gingerbread cookies, a vegetarian pasta called Spaetzle with the consistency of dumplings and a heavenly cheesiness...You could also get waffles, mulled wine, chocolate pastries filled with whipped cream that I later learned were call...

These first few weeks of my trip have been a continuous learning experience, about different cultures and customs but also about myself. Since arriving in France on September 26th, I have seen many quaint towns in the outskirts of Clermont, such as Orcival, St Saturnin and St Nectaire (the latter gives its name to the deliciously stinky local cheese - more on that later). I have also climbed the Puy de Sancy, I have gone to Collioure in the south of France and I have visited Lyon. While the more local sights have been interesting to get a sense of the area's history, (who would have known 10th century churches would still be standing in such remote locations?) I have also been fascinated by its geography. Volcanoes aren't usually the first thing that come to mind when you think of France but, surprisingly (to me at least), the province of Auvergne is home to a chain of these, all dormant. Seeing as I love to travel, embarking on this adventure to Europe after I graduate...

This past April, I obtained a Bachelor of Arts (honours) in Geography. It was one of the most emotional, yet satisfying days of my life. My graduation marked the end of my days as an undergraduate student, where I was constantly exposed to stimulating topics and inspiring people. At the same time, it symbolised my ability to overcome the hardships of my final year in school, not without the help and support of friends and family. Perhaps I found myself overwhelmed by my fourth year because I was the victim of Reverse Culture Shock (it really does exist!), where nothing could make this year as good as the previous term I had spent in Costa Rica. I had learned about this tropical country's environmental paradise first-hand, had met amazing people in my study abroad program and had almost perfected my Spanish-speaking skills. This unforgettable experience had allowed me to learn more about myself than I had ever imagined, and I didn't feel like anything back home could possibly li...

Today was a good day, not because it was sunny outside or because the snow is finally starting to melt, although those things did contribute to making it a memorable one, but because I made it that way. Well, to a certain extent. Today was a day where I opened myself to all the wonderful opportunities, experiences and memories that this new day had to offer. It started off with a scrumptious shower, the kind that takes so long it makes the environmentally-conscious cringe, including myself (I'm such a hypocrite). I figure if I only shower every couple of days, the time I spend taking the odd shower sort of evens out and becomes not so significant, or so I like to think. Then, I made whole-wheat pancakes. Okay, I lied. My Dad made the batter for the pancakes (love ya) but I put them in the pan and did a darn good job of it too. They were perfect - golden brown on the outside and moist and border-line undercooked, just the way I like them. They were delicious. Rather, I think they we...

My friends and I made it to San Juan del Sur, Rivas, Nicaragua by 2pm on Saturday, March 27th 2010. We had left San Jose, Costa Rica the previous night at 11pm and it was supposed to have taken us 6 hours to get here. I think the fact that it's Semana Santa and about half of Costa Rica is populated with Nicaraguans made it so that we came on the busiest weekend of the year. We had to take a taxi from the town the bus dropped us off in- who knows what it was called, they were terrible at communicating what was going on- to San Juan del Sur. It took us 20 scary minutes to arrive as our taxi driver was very nice but slightly crazy. Along the way, we witnessed a dog almost get run over but with the luck of fate slipped right between the wheels of the one car and just had its tail grazed by the next before making it to the other side of the road alive! It was quite a disturbing but relieving sight. The town we finally made it to, however, was well worth the wait. All five of us are stay...

I arrived in San Jose, Costa Rica at 7:40pm. Since it was night time, it was hard to tell what was about to be my new home for the next three months looked like. For some odd reason, I didn't get the butterflies-in-my-stomach feeling of arriving in a new place. While I had thought I had made it to my destination in plenty of time, I waited in line to get through customs for the next 45 minutes. I was supposed to meet an ISA representative at the airport by 8pm a the latest so that they could pick me up and take me to Veritas University where my new host family would then bring me to my new home. ISA had said that if anyone showed up after 8pm, they would have to find their own way into town. It looked like that was what I was going to have to do. As I stepped out of the airport's automatic doors, a tall, tanned, dark-featured man asked me where I was going: "¿Adonde va?", to which I responded in broken Spanish that I was looking for an ISA employee: "Busco un emp...