Category: volunteering

Doing A Thing

January 28, 2025

I am doing a thing, so until I finish or at least I get into the thick of It, I am writing about my recent experiences, but not what I am doing at the very moment. It is a temporary secret.

Cuenca (Ecuador) is absolutely lovely. It is really “tranquilo”, as their Colombian neighbors would say. I have had the benefit of rounding off my trip with a volunteer experience, which speaks directly to my passion. This time it has been a little different, with me volunteering in a hostel, which came right on time and has become an adventure within the adventure: This is different. Previously, I only did grass roots community volunteering abroad and in the US. I have more stories of these times throughout my website.

Normally, I neighborhood and accommodation bop between hostels and hotels (AirBnBs, not so much recently) and I was doing that as well in Cuenca, but as I was trying to figure it all out with my budget, one of the other volunteers suggested I could volunteer at this hostel, so I was happy to use all the skills I have acquired both volunteering and working and employ them in Cuenca, being one of the people who helps others check in, check out and facilitate the services they get while staying in their shared or private rooms.

I also feel a little like I was in a reboot of the sitcoms I enjoyed back in the day because being with the small tightknit group of volunteers that consist of solo and coupled travelers from South America and Europe gave me a chance to feel more at home. Life was now showing me a more panoramic view, from guest (as I started there) to worker and helper, while this also help give me a break. That’s right. The people-pleaser in me even sometimes get caught up in pleasing the establishments I frequent, but now that I was on both sides, this became less a part of me.

Sometimes, I feel into luxury and pampering and consider myself appropriately and other times, I want to make sure I am giving them an easy time (not being a difficult patron). Becoming a volunteer led to me being more relaxed, cooking, using the spaces and taking care of myself while working. The reciprocity may be what delivered me there and perhaps will get me to more normalcy of feeling we are all worth this, including me. My comfort level spiked. My assistance and my comfort came right on time.

Looking Back

December 31, 2024 by Cassandra Johnson

This is also a work in progress like the previous post. (I am still dealing with some questions for myself).

If I am honest, I have not lived in the United States for a while. I have been away since November 2023, except for visits in both April and August 2024. I was still in the US (in San Juan, Puerto Rico) when I started, but a few months later I landed in Merida, Mexico where I stayed throughout Christmas 2023 and New Year’s, into my February birthday. Not until April was I ready to leave Merida, for a short stop in Houston, TX, before getting back to Mexico to see two more recommended cities. Guadalajara (was not the best experience among so many other great ones). Still, my curiosity and aim to have and share nice experiences with others around the world was my focus.

Following Oaxaca, Mexico (which I loved), I revisited Peru (this was about the third time in some cities). I thoroughly enjoyed myself with a lot more income at the time, and mostly living my dream of everyday life as an expat there. I was there for 3 months. I have wanted this since I volunteered there in part of 2010 and 2011. I enjoyed volunteering in Bolivia in 2011 as well, but Peru stole the show.

After Peru, I went to Colombia (Medellin was the first city and where I stayed most of my allotted 90 days – until next time). Bogota was just six days (really nice, still) and Cali and Ipiales were the one-day stopovers I mentioned last time. An added note: When traveling through Colombia, I particularly enjoyed the travel hack of overnight buses as they saved money with one night of lodging not needed, and most hours spent sleeping. I had been aiming for this since I flew between the US, Mexico, Peru and into Colombia.

Okay, well, sleeping on a bus is not the most comfortable feel (facts) but as another precaution, I kept the trips to about 11 hours or less (allowing for added stops). *I remember longer trips from my past and they can get old. I also like the safety of arriving in a place in the daylight, at home or abroad. I was advised to do that my first time in Lima. The only unfortunate circumstance back then was how every decent DC flight landed around 10 pm. Fortunately all went well, and the remote city I later reached was in the accompaniment of another future volunteer/fast friend. We planned to meet in Lima and go from there.

I am now back in Ecuador. I only visited Guayaquil for a few days in 2019, but now I have been able to check out Quito and Cuenca.

Next: I was recently thinking about Paraguay or Uruguay (this would be my first time in each). I am really excited about Brazil but a little worried about suddenly discontinuing to use Spanish and checking out parts of Paraguay and Uruguay would give me the continued opportunity to use Spanish. However, I do think this could mean survival Portuguese and some important phrases will be a fun activity to add to my more fun to-do lists.

