Indonesia is famous around the world for its spectacular beaches, islands, and reefs. Hundreds of species of fish, sea cucumber, and coral are native to Indonesia, which makes it a snorkeling and diving hotspot for adventure lovers around the world.

I looked down on her. Was there any other way to say it? I’m sure that’s how she saw me. Physically, there was no way around it. The top of her head came to my waist, her height the result of a lifetime of poor nutrition. Economically, I, a teen American, would be given more in life than she ever had. I was finishing high school with excellent grades and a good shot at college.

In a quiet room, a nameless English poet gazed at his work for a moment. A faint smile crossed his face, and he nodded once before carefully wiping his quill and putting it away. His work was complete for the day, and he was satisfied. On the parchment beneath his ink-stained fingers, his quill had carefully scratched a masterpiece into existence:

You’ve safely arrived in Guatemala, you’ve rented a car, and you’re looking for your first stop on the road trip of a lifetime.

“What’s your favorite food?”

Pie. Raspberry Pie. Cooling just next to the oven on a wire rack. The sweet, tart fragrance fills the kitchen, making my mouth water. It’s my Grammy’s pie. She always makes it for my mom’s birthday. Her log cabin up in the colds of Canada is one of my favorite places in the world, and the smell of raspberry pie can instantly bring me back there. But I’m not there now. I’m standing outside a bakery somewhere far from her log cabin, an insane grin plastered over my face at the smell of raspberry pie.

The dry sand crunches under my feet as I walk across the beach. Little crabs skitter out of the way, racing amongst the scattered fragments of coral and seashells long abandoned to flip into the sea. For once, the ocean is calm. There’s not a ripple to be seen, as far as the horizon. A glassy mirror, the water reflects the cerulean sky above. Besides the wind dancing through the trees and my bare feet softly padding over the sand, a blanket of peaceful silence has settled over the beach.