TravelStream™ news feed for member jim.green on TravelPod's free travel blogs service http://www.travelpod.com/syndication/rss/jim.green en-us Copyright ©2009 TravelPod.com Wed, 30 Apr 2008 20:59:30 -0400 http://www.travelpod.com http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jim.green/1/1209344040/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jim.green/1/1209344040/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jim.green/1/1209344040/tpod.html Wed, 30 Apr 2008 20:59:30 -0400 Traveling from Peru to Mexico

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Merida, Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico

Heading north into the YucatanI crossed the border in my usual way,.traveling without reservations or schedule. I had planned to stay in Corozal, Belize another night, but during lunch at a Chinese restaurant I got excited about staying in a town with a more active night life. Around 2 that afternoon I walked back to the hotel, grabbed my backpack and started hitchhiking. I rode a public micro bus to the border. Belize now charges $17 to exit and Mexico charges $26 to enter (normally the airline travelers get hit with the fee when they exit) so it was the most expensive border crossing I have had. I didn't even get a Mexican stamp in my passport. There was a 1/2 mile walk between the two customs stations, with a bridge crossing a river that was the border. Playa Del CarmenTwo buses and 6 hours later I was in Playa Del Carmen where I found a $25 hotel next to the pedestrian walk that is party central. Along the walk their are numerous gringo hot spots such as Senor Frogs where I spotted a group of 20 loaded people all staggering around together. It was loud, fun, and so NOT the real Mexico. The town is already built up, the best time to buy here was 20 years ago. The beaches are beautiful white sand, the water deep green and blue. The coast north and south is being developed by large hotels and resorts. I think this would still be a good investment for people that want a winter getaway, because it is hot, your by the coast, the beaches are nice. You can buy a condo with swimming pool for $150K if it is not near the beach. Beach view condos are starting in the $300K range.The next morning I was going to catch an 8 o'clock bus to the Mayan Ruins of Chichen Itzal. Unlike most of my travels I prebought the ticket the night before. That morning when I arrived at the bus station I discovered that my watch was an hour off and I had missed the bus. It seems that Mexico is on daylight savings time and Belize is not (or is it the other way around?). This proves my reasoning that it isn't good to prebook, it just messes with your head, better to arrive at the station and then buy a ticket. The ticket agent took pity on me and put me on another bus at 11 a.m., though I ended up losing $20 in the ticket exchange. Incidentally the price of bus travel is about $4 per hour here, as opposed to Ecuador and Peru at $1 per hour. Chichen ItzalSo I finally got to Chichen Itzal that afternoon. As it turned out, I was able to see the entire site in 1.5 hours. This is because the site is more compact than Tikal. When you first enter, you run through a gauntlet of vendors selling the usual trinkets like cloth, colorful stone masks, Mayan calendars, etc. After a 5 minute walk you arrive at the site. The pyramids are impressive in size, and because all the nearby trees are cut away you can take lots of photos. The ball court where the losing team's captain had his heart ripped out and sacrificed to the gods is the largest in the Mayan world. There is also a ritual sinkhole where jewelry and sculptures where thrown in (not people). The site is the most visited by tourists, and there were lots of buses and people there. Overall, the architecture is impressive, but it didn't have the same mystical feeling of Tikal where you walk through the jungle to the site.Merida  I was able to travel to Merida that afternoon, and secured a private bed in a hostel right on the Grand Plaza. Merida is large with 700,000+ people living here, it is in the center of the Yucutan, and it is a real Mexican city. They have lots of little parks. Lots of little shops with small pedestrian walks between. At night the lighting become soft, yellow, spots across sidewalk tables and musicians playing the guitar.If you like cities and want to be in the real Mexico, you should visit.UxmalI decided to pay for a tour of the Mayan ruins of Uxmal. This cost $35 for the day, but it was worth it because the minibus picked me up at the hotel and there was an english speaking guide. I liked this site better than the last one, maybe because the guide was there to discuss the history and architecture. It was my first guided tour of ruins in Central America. This site had been cleared of trees, similar to Chichen Itzal. The architecture in Uxmal is as impressive, the stone carvings are better preserved, the artistry more refined. One guide book compares the two sites as roman vs Greek architecture.  We also saw a smaller site whose name escapes me. Later we had a free lunch, but the drinks were $3 each. Seems like a raw deal to include a lunch in the tour but not drinks, especially when everyone has spent the last 3 hours walking around in 90 degree temperatures under the hot sun. Oh yes it is hot there. There are cactus growing with the trees and scrub brush. This part of the Yucutan is higher than the coast, and water is not readily available. The Mayans had to migrate a number of times during long droughts.My final night in Merida was spent playing cards with a German man and two english ladies. I liked the dark one, and the German man liked the blonde, but alas the two ladies retired together.Next stop Cozumel Island and back to the USA. 
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jim.green/1/1208877300/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jim.green/1/1208877300/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jim.green/1/1208877300/tpod.html Fri, 25 Apr 2008 01:16:00 -0400 Traveling from Peru to Mexico

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Caye Caulker, Belize Cayes, Belize

