TravelStream™ news feed for member bradandbecs on TravelPod's free travel blogs service http://www.travelpod.com/syndication/rss/bradandbecs en-us Copyright ©2009 TravelPod.com Sat, 04 Apr 2009 15:19:09 -0400 http://www.travelpod.com http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/bradandbecs/4/1238872380/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/bradandbecs/4/1238872380/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/bradandbecs/4/1238872380/tpod.html Sat, 04 Apr 2009 15:19:09 -0400 Ai Carramba!

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San Jose, Province of San Jose, Costa Rica

Needing to tie up a few things before flying we headed to the capitol, San Jose. Its a pretty big city, well in Central American terms andyway. Our final evening was spent having a great meal and meeting a few other travellers who were just starting their trips.... its amazing to think that we have been on the go for 6 months now!!!!So today is the final day of this amazing journey, and what an incredible experience it has been. Now its time for 3 days of flying and airport layovers to take us back to that hallowed African soil.THE END...... for now!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/bradandbecs/4/1238785560/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/bradandbecs/4/1238785560/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/bradandbecs/4/1238785560/tpod.html Sat, 04 Apr 2009 15:12:53 -0400 Ai Carramba!

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Fortuna, Province of Alajuela, Costa Rica

A fitting end to our trip.... Our second last stop was at the base of the most active volcanoe in Central America. Volcan Arenal is located near the town of Fortuna and is constantly spitting out smoke and streams of Lava. Unfortunately the evening was cloudy so we didn't get to see any of the molten lava contrast with the night, but the volcano didn't disappoint while we sat and enjoyed our breakfast on a side street cafe the following morning under its watchful and smokey eye!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/bradandbecs/4/1238614800/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/bradandbecs/4/1238614800/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/bradandbecs/4/1238614800/tpod.html Wed, 01 Apr 2009 15:51:17 -0400 Ai Carramba!

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Santa Elena, Province of Puntarenas, Costa Rica

Away from the beach and located up in the hills is the picturesque town of Santa Elena. The bus ride ascends the hillside and literally takes you into the clouds. Santa Elena is only a few kilometers from the more well known town of Monte Verde but equally beautiful and quite a bit cheaper for accomodation.It is from here that loads of activities can be arranged and as it is our last week we decided to get the blood pumping and do something exciting. We signed up for a canopy tour, which takes you high above the trees, in some cases up to 180m above the ground. There are 13 zip lines, the longest of which is 1km and you can get up to speeds of 60km/hr. They also have a 30m rappel and a crazy 60m "tarzan" swing which makes you squeal like a little girl and requires clean drawers afterwards. It certainly was loads of fun and definitely worth it.... highly recommended.It is a little colder up here compared to the beach, but makes a nice change and escape from the heat and is also a fair amount cheaper than the coast.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/bradandbecs/4/1238441460/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/bradandbecs/4/1238441460/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/bradandbecs/4/1238441460/tpod.html Wed, 01 Apr 2009 15:39:25 -0400 Ai Carramba!

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Tamarindo, Province of Guanacaste, Costa Rica

The town of Tamarindo could easily pass for somewhere in the states. It is not too dissimilar from Umhlanga in South Africa with loads of fancy hotels and resorts and is a world away from many of the other places we have visited in Central America. Having said that it is not a bad place, just different and a heck of a lot more expensive. It is located on the coast and has one of the nicest beaches we have been to on this whole trip. Long stretches of sand with clear warm water and a reasonable surf break, which makes swimming in the sea loads of fun. There heaps of surfers and tourists even though it is the low season...the place must be nuts in the high season. Although more pricey you at least feel like you are getting some value for your money and not paying top dollar to stay in a dump. Bargains are also few and far between, but with a bit of looking around you can still find some cheap places to eat, and with the amazing beach and fantastic weather you don't need to spend money to have a good time.We have had loads of laughs and are just lapping up the last of the sun before we head back to SA, which is readying itself for winter. Certainly a worthwhile stop.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/bradandbecs/4/1238182020/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/bradandbecs/4/1238182020/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/bradandbecs/4/1238182020/tpod.html Wed, 01 Apr 2009 15:30:59 -0400 Ai Carramba!

