went surfing today. Down a volcano. It was pretty cool. I was on a wooden board sliding down the black ash slope of an active volcano, when all of a sudden the volcano exploded! I was racing down at 80 or 90 miles an hour trying to outrun the lava avalanche. The eruption had awoken an ancient dragon as well and it was flying down chasing after our tour group. The girl in front of me fell and so as I raced past her I swept her up into my arms. She told me she was a princess from a line of ancient Mayan kings and queens and that her presence had awoken the volcano and that the dragon was chasing after her to kill her and take back the golden Chalice of Eternal Life she carried on a string around her neck. She showed it to me and it looked like a cheap knock off you get on the streets, I didn't say that of course, it'd be rude to insult her chalice and there were more pressing issues at hand anyway. So with the princess in my right arm and holding the chalice in my left, we raced down the mountain on a wooden plank when all of sudden a group of banditos sprang up from the bushes and started shooting at us and demanding our ATM cards and cameras! I was like "WTF?!" Luckily I had just bought a gun from a kid at the volcano park entrance for $USD 3.50 so I was able to defend myself. I only had 8 bullets and there were ten banditos, but I killed 4 of them with one bullet so I had three shots left over for the angry dragon that was still chasing us. We were still traveling at tremendous speeds down the slope of the volcano and the lava was still coming, but I was able to put a bullet right in the lower left chest of the dragon where I saw it had a weakspot from a missing scale. I killed the dragon and had two bullets leftover so I shot a couple of victory shots into the air.
we came to a slow stop at the bottom and she was about to passionately kiss me when, ironically, those two victory shots I fired into the air came back down and killed the princess, and broke the Chalice of Eternal Life in my hand. That's a bummer, but it was a cool experience and it makes a good story, i guess. I'll post pics of all this later.
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
chicken bus poetry
the chicken buses here all have really poetic little phrases painted onto the interior, some of my favorites so far:
Calle pero elegante
Mis mejores momentos fueron contigo
donde hubo fuego cenizas quedan
Calle pero elegante
Mis mejores momentos fueron contigo
donde hubo fuego cenizas quedan
Monday, July 19, 2010
Small world
if theres one thing i learned on this trip, is that it is a small world. In the Papaya Lodge I was staying at in El Tunco, I met a Swedish girl named Kola. She lived by Tongs. Tongs the surf spot. Tongs right next to Waikiki. Tongs next to Kapiolani Park, Tongs, a 10 minute walk from my house. She was in El Savlador because she had to leave the states so she could get her visa renewed and go back into hawaii again.
another story about this small world of ours: I was in a shuttle on my way to Flores/Tikal with these three guys. two of them were from london and there was anothe girl on the shuttle from london as well. they started talking and they found out that she used to live on the same street as they did. and apparently, the guys had a friend who had a cat that ran away. Turns out, this girl (they never met before) took that cat in and adopted it. How crazy is that? strangers from london discovering a connection because of a cat on a shuttle bus in the middle of Guatemala.
One of the best part of hostel living is the scantily clad sweaty sleeping female bodies, you can see everything.
another story about this small world of ours: I was in a shuttle on my way to Flores/Tikal with these three guys. two of them were from london and there was anothe girl on the shuttle from london as well. they started talking and they found out that she used to live on the same street as they did. and apparently, the guys had a friend who had a cat that ran away. Turns out, this girl (they never met before) took that cat in and adopted it. How crazy is that? strangers from london discovering a connection because of a cat on a shuttle bus in the middle of Guatemala.
One of the best part of hostel living is the scantily clad sweaty sleeping female bodies, you can see everything.
Leon, Nicaragua
The bus dropped me off at Leon in front of these two gas stations at 9pm at night. I bought a pastry, asked the security where the hell i was and then took a cab (which I hate doing at night with all my belongings on me) to my desired hostel. I found out that the two hostels I wanted to stay at were full, so I wandered around town in the rain at night to two other hostel which were also full. i finally find one that had space. i had been up for about 16 hours and I felt terrible when i finally got into bed. I realized later that i was sick. I spent that night, the next day and the next night in bed. totally comatose. I felt good enough to get out of that hostel by the second day, I wanted out of there cuz they had no food or water or even toilet paper in that place. Luckily I was only sick for for those two nights. ALthough I wish I hadn't gotten sick, I am thankful it wasn't worse. I don't know what it was that made me sick. it could have been that filthy water at El Tunco, something I ate, the exhaustion from all the bodyboarding and poor sleep or just some bug i caught.
