TravelStream™ news feed for member eatdessertfirst on TravelPod's free travel blogs service http://www.travelpod.com/syndication/rss/eatdessertfirst en-us Copyright ©2009 TravelPod.com Wed, 08 Jul 2009 00:33:03 -0400 http://www.travelpod.com http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/eatdessertfirst/world_tour_05/1159063320/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/eatdessertfirst/world_tour_05/1159063320/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/eatdessertfirst/world_tour_05/1159063320/tpod.html Wed, 08 Jul 2009 00:33:03 -0400 Eat dessert first - life is uncertain

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Pantanal, Brazil

Being in Brazil and south of the Amazonian Basin we decided to head inland to checkout the Pantanal region and its wildlife. Up early we got the local bus from Camp Grande out to a custom's point called Buraco das Piranhas. It was a little bus stop in the middle of nowhere and obviously not that popular as we were the only ones that got off. There was only a couple of people floating around, one guy waiting for a bus, a customs officer that kept walking backwards and forwards across the road every ten minutes, the owner of a little food stall selling coke and chips, some stray dogs and some chickens looking after their new hatchlings. Basically there was not much to do except wait for the promised jeep that was to pick us up. About two hours later, watching the nervous customs guy pace around a lot and a stray dog trying to hump Rick's leg, we figured this jeep just isn't coming and started to think about our options. There was a pay phone across the road and we managed to find the number of the tour company, Megan wandered over but was quickly back looking dejected. The phone only took phone cards not coins and we didn't have a hope in hell of finding a phone card in this place. As we were debating what to do next, a truck roared down the dirt road to drop off a few backpackers returning from their Pantanal experience. Megan walked up to the driver and said "Are you from Green Track?" Initially he said "No", but for some reason changed his mind and said he'd take us down the road anyway. After a bumpy ride in the back of the truck we finally arrived at the Green Track camp. Turns out he was the Green Track transport, but as we weren't at the bus stop at 9AM with some other backpackers they figured we were no shows. Strange as our bus was arriving at 11AM anyway! With nothing planned for the afternoon, we kicked back on a hammock and caught up on some sleep. That night we went to bed pretty early as the campsite had no electricity. It felt strange to be going to bed at 8.30PM but little did we know we'd be up very early. During the night we heard lizards on the roof, squeaking away as they were catching bugs. At about 4AM the jungle came alive as the animals greeted a new day. The sounds of hundreds of different types of bird, chirping and squawking was enough to wake up anyone. After breakfast we went for a morning walk through the surrounding jungle with our guide Sandro. We saw monkeys high up in the trees and birds including the Ibis, Rosebill Spoonbill and some Jabiru Storks, the symbol of the Pantanal, to name a few. Sandro also introduced us to some of the native fruits. Some were sweet and others bitter with one tasting nice but having an awful after taste. Walking around in the jungle we'd covered ourselves with mosquito repellent but this didn't help against the ticks. We both ended up digging few of these little blood sucking buggers out of our legs. After a hearty lunch of local Brazilian food they saddled up the horses (that were so skinny they looked like they should have eaten our meal instead) and we headed up the road into the jungle again. Being up higher we could see a lot more and our guide Carlos, advised us that the animals only saw horses not the humans on them, hence we could get closer to them. Meandering around we walked through the jungle and surrounding open spaces. At one stage Megan's horse decided it wanted to eat a bit further off the track so it headed into the jungle, a low hanging branch almost knocking her from the saddle. After complimenting Megan on her limbo ability whilst atop a horse the guide (a fellow Aussie who had married the Brazilian guide and owner of the company, Carlos) instructed her to pull in the reins a little for a more comfortable ride! On the horses we saw a beautifully coloured Toucan and managed to see a little Armadillo. Again early to bed and awoken by the early morning clatter of the jungle coming awake. As it is the dry season in the Panatal most of the water holes had dried up, but we decided to go for a swamp walk anyway. Along the way we saw more animals such as Black Caimans, a Toucan, Tamandra (Ant Eater) and a family of South