Walking in my parents’ footsteps

«Hace 24 años…» – South America ’95/’96

I grew up with the tales of my parents’ South America trip. Anecdotes, bedtime stories and photo albums full of memories. My dad telling every taxi driver on our Chile trip that he’d been there 22 years ago… The hammock they brought back from Ecuador, where I like to spend my afternoons, lying in the sun and reading.

My exchange semester in Chile two years ago was the first step in getting to know this continent that had fascinated me since I was a child. During half a year, I caught a glimpse of this unfamiliar, exciting part of the world. Though certain things required getting used to, I really enjoyed my time there; so much that when I returned to Switzerland, I felt lost, out of place. It took me several months to readjust and feel more or less at home again. I swore to myself I’d return to South America as soon as possible.

And now, two years later, I’m here in Peru, volunteering at a school, discovering new places and getting to see things from a different angle. During my week of vacation in May, I hiked the Salkantay Trek to Machu Picchu. That’s when it hit me that I was literally walking in my parents’ footsteps: 24 years ago, they, too, had made their way to the famous ruins, hiking the Inca Trail.

As I’d already half expected, Machu Picchu itself didn’t sweep me off my feet. This was probably partly due to the fact that I was quite exhausted when we finally got there . On top of our 4-day hike to Aguas Calientes, we walked up never-ending stairs to the entrance of the ruins and then up the Montaña Machu Picchu. The other disturbing factor were all the people. I’d mentally prepared myself for the hoards of tourists, but it still kind of ruined the magic of the ancient ruins for me.

That said, I’m not saying I didn’t enjoy it at all. The Salkantay Trek was really worth it (though it’s become quite a hikers’ highway, too), such a variety of beautiful landscapes. It was fun to chat with the other members of our group, people from all over the world. My Swiss companions and I were also lucky to have booked the entrance to La Montaña and an extra night in Aguas Calientes, that way we didn’t have to rush to make the bus – and the fog that had been covering the ruins most of the morning lifted at some point, so we got a pretty good view of the ruins.

And during the whole trip, I thought about my parents and the way they influenced my choices in life. I definitely inherited my love of traveling from them. They took us to new places every year, teaching us to explore the less known parts of every country and to try and enjoy local food. They roused my curiosity for foreign languages and my desire to learn more. They passed on their travel bug to me, infecting me irrevocably for life.

Thank you Mami and Papilo for giving me this unique opportunity, for letting me go explore the world, for encouraging and supporting me in every way. You couldn’t have presented me with a better gift. Now it’s up to me to live up to your example :).