If I hadn't gotten sick I might have been able to make it to the weekly Sunday Chicken fight I heard about from a guy named Mike (whom I had met at El Tunco and is at Leon now). Normally I don't approve of those kinds of things, but i'd do it for the experience.
If I hadn't gotten sick I might have been able to make it to the weekly Sunday Chicken fight I heard about from a guy named Mike (whom I had met at El Tunco and is at Leon now). Normally I don't approve of those kinds of things, but i'd do it for the experience.
Leaving El Tunco
El Tunco is probably the one place I didn't want to leave. I felt sad having to leave. I don't know why, maybe it was the waves, the cool peope there, the cheap food, the beach vibe, i don't know.
But at least the 8.5 hour bus ride to Leon was great. it was one of those morale boosting things. It was worth every dollar of the $51 bucks i paid. i rode a Kind Quality bus, there were seven other people on the bus so I had rows of seats to myself. The bus served two sandwhich "meals", two snacks with coffee, there was too-cold air conditioning, there were movies (i watched Taken with Liam Neeson and Panic Room and two other movies i didn't pay attention to) and a bathroom on the bus. It was heavenly compared to 8 hour shuttle rides stuck in the seat between the driver and passenger seat.
And the border crossings were ridiculous. The border officials come to you inside the bus and check your passport. You never have to leave the bus. It was luxurious.
But at least the 8.5 hour bus ride to Leon was great. it was one of those morale boosting things. It was worth every dollar of the $51 bucks i paid. i rode a Kind Quality bus, there were seven other people on the bus so I had rows of seats to myself. The bus served two sandwhich "meals", two snacks with coffee, there was too-cold air conditioning, there were movies (i watched Taken with Liam Neeson and Panic Room and two other movies i didn't pay attention to) and a bathroom on the bus. It was heavenly compared to 8 hour shuttle rides stuck in the seat between the driver and passenger seat.
And the border crossings were ridiculous. The border officials come to you inside the bus and check your passport. You never have to leave the bus. It was luxurious.
El Tunco:friday
I mentioned to some people at the hostel that at the pier in La Libertad you could get fresh stingray (and baby hammerhead sharkts). Shandra jokingly suggested we get some and cook it up at the hostel. Anna took that seriously and decided to do it. So a big group of us went down to La Libertad and went to the pier and bought sting ray and red snapper, we also went into town to buy some other ingredients. then we went back to the hostel and we cooked it up and had a stingray feast.
picture of the table where you can get your fish cleaned and filleted at the fish market.
us enjoying our stingray and red snapper and guacamole and chips dinner.
Picture of us cooking in the hostel kitchen
picture of the table where you can get your fish cleaned and filleted at the fish market.one of the merchants suggested we cut the stingray up into small pieces and cook it with egg whites, salt, pepper and lime juice and cilantro. which is what we did. It was surprisingly good. I was vey skeptical at first. I was only going to have one or two bites, i thought it was going to taste really gross or fishy but it was actually quite good. it had a really light, delicate fishy taste. I think it was better than the red snapper we had, the snapper might have been a bit old.
us enjoying our stingray and red snapper and guacamole and chips dinner.
El Tunco: Friday
I woke up at 6am this morning to surf, but it looked really shitty. the tide was high and it just looked small and mushy everywhere, so I decied to catch a chicken bus back to la Libertad (25 cents) and check out Punta Roca. I think it was the right call. it was a head high at the peak but still fun. That spot definietly has potential. there are three seperate little breaks, Punta Roca proper and two smaller inside breaks in the bay. on teh right swell I can see that wave lining up anywhere bewteen 200-300 yards.
Theres not much to do in El Tunco in the eveings, so luckily I've been watching movies at this bar/restaurant called Al Suave. I watched Sherlock Holmes and Inglourious Basterds, the past couple nights. and listened to pink floyd's The Wall. weird.
Theres not much to do in El Tunco in the eveings, so luckily I've been watching movies at this bar/restaurant called Al Suave. I watched Sherlock Holmes and Inglourious Basterds, the past couple nights. and listened to pink floyd's The Wall. weird.
