What I Found on The Lost City Trek | Colombia

Older than Machu Picchu and only discovered some 40 years ago, The Lost City Trek is an epic 4-day journey I made through the Colombian tropical wilderness to an ancient city full of mystery, beauty and insightful reflection.

As I was steadily hiking up the narrow and winding jungle trails, something crossed my mind; A question that I’m sure many travelers have: Do I savor every second of this unique experience or do I stop every few minutes to take photos and videos to record and share?

The obvious answer is to do both in moderation, but I had a different feeling during this particular occasion. At that moment, I decided that I was going to focus on being as present as possible and take in all the amazing sensory stimulations I could. Therefore, I chose not to record with a device but instead focus my mind on every step of the journey (though I did take a few photos and videos… habits are hard to break).

What is amazing is that I recall so much of my time there because I made it a point to stay in-tune with the moment. Yes, there were times when I was lost in thought and stopped to take a photo, but I would catch myself and remember to get back to the here and now. I made a conscious effort to experience the ever passing moment, and not be too concerned with capturing those moments to look back on Instagram later.

John Lennon has an amazingly insightful and fitting quote: “Life is what happens when you’re busy making other plans.” This always reminds me to get out of the movie playing in my head and instead experience the beauty and absolute miraculousness of this life we’ve been gifted.

As I continue this around the world adventure, I am making it a point to sometimes put the camera down and truly savor my time here, because the here and now is all we have, and that’s a good place to be.