ARTICLES
The Secret Life of Solo Trekkers
Gore-Tex presents Experience More, April 2016
Reflections on how traveling solo enriches your life, from prominent travelers around the world. (Gore-Tex presents Experience More, April 2016)
The Glutton’s Guide to Adventure
Tasting Table, April 2017
A round-up of six of the world’s best active culinary vacations. (Tasting Table, April 2017)
Trekking into Peru’s Colca Canyon
Gore-Tex presents Experience More, June 2015
Working in corporate America, there’s a good chance you’re all too familiar with the mental gymnastics of trying to figure out your allotted vacation/personal/sick days to maximize your time out in the world. Follow along on a story where cubicles are left behind for a taste of ultimate freedom. (Gore-Tex presents Experience More, June 2015)
When You Wish Upon A Star (Altitude Sickness Will Flee Far)
GlobeTrekkerTV.com, October 2002
With the undulating high altitudes of Peru’s Inca Trail, altitude sickness is an inevitable—but beatable—obstacle for some trekkers.
ENTRIES FROM THE GLOBAL TRIP BLOG CHRONICLES
Adventures in Border Crossing
From the trip blog: "The Global Trip 2004: Sixteen Months Around The World"
Posted December 02, 2003
DAY 43: Navid and I were out of the hostel in the Guayaquil suburbs before eight and caught a city bus to the main bus terminal. A fake Christmas tree stood in the center of the main hall and for the first time, it was beginning to look a little like Christmas.
On the Road Again
From the trip blog: "The Global Trip 2004: Sixteen Months Around The World"
Posted December 02, 2003
DAY 44: I bid a fond farewell to Navid when we left the hostel before eight in the morning. He hopped on a mototaxi which brought him to the airport for his flights to Cuzco. For the first time since I touched down in South America, I was alone again.
Tomb Raider
From the trip blog: "The Global Trip 2004: Sixteen Months Around The World"
Posted December 08, 2003
DAY 45: In 1987, when most people were discovering the idea of boiling rabbits in Fatal Attraction, a group of archaeologists discovered new ruins just 30 km southeast of Chiclayo, Peru. This find contained the tombs of Sipan, an ancient city of the Moche civilization, a people who pre-date the more widely-known Incas. The reason for their decreased popularity is due to the fact that they didn’t leave any written records — which is sad because we will never know if boiling rabbits ever appealed to them.
Eastward Ho!
From the trip blog: "The Global Trip 2004: Sixteen Months Around The World"
Posted December 08, 2003
DAY 46: Since no roads go to the Amazonian jungle city of Iquitos, there are only two ways to get there: by plane or — if you have time to kill like me — via a cargo boat up the Rio Marañon, one of the main tributaries that make up the mighty Amazon River. The closest river port for these cargo ships is in the city of Yurimaguas which involves — as Lonely Planet describes — “a tiring road trip from the coast.”
A Fresh Young Boy
From the trip blog: "The Global Trip 2004: Sixteen Months Around The World"
Posted December 08, 2003
DAY 47: The sun came up over Tarapoto and broke through the morning mist, revealing a pretty town surrounded by mountains. I got dressed and sorted out and went looking for a place for breakfast — there was one on the fourth floor with a view of the city, and it was included in my fee.
A New Shipmate
From the trip blog: "The Global Trip 2004: Sixteen Months Around The World"
Posted December 08, 2003
DAY 48: The sun broke through the river fog to reveal what I didn’t want to see: through my “first class” “window,” I saw that we still hadn’t left the port in Yurimaguas.
Tally Me Banana
From the trip blog: "The Global Trip 2004: Sixteen Months Around The World"
Posted December 08, 2003
DAY 49: The sun was already up when our cargo ship stopped in Maripoto, a tiny village on the riverbank where the Rio Huallaga meets the Rio Marañon. It was the first of many stops along the way where we picked up bunches and bunches of bananas.
