The Finale

Tomorrow we fly home. This huge trip has been an incredible experience and it is amazing to see how far we have come (literally). Starting in Chile, moving over into Argentina, and then constantly making our way up towards home. In order to help cope with the end I've made lists of ¨Things I've missed,¨ ¨Things I'm going to miss,¨ ¨Things I've learned,¨ and ¨Some of my favorite moments¨ (This lists are in no particular order)
THINGS I'VE MISSED
- Thick Milkshakes
- My dog
- Weaverstreet
- Saying ¨y'all¨ and being understood
- The local news with Pam Saulsby
- Blueberries
- Bagels
- Seat Belts

THINGS I WILL MISS
- Empanadas
- Being told ¨Que le vaya bien¨
- Hopefully, ¨I've got a feelin¨ by the Black Eyed Peas...unless that song is still played every night
- Beautiful Churches
- Hearing negative stereotypes of rich, fat Americans
- Bunk Beds
- The smell of the bread shops
- Looooong bus trips
- Piropos (cat calls)... not really
- Fruit markets

THINGS I'VE LEARNED
- Lots of Incan ruins are just grain storages
- 45*C = 115*F
- Israelis travel in hordes
- Green and Black olives come from the same tree
- Head cheese is not really cheese
- Walmart owns a grocery store in every country
- Koreans are born with blue butts
- Chicken buses have more reliable schedules than actual bus companies
- Yanif, Shithead, and Loba...three really addicting card games

SOME OF MY FAVORITE MOMENTS
- Sitting in a van, listening to music and talking with the 20 year old driver while we waited for a ferry at 10 at night in Nicaragua.
- Leaving my important bookbag with my passport, traveler's checks, and cash in the bus and getting to yell ¨Sigue el bus¨ to the cab driver in Ecuador
- Wine and bikes tour in Mendoza
- Getting to the crater of El Altar in Ecuador
- Surprising my host family from Amigos in Honduras. They had no idea that we were coming, I felt a little uncomfortable about that, but they still welcomed us in and were overjoyed to have us and kept asking when I was going to come back.
- Traveling through Uyuni and seeing geysers, the salar, and flamingos
- Sailing trip from Cartagena to the San Blas Islands and eating shark
- Getting to meet up with friends and family in Tarija, Cusco, Huanchaco, and San Jose

Well, that's all folks...