American Coati's out for a walk. One saw us and scrambled up a palm tree then poked its head out from behind a frond, growling the whole time. Entering one of the swamps we also saw a Capybura (giant rodent) jumping into the water for a morning dip. The highlight of this trip was wading through the squishy mud as we crossed the flat swampland, at least this time we didn't have any problems with ticks. In the afternoon everyone at the camp (about 10 backpackers) jumped in the truck and headed down the road to a river. Once there we jumped in canoes and headed upstream. We didn't get the chance to paddle as Sandro jumped in our canoe and did all the hard work for us. The river was inhabited by heaps of Black and Speckled Caimans; they were on the banks everywhere. At one stage Sandro headed straight for one on the river bank. It quickly jumped into the water with a big splash, scaring the crap out of Megan as it was less than half a metre away from her. After heading upstream for a while we turned around and stopped on the banks for some fishing. The rods were a basic design - a long bamboo pole with some line and a hook on the end. The bait was some raw meat. We both managed to catch some nasty looking Piranhas and another fish called a Snake Head. One of the Snake Head's Rick caught came off the hook and actually bit his fishing rod, refusing to let go. They were nasty looking fish with long sharp teeth. Megan also had luck at one section of the river landing a couple of fish, though she didn't realize she had a large Black Caiman about two meters behind her in the water, keeping a watchful eye. On the way back from the river (and after being attacked by thousands of mosquitoes) Sandro jumped in the back and with a powerful spotlight we did some night spotting. There were Deer's and Capyburas all feeding by the swamps, but as we drove across one of the wooden bridges there it was lying in the shallows - a Yellow Anaconda! Carlos jumped out of the truck, raced down to the river and jumped right in pulling the snake out by its tail. It was huge. After bravely grabbing the snake behind its head, everyone was screaming excitedly, ecstatic we were finally able to see one up close. Sandro could be heard over everyone yelling "I found ANACONDA!" Rick was first up with the snake draped across his shoulders and Megan, swallowed her fears and bravely had it draped across her shoulders too. What an experience to see and touch a wild Anaconda. After everyone had had the Anaconda experience Carlos let the amazing snake go and it slithered off into the jungle, leaving the annoying tourists that had disturbed it behind. On the ride back to the camp everyone was on a little high as we'd all wanted to see an Anaconda in the wild and it had happened on our last night. Finally we finished the day in the showers, sharing with the local frogs, while some parrots and a pair of Blue Macaws attacked the palm tree above our heads. Dinner was fried Piranha and Snake Head (the fish not the Anaconda) - yum! Our experience of the Pantanal was fantastic. Green Track were great (we'd recommend them to anyone) and our guides Carlos and Sandro knew their stuff. It was great to be camping out in the jungle with no electricity, just the animals and stars above to keep us entertained. 08/07/2009 - WE HAVE SINCE HEARD FROM A FELLOW TRAVELER ABOUT SOME PROBLEMS EXPERIENCED AT THE GREENTRACK CAMP. ALTHOUGH WE DID NOT EXPERIENCE THEM OURSELVES I AM CONCERNED ENOUGH BY THESE ALLEGATIONS TO RECOMMEND PEOPLE CONSIDERING THIS CAMP EXERCISE CAUTION WHILST THERE. ADDITIONALLY I WOULD NOT RECOMMEND FEMALES TRAVELING ALONE USE GREENTRACK. The next day we got the bumpy truck ride back to the Buraco das Piranhas bus stop to wait for the onwards local bus back top Campo Grande. Unfortunately the bus was running very late as we'd heard it had been stopped three times by the local federal police. The run from Bolivia to Brazil is a known drug trafficking route, hence their diligence (either that or they are bored. They did come on two more times on our trip back too). On the bus we were doing our best not too be too worried as we had already paid for our bus to Foz du Igacu and it was going to leave at 8PM with or without us. We were going to be late! As we arrived in Campo Grande, Megan raced off to see if the bus hadn't left yet while Rick grabbed the bags. It was still there, though as we got on it pulled away. We'd had 1 minute spare up our sleeves!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/eatdessertfirst/world_tour_05/1173958320/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/eatdessertfirst/world_tour_05/1173958320/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/eatdessertfirst/world_tour_05/1173958320/tpod.html Tue, 01 Jan 2008 07:33:55 -0500 Eat dessert first - life is uncertain