Houses On Stilts
From the trip blog: "The Global Trip 2004: Sixteen Months Around The World"
Posted December 08, 2003
DAY 50: You would think that Amazonian city of Iquitos, the largest city in the world without any connecting roads, would be reminiscent of a lost Shangri-La or an ancient city out of a Tarzan set. The fact is, Iquitos, the Amazon River’s first port during the rubber industry boom, now has over 500,000 residents and is a bustling modern city — it was evident as soon as we arrived at the port.
Urban Jungle
From the trip blog: "The Global Trip 2004: Sixteen Months Around The World"
Posted December 09, 2003
DAY 51: Like Tarzan swinging from vine to vine in the jungle, I swung from person-I-could-possibly-trust to person-I-could-possibly-trust. With the girls off on a flight back to Lima, I only had Richard to turn to for advice — which was a good thing in an urban jungle crawling with Shady Tour Men trying to make a quick buck. Knowing a local also came in handy when I noticed the massive army that came marching into town in full attack gear with crossbows, missile launchers and machine guns.
Welcome to the Jungle
From the trip blog: "The Global Trip 2004: Sixteen Months Around The World"
Posted December 15, 2003
DAY 52: I bid farewell to the hostel desk attendant — who, hearing that I was from New York, assumed I was Puerto Rican — and rode with Andres to the docks. He put me in a motorboat taxi for the three hour ride upstream on the Amazon.
Monkey Business
From the trip blog: "The Global Trip 2004: Sixteen Months Around The World"
Posted December 15, 2003
DAY 53: My lip had swollen down about half way from the night before, and sensation was coming back, which was a good thing being mistletoe season — not that there was any mistletoe around. In the steamy jungle, it was the exact opposite of “looking a lot like Christmas.”
In Deeper With A Really Big Knife
From the trip blog: "The Global Trip 2004: Sixteen Months Around The World"
Posted December 15, 2003
DAY 54: Alone in my hut in my mosquito net tent, I heard rustling outside, followed by the sounds of small footsteps of monkeys. Suddenly one of them landed on the roof of my mosquito net and so I grabbed my things and ran off to the main hut — not for fear of monkey bites, but that they’d steal my stuff. When I got into the main hut, I saw that a monkey had gotten in and taken a scoop of rice before running off.
Slimy Yet Satisfying
From the trip blog: "The Global Trip 2004: Sixteen Months Around The World"
Posted December 15, 2003
DAY 55: Juan and I woke at dawn and left our things in camp to go on a morning hike. We walked along a trail, on logs, through creeks, looking at the different medicinal plants. Juan showed me a coconut tree with small coconuts the size of a fist, which he cut open with his machete. Inside were butterfly larvae that had hatched from eggs their mother had injected inside, to use the fruit and protection of the coconut to nurse them.
Survivor: The Amazon
From the trip blog: "The Global Trip 2004: Sixteen Months Around The World"
Posted December 15, 2003
DAY 56: I woke up around three in the morning to the sound of a distant static. Gradually the white noise got closer and closer until it started pouring rain in camp. The wind blew out all the mosquito candles, leaving base camp completely dark. Perhaps it was best this way because it hid the fact that, when I woke up in the morning, I found a tarantula in my bed frame.
Amazon Dot Com
From the trip blog: "The Global Trip 2004: Sixteen Months Around The World"
Posted December 16, 2003
DAY 57: I was off to drop my laundry off in Iquitos to wash out the stench of vinegar-flavored yogurt and bug spray, when I ran into Richard on the street again. It was weird, because the run-in didn’t feel random — it was like he was waiting for me to come out so he could ask if I wanted him to guide me to the zoo that he mentioned to me the week before.
Looking for Christmas in Lima
From the trip blog: "The Global Trip 2004: Sixteen Months Around The World"
Posted December 16, 2003
DAY 58: Call me old-fashioned, but during the holiday season, I like it to feel a little bit like Christmas — you know, with the trees and decorations and people following shoppers leaving the mall to snatch their parking space, only to find out they were just dropping off bags in the trunk. Being in the jungle city of Iquitos, I was far away from anything remotely resembling a stereotypical Christmas, and so it was time to move on.
