In which part of the universe's body lies Provo?

On Saturday morning I left my home in Cusco, nearly tearing up on the way to the airport at the thought of leaving and not riding down the Avenida de la Cultura again (not until I get back down there, anyway). It is by no means a charming street, it is actually fairly ugly and very noisy, and a few minutes of walking along it makes breathing difficult, not just from the altitude, but rather from the myriad little cars constantly motoring along without regulated emissions. It is funny how you can get attached to a place just because you see it and hear it and smell it and feel it every day for some number of days, and not until you leave and you are abruptly faced with its absence do you realize how much it had really become a part of you. It is like that with Cusco. I was never totally enchanted by the place itself, nor is it necessarily my favorite city, but a bit of it has definitely stuck with me. Somehow I know that I will go back someday. I think that it is just that way with places that really get under your skin.

I finally arrived home late Sunday afternoon. The transit consisted more of waiting around for flights than actually flying, and there was an afternoon in Lima involved, more on that when I get around to it. Luckily nobody seems to enforce carry-on baggage restrictions, since after I checked two stuffed-nearly-to-the-point-of-exploding bags I still had a backpack in similar condition, plus a small purse, and I was lugging around a cajón most of that time.

It is good to be home, but transitions are never easy. I am still getting used to it again. The colors, the rhythm, the flavors, the structures, everything is different and, for the moment, "foreign". I am sure that it will all seem normal again soon, but one thing is for sure: the travel bug in me is alive and well and more restless than ever. I am already itching (no, it is not just the flea(?) bites) to get out and explore again, to see and experience something different. Maybe that is part of why I am making a long drive to Idaho tomorrow, just to turn around and do it again to come back the next day. Maybe there are other reasons, too.

There are a bunch of pictures and some stories that I did not get a chance to share before I left; now that I am back I am hoping to get them up here for you to see, so stay tuned and V, get your comments ready!