Tag: adventure

Castillo San Felipe de Barajas – Cartagena, Colombia

When the Spanish started to establish their foothold in the Americas, one of the first places that they made their presence known was in modern day Cartagena, Colombia. One of the ways they made sure that people coming to this port city knew of their power was the fact that they built a fortress on a hill overlooking the bay and then they stocked it with cannon to repel any enemy force foolish enough to try to overtake the fledging city. Despite its early formidable presence, the fortress changed hands many times and eventually was abandoned as modern warfare made its structure obsolete. It still stands looking over the city, and is now one of the premiere tourist sites there.

The fortress itself is a big block of concrete and stone that sits on top of a hill on the edge of Cartagena. It was built in stages and there are many stories that come from the many centuries that it has stood looking over Cartagena. What looks like a formidable fortress actually has some hidden secrets to it as well.

In many places, there are open gates that allow you to move deeper into the fortress. What surprised me about the place was the winding passages and hidden rooms that can be explored underneath the towering mass of brick and concrete that sits on top of it. These paths show that there was a lot more to this place than appears on the outside, and they could be used to house soldiers, detain prisoners, and hold slaves. It not only adds depth to the place, but also opens up stories, and history that makes this one of the premiere places to visit in the city.

If you are planning on visiting this sight, it is important to know that it is very hot. We visited on a day of clear blue skies, and heavy humidity, and we were constantly being zapped of our energy, and had to consume mass amounts of water to feel like we were not going to collapse as we toured the place. Even the underground passages get really hot, and those are pretty much the only place where you can find shade at this sight during the day. We went there early in the morning to try and avoid the heat, and it was still too hot for us when we arrived.

There are many people selling water and hats outside of the sight, and you will want to make sure that you bring some water with you inside. There is only one store on the top of the fortress and it only sells souvenirs. You will not be able to find any water once you get in. There are a few people that will sell hats and other trinkets on the concrete path up to the top, but they do raise the prices of things as soon as you get inside, so plan accordingly. Also, you will find people who are asking you if you want a guide. This does add some to the experience because the signs you can find on the sight are few, but they are written in both English and Spanish. They will tell you enough of the story of the place, but a guide can really make it come to life.

The Castillo San Filipe de Barajas is easily the must do location of Cartagena, and it does help to bring the city to life. It is a great place to visit though you will only need to be there for an hour or two to get the whole experience. It is also close enough to the old part of town so you can make a day of exploring the fortress and the city itself. It will cement Cartagena in your minds as one of your favorite cities as it did for me.

Isla Baru, Colombia

The Caribbean is filled with many sandy islands surrounded by clear blue water, and marked by tourists as a destination that they would love to add to their bucket lists. So with all of the islands out there to chose from, why would Isla Baru in Columbia be up for consideration? Can it compete with the other ones with great getaway experiences with a great hotel that allows you to relax at the same time? Does the fact that it is so close to the coast of the continent change the feel of it, so it no longer feels like you are on an island, but instead just an extension of Columbia itself?

Well, to start off, Isla Baru is close to the historic city of Cartegena, Columbia. From there, it is rather easy to get to. You can book a boat to take you out there in a matter of 45 minutes, or there is also a bridge from the mainland that takes a little longer but less expensive of a trip. There are people that have residents on the island, but the main focus like many Caribbean islands is tourism. There are a few hotels on the islands, but I elected to spend a few nights at the Sofitel with its own private beach, and enough amenities that I would never have to leave the grounds. The plan was to have a do nothing vacation, and this looked like the perfect place to do just that.

The place gives you everything you need for that relaxing vacation. There are three different restaurants with varying food choices, and a rooftop bar that also served limited selection of sushi. If that is not enough, during the day, there is a taco truck on the beach where you can get some food as well. They also have a good selection of drinks as well, so you never have to go far to get what you need.

Of course there is a beach to spread out on, but there are also numerous pools that you can use if you wish to avoid the sand and salt water. It is tempting to use, but the water is always a little cooler than what you would find in the Caribbean. They still have nice places to lounge out on, and you can dip into the cool water anytime you start to feel a little too hot in the sun. They also have a specific pool dedicated for adults if you do not wish to be inundated with the screams and laughter of little children. Also, no matter which pool you choose to go to, there is always a bar nearby with a server that comes around to see if they can get you something refreshing to drink.

