Drop-in tourism and privilege

Mrs. Ramirez on her family's organic vegetable farm along the Xochimilco canal. The land gets passed from generation to generation and is strictly regulated. She is shown here with a photo of her beloved dog Max who had passed. She would put his photo on the altar created for Dia de los Muertos celebrations that were upcoming when we were there.

I recently returned from Mexico City, Puebla and Oaxaca. I've wanted to go to Oaxaca for a long time. In fact, it was so long ago that I wanted to go there that as the years have piled on, I'd stopped wanting to go there if that makes any sense. 

Then while exploring possibilities for a short vacation off the Intrepid Travel website, it just sort of came up as a possibility that fit the time, the schedule, and the cost of what I was willing to spend for an eight-day vacation. I had not been to Mexico in 27 years when in 1997 I went through the Yucatan Peninsula to Cancun, Playa del Carmen, Merida, (Chichen Itza), Tulum, Palenque and San Cristobal de las Casas, Chiapas.

Maybe it's age. Maybe it's travel experience, but this time, more than last, I felt more relaxed once I'd arrived, the culture was vibrant, the people were friendly and I would consider returning for a longer time period, at least to Oaxaca, and more specifically to the Indigenous villages that surround it which they call Pueblos Mancomunados, six small mountain communities open to visitors. Google Translate helped.

It never ceases to amaze me, possibly because I don't travel all that frequently to overseas destinations, that it's possible to be sitting in my sedate little apartment one day and the very next be in Mexico City in Frida Kahlo's house and gardens or riding a camel in the Sahara Desert, or cycling around on a small island across from Phnom Penh, or riding down a world-famous and protected canal (Xochimilco) in a strange little boat powered by a young guy with a pole as his only propeller and decorated for what was the upcoming Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) festivities, in a foreign environment impossible to have imagined just 24 hours before.

The privilege of "dropping in" as an international tourist is astounding. Each time I set foot on a plane, I do think about the environment. Intrepid Travel uses local guides and tries to give back to the places where they do their tours, including through their Foundation, and they have a B-Corp rating related to social and environmental responsibility.

I consider my footprint to be pretty small. I don't own a car. I belong to a car cooperative, Modo. I walk seven minutes to work when I'm not working from home. 

But, life is short and there are more international destinations I hope to get to and obviously, I'm not alone. From January to November 2023, Canadian residents returned from 43.4 million trips abroad representing 83.9% of the pre-pandemic level from 2019. (Stats Can)

R.I.P. Don Mellor

I heard that Don Mellor, a long-time Salt Spring resident, died in September at the age of 81.

This reminded me that I met Don in the parking lot of Moby's pub when I first arrived on Salt Spring in October 2008.

I didn't know him well but I interacted with him enough to feel sad when I heard of his passing. He was very fit and I always imagined him living into his 90s.

Rest in Peace, Don.  

Here's the blogpost I wrote when I first met him. Karin Jones and I went sailing with him on the L'Orenda one day in the spring of 2009.

Salt Spring Island's American sister: Vashon Island

I first went to Vashon Island, which is a 22-minute ferry ride out of downtown Seattle from Pier 50, in 2018. The water taxi only runs on weekdays and it may just be an experiment at this point, but otherwise, you can take the Fauntleroy Ferry off the island and arrive in West Seattle in less than 10 minutes and then catch the Rapid C line back into downtown Seattle and vice versa.

Because I like to travel on the cheap, which is never cheap anymore, I stayed at the American Hostel Hotel in the International District, in a single room which, even though it's a hostel still costs almost $100 US a night. I like this hostel because it's super organized, close to transportation, and clean with strict rules about not allowing guests who aren't checked in.

The first time I went to Vashon Island I stayed with Sally at her super cute yellow house near Dockton on Maury Island which connects to Vashon by road. At that time, she had her beloved beagle, Elinor, and had just adopted a Bernese Mountain Dog puppy named Daisy who was super cute.  Sally was very hospitable so it was nice to see her again for coffee at one of the island's coffee shops called Minglement or the Vashon Island Coffee Roasterie, during this visit.

This time I stayed in a more than 100 year old Inn called Marjesira that was apparently built before there were roads on the island. At one time it was a country store. It's now owned by a woman who has lived on island for more than 38 years. On my way over, I met a woman who has lived here for 50 years. I feel like there are some long time islanders and then some new ones who are exploring their dreams, renovating old houses that will scare them by emptying their piggy banks to the very last penny.

Here's the thing about islands like Vashon and Salt Spring. I'll give you just one example of old world goodness.

I had been to the bookstore and bought two books. A Mary Oliver book on poetry and a book called Wanderers: A History of Women Walking.  While waiting for the 118 bus on a bench, a very friendly guy sat down and because he was so chatty, when I got up to get on the bus, I was distracted and left my books on the bench. It wasn't until I got back to Marjesira that I realized I'd left my books somewhere. I decided to put a note on the Vashon Island Facebook page and within minutes of posting that,  a woman sent me a message saying she had picked them up. We arranged for her to drop them back off at the bookstore where I'd purchased them, so I could get them back proving that Facebook can be useful and that of course there are still honest people in the world.

Because I didn't have a car, I didn't get to see the 20 foot Thomas Dambo troll near the Pt. Robinson Lighthouse.

I went to the Dragon's Head Cidery and although I'm not really a cider person, I did get a tasting and had a delicious appetizer for lunch of hummus, watercress, baked pumpkin seeds, braised red onion and pita chips. Loved the taste of those combinations. I also stopped by Pop Pop, and spoke with the very friendly owner/bartender who was super knowledgeable about craft beers and even has a refrigerator full of beers just labelled "weird beer." They sell wine there as well and non alcoholic drinks. And real food like their teriyaki chicken.

If you're in Seattle, it's a quick trip to Vashon and back for a daytrip to the island if you are so inclined. You can even rent an e-bike there. 

And if you're a Vashon Islander, you need to visit Salt Spring, your Canadian sister island.