BelizeGreetings from the sunny beaches of Belize. I crossed the Belize border in a minibus that carried me to Belize City. I was planning on spending the night there, but the rest of the passengers convinced me that Caye Caulker was the place to go, and by that afternoon I found my self on the ¨Quiet Caye where the backpackers go.¨ The boat ride out was 30 minutes and cost $7.50.Caye CaulkerIs indeed a restful place, with days spent doing water sports or lazing in the sun, and nights spent at restaurants and bars to keep it interesting. Prices weren't to bad, my cheap room was $15 per night with shared bath, and I ate fish one night and curry conch the next for about $10 each. The bad news is that drinks were expensive, beers costing $3-4 each and mixed drinks $5-8. Also the cost of going on excursions in the water adds up. My expenses shot up from $50 to $100 per day.I had a few drinks at the Bar by the Split. This is a channel which divides Caye Caulker into a north and south island. Apparently there was always a channel there, but the last hurricane deepened it. Most people live on the south island. The north island is swampy with mangrove trees. I looked at several cheap hotels before selecting Marians Place. It is your basic wood plank rooms set on stilts above the ground. It has a ceiling fan to keep me cool and a clean bed to sleep in.Everyone has dinner at Willies Bar at least once. Free rum punches and your choice of conch, fish, chicken or pork. All for less than $10, you can't go wrong. I arrived half way through happy hour and was worried I wouldn't get a drink. No worries, Willie brought a couple more pitchers out for me. We sat at picnic tables with the darkness softly lit by overhead lights. I had the curried conch with vegetables and rice, it was excellent. The fish looked good too,LanguagesPeople are laid back here. Belize time is a half hour later than scheduled. I had read that Belize was popular because English is the official language. That isn't quite true. While most people speak English, a lot of people on the coast also speak Garifuna with each other, and many of the inland people speak Spanish or Mayan. There is a large population of black people called Garifunas, and they speak their own language and have their own culture. Even the regular Caribbean speech patterns can be hard to understand. So now I have to master two more languages.Snorkeling I took a snorkeling excursion to Hol Chan in front of Ambergris Caye. This marine reserve is protected from fishing. It is one of the few places where I have seen boats chum fish for the tourists. As a result the fish are very friendly, as soon as the engine stops they swim around the boat. I saw lots of manta rays, groupers, a sea turtle, and two large nursery sharks. In one spot I counted 10 rays. The guides would get into the water with the rays, and while feeding them a fish, grab their fins and gently hold them, while we touched the ray. The rays would allow themselves to be held for over a minute. The turtle was very friendly. He kept circling and swimming right past our group. After all the effort I went to in the Galapagos Islands to swim with turtles, now I had one that wanted to swim with me! The only other fish I wanted to swim with was a shark, but unfortunately the two nursery sharks ate our chum and swam away as soon as our fins hit the water.This was the best snorkeling trip I have ever been on!Raggamuffin Sail ToursWhile I was walking around Caye Caulker I noticed that Raggamuffin had a three day sail down the Cayes to Placencia. We would sail, fish and snorkel during the day, and sleep in tents on a Caye at night. It was about $100 per day, and that was in my budget so I signed on. This was the beginning of three pleasant, sunny days of sailing. It was so warm that I wore swim shorts and tee shirt the whole time. Our captain and crew (Jerome, Kevin and Adrian) spoke their own garifuna patter among themselves, even when I knew what they were doing I couldn't understand them (more to the right, now throw the anchor in). But they spoke English to us. We camped on Pelican Caye (normally Rendezvous but we switched) and Tobacco Caye, and snorkeled at Goff Caye and South Water Caye.On the first night we slept on a small secluded island. It was perhaps 100 yards long and wide, with a few small palm trees and a palapa hut. No bathroom, we were told to use the bushes or the ocean instead. Kevin the first mate, had told us we shouldn't put the rain flys on the tent as it blocked ventilation and we would get to hot. We broke out the rum punch and had a nice dinner of fresh barracuda. As we lolled on the sand, or swam in the warm ocean, it was wonderful to imagine living here on your own island.That night we were sitting around a campfire, roasting marshmallows (Fact: Central American marshmallows don't burn easily like American ones) and telling stories, when a few rain drops splashed down. Thus began a hilarious scramble to put our rain flys on in the dark. The tents were not symmetrical so even though you could try a half dozen different ways to put the rain fly on, it only fit one way. It was pitch black and the storm went from nothing to full intensity in one minute flat, then pounded on us for 10 minutes and stopped. By the time we got our rain flys on we were all soaked, and then we didn't need it anymore. Half of us regrouped at the fire and drank the last of the rum punch while the other half went to bed. The next morning after breakfast we learned the truth about our small deserted island. A launch pulled up next to us and began unloading huge rock stadium speakers, amplifiers, and a generator to run the whole damn thing. The cruise ships would be sending 200 or 300 people over for a party. Apparently the island is heavily used every day by the tour industry, but we were able to slip one night in when they weren't using it. As the Ragga King pulled away, the amplified voice of Bob Marley could be heard singing ¨We be Jamming, Jamming,Jamming.¨I can tell you now that we received great service from all the crew. Yet one can not help notice that they gave the single gals special attention - and those gals loved it. The second night was spent on Tobacco Caye, there were lots of cabins and people on it. Due to there being water and facilities we all got a shower, and we had an actual bathroom to use. The captain arranged a birthday party for a lady from Ireland. He found a garifuna band that played African drums and sang. After dinner and cake we all had a grand time dancing. The captain even did a special garifuna dance with lots of foot stomping as he moved quickly back and forth across the floor.Our last day on the Ragga King was a time for reflection, or perhaps we were just hung over. We got to do two snorkels, and after lunch they broke out the remaining rum punch. They had run out of ice the night before and the warm punch was barely drinkable. Those people who braved a cup of it quickly fell asleep in the sun as we sailed to our finish at Placencia.Overall this was a wonderful trip that I would recommend to anyone.PlacenciaBilled as the Caye you can drive to, it is a long sandy spit. There is a lot of small hotels and restaurants here. One side is white sandy beaches. The other side is mangroves that developers are filling and shaping into long fingers with houses, and water in between for boats and marinas. Everyone goes to Barefoot Bar and Tipsy Tuna at night. Maybe it is a little too small, but it seems like a fun place. Prices for food and beer are high, just like Alaska. My room was $35 for a double with private bath, I could have paid $30 for a single but the room was very small.   We met up with the crew of Raggamuffin for more rounds of drinks. Then they were off to bring the boat back to Caye Caulker, a 12-14 hour trip.CorozalI spent one night in Corozal, 8 km below the Mexican border. It is a quiet town that I liked, but no sand beaches there. It is a little to quiet for me, there was no one at the bar I stopped to have a drink at. Basically they don't have a tourist trade there. I had one cheap bar dinner of steak for $10, and another expensive lunch at a Chinese restaurant for $12. Hotel rooms can be found for around $20 per night. Next stop Mexico!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jim.green/1/1208444340/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jim.green/1/1208444340/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jim.green/1/1208444340/tpod.html Fri, 25 Apr 2008 00:04:52 -0400 Traveling from Peru to Mexico