Crossing Borders: Colombia to Ecuador

December 30, 2024 by Cassandra Johnson

This is a work in progress: I have been going through a rough patch – so this is a rough draft.

Overall, I found people in Colombia to be very nice and discovered this even more, the longer I stayed. *There were instances where I did not feel like I fit in (something I can revisit in general at another time, for various reasons).

Throughout my stay, I soon discovered that I was being treated in a very familial manner and very often, people either did not know where I was from or assumed I was from Colombia or that I now live there. I was in Medellin (for approximately 2 months) and Bogota for just 6 days. The same was true of both and I was not even prepared for my stay in the small border city of Ipiales with a small town feel.

It was during the rain and not the sunshine, as well, when I realized how nice the people were in Ipiales. I was preparing to be someone who absolutely stood out in the small Colombian city quite different from Bogota and Medellin, but there was never really a time when that happened in an off-putting way. I felt like what I suppose anyone who did not look local felt like but, just like them (I imagine), I also  probably was just treated and seen like any foreigner who passed through their Colombian border city to get to the Ecuadorian border city of Tulcan.

(I also learned later that Ipiales is popularly known for a church, which I did not visit). Overall, I felt welcome and accepted, two vibes I cannot help but notice. Camaraderie in the rain was one of those reiterated moments. A strange look was just curiosity and I felt the hospitality and greetings that stick with me so much more.

Medellin, Colombia

October 31. 2024 by Cassandra Johnson

Medellin has been my safe space. My stay in this city has turned out to be longer than I thought before I move on to the cities of Bogota and Cartagena.

Medellin, Colombia came after I once again left my bae, Peru, so I am pleased that visiting here has reiterated my more uplifting travel experiences. Peru was etched nicely in my past and remains in my future dreams while Colombia was on the horizon to be brand new. New surroundings, very friendly people, and my variety of experiences fortify my decision to continue working as a digital nomad, for now.

Medellin particularly facilitates a calmness that is better for my nervous system. It is coincidentally telling that several of the people here have encouraged me to remain calm. Just in passing and not out of extreme gravity, they say “Tranquila” and encourage me to keep embracing the natural parts of me that remain as my optimistic and free-spirited desires. Simultaneously, I am at ease and then in other instances, it is nice to have the reminders and not be too overly preoccupied with being mistaken or perceived incorrectly. I was probably taken to task in too many instances before I left the country, which is enough to concern me despite my best efforts.

I was not expecting both my differences and similarities to be so welcomed and to fit so well into a place I have never been. I enjoy being complimented for who I am. I like being appreciated for knowing Spanish and I like that it is okay not to know, as well.

Sadly, with my roots, I have to admit, I am not accustomed to going for an extended period of time without being othered. I am not used to getting to leave that feeling behind as I can at this moment, and I readily feel the potential discomfort when I reenter the United States. As much as I care as well as enjoy my birthplace and home and hold it in affinity, there is some need for self-protection there.

Another gift: Medellin allows me the opportunity to further shape my work-life balance, looking back on how I thoroughly enjoyed Merida, Mexico and San Juan, Puerto Rico, but got it sorely wrong in both places.

So Medellin has left me feeling some type of continued good way, a way that is more kindred and comfortable the majority of the time. The travel difference now, (former volunteer versus current worker) has proved a gentler reinitiation thanks to the people that reside here, their culture and the setting.

I admittedly did not know how I would adjust to life on the road/in the sky as a full-time instead of part-time wanderer, so thank you, Medellin for being a bridge along the way back to San Juan to Merida to Guadalajara to Oaxaca to Lima to Cusco to you and beyond.

Solo Together

October 29, 2024 by Cassandra Johnson

I have learned not to give too much to my introversion as I do also love community. I have also learned to recognize my solo needs, to be better to myself.

I do enjoy bonding when I am not feeling inexplicably self-conscious. Alternately, I also acknowledge my resilience to regroup and revitalize myself.