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Playas del Coco, Province of Guanacaste, Costa Rica

Playa Del Coco is a nice enough town on the coast. It has hit low season in Costa Rica at the moment, which is great because we managed to get a bit of a discount on accommodation. The town is full of bars and restuarants and caters largely to the american market.Sadly we were still feeling sorry for our selves after the loss of camera and photos so probably didn't enjoy it as much as we should have.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/bradandbecs/4/1238095020/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/bradandbecs/4/1238095020/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/bradandbecs/4/1238095020/tpod.html Wed, 01 Apr 2009 15:27:14 -0400 Ai Carramba!

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Playas del Coco, Province of Guanacaste, Costa Rica

Day one in Costa Rica is sadly not going to be looked back on with fond memories. On one of the buses making our way to Playa Del Coco on the coast one of our bags was stolen. The worst thing is that in the bag was our camera and back up dvd's with photos from the last three months of our trip since Sydney Australia. Unfortunately, unlike the camera and other items which are replacable, the photos are gone forever. At least we have the memories.It happened when the bus stopped to let people off the bus and an elderly man "dropped" some business cards right under Brads feet, and made a big fuss of picking them up. We knew that there was something strange about the situation and were actually pretty happy with ourselves for being aware and covering our pockets and keeping a close eye on him. It was only when we got to our stop that we realised that we had done exactly what he wanted us to do and focused all our attention on him, while one of his slimey mates took our bag from directly above our heads in the overhead storage. Moral of the story.... no matter how crammed you are in the seat or how uncomfortable you may be, and even if the bus has overhead storage, keep your bags on you!!!Now its time to try and put it behind us and enjoy the last week of our trip.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/bradandbecs/4/1237994040/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/bradandbecs/4/1237994040/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/bradandbecs/4/1237994040/tpod.html Wed, 25 Mar 2009 11:57:31 -0400 Ai Carramba!

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San Juan Del Sur, Nicaragua

We arrived in San Juan a few days ago. Its a cool town pretty much oevrrun by Gringo surfers and begrudging locals. We think that a lot of business has been taken over by American expats so not so many friendly faces around here. Anyway we have been keeping busy by swimming in the freezing cold sea and perfecting our hacky skills some more. Our longest is 16 hits. The other day we hired a surf board and caught a lift with some locals to another beach to try hang ten! It was loads of fun and a good work out. Surprisingly without a lesson we both managed to stand up (becs did a little better than Brad - its not his fault he is so lanky) and ride the baby waves! Again Nicaraguan rum got the better of us and we bought another bottle. Its so delicioso. We met another couple and have spent some time with them. They got their first tattoos done down here and we went along for moral support. And other than that just eating and soaking up the atmosphere! Enjoy the pics.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/bradandbecs/4/1237670700/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/bradandbecs/4/1237670700/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/bradandbecs/4/1237670700/tpod.html Sat, 21 Mar 2009 17:53:45 -0400 Ai Carramba!