Sofitel has also made sure that there is plenty of entertainment for you. On any given night, you can find a bonfire with traditional Columbian dancers, or a jazz band playing on the rooftop bar. They also have markets come in once in awhile to sell artwork and jewelry made from the locals. If none of this is your cup of tea, there are also many oversized and regular sized games to be found around the grounds. We sat on the patio from our room and watched many games of chess played out in front of us, but there is also checkers, Parcheesi, Battleship, and even an outdoor ping-pong table.

I know this is not the vacation where I spent my time touring old sights, going on long hikes through beautiful scenery, or experiencing the ins and outs of a new culture. Not all vacations need to be about that. Sometimes all you need is a sandy beach on a remote island where you can just unwind from your busy schedule and let the minutes tick away. Isla Baru in Columbia is exactly this place, and it was wonderful to decompress there for a couple of days.

Wandering the Cartagena – Without a Home for an Afternoon

One of the hardest things while traveling around the world is the days when you are in-between places. There is this strange time where you need to check out of your hotel and before you can move on to the next location. Most hotels will allow you to keep your bags in a back room during these times in limbo, but then you have to wander out from that hotel into the strangeness of the town that you find yourself in.

Now, I know it sounds strange that you might be without a hotel room for a couple of hours should feel weird while on vacation. But there is something a little unsettling not having a place to go back to whenever you want to. I know that my stuff will be safe because I have never experienced a problem when living life like this, but it does not feel right to have all of it hidden in a dark corner of some closet with piles of other people’s luggage.

Despite this unease, it is still a nice way to take in a city for the last time before moving on to your next place during vacation. The latest place where I have found myself in without a home has been Cartagena, and so far, it has been a lovely place to visit and get to know. I spent the first night of my most recent vacation there before heading off to one of the islands, so the original plan was not to get to know the city first, and then experience this day at the end, but to have this day before going off to the most relaxing part of the trip.

We were staying close to the old part of the city which has been around since Sir Francis Drake raided the city and forced the inhabitants to build a wall to prevent from it ever happening again. The colorful city that these walls hold have a feel of Europe combined with Africa all combined with a Latin America vibe. I have never experienced anything like it before, and it was fun wandering around its windy streets knowing that I would have to cross the wall if I was willing to escape. And if I was bored, I could walk along the wall itself, and see how they were able to defend themselves in the 16th century from pirates and unfriendly nations.

It was not an ideal way to spend a day, but I was able to make the most out of the experience. It gave me hints and clues about what I wished to do when I finally made it back after my island experience. I was able to get a brief overview of one of the world’s more interesting cities, and it would not have happened if I was not without a hotel room during that day. The experience will happen again where my luggage has place to stay but I do not, and I hope that I find myself in a place like Cartagena the next time that it does.

The Painted Hills – Central Oregon

Oregon is one of the most diverse states within the United States. It has costal regions, high dessert, mountains, small towns, big cities, and long beautiful rivers. There is a little something for everybody in Oregon, so it should not shock me when I come across a new region that adds to the diversity of this state, but this is exactly what happened as I traveled to one of the more hidden gems out here. The Painted Hills not only showed me a new side of Oregon, but showed me something new that I had never seen before.

The Painted Hills are one of Oregon’s seven wonders, and one that many people do not make it out to. It has been designated as a National Monument, so there are people there, but it does not attract the crowds like Crater Lake of the Oregon coast does. The infrastructure around the location is not as built up as well with not a lot of locations to stay at except for a few campsites in the neighborhood so it makes it hard to plan to get out to the location. Luckily, the location is not an all day place, and can be enjoyably viewed within a couple of hours. It is the perfect place to stop by and see, especially if you are traveling from the Columbia Gorge to the Bend area in Central Oregon.

The Painted Hills have four hikes with a couple of miles from each other. Most of the hikes are less than a mile and are on well designated path to keep people off of the fragile soil of the monument. Three of them are relatively easy to do with very little elevation gain, and the longest hike is the most difficult going straight up a mountain to a spectacular view of the whole region. For the most part, anybody can do the three shorter hikes, and the hardest hike can still be accomplished by most people. They are all pretty close to each other with only short drives in-between them. During the summer months, it does get hot at the location, so make sure to bring plenty of water.

