{"id":2643,"date":"2017-09-08T14:01:29","date_gmt":"2017-09-08T17:01:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/peelbooks.com\/susanjoycejourneys\/?p=2643"},"modified":"2017-09-08T14:01:29","modified_gmt":"2017-09-08T17:01:29","slug":"dangling","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/peelbooks.com\/susanjoycejourneys\/2017\/09\/dangling\/","title":{"rendered":"Dangling!"},"content":{"rendered":"

In my lifetime, I’ve been lucky to visit off-the-grid places where I’ve experience nature at its finest; far away from the madness and clutter of everyday life. Spaces where I found solitude and experienced a powerful oneness with nature and slept like a baby.<\/p>\n

As a child, I often fell asleep on a flat, hot rock in the middle of the Arizona desert waiting for a spaceship to rescue me. I felt certain they had left me in the wrong place with the wrong family.<\/p>\n

As a young woman, I made a childhood dream come true when I followed Heidi’s footsteps on a trek through the Swiss Alps. That night I slept in a picturesque chalet, nestled high in the hills above Hergiswil, Switzerland with a stunning view of mountains and lakes. An eiderdown quilt kept me cozy and warm.<\/p>\n

I once napped atop the ancient rock fortress of Masada, Israel, after a rugged dawn hike to the top of the plateau. A most delicious rest.<\/p>\n

While crossing the Indian Ocean, in monsoon season, much to my surprise sleeps were deep with lots of telling dreams.<\/p>\n

I knew I had experienced the most unusual places to sleep in remote locations until July of 2016 when my husband and I toured Peru’s Sacred Valley with a group of other tourists.<\/p>\n

Our bus stopped alongside the Urubamba River, near a railroad track, and our guide suggested we get out and look at a structure across the river. He pointed skyward to a strange shape stuck to the pristine mountain side.<\/p>\n

\"View
From Google Street View<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cWhat is it?\u201d I asked.<\/p>\n

He said it was a \u201csky lodge\u201d attached to the sheer rock face\u2014one of three transparent sleep capsules suspended above Peru’s Sacred Valley of Cuzco. Each capsule measured 24 feet long, and 8 feet in height and width, equipped with four beds, a dining area, and a private bathroom with a big window view across the Peruvian landscape. Solar panels powered Interior lighting.<\/p>\n

I borrowed a pair of strong binoculars and inspected the strange sight. The pods looked like space ships stuck to the cliffs.<\/p>\n

\u201cHow do guests get there?\u201d I asked.<\/p>\n

\"Skylodge,<\/p>\n

He explained. Lodgers must first climb 400 feet up the cliff face\u2014a rough climb, with 400 iron rungs and a steel cable fixed to the rock to help climbers navigate the toughest parts to reach the sleeping pods.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor the intrepid adventurers,\u201d a fellow tourist remarked.<\/p>\n

I could imagine the spectacular views over the cliffs of the mystical valley and the Urubamba River flowing below. To watch stars explode across the night sky would also be awesome.<\/p>\n

But I couldn’t imagine the nerve-racking climb, much less a good sleep while dangling from the side of a sheer cliff. What about the roaring winds? I wondered when a strong gust of wind blew past. \u201cAnd just how does one get down?\u201d I asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cZip-lines, seven hair-raising zip-lines,\u201d a fellow tourist (in the know) chimed in.<\/p>\n

For foolish thrill seekers. I shuddered, shook my head no, crossed my heart for the thrill seekers, and crossed the sky lodge adventure off my bucket list. No dangling sleep necessary.<\/p>\n

Excerpt from Susan Joyce’s book in progress Journeys\u2014Short Travel Stories from around the world.<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In my lifetime, I’ve been lucky to visit off-the-grid places where I’ve experience nature at its finest; far away from the madness and clutter of everyday life. Spaces where I found solitude and experienced a powerful oneness with nature and slept like a baby. As a child, I often fell asleep on a flat, hot … <\/p>\n

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