All Roads Lead to Roma

Laval, Quebec, May of 1989. Most of our 6th grade class is gathered on this Friday evening to a classmate’s dance party. Of course, after a few rock songs leading up to the first slow song of the evening (think Mini Vanilli, Midnight Oil, Bon Jovi ), Love Bytes by Def Leppard finally kicks in. This is the significantly charged moment that we all have been waiting for… It matters little with which lady you will be dancing with on the 4th, 5th or whateverth song of the evening, the first one is of uppermost importance. It has the double function of purposely showing your interest to the young girl while publicly exhibiting your interest to all your classmates : this is the core definition of what f**king intense means I approach her from the other side of the room… I can feel my palms sweating, my heart beating, my respiration rapid af… Yet I still manage to push on through, as my daydreams directed me towards this instant for months/years now… She is the prettiest, the most popular girl of our school. Of Italian heritage, she shines with this exotic and lovely vibe. Not only is she gorgeous like the whole God damn world and like f**king life itself, but she is kind, socializes with everyone, smiles all the time… We have developed a kindred relationship over the the phone the past couple of months, as we speak on a nightly basis, oftentimes for hours on end This came to fruitition when I figured out that it was ok to phone her, even as my trembling hands were stating otherwise… All cumulated to this moment…

"When you make love, do you look in the mirror?
Who do you think of, does he look like me?
Do you tell lies and say that it's forever (...)

(...) I don't wanna touch you too much baby
Cause makin' love to you might drive me crazy
I know you think that love is the way you make it
So I don't wanna be there when you decide to break it
No!"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pj8NfRvpr4Y

I am halfway across the room, stomaching up all the courage that I can gather when I see the inevasible : my best friend - AKA most popular/handsome guy in our school - beats me to her She smiles at him, accepts his hand, and vanishes within his bodily caress/the lyrics of the love song… I sink. Like fracking literally sink - or symbolically perhaps, as I don't f**king know!!! - as the floor drops underneath me, absorbs me... My dreams are shattered, my heart is cracked wide open and left cruelly for anyone to see/dissect :eek I still gather enough strength to retreat - or crawl, perhaps… - to the washroom where I tear to pieces my carefully constructed love letter that I had written for my Italian Goddess... I watch as the broken words are flushed away and I would go on to never speak of this moment to anyone.





The thing about touristic destinations, is that they are full with fracking tourists Makes sense, right 2 + 2 equals…. But this equation becomes less symetrical in a place like Rome where most of the attractions lie at approximately 10 minutes from each other. So you get space to roam. To f**king breathe yo





I have been blessed to visit monuments/buildings that are larger than life during this trip Again : I am from America, and even if Montreal is nothing to frown upon in terms of sheer beauty, Europe is simply another beast all together





I did not get to indulge in some fine and remarkable dining, as, for some reason, the restaurants I randomly ended up in, didn’t offer more than your standard decent pizza/pastas.





Peace

The Reflection of Romance

Florence happened to be one of my favourite cities of this journey (along with Prague and Sevilla). I guess one of the big charms of European cities, is to stroll around, let the beauty/energy of the place sink in, to then sit down and enjoy a lovely meal All stuff that I love to indulge in and that were plentifold in Florence yo





I guess that only having 2 days in each of my stops in Italy - you know, like normal tourists do - made me that much more productive. I still managed to grind 5h a day while spending about the same amount visiting and indulging.





Not sure exactly what the quality of life/finances/social activities of the locals are, as I am but a fleeting presence, a mere picture erasing itself... out of focus, even…





I will most likely never come back to these Italian stops (there are so MANY places to visit in Europe), so it is nice to be of passage, as brief as it was





Peace

Leaning Tower

Next on the itinerary is Pisa, because towers, you know I guess that I have been spoiled lately as, as charming as this place may be, I just do not get this transcendental-goosebumps-I-am-small-af humbling sensation





Nonetheless, wandering around is of course a delight, even if that otherworldly Italian meal still remains elusive...





Wintertime or not, I am not the only tourist roaming around





I do apologize for the promptness/precipitateness of these posts, but am falling quite behind... I shall also come back to a usage of present tense as opposed to past participate, as I feel the latter lacks in terms of the vicarious effect/first person experience...





Peace

Florence is epic, one of my favorite places in Europe.

