Heading South

In about 10 minutes my good friend Ravi is going to give me a ride to the airport and I will be on my way to a 2 1/2 week trip to Peru (Lima, Cuzco, Inca Trail, Puerto Maldonado) and Brazil (Rio de Janeiro). Should be awesome!

I just removed my gold chain from my neck though. I never take this off, so my neck feels naked. I need to get one of those cheap bead necklaces as soon as hit South American soil. The reason I remove it is related to the last time it was off my neck.

It was during my trip to Rio last May. My friends and I were hanging out at on the beach around sunrise after a night out (OK, granted, this is no place to be at sunrise, but vacation plus alcohol equals exploring all parts of this foreign land). Anyway, from out of nowhere, a six year old kid jumps up and snatches the gold chain off my neck. Instinct immediately took over. Because I wear a pendant with the Om symbol and a picture of Lord Ganesha on it, I screamed at the lad, "E meu Cristo," implying that chain is like a cross hanging from my neck.

Amazingly, even the poor who have resorted to crime maintain their strong Catholic faith in this country, and he immediately returned it to me after looking at what he had taken.