Escape From Reality

The questions are usually the same. Why Peru? Do you have family there? Two and a half months? I explain that I want to get the kids away from the TV and the gamecube for a couple of months and expose them to another culture, "besides we want to learn to speak Spanish" I can hear myself reply. This is clearly not a typical family vacation but then we are not a typical family. Don't I realize that the kids are going to miss the TV and the game cube? That they are going to have a tough time finding friends since they don't know the language? Wouldn't Disneyland be more practical? Certainly. But I am confident this is an experience they will come to appreciate down the line. It's sort of like the decision to have a second child so the first doesn't become too spoiled. Essentially, what one is saying to the first kid when they make such a decision is that we are going to make you miserable but you will be better off in the long run. Other questions come up, aren't you worried about getting sick, missing your wife, finding an apartment, finding a school, etc., etc. The implication behind many of these questions is that we must be crazy, as one friend said, "I don't even like to take my kids to the airport." However, the answers to all of these questions and concerns basically boils down to the same answer: that life is not a passive activity; that an occasional escape from the comforts of our daily reality only enhance our appreciate of that reality; that the infusion of the old Wahoo won't keep one from dying but that, to paraphrase Thoreau, when it comes time to die we will not have discovered that we have not lived.

So the decision has been made, plane tickets have been purchased, passports have been renewed, shots have been taken, and home schooling materials have been collected. What will follow here will be some reflections on our experiences. We're posting this material not because we think that everyone wants to hear the intimate details of our lives but because we have friends, family, and loved ones who want to keep up with our travels and travails. You are welcome to follow along on our adventures if you like.