Down the (Poker?) Hill

What better place then Romania AKA the country where I got my first Hendon Mob flag 14 months ago - ehhhhh yeah - to turn my 2019 around with a solid score, right Not that this year's results are down the gutter by any means, but a mid 5 digit bink would sure be sweet as fracking hell, would it not




Sinaia, as seen from the chairlift of the ski hill


The whole ordeal of selecting Sinaia as a location, was for the access to the ski hill. The TD's also delayed the starting times of all tournaments to past 15:00, thus liberating all the daylight hours for the players to indulge in outdoorsy stuff yo





This was nice and all, but I had other plans in mind : to conquer the whole f**king world, both on the virtual and live felt yo





The virtual felt binkage easily went my way as I handily won the bi-monthly rakerace (3.1k) ; the 2nd place opponent seemed more preoccupied with zooming down the slopes then putting on a fight ; kids The Main Event (almost) went as smoothly : I brought my A+ game, got away with murderous bluffs a few times... but alas, making it to Day3 will never be sufficient if you never get once AA or KK during that 3 day span or, more importantly, if you do not get your 75-25%, 50-50% hands to hold up in the critical late stages of the tourney Nonetheless, it was a blast A decent score. And lest not forget : making deep exciting runs in random picturesque parts of the world, is a tremendous opportunity yo





Yeah man, I loved Florence and it rapidly became one of my favourite cities of this trip along with Sevilla, Barcelona, Prague and Zagreb (the upcoming post)


Peace

Zagreb

It took me a while to decide upon my destination post-Romania given that my visa for the Schengen Area 90 was rapidly expiring, yet I still wanted to expand as much as possible my European journey before hitting the icy cold Canadian soil A few options popped up at first : the sunny coast of Morocco for, you know, good weather, beaches and - ehhhh - pretty ladies ; Ukraine for some of the classiest ladies to walk this earth, minus the warm weather, that is ; or Croatia, a country I still wanted to investigate more...

My buddy from Montreal (that also has the EU citizenship) had strongly recommended to check out Zagreb and it all it took was a simple stroll in the Old City to feel instantly at ease over here





Cathedrals. A myriad of alluring patios. Magnificent buildings. What is there not to like about Zagreb, right





I have always been intrigued about this part of the world, namely because of Emir Kusturica, that managed to instil this fantasy-magic intake in pretty much all of his audience through his movies : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JNtTJTJY6c4





For us outsiders, perhaps the Yugoslavian rupture was but a mere ripple effect of the dissolvement of the USSR stronghold into 7 distinct countries... And well, tbh, I am still not sure how to cognitively approach this part of the world, as I have been forever tainted by the cinematographic lenses of Emir Kusturica enchanting realm... All I can safely state, is that Croatians have been the friendliest (by far) people of my European passage yo





Peace

I forgot to post last month the last Dubrovnik segment of my 2019 European stint, so will do so in the next hour or so... I am presently in downtown Calgary, running around for last minute errands before embarking anew on a Peruvian journey that might (or might not...) see me unexpectedly spending most of my time in Lima. I am seeking some sort of stability, so to be surrounded by all these elements that I love - namely a ton of splendid restaurants, a wonderful language in Spanish, a poker scene, a vipassana community, tennis and Bball courts, cinemas, the beach, lovely parks/hangout spots and interesting women -, should largely make up for the hustle and bustle of big cities that normally sucks all the juices out of my soul

I am not sure to what extent this thread will be active given that I try (recently, at least...) to only update it when I hit a new city/country, but when factoring in that the travel bug inhabits me like a possessed soul , it should still be fairly often yo...


Peace

King’s Landing

When the dart swirled around in between Morocco and Croatia before hitting bullseye the latter on the map, I figured that I would fly into Zagreb and go down the coast while stopping to a few destinations along the way, right… The problem is - ehhhh, how shall I put this… - I am f**king tired of moving around So instead I decided to set my mind on Dubrovnik, hopped on the 9h bus ride with the intention of visually soaking in the delights of the Croatian coast, but… my body had plans of its owns when it decided that half of this trip would be a snoozefest





Nonetheless, the comforting sound of the bus engines combined with the magnificent landscapes, always remain quite enjoyable for yours truly

Dubrovnik is definitely a stunning little city with numerous jaw dropping vantage points, the problem is, I am a bit tired of this luxurious nomadic tourism… Something about staying (alone) in expensive hotels/apartments while eating out in fracking pricey overrated touristic restaurants has lost its appeal. Don’t get me wrong, I could not fathom living without some sort of travelling going on, but lowering my expenses has now once again become a priority, especially since all these common touristic destinations have lost some of its initial glitter…





After all, the goal is to have an exit plan for the game of Pokerz not too far down the road, right, not prolong extensively its length by constantly spending da monies like no tomorrow





I am presently in Calgary (after a 3 day stint in Montreal) and will embark on a 3 week meditation journey starting Wednesday. My flights/hotels are already booked for Lima, but given that I have already blogged about these 3 destinations in the past (and plan on spending a few months in Lima), I should once again be posting sparsely ITT, albeit with more focus and editing, like normal.