Besides the views that are offered, there is a lot of other interesting things to witness at the sight. There is a small oasis at the ranger station with picnic tables, perfect for lunch. The rangers are also well informed and are willing to ask any questions about the Painted Hills. Even if you do not ask them questions, there are a lot of information signs all around that can tell you about the formation of the hills, what the place looked like thousands of years ago, and about all of the fossils that have been found at the sight.

It is easy to see why the Painted Hills are one of Oregon’s seven wonders. It might not be the easiest of locations to get to, but it is worth the drive to get out there, and even better to make a stop at if you find yourself in the location. It is just another example of why Oregon is one of the most beautiful states in the United States.

Until next time, keep on finding those hidden gems out there.

Eat Like A Local – Mexico City Food Tour

One of the greatest parts of travel is eating the local cuisine, and there has been nothing that has excited me than to travel to Mexico for the first time in my life and eat one of my favorite cuisines, Mexican. I know. Here I am, world traveler, who has been to almost 60 countries, and I still have not been to Mexico, even though it is right next door to America. Yeah, I know. There was a time in my life where I thought I would never make it here, but we decided to do a five day stay over in Mexico City before making our way to America for the summer months, and on our first full day here, we went on a food tour with the perfect choice for this kind of excursion, Eat Like a Local.

Eat Like a Local is a food tour company that grew out of an inspiration that tried to create a different experience than the ones that many tourists join when they are traveling around the world. The food tour companies are not always about finding those little hidden gems that the locals know about, but instead, they are looking to make deals with bigger stores to help them bring in more business. This is where Eat Like a Local is different. They want to guide people to those spots that help support the local economy and showcase what Mexican food is all about.

This took us to the markets, and street vendors that are all over Mexico City. It wasn’t just about the food, but also being a part of the local culture as we went to La Merced, an underground market filled not only with fresh produce, but flowers, and many other little necessities that people might need to make it through their day to day routines. It was also great to go through with a guide because she was able to point out some things that I would have never noticed if I had not been with her.

The subway trains were the ones that fascinated me the most. I would have just gotten on and off them without really looking around. The trains looked old, and most of the time packed, so I was trying to find my space without having to get too close to any other stranger on the subway. The ride was a little jittery, but not as bad as some of the other older subway systems I had been on. When it was pointed out that Mexico City had one of only a couple of subway systems that put tires on their trains, I started to understand why.

Each subway stop also had its own decorations. At first, they were used during the Olympics to help guide passengers to the correct stop, but some of them had more symbolic meaning behind them. My favorite was the ducks. The station was originally built on wetlands, but the designer of the station included ducks because it was also the entrance to one of Mexico City’s oldest markets. Because it was such a busy location in the city, it attracted a lot of pickpockets and thieves, and the duck was a symbol of tricksters and criminals. They eventually moved the center of the legislative government to this location, and some people thought that the ducks were a no longer appropriately symbol for this stop. Fortunately, more people thought that they were even more appropriate and they stuck around.

Still, the tour’s main focus was about the food, and there was a huge variety of food to be had along the way. Mainly they involved different types of tacos that were made right there in front of you, and there is a huge variety of tacos to be had in Mexico City. We had tacos filled with pescado (fish), chorizo verde (a green sausage made with spinach, nuts, and spicy meat), carnitas (pork), and mixiote (a traditional way to cook meat that involves boiling it for hours in the skin of an agave plant, and my favorite). Each dish was more delicious than the next and included esquitas (roasted corn), fresh fruit, and quesadillas, and I was able to enjoy all of it. The only dish I could not bring myself to eat was the plate of bugs that was offered to us. I am adventurous and have eaten bugs before, but once in my lifetime was enough for me, and I could not do it again.

The Eat Like a Local food tour through Mexico City was a great way to spend a day and made me so full that I had to wait until later that evening before I wanted to eat again. I would recommend doing it on the first full day that you are in Mexico City because not only is it a great way to get to know the culture, but it also helps to establish the lay of the land as you spend the next few days navigating this large city. I appreciate Panda, our guide, as she showed us around and it will be a day that I soon will not forget.

