The adventures of five intrepid who continue to travel despite the covid

• MARTA GONZÁLEZ-HONTORIA

Monday, December 7, 2020 - 02:42

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They heard the rumble of a new coronavirus, but they didn't stop.

Then they closed the borders.

Those big plans, those dreams were put on hold.

These five travelers had another completely unexpected adventure.

Despite everything, they have continued on the road during this pandemic that has stranded millions of people.

They are globetrotters in a world that has changed.

So they believe: "Our generation will never travel like before."

In the last few months, Adrián, Anita, Charly, Alba and Eneko have learned to surf in the Philippines.

Volcanoes climbed in El Salvador.

They rolled in a van through the

Australian

.

They made friends on the beaches of Oaxaca ... They all ride the pandemic without a written script.

These are your experiences.

ADRIÁN ESTEBAN: PHILIPPINES

Alone and without a return ticket.

Adrián left his job and his happy life in Madrid just a year ago on his way to adventure.

Always in no rush, he stopped for

.

A bit of Bangkok, another bit of Phuket, Phi Phi and Krabi ... well, for an aperitif.

They followed two months through Vietnam, traveling the country from north to south and then, after celebrating the new year, to the

, on a postcard-worthy island of tall palm trees.

"I am fully aware of the world situation, so I wake up every morning grateful for where I am and for the privilege of having time to dedicate to what I most want."

Adrián Esteban in Malapascua, Philippines.

The backpacker (@flywithflow) is now in

, a world surfing mecca.

Enjoy the freedom of going where you want by motorcycle, taking boat trips with your snorkel goggles always at hand.

But between February and the end of August he could not move from

a.

"It was one of the destinations planned on my route through the Philippines. It is one of the best places to dive in the country. The intention was to spend about four or five days that in the end became six months."

For this traveler, the next chapter is yet to be written.

"The great uncertainty we are experiencing conditions my plans," he says.

"It looks like I'll be spending Christmas here waiting for others to open."

Adrián is confident that we will soon find a solution to this pandemic.

"We will not forget this period of our lives.

."

ANITA DEMIANOWICZ: CENTRAL AMERICA

Anita Demianowicz crossed from Guatemala to El Salvador on March 11.

"Exactly an hour later they closed the border."

The Polish philologist and photographer

.

Mexico, Belize, Guatemala ... All of them, countries that he knows very well because it was in Central America where he began his nomadic life in 2012 and has returned again and again.

“In March I heard the news from China and Spain, but I never thought they would close a border like this, without warning.

And I certainly didn't expect that I would have to stay in the country for seven months. "

"Perhaps now we begin to value travel more, because they are no longer for everyone"

Anita, who has traveled in tough situations - cycling through countries such as Iran or Turkmenistan - was confined to the side of the beach, but unable to get close.

admits.

With the national parks closed and everything closed, she dedicated herself to compiling material to write a book on the situation of women in El Salvador.

In September they opened the airport and he returned to Europe with

,

Salvadoran

.

Anita (@banita_travel) wants to forget "as soon as possible this 2020", but her work has pushed her to continue traveling this fall in places, that yes, less risky: Iceland, Norway, Switzerland ... Already with a lot of fluency in Spanish assures that "traveling during the pandemic is much more difficult.

It was enough to find a cheap flight. This is no longer the case. We continue with closed borders, no connections on flights and tests to detect Covid before entering. Perhaps now we begin to value trips more, because they are no longer for everyone. "

CHARLY SINEWAN: MEXICO

Charly Sinewan in San Luis Potosí, Mexico.

After a decade traveling by motorcycle, Carlos García Portal, already much better known as Charly Sinewan (@charlysinewan), does not need a place to return to.

These days he is heading to Monterrey, Mexico.

He has been a nomad since 2013 and the seasons he spends in his native Madrid rents a room.

"With the situation as it was in Spain, I preferred to stay in Mexico, where I always had more freedom of movement. And I'm glad," he says via email.

The coronavirus earthquake shook him in Chiapas, in the south of the country.

"It is a cold area where I did not want to stay in case a strict confinement was imposed, so

."

A hotel in Huatulco, facing the Pacific, served as his headquarters during the first two months of confinement.

And when finished ... back on the road.

"I don't think it will come back until spring or summer 2021 that we hope the pandemic improves."

Last week Mexico exceeded 100,000 deaths from coronavirus, one of the most affected countries.

It is not surprising that in many places they look at the stranger with suspicion.

"Some towns are closed unless you have a reservation and in some tourist areas they make you go through

. It's a bit of a science fiction movie."

ALBA AND ENEKO: AUSTRALIA

Alba, Eneko and Hodei for the Australian outback.

On the other side of the world and with

.

The scenario may seem worrying in pandemic times like ours, but Alba Delgado and Eneko Marroquín, both from Bilbao, are experienced travelers (@estamos_deviaje).

They are rushing their trip to Australia these days, where they arrived in early February.

"It was clear to me from the beginning," says Eneko.

"I didn't want to go back.

."

The couple, who among other long-term adventures have crossed Africa from north to south, preferred to face the pandemic in the antipodes than to end their trip.

"We came to stay for three months and we have been there for almost a year, but the confinement was a gift. Our closest neighbors were 1.5 kilometers away. Every day they

. Our son had a great time." .

The trip has not been without surprises.

The couple had to navigate closed roads, jumping from safe to safe.

After six days in a van through the Australian outback they arrived at

more than 2,000 kilometers from anywhere on the coast, and they had just closed it.

Luckily they opened it after two days.

"We have had to

, checking which borders were open and seeing where the authorities allowed 'non-essential' travel. Sometimes there was only one possible way to map the route," recalls Eneko .

And together with a changing map, the astonishment and suspicion that a foreign family awakens traveling in the middle of the pandemic: "When we got to some places we have been

."

All in all, Alba feels that they have been very lucky.

They travel in peace, enjoying a country "with hardly any tourism and without fear of illness. A gift".

According to the criteria of The Trust Project

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