El Tunco: Crossroads
between the morning and evening sessions, i've been spending my days sitting in my hammock reading a book ( i picked it up just to kill a little time but I got sucked into it, it´s a bit of a modern-lit chick flick type of thing). But as I was sitting in my hammock today, I realized there was a young boy in the rocky river bank below me, he was fishing with string and hook. I watched him for a while and was deeply affected. He seemed so happy with the four guppy catfish looking things he caught. none of them were longer than my hand.
after that disturbing reminder of the poverty I was joyriding through, I had lunch. At lunch there was a stray dog that latched on to me and gave me puppy eyes the whole time I was eating. In the end, I gave him the chicken skin from my grilled chicken.
Between the book i was reading, the boy fishing for food, the dog begging for food, the Travel & Leisure magazine I read (which highlights the different dimensions the poor and rich live in) and the wad of greenbacks in my pocket I felt like I was at a crossroads. although there were lots of potentially paradigm shifting thoughts swirling in my head, they refused to articulate themselves as epiphany.
El Tunco: Wednesday
all these pictures are of Sunzal. except for the dog with his nose in the bag of chips.I was able to rent a bodyboard (with fins!) for USD$8 a day here, I was so happy and excited about that. I woke up around 6am and went out to Sunzal. The surf spot of El Tunco is disgusting. it's a river mouth break. They are all river mouth breaks actually, there are river everywhere here. But the water in front of El Tunco is so nasty. It's a murky brown water with bits of plastic and shit floating in it i wanted nothing to do with that, plus it's a shitty looking wave, closeout, short rides, choppy etc.... there were better looking waves further left and I actually paddled all the way out there, but when I looked towards the shore I saw in big giant spray painted letters "Only Locals". I decided to play it safe and paddle to a different spot. I found out later that gringos surf there all the time.
It was pretty good at Sunzal. it's kind of a soft wave, mostly a right, you can definitely catch lefts but you get stuck on the inside with no channel if you go left. I caught one left and was surprised to find myself deep in a barrel, I was not expecting it. I was so surprised I lost my board. I got blown up in the barrel and the bicep leash went straight off my arm. You have to catch it in the mornings when the waves are either really light or offshore and there are less people as well.
Friday, July 16, 2010
Surfer Mode: Engaged
I arrived in El Tunco and I liked what I saw. I am in slippers and boardshorts and shirtless and sitting in around in hammocks all day. More pics and posts to come. Epic posts to come.
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
La Libertad, El Salvador
What a shithole. La Libertad the city, La Libertad the beach and the hostel Im staying at. The hostel is awful and full of mosquitoes, luckily I had my mosquito net so I McGyvered up my bed. I knew there was a reason I was dragging that net around central america.
I walked around trying to get a bodyboard (i found only one in this entire shithole city that is supposed to be a surf mecca) and ended up following a kid who took me to this sketchy shanty town right past town and in front of Punta Roca. He showed me this ridiculous board that was so old and water logged it weighed more than a longboard. The kids proudly pointed out the plastic they stuck into the bottom of the board as makeshift fins. I tried not to laugh and told them I would come back if I decided I needed it. The pic below of the yellow board is of the board they tried to sell me. they were in teh water while i was eating lunch.
I checked out Punta Roca and it looked like it had potential. the winds were on shore, but it looked like it could line up really nicely (a la J-Bay) on the right swell and wind direction. I was planning on buying a board this morning and going out if it looked good but I couldnt wake up in time for the morning glass, when I did get up the winds were already mucking up the wave. The water in the bay is disgusting, I dont want to know what kind of shit gets thrown in the rivers upstream. the water is brownish with lots of little pieces of plastic trash floating in it, the shore is all black boulders. But Im pretty sure the current pushes it all away from Punta Roca.
I am going to go to El Tunco in a couple of hours, I heard there are lots of boards for rent and sale there as well as good waves as well as good hotels. I will probably stop by Libertad on my way back and I may try to surf punta roca then.
Monday, July 12, 2010
16 Killed In El Salvador Bus Attack
Reporting from San Salvador — At least 16 people were killed when street gangs attacked two passenger buses, spraying one with bullets and dousing the other with gasoline before setting it on fire in a congested neighborhood in the Salvadoran capital, police said Monday.
The attacks represented a dramatic surge in ongoing street violence attributed largely to gangs but exacerbated lately by a growing presence of drug traffickers, authorities say. Police say gangs have been demanding protection money from bus companies, and major criminal forces, including drug cartels, are believed to be recruiting gang members to do their dirty work.