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Tikal National Park, Tikal National Park, Guatemala

Here are a few pictures from Tikal. This is the first Mayan site I have been to and I loved it!  I took 4 buses and spent 19 hours traveling from Lake Atitlan to Tikal. That included a restless sleep and sore neck from an overnight bus.  Tikal was settled by the Mayans around 700 BC. Reaching it's peak in power 700 to 900 AD, there were over 100,000 people living there. Their biggest rival was Caracol in Southwest Belize. Abandoned sometime after 900 AD. Rediscovered in 1848. It became a Unesco World Heritage Site in 1979. Tikal is a 550 square kilometer park with more than 4000 separate ruins. My first impressions: walking through the jungle on dirt paths, monkeys swinging in the trees above, birds calling, hot sun sweat trickling down my back, peering through the brush at a stone shape, a pyramid breaking out of the tree tops, steep stone stairs, smoke from a small fire. As I walked along the jungle paths it is easy to imagine myself as being one of the first explorers to see a temple. While some are being restored, other temples are still inaccessible, built on high mounds, only their tops can be seen through gaps in the trees.I find my self looking at each mound I pass, wondering if it is covering another building, a building which has been buried for over 1,000 years.   Two temples face each other across a grassy court, more buildings on the other two sides. These were named Temples I and II facing each other across the Grand Plaza. One is closed to climbing, but the other can be mounted by wood stairs for a good view. Next stop Belize!     
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jim.green/1/1208112360/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jim.green/1/1208112360/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jim.green/1/1208112360/tpod.html Fri, 18 Apr 2008 20:49:33 -0400 Traveling from Peru to Mexico

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Antigua Guatemala, Guatemala

Antigua Greetings from Antigua. This is the most popular place for tourists to visit. Full of Spanish colonial architecture dating back to 1550, it is a wonderful city to photograph. It is also small enough that you can walk instead of taking taxis. The streets are cobblestone, sidewalks narrow and uneven. The building walls seem rather dull from the street, but when you enter a restaurant or shop there will be a beautiful planted courtyard in the middle of the building. I took the city tour with author Elizabeth Bell. She has extensive knowledge of the history of Antigua, and local social problems including illiteracy, education, health care, and integrating the Mayan people who are 60% of the population. Highlights included visiting the Cathedral and seeing the old ruins they are restoring beside it. Visiting a jade museum and gift shop. Visiting the Hotel Santo Domingo, which began as ruins that were excavated 5-12 feet of dirt and rubble, then restored into beautiful courtyards, fountains, two museums and art galleries, and of course a beautiful hotel and restaurant. I would highly recommend the tour to anyone visiting. Volcano Pacaya Saturday I went on an afternoon excursion to climb Volcano Pacaya. After a 2 hour ride in a van, we climbed for an hour up to the rim of the volcano. Then we had a short steep climb down into the cauldron to the lava bed. It was exciting to stand right by molten lava, we even walked out onto some hard black lava slabs to take pictures. The air was hot and tinged with the smell of sulfur. We had fun feeding a small dog our left over snacks, I think the dog lived up there and greeted each party for food. We sat by the lava for an hour until it became dark, the lava glowed more as the sky darkened. We left around 6 p.m. and it started raining as night fell. By the time we climbed out of the cauldron to the rim there was lightening in the sky, and one loud crack with a half second delay made me jump.We used flashlights to light the trail, which quickly became muddy and slippery. It took an hour to reach the van.  It was a memorable hike.    On the ride back the windshield of the van got foggy from our combined breathing, the rainy weather, and the lack of a blower. As the driver peered though the hazy windshield, a lady from Texas became so agitated she finally asked in English 'Why doesn't the bus driver wipe the windshield? Does anyone else in the van feel unsafe?' The rest of us had all been in Latin America long enough to know that you don't tell the bus driver what to do, and besides he only spoke Spanish and hadn't understood anything she said. I was tempted at that time to lean forward and ask her if she went to church on a regular basis. If so, she should consider it a test of her faith in God (which she appeared to be failing). But I decided not to say anything to her. Lake Atitlan With three major volcanos and ringed by mountains, this lake reminds me of Alaska. The water is blue, about 24 miles wide and 1000 feet deep. It is a beautiful area. Unfortunately my experience was marred by several things. First is the constant presence of people trying to sell you cloth, bracelets and other hand made items. Even while eating in the restaurant I was approached by little kids selling stuff. It quickly became tiring. I don't think it is healthy for little kids to be doing this instead of going to school. The other thing that bothered me was a lot of little incidents where I felt I was being taken advantage of. Like not getting the correct change, or not getting a good exchange rate when paying for something. It felt as if some people will do what ever necessary to make a few extra bucks off tourists. Even at the customs office when I left Guatemala, the officer demanded 10 quitzels, even though it isn't legally required to pay him anything. Half of us paid, the other half said no, and we figured out it was a scam after we got into the van and started discussing it with each other. I know the country is poor, but they should realize that if tourists feel cheated they won't come back. 
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jim.green/1/1207794660/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jim.green/1/1207794660/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jim.green/1/1207794660/tpod.html Wed, 16 Apr 2008 21:39:31 -0400 Traveling from Peru to Mexico

