I've seen your comments more than once regarding items you've observed in your travels. I'm just curious.....alright, I'm being nosy :^) as to whether this travel was for business or pleasure.....if you don't mind my asking. If you'd rather not say I understand. You've written about visiting a few different tribes. I found that very interesting and wondered if it was just a sightseeing thing or if you got to really mingle and learn about the group you were with. You may have posted something regarding this previously but if you did, I missed it.

Me, if I can't drive ( meaning the US, Canada or Mexico) I won't see it as "I don't Fly and I don't Float". I've been in a majority of the states in the US and driven a ways into Mexico and Canada but just can't make myself get on a plane or ship. I have been up with my Daddy in his plane a couple of times and went up with my sister during a lesson once and those few times were more than enough. My Daddy tried to get me to take lessons (he was even going to pay for them) but I said thanks but no thanks. Not much that I am scared of, but flying and floating are two things that have me stymied. For anything out of driving possibilities, I have to live thru others adventures or read about it. Thank goodness there is always something new and exciting to see here in the US and I still have almost all of Canada to explore when I retire.....have driven quite a distance into Mexico in the past but don't think I will do that again as long as things remain the way they are right now.

My trips to South America were all work-related during my "prior life" as an academic/researcher, although from the POV of those paying the bills some of those excursions might have been considered touring.

My earlier trips to Peru and the Amazon region were related to researching land/resource management of indigenous people. I was particularly interested in their ethnobotanical knowledge and how their fed themselves with so little effort and outside support.

Later I returned to work on "Green Revolution" rice research with formal field trials and some "farm extension" work getting local family farmers to grow the new grain varieties.

Toward the end of my academic career, I worked for some months in Venezuela putting my soil science and geomorphology training to work on an archeological project. That work was stimulated by a great drought that had hit the Llanos region (seasonally flooded grasslands and savannas). We were able to trench to depth for a study of the origins of ridged fields found in part of the Apure River drainage.

I bet you've good some good stories for me around that fire.

Yep, I am usually ultra-conservative politically….other matters…..it depends. As far as war stories, I might have a few that you would enjoy as I’ve not always been conservative :^) and I am pretty adventurous other than being “skeert” of flying and floating. I’m sure tho, that you and my brother would enjoy each other’s stories.

Hey, it’s kind of nice sharing thoughts under a white flag. ;^) We’ll have to do it again one day.