Be happy Y’all,

Peace

A Place Called Home

St-Denis Street, Montreal, January of 2002. A new year, a new beginning… The initial version of my life plan did not foresee me being back so soon, digging up my French roots in Quebec after a brief 2 year stint flourishing away from the family nest and all... But alas, fatigue has invaded my soul, thus prying me to nestle in a place I can call home. Or at least tucked within the security and stability of the 4 white walls of an apartment

The thing is, I forgot that the city never sleeps : on the far right of my room, my window oversees the (forever) busy principle arc that is St-Denis... Cars are constantly roaring by, even at 3am ffs It acts as a perpetual reminder of the omniscience of Babylon that in a glance can pierce through the soul of an early 20s fellow, easily locate that deep-rooted weakness and grab it, squeeze it, crush it like a fracking prey

Montreal, c'est ta faute. Je t’aime trop c’est pour ca (RIP Dede)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y9zXSp1uFzc

"Oh why oh why do I feel so f**king depressed Get me out of here, get me the f**k out of here ”





After spending the majority of the past 25 years on the road - I kid you not -, I find myself once again in the dire search of some stability… At least for now. And the various factors of primo, wanting to pursue my Spanish learning ; segundo hot weather and beaches ; and tertio, an online encounter with a lady friend - - seduced me back towards Lima, of all places This said, this metropolitan city does have all the ingredients to make a perfectly enticing recipe if sprinkled accordingly and in the right qualities yo, starting with the comfort of a cozy apartment in a tranquil location Finding such luxury within a city inhabited by 9 million+ peeps does not come easily, but San Isidro AKA the financial district does have such households





It feels great to be here. Like really fracking amazing Natural. In tune. Part of it is those Latino tunes floating around in the Live Venue clubs or Reggaeton bars… Or the gracious sound of espanol, forever poetic and lively… Or the luscious curvy women fuelled by an insatiable desire… Or access to da live pokerz in the numerous casinos, the movies in English/Spanish in the cinemas, the myriads of otherworldly restaurants, or a ton of unsuspecting activities - ayahuasca anyone , or stuff like paragliding, checking out the city from the top of the mountain, going to the zoo, bball or tennis, etc. and etcetera





I have booked my AirBnB until the end of May after which I will either : A) be extending my stay in the metropolitan city ; B) going travelling to Iquitos (ayahuasca in the jungle), Arequipa and a few other Peruvian destinations that I failed to visit last year ; or C) go play a series in Santiago, Chile (700USD$ ME, 2.3k HR (both reentries)) and visit a couple of countries from therefore... I am not yet sure and time will tell, but perhaps more significantly, how things turn out with a lady friend I just met...





Be well folks

Dubnjoy,

Good to hear from you again.

It is strange, isn't it, how the place you're from, has a ton of influence on you and how you turn out.

But, for many of us, it's not really home in that sense of "I feel at home" here.

Good luck on your quest, hope you're able to find what you're looking for at some point.

Southern Pastures

As a Canadian kid growing up in glacial winter conditions, you come to envision the Tropics as this exotic paradise. You know, this faraway land where pure happiness is possible... You dream of the promise of palm trees… Of the crashing comforting sounds of the oceanic waves… Of the distant pink sunsets that die a beautiful death at the horizon… Of warmth, star-fuelled evenings and majestic sunrises…

It is not as if Lima had suddenly stolen a page from Canadian winters, but greyish had become the days with the sun that much more timid to sneak out of its hiding… And one thing that I cannot still wrap my head around, is why oh why do all the cars have to honk until the end of times when they are ineluctably stuck in traffic, thus making it that much worse for everyone that is unfortunately enough to have ears for miles around… So anyhow, when things did not pan out as intended with my lady friend, I promptly booked a flight, jumped on the airplane and headed up the coast destination beachtime yo





The ultimate goal is to turn inland towards the jungle to Tarapoto and Iquitos where I will be doing an Ayahuasca Journey, but in the meantime, I just wanted to hear smoothing sound of crashing waves from my balcony.





Huanchaco is not a tropical paradise nor is it my first time here, but when you can combine the lovely ingredients of a decent beach, amazing food and sufficient clubs to go dancing/catch live tunes, the end result is usually pretty darn good Besides, the goal is to relax before embarking on my next Aya trip, to rid my inner-self of all those urban vibes.





Da online pokerz is still going amazing (I have maintained the similar 3 digit hourly (actually a bit higher) than I did in 2018)), but I have yet to play much live (outside of a few hours of a 2-5-10 PLO 5 card game). I will not be hitting seriously the live felt until late August (WSOPC Montreal), at which point I will have a heavy schedule henceforth (WhiteRam Dawson, Deepstacks Alberta, WPT Montreal, Unibet Open Paris and Aussie Millions). But let’s not get ahead of ourselves, shall we not, as an Ayahuasca Ceremony awaits us in the jungle as it is time to go inward


