Tiara in Transit

It was the day after the Inca trail had finished and I was back in Cuzco, enjoying waking up in a nice bed with an actual roof over my head. My right side was stinging. I reached over to feel what it was, then remembered – oh yeah, I got a tattoo last night.

The day before.
Following Cansu to the famous tattoo parlour in Cuzco town, only for support, we were introduced to Kalin, the tattoo artist who was extremely charismatic, the way rockers are, and who came very highly recommended.

What was the deciding moment?
While sitting in the parlour lounge flipping through the portfolio with Cansu as she was trying to decide on her design, I had a strong sensation of deja vu, a memory of a dream that I’d had while I was back in Sydney. In this dream I’d already had this converstion with Cansu, sitting in this very parlour, and knew instinctively that this was always the path that I was meant to follow. This trip was always going to happen, and I was always meant to get a tattoo in Peru, right now, with Cansu.

Only having had a traumatic tattoo eyeliner experience to go by, I asked Kalin if he had any painkillers. Kalin laughed and said no – tequila perhaps?

I’m lying nervously on the tattoo table with the Chemical Brothers ‘Hey Boy, Hey Girl’ blaring over the speakers as Kalin asks loudly in his thick Peruvian accent – ‘Are you ready Tiara?’

T, closed eyes and sang in time with the chorus – ‘Here we go!’

What did I get?
The one constant in my life, or should be, is Love. Love for people, family, friends, partner, pets, food, cooking, shopping, traveling and seeing the world, music, reading, watching TV – so I had Kalin tattoo on me the chinese calligraphy for Love in fiery red, orange and yellow.

It’s still healing, itchy and scabby, but you get an idea from the pic what it’s going to look like.