- Los Angeles Times
One of the funnest parts of hostel living is waiting for other backpackers to leave and seeing if they dropped any loot.
The attacks represented a dramatic surge in ongoing street violence attributed largely to gangs but exacerbated lately by a growing presence of drug traffickers, authorities say. Police say gangs have been demanding protection money from bus companies, and major criminal forces, including drug cartels, are believed to be recruiting gang members to do their dirty work.
- Los Angeles Times
One of the funnest parts of hostel living is waiting for other backpackers to leave and seeing if they dropped any loot.
Sunday, July 11, 2010
So Happy
Words cannot describe how happy i am right now. The hostel I am staying in right now is amazing, PLUS I made it through my first day in San Salvador and El Salvador with all my earthly possessions and all my bodily parts. the hostel is so clean and so homey, I feel almost normal. It's actually a house in a residential neighborhood, so it feels like a home. They have minimalist decor which I love, bare white walls with olny the occasional colorful painting to break up the starkness. The bathrooms are clean and they have hot water! (which isn't working right now, but it's the thought that counts). plus i get a dorm room to myself. the only downside is this place costs USD $13 a nite. It was after she told me the price that I realized my guidebook for Nicaragua and El Salvador is from 2006. Why did I get such an old guidebook?
Simple things like a clean room can be revitalizing for morale after a long bus ride with nothing to eat for ten and a half hours but 40 ounces of water and a vegetarian sandwhich. The bus ride itself wasn't so bad because it was never super crowded so I had plenty of space to stretch out. However, the ride would have taken much less time if the driver hadn't stopped so often for pick ups and drop offs. Apparently it works like this:
executive buses: busliner AC, bathroom, sometimes food, direct to destination
2d class: busliner, no AC, no bathroom, stops frequently
chicken bus: converted school bus for local use, three to a seat, exhaust fumes, etc...
The bus I had, which was the only option from Flores to El Salvador, was basically a chicken bus considering all the dark skinned people (with chickens... real live chickens) it picked up along the way.
tomorrow I am going to try to catch a chicken bus to La Libertad and try to bodyboard and/or surf Punta Roca and the other breaks there.
James: A republican? she can take her Miss Bay Area crown, her dinner and her self-defeating illogical worldview and shove it up her culo.
Simple things like a clean room can be revitalizing for morale after a long bus ride with nothing to eat for ten and a half hours but 40 ounces of water and a vegetarian sandwhich. The bus ride itself wasn't so bad because it was never super crowded so I had plenty of space to stretch out. However, the ride would have taken much less time if the driver hadn't stopped so often for pick ups and drop offs. Apparently it works like this:
executive buses: busliner AC, bathroom, sometimes food, direct to destination
2d class: busliner, no AC, no bathroom, stops frequently
chicken bus: converted school bus for local use, three to a seat, exhaust fumes, etc...
The bus I had, which was the only option from Flores to El Salvador, was basically a chicken bus considering all the dark skinned people (with chickens... real live chickens) it picked up along the way.
tomorrow I am going to try to catch a chicken bus to La Libertad and try to bodyboard and/or surf Punta Roca and the other breaks there.
James: A republican? she can take her Miss Bay Area crown, her dinner and her self-defeating illogical worldview and shove it up her culo.
Saturday, July 10, 2010
Saturday and Flores to El Savlador
Today i continued to do what i was doing, eating delicious vegetarian food and resting. I watched a couple of documentaries that I already saw at home, Jesus Camp and Zeitgeist. The hostel here has a library of almost 200 interesting and relevant documentaries. I wrote down some names so i can watch them when i get home.
I got my haircut today for Q25. there were three barbers we checked out yesterday, one cost Q10, one cost Q20 and the last Q25. I decided to go with the Q25 place because the two guys who worked there looked gay. You can never go wrong with a gay hairstylist, that’s the way i see it. the other two places didn’t look as professional either.
I bought my bus ticket to El Salvador for tomorrow morning at 6am, it cost Q220 and will be about a 9 hour ride. But when somebody here says “9 hours”, it usually means 11 or 12 hours. I wasn’t planning to stop in El Salvador or Honduras, but I decided since my bus connection was in the capital city, San Salvador, I might as well spend a few days at the world class surf breaks near the city. So I will stop in San Salvador for a night probably on Sunday, then go to the city of La Libertad on Monday morning and either stay in La Libertad or go a little further down the beach to some of the smaller beach towns and check out the surf. Oddly, La Libertad and El Salvador were the only places I was sure I didn't want to go to in Central America because of their reputation for crime...
