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  Manzanillo, Mexico
Thursday, August 17, 2006

Hola everybody,

Well it's about time I brought u all up to date. Firstly I apologise for a blog which was up previously, I wrote it when I was very tired and meant to save it as a draft, but it ended up being posted. I've deleted it now. The reason I haven't written for a while is mainly because I've been in some out of the way places where internet was scarce..... But I do have plenty of stories to fill u in on!

I'll try to work through this consecutively:

Sunday, before the one just been I bussed from Mexico City out to the coast near Acapulco, then north to a neat and vibrant tourist town called Zihuatanejo (said See-wah-teh-nay-ho)

1 toll road

. It was relieving to see the smog and concrete of the great Metropolis (some say to be the biggest in the world) give way to sunny blue skies, rolling jungle and low-key villages only half an hour into the journey. My nostrils felt the relief too judging by the welcome absence of the daily build up of black bogies I'd become used to.

After 6hours we hit the coast. I don't think I need to describe the thrill of seeing big clean, green pitching barrels crashing in along the coast as we drove another 3 hours north to Zihua!

Arriving late, I took what accommodation I could get, and found out why it was so cheap. Situated above a nightclub, that blasts music till 4am was the probable cause of my insomnia. But I was so busy, and excited, over the next few days that I didn't get around to finding anything better.

Monday I caught a bus to nearby Ixtapa where I met a really cool young Mexican dude named Ion. He has very good English and is also a keen surfer. He'd been working and surfing in Ixtapa during his university holidays and now had a few days off before heading back to his home city to resume study. This was cool as he had plenty of time to hang out, help me with some Spanish and show me some of the local spots as well as introducing me to some new Mexican food and to some of his mates in the local "surf community"

2 first glimpse of coast

. There's basically a surf shop/ bar in Ixtapa where surfers hangout, have beers and generally talk crap while they're not surfing. Here I met some crew who generously took us to the local surf spots and even offered places to stay for free. I ended up spending most of my time over the next 3 days in Ixtapa and bussing back to Zihua at night to crash.

The first spot we went for a surf at was called Playa Linda which is a fairly gentle beach break/river mouth. The waves weren't huge but it was still an exhillerating experience. Imagine paddling out into water as warm as the air temperature (which is bloody warm), pelicans cruising along the unbroken wave metres away, a myriad of aquatic activity all around - fish big and small being chased and leaping from the water, and back on land a backdrop of lush green jungle and a coconut palm fringed beach contrasted with the clear blue sky. My adrenilin was also slightly squeaking as a result of some of the stories I'd been told, some earnest first hand accounts, of incidents at Playa Linda. Now I don't mean to freak u mum, but if I censor my stories on this site, they just won't be as interesting, aye.
Anyway...being a river mouth, on the edge of the jungle, it's naturally home to some of our less amicable relatives of the reptilian variety, namely crocodiles! This one fella from Texas told me he was out there surfing and a log popped up in the water.....with eyes

3 Ixtapa Yeti

. He high tailed it to the beach and said this thing followed him in then turned and swam toward another surfer. But I think the croc was just curious.... Anyway, I didn't see any!
Oh yeah, curtiousy of Mexicana airlines my (brand new) surfboard received moderate dings to the nose, tail and rail. Bummer aye. I've got ding repair stuff though, so fixed them up pretty good. And overall pretty stoked with the new board, although after some of the other waves I've had since, def think I could have gone smaller to 6'6 or 6'4.

Ion went home and it was time to head north. Leaving most of my luggage (which I have way too much of and now realise I can get by mostly without), taking only my surfboard, a pair of shorts, 2 tee shirts, 3 undies, my sandals and the bare essentials in my daypack I got a local bus and combie north about an hour to a surf spot known as 'Troncones'.

I'd read on the internet about a restaurant there where u can sleep in a hammock for free if u eat at their venue. Wanting to save money I hunted out Jose, the owner of 'Palapas' and my source proved faithful. Unfortunately the swell had dropped quite a bit, but it was a tranquil spot to chill for a couple of days. I spent most of the day reading in a hammock, eating and playing in the small surf

4 Me n Ion

.

Mexico is ruled by insects. They're everywhere, colourful and big! Yesterday, from a bus window I could see the ants moving on the ground. I took a few snaps of some of the bugs here in troncones.

When it came time to close up the restaurant, Hose strung up a hammock for me on the patio which is a slightly elevated concrete landing above the beach. An interesting phenomenon happens on the beaches of Mexico when the sun goes down - the sand literally moves with all sorts of bugs and creepy crawlies. Most of them are hermit crabs and they're even more frenetic when there's a lighted area such as a restaurant to attract them. They're quite classic to watch though as they think they're being sneaky freezing in their tracks as soon as u move, but resuming en mass as when they think u're still again. Being fairly new to the country and having diligently studied the potential hazards outlined in my travel guide I casually inquired if many scorpions are seen in the area? Hose assured me that the beach in front of his restaurant was regularly sprayed against such pests. Not 10 minutes later an assertive black snake with white bands came menacingly slithering up onto the patio! Shite balls, here I was preparing to spend a night alone, and exposed on this precarious patio

5 Loose pool hall

!

