What can we expect as we cross the border?
We’re excited to meet people who come from a different walk of life, and embrace their reality into ours. A major intention as we enter this new land is to adapt to their language, so that we can connect on a deeper level aside from telling them how dank their food is. On a bike there is no shielding ourselves from the surrounding environment. The lack of A/C and a windshield, as brutal as it may seem, is actually a traveller’s privilege.
Local people have watched years of tourists pass their homes with little or no recognition of their cultural practices and environmental surroundings, only using their roads as a means to get to another destination. Beyond our own endeavor of this trek and the money we are trying to raise, it is our major concern that we give back to the people native to the land we are crossing.
Many Americans that have tried to offer insight and advice to us about this trip have mentioned how sketchy of a country Mexico can be… Yes, we absolutely expect and are prepared for a few sticky situations to be encountered along the way, but those will bewell offset by the warm welcomes and friendly faces we will encounter.
Appreciate each moment for what it is, not as you wish it to be.
When you’re riding a bicycle for hours on end, many thoughts come into your mind. Specifically, we’ve often contemplated exactly what changes we will see along the journey… As we become closer to the equator, what will be the big cultural changes? As we ride further and further away from ‘home’, how will we be received? A lot of times our fate will lie in the hands of our hosts, so how can we expect to know what we are going to get? How will we be able to handle the adversity thrown our way, from bike mechanical issues, to illness, and more. From the food to the people who serve it to us, what type of surprises will the ride contain? How will the constant changes in our environment dictate our ability to ride? The only way to find out….keep pedaling.
