Dare to Experience

by Francisco Perpuli (Mexico)

A leap into the unknown Mexico

The anxiety is always there. No matter how far or how adventurous, travelling is somehow always challenging in some way, shape or form. That is at least what I kept thinking to myself on that long journey through the Baja California peninsula. The road was imposing with its beauty, vast and majestic. Yet a countless number of sharp turns and potential abysmal falls made it oddly deceiving as well. We were headed to the historic capital of the missions in the Californias, Loreto. As we wound through one of the bigger towns on the way, we were convinced by the locals on one of our stops to let Loreto wait and go straight for San Carlos, a small port by the Pacific Ocean. I, unlike the rest of my friends, was quickly taken by surprise by the sudden change of plans, even though we had previously agreed on changing any stop at any time. After another hour or so, we arrived to a set of villas by the coast. One of our friends suggested we stop there as his uncle managed said villas. “We are not that close”, he warned us. Needless to say, the negotiation didn’t go far and the deal we got offered was surprisingly disappointing. We decided to move further into the town and look for a reasonably priced place to stay. Eventually, we came across a bold sign “RESTAURANT & HOTEL.” I gazed strongly into the sign only to find a name. “Lore.” Who’s Lore? I wondered. My mind made me doubt everything. Once we parked, our de facto negotiator stepped out of the van, entering the restaurant. After a while he returned triumphant, finally we had a place to stay for the night. I brought my things inside and watched as the rest did the same. One after the other they hurried moving their belongings. Backpacks, sleeping bags, disorder: all thrown into the room. I could see and feel the complete lack of control. What began as an innocent graduation trip now felt like the most challenging odyssey I’d ever face. After a short but very deserved rest we went for a humble exploration. I grabbed my backpack and my camera and joined the others outside. We arrived just in time for the sunset to embellish our walk. The coastal breeze made a significant relief as we struggled with the heat. Yet with such pleasurable conditions we wondered where everybody had gone. The town was rather unsurprisingly empty but still, something felt odd. Only the local church appeared to house some of the townspeople. I could only find peace in my camera. With each new click the crippling worries began to fade. Perhaps looking through the visor allowed me to see things differently, convincing me that whatever was afflicting me was simply an angle and not the whole picture. Cars slowed down to get a better view of us. One girl even began recording with her cellphone but as soon as we noticed, she raised her window and the car fled rapidly. The rest of the locals either gave us disapproving looks or completely disregarded our presence. Looking at the honest confusion in the rest of my friend’s faces brought me certain relief. Whatever they were experiencing, I was no longer alone with my thoughts. When we returned it took a while before everybody got ready to sleep while we bantered incessantly. Not knowing what to make of our weird occurrences, we laughed it off and enjoyed the whole picture. Our adventure was just beginning and although I was fairly aware of my irrational angst, I reasoned myself to sleep. Things are what we make of them, I thought. A lonely town could be a bad omen of what empty happiness we were about to experience in our trip, or it quite well could be a great opportunity to take a risk and discover, dare to experience. I took my humble passions and canalized them into whatever simple bliss I could obtain. Thinking that perhaps, eventually my fears would gradually fade away only to let the joy and excitement of travelling reign freely. And so they did.