Thx bro I had this conversation recently with a (Vipassana drifter) buddy, about being a Seeker but not seeking... I was definitely a lost soul in my 20s but finding Vipassana lucidly instilled my life with an existential purpose/direction. Of course, in the short-mid term you still seek/get lost at times in regards to relationships, careers etc., but as long as the endgoal is crystal clear, you never sway too far away from a centre of gravity


Peace

Hey folks, am falling behind in regards to this thread and RL. Am presently back in Lima but still am working on a Tarapoto post and Iquitos Ayahuasca (that I will finish tomorrow) while heading to Mexico in the less than 48h, so anyhow, I should have numerous posts in the next week even if some might not exactly be chronological

Peace

Ayahuasca The UnderWorlds

Intention. This word charged with significance that is meant to install our actions with some sort of purpose. Some of us find it in our work. Our familes. Or relationships. Others are perhaps still seeking an existential direction... Or will forever drift... Who knows... For me, it was Vipassana meditation that infused my being with this wholesome Spiritual direction. Right speech. Right action. Right livelihood - ehhh, am still iffy on that one And, of course, right Ayahuascan intention

The first time I toke Ayahuasca back a year ago in the Sacred Valley in Peru, my intentions were as clear as can be : I wanted to experience the Good. The Bad. And a Deep Level of Compassion. And that I did, my Journey taking turns alternating in between all 3 different states. As a reminder, here is the full detailed journey from yesteryear : https://medium.com/@jeansergebaril/b...wn-9f0123584e1





This time around, things would be different : not only had I selected a different setting and location to go fracking deep into the Spirit World (Iquitos in the Peruvian Amazon jungle), but my intent was to be (physically and emotionally) palliative : Healing. No matter the cost. And that it certainly did.




In the 48 hours leading to the ceremony, I prepare myself physically by cutting out caffeine and sweets from my diet, and emotionally by going inwards with 12h+ of meditation. And much like your body and mind have this innerly-cognitive understanding of when to bring out the shyt to the surface for cleansing purposes, I feel anger manifesting itself by creeping out with this heaviness on my body : right away I knew this was not going to be an easy ride

Don Pedro's modest room is tucked in the back of an Inka's family convenience store ; it is a humble little setting with 2 small beds and 2 hamacs :





We introduce ourselves (in my forever mediocre Spanish ) while I try to naturally immersed myself into the surroundings. But alas, unlike the previous time I took Aya, I am agitated, perhaps sensing the hardships to come...




Ayahuasca plant


It barely takes 10 minutes before the juice kicks in ; but this time, it fracking hits me like no tomorrow I promptly abandon my cross-legged meditative position and embrace a horizontal one : there is no 2 ways about it, I am f**king high Like a mama-fracking kyte

Out of the blue, a thunderous buzzing sound of what can only be a giant wasp invades my auditive space... And then it appears : a KILLER BEE the f**king size of my face stares me down, buzzing like no tomorrow, defying all the known laws of physics... As soon as I swat at it, it disappears, albeit still buzzing like the giant BEHEMOTH that he is (and would go on BUZZING for the next 4 hours). In the background, shades of people keep coming and going, a constant flow of strangers seamlessly barging into the room...





I stop paying attention to my hallucinations. At first, I am actually convinced that members of the family keep coming into the room for some reason (it is pitch dark as all lights are switched off), but I soon realize that the outrageous influx of folks just makes no sense, so I simply abandon them in the background. What is harder to handle though, is my physical condition : I have no energy. Like nada. Zilch. Nothing at f**king all The few times I try to sit up, I simply fall back horizontally, unable to muster enough energy for the task at hand So I do what any helpless meditator chap would do and focus on my respiration. While keeping my puke bucket in the vicinity. And insisting by all means to forever bring back my wandering mind to within sensible confines of sanity.

"This is tough. Tough as nails. You would think that 2 decades of meditation have cleansed my soul, so why oh why is all this shyt surfacing, ffs Take it easy man, focus on respiration, stay in the moment... Holy Jesus Christ and Mother fracking Mary, did you see that f**king demon just walk into the room "

I soon come to terms with the fact that there will be no bliss during this journey. No stream of pure loving vibrations. No encounters with Mother Nature. This one will strictly be about pain. And puking. Vomiting my guts out, that is, enough to full a 4 litre bucket And sure, I do feel incrementally better every time I purge, but not enough to relinquish to the background this oppressive pain...

My Spanish has left me. I fail to grasp most of Don Pedro's words and need to gather every ounce of concentration just to decrypt his Quechua accent... He gives up on trying to communicate and gets back to his chanting, trying by all means to cast off the myriads of demons circling my aura...