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Flores, Guatemala

Regretfully saying goodbye to Caye Caulker we boarded the water taxi back to Belize City, onwards to catch our mini bus to Guatemala.  At the border crossing we got off the bus, exchanged some money with the local money changers that you always see standing around border points and proceeded to the customs guy, in his office, behind the glass.  Megan went first and got her stamps, followed by Rick, but when Carlie went up he refused to stamp her exit form until we all paid him the "Fee".  When we questioned this supposed fee that he was charging foreigners but not locals he pointed to his computer screen where there was a windows error message implying that we had to pay.  There were no signs stating the entrance fees and a number of people had previously entered without being asked for money.  Here we go again, we thought, a dodgy customs officer wanting some cash to do his job.  We questioned him repeatedly, but of course he didn't speak a word of English as we were back in a Spanish speaking.  After fifteen minutes of arguing with him and refusing to pay, the line got sufficiently long that he handed back the passports without money changing hands and we were free walk across the border.  Asking around we found out you don't even need the second stamp which Carlie was missing so we knew it was all a ploy for some extra cash.  From our mini bus alone the guy made a nice profit as he charged all the other travelers $5 USD each.  Now that doesn't sound much but when you think about how many people cross the border daily he would be making a killing.  Why should we help a corrupt customs guy, especially when we're near the end of our trip and are basically broke! On the Guatemala side of the border things changed.  The road went from being fairly well kept to majorly bumpy with massive (I mean massive) pot holes we had to slow down and drive around.  Outside there was jungle and it was stinking hot.  On the outskirts of Flores we had to change bus because evidently the bus we were comfortably in couldn't go the 500 meters into town.  We all stuffed, like sardines, into the new van and were taken, not surprisingly, to their preferred hostel.  We checked it out to see the price but decided to pass on the two single beds the three of us would have share.  Around the corner we found another place and after having lovely spaghetti for lunch, were able to ditch our stuff and relax.  We wanted to see the Mayan ruins of Tikal and organize our bus down to Antigua. Flores was a really nice place to visit, being an island on the Lake Peten Itza.  We wandered around town and chose a place to have dinner. We chose Flores as a base to see the Mayan ruins of Tikal as it was only 45 minutes away.  Getting up at 3AM we headed out for sunrise at Tikal.  Our mini van only had eight people in it so we figured it'd be a small group.  This was until we arrived at the ruins to see another five or six mini vans.  We'd be spending sunrise with about fifty other people.  The hardest part of seeing sunrise with this number of people is that there is always someone that won't stop talking and enjoy the tranquility of the moment.  Our guide was forever asking people to stop talking so we could hear the jungle coming to life, as the animals woke up. Surrounded by darkness we headed straight to the Grand Plaza, people tripping and falling on tree roots (who figured we'd need torches in the dark!).  Once there we walked across to the IV Temple, after climbing the steep ladders to the top we stopped and watched the sunrise.  You could hear Spider Monkeys screaming and hundreds of birds chirping.  It was great.  Surprisingly everyone was pretty quiet until one girl suddenly jumped up screaming.  No one knew what was going on; later on we found out she got stung by a scorpion as she sat down on the temple's steps. We spent the whole morning wandering around the magnificent ruins.  Rick climbed all the temples he could, some of them very very steep, while Megan and Carlie relaxed on the grass.  At one stage Carlie almost disappeared as the guide came out the jungle holding a massive furry tarantula.  She doesn't like spiders.  The Tikal ruins, although heavily restored were definitely a highlight of the Mayan ruins we've seen in Central America.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/eatdessertfirst/world_tour_05/1173510360/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/eatdessertfirst/world_tour_05/1173510360/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/eatdessertfirst/world_tour_05/1173510360/tpod.html Tue, 01 Jan 2008 02:09:19 -0500 Eat dessert first - life is uncertain

