Pilgrimage Through the Americas: Quest for American Roots

It’s dark in the jungle at night -- black as tar. I’m jarred awake in my window seat on the chicken bus heading to Chichicastenango, Guatemala, by angry Spanish shouts of “everyone off the bus!” My glow in the dark wristwatch registers a little after 2 AM. Stepping off the bus, illuminated by yellow light from flashlights, I see a fifteen or sixteen year old Mayan boy. He’s dressed in faded, torn at the knees green camouflage pants and shirt. He points a rusty AK-47 assault rifle at me, and he has an attitude. My eyes meet his dark, harsh gaze. I smile and say “hola” (hello). He smiles back . . . 


      Overland travel California to Tierra del Fuego, Argentina

My ultimate goal is to realize a lifelong dream of reaching the end of the world, land of fire -- Tierra del Fuego, where the America’s end. I propose to travel overland (terrestrial and sea) 12,000 miles from California, USA to Tierra del Fuego, Argentina. I’m planning a 5-month trip, mostly by bus. I’ll return by airliner. Staying at inexpensive hostels, accepting invitations for home stays, seeking eateries patronized by local people creates opportunities for me to witness and experience Latin America through the language and cultural practices outside my “American” perspective.

By traveling through the Americas, I hope to discover and challenge myself. Adventure is what I seek. Things not going as planned or unexpected challenges, and your reaction, I consider adventure. Adventure tests one’s ability, skill, and aptitude in dealing with problems, barriers, difficult people or situations. My journey results in better appreciation of people, foreign cultures, allows development of a sense of place and history, expands one’s worldview, and enhances understanding of the human condition. 


The primary theme for the journey revolves around the idea that people living in the “New World” or “The Americas” have common histories, interests, aspirations, and concerns that differ from other “tribes” in the “Old World”. My objectives are to find, investigate, theorize, and draw general conclusions about: What is America? What is an American? Who calls themselves an American? Are we witnessing the inception and development of a new American brand? No longer Latin American, North American, South American, Central American, but American. What are the things we Americans have in common, or are our differences significant and irreconcilable. Do “we” have common roots and a shared heritage?


I want to ask people I encounter questions about “America” and “American”. I seek to entice them to discuss these terms using their definitions, language, and examples. My orientation is to listen, gather their ideas, opinions, and observe for commonalities.

A secondary theme is to follow the journey of my roots. Starting at the end, where I currently reside, and go as far as land permits to “el fin del mundo”, to the end of the world. I look for where the early explorer, Fernando Magellan, documented the southern most limits of the “New World”. I’ll investigate where my family roots are present in the Americas. Have Grijalvas left a mark?

My journey is a series of pilgrimages to places of first contact between Old and New World peoples, areas first settled by the earliest inhabitants, and communities birthed through conflict and resolution among tribes – Old and New. I follow the paths of trailblazers, explorers, discoverers, pioneers, those searching for new grounds, better views, fuller enriched lives for themselves and future “Americans”.

I seek to take stock of these places, landmarks, people, and compare the “initial” descriptions and discoveries with the present state. What has significantly changed? What has stayed the same? Do we find “roots” of present day cultures and societies? What lingering images, sounds, atmosphere occupy the spaces? How do I feel while visiting the place? Am I able to capture a sense of what pathfinders and pioneers felt many ages ago? Can I leave a positive mark? I plan to reach a better, comprehensive understanding of “our” role and contributions in fulfilling the age-old quest of finding and defining a “New World”.

What do you think?