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Ometepe Island, Nicaragua

South of Granada in Lake Nicaragua is the largest freshwater Island in the world - Ometepe island. It is essentially made up of 2 volcanoes - Concepcion and Maderas. The ride over to the island on the ferry was quite bumpy because it was very windy and the swell was bigger than some swells in the Med!!! We started exploring the island at a town called Altagracia which actually does not have a lot to it even though our trusty guidebook said there was. This town is a good base to do stuff like climbing volcanoes, but we opted for renting bikes and going to explore the "beaches" on the island. By the time we rode the 8 or so kilometres on dodgy roads we took great pleasure in swimming in the lake. It is embarrassing how unfit we are! After a nice lunch we had to head back 8 or so kilometers on our rickety old bikes with non-existent brakes and non-adjustable seats (Brad´s knees were around his head!), we collapsed back at our hotel with a delicioso bottle of rum!The next day we left Altagracia for a spot called Meridia. Although on a map it looks like a 20km bus ride, it took us 2 hours to get there in a jam-packed (how else?) mini van with big mama rosita giving us gringo death stares! Anyway we arrived at a place called monkey island and quickly settled into the hammocks hanging around the place. We met a couple of interesting people here including one tragically deluded and psychotic American 21 year old who had some very conspiratorial ideas about the world. It started as a normal conversation and before we knew it he was telling us that he feels a change coming. He knows it and we apparently know it too.What change? we asked but he wasn´t sure but he knew it wasn´t going to be obvious???? He also tried in vain to get us to talk to people...about what? we are not so sure, he just wanted us to talk. He was very concerned that the governments of the world are suppressing peoples´ minds and controlling them. In fact he is convinced that the little jet trails left in the sky by aeroplanes are actually "mind altering chemicals". This one is priceless: he believes that in order to solve the world´s problem of overpopulation we need to populate the world more because - get this - with more people comes more knowledge so he is hoping that out of another 6 billion people (which surely the world does not need?) some genius is going to sprout and solve everything. But we´re not quite sure what he is going to solve! The scary thing is this guy is dead serious and truly belives his freakazoid ideas. Next day we took a hike up to a nearby waterfall again to remind us how unfit we are. It was so hot and sweat was pouring out of us but at the end the hike was rewarded with a refreshing shower under the waterfall. Its not too often you get to stand under a waterfall halfway up an active volcano.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/bradandbecs/4/1237238280/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/bradandbecs/4/1237238280/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/bradandbecs/4/1237238280/tpod.html Sat, 21 Mar 2009 17:25:35 -0400 Ai Carramba!

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Granada, Nicaragua

We took a trip up to Laguna de Apoya which is a volcanic crater lake. All this talk about volcanoes! It was such a relief to be able to swim after the dry and dusty heat in Nicaragua. We spent one more night in Granada and it is a beautiful town but the mood of our last night was dampened when we were harrassed by the beggar kids while trying to have dinner. Its such a sad situation for these kids of course but because of the heavy influx of tourists coming through the kids expect you to give money and even when you don´t want to just give or buy 70 bags of cashews, they have an attitude and get pretty rude and in your face. Other than that its a pretty cool place to see.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/bradandbecs/4/1237145580/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/bradandbecs/4/1237145580/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/bradandbecs/4/1237145580/tpod.html Sun, 15 Mar 2009 16:28:05 -0400 Ai Carramba!

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Granada, Nicaragua

Situated on the northern shores of the absolutely MASSIVE Lake Nicaragua (160km long by 55km wide), is the very pretty and picturesque town of Granada. This town was historically a very important town for trade through Nicaragua to the Atlantic via the Rio San Juan. In fact there were actually plans to make the panama canal through Nicaragua. Although that didn't pan out it is still the origin of a lot of Nicaraguan wealth. This is evident in the large colonial buildings around town. Also on the islands of the Lake stand the big holiday houses of the wealthiest families in Nicaragua. Granada is a blend of a clean cut tourist town mixed with the local market mayhem. It is pretty touristy here and almost everything is quoted in US dollas! Which is unfortunate and annoying at the same time but in reality is not ridiculously expensive.Nicaragua, like many of the central American countries is famous for its coffee production. The problem is that most of the good stuff gets exported and it can be tough to find a decent cup of coffee, believe it or not the majority of places serve instant coffee. Another local product that Nicaragua is famous for is its Rum, Flor De Caña. This however is definitely kept close to heart and can be bought very cheaply within the borders of the country. Apparently it is pretty expensive elsewhere as it is of excellent quality. We took full advantage of this and bought a bottle for ourselves to sample (this is what all our penny pinching efforts go towards). We sat in the courtyard of our guest house, playing checkers, sipping on our rum and proceeded to get neatly pickled!Becs was getting tired of her unmanageable mane and decided to go for a decent hair chop for the grand total of 25 South African Rand! I kid you not.
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