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Granada, Nicaragua

Impressions of Nicaragua vs. other Latin countriesIt´s cheaper to live here. A meal with drinks can be less than $5.  I have stayed in two huge hotel rooms with bathrooms for $10 a night. It´s noisier, there are trucks with giant rock band speakers on the back blaring out advertisements as they slowly drive through the streets. Taxis go down the streets honking loudly to signal they want passengers, or at other cars at street corners. They have a national love/hate relationship with roosters whereas I just hate them - the damn things start crowing at 3 a.m. and don´t stop. I say love/hate because they are raising lots of roosters, even in the middle of the city so they must love them. On the other hand there are cock fights openly advertised at a hostel I stayed in, the fights occurring on Sunday (not in the hostel) - so they don´t mind killing them!There is more trash and garbage on the street. Perhaps this is an unfair comparison because I don´t remember how much trash there was in other cities. But it is really striking me that they don´t have any thought for keeping their environment clean. When people finish drinking a soda on the bus, they toss the plastic bottle out the window.San Juan Del SurThe self promoted number one beach town in Nicaragua, located in the southwest corner 30 miles above Costa Rica. It is a nice town, numerous restaurants and hotels. Lively action from the 20 something European and American travelers. More expensive than the rest of Nicaragua, but I was able to find a breezy room for $10 without bathroom. It is big enough to be interesting but you can still walk around the town.The beach is wonderful. Lots of Americans to talk to, and there is an active night life on the weekends. I checked out property and an undeveloped lot with a view of the ocean can be bought for $50 to 100K.GrenadaA lovely town on the end of the lake. A good hopping off spot for other places. My first nice large room, the floor completely tiled. It was a great hotel except for those damned roosters. The other odd thing was that when I went for a shower in the morning, there was no water. Turns out that the city water only works at night after 6 pm. The hotel stores some water in a reservoir on their roof, so if you ask they will turn the pump on and you can shower at other times. They have a nice central park, lovely church on one side. There is a row of sidewalk restaurants just past the church. I had a nice Mexican dinner there with a couple strawberry daiquiris and a lemonade for $12. It is hot here and I find myself sucking down the liquids. I met a Chinese man who claims to run the only Chinese restaurant in Grenada. He also said he worked as a doctor in Anchorage, Alaska for 40 years, and had 12 children by a single wife.  She died a few years ago (no not from having 12 children) and he is retired now. LeonLeon, heavily touted in my guidebook, but I didn´t find much of interest there. I stayed at the Bigfoot Hostel, which is an interesting hostel, full of 20 somethings who are wandering through Latin America. If only they needed an older man to guide them, alas they prefer to drift along with others their own age. The small pool was fine for a dip during a hot afternoon and it also served as our water supply for the showers and bathroom.EsteliHow did I get trapped in Esteli? It is supposed to be colder in the mountains, but it is still dry and hot here. They seriously need to develop their tourism better. They are surrounded by two ecological parks, and 2-3 other cities within 2 hours drive, but the only transportation is by bus at 6 a.m. in the morning. How about a tourist van at a decent hour and some guides?Long Bus Trips and other things to AvoidI escaped Esteli on a 7 a.m. bus that originated in Managua and ended in San Salvador at 6 p.m. that night. I decided to go out to eat and ended up paying more in taxi fare than the meal cost. Cabs aren´t cheap in San Salvador. They use dollars in El Salvador. A German lady had a problem with a money changer at the border to Guatemala. She changed 15 dollars to quitzels, and when she went to buy a soda the lady told her the money was fake! Of course by that time the money changer had disappeared. After a night sleeping on a lumpy bed in the bus terminal, I caught the 6 a.m. bus to Guatemala City and arrived around 11 p.m. I shared a half hour taxi ride to the next bus terminal, and was able to catch a chicken bus to Antigua. I finally arriving at my destination at 2 p.m. the day after my start. 
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jim.green/1/1207405320/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jim.green/1/1207405320/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jim.green/1/1207405320/tpod.html Mon, 07 Apr 2008 14:20:40 -0400 Traveling from Peru to Mexico