What has been most interesting to me lately, however, is how I have come to notice similar solo needs in a number of other people. The number is larger than I would have expected, and realizing this has made me more empathetic, so apart from hanging out with them, dancing with them, chatting with them, drinking with them (some flirting)… I have felt another type of connection.

By collecting my thoughts and tranquility when I am alone, I remind myself of what I really want and need, and I remind myself of the fact that I need to try much more of this out before I can be certain if what I need or want still stands. Minds may change. Therefore, I need that alone time, good for such thinking and also for clearing my mind (not overthinking and just being still).

Sometimes I need more of the quietness than others, but I have recently taken note that I am not so alone in this. Ironically, in the simile of needing those inward moments, I suspect other people may need this too.  After almost a year of countless accommodations and interactions as a digital nomad, I do not think I have just coincidentally been vicinity booking along with a large number of other introverts. I do not think so, because in other instances, I notice what seems real extroversion on the part of a number of outgoing people who naturally seem to receive energy from interacting with others. Yet, I have caught them “escaping” too. I have caught them escaping the noise, whether it be very literal or figurative. I have caught them in a variety of ways in their own quests for solitude.

Adalia Aborisade’s video on how to travel as an Introvert really spoke to me and what we may do or feel from going inward. Me being someone who also likes hanging out, seeing the world and meeting people, she and the other viewers reiterated for me that sometimes we get away from who we truly are because our true selves are not accepted or expected, especially when we are out there exploring our overall dreams. It is not uncommon to be told you need to participate in the group at all times. They also reminded me it is not uncommon to be misinterpreted and cajoled. I think I just judged myself too strictly thinking I could no longer carry the introverted label, when a part of this actually seems to be welcomed by most people to varying levels. I am also reclaiming some of my shyness, though it may appear differently now. My nature has not changed at the core.

I see people looking for their solo spaces and moments as I especially spend my traveling time between hotels and hostels. People were looking for moments and spaces on the terrace, in the kitchen, in an extra room, in their own room or a shared room in their bunk bed while others were out touring or in other parts of the hostel or hotel. People were even randomly hoping for a moment at breakfast or in front of a large screen community television.

Someone reading. Someone gazing and thinking (seemingly daydreaming) while reclining. Someone listening, laughing  to videos on their phone. Someone delving into work on their computer, but as they would in their own private office with no boss.

I see the people. I see us. Moments apart and common bonds in solitude. These are the moments we recollect ourselves, maybe even forget the pending issues or worries of our days, maybe even finally come up with a solution after we have had some time to relax away from what has to be done or decided.

Perhaps, this is just a much needed mental break or another moment to help us be honest with ourselves and to be ourselves.

Being Digital. Being Nomad.

August 31, 2024 by Cassandra Johnson

The ups and downs. I think my sanity has been saved by no longer having to report to my second to last boss. I realized part of the struggle was not just proving myself to her, but increasingly more apparent, proving myself to me.

I realized, after several years, at a few different jobs, that attaining 100% on a performance review was designed to never be attainable. The deeper problem with such a scenario is how many people can either get buried while unsuccessfully trying to get there or ultimately just feel defeated. I am sure there is a healthier way to look at this as well as a healthier work environment where this is not a thing. Unfortunately, the luck of us landing in a healthy environment with good management may not be as attainable as matching our geography with our skills and who decides to hire us for the right amount of money? Also, will that end up matching our passions?

My second to last boss was daunting, and perhaps me having more credentials than her played a part in her reminding me/reminding us that she was on some imaginary upper level rather than our equal level. Then… she increasingly toyed with and finally crossed the lines of bigotry from the time I worked for her from 2015 through 2019, and even after I changed departments in my final year at the company in 2020, I felt the target on me. In the moments I instinctively countered her, I awaited the revenge *whether it be from the COO we both reported to or from her directly.

The fight I had in me to remember my credentials and all the praise I got from the members and customers we helped was really a fight to remember that I was good enough and not always just as good as the last thing I did. Some good coworkers also really encouraged me through those days. We found it mutually necessary.

There was a struggle to remember all the hard work I put in as well, because as usual, sometimes life gets in the way  (we do not just have work to contend with but a whole array of items we need to survive and be a happy healthy person). Life plays out differently at different times. Look at any one of us and each person’s insecurities and vulnerabilities present uniquely and again vary depending on the moment.

