Dos Limas

Day 7 of the project,
On the road to Cuzco

Like so many cities around the world, Lima is a city divided between the have's and have not's. I spent two days wandering around the wealthy suburbs that line the coast. Beautiful and modern buildings, immaculate parks (complete with tennis courts and football pitches), casinos and shopping malls. Not to mention the amazing food and diverse array of options. It was easy to forget about the reality of most Limenos.

It is in plain view now. The bus is flying along the highway, passing the barrios that teem with shoddy half-constructed apartments, no hint of grass (just garbage and dirt), dirty markets and questionable restaurants. The food might taste good, but it would most certainly upset my delicate first-world stomach.

The stark contrast surfaces many thoughts and feelings. What is poverty? I certainly know how academics and economists define it. But there is a distinction between being poor and suffering.  Obviously the failure to meet basic needs is considered suffering. And the seven-figure incomes of the technorati of Silicon Valley are at the other extreme. Beyond that is a sea of gray area. In the spectrum of privilege, where does one go from being impoverished to poor to middle class to rich to extremely rich? And where are people the happiest?

Family travel

82 days until the project begins

I came across an article in the New York Times today describing a family's ten month adventure traveling the globe. With careful planning and a strict budget, two parents are giving their children the experience of a lifetime. They are certainly not the first; I've heard of other families who have packed it up and undertaken a collective walkabout. This is the first family of four that I've ever heard of living on budget of $150 USD a day.