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Tamarindo, Costa Rica

Jaco BeachThe next day I took the bus to Jaco Beach on the Pacific coast. Jaco is  the next hot development spot in Costa Rica. Rumors are flying that Donald Trump is building there, and that the government will improve the highway and shorten the drive from San Jose from 3 hours to 1 hour. These are popular rumors. I have heard them with various twists in three different towns that I have been in. The developers in Jaco got the four story height limit deleted from the zoning codes, and they are now building tall condominiums and hotel developments. The town itself has a bad reputation, with overpriced hotels and  restaurants. The in town bars are sleazy, but the hotel bars are safe enough. I especially enjoyed Carlita´s Bar and Hotel, it is on the internet if you want to see some pictures. It is definitely a gringo bar, but the women behind the bar are ticas. The only beautiful thing left in Jaco is their two mile long beach. Perhaps that is the natural course of development, a sleepy little beach  town is turned into Miami south. Perhaps someday all of the beaches in Costa Rica will look like this, and then people like me will go somewhere else to get the authentic Latin experience, and the rest will enjoy there safe California experience in Costa Rica.   Buses and Ferry to NicoyaI caught a bus to Punta Arenas. The bus driver said the ferry dock was nearby, so I started backpacking down the street. The wind was blowing strong, and it peppered my face with sand. I got a picture of the guy dragging the metal while I was walking. After 15 minutes of hiking I decided that nearby is relative to whether you are in a car or not. I finally found a taxi and got a ride the rest of the way.  The ferry ride across to the Nicoya Peninsula  was about 2 hours long. The ferry rolled heavily in the 3 foot swells, and the wind was blowing hard enough that you had to hold onto your drink. But the customers at the bar persevered. The ferry was large enough to hold 30 trucks and cars.I spent the next few hours bouncing over a dirt road on the only bus that goes to Nicoya. It was dark by the time I got there so I settled into a cheap hotel and had a huge dinner of chicken, seafood and vegetables in some mock Chinese dish. Samara Beach The next morning I finally got to Samara, the road to Samara is paved and about 5-6 hours from San Jose. It is a small town with a large sandy tan colored beach. The beach is protected by an offshore reef so it is safe for swimming. I walked up and down the beach, watching the newbie surfers in the small  waves.  Finally exhausted from the heat, I had a burger and liquids at Shake Joe's burger shop and napped in the hammock. Now this is living. My guide describes this as one of Costa Rica´s favorite beaches. It is easy to see why. It is still relaxed with a small town feel. There are no buildings over two stories high. The people were friendly. There weren´t a lot of options for dining, and the meals more expensive than Panama. I found myself spending $10-15 for dinner and drinks. Overall I felt like I was in heaven, but I am not sure if the town is large enough to provide a variety of activities and restaurants if I stayed long term. The next morning disaster struck. I was wading along the beach and thought I would wade out past the surf line. The waves seemed small enough, but as I waded farther out they built up higher and higher until a large wave swept over my head and washed my glasses away.  Tamarindo Beach After catching two buses I arrived at dusty Tamarindo Beach. I say dusty because the main roads are not paved, though there is hope that paving will occur soon. In the meantime, the busiest hotels along the beach are crowded together, giving it the appearance of a strip mall. There was a lot of new construction going on, and every gringo I met who was staying was either a realtor or in construction. Talk tended toward what property was worth and how much their property would increase in value over the next few years. The newest building are tall and loom over older construction. Nightlife is active and revolves around young men and women going out late to party and dance. There is a lot of action after 10 p.m. among the young Europeans and Americans. The beach here is nice white sand. I walked a long ways to the south, and ended up walking around the point to another beach. It is a beautiful area. But overall I just didn´t like the dusty streets, tall buildings, and amount of development in Tamarindo. Coco Beach Two more bus rides and I reached beautiful Coco Beach. This was another town that I really liked. There are other nice beaches to the south and north, some of them known for their surfing. The town is large enough to have a variety of hotels and restaurants. There is also a lot of development of condo´s, but height restrictions keep most buildings down to two floors. I looked at about 5 different condo developments here. If you don´t need a view of the water you can buy a two bedroom condo with swimming pool for $105-$120k. Not bad for a winter hideaway. And it could be rented out while your gone. A view of the water will double or triple that price. Coco Beach is a 6 hour ride from San Jose, and 2 hours from the Nicaragua border.   Border Crossing to NicaraguaI had an odd experience on the way to Nicaragua. I had taken a bus to Liberia, and was waiting in a long line of people for a bus that was going to arrive in 1.5 hours. A taxi driver started talking in Spanish to three Nicaraguan guys behind me, and then signaled that they were looking for one more person to share a taxi (four guys at $6 each) to the border. Moments later the four of us and the driver crammed ourselves into his small taxi and we took off.  The driver skillfully wove  back and forth across the highway as we zoomed along at 100 kph, passing slower trucks and cars.  We had almost reached the border when the taxi driver stopped, and the three guys got out of the cab. I started to get out with them, but the drier told me to stay in the car. The guys gathered their bags and slowly walked into the woods. My driver took off and drove for one minute to the border crossing. He explained that the three Nicaraguans were working illegally (or past their permitted time) in Costa Rica, and they were going to cross somewhere in the woods. Maybe they crossed that afternoon or waited for night. I hope they crossed without incident. I had my first experience of getting ripped off on my trip (other than the two items I lost from my pack during airline flights). I used a honest looking young man to change $40 worth of Costa Rica colons to Nicaraguan cordobas, and I figured out later that he had only given me half the amount he should of. I knew there was a reason why I didn´t change money at the borders before now. But my greatest adversity is the amount of bus traveling I am doing, and trying to find a new cheap hotel every night. I am still in good spirits and looking forward to finishing my trip through Central America, next stop Nicaragua.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jim.green/1/1207100400/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jim.green/1/1207100400/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jim.green/1/1207100400/tpod.html Sun, 06 Apr 2008 11:56:47 -0400 Traveling from Peru to Mexico