After 4h, I finally manage to make it to the washroom. I do have to use the wall for support, stop a couple of times to gather my (semblance of) coordination back, but I do fortunately manage to escape all potential pitfalls/incidents

After 9h, I gather enough strength to face the outside world : I assemble all my stuff, round up my little ones, and fling my body into the outside world. Cryptic shapes and shadows of otherworldly creatures are dashing aimlessly into the 5am Peruvian streets, but I pay little attention to them : as far as I am concerned, this journey is over. I veer my way back to my hotel, let the owner know I just took Ayahuasca, crash in bed for 2 days before embarking on a flight to Lima. And long and behold, I feel amazing Something nasty was purged. Released. To the extent that I have another Journey booked for next WE in Tulum, Mexico ; go figure


Peace

I'm curious: the small concrete room (referenced as the Inka's family convenience store above)--is that where you did your ayahuasca ceremony?!?! If so perhaps it's no wonder the experience didn't go so well...set & setting are super important to nearly any psychedelic experience...that's kind of a dark, depressing space, no?

Was it just you and the "shaman" / facilitator, or did you do the the ceremony with others? How did you find and why did you choose to book a ceremony with him?

Any reason why you didn't take a 3/4 day trip into the jungle outside of Iquitos and do your ayahuasca ceremonies at one of the many retreat centers located in that area?

Your first ayahuasca journey sounded amazing, but this one sounded hellish--it will be interesting to read how your next journey in Mexico turn out. I've visited Playa del Carmen / Tulum area several times, hope you take the time to snorkel in some of the cenotes in that area (assuming you don't scuba dive). If you do dive, Cozumel is a cheap, short 30 minute ferry ride away--world class diving there!

Have never taken ayahuasca, have mixed opinions about psychedelics in general (I love them fwiw, I just think that ppl tell themselves lies regarding them out of some hope for Greater Truth).

Nonetheless, fantastic write up man, I read it out loud to my gf. I think you’re such a gifted storyteller and writer. Definitely made me want to try it more, too!

An old fling of mine just posted a bunch of pics from Tulum, she says there’s dust everywhere because of all the construction but that there are lots of hidden gems and that it’s a beautiful place. Have fun!! (I didn’t know you had two threads til now ha)

Am in Cancun presently. I will only spend 2 days here (time to check out the beaches) before moving on to Tulum for a potential Aya journey, some snorkelling and grinding. Then it will be PDC followed before hopping on Cozumel where I will take anew a diving course, but in Spanish this time around ��

I indulged a ton in psychedelics in my teens/20s, both as recreational means and Spiritual avenues. This said, after doing 30-50 trips of mushrooms and acid, I can easily state that Ayahuasca falls into a completely different category of medicine : while mushrooms and acid somewhat opens the door of (Spiritual) perceptions, enough anyhow to glance into that realm, it is not TRANSFORMATIVE like Aya and Vipassana meditation are. And there lies the big difference. Sure you can gain some Spiritual insights with psychedelics (and micro-dosing mushrooms can treat depression like micro-dosing Ayahuasca equally does), but the former fails to get rid of the heavy shyt that inhabits you. Once you actually release those hindrances that has been inside your body for years through the means of meditation or Aya, it literally changes you. Anyhow, don't mean to sound too preachy, but such has been my direct experience (and that of so many meditators/Ayahuasca peeps I know)

Thx bro, it always feels great every time I hear this and it does bring a ton of satisfaction/inspiration in keeping on writing


I disagree here : much like how I mentioned above how Aya differs to mushrooms/acid and resembles more to meditation, it has more to do about your insides then the outside settings... This bad trip was always going to happen. I spoke with a buddy who has done 17 Aya Journeys, and he oftentimes alternates in between a blissful trip to a more hellish one of purging. Both are necessary. Idem with Vipassana where you might have a light and easy retreat or at times a more heavy and intense one where more work - and thus more release - is required.


Just the Shaman after my buddy (mentioned above) referenced him. Most of those retreats outside Iquitos (if not all...) are long term retreats of 10 days+. I do intend on coming back and doing 2-4 weeks and multiple Journeys, but I am still new to this and am taking it slowly one trip at a time. And yeah, my first Aya Trip was the most blissful hours I had ever had in my life and this one was tough (nowhere close to being as hellish as some meditation retreats I did though... Like not even close). But tough or blissful, the experience does not matter at all, just as long as you manage to progress through it and get rid of shyt inside. And that I did I feel really awesome since and released this sticky anger/tilt that had been on the surface for the past month

Yeah man, I came here precisely for snorkelling/diving I was hesitating in between a few different destinations like the Bay Islands or Colombia, but opted for here after all. Thx for your comments bro

Into the Mouth of the Jungle

Oliver, Okanagan Valley, Canada, July of 2008. Today I woke up with a headache. And with it, the migraine of dealing with the fact that both my backpacks got stolen, my money, all my possessions except a mere sleeping bag, a pocket knife and the shorts I am wearing (no shirt).