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Belize City, Belize

From Tulum it is a few hours to the border of Belize where we were greeted by the friendliest border staff on the entire trip.  They happily stamped our passports and we commiserated with them about the fact that we were heading to the beach and they were working.  On the Belize side we found our "chicken bus" so named for the fact that on any given day you can find any number of farm animals (particularly chickens) traveling along with their owners to another part of the country.  The buses are actually old smoke blowing, gas guzzling yellow school buses from the USA, repainted in the brightest eye catching colours they can find.  With the windows open for some air conditioning it was a windy few hours to Belize City which sadly was very seedy in the darkness of nightfall.  We found a taxi driver who was happy to drive around till he found a guest house with accommodation available.  Although it's hard to get a good impression of a place at night we were a little perturbed by the corner store, where all the stock and the teller were behind metal bars.  It looked like he worked out of a jail cell.  There was enough space to slide the money across the counter and for the thinnest of groceries to be passed back.  Sadly our impression of the place was not improved by the dodgy looking hotel manager, the huge dead cockroaches on the floor and the cold showers.  We made the most of the night and played a round of cards whilst listening to a local preaching her varied and elaborate opinions outside our window.  Apparently according to her all the prisoners in the jail turned gay because they painted it pink! During the night Carlie heard what she thought was a mouse rustling around in the room but what you can't see (in the dark) can't hurt you, so she ignored it and went back to sleep.  After a hot, restless night we woke to find a mouse or rat had indeed crawled into Megan's open day bag and helped itself to the leftover bread.  Oops!  A lesson learnt there; close all zips.  Rick was scratching like mad and we discovered he had managed to pick the bed with the bed bugs in it.  We hit 40 bites (huge itchy red welts more like it) and stopped counting. We were more than happy to be heading to what we had heard was "paradise", Caye Caulker.  Catching the ferry over we discovered it did indeed look like paradise but that since it was a long weekend everyone in Belize was attempting to get their bit of it and all the hotels were full.  Bugger!  Eventually after walking around for a while and incidentally discovering that the ATM was out of cash a lady approached us and offered us a room (at a discounted price no less).  I think she felt sorry for us but the room had a great view of the reef in the distance on one side and the bay on the other side.  We were smack bang in the middle of a flat 50 meter wide island.  Three stories up though, so hopefully safe from a tsunami.   We had planned to stay 1-2 days but after about 30 minutes on the island we voted unanimously to stay as long as we felt like it and to just head straight to Guatemala after that.  We spent the first 2 days relaxing, walking around the island, swimming and eating.....oh and watching pay TV.  It's amazing how much you like TV when you rarely watch it while traveling.   Sadly we couldn't stay at the first place the whole time as she only has space for two days so we moved two doors down to another cheaper place.  We headed out on the third day for a snorkel trip on the local reef, swimming around in the crystal clear water, following the fish and looking for sharks.  They took us to a place called Stingray Alley where there were about two dozen stingrays converged on the boat.  The brave few jumped in first and swam for a while whilst the rest of us assessed if it was really safe before jumping in for a quick swim.  They are really slimy creatures and Megan was too scared to put her feet down in the sand for fear of stepping on one.  Instead she clung to Rick like a jellyfish, with her legs around his waist safe from being brushed by them.  Brave?  I think not, but she still brags that she swam with stingrays.  On our last day in paradise we nursed our sun burnt backs.  Although we did wear sunscreen, and lots of it as it stops the jellyfish stings, we all managed to get burnt.  We spent the day wandering around the shops and the evening watching the amazing sun set over the water.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/eatdessertfirst/world_tour_05/1158102900/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/eatdessertfirst/world_tour_05/1158102900/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/eatdessertfirst/world_tour_05/1158102900/tpod.html Tue, 20 Nov 2007 04:32:17 -0500 Eat dessert first - life is uncertain