If someone reading this can translate the surf report for me, what does 5ft 12 seconds mean in terms of actual wave size? I am thinking 5-6 feet face?
After that, I will return to San Salvador for a bus to Managua, Nicaragua.
on a side note, I was walking down a hot dusty street on my way home after the haircut and I hear coming from one of the streetside vendors, Lady Gaga’s Bad Romance and a spanish cover of IZ’s version of Somewhere Over the Rainbow.
I got my haircut today for Q25. there were three barbers we checked out yesterday, one cost Q10, one cost Q20 and the last Q25. I decided to go with the Q25 place because the two guys who worked there looked gay. You can never go wrong with a gay hairstylist, that’s the way i see it. the other two places didn’t look as professional either.
I bought my bus ticket to El Salvador for tomorrow morning at 6am, it cost Q220 and will be about a 9 hour ride. But when somebody here says “9 hours”, it usually means 11 or 12 hours. I wasn’t planning to stop in El Salvador or Honduras, but I decided since my bus connection was in the capital city, San Salvador, I might as well spend a few days at the world class surf breaks near the city. So I will stop in San Salvador for a night probably on Sunday, then go to the city of La Libertad on Monday morning and either stay in La Libertad or go a little further down the beach to some of the smaller beach towns and check out the surf. Oddly, La Libertad and El Salvador were the only places I was sure I didn't want to go to in Central America because of their reputation for crime...
If someone reading this can translate the surf report for me, what does 5ft 12 seconds mean in terms of actual wave size? I am thinking 5-6 feet face?
After that, I will return to San Salvador for a bus to Managua, Nicaragua.
on a side note, I was walking down a hot dusty street on my way home after the haircut and I hear coming from one of the streetside vendors, Lady Gaga’s Bad Romance and a spanish cover of IZ’s version of Somewhere Over the Rainbow.
Tikal Photos
pics of ruins in the Acropolis
the star wars esque view from the top of temple V..jpg)
Me at the top of temple V. I was about to light a smoke from the top when I accidentally dropped my lighter down the steps (see pic below for perspective), i was bummed cuz i wanted a smoke. being at teh top of temple V was the best part of Tikal, the view was amazing, I watched monkeys swing across the trees in front of me. Once you've seen most of the big temples, the rest are kind of "meh", you've seen them one you've seen them all..jpg)
Me at the bottom of Temple V. It's a big temple, I'm not even standing right next to it, i'm actually quite a bit in front of it..jpg)
me at a random temple, Temple I possibly.Flores and Tikal
Left Lanquin on Tuesday ( I think) and arrived in Flores after another horrible 8 hour shuttle ride. Flores is a little island town. I like to call it Antigua's ugly sister. It has the same colorful facades as Antigua, but none of its colonial charm or gringo energy. I checked into a hostel called Los Amigos which is really nice. The first night it was so full I had to sleep in a hammock. On paper it seemed like a pleasant idea, but in actuality, it was a sleepless night. Between the mosquitoes, the people waking up at 4am to go to Tikal and the hammock itself, I probably got about 3 hours of sleep that night. The hostel itself is great. It is very sociable and they serve really great vegetarian food. dorms are only Q30 a nite, hammocks Q20, and dorms with bath are Q40.
After that restless night, I relaxed all day in the hostel, just hanging out. There isn't much to do in Flores, basically, everyone is here for the Mayan ruins at Tikal. I went on my second morning . I had to wake up at 4am after getting just a couple of hours of sleep. Caught a shuttle to Tikal for Q60 and hiked around beautiful Mayan ruins for a five hours and caught the shuttle back. I was pretty exhausted and had developed a painful sore throat by then.
I wasn't planning to stay for so long, but I decided to stay and recuperate at the hostel and enjoy the delicous healthy food while I can. Buses to El Salvador leave at 6am in the morning, so I didn't want to deal with being sick and waking up early and dealing with a city like San Salvador after riding a bus for 9 hours .
After that restless night, I relaxed all day in the hostel, just hanging out. There isn't much to do in Flores, basically, everyone is here for the Mayan ruins at Tikal. I went on my second morning . I had to wake up at 4am after getting just a couple of hours of sleep. Caught a shuttle to Tikal for Q60 and hiked around beautiful Mayan ruins for a five hours and caught the shuttle back. I was pretty exhausted and had developed a painful sore throat by then.