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San Jose, Costa Rica

San JoseGreetings from sunny Costa Rica. I arrived by bus in San Jose after midnight, a dangerous time to arrive in a major city. Fortunately a friendly taxi driver found a hotel for me to stay at. The next day I moved over to a Hostel. This was my first time in a full service backpackers hostel. It had dorms, private rooms, a swimming pool, restaurant and bar, and free internet. It was pretty cool hanging out there and meeting travelers from Europe and America. Cows as ArtI was walking around the city when I came upon an art exhibit of over 150 painted cows. I love the different colors and ideas they express!4 in 1 Tour The next day I took an 11 hour bus tour of a coffee plantation, Poas Volcano, the La Paz Waterfall Gardens, and a boat ride on the Sarapiqui river. The coffee plantation wasn´t that interesting because none of the machinery was running, but we did learn about how the coffee beans are hand picked and processed. We had an excellent breakfast with fresh coffee that tasted wonderful. By law they can only grow Arabian coffee beans, but they have developed over 50 varieties so there are lots of different flavors. I had to try the Peabody as it is a rare variety and tastes delicious. I was lucky to get a glimpse down into the cauldron of the Poa volcano, the steam from the cauldron and clouds from the surrounding mountains rolled over us shortly after. The clouds were so thick they hid the sun. I would recommend La Paz Waterfall Gardens to everyone. Not only was the scenery great with large gorges, huge trees, and numerous waterfalls, but there were also giant cages that we could walk into and see birds like macaws and parrots. Another cage was full of different butterfly's, they were fluttering all around us landing on the plants and flowers, or playing in the misty air. It was one of the most peaceful places I have been in. Not as restful were some small glass cages showing the different snakes that live in Panama, I only took one photo of the deadliest snake in Central America the fer de lance, responsible for 10 deaths a year. After a buffet lunch we hiked a short distance down the gorge to see the waterfalls. We didn´t even have to hike back uphill, the bus moved down to pick us up.  The last stop was a boat ride along the Sarapiqui river. We saw a variety of birds, some small bats sleeping on a stump, howler monkeys, and two cayman. One of the cayman left the beach and swam up to the boat. Everyone was leaning over the side to take pictures, fortunately the boat was wide enough to hold our weight without tipping over.  The next day I caught a bus to a beach on the Pacific Coast.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jim.green/1/1206558900/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jim.green/1/1206558900/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jim.green/1/1206558900/tpod.html Sat, 29 Mar 2008 01:23:42 -0400 Traveling from Peru to Mexico

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Santiago, Panama

Panama CityI flew back to Panama City on Monday night, March 17. Determined not to pay full fare for the airport taxi, which is the biggest ripoff I have encountered in my travels (being double the rate you would pay to go back to the airport), I jumped into a hotel van and rode with five others to the Veneto for $12. Then I jumped into a cab for a $2 ride to the Jamaican Hotel. As usual I hadn´t reserved a room, but trotting out my best Spanish I was able to find a single for $20. This is extremely cheap for Panama City. The desk lady at the Jamaican must have been in a bitchy mood that night. I came down 10 minutes later to complain that the air conditioning wasn´t working. They have a switch behind the counter so they can sell the room at a separate price with or without ac, so she switched it on. Then I asked if she could turn the telephone on so I could make some phone calls, and I would pay for it in the morning. That was the final straw. She demanded my key in Spanish and laid it on the counter, then gesturing toward the door she spoke the only English she knew - ¨GO!¨ Well I wasn´t leaving a room I had already paid for at 10 pm so I picked my key back up and fled to my room.While I was in Panama I lightened my pack by sending some tourist trinkets and spare clothes home. This turned out to be a bit of an ordeal. I couldn´t send it regular mail, instead it was delivered DHL, and it cost $150 to deliver a box. The US Customs also gave my mother a hard time, asking for three references before they would deliver it. If they are that worried about what´s in the box they should just open it, the Panamanians looked inside before they would seal the box.SantiagoAfter a few days in Panama City I finally started my journey north through Central America. I rode by bus for 3.5 hours to Santiago where I met some friends. Santiagos only distinguishing feature is a catholic church in the center of town. Santiago serves as a supply point for the surrounding villages, and it is the largest city within 100 miles. We decided to do a road trip and look at the surrounding area. It is a place of rolling hills, pastures, cattle, and trees. It is the dry season here through April, so the grass is a bit brown, not the deep green I was seeing in South America. I found out that the country roads we traveled on used to be dirt, they had all been paved in the last three years. So the government is trying hard to improve the road system.Boca del ToroI left by the night bus and the next morning arrived at the mainland bus station for Boca. After a half hour boat ride that only cost $4 I reached the Caribbean Island of Boca del Toro. This is a laid back community that is full of young Europeans on vacation. Many of the buildings are built on piling over the water, including some major hotels and bars. Pongas zip back and forth between the islands or take groups out on tours. Prices are cheap, a beer is $1.50 and well drinks $2, during happy hour they could be half that price. Food and lodging is cheap also, as long as you don´t stay at a major hotel.I spent my first day at Boca del Drago, a mile long stretch of beach. I was surprised to find that most of the islands have shorelines that are covered with mangroves, not beaches. So the few beaches seem more precious. The second day I booked a ponga tour to Zapatilla Island. This is an outer island that is surrounded by sand beach, and you can walk around it in a half hour. The sun was out, ideal for getting that deep tan. Whenever I got hot I would take a dip in the ocean which is barely below body temperature. The water here is green, with shades ranging from turquoise to lighter. On the way back to town we stopped at a shallow reef to snorkel over soft coral. I haven´t seen soft coral like this in a long time, they were in shades of red, purple, yellow, green, all gently swaying in the current.That night it rained hard. The next day I had planned to go diving, and I started with a refresher course. Unfortunately we could only do one dive, as the rain had caused the mangrove trees to release black water into the ocean, limiting visibility near shore. Our visibility was limited to 40 feet during the dive. The good news was that even though I haven´t dove in ten years, I felt very comfortable underwater. In fact I used the least amount of air in the group, I had 1500 psi left when we surfaced. The dive master even found my old training records in the computer, so I think I will renew my PADI card when I get home.BoquetteThe next morning I flew out to David, then caught a bus to Boquette. This is a town in the mountains that is popular with Americans and Europeans for second homes. The land is beautiful, with a nearby volcano in the north. The property that most people are buying is 10 kilometers toward David, so it isn´t really in town. For $200,000+ you can own a home in a gated country club with swimming pools, bar and restaurants. Some people might say it isn´t the real Panama, but you can always go to town and practice your Spanish. I found the restaurants to be good, and there was a surprising number of them for such a small town (you can walk through it in 10 minutes). There are also a lot of pensions, I only paid $15 for the night and I met others who were paying $8. So maybe a house isn´t necessary. I would like to show you all the colorful flower gardens I saw there, but my camera batteries were dead. There are some beautiful flowers and houses there. I love the picture of the mountain stream, I want a house right next to it.I was only able to spend one night there, then I had to go back to David and catch a bus to Costa Rica. I only have a month of time left, so I have to accelerate my travels. I can spend one week in Costa Rica, one in Nicaragua, one in Guatemala, and one in Belize and the Yucatan.    
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jim.green/1/1205952780/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jim.green/1/1205952780/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jim.green/1/1205952780/tpod.html Fri, 28 Mar 2008 19:47:25 -0400 Traveling from Peru to Mexico