Lunahuana – An Experiential Vacation

I recently asked one of my students where people traveled to in Peru. He rolled his eyes, looked at me, and instantly said Cusco. I realized my mistake, and asked for clarification; where did Peruvians go to for their getaways. He talk about many spots along the coast, and then mentioned one spot not far in the Andes where Peruvians went in the Andes mountains not far away from the coast where some went to play on the river or around the surrounding mountains. There are ruins, and playgrounds set up for both children and adults. It is not well known by people outside of Peru, but it is a great getaway for those that live in Lima. I got to learn about all it had to offer as I took my students out on an experiential education trip to this region of the Andes Mountains.

There are many things to do in this valley, and a bunch of vans to take you up and down the main road that follows the river to take you to these activities. The travel only takes fifteen minutes at most from the furthest away hotel, and some of the hotels even have some of these activities available on their grounds. All of the activities are great outdoor experiences throughout the year because even in the coldest months, it is still warm enough to enjoy these activities.

The biggest problem with the whole area though is the river. There is always water in a very dry climate, and this creates the perfect conditions for mosquitoes. They are all over the place, and they are hungry. If you come to this part of Peru, remember to bring your bug spray because you will want it to keep these critters away. I had not sprayed any on me when I first arrived, and I had my one bottle hidden in the bottom of my suitcase. I thought I would be okay, but the bugs just saw fresh meat and they were all over my legs within seconds. There are still welts all over my body from those first few moments that I arrived, and I am sending out that warning to anyone that comes.

Do not let the bugs discourage you from coming. As soon as you lather yourself in the bug spray, the activities are a joy. There is rock climbing, high ropes courses, zip-lining, kayaking, rafting, bird-watching, camping, ruin exploration, and just taking a stroll along the river. Each of the activities take about an hour or two to accomplish which makes for the perfect trip experience where you take on a challenge in the morning, head back to the hotel for some downtime, and then heading back out for a completely different experience in the afternoon. It makes for the perfect balance of fun and relaxation so you can come back from the trip feeling refreshed and yet having experienced something that you can hold in your memories.

It is definitely not the first place you should choose if you are coming out to Peru. Go to the Sacred Valley if this is your first trip out here. But for those who live in Lima, and have done all of the big things that Peru has to offer, and are looking for something new and exciting, Lunahuana is a great place to consider. It will give you a unique experience out in this country that you might not have thought to have in the first place.

Semana Santa – The Unofficial End to Summer

You can already feel a nip in the air. The autumn equinox has already come and gone, but people are not ready to believe that the weather is going to turn and they will have to retreat to the safety of their homes. Luckily, in the southern hemisphere, there is a week that is held with reverence that allows for that one last fling to enjoy the weather that is usually enjoyed during the summer months, Semana Santa, or as it is known in the English speaking world, Holy Week. In Peru, this week is treated as a national holiday, and everybody has the long weekend off to enjoy with their family and friends.

This combination of weather, vacation, and attitude creates a pilgrimage to the beach towns along the Pacific coast as people try to squeeze in those last moments of summer. It is not so much about the Holy Week as it about enjoying what the last vestiges that the warmer weather has to offer. It reminds me of Labor Day weekend in the United States as everybody leaves the big cities to find those places on the coast or in the mountains where they can find time to relax and pretend that winter is not so far around the corner.

I should have expected this from one of the beach towns that was closest to Lima, the big city where I live. But I was not thinking of this when I booked my weekend getaway. I was thinking more about a beach that I could relax on, a place not far from my where I could unwind for a bit, and a place that had a little bit of culture and cuisine that I could say that I had experienced something new by going here in the first place. And I do have to say that I did experience something new by coming down here, but I came down during the wrong weekend because everybody else had the same idea that I did, and came down to Paracas as well. It created crowded beaches, and restaurants, and the whole vibe was a big party that everybody was there to get their last moments of fun.

Despite the crowds, we were still able to find the charm of this city. It was not in the places where we expecting; instead, it was in the back streets further away from the beaches. It was here that you were able to get away from the DJs and large concerts going on to mark the end of the season. Instead, we saw the things that make Peru a great place to be. There was a street food section where the flavors of the grill could be smelled wafting over the brick walkways. Each little booth was run by a different family and they had a small selection of seating next to the spot where they cooked your food. You could find anticuchos (grilled cow’s heart), picarones (fried sweet potato rings), and chicken or pork tamales. It was the perfect place to grab a local cerveza, and grab a bite to eat.