I wasn't planning to stay for so long, but I decided to stay and recuperate at the hostel and enjoy the delicous healthy food while I can. Buses to El Salvador leave at 6am in the morning, so I didn't want to deal with being sick and waking up early and dealing with a city like San Salvador after riding a bus for 9 hours .
Friday, July 9, 2010
Semuc Champey
I wasn't going to go to Semuc Champey even though I heard many other travelers talk about. I wasn't going to go until I met a Mormom Missionary named John, from Aiea (at the center of all cogintive dissonance, that Israeli hummus restaurant). He talked me into going, so I made a quick change of plans and decided to stop at Semuc Champey near Coban-Lanquin on my way up to the Mayan Ruins at Tikal.
It was probably the best decision I've made so far. Semuc is unbelievable. When I finally got there, I realized I had no idea what to expect, I literally didn't know what to expect because I never saw pictures or got a good description of the pools at Semuc. I just knew that the place was a must-see destination so I went.
I took a guided tour the first day i went out. The guide started us off with swinging into a river from a rope swing. It was a solid 15 feet at the apex of the swing into the river. Then he took us into an underground cave-river system. This part I did hear about earlier so I was looking forward to it. It was probably one of the hightlights of my trip. It involved swimming/wading up an underground river with only a candle as our light source. At some points, the water was knee deep, at other points, we literally had to swim with one hand and keep our candle above water with the other hand. There were bats at the entrance of the cave. further in we had to climb up a small waterfall, at the end of the trek we jumped off a cliff into a tiny underground pool. It was a trip.
after the cave expedition, the guide took us to a big yellow bridge and jumped off it. it was 10 meters to the water. the other guys in the group jumped it, but I learned my lesson from the basketball incident. I decided that jumping off it would have been a stupid risk, as much as i wanted to do it.
after the bridge we walked to Semuc Champey proper. we hiked up a mountain to a lookout and I saw semuc for the frist time and i realized then that it was a series of terraced, cascading, turqoise pools. We hiked back down and got to the pools. You could start at the highest pool and swim your way down to the end. you could jump, dive, swim, crawl, walk your way down all the seperate pools. It was nestled in a moutain ravine, the water was clean and cool. it was amazing.
It was probably the best decision I've made so far. Semuc is unbelievable. When I finally got there, I realized I had no idea what to expect, I literally didn't know what to expect because I never saw pictures or got a good description of the pools at Semuc. I just knew that the place was a must-see destination so I went.
I took a guided tour the first day i went out. The guide started us off with swinging into a river from a rope swing. It was a solid 15 feet at the apex of the swing into the river. Then he took us into an underground cave-river system. This part I did hear about earlier so I was looking forward to it. It was probably one of the hightlights of my trip. It involved swimming/wading up an underground river with only a candle as our light source. At some points, the water was knee deep, at other points, we literally had to swim with one hand and keep our candle above water with the other hand. There were bats at the entrance of the cave. further in we had to climb up a small waterfall, at the end of the trek we jumped off a cliff into a tiny underground pool. It was a trip.
after the cave expedition, the guide took us to a big yellow bridge and jumped off it. it was 10 meters to the water. the other guys in the group jumped it, but I learned my lesson from the basketball incident. I decided that jumping off it would have been a stupid risk, as much as i wanted to do it.
after the bridge we walked to Semuc Champey proper. we hiked up a mountain to a lookout and I saw semuc for the frist time and i realized then that it was a series of terraced, cascading, turqoise pools. We hiked back down and got to the pools. You could start at the highest pool and swim your way down to the end. you could jump, dive, swim, crawl, walk your way down all the seperate pools. It was nestled in a moutain ravine, the water was clean and cool. it was amazing.
These pictures don't really do the place justice.
The waterfall at the end of the pools
the last pool, the edge of this pool is the waterfall two pics up.
one of the pools. 
view of the pools from the lookout.
Antigua to Coban to Lanquin
I booked a shuttle van from Antigua to Lanquin for Q152. I opted to take the 2pm shuttle because I wanted the morning to hang out in Antigua. The shuttle ride itself was about 6-6.5 hours, but when you add in all the stops and breaks and drop offs-pick ups, it ended up being an 8 hour trip. It was an ordeal because there were 15 people in that shuttle and I ended up sitting in the bitch seat between the driver and front passeneger. Worse seat in the house. I ended up with bedsores on my ass from that awful 8 hour ride.