Across Lima and into Mordor
From the trip blog: "The Global Trip 2004: Sixteen Months Around The World"
Posted December 17, 2003
DAY 59: The Lord of the Rings trilogy is a phenomenon in many countries around the globe, Peru included. Tolkien’s world is very much a part of Peruvian pop culture as it is in the States, and with the worldwide December 17th release of the third film, Peruvian nerds, like their North American and European counterparts, lined up in hordes to see El Retorno del Rey. In fact, a front page article in the national newspaper El Comercio had a picture of the hundreds of Peruvian nerds who sat in theaters for ten hours straight watching all three movies back to back to back.
The Taxis of Miraflores
From the trip blog: "The Global Trip 2004: Sixteen Months Around The World"
Posted December 18, 2003
DAY 60: Just south of Lima is the affluent oceanside suburb of Miraflores, a place that despite its fancy restaurants and hotels, is suggested as “the better place to stay for budget travelers” according to Lonely Planet. Perhaps this is why the South American Explorers moved their clubhouse there, so it warranted a visit.
A Pair of Turtles
From the trip blog: "The Global Trip 2004: Sixteen Months Around The World"
Posted December 20, 2003
DAY 61: I was writing a rough draft in the rooftop cafe of the Lima hostel early in the morning when two new pet animals, a pair of turtles, wandered in and walked under the tables and chairs. It took sometime for the turtles to get anywhere.
Sweet, Sour and Sandy
From the trip blog: "The Global Trip 2004: Sixteen Months Around The World"
Posted December 20, 2003
DAY 62: Ica, capital city of the department of the same name, is known for two things: its massive and dramatic surrounding sand dunes (picture below), and its pisco brandy and wine-producing vineyards. The easiest way to see them both is with a city tour. At just ten dollars, the tour wasn’t a bad deal considering the amount of free booze samples you get. And what’s not to like about free booze?
NAZCAR
From the trip blog: "The Global Trip 2004: Sixteen Months Around The World"
Posted December 21, 2003
DAY 63: Nights in pisco country are great, but the mornings after aren’t so much. With the absence of my usual greasy Hangover Helpers in New York — Union Square’s McDonald’s, Flatiron District’s Eisenberg’s Sandwich Shop or Chinatown’s Wo Hop — I turned to the regional breakfast specialty, the Tamale Iqueño, a corn dough treat stuffed with pork, olives, beans and spices. It might not have been greasy enough to make a sheet of paper transparent, but it did the trick.
Where They Drew The Line
From the trip blog: "The Global Trip 2004: Sixteen Months Around The World"
Posted December 23, 2003
DAY 64: I was lying in bed in the darkness of my room with no windows when there was a knock on the door. It was my driver for my transport to the airport — an hour and a half early. Lizet, the girl I booked the Nazca lines air tour with the day before, must have mixed something up, because I was suddenly on an 8 a.m. flight instead of a 9. Groggily, I put on my clothes and hopped in the car. It was the first time things in Peru actually ran ahead of schedule.
On the Trail of Lara Croft
From the trip blog: "The Global Trip 2004: Sixteen Months Around The World"
Posted December 24, 2003
DAY 65: In 1996, the adventure video game Tomb Raider was born, starring the full-lipped, big-breasted virtual heroine Lara Croft. The gun-toting Lara adventured around the world in search of artifacts like a modern, female Indiana Jones. The popularity of the Tomb Raider video game spawned two movies in which the full-lipped, big-breasted virtual Lara Croft took the human form of Angelina Jolie.
Horses for Hangovers
From the trip blog: "The Global Trip 2004: Sixteen Months Around The World"
Posted December 25, 2003
DAY 66: It’s one thing to be hungover after a night of boozing, but it’s another to be hungover when you haven’t yet acclimatized to the thin oxygen 11,000 ft. above sea level. I woke up feeling just awful (but with no regrets) and laid in bed questioning why I was alive — Lara felt the same way. We weren’t sure if it was the pisco or the altitude, but perhaps it was a little from Column A and a little from Column B.