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Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Yes we are in Rio baby! The Iberia flight from Madrid was very boring. It was an old plane, one television screen down the front with three crappy movies. The hostesses served lunch then disappeared for the entire flight. Overall it was ten hours of our trip we'd love back.Arriving in Rio we got the local bus into town and advised the driver we wanted to get off at Catete (pronounced Cat-ech). Well he decided to forget our request and drove us all the way to Copacabana Beach. We weren't too impressed having to work out where we were then walking with all our stuff through the unsafe streets of Rio to the nearest Metro station at around 11PM at night. Five stations back we got off at Catete and found a cheap hotel for the night.The next day we had a lovely breakfast of delicious fresh tropical fruits then a quick call home to wish Megan's Mum and Rick's Brother a happy birthday. We then walked up to the cog train that makes its way to the top of Corcovado (also called the Hunchback. At the top is the statue Christ the Redeemer. The view of Rio was fantastic - we could see the city, Copacabana and Ipanema beaches. We couldn't wait to get down there and relax on the white sand, but alas the jet lag and the fast Europe trip was catching up with us so we headed to a local restaurant. Now we'd heard these guys love their big meat dishes and it's not wrong. Ordering two dishes the waiter bought out about six plates. It was a huge meal that cost only about $10 AUD. After our massive and cheap meal we waddled back to the hotel for some sleep.Another day in Rio, what to do? We caught the Metro down to Copacabana Beach and hit the sands. The water was cold, the sun hot and the sand warm. It was great to relax and enjoy the beach. You don't have to move from where you sit as so many people walk up the beach selling all kinds of food, kinck-knacks, sunburn cream, drinks etc. You name it someone is dong the hard work, trudging up the beach selling it. Megan went in for a swim, while Rick looked after our stuff. Rio isn't the safest city in the world and pickpockets love Copabana for some free stuff.One of Rick's mates had recommended a tour of a fevala (thanks for the great idea Roman!), one of the shanty towns that dot the mountains of Rio. Getting picked up near the beach and after a misunderstanding about the price we were on our way. The air conditioned mini-bus we'd been sold on was a no show, instead we were in a little beat-up hatchback, heading into the slums of Rio. After the "discussion" on the price (we've learnt that in Rio the tourist prices are double, but can change on the spot from a previously agreed price - to be honest we're getting sick of being ripped off on our travels) the tour looked a bit dodgy. We're we going to be driven into the seedy parts of town and be mugged? Driving passed Ipanema beach we were dropped off at a local community centre and introduced to our guide, Marco. Marco had staggered English but guided us through the favela, showing us how a huge number of residence live in Rio.It was amazing to see how people lived in what we'd consider shanty towns. It reminded us a lot of Varanasi in India, except here in Rio is was decidedly more dodgy. As we walked through the town Marco would say "no photo" in the parts run by drug gangs. He mentioned that cocaine was popular amongst the drug gangs. We visited a local school, art workshop and were invited inside a locals home. Overall it was a great tour and the money we paid went straight back to the community centre allowing more locals to be trained in English and the tourism industry.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/eatdessertfirst/world_tour_05/1173489780/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/eatdessertfirst/world_tour_05/1173489780/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/eatdessertfirst/world_tour_05/1173489780/tpod.html Sat, 06 Oct 2007 20:42:15 -0400 Eat dessert first - life is uncertain

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Tulum, Mexico

We had a very comfortable but boring bus ride to Tulum on the coast.  Why travel to Tulum?  Well there are a few reasons.  The first being it seamed a lot more interesting to travel to Belize via the Mexican coast rather than inland.  We also wanted to experience the beach without all the American spring break glitz and finally Tulum looked like the definite place to relax.  It was also important to stay in a place that was likely to have reasonable Internet and telephone connection services as Rick had to do a second interview for the job he is chasing back home.  As Tulum is still a frequent hang out for tourists we were sure we would find what we needed.  We quickly found a really nice, clean hotel room and headed out to source a good place and price for a lengthy phone call to Australia.  After a few places we found a really nice guy who assured us he had what we needed.  Whilst Rick rang home for the interview Megan and Carlie surfed the net answering emails.  Poor Rick had to perform his best while standing in the middle of a quiet Internet café on a phone connection that wasn't the best, everyone listening in to what he was saying.  Not the ideal conditions for second round interview.  After about forty minutes Rick was finished and looked happy with the interview.  As he was explaining that they said they would ring in a few days with an answer, the mobile phone rang!  It turned out they were impressed and decided on the spot to offer him the position.  What a relief!  Now we can pay off the debts we've amassed while traveling. With that all sorted we headed out to celebrate! The following day we got up early and hired some dodgy bikes to ride down to Casa Canote an underground river that has broken the surface and is a great place to snorkel.  We had a great time snorkeling along its length, watching the local wildlife and spying the fish hiding in the roots of the mangroves.  It's an interesting sight to see a bird sitting on the surface then dive below and catch a fish right before your eyes.  You can also dive in the canote and follow it underground to the ocean about 100 metres away.  One thing we have noticed and are getting sick of is backpackers that are not friendly.  A simple smile and "Hello" is ok guys, there is really no need for the dirty look as you elbow past.  You are not the only ones trying to find a nice place to visit.  Obviously not everyone is unfriendly so no offence to anyone that goes out of their way to smile and look like they are enjoying being on holidays.  
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/eatdessertfirst/world_tour_05/1173261360/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/eatdessertfirst/world_tour_05/1173261360/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/eatdessertfirst/world_tour_05/1173261360/tpod.html Sat, 06 Oct 2007 09:24:57 -0400 Eat dessert first - life is uncertain