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Arequipa, Peru

Arequipa            The second largest city in Peru               Elevation 2400 metersAfter a six hour bus ride from Puno, I arrived at Arequipa. I was able to get a room at the Colonial House Inn and set out that afternoon to explore the Plaza de Armas. This is a beautiful plaza with a square shaped park, and at the heart of the plaza is a fountain topped by an angel known locally as ¨turututu¨ because of the trumpet the angel carries. There is a cathedral on one side, and colonial style two story buildings on the other three sides. At first it was hard to walk across the street because of the aggressive driving of the numerous cabs. Around 6 pm the streets were closed to cars, and people began marching into the square in a giant rally against abortions. It was Friday night and everyone was at the plaza, chatting with friends, marching in the rally, waiting for the catholic priests to make speeches. As night fell, the plaza was lit with soft yellow lighting that made the graceful round columns and spires stand out.   City and Country TourThe next day I went on a city and country bus tour. I saw some interesting places, though they were not always photogenic. I found the use of volcanic stone, in both white and pink colors, to be interesting. The local church was built in the 1700s but it has been rebuilt a number of times due to earthquakes. So I am not sure how much of that stonework is replicated from the original, I know the facade was totally rebuilt in the 60s, so they may have expanded on the original designs. There is a local push toward having this type of stonework declared it´s own architectural style. It includes Inca designs, and animal figures like the monkey. I took a picture of the guy in the costume at a children´s party. Can you imagine having to wear that costume at work every day? He was clearing used plates and glasses from the tables.I took the photos of the llama and Vicuña at a local fabric shop. The wool of the vicuña is the most expensive wool available, because it is very soft and it is only taken from the chest area of the animal. A coat made of it´s wool will cost between $1500 and $7000.I have to admire the way the driver wove our double decker bus through the narrow streets. They warned us not to stand up or stick our arms outside the bus, and there were many spots where we only had a foot or two clearance.Got Corn?That reminds me of an incident that happened while I was touring the Sacred Valley. We had been on the bus for 5 hours and had seen the Pisac market and temple sites. It was hot outside and we had left the windows open for ventilation while we napped in our seats. A large truck overloaded with corn stalks drove past us from the opposite direction. The corn stalks were hanging over the sides of the truck, and they hit our open windows making a loud ripping sound as they flailed and tore, suddenly surrounding us in a cloud of shredded green corn stalks. After the initial shock of being rudely woken up we all laughed at how silly we felt while picking corn stalks out of our hair.NazcaThat night I began the first of two night trips by bus. I got on the bus around 9:30 and pulled in Nazca at 7:30 the next morning.Of course the main reason to go to Nazca is to see the ancient lines. Apparently they were made as part of shamanistic rituals. An interesting part of the animal figures is that you can follow the lines all the way through the animal without crossing another line. The Nazca culture moved away (or died) because of a 30 year drought. To this day it is desert surrounding a single strip of green around a small river. I saw the lines by plane that morning, it was a bit of a gut wrenching experience because the pilot tilted the plane back and forth so we could all get a good look at the lines. Now the linear lines, triangles and trapezoids are large and easy to see from the air. The animal figures are smaller and the lines more narrow. It took me a little while to recognize them, and I am afraid most of my pictures don´t do justice to them. I spent the rest of the day in town, then caught the night bus to Lima. This time it was a nine hour trip. By the end of my second night on the bus I was feeling hot, sweaty and in need of a shower. My coughing continues, probably not being helped by my daily consumption of beer.LimaAfter a lunch with Antonio, I caught the plane to Panama City. That was an expensive ticket, about $700 because I didn´t know my travel plans and didn´t prepurchase way ahead of time. I did spring for a 20 minute back and neck massage at the airport. That helped my backpackers muscles relax. Next stop Panama! 
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jim.green/1/1205452980/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jim.green/1/1205452980/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jim.green/1/1205452980/tpod.html Sun, 16 Mar 2008 17:04:32 -0400 Traveling from Peru to Mexico