2 clear and distinct directions offer themselves to me : either to hitch back a ride to Montreal and go back to my (relatively) mundane life of studying literature (and borrowing some monies from my upper-middle class family), or toughing it out, hitting the streets and stretching out my 160$ by hitching around, grabbing free food, free clothes from a church, camping out in the bush, AKA paying homage to Jack Kerouac and the beatniks from the 50s yo I choose the latter. Thus making this decision a defining one in my life for decades to come, to the extent that I would frequently come back in flashbacks to visit this magical day, or write about it 3 times already ITT

Apparently you do not come to Peru for the beaches, but for stuff like the Sacred Valley and the jungle. Or at least I have been told. So it made sense to finally turn inland from Trujillo and finally hit Tarapoto, right





Most of the tourists stay in the outskirts of Tarapoto, tucked into the caressing Wild grip of La Selva. I did the mistake of booking a hotel just by the Plaza Das Armas, like I often do in cities. I mean, you don’t come all this way to immerse yourself in the heart of the Peruvian chaotic traffic, unless your Dubnjoy000, that is





But it matters little, as the sole focus of this trip lies in the imminent Ayahuasca journey waiting upon us in Iquitos, and the required (mental) preparations beforehand…




The Amazon River





I will probably be doing a few destinations within the next couple of weeks in Mexico, so expect the posts to come rolling in folks


Run good all

Burn It Down

Sajulita, Mexico, February of 2001. The mid-day Mexican heat is squashing us with all its might. Heavy af. And making our balls sweat like a mama-fracker… Well at least mine, not my gf's, I guess We are on our way to pick up my buddy at the Mexico City airport before pivoting south towards Zipolite and Palenque. And we are happy like little kids : this humidity matters little when you are 23, have a gf beautiful like 10 Galaxies and are out to conquer the world yo






Resort Towns always brought up a good amount of puke in my mouth ; enough anyways to gurgle up, gather and release in this perfect puddle on the ground So it did feel kind of weird for my middleage brain to land in Cancun, of all places, while planning on spending time diving in what is forcefully a very touristic coast.





I stayed in downtown Cancun (pretty ugly, looks like a standard North-American suburb) a few kms away from the 20kms stretch of beach packed with hotels and restaurants and whatnot. I did not anticipate a lot from Cancun, but I did expect it to be more charming than this, albeit colourless and lacking in cultural experience, obviously. But it was just packed, busy, needlessy overstretching itself with businesses and this (fake) tropical paradise look, tbh.





Anyhow, I only spent 2 days here and given that Cancun is… well, Cancun, I will not extend this post furthermore.





Peace

I've spent a lot of time in the Playa / Tulum / Cozumel area...I wish I had known you were considering spending time in Cancun, I would have strongly suggested you walk out of the Cancun airport and book a bus headed south out of town immediately upon arrival.

If you're going to spend even a day doing ocean diving (versus the cenotes) definitely take the ferry over to Cozumel, the diving there is 10x better than the diving in Playa del Carmen. If you're interested in spending 5-7 days diving in Cozumel (well worth it imo) PM and I'll send you contacts for a travel agent who can book a hotel / dive package cheaper for you than you can do for yourself. I almost always book stuff independently, but this person sends so much much biz their way that she truly can get you better pricing than you can get on your own.

Food recs in Playa: Los Aguachiles for seafood tacos and El Fogon for grilled steak / meats.

Pretty hot time of year to be in the Yucatan, especially for you fair-skinned Canadians!

Dust and Ruinas

Jaisalmer, India, December 2003. So where is this bliss that so many speak of!?!?! Where is that feeling of being one with life, at peace, above all the suffering in the world… I have been in India for one month, and yet can’t seem to move beyond this cultural shock, ffs. I mean, the road has thrown a ton of challenges my way over the past 4 years, but nothing as demanding as this generalized poverty, people fracking dying in plain sight in the streets, kids with arms cut off and just this f**king blatant suffering at every step taken, for the f**king luv of all the God Damn Saints of the world

I am just getting off the overnight Jaipur-Jaisalmer train, still knocked out by the (first and last time ever) valium pill I took. Hobbling around underneath the weight of the world, the Indian sun, my own depression and drowsiness, I still manage to catch the French accent of a fellow hippie traveller. I wave to him, introduce myself, exchange a few words, before the conversation rapidly dives down into philosophical rabit-hole territories. When I let him know this trip has thus far not lived up to my (otherworldly) expectations, he insists :

- "Man, the problem is friends and family from back home expect you to be living this surreal adventure… Of you always being happy, waking up with a smile, having a ton of magical moments and engaging the travelling world with all the positivity and whatnot, or so they imagine on a Monday afternoon when work back home sucks balls. The thing is, we can never measure up to those expectations. And then this pressure amounts. We snap away nice pics, trying by all means to bring back with us some sort of beauty and then come back from our travels with a painted smile on our face, tell a few interesting stories, but we alas never speak of those long af train rides... the discomfort of 12h bus rides stuck with no space and having to take on those cringe-worthy/puke-inducing smells... You don't talk of those times you were hustled, paid 10x for that taxi, got robbed... Those sleepless nights, wakeless mornings, dragging days of exhaustion under the merciless sun... That said friend, once you will let go of your sky-high expectations bro, India will become f**king great It is the shyt here once you let go and live in the moment brother "