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Valladolid, Mexico

Out towards the centre of the Yucatan Peninsula there are two Mayan ruins, Ek Balam and Chichen Itza, so we headed to Valladolid a town which is conveniently located near both.  Arriving in this picturesque place we easily found a cheap hotel for the night (180 Pesos) and found a collectivo out to Ek Balam.  We enjoyed wandering around the ruins and took in a beautiful view of the surrounding area from the top of one temple/pyramid.  Ek Balam built in the Mayan Pre-Classic era was still inhabited during the Spanish Conquest.  One of the highlights is the jaw entrance with all its teeth leading to the tomb of the once powerful Mayan king Ukit-Kan-Lek-Tok.  Eventually we took the bus back to town and had a beautiful and cheap meal at a great restaurant.   The following day we got up early and headed out to the Mayan ruins of Chichen Itza, built around 300AD.  Getting there early meant we could have the place relatively to ourselves before the tour busses from Cancun arrived.  We eventually left at 11AM as the crowds were arriving but enjoyed wandering around the site and enjoying the nature in peace.  There were many stalls set up selling the typical Mexican souvenirs but they were horrifyingly expensive, catering to the resort and cruise ship crowds so we decided to save our shopping for another day.     Back in Valladolid we had heard from another backpacker there was a movie theatre in town which was showing Blood Diamond in English and so decided to catch it that night.  Unknowingly we arrived prepared with popcorn from the street vendor only to be told we had to buy it inside, but the nice guy let us sneak it in anyway. Oh yeah one interesting thing we learnt at Chichen Itza - evidently Mayan shamans reckon the end of the world is 2012!  Only five years to go!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/eatdessertfirst/world_tour_05/1173087060/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/eatdessertfirst/world_tour_05/1173087060/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/eatdessertfirst/world_tour_05/1173087060/tpod.html Sat, 06 Oct 2007 04:54:39 -0400 Eat dessert first - life is uncertain