Christmas in Cusco
From the trip blog: "The Global Trip 2004: Sixteen Months Around The World"
Posted December 25, 2003
DAY 67: I woke up to the sound of firecrackers in the streets early in the morning — the kids had been setting them off all night. For me, the sounds of Christmas morning sounded more like the sounds of the Fourth of July.
Catch Him If You Can
From the trip blog: "The Global Trip 2004: Sixteen Months Around The World"
Posted December 26, 2003
DAY 68: Some people would say that the best invention since sliced bread is the “snooze” button. You know it and its contribution to Mankind — why wake up and face reality when all you have to do is simply push a button and stay in dream land another ten minutes?
Two Women, A Llama and The Bird
From the trip blog: "The Global Trip 2004: Sixteen Months Around The World"
Posted December 27, 2003
DAY 69: I was having breakfast at the cafe across the street from the hostel when I noticed the same two women I had noticed at various places in town almost everyday. They were two local women who dressed in traditional Andean clothes that walked around with a llama, asking tourists if they wanted to take their picture for a small fee. The Ecuadorean group in the cafe ran out to pose with them, while I stayed inside and finished my yogurt, fruit and granola bowl.
The (Andean) Village People
From the trip blog: "The Global Trip 2004: Sixteen Months Around The World"
Posted December 28, 2003
DAY 70: “Guess what,” I asked Lara at an early morning breakfast before our day trip to the Sacred Valley. “I got a traditional Andean band to play ‘Y.M.C.A.’ tonight at 8:30.”
“Excellent,” she said. We were both looking forward to it. I even sent out an e-mail to The Ohio Boys about it in case they got back from Machu Picchu in time.
The Redemption Cookie
From the trip blog: "The Global Trip 2004: Sixteen Months Around The World"
Posted December 29, 2003
DAY 71: I was up by seven o’clock in the morning to see Lara off before she left with her transport to her 4-day/3-night trek to Machu Picchu — a trek I had already done in 2001. It was her goal to ring in 2004 by entering the “lost” city of the Incas on the morning of New Year’s Day. She left the hostel by 8 a.m. with her new fleece, the cheesy water bottle holder I got her for Christmas and rations of Twix bars and Oreos.
New Friend For New Year’s
From the trip blog: "The Global Trip 2004: Sixteen Months Around The World"
Posted January 01, 2004
DAY 72: Arequipa, Peru’s second largest city, is nestled in the valley of three volcanoes. The lava of these volcanoes have hardened over geological history to form the white-colored rock known as sillar, which many of the buildings were made of — hence, Arequipa’s nickname, “The White City.”
Decisions
From the trip blog: "The Global Trip 2004: Sixteen Months Around The World"
Posted January 02, 2004
DAY 73: MY LAST DAY OF 2003 started at one o’clock in the morning. My alarm woke me up twenty minutes before my 1:20 pick up from my guide who would take me and Heidi down Colca Canyon, the deepest canyon in the world, with the lowest point at a depth of 10,433 ft. A knock on my room door at 1:15 signaled me that my guide was running five minutes early, and so I grabbed my smaller bag — my bigger was locked in storage — and hopped in the taxi with him. The taxi driver drove us to Heidi’s hostel, where we picked her up before continuing onto the bus terminal.
New Year, New Adventure
From the trip blog: "The Global Trip 2004: Sixteen Months Around The World"
Posted January 02, 2004
DAY 74: Usually I wake up on New Year’s Day hungover, with a feeling like I am at the bottom of the deepest canyon in the world. When I woke up at 4 a.m. feeling that same way, I realized, “Holy crap man, I am at the bottom of the deepest canyon in the world!”
My First Stolen Item
From the trip blog: "The Global Trip 2004: Sixteen Months Around The World"
Posted January 02, 2004
DAY 75: Being in a No Internet Zone (aka N.I.Z.) for two days or more often forces me to take an entire day to sit in front of a computer to catch up on The Blog. On my last day in Arequipa, that’s what I did.
