I.II.V.II – Placencia?: Day Two

PLACENCIA? I.II.V.II – DAY TWO 25/09/22 The place I had come to call my ‘safe haven’ quickly stopped being that as my streak of bad luck went on.  At around 1AM, I could hear shouting and screaming coming from the cabaña to my left. Being the observant person that I am (most would describe it as nosy), I took it upon myself […]

I.II.V.I – Placencia?: Day One

PLACENCIA? I.II.V.I – DAY ONE 24/09/22 I woke up bright and early to catch the bus from Hopkins to the intersection outside the town, where I’d get on another one that would lead me to my next destination; Placencia. What followed, instead, is what I like to refer to as a series of unfortunate events. Always the punctual type, I […]

I.II.IV.II – Hopkins: Day Two

HOPKINS I.II.IV.II – DAY TWO 23/09/22 My next adventure took me to the Mayflower Bocawina National Park. Finally – some green, and, most importantly, some time to roam a tropical forest (alone)! When I was in Mexico, I was doing these kinds of things on most days, but here in Belize, it felt like I had been cheating on trees […]

I.II.IV.I – Hopkins: Day One

HOPKINS I.II.IV.I – DAY ONE 22/09/22 The following morning, with a heaviness in my heart, I bid Becca and Oliver farewell. Then tears started flowing as it was Roy’s turn. I could not even begin to comprehend how I had fallen for him so bad in such little time!  We promised we’d see each other again. He’d accompany me to […]

III.II.VII – The Chase

III.II.VII THE CHASE Kathmandu, check. Pokhara, check. And up next was our third and final stop; Chitwan. I might have had no expectations for Nepal, but this I definitely looked forward to. From the little research I had carried out before going to Nepal, this place felt rather synonymous with adventure. Finally! Arriving at the hotel, we were quite… surprised? […]

III.II.VI – Guilty Pleasure

III.II.VI GUILTY PLEASURE Our time in Pokhara was not all spent on fun and games. Once there, we started a clinical placement in emergency medicine at Gandaki hospital. I was particularly excited for this rotation as I had no experience in emergency prior to that, not to mention that emergencies are the coolest thing to study when you’re a student […]

III.II.V – City of Lakes

III.II.V CITY OF LAKES The second leg of our journey involved a super bumpy eight-hour bus ride that took us straight to Pokhara; the City of Lakes. Aptly known as the tourism capital of Nepal, Pokhara is a destination for many avid adventurers seeking to brave the Annapurna Circuit. Though we wouldn’t get to do that, the scenic drive there already […]

III.II.IV – Difference

III.II.IV DIFFERENCE Keep in mind that the universe loves to prove me wrong. Much to my surprise and as busy as we were, we still had plenty of time to roam about and discover the city. And when we were done with orientation, it was finally time for us to roll our sleeves and start our volunteering. After being introduced […]

III.II.III – The Great Divide

III.II.III THE GREAT DIVIDE Over the first week in Nepal, we were kept busy with the orientation program. We were taught some basic Nepali, informed about their customs and told what we were to do. We parted ways with the rest of the group who’d be participating in other programs; mainly construction, female empowerment and teaching, and, as the only […]

III.II.II – Land of the Gods

III.II.II LAND OF THE GODS I might be in love with travelling, but if there’s one thing I hate, it’s long-haul flights. Seriously, hate them with a passion. My nose alternates between being as dry as a fistful of Martian soil and bleeding like a stuck pig, my joints and muscles age by fifty years and my hypothalamus suddenly decides […]