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Cancun, Mexico

After a restless night we returned the car to the airport and headed over to the Spirit Air desk.  The best way to describe Spirit Air and their queuing system was crazy.  Basically anything goes.  The obvious problem with their system was the location of their self check in computers.  They were inconveniently located at the front of the counter directly where the ticket agent was standing to check-in people that had been doing the right thing and were standing in the marked queue.  People would bypass the queue and head to the computers only to realise that international passengers had to be manually checked in.  Once they realised, they didn't join the end line but would stand in position and surge for the next ticket agent that became available.  Those people that had read the signs saying domestic passengers only to self check in, and stood in line for the manual check, obviously kept being overlooked and after standing in line for two hours everyone was beginning to get frustrated.  Also if you had a Spirit Air guy pick your bags up from your taxi and bring them in for you, he would always place them right at the front of the queue.  You were then supposed to join the end of the queue and grab your bags when you'd reached the front.  Obviously no one understood this so they just pushed in to the front thinking their extra curbside service allowed them to bypass everyone.  Geesh!  Eventually people began to miss flights and the tension in the room was palpable.  Finally becoming frustrated people in the queue started rebelling against those pushing in and they were forced to the back of the line.  We finally made it into the departure lounge only to discover our flight had been delayed anyway!  Never mind, we were heading for the fun and sun of Cancun so we settled in for the wait and eventually we made it onto the plane and into our seats in three separate rows.  Strangely enough although we had checked in together they decided to place us in random seats. When we arrived in Mexico we caught a bus downtown and found a hostel then had our first Mexican meal.  Yum!  The second day we decided to head to the beach, but to be honest we were disappointed.  The beaches of Cancun whilst picturesque in colour were in reality not the best.  The water was freezing for one thing, it was blowing a gale and not sunny at all.  Walking along the beach we were surprised at the amount of construction going on and seemingly nice resorts being leveled and re built.  Apparently two years ago a hurricane decimated the resorts and they are now still trying to rebuild.  We didn't find the place interesting in the slightest and could have been in Surfers Paradise for all we knew.  Apart from a few shops and lots of restaurants and bars there is little to do in Cancun but get drunk and get a tan.  Not exactly our idea of fun so we headed back to the downtown and booked a bus onwards. We did have an enjoyable night at a local restaurant where we tried a few cocktails and roped the waiter into taking photos of us wearing the sombreros which decorated the walls.  He even managed to rustle up an old wooden carousel horse for the photos, god knows where it came from but it was hilarious.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/eatdessertfirst/world_tour_05/1159500060/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/eatdessertfirst/world_tour_05/1159500060/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/eatdessertfirst/world_tour_05/1159500060/tpod.html Sun, 29 Apr 2007 22:46:21 -0400 Eat dessert first - life is uncertain

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Buenos Aires, Argentina

With our Iguazu experience coming to an end and our round-the-world ticket also starting to run out we figured we'd better head south to Buenos Aires. The 20 hour bus ride was nothing special, except the bus seemed to have some problems and we spent about 1 hour in the garage while six guys went over the engine. Rick had his usual knee crushing bus experience as the four foot nothing lady in front slammed her reclining chair back and wouldn't move it forward an inch. Some people are so inconsiderate and clueless. On this bus we did get dinner and breakfast served by a young guy in a spiffy bow tie. It was like an airline experience on a bus. We also got to see the movie Transporter 2, this time in Spanish. Last time we saw that movie was in Turkey and yes it was in Turkish!Arriving in Buenos Aires to the usual hostel touts, as it was so early we decided to walk into town and find a place for the night. Dodging smartly dressed business men and women, we made our way down Florida Avenue, one of the pedestrian malls and main shopping strips. After checking out a couple of hotels from the Lonely Planet guide (hotels seem to be cheaper than both of us staying in dorms) we found an unlisted one around the corner. We're learning that if it's in the guide book, its price has normally doubled as the owners' cash in on its new found popularity. After freshening up we headed back to Florida Avenue as Megan has to buy some new trousers. Hers are currently being held together by about five safety pins and are in need of replacement.In one of the stores something strange happened. As we're the adventuring, outdoors type we headed into an outdoor shop and Megan began looking through the clothes on display. The shop looked pretty new and was still being fitted out. Rick (at this stage not too bored with shopping - that came later on in the day) just stood back, crossed arms and was blankly staring into nothing. A shop assistant, who was dressing a mannequin nearby then walked past. As she approached Rick she almost jumped out of her skin and let out a yelp. Rick thought "What the?" Moments later mixed in with rapid Spanish and some giggles we realised she had thought Rick, dressed in boots, outdoor pants and a blue wind-stopper top, was one of the store's mannequins! The poor girl was about to walk passed him when he moved and scared the crap out of her. A lesson learned - don't wear all your backpacking garb into an outdoor store and stand still for too long!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/eatdessertfirst/world_tour_05/1172969220/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/eatdessertfirst/world_tour_05/1172969220/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/eatdessertfirst/world_tour_05/1172969220/tpod.html Thu, 29 Mar 2007 19:47:50 -0400 Eat dessert first - life is uncertain

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Fort Lauderdale, Florida, United States

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]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/eatdessertfirst/world_tour_05/1172966400/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/eatdessertfirst/world_tour_05/1172966400/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/eatdessertfirst/world_tour_05/1172966400/tpod.html Thu, 29 Mar 2007 19:42:55 -0400 Eat dessert first - life is uncertain