That is not to say that you could not find the better restaurants that carried the cuisine that Peru is famous for. There are many of those as well, but you will definitely want to get away from the main drag to find them. There are many restaurants right on the beach, but each of those has quick easy meals because they know they will garner the attention of the tourists that have come to visit. When you head in a bit, you can find the fresh ceviche, Peruvian soups, and chaufa that will make the trip memorable. The best one we found was called Christina’s and it was a fine minute walk in-land from the beach, but was well worth the walk to get the better meal.

The bars along the beach are great to get a pisco sour, especially during happy hour when they are two for one, but it is still a crazy mash of people and does not offer the relaxation that we were looking for. I am sure that Paracas has those quiet weekends that we would have enjoyed the experience a little more, but for Semana Santa, it is a time to party. It is a loud, raucous time that it great for many people, but this is not a part of my life anymore. I will come back some day when it is not as crazy, and hopefully then, I can find the weekend that I am looking for. Maybe at a time when it is not the end of summer, and I am not a part of a group of people who feel like that they have to get in those last moments of the season before it is gone for another six months. Instead, I can just enjoy the time that I find myself there, and understand that all times are great in Peru, no matter what season it is.

Ballestas Islands – A Morning Boat Tour

Paracas is not one of the top destinations for people visiting Peru and who only have a week or two, but for those who spend time in the country, they find a way to make it down to this beach town. The town itself does not boast anything special that you could not find in any beach resort anywhere in the world. There are numerous restaurants, and sandy beaches, but it is when you get out of the town and look at the sights a little distant from the shores that you discover what Paracas really has to offer.

One of the things that many people do is to take a boat trip out to the Ballestas Islands, a group of two jagged outcropping that was once used to harvest guano and brought to Peru many riches. It has since been taken over by the government and kept as a nature reserve that you can take a two-hour boat ride out there to see the various animals that now overrun the islands. It is often called the poor man’s Galapagos, and though the islands are rich with animals, you cannot see the diversity that Darwin discovered that made the other island chain as famous as it is today. Still for only twenty U.S. dollars, you can enjoy a nice morning traveling around the islands and watching the birds, crabs and sea lions that call it home. It will also take you along the coast of Peru where you can witness one of its more famous Nazca lines, strange traces in the earth all along Peru that were left behind by an earlier civilization and nobody knows much about except they are cool to look at.

The islands itself is best visited in the months of December through March because that is when the wildlife is out their in abundance. It is the perfect place to look for penguins as they jumps their way over the rocky cliffs and jump into the water to go for a swim.

It is also the time of the year when the sea lion are out there engaging in their mating rituals. They will move off to warmer waters soon afterwards, but at the end of March, they are engaged in raising their newly born children and relaxing on the beaches that are a part of this island.

It is not always the perfect nature reserve though. There are still the remnants of a time when humans controlled the islands. Most of these ruins have been left behind, but the Peruvian government has built up a couple of the buildings so a couple of people couple work there to make sure that they could conserve the area of this preserve and make sure nobody came along to destroy the delicate balance of nature that is left behind.

Though many people who make their way out to Peru will never witness this little piece of paradise, it is a nice spot to go to for those who are willing to spend a little more time out in the area. It is easily the biggest highlight on a trip to Paracas and one you should consider if your path takes you our here during the months of December through March.

Mirador Cuentos – Torres del Paine, Chile – Without the W or the O Part 5

One of the things that they do not show you in the pictures of Torres del Paine is the weather. Well, they do show you the weather, but only one those days when it is perfect. The sun is shining. There is a slight breeze. People might even be walking around wearing shorts. This is the ideal, and I get why they show these pictures. This is the best way to sell a vacation to this part of the world. The reality of the situation is that Torres del Paine is on the tip of South America where the weather is unpredictable and though those beautiful days do exist, there are just as many rainy, cold, and windy days, even in the middle of the summer, so the hikes do not always go as planned.

We had this problem with one of the hikes that we had planned to go on to, Mirador Cuernos. This is a very popular hike with the tour groups. It starts off at a cafateria just a little down the road from the Hotel Pehoe, and after a leisurley twenty minute stroll it takes people to a big waterfall that many people stop at to take pictures and watch large portions of water dive over a cliff. But if you take this hike another three kilometers away, the crowds start to die down, and you are rewarded with some of the more impressive views of the mountains in the area. This is the reason to come out and take this hike.

