30BE Part Five: Honduras & Nicaragua

Alright, so after a good night's sleep in SPS, our reformed trio moved on down the road to the capital of Honduras - Tegucigalpa. I just love that word. Mike is ahead of me once again, so why the hell should I bother to write about the trip? We took the same notes. Check here.

Once in Tegu we took a cab up the tortuous route to Parque Nacional La Tigra. The driver didn't know what he was in for. I kinda felt sorry for him, but not really. I've been screwed by too many cabbies. This is cabbie karma payback. Anyway, he made some money, but I'm sure it won't cover the damage to his suspension. Next time, know what you are talking about before agreeing to take someone's money. Lesson learned.

As Mike mentions, the guard at the head of the trail was none too helpful. I half-expected to hear jungle drums about a mile into the trail. "Get the gringos!" Nothing of the sort happened - we saw NOBODY the whole time in the park. Of course we picked the longest trail, expecting to be able to rest our weary feet at the hostel on the other end. The first section of this trails was a BITCH. I have not hiked this hard in awhile. Plus, we had all of our stuff with us. Mike's pack is pretty small. For God's sake, the man only brought one pair of undies, and I think he'd thrown them away by this point. Mick's was medium. Mine was pretty large. At this point I was wishing I had not brought along that beach towel.

But, it was worth it...


Above, my Tarzan shot. Below, video I took from my perch on the rock above.


I think this pic is hysterical. We genuinely were not feeling like we were looking. The self-timer was on, and we were all three simultaneously wondering, "Has the damn thing taken the picture yet?" I really wanted to get back to that peanut-butter in my hand.




You can see the pic Mike was taking at his site (linked above). Trippy.


OK, remember that hostel I mentioned. It wasn't there. No one was. The guard post was deserted. So we kept hiking. See, in the pic above, the little town in that first valley? That is what we had to hike down to, in order to get the next set of directions. The road was so steep that I was honestly concerned I might suddenly snap an ACL. Another bitch, but down this time. Stupid pack.

In San Juancito, we were directed to hike further - on to the highway in order to catch the immanent arrival of the last bus back to Tegu. Somehow we found some more energy and just about ran the next mile and a half. Of course we waited for the bus half an hour once we got to the stop.

Finally back in Tegu we walked into the city center and checked into a hotel I'd stayed at before. We found Pizza Hut. Lovely. However,our room sounded like the trucks outside were driving through it. I think the acoustics somehow amplified the disruptive farting of the crappy mufflers. We did not sleep well.



The next day was long with bus rides. Mike tells of it here. Our hotel in San Juan del Sur was pretty nice. I went ahead and booked it for two nights. That first night there was an intense thunderstorm. The claps of thunder were so loud, and simultaneous with the lightening, that I literally think I woke up in mid-air. It was that powerful. I almost crapped my shorts, twice. So did Mick. Mike slept through it.



On the day in-between we made an excursion to the Isla de Ometepe (see Google Earth image above). Usually one might want to spend more time there than that, to hike. We were hiked out. We hired a local guide to show us some petroglyphs left behind by the former, native inhabitants of the island. Apparently they were chased here by those nasty Aztecs up north. They definitely didn't draw as well as the Aztecs and Mayans. See below...


Me, being a silly jackass.


The guide took us to a hotel restaurant situated on the "neck" between the two halves of the island (where he surely gets a kick-back). We ate a pretty good meal while looking out over Lake Nicaragua. We also went by the other main town on the island, but the museum was closed. Fortunately, there were some statues in the yard of the local cathedral that we could look at. Why they moved these pagan relics here, I don't know.

Oh yeah, since my last visit they have paved the main road around the island. Holy Jesus, things are better now.


We saw lots of these birds. They looked like crested blue-jays on steroids. They were BIG.



We took the last ferry back to the mainland, then cabbed back to San Juan. Didn't do much that night. In the morning we were jipped out of our second breakfast that was supposed to be included. That's alright - I refused to pay for the laundry that we had done. Even Stephen. On the way out of town we found a great used-book store slash cafe called the Black Cat. The owner used to be a commodities trader in Houston before he gave it up and moved down here. Enron, anyone?



Above, a 360 of San Juan del Sur. Next, it was on to Costa Rica!