Some conversations stick with you, the words popping back in your mind 16 years later underneath the scorching Mexican sun when you are writing these lines from the shade of a taco joint I would go on and spend 7 months in India, do my first Vipassana 10 day course 3 weeks after this inspiring conversation, and everything would make sense... The chaos would slow down, almost come to a halt as I would walk through the Indian tumult unaffected, always one step ahead of life This trip remains unparalleled to this day





After the hideous site of Cancun and my expectations at an all-time low , Tulum comes as a delight. Sure the small town is packed with tourists, but it still feels fracking amazing to walk on dirt streets, to take-in all that rural dust, the evening breeze, to go buy some fresh tortillas in the morning and fry up some Huevos a la ranchero, Mexicano style yo





The whole plan was to meet up with my Mexicana friend over here, do another Ayahuasca Journey, grind and do some snorkelling. While the latter 2 would become my priorities, I did not do Aya when I unsuspectedly had bacon tucked into my chowder soup (a big NO-NO prior to Ayahuasca) and had to take medicine for a cold. I was initially 60-40% on doing it, as the previous one was challenging af, so having to abstain myself was not a big deal. That said, there are not many opportunities to do it in Canada (I know 2 different sources in B.C.) or Europe (I have a contact in Spain), so I will be probably have to wait until South America next year before embarking on another trip... Sigh





Next up, Playa del Carmen.


Peace

Vanquished Charms

Phnom Penh, Cambodia, February of 2012. Part of me revels in the fact that I can grind online beside the hotel's poolside, bink a tournament, make 4 digits in my day, close the laptop, put on my dancing shoes and hit the bars downtown, get drunk af, pick up a girl, come back at dawn and proceed to (lustfully) sleep all day. Another (more reflective) side of me simply cannot go beyond the sight of the abject nastiness of the dust and trash loitering the third world streets combined with the suffering involved in making ends meet for Cambodians. And lest not forget these HEAVY af vibes floating around, reminding us of the lacerations and (historical) scars instilled by the Khmer Rouge… When morning comes, I pack up my little ones, somehow manage to carry around my hungover migraine and vow to self to never come back unless I can contribute somehow…


After witnessing the less then inspiring Hooker and Blow areas that noobs on 2 + 2 like to indulge in (think Manila, Phnom Penh, Sihanoukville, Bangkok, Tijuana etc.), I did not expect much from Playa Del Carmen even if it was this same curiosity that initially brought me here… And long and behold, I am pleasantly surprise upon arrival Of course, this part of the world does not fall into a cultural experience by any means, but it does nonetheless possess a certain amount of charm yo








But alas, after a few days the sheer amount of tourists combined with the repetitive nature of the cheap merchandise sold on 5th Street, becomes old pretty fast… I guess touristic towns are constructed as such that it’s disposable/ephemeral nature keeps your attention for 2-3 days and not a second longer








I just left Cozumel today (post to come) and I did hear back from your diving reference who also sent me a link to do the theoritical part of my PADI certification online (which I will put to good usage ), but went ahead and booked with GoDivers instead. I was pretty happy that we strictly communicated in Spanish and that my Espanol is pleasant enough to the local ear that Mexicans no longer feel the need to switch to Ingles to accommodate me

Ehhhhh, I failed to put on sunscreen yesterday prior to touring the island on a scooter/doing some snorkelling, so I thus find myself looking like a God-Damn-fracking-red-lobster today FML

Up next : Cozumel, Merida, Progreso, Mexico City, Montreal.


Peace

My thoughts exactly. There are places with hookers & blow that aren't boring as F once you get past sex and drugs. Unfortunately, the noobs didn't do a very good job at finding them.

Also agree on Playa del Carmen. It is what it is. If you don't mind a super touristy place then it's probably better than most. As a general rule of thumb, if a place in Mexico lists prices in pesos AND US dollars, then I probably won't like it for more than 2-3 days.

Mexican Coasts

Higuera Blanca, Mexico, February of 2001. Upon waking up to the Mexican morning in our beachside tent, it dawns upon us that we have just struck paradise Coming off a hitching ride from Puerto Vallarta, we have unexpectedly landed in this Garden of Eden house-sitting gig, where our lone chores consists of feeding the 3 dogs and cat while paying homage to Adam and Eve, secluded from Humankind, on the fringes of this town of 150 souls or so…

Located a good 90 minutes away from Puerto Vallarta, this village was initially the direct result of gentrification caused by the burdening of the tourism Industry : these folks were forced out/bought out of their homes (which eventually became Nueva Vallarta) with the compensation of new propriety. Thus came to be Higuera Blanca. For us 2 AKA travellers stemming from a first world country and indulging in the lost beauty of simplicity from ore, this is fracking heaven on earth. For the locals, I am not so sure… You can still sense the resentment of being forced into exile/expatriated from the place they called home… Something dear was snatched away from them ; this grievance of emptiness left behind cannot, by all appearances, be promptly substituted...


