Live An Adventure Podcast

If for an instant God were to forget that I am rag doll and gifted me  with a piece of life, possibly I wouldn't say all that I think, but  rather I would think of all that I say. I would value things, not for their worth but for what they mean. I would sleep less, dream more, understanding that for each minute we  close our eyes we lose sixty seconds of light. I would walk when  others hold back. I would wake when others sleep. I would listen when  others talk, and how I would enjoy a good chocolate ice cream! If God were to give me a bit more life, I would dress simply, throw  myself on the earth to face the sun, baring not only my body but also  my soul. My God, if I had a heart, I would write my hate on ice, and  wait for the sunrise. Over the stars I would paint with a Van Gogh  dream a Benedetti poem, and a Serrat song would be the serenade I'd  offer to the moon. With my tears I would water roses, to feel the pain  ...

Have you ever faced a situation in which life seemed to get really complicated? Something happened that made you throw all your plans overboard? In June 2007 I explored Tikal, the  majestic ruins in the middle of the jungle in the north of Guatemala. "Survivor: The Maya Empire" was filmed there in 2005. This was my 5 th visit to Tikal and I loved it as if it had been the first. Just when I was walking back to the parking lot to get the bus back to Flores, it started to rain. I took my cheap but handy plastic poncho out of my bag, put it on and began walking towards the exit of the park, a 10 minute walk. In the evening I decided to call the bus company to confirm my ticket to the Mexican border the next day. I was so excited about spending a few days in Cancun! I looked for my bus ticket and I realized that not only I did not have my tickets, but I did not have my passport, phone numbers, and bank information. NO! I felt like I had been punched really hard in the pit of ...

Live juicy.   Stamp out conformity.  Stay in bed all  day.   Dream of gypsy wagons.  Find snails making  love. Develop an astounding appetite for books. Drink sunsets. Draw out your feelings.  Amaze yourself. Be ridiculous. Stop worrying now. If not now, then when? Make yes your favorite word. Marry yourself. Dry your clothes in the sun. Eat mangos naked. Keep toys in the bathtub. Spin yourself dizzy. Hang upside down. Watch children play. Celebrate an old person. Send a love letter to your self.   Be advanced. Try endearing. Invent new ways to love. Transform negatives. Delight someone. Wear pajamas to a drive in movie. Allow yourself to feel rich without money . Be who you truly are. Believe in everything. You are always on your way to a miracle. The...

One of the writers I admire most is Augusto Monterroso. He was born in Guatemala in 1921 and died in Mexico City in 2003.  Monterroso is often credited with writing the world's shortest story, "El Dinosaurio" ("The Dinosaur"), published in Obras completas (Y otros cuentos). The story reads, in its entirety: Cuando despertó, el dinosaurio todavía estaba allí. "When [s]he awoke, the dinosaur was still there." Carlos Fuentes wrote of Monterroso (referring specifically to The Black Sheep and Other Fables): "Imagine Borges' fantastical bestiary having tea with Alice. Imagine Jonathan Swift and James Thurber exchanging notes. Imagine a frog from Calaveras County who has seriously read Mark Twain. Meet Monterroso."  Another review online: Occasionally one stumbles over a book, without expectations, and finds a small gem -- and wonders how it can have gone unnoticed so long. Monterroso is, of course, not unnoticed. Anyone who reads Span...

After sleeping in the coziest, smallest room with the softest pillow, in a small hostel called Macondo, I feel like writing. I left bolivia 15 days ago  (written July of 2006) to travel for 2 months in Ecuador, Colombia and Venezuela. I am falling in love with Latin America again. A year ago I was considering going back to the US and after much thinking I decided to go South instead of North. I am so glad I did! Ecuador has been simply awesome: walking the colonial narrow streets filled with magnificent buildings in Quito, while pouring rain fell on me! Exploring the deserted beaches of Galapagos where lazy sealions soak up the sun while the young ones swam up to our boat to greet us, playfully circling and jumping out of the water. Wandering around Guayaquil in the old barrio of Peñas I stumbled into the coolest eatery. A family began a business by literally opening their house to sell food, with children running around and a teen daughter with...

After 10 months in my beautiful Guatemala, spending time with my family and directing a small school, I am in Bucharest, Romania where I will be teaching Spanish to grades 1 to 5 for 2 years!!  On August    5th 2010 I flew to Bucharest via Mexico and Frankfurt. M y new school, American International School of Bucharest  http://www.aisb.ro/ , is a world IB school, which means I made it to the major leagues as far as international schools go.  I found a great apartment overlooking a lake only 15 minutes drive from school. AISB has provided me with a blue VW Polo to use during my contract. I've been driving for 2 weeks now, and I am beginning to not need a map to get around town. The teachers and the administration at my school are the best. Everyone has been extremely friendly and helpful. My principal and vice-principal are amazing. It's a pleasure to work with such professionals who are passionate about education. I have colleagues from the US, Can...

If you have only 10 days, you can enjoy the best that Guatemala has to offer. The following itinerary will help you see as much as you can in a short amount of time without running ragged. After all, it’s a vacation. Day 1 Fly into Guatemala City around lunchtime. Take the afternoon to visit the Museo Nacional de Arqueología y Etnología or the Museo Popol Vuh and Museo Ixchel (next door to each other) for a crash course on the Mayan civilization. Enjoy dinner in one of Guatemala City’s excellent restaurants. Days 2–3 Take an early-morning flight out of Guatemala City to Flores, the gateway to the Mayan ruins in Tikal National Park, in the northern Petén department. Tikal is the most famous of Guatemala’s Mayan sites and boasts impressive temple pyramids. Spend all day exploring the ruins and enjoying the sublime jungle environment. You have the option of staying at the park and seeing the sunrise over the rainforest from the top of Temple IV or heading back sou...