Hose promptly terminated the snake with a rake handle and reasoned that all this rain must have diluted the effectiveness of the spray! Ya think? Truth be told it was only about 50cm long, but I was still a bit startled. So seeking reassurance I asked Hose if they get many wild animals around these parts? "Oh sure" he casually told me pointing to the hills out the back of his restaurant, "we got tigers, leopards, boas, rattle-snakes, crocodiles...." Not the answer I was looking for Hose. "But it's OK" he says "I've got protection" as he pulls a loaded revolver out from behind the counter! I'm not talking a little pissy 6shooter here, this was a full on hand-held ouzzie, straight out of Terminator. I nearly flipped in my hammock as he released the magazine and 3.0 bullets splayed into his hand. Right, so have u ever had to use it Hose? "Just once, ..... I shot a man in the leg"..... that's a whole other story about the time someone foolishly tried to car-jack him.....

Despite this Hose was a really nice guy and I had some deep and meaningful conversations with him. I stayed one more night before heading north again. When I asked him for the bill for the money I'd spent in his restaurant he said "you're my friend, it's free". Once again I was totally blown away by the generosity and respect I've encountered with many of the Mexican people I've met

6 Troncones sunset

.

Bussed and hitched a ride with a Corona beer truck out to a famous surf spot called El Rancho. I'd heard a lot about this spot, it was quite difficult to get to, has no hotels and only 2 restaurant shacks. Unfortunately the swell was still small, but I could tell it would be an unreal break when there were waves. Definitely one u need to have a car to safely get there and back from though. Maybe will get the chance to surf it another time. Had breakfast there and caught a ride back out to a nearby town on the highway, where I bussed about 2 and a half hours north to Barra De Nexpa.

Nexpa is also a fairly famous river-mouth/reef break. It's a bit more exposed but picks up a lot of swell. The beach front, lined with Cabanas and a few shops have basically been established by the popularity of the surf break. I got a cheap and comfortable cabana here and met a Dutch couple and a South African and Irishman who were staying in the same hotel. The four days we spent there pretty much followed the same routine: wake up at 7am, surf till 10amish, come in have a snack and rest for a bit, go back out for a surf at 11.30ish, come in about 1pm, have a big feed, whip up some guacamole and tacos, spend the rest of the day chilling in the hammocks, eating coconuts and sipping cold beers until the sun sets in paradise, have dinner, then maybe have a campfire, crash out at about 10.30/11pm, sleep fantastically, wake up at 7 and do it all again

7 nexpa beach1

! Does it get much better?

Again, the swell wasn't huge as it had been the previous week. But it was a reliable 2- 4 and a half foot wave that was long and clean with some steep sections. Typically it would be off-shore wind in the morning then on-shore in the avo, but some days were surfable all day long. The photos don't really do it justice but I could pretty safely say I caught as many waves in the 4 days here as I did in the 12months before.
The only downside was there were sometimes as many as 20 people in the water (although still plenty of waves and fairly chilled {compared to Wellington}) and, there were pesky jellyfish which stung like heck if they brushed into u. Fortunately I only got stung twice.

The Irishman and South African (Owen and Roger) who incidentally both live in Wales had a rental car and were heading north, so I hitched a ride with them to La Ticla, the next spot up. The waves were a bit disappointing after being spoilt at Nexpa, but it was a good chance to let the sore shoulders, minor cuts and rashes (from surfing) have a couple of days rest. Stayed the night there and were assaulted by mosquitoes and the dawn cacophony of demented chickens whose population outnumbered people 5-1

8 nexpa beach2

.

Took advantage of our early arousal and tried driving about an hour north to Pasquales for a morning surf. Pasquales rivals Puerto Escondido in reputation as a screaming barrelling lefthander. Unfortunately we missed the turn off and would have to back-track too far to find it, so we carried on up to the city of Manzanillo. I said goodbye to the boys there and jumped on a bus back to Zihua. Was a long day of travelling but nice to be back to a civilised place where I can catch up on a few things. Zihua reminds me quite a bit of Kuta Bali, but without the motorbikes and incense

Overall am thoroughly enjoying myself and have been blessed with the people I've met and the way things have worked out. I've been astounded by the respect and sense of community the Mexican people have. Blown away by the lushness of the flora, not the barren desert and cacti landscape I'd sort of imagined. The roads are pretty good and the drivers are reasonably sane (compared to Asia). It's rained a little most nights, with one spectacular thunder and lightening storm. I've felt two separate earthquakes. One quite decent sized and long while I was sitting on a beach having breakfast! My stomach and bowels have been holding up pretty well. The heat is sometimes hard to deal with, but relief can be found. I thank God for keeping me safe, answering my prayers and allowing me this opportunity.

Love to u all,

Adios,

Alehandro.

Post your own travel photos for friends and family More Pictures

9 view of nexpa break from our cabana	a10 nexpa wave1	a11 nexpa wave2	a12 nexpa wave3
a13 breakfast	a14 our cabana	a15 hammock time1	a16 hammock time2
a17 hammock time3	a18 nexpa sunset	a19 camp fire	b20 Mao, Maraia, Owen, Roger
b21 da boys	b22 bug1	b23 bug2	b24 bug3
b25 bug4	b26 lizard1	b27 lizard2	b28 wasp nest in my bathroom

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