Views of Me

On Friday, I got on a Skype call with my parents. It was the first time I'd actually had voice contact with them since I left on my trip – over one hundred days ago. We were on a video call, but I was sequestered in a quiet corner of my hostel where the lighting was terrible. My laptop camera didn't exactly capture much except for a dark outline.

After the call, I realised that – aside from a few scant photos I've uploaded to the blog – my parents haven't really seen me either, over the last three months. At least, they haven't seen me in any major context other than whilst drinking my ass off in Rio.

So I decided to upload some photos of myself from the first two months of my trip.

My parents will find it incredibly ironic that I even have these – since I've spent the better part of fifteen years extolling the "Why Ruin a Perfectly Good Photo by Sticking My Ugly Mug in Front of It?" school of photography.

But, hey, my Facebook profile pictures have to come from somewhere.

Sitting on the Lapa Steps (August 29th, 2009)

In Rocinha (August 30th, 2009)

On Ilha do Prada (September 13th, 2009)

(Yes, I know I've lost a lot of weight – mostly muscle, unfortunately. When I was researching and planning my trip, everything I'd read said that males, especially, lose weight during long-term travel. I just didn't realise I would lose so much so fast. My body reached it's new equilibrium – based on my new eating habits and activity levels – in about six weeks.)

Nighttime on the N/M Santerém (September 22nd, 2009)

Enduring the Amazonian Jungle (September 30th, 2009)

Swimming in the Amazon (September 30th, 2009)

Catching Piranha (September 30th, 2009)

On the Brazilian Side of Iguazu Falls (October 6th, 2009)

Drinking Coffee at the Café Tortoni (October 14th, 2009)

Walking Amongst Penguins (October 17th, 2009)

In Front of the Perito Moreno Glacier (October 22nd, 2009)

On the Laguna Torre Glacier (October 24th, 2009)

Ice Climbing on the Laguna Torre Glacier (October 24th, 2009)

Trekking out to Fitz Roy and the Laguna de Los Tres (October 25th, 2009)

So; Mom, Dad: based on this photographic evidence, you can tell the grandparents I'm healthy and not withering away to nothingness. Well, I arrested the withering after the first five to six weeks, anyway.

Related Entries:
1. One Night in Rio