So there I was with her and that structure and here I am without it. Being digital and being nomad has saved me from aging ungracefully (lol) and I have likewise been saved from feeling indescribably perpetually less than her or others.  I also see myself as more capable than I knew. I forget. Life reminds me. I see how okay we should be at owning our accomplishments.

Thinking of the boss even back then, I found it better not to carry a grudge, because I noticed that anger blinded me more than acknowledging the concurring sadness and hurt I felt at being disregarded and dejected. It is easier and more stereotypical to be deemed an angry person (that made it somehow easier for her to double down) than it was to give me the raw despondent feelings of being human and heartbroken at poor treatment.

I remember a guy once ghosting me and reappearing to the tune of a text and email that simply stated: “How mad are you at me?” Within those moments, I realized it was easier for him to face an angry caricature of me than the true person he had disappointed. “…mad…?” How about “How sad and/or disappointed are you?”

There seems to be a lot more I know about myself. There also seems to be so much more I could uncover. Being nomadic, I am possibly learning more about all of life than I ever thought I would.

The Grass Being Green

July 30, 2024 by Cassandra Johnson

Simply Green. We could spend a lifetime imagining that the way someone else is doing their life is better than ours or just imagining this person is so lucky and blessed to be with this partner or to have so much of some material items. Of course, the coveted life we imagine is infinitely amazing, because we cannot really feel what they are living. What are they actually going through and what are they longing for? 

What I Want to Share: As I am having more gratitude for different layers to my life like the ability to travel while working, I am reminding myself not to think about not making as much money as before. I can make enough money and more depending on my translation work and side hustles.

I can be grateful that I have close friends and family who support my ideas and support my decisions while I can remind myself not to be hard on myself for the negative judgments aimed at me from some others. I can remind myself to remain as accepting as I am of all people, despite being sometimes rejected.

I can be happy with my achievements while I can remind myself that I am learning what I need to learn when life ultimately reveals my lessons to me. I can remind myself not to feel discouraged about not getting to this part of my path as soon as I think I would have liked. I can be pleased to be in the spaces especially forged for me.

78 Dance Partners

July 29, 2024 by Cassandra Johnson

I was looking for live music. I was looking for DJs. I was looking for the occasional cocktail but mostly I was panning out for camaraderie and a chance to continue dancing.  Another part of the life plan decided: Dancing will continue to be my natural high, my ready escape and relaxed synchronicity between my mind, attitude and body.

Navigating my way back through Peru tells me what I need for a healthy life, or I guess, rather for a considerably healthier life. As noted here, I have reintroduced one element which comes through dancing. I really got to feel into this during college. Sometimes, I forget because of circumstances. I was last in DC before starting to travel again and there were times when everything added up: Right places, right music, right price and willing friends.

The combination was not as easy as it had been during university which seemed readily conducive to more divey bars/clubs and or upscale-like venues and dancing events. Still, there was definitely a time, in the middle of my DC life when a group of us were frequenting one neighborhood or another like U Street or Dupont Circle. I was in my element. Later on unfortunately, this was not so much. I could understand why. A lot of schedules, logistics and motivation (in which others additionally feel self-conscious while dancing) were present.

Then, coinciding with my first trip to Pisco, Peru, I unexpectedly found myself in the company of many people locally and from various countries who I would accompany to discos and bars on nights and weekends. Music and dance also permeated our volunteer home/headquarters.

As I started my third time back in Peru, I was not so sure about getting to enjoy music and connect with people. This time, I had picked up travel again in San Juan and then spent some time in Mexico. Notably, Puerto Rico was very satiating since there is a big dance scene, but I did not get this immediate fulfillment when I moved on to Merida, Mexico (though I love this place). Coincidentally, I had not danced much in Mexico, my time more so playing out with friends in places without ideal dance floors or music. (I like a variety but hanging out plus dancing was not coming to me).

Then, these last two weeks happened, and it was a mirror of my co-volunteer time back in Pisco and Cusco, but this time as a digital nomad trying out a much different lifestyle. Splitting my time between hostels, hotels and Airbnb apartments in various Peruvian neighborhoods played a good part. Getting time to regroup and switch up neighborhoods and go back to community in hostels helped me connect with more travelers and residents.