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Cape Coral, Florida, United States

After a night in Melbourne we tried again to contact Jack and Ramsey but kept getting the engaged signal.  Oh well they must be on the phone so we jumped in the car and headed across Florida to Cape Coral.  On the way we tried a couple more times at pay phones, but alas the same engaged signal.  After a text message to Rick's parent's we found out the area code had changed, so after trying again we think we got their answering machine, but weren't sure as they didn't mention their name on the machine's message.  Arriving in Cape Coral we wandered around a shopping centre to kill some time and tried their number again.  Rick left another vague message hoping he had the right number. As it was getting late we decided to find a place to stay, but figured why not drive over the bridge to see if we had the right address.  Rick recognised their house, even though he hadn't been there in over twenty years, and decided to leave a note on their doorstep.  As we were pulling out of their street a car was driving down the road so we thought we'd wait and see if it was them.  As the car took the corner next to us Rick said "That's her!  That's Ramsey!"  Now what to do?  We couldn't just rock up on their doorstep saying "Hi!  We're here!"  How embarrassing.  So after driving around the block and figuring we'd just better bite the bullet we went back and pulled into their driveway.  Rick got out and greeted Ramsey as she was getting out of her car.  We had arrived un-announced and were very embarrassed, but Ramsey thankfully ushered us inside and everything was fine.  Thanks guys! Their house was awesome, with a pool overlooking the canals.  We work up late and Rick had one of their lovely home grown ruby grapefruits for breakfast.  Grapefruits back home are normally yellow and really sour but these were really nice.  After getting ready we headed down to the post office to send some stuff home.  After about an hour of stuffing around we finally got everything boxed up and on its way.  Our packs will be a lot lighter now with out the souvenirs and winter woolies.  On the way home the girls wanted to do some shopping and swap their books at a local bookshop.  That night we had a lovely dinner at Jack's Golf Club, just down the road.  Rick even got to try a real Key Lime Pie! We decided to head south the next day and drove down to Everglades City.  After some lunch we sought out an air boat ride and some local alligators.  The air boat ride was great, gliding across the water.  At one stage "Captain Jack" went through a huge mud pit and we all got sprayed in mud!  We saw a few alligators and had a great time scooting around the mangroves swamp.  Driving back to Cape Coral we had a lovely dinner to look forward to; Ramsey was cooking salmon. Getting up at a reasonable time Ramsey drove us out to St Petersburg (hey haven't we been there before?  Ah that was in Russia!) so we could all have lunch with their kids, John, Alissa and Chrissy and their partners.  The last time Rick saw them (except for Alissa when she came down to Australia a few years back) we were all kids in primary school.  It was great to see them all again this time with their partner's and John's two boys.  The place we ate was at Dan Marino's restaurant.  We couldn't stop thinking about the movie Ace Ventura: Pet Detective and "laces out" as we'd never heard of Dan Marino apart from that movie.  After the meal we all wandered down to the pier, though it got pretty cold and was nicer inside.  Saying our goodbyes (Guys don't forget you've got a place to stay in Melbourne when you come!) we headed back to Cape Coral.  After a pizza dinner we figured it was time to drive across Alligator Alley to Fort Lauderdale.  We had an early flight to Mexico the next day and figured it'd be better to be there in plenty of time.  We had a great time at Jack and Ramsey's place and thank you for your kind hospitality.  Again sorry for just showing up, we're still embarrassed. The drive across to Fort Lauderdale was pretty easy, this time with Megan at the wheel.  Arriving we tried to find a place to stay for the night.  Now you'd figure it'd be pretty easy with so many hotels and motels in town.  We after driving around for about two hours and trying every possible hotel we could find we gave up.  Rick even tried one place that looked like it was rented by the hour, that's how desperate we were.  It looked like a lady of the night and her client got their last available room.  We did find one pace that had a free room, but at $270 USD per night we decided to pass.  We then pulled into the car park of one of the nicer hotels hoping security wouldn't kick us out, wound down the windows a bit and went to bed for the night in the car.  Not recommended but we did manage to get a few hours sleep, before driving to the airport and returning the car.
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