30BE Part Four: Belize

Once Mike recovered from his hallucinatory bender (it took a few days before he felt well enough to travel), we continued south on our journey. It was June 20th, and we were scheduled to meet his son, Mick, that evening in Belize City. As anyone knows who has travelled in the developing world, distances on a map are deceiving. What might be a simple 4 hour drive by interstate here in the US can often be a day-long safari elsewhere. Mike describes our trials and tribulations in great detail here. The important part is that through perseverance and adaptability, we made it.

Belize is the one new country I got to add to my list on this trip. Mike and Mick (M&M from now on) agreed to head out to Caye Cauker for a day, then wanted to move back inland to see Mayan ruins in Guatemala and Honduras. I'd seen these ruins - Tikal and Copan - on a previous trip, so I was leaning towards staying in the islands a few days and meeting up with them down the road.

So, we went in town to grab a bite and scout rides to the island. As Mike says here, we should have just checked out of the hotel. Since we did not, we had to go BACK out to the hotel, grab our stuff, and go BACK to the boat launch. Here is the thing: our hotel is next to the airport. The local cabbies (thieves) have decided (conspired) to charge a standard $25 US for rides to and from the airport. They have signs and everything. The cabbie we were talking to was going to charge us 50$ for a ride to our hotel and back, since it was next to said airport. Through stiff negotiation (which I was quite proud of), I got it down to $30, which the peanut gallery of other cabbies hanging around said was quite a good deal. We hopped in. We had to share the van with a "brother" of the driver, who would not shut-up the whole time. Here is a sample of their annoying patois:



So we get back to the boat launch. The driver actually puts his hand out and asks for his tip. Mike referred him to me. I happily said, "No." That was it. He was actually smart enough to realize that further effort would get him nothing.

The waiting room for the water taxi is crowded. As we wade up to a snack bar, I hear someone yell my name. I turn around, and who is it, but a guy that I shared a house with in Antigua, Guatemala back in 2003 - Kung Fu Mike. Turns out that KFM was still in Antigua, still bartending, and was going to Caye Cauker to visit his sister for a few days. Cool.



So that decided it. M&M left the next morning and I stayed on the island to chill out for a bit, with help from Kung Fu Mike and various others I met during my stay. It was quite peaceful. There are only about three automobiles on the island - the police truck, the delivery truck, and the fire/mosquito truck. Feet, bikes, and golf carts for everyone else. Much time was spent at Barrier Reef Sports Bar, eating, drinking, and watching World Cup (or El Mundial). There was also a good bit of rain, so I felt fine sitting in my room reading for long spells. Still, we managed to kayak out to the barrier reef one day for some snorkelling. Great fun. It reminded me how wonderful the simple life can be.


My Hideaway ($12 per night)...

Main Street at night...


After a few days it was time for me to take the boat taxi back to Belize City. Luckily I was able to find a driver other than our previous one to take me to the airport (I threw in with a family of four from Montanna). There, I bought a ticket on a puddle-jumper to San Pedro Sula, Honduras. We had to wait an hour or two for the heavy rain to subside, but then we were off. In SPS, I pulled out some ATM money (leaving my card in the machine, dammit) and took a cab in town to meet back up with M&M at the arranged spot. What do you know, they were there! Check here, here, here, and here to see what they got up to.

30BE Part Three: The Island That Shall Not Be Named

So, we decided that we liked Cancun so much that we would stay for a few days. Having gone to bed early, we also rose early and took the first local bus out to the beach. Mike immediately started hitting the bottle, hard. I tried to stop him, but he was a madman. "Tequila!" he roared! "MORE Tequila!!" I tried to at least get him to have it in a drink of some sort, but he would not listen. He slapped a $50 bill on the bar and told the 'tender to just leave him the bottle, and he better damn well bring another when he saw it was gett'n empty. It was downhill from there. With a half-empty bottle of Pepe Lopez in each fist, he went stumbling down the beach. It was all I could do to keep up. Finally, he faltered and went to his knees. As I reached him, drool flew from his lips as he mumbled something about Cuba. Then he was gone - face-down in the sand. I threw him over my shoulder and hiked all the way back to our hostel. No bus would have him. I put him in the bottom bunk and listened to him ramble - some fever dream. You can read his version of it here. I took notes, and helped him to re-create this fantastical journey inside his own addled mind. Even in his own account he has forgotten parts of the dream. I will do my best to fill in.

