Flying South

Bogota, Columbia, International Airport
We started today in a tiny hotel room in Panama city and tonight we will sleep in the Caracas Venezuela airport. Right now, we (both Mary and I) are sitting in a phone booth sized internet kiosk (which is actually quite a feat) waiting for our flight to Venezuela. A couple of blogs ago we were planning to head to Santiago Chile but we found out that some friends of ours, Cynthia and Cam, are visiting Margarita Island, Venezuela at the end of March. Hooking up with them was too good an opportunity to pass up. We are told that there is a beach there with steady winds, and warm shallow waters that provide excellent conditions for windsurfing. We are really enjoying the opportunity to try new sports and we´re sure that Cam and Cynthia will be able to give us some pointers.

I have a confession to make. I (Steve) am afraid of flying. Not the best phobia for a guy who likes to travel. What´s interesting is that I think its getting worse. I remember dozing through take-offs early in my flying days. Now my overactive imagination conjures images of fireballs and massive wreckage. I ask questions like, ¨when would be the best time to crash.¨ If it´s right after takeoff there´s a better chance of the plane coming down intact but also a greater chance of fire. If it´s high up in the air the plane will come down hard but there will probably be time to see it coming. I remember things like, ¨Hey we haven´t finished writing our wills yet.¨ My favorite trick is to rationalize it by reviewing what I know of the statistics of airline travel (one of the safest modes of transportation on a per capita basis). Any other suggestions on how to move past the terror?