The hike basically follows the lake that feeds into the waterfall that most of the people stop at. It is on a well-groomed path that is wide and basically flat. There are a couple of rises on it, but it is nothing to strenuous and most people should be able to complete the hike without any problem. In fact, I saw many people on the hike that did not even bother to bring water or any additional equipment with them, and treated the hike as a lovely Sunday stroll. But do not be deceived; that could be the worst thing that you do if you take this hike.

Like I said earlier, the weather in Torres del Paine is unpredictable. A beautiful sunny day that you see in most of the pictures of the area can turn on you really quick, and you might find yourself out in the middle of nowhere as a storm blows in over the mountains. And let me tell you that when I storm blows in, it is not at all a pleasant experience. The winds out there can be extreme. We experienced one such day where we struggled to walk and after certain gusts, even continue to stand. Even though, the path is flat and wide, the weather can add a new diificulty to the hike. There are even times when they will shut down the path if the winds are too strong which happened to us the first time we attempted to make this hike.

Still, we did not let this deter us, and we came back another day when the weather was perfect. It wasn’t shorts weather, but it was just crisp enough to make for the perfect conditions to make a hike. We packed layers just in case the weather changed on us, and we brought a small lunch to enjoy at the beach we came across on the shore of the lake. And when we finally made it to the viewpoint, it was worth the wait. The views were stunning, and the sun shining on the peaks made for the perfect conditions to take pictures. It was a great hike to take that gets you close to the same places on the W loop and it only takes a couple hours to do, easily worth the time for those that are not doing the bigger loops.

Thank you for following me on this exploration of places to go in Torres del Paine besides the W and O loops, and I hope it gives you some ideas for your trip out to this area.

A Stroll Along the Boardwalk – Torres del Paine – Without the W or the O Part 3

We had an hour to kill in the afternoon and the weather was beautiful so we decided to take a leisurely stroll down the road to the Explora Hotel where we heard that there was an easy boardwalk stroll to see a waterfall next to the hotel. What we did not realize was that the boardwalk was actually a maze of paths set up by the hotel that did not always go directly to the viewpoint of the waterfall. In fact, what we thought would be a twenty minute stroll to see a waterfall turned into an hour and half of wandering over old wooden paths, always hearing the waterfall, but taking a long time to finally get to the spot that we had heard about.

We traveled from Campground Pehoe by turning right out of the parking lot from the restaurant and walking fifteen minutes to the Explora Hotel. The boardwalk was hard to miss when looking from the right side of the road, but this was the back part of the boardwalk, and we made a few mistakes from this point. When wer got to our first four-way intersection on the boardwalk, we thought taking a right would be the logical choice because this led to the lake and we could hear the waterfall coming from this direction. But this was incorrect. This took down to a dock where a large boat was parked, and we could see the rapids that were formed at the top of the waterfall, but could not see the waterfall itself. It was still okay because we had some beautiful views of the mountains in the distance and the whole lake, but we knew there was a better view, and we just needed to find it. 

We backtracked and took the left turn this time because if we had gone straight from our original position, this would have taken us to the hotel. This part of the boardwalk seemed promising even though it was taking us down to the hotel’s spa. Still, there was another fork in the boardwalk that went right and took us down by the lake on the other side of the hotel. This followed the shore of the lake and its calm demeanor. We were able to get nice views from here as well, and there were even a couple of ducks sitting on the side of the lake that were there to greet us. Just to warn you, the boardwalk was at its most dangerous here with many of the board rotted and ready to break at any moment, but we took it slowly and were able to get to the other side without any problem.

This is where we were rewarded with the waterfall. We had to climb up a series of rickety wooden stairs to get to it, but once again we took it slowly and we made it up without a problem. Lo and behold, there was a waterfall there. It was a great spot to get some great photos and we were still able to talk over the roar. Even though it turned into a much longer hike than we were anticipating, it still made for a fun outing, and we were able to find some other nice viewpoints along the way.

Going back we found the last of the boardwalks that took us straight to the hotel’s parking lot. It took us a lot longer than we expected but eventually we found the path that we were originally supposed to take to make this a twenty minute stroll instead of the afternoon adventure that we had. Still, I am glad that we did it the way that we did because I think we got more out of the experience. It is a great way to spend some time if you have a lovely afternoon and you really do not have anything better to do.