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Cuzco, Peru

Cuzco City       &am p;am p;nb sp;      Elevation 3400 metersMad, bustling, busy Cuzco. The center of activities like rafting, trekking, mountain climbing, and expeditions to the many stone temples in the surrounding area. I arrived by plane and had my second encounter with a travel agent (the first was the Galapagos). I asked a lady at the airport about Machu Picchu, and before I knew what happened she trapped me in a van with some other tourists, and talked me into staying at a different hotel than I had planned on. Do not worry, she kept saying, everything is taken care of. She quickly signed me up for several tours including The Sacred Valley, Machu Picchu, rafting, and even the trip to Lake Titicaca. Yes it was convenient to be picked up at the hotel, but at what extra price? I did not like the location of the hotel and would have chosen another, but I did like the friendly hotel proprietor. I suspect the actual room rates were considerably below the $15 per night I was paying. The Sacred Valley tour was neat. I saw two major temple sites. One in Pisac. It is just as magnificent as Machu Picchu, but does not seem as impressive because it starts on the valley bottom so the distances seem closer. It really is a nice site to visit and it is accessible by car.The second site was in Ollantaytambo, the Temple of the Sun. I mounted an impressive set of stone stairs to reach the top of the temple. Unfortunately the Spanish destroyed the main alters, but the other stone works are intact. I thought that the temples were built with stones on-site. But the guide said that the stones used to build the temple came from a mountain top on the other side of the valley. Also of interest, the stones were sedimentary, at some time in history the 4000 meter high mountains were laying underwater. After courting a heart attack mounting the steps, I was happy to walk along the path that skirted the mountainside, then walk down more steep stone stairs. I love the Peruvian disregard for railings or any other protection from falling great distances!We also stopped at a local shop where they showed us how llama wool was cleaned, dyed and woven into clothing. Machu Picchu          Elevation 2400 meters I am standing in the pouring rain in Machu Picchu. My clothes are soaked under my once waterproof jacket. The water runs down the stone stairways, soaking my tennis shoes. I am cold, wet, and cannot even take pictures for fear of damaging my camera - and yet I am grinning from ear to ear. I have dreamed of seeing this ancient site, and now I am here. The magnificent stone temples, steep terraced lands, bright green grass, long stone stairways, mountains jutting into the sky, it is all as I have imagined. The morning started well. After a sound nights sleep in the little village next to Machu Picchu, I caught a bus up the mountain and hiked though the site. It was warm and partially cloudy. I hiked to the other end and checked in with the gatekeeper for the steep climb up WaynaPicchu. Only 400 people are allowed to hike it each day, and I was number 79. The trail is made of ancient Inca stone steps. The steeper areas have been retrofitted with wire cables to hold onto. It was a long one hour hike up those steps. I had to stop frequently as I panted and coughed in the thin air.The last bit was straight up the stairs of an ancient watch tower, and there was no cable to hang onto. The view down was dizzying as I contemplated that one slip would send me tumbling hundreds of feet. My legs felt like jelly and my lungs were burning when I finally reached the top, but the view made it all worthwhile. It is a panoramic view of the steep mountains and deep valleys that protected Machu Picchu from the Spaniards. I accidently took the long way back down. After a 45 minute scramble downhill, including having to climb down two 30 foot high wood ladders, I reached the Temple of the Moon. It is a small temple and hardly worth looking at. Now I thought that it would be sidehill from there back to the main trail. But the trail turned into another long set of stone stairs going up. My legs felt like jelly as I climbed up them. I soon met two ladies who had turned back, thinking they were on the wrong trail because they had walked for 25 minutes uphill, and never reached anything. I was sure this was the only way out, so I kept slogging for what turned out to be another hour and a half. The stone stairs went up for about a half hour, then the path skirted midway along a cliff, with stairs going back down for awhile, then back up again. It turned out to be sheer torture,  the kind that we put ourselves through whenever we volunteer to climb a mountain. For those people taking the Inca trail, the first day is the worst. It requires hiking from 2840 to 4200 meters, I never would have made it with my coughing condition.  Lago Titicaca      Elevation 3800 meters After a day long bus ride I arrived at Puno City. My hotel, booked through a travel agent, appears to be deserted. It is another cold night at this altitude and of course my room is unheated. All part of the hazards of the $15 room. At least the shower is hot. Lake Titicaca is advertised as the worlds highest navigable lake, it is 284 meters deep and fifteen times the size of Lake Geneva in Switzerland. I took a boat tour of the Uros floating islands. These islands are made of cut reeds that are bundled together. The Uros Indians live on these floating islands in huts made of more reeds. Amazingly they do not use vizqueen in the roof. I was invited into one of the small huts where I sat on a mattress with some other members of the tribe and talked about fishing in Alaska. The lake has five different types of fish, but none grow to the size of a salmon. I found it really interesting the way they would pick technology. They did not have TVs, but they did have solar panels. Perhaps for a few modern conveniences like a laptop computer. They had wood skiffs with outboards for going to town. I was outside buying a few handmade crafts when I turned around and was surprised to see a condor. Someone keeps it there as a pet. It was the last thing I ever expected to see. Of course everyone wanted their picture taken with the Condor. I was told it eats 3 kilos of meat each day. 
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