Americas 2004

When I planned to return to Canada and the U.S. I was looking forward to not only visiting my friends from the last trip, but meeting new people and making new friends. I was looking forward to seeing new places, exploring new canyons and mountains, and walking around in new cities. I was looking forward to the ocean, the beaches, the California weather, and to just hang out and relax.

But, also I wanted to go for a special adventure, and Baja California was my place to do it. When I was 16 years old I read an article in a Swiss Travel Magazine about the area, and ever since I knew I wanted to go there. I was well prepared, as I had taken spanish lessons and read a lot about Mexico. But still, it was a strange feeling to travel alone in a place where I could hardly speak the language, to a place I'd never been before, a place where so many people told me not to go. But after all, it was a great experience.

I have met so many great people. I have had wonderful nights with old and new friends. I have seen great valleys and mountains, the Oregon and California Coast, the Rocky Mountains, and the deserts of the Southwest. I have traveled by boat, plane, train, and I put 22,000 km on my Tahoe. I went all the way from Canada to Cabo San Lucas on the tip of the Baja Peninsula, took a boat ride to ''el arco'', camped on lonely beaches and learned to surf. I took a train to Chihuahua, went sandboarding in Oregon, checked out many wineries in Napa Valley, went to China Town in San Fransisco, strolled around in Taos and Santa Fe and made it all the way back to Canada.

I took home many souveniers to remind of me the wonderful time I had, and now when I look at the things I brought home, I miss the wide open roads, the Mexican food, Tecate, the beach, the surf, the sand and the sun. I miss you, the people I met and the people I stayed with.

And now I wish I was back at La Perla on the Bay of Conception on the Baja, where we had our feet in the water all day, sitting in the shade, waiting for the sun to set lower. Baja California is a land of desert, sea and blue skies, offering adventures that will restore your sense of freedom, beauty and grace. It is rough and wild, but it has the spirit that became my friend.

Thank you
Christoph
 

Click here to go on the virtual trip...

www.jobins.ch