Cozumel is a short ferry ride away from PDC. The small island (half of it is uninhabitated, only accessible in a quad) accomodates 2-10 Cruise ships daily outside of the normal traffic off the hourly ferries






Of course, the main attraction here is diving/snorkelling and the locals have instigated regulations on fishing and the likes to preserve the marine ecosystem. I did not have enough time to (re)take my PADI diving certification, but plan on doing so in Australia after the Aussie Millions. I did nonetheless book a couple of dives with an instructor (cool laid back fellow ), who, to my delight, never switched once to English yo





It takes about 2 hours on a scooter to go around (half) the island. If there was a day that that useless bottle of sunscreen sitting dumbfoundedly in my backpack would of been of useful, it is certainly the day that I decide to snorkel in saltwater followed by 35c hits of sunshine, right, but nooooo








Perhaps it is better that the noobs/OMC sexpats end up not going beyond certain destinations though... I do like your USD$ rule of thumb and the 2-3 days threshold bro

Next up : Merida


Peace

Yucatan Horizons

March 2001, Oaxaca, Mexico. I wake up to a massive migraine after downing an astronomical amount of beers with my buddy yesterday whom my gf and I just recently picked up at the CDMC airport. We just finished folding the tent and packing our little ones when this old grizzled fat American walks up to us.

- "There are other people camping over here you know ; you folks drinking all night and keeping the rest of us awake You people are definitely not American." says this ugly f**k MAGA-to-be supporter. We grin in disdain, happy to not belong to USA #1, delighted to not have to deal with some of these ignorant and uncultivated self-centered Zamericans on a daily basis.

We throw on our backpacks, turn our backs with an amused smile painted on our faces as we walk into the heat of the Mexican day, direction south towards Chiapas.


Just the fact of getting out of the touristic stretch that is Cancun-Tulum, was a relief in itself And with the reduction in the foreigner density - the Yucatan is still very visited, but remains several notches down -, the kindness of the locals disproportionally increased in this perfect fracking correlated marriage yo





In fact, I can walk for kilometers before coming across a non-Latino tourist, as benign as this liberty might sound





My AirBnB is located in the dead middle of el centro of Merida. There is a rowdy bar located across the streets with sexy dressed up working girls sitting in front of the surrounding hotels, just beside a sign stating the hourly price of a room So whenever I get bored of the grind, I simply put on my midnight-adventurous shoes, step outside into the twilight streets and see if I can somehow get into trouble The temptation was as big as the fracking world when I got lost in the BIG dreamy eyes of that gorgeous luscious Mexican chick… God I wish I had a pic of her to post ITT… Disclaimer :




But outside of grinding my rakeback races online, going for long walks and trying out new restaurants - and the standard writing, meditating and all -, nothing earth shattering happens. No getting drunk until the end of times. No getting mama-fracking HIGH like the GODS in the Heavens. No random hookups. No pissing on walls, claiming the Revolution in the name of the PEOPLE. No fireworks, breaking laws in foreign countries and getting arrested. Nope. Zilch. Nada. God am I ever getting old





Peace

At Sea's End

Puerto Progreso is just a short 30 minute drive towards the coast of the Yucatan Peninsula. It caters to the daily cruises, yet still preserves some of that small town Mexicano charm





The lovely boardwalks made for a relaxing evening stroll, something that seemingly all locals would partake in





But the whole purpose of being here, was to focus on a weekly rakerace (which I won ), and have access to swimming, a selection of decent restaurants and (even) a movie theatre.

I realize that this thread has taken a tangent since the creation of my Dancing with the Old Lady blog and that I have hence left behind most of the poker content to focus strictly upon travel destinations and pics, but for those of yous that do not follow my PG & C (and the views seem to indicate that there are quite a few), poker was absolutely amazing in 2018 (best year ever). And while I have reduced my volume significantly (down to under 23h weekly) and have run under EV in a excruciating fashion, I still average the equivalent of a liberal profession career yo





The plan is to hit the tournament trail come August-March (for 6-7 event stops), but to eventually settle down with a Latina gf come March+ 2020. I will also lower my volume henceforth (come 2021 perhaps) to something like 12-15h/week, replacing this open slot with more writing (would like to take all of 2021 to finish my novel) and volunteer work (within the meditation community and with street kids, mayhap...). And such is the plan


Peace