The Adventure begins

...not that it hasn't already been an adventure -- being in another country is always an adventure, and I'm learning something new every day about this beautiful and blessed place. But TODAY I begin the mountain climbing excursion.

From Santiago, I take a bus to the city of La Vega. From there, I take a guagua to the town of Jarabacoa. A guagua is a kind of group taxi, a minivan that runs certain established routes, usually within one city, though sometimes from one city to another. They are amazingly cheap -- usually less than the equivalent of $1USD. They are also, for the most part, unimagineably beat up. I have literally seen the drivers taping parts back together with duct tape.

From Jarabacoa, I take a taxi to the 'Ranch' a couple of kilometers outside the town. Here is another part of the adventure -- I not only have to think in Spanish, I need to think in several other languages -- I need to think in pesos, which are somewhere between 32 to 36 to the dollar, and I also have to think in kilometers. I am learning that instead of asking how far is something -- and getting an answer like "75 kilometers" which means nothing to me, I ask "How long does it take to get there?" So I think it's about one hour to La Vega, then another 40 minutes from La Vega to Jarabacoa.

I'm all packed and ready -- as ready as I'll ever be. In addition to hiking boots, I actually had to bring a winter jacket because there can be frost overnight at the top! Plus raingear, since it's almost guaranteed to rain at some point during the trek, plus sunscreen, flashlight, etc. I was also told by a friend who has done this climb to bring my Ibuprofen, so I've got that, too.

So, I'll be incommunicado for a couple of days. The adventure begins...