Mike forgets to mention that on the imagined plane ride to Havana, illicit Cuban rum, Havana Club, was served to all willing passengers. What a dream!

This is the Bar Monserrate, where Mike says we whiled away the first evening...



This is a vista of the valley of Vinales, where Mike dreamt we travelled to the next day...



A re-creation...



A dramatization...



Another re-creation...



Cars like one might find in a dream about Cuba...




The following are things one might see in Havana, if you were to return there after Vinales, in your dream...













Ah, Mike. What an imagination, you drunken sot.

30BE Part Two: Chichen to Cancun

OK, so as Mike mentions, we got up real early and took the first bus possible to the ruins of Chichen Itza. He does a good job of writing about it, so I'll just show you my pictures with a few comments...

The above shot is mine - I just manipulated it a bit on the 'ole computer. Kinda looks like a Holga shot, if you know what that is. Below is our buddy shot. Damn, look at those socks.

Below is one of the famous feathered serpents...

Funky noses...

Nice foreground/background juxtaposition...

I amped the shadows on this one so you can see more details. The eagle is devouring the heart of a sacrificial victim...


Where the Mayan CEOs lounged, watching the ball games below. Very Roman of them...


Another method of doing-away with people was throwing them in large sinkholes, or cenotes, as they are called here...

Chief Smoking Snake, in the Observatory, with the Jade Sword...





Say hello to my little friend (baby preying mantis)...


By the way, I'm REALLY looking forward to Mel Gibson's Apocalypto. If anyone knows how to indulge in the finer details of violence, it's Mel. I think he'll do the Mayans (or Azteks, or whatever) right.

So we hopped back on another bus and rode on to Cancun. Yes, we were pestered by a little kid. Yes, I hit him in the head with my guidebook, but it wasn't in the back of the head - it was in the face. Not hard, just a swat. He was looming over the back of my seat, literally breathing down my neck. Like Mike, I actually started to warm up to the little brat by the end. He earned points for perseverance.

In Cancun we found a hostel in town rather than accomodations out on the strip. Shared a four-person dorm with a couple of German kids coming over to do humanitarian work. After a wonderful dinner of rice and shrimp, Mike and I tried to brave the bars and clubs on the beach, but just couldn't handle the "WHOOO!" factor. Too much. However, there was a lot of nice scenery. Still, we came back in and called it an early night.

30BE Travel Tip #2: Men, talcum powder (polvo de talc) can be your best friend, especially in hot, sticky climes. Oh, yes. Now when the ladies leave the table, saying they need to powder themselves, you can say, "Me too!"

30BE Part One: Merida

June 15th, 2006: First day of vacation

Good thing I was already packed, because I did not wake up until my ride to the airport called to say she was on the way. Turns out that three of my co-workers were taking the same flight from Southville to Atlanta (on their way to vacation in San Francisco), so it made things convenient. I stayed up late the previous night, drinking with Matt, who would be meeting me weeks later in Costa Rica. The spark for this last-minute binge was a last-minute break-up with the girl I’d been dating for the past few months. It was more implied than explicit. We had an argument in the afternoon, separated on bad terms, and didn’t speak again (until about a week into my trip). But, good ‘ole MySpace let me know exactly what she was thinking. “Single” again - no strings. Probably a good thing for an extended trek through Central America.

So, after some Ben & Jerry’s in the Atlanta airport (to make my head feel better) I took leave of my friends and trekked down to my next gate. There was Mike, ready and waiting. If you have read this blog before, you might remember Mike. We met in Beirut awhile back and planned this trip out several months ago. He’s actually ahead of me on the blog re-caps, so rather than write anything redundant, I will direct you to his version for shared portions of the journey. I will add my pics and additional anecdotes.

Post #1 from Mike

This is Mike watching the in-flight movie -- Schindler's List.


30BE Travel Tip #1: Don't use the bathroom for any long stays (you know what I mean) in the International Terminal. Whoa. Lotta cross-cultural stuff going on in there. Doesn't come out too well.

So we hopped down to Merida, capitol of the Yucatan state of Mexico (for details, see Mike's entry, linked above).









Mmmmm... ice cream.



This is what was going on in a plaza near our hostel...



La Plaza Central in motion...



Whew! This catch-up posting takes longer than I thought! I still have travel laundry to do, so check again in about 24 hrs for another post...