THE PERFECT WAVE
As I mentioned before, I have arrived at a remarkable place, where I spent the last 2 weeks waiting for my stuff from home to get here before I would be moving on towards Peru.
I caught up again with Barbara I knew from Medellín and we decided to to spend time at the beach and the ocean, something that I really missed after over 2 weeks in the Mountains.
For this stint I had to let go a bit of my travelling guidelines as we ended up in Olón and Montañita. We were staying in Airbnb’s as the hostels etc. weren’t much cheaper really, the places are popular surf spots and host large numbers of tourists, so finding something in the price range I used to live on before wasn’t possible. And when the hostels are equally as expensive, why not take the better option then?
With our Airbnb we got really lucky as we ended up in a perfect place: just a few hundred meters from the busy centre of the village that reminds of Bangkok as shown in The Hangover Pt. 2, but far enough to enjoy the quietness and peace away from the bars, music and parties.
The house was designed in a natural way, having lots of bamboo elements, a roof from palm leaves, a beautiful and large garden together with a covered terrace. Every corner was decorated in handmade arts and crafts by the owners, who put a satisfying level of attention to detail into their home. Everything fitted the name Los Artistas and so did the owners: Lucas & Flor, an Argentinian couple (there are loads of Argentinians here in Ecuador?!), Tattoo artist and clothing designer with love for Rock ´n Roll music, arts and playing the drums – they were great hosts and great craic, so we spent many evenings out on the terrace together, surrounded by a concert of frogs who were screaming the whole night unlike frogs...
This place and the people that were living here should have a great impact on me and proved to be a strong inspiration that got me thinking – but I’ll come back to that later.
Having a beach nearby is certainly an upgrade to your quality of life. It affects your character a little bit, slows you down, takes away hectic, stress and lets you breathe and relax.
Also, it allows you to pick up surfing and that’s what I did: it turned out no to be easy, but I understand everyone who is in love with the sport. It’s a constant change of situation and challenge, it can be a beautiful and elegant dance in one moment and change into a brutal and violent fight the next second. It can me meditation and relaxation when you find yourself sitting on your board on the water and watching the ocean and the beautiful combination of the colours of the sea, the beach, the rocks and the trees in magnificent sunlight that’s breaking through the clouds and creates a stunning play of light and shadows, while you are waiting for the perfect wave to approach: you look, you wait, you paddle, trying to catch the waves rolling up at the perfect moment to take you with them, you get up onto the board and feel like an invisible, strong hand is carrying you without an effort towards the beach – or violently whacks you off the board.
You fall, you get sucked under water, feel almost like in a washing machine, swallow salt water, your eyes burn. You fight your way to the surface, try grab your board, get on top and paddle out again, through the incoming waves that try to wash you off. You go through them, roll with your board who let the wave run over you, wave after wave after wave, until you finally reach the point to rest and look out for the wave, that looks promising enough for a short, aesthetic, majestic dance. Or to get beaten up again. All just for a moment of freedom and this unique feeling on a perfect wave.
I found a good few waves in my time here, in and outside the water. The ones I caught outside were as impressive as the ones I managed to surf and had a lot to do with our place for the time and the people around me.
Apart from the owners their daughter, there were 2 more characters that occurred on a regular basis. They came to chat, help, cook and eat. What everybody here had in common was a calmness in theri character, open persons with a history that had stories to tell and were interesting persons. Some would describe them as simple, but in my eyes they were far from that: they knew what they needed and how to get it and basta!
That’s one thing I learned here, you don’t need much in life! This could also be felt here: your clothes, your watch or car, all that doesn't matter much. Here, the person you are and what you bring to the table as a character matters more, it’s more personal and a big contrast to what you see in many parts of the western or capitalist world. This truly impressed me as it felt like another good wave to surf on during life and gave me a good bit to think about.
I had even more to think about when I saw how the people in this place live and work. There is always time for personal things, a chat, helping your neighbour and a laugh. However, this doesn’t mean they are not working or being lazy – they just manage their thing differently, get done what needs to be done and live well without chasing a career like crazy. Yes, you do not see the biggest cars around here or the latest iPhone – but who says it’s necessary? If you lower a life standard just a little bit, you’ll get out with a similar result and a life with more freedom more time and less stress.
Having a good and relaxed life without chasing a manager’s career promises that are out of reach for you (of course you’ll only find out later), and without having to cope with all the “have-to’s“ that society is imposing upon you is something that I could see here. This, plus the ocean nearby, what else would you want?
With this in mind, how ridiculous do all the Instagram influencers and wannabes promoting all the products look like? Sure it’s nice to afford something every now and then, but look at it this way: working now to live later when you are old, lost you physical and mental health and maybe die soon OR live now and work just as much to have the things you really need and have a life free of hectic and stress plus being able to enjoy picturesque sunsets at the ocean?
I think I know what I’d prefer – going for option B is something that’s working my brain too these days. You might have noticed that some things of my life just till the end of last year already have been put into perspective within just 2 months. We’ll see how this continues. Surely I have found a place where I could live for a good while, surfing all of these waves.
Unfortunately I already left Montañita already and am on my way to Peru, where the next workaway stint awaits. However, this magical place will remain present!