Bargain Hunter: Puno
From the trip blog: "The Global Trip 2004: Sixteen Months Around The World"
Posted January 05, 2004
DAY 76: Dave the Australian was up and out of our room by 7:15 in the morning, less than four hours since we checked in, for his day tour of Lake Titicaca. He left me a ten soles note on my bedside, and with the exchange rate, I felt like a Two Dollar and Eighty Six Cents Peruvian Whore.
School Days On The Titty Side
From the trip blog: "The Global Trip 2004: Sixteen Months Around The World"
Posted January 05, 2004
DAY 77: Lake Titicaca, the lake that Simpsons’ creator Matt Groening once called a place whose name is guaranteed to make kids snicker, lies on the border of Peru and Bolivia at an elevation of over 12,500 ft above sea level — one of the world’s highest lakes. Rachel, a 22-year-old Chicago native working in northern Peru — and my new roommate for the day — told me that Peruvians say that the Peruvian side is the “Titty” side, while the Bolivia is the “Caca” side. Now if that doesn’t make the kids in your life snicker, I suggest you start making fart noises with your armpit.
The Orange Hat
From the trip blog: "The Global Trip 2004: Sixteen Months Around The World"
Posted January 05, 2004
DAY 78: I woke up on a rainy morning on Isla Amantani feeling a little bit better from the night before. Basilia came to our room with a breakfast of bread, eggs and muña tea, and then bid us an early goodbye. “[I have to go to work,]” she explained. Rachel gave her the gifts of such groceries as cooking oil and rice before she head off.
“That goodbye was pretty anti-climactic,” I commented.
Saved By A Twelve-Year-Old
From the trip blog: "The Global Trip 2004: Sixteen Months Around The World"
Posted January 06, 2004
DAY 79: I was awake by 6 a.m. feeling a little bit better from my illness. I ate a mango for the extra vitamins and gathered all my belongings. As always, I was amazed when I looked around the room to see if I forgot anything, only to realize that everything I would need to get by on a round-the-world trip fit conveniently in two bags.
SHARE THIS PAGE:
Follow The Global Trip on Twitter
Follow The Global Trip in Instagram
Become a TGT Fan on Facebook
Subscribe to the RSS Feed
ABOUT ERIK R. TRINIDAD
When he’s not making a living as an interactive/motion designer or playing with fast food, Erik R. Trinidad is a travel writer, blogger, video host and producer focusing on adventure and culinary content. His work has been featured on National Geographic Intelligent Travel, Adventure.com, Discovery.com, Saveur, Condé Nast Traveler, and 
Hyenas Laughed at Me and Now I Know Why, which also includes the work of Tim Cahill, Doug Lansky, Jennifer Leo and Rolf Potts. He has also referenced his travel experiences in his solo book, Fancy Fast Food: Ironic Recipes with No Bun Intended.
For over ten years, Erik has traveled to the seven continents of the world — from Timbuktu to Kalamazoo — with a curiosity for exotic foods and a thirst for adventure (and writing material). In his travels, he has been mugged at knifepoint in Cape Town, extorted by corrupt Russian police on the Trans-Siberian Railway, stranded in tornadic storms in the American midwest, and air-lifted off the Everest Trail by a helicopter that was thankfully paid for by his travel insurance. But it hasn’t been all fun; he has also donned a tuxedo amidst the penguins of Antarctica, paraded with Carnival-winning samba school Beija Flor in Rio, run for his life at Pamplona’s “Running of the Bulls,” cage-dived with great white sharks, gotten shot point-blank in the stomach in Colombia (while wearing a bulletproof jacket), and above all, encountered many people around the world, including some Peruvian musicians in Cuzco who learned and played “Y.M.C.A.” at his request. He loves the irony that, after everywhere he’s been, he has never been to Mexico.
Erik writes stories and news articles when he’s at his base camp in New York City, and continues his blog when he is on the road — provided he’s not occupied tracking down lost luggage.
Additional news/article clippings at ErikTrinidad.com.
See Erik talk about travel in an American Express ad:
Read about Erik in this feature article from Filipinas magazine by National Geographic Traveler Associate Editor Amy Alipio.