Across the Americas in a FJC - Page 26

Shreesh · 03-21-2009, 08:43 AM

Back on the road today after eleven days in Antarctica. It was a great experience!

Here is a picture of some Chinstrap penguins, of which there are many in the Antarctic:

Shreesh · 04-09-2009, 05:46 PM

After Antarctica we headed North, not that you can do much otherwise. After briefly stopping at the Peninsula Valdes, we made our way to Buenos Aires, from where I write this post. We are trying to make the April 16th sailing for the FJC back to the United States, but it is Easter Week, and during Easter Week in Latin America not much can go forward.

While in Tierra del Fuego we took a photo of all our stuff and the FJ by the shores of Lago Fagnano:

I have put up an interactive page of all the items in the car on my website. You can access that here if you are interested.

FJ_Cruisin_Wa · 04-09-2009, 05:50 PM

Beautiful pictures!

Shreesh · 04-12-2009, 08:32 PM

Tomorrow I go to the Port Authority to get the paperwork done to ship the FJ back to California. Not looking forward to this, from my experience in Panama it is expected to be nasty and bureaucratic...

FJ_Cruisin_Wa · 04-13-2009, 09:51 AM

How do you feel knowing that the journey is almost over? I am sure it must be some sort iof bittersweet feeling knowing you are going home after such an epic journey! Glad to be headed home, but sad the adventure is over? I know I would be...

What will you do when you are finally home? How long will you stay home. I know commuting in the rat race that is bay area traffic can be a challenge, but after this adventure I am not sure how you weould go back to a "normal life" for to long. Hopefully you wont be headed to a cube farm to recover finances, and I am hopeful that you will start and share another adventure soon. Watching your travels has been quite exciting!

Hope all goes smooth getting your FJ on the boat, and I wish you safe travels on the way back to the states.

Tai Mai Shu · 05-07-2009, 10:49 AM

Where are you now?

Shreesh · 05-09-2009, 07:52 AM

Quote:

FJ_Cruisin_Wa previously said:

How do you feel knowing that the journey is almost over? I am sure it must be some sort iof bittersweet feeling knowing you are going home after such an epic journey! Glad to be headed home, but sad the adventure is over? I know I would be...

What will you do when you are finally home? How long will you stay home. I know commuting in the rat race that is bay area traffic can be a challenge, but after this adventure I am not sure how you weould go back to a "normal life" for to long. Hopefully you wont be headed to a cube farm to recover finances, and I am hopeful that you will start and share another adventure soon. Watching your travels has been quite exciting!

Hope all goes smooth getting your FJ on the boat, and I wish you safe travels on the way back to the states.

I you have captured my feelings correctly! Glad to be heading home but sad that the trip is over. I was fighting back tears on the cab ride from our apartment in Buenos Aires to the airport.

But now we enter a new phase, one that upon initial inspection is not as exciting, but I think once we get settled in it will be quite comfortable and pleasant. I'm hoping to find a job that is rewarding and fulfilling and immerse myself in my hobbies until the next time... the next trip...

You are also correct in your assessment that "normal life" I view as episodic. Meaning that this trip was not a once-in-a-lifetime thing; hopefully others will follow. The finances have to recover or we have to do with less. If the alternative becomes being a cube farmer then doing with less starts to look more appealing.

Shreesh · 05-09-2009, 07:56 AM

Quote:

Tai Mai Shu previously said:

Where are you now?

We have shipped the car from Buenos Aires and it is expected to arrive in Longbeach, CA around the end of May! Currently we are in New York City, visiting relatives.

Faddy · 06-28-2009, 12:43 PM

Awesome!!!

Shreesh · 09-17-2009, 01:11 PM

We have been back in San Francisco for a couple of months now. How to weave back the threads of our lives that were undone by the powerful experiences we had?

Being back has been much more difficult than expected. Other overlanders had warned me about this phenomenon, that it is hard to reintegrate. I always thought that such comments did not apply to us because we were so grounded in the San Francisco Bay Area. But having been away we now view it differently.

San Francisco is beautiful, but beautiful like a high maintenance girlfriend. It demands high income levels and constant pampering. The question I have to ask is "Is that price too high?". Is it worth having a high stress job in exchange for living in a stimulating place like San Francisco?

I would like to thank the forum and its members for supporting us on our expedition. What an amazing resource we have!

Safe travels to all,

Shreesh Taskar
San Francisco, CA