Globetrotters

After six years of contemplation,fighting fears and pacifying their loved ones,the Zapps decided to just set a date and undertake a trip from Argentina to Alaska. “Our friends and family thought the idea was ridiculous and that it would not last more than a week. But after a while you have to stop listening to others and follow the call of your own heart because you have only one life to live,” he says. So on January 25,2000,the Zapps set off from Buenos Aires leaving their doubts behind and have never looked back since. In these twelve years,they have been to South America,USA,Canada,Australia,New Zealand,China,Korea,Japan and now India with the next stop being South Africa. And while they were at it,they accomplished another dream – that of having children. Each of their children- Pampa,9,Tehue,7,Paloma,4,and Wallaby,3,- was born during this journey,each in a different country. Perhaps for a family of six travelling the world with almost empty pockets,sleeping in tents,cooking on a stove in the middle of nowhere,travelling in a rickety car which does not go at more than 60 km/hour,money should be the greatest concern but it does not bother the Zapps. “Believe it or not,the best part of the journey has always been when we run out of money. Because that is how we got to meet the amazing people who hosted us in more than 2,500 family homes,” says Herman. The Zapps finance their trip by the sales of their book on the Alaska journey called ‘Spark Your Dreams’. Another concern could have been the children’s education but Candelaria home schools them,having adopted the Argentinian syllabus system,with the car packed with the children’s books and toys. “Anyway,they would never have learned as much in eight hours of school what they are learning on this journey,” she says.

The only constant in the lives of the Zapps is a changing landscape. But that luxury comes with a lot of challenges,from fighting a snowstorm at 5,300 metres one evening in Tibet to taking guard against hopping kangaroos in the dead of the night in Australia. But they would not have it any other way. “The way I see it,it is better to have a hard day while chasing your dream then having a good day doing something else. Most people go with the flow in life but only dead fish go with the flow. And we are not dead at all,” says Herman.

India has been a revelation of sorts for the Zapps,as they find it to be exactly the opposite of what many of their friends told them. “Most people told us that either we would love India or hate India,it could not be anything in between,” says Candelaria. “People warned us about bad roads,excessive traffic,being cheated but we found it to be the opposite here,better than many countries we’ve been to. In fact,India has two things most countries have now lost; family and spirit. That is what we have come to find,” says Herman.Having visited the highest of mountains and the most isolated and serene beaches,the Zapps say the real beauty of a place is always in its people.

“After a 1,000 cities and a 1,000 beaches,the next city and the next beach is the same. But the people are what fill your soul. When you go from one border to the next,people look different,dress different,talk different,pray different,cook different. But you look into their eyes and they are all the same. They all want the same things; family,friendship and security. It has been the warmth and kindness of people all over the world that we most treasure. We have friends everywhere and the entire world is now our home,” says Herman.