愛在天花蔓延時

既然是要出門遠行，行前的準備總是少不了。

不過漢克菜當了五年國外業務，工作的關係，最高紀錄一個禮拜搭六趟飛機，一個月拜訪香港機場吸煙室十次、參觀十八個不同的旅館房間、蒐集二十張登機證，兩個月在家裡住四天、一年出入境台灣海關四十二次，早已習慣打包、搭車或開車到機場、check-in、在貴賓室喝杯咖啡抽1~2根煙等飛機、搭飛機、下飛機、抽1~2根煙、搭車到旅館、check-in、睡一覺、check-out、拜訪客戶、抽1~2根煙、搭車到機場、check-in、在貴賓室抽1~2根煙等飛機、搭飛機、下飛機、抽1~2根煙、搭車或搭船到下一個目的地這樣無止盡的循環。

這樣的循環早已變成生活的一部份，買了台車卻一個月停在中正機場外的五福停車場二十天以上，上飛機三分鐘內立刻入睡，被空服員叫醒吃一餐後看一場電影，看完馬上呼呼大睡，早上在旅館醒來三分鐘內可以打包完畢、五分鐘內可以check-out。基本上已經練成無處不可睡、隨時可以走的快速移動部隊。（附註：漢克菜當兵下部隊共約一年的時間，部隊共計移防（也就是搬家）了十次，隨時可以在正在移動的兩頓半大卡車後的長板凳上入睡，不知道是巧合，還是老天不願意浪費我好不容易訓練出來的才能。）

(中文不是很好，這篇中間穿插英文的短文花了我三個小時的時間，請見諒…)

首先要感謝媽媽和爸爸的大力支持。沒有他們的鼓勵，我應該還是在某高中任職的30歲無聊女子。媽媽聽到我要去南美洲時沒啥太大的反應，可能是我太常出國了吧。
　
那天為了要辦美簽，我去了出入境管理局要了歷年來出入境紀錄，辦完了以後，我坐在車子裡看著這張紀錄一生的紙，有點難過，有些開心，感覺很複雜。總結是，難怪媽媽沒說啥，我平均半年出國一次，也太頻繁了吧。

不過就是出國旅遊罷了，沒想到年齡超過三十五歲的親朋好友全部驚慌失措，他們對於我要出發到南美洲的反應不外乎以下幾種，

親戚甲：「很危險，小心不要被搶！」

I have a dream. Well, actually, I have many dreams. And none of them was/is related to South America. I dreamed about dancing on the street with Mexican mariachi once but that's as close as it gets to where I am now, which is about 9 hours away (don't quote me on this)by plane and 10 million miles from home(needless to say this is an exaggerated estimate).

But here I am, sitting in a coffee shop, two months and some odd days since I left, in Santa Cruz, Bolivia, observing and being observed. Asians are rare here. Mostly of them are Japanese backpackers and that's usually where they think that we are from. I'd smile and say, we are from Taiwan. Taiwan es una isla pequena, I'd say. - Taiwan is a small island. They'll nod their heads politely and ask: Korean? That's how much they know about my island.

Never had I said so much about my motherland nor being so proud of it. The pollution that used to bug me is now as minute as a mosquito bite compared to the diesel engine exhausts I had to endure in Peru and here. The crowded streets never bothered me that much since I rarely get out of the house in Taiwan. The traffic that seemed chaotic now seem orderly. I miss roaming the winding streets with my car and feeling free of all burdens once the speedometer points towards the sky.

大學念的是新聞攝影，經常有機會外出拍照，一天在中正紀念堂拍攝巴西來的嘉年華舞者，從此在南美洲在心中留下深刻的印記，並發願有一天一定要去遊玩一番。

說得好聽是被舞者熱情奔放的舞步所感動，其實是看到皮膚黝黑，身材姣好的巴西女郎直流口水，幻想嘉年華會場面淫亂的樣子。幻想歸幻想，那天拍完照後，沖洗出來的幻燈片不一會就進到櫃子裡生灰塵，繼續我符合社會及家庭期望的人生。

He decided to live his life. I decided to halt my life. He went to Peru and I followed. Whether it was the right thing to do or not, we will never know. The point is, we are here, in South America(at the point of writing, we're located in Santa Cruz, Bolivia), living and halting our lives together.

Our first stop was L.A. I traced his steps from airport to airport, all 5 of them. First, CKS airport, LAX, El Salvador, Lima and then Cusco. It took me(and him on separate occasions) two days to get to where he was and it took him a month to get me to where he was. I suppose this is what relationship is all about. He goes, I follow.

Peru went through my mind and head like a blur. I didn't go to Macchu Picchu by choice. I didn't go on any of the hikes or the treks. I knew that I wouldn't survive very long without showering, well, that's not quite true. I just didn't want to climb up a mountain that has no particular interest to me. Call it how you want, that was my decision.

The only thing that I took with me was my alpaca sweater and scarf. Those will last a life time and as for the indignant payments of tourists and other unpleasant events are being forgotten with every second that passes by.