I used to hate flying, but these shuttle buses make me yearn for economoy seats on an airplane.
Never has the expression, "I need leg room, I don't need to stare at the back of a pretty girl's head" been more true than on a 7 hour shuttle ride from Lanquin to Flores. The only good to come out of these shuttle rides is the fact that whatever weakness I had for motion sickness has been wrung out of me on these winding mountain roads.
I used to hate flying, but these shuttle buses make me yearn for economoy seats on an airplane.
Never has the expression, "I need leg room, I don't need to stare at the back of a pretty girl's head" been more true than on a 7 hour shuttle ride from Lanquin to Flores. The only good to come out of these shuttle rides is the fact that whatever weakness I had for motion sickness has been wrung out of me on these winding mountain roads.
So, we went from Antigua to Coban to Lanquin. Lanquin is this tiny little town in the middle of nowhere. But it is the nearest town to Shemuc Champey. I stayed at a highly recommened hostel called Zephyr. It was a cool thatch roof place on a hillside with great views and cool people and good food. beds were Q35 a nite, but they get you with the food and drinks. food and drinks for three meals could cost you over a Q100 easy. They had great music though, and we had a movie nite, we watched Snatch. "d'ya lek dags?"
Who needs to travel with an MP3 player? So far I've heard everything from Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds, to Nofx, to green day, to Juno sountrack, Kimya Dawson, Cream, the Cure, and so much more. I've heard better music than I have back home.
The last 11km to Lanquin is a very bumpy white gravel road into the valley. From Lanquin, it is a 9km bumpy gravel road to Semuc Champey.
one of the cool things about blogging is that I am also learning HTML. I usualy have to copy and paste the html code to move these pictures around in blogger. In my opinion, wordpress is a better blogging platform.
Sunday, July 4, 2010
Friday, July 2, 2010
Pacaya Volcano
Though I didn't get to see live lava, and didn't get to take a picture of me lighting a cigar in the lava, Pacaya was still cool. It was really eerie walking thought the forest because all the trees are dead and the ground is covered in black volcanic ash that crunches as your foot sinks into it.
The view from the top was spectacular. But the best part was the walk down, the mist had come in by then, so we were walking through the murky mist, and the trees, and the cold, and...it felt like I was in a horror movie.
Random Thoughts
- "yeah, get the fuck out. I need leg room. I don't need to stare at the back of pretty girl's head".
- New drinking game: everytime your bus driver passes a car around a blind curve, you take a shot. Everytime he passes a car around a blind curve going uphill, you take two shots and say a quick prayer.
- Met a spanish girl during the Pacaya Volcano hike, we had dinner and I found out she took peyote and mushrooms and wandered among Maya ruins in Mexico. So jealous. She brought out a book to use as scratch paper, it was a book by Carlos Castaneda. So, we ate sandwhiches and soup and talked about Ahyuoasca. Marlon would have liked her.
- New drinking game: everytime your bus driver passes a car around a blind curve, you take a shot. Everytime he passes a car around a blind curve going uphill, you take two shots and say a quick prayer.
- Met a spanish girl during the Pacaya Volcano hike, we had dinner and I found out she took peyote and mushrooms and wandered among Maya ruins in Mexico. So jealous. She brought out a book to use as scratch paper, it was a book by Carlos Castaneda. So, we ate sandwhiches and soup and talked about Ahyuoasca. Marlon would have liked her.
McDonalds, quintessential americano
These are pictures of the McDonalds in Antigua. The outside sitting area is a garden with a fountain. The inside has a fountain as well. What can I say?
Antigua: Home Sweet Home
I had the novel experience of returning to a destination (Antigua) that is foreign, yet familar. It's a strange feeling. It kind of felt like coming home, but not. I am thinking of staying here and opening up a cafe/bakery.
On a similar note, I was chatting with this woman at my favorite bar, and since I seemed like I was familiar with the bar and the town, she asked if I "lived here". I was flattered. Someone actually thought I was a local, feels good man. The thrill of localism.
On a similar note, I was chatting with this woman at my favorite bar, and since I seemed like I was familiar with the bar and the town, she asked if I "lived here". I was flattered. Someone actually thought I was a local, feels good man. The thrill of localism.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)