Having a bar upstairs in a hostel is particularly helpful. I met a few people from Peru along with a Colombian doctor. Though I have connected with various people while walking around and hanging out, considerable time would pass without me finding people who in addition to the fun treks and sight-seeing, also wanted to relax with music and dancing. This second to last hostel was one answer. Some people naturally have a way of making me feel at home: In addition to these four local people, I clicked with an Italian traveler and her friends, leading us to another ideal club, where we could dance with each other and others from Peru. The scene reminded me that I had also connected with an American guy and Venezuelan expats similarly, about a month prior to this.

Once I started college and imitated the dance moves I saw in pop culture and improvised with my own, I recalled how I had likewise done so in my childhood. During those previously shy phases, I would simply dance alone in my room, in our basement or when I was home alone.

There seems to be some added meditative element. There also seems to be a release like a sigh of relief and joy complementing the expression. My dancing inhibitions also come and go. I can very much understand motivation being based on mood and other elements. My wavering confidence has the potential to reappear.

What strikes me now is appreciation for my recent dance partners. There is also cause to appreciate all the partners that came before whether we were in a club, home, dorm room, restaurant, open space outside, etc. I am more pleased now to think back over a lifetime of so many meeting of the minds under good beats, soothing rhythms, shared smiles and connections in a multitude of glances.

Chances

June 20, 2024 by Cassandra Johnson

Safe travels. Risky travels. They go beyond the hikes, treks, finances and living outside of my home country, away from some creature comforts and to what I am accustomed.

There is more. There is the extension of social risks as well as psychological and emotional vulnerability connecting with people, being accepted and being culturally cognizant. Also notable is the overarching need to be accepting of myself – ourselves. 

Travel seems to naturally set the tone for possibilities and the result is both scary and fascinating. When I travel, I am reminded how much I can experiment and now I am acclimating between tourist, (former volunteer), and resident, while also working.

Therefore, I find myself out here as quite readily the walking contradiction – a people-person who enjoys being introverted, enjoys hanging out with other travelers and local people while also solo traveling. 

I knew I wanted to get back to this. I am welcoming change, taking the more social and personal risks, while also understanding I need my introversion and comfort. Touring plus working plus grocery shopping is more my new normal. 

In the vulnerability, there is also the promise of greater confidence and a healthy mindset, and in my case, substantial healing.

As I shift to find my best balance, some days are more innate, and I easily get lost in the experience of all my surroundings and connecting with others. On other days, no matter how much I am a patron, dining and enjoying or maybe just feeling awkward and doing similar, I still have that feeling of how it would play out nicely with another person or a few people, (as it has). Interestingly, this also makes me realize how much I appreciate my solo time exploring as well. As I noted in How To Go, being willing to experiment with and without people adds to my choices. I could not say then or now that I would or will always feel encouraged, but just ever aware that I am free and capable to try a lot more.

Imagined This

June 18, 2024 by Cassandra Johnson

Surprising clarity about my preference for living in Peru strikes me repeatedly. It hits in different ways. Beginning as a feeling of belonging when I first stayed for months in parts of 2010 and 2011, staying with me when I returned to the US, played with when I revisited in 2019 and here again as I experience the main city instead of the others I was in before.

I could live elsewhere, yet the current decision has seemed to narrow down to choosing between Lima and Cusco. I picture myself enjoying both long-term. The key may mean trying both again, but this time, just as a digital nomad rather than a volunteer. 

I was trying to consider Mexico. I enjoyed Merida, but perhaps more to visit. I enjoyed Oaxaca, yet my mindset was very much wrapped around touring and relaxing there. I was momentarily considering relocating to other Mexican cities (not Guadalajara) as well, but being back in Peru has reiterated my initial desires of living here. 

With further thought: This also does not have to be final, but very possibly some part of my final choices (living in 1 or more countries, including the US).

I am reminded I can change my mind. I can also still try what I am drawn to, what I was dreaming of, mark one experience off the list, fine tune this one or the next one, or set it aside altogether.

Experimenting brings some fear but less daunting vibes, knowing I have been here before and even what I have not done is just a compass for what to try.