Mustache South

THE INFORMATION PAGE

sneaver — Mon, 18 Aug 2014 02:19:00 GMT

While preparing for this little adventure and during my travels I relied heavily on information that others so kindly shared. The links below are some of the best resources that I have found.

GENERAL INFORMATION

http://dr650.zenseeker.net/

http://dr650.wikia.com/wiki/Main_Page

PARTS

http://www.procycle.us/bikepages/dr650.html

http://www.bikebandit.com/oem-parts/2006-suzuki-dr650se/o/m9751

http://www.motosport.com/dirtbike/rides/suzuki/dr650se-parts/

RIDING GEAR & TIRES & REVIEWS

http://www.revzilla.com/adv-sport-touring-gear

TRAVEL RESOURCES

http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/

http://www.advrider.com/

http://liferemotely.com/travel-advice

BORDER CROSSINGS

http://heyivegotanidea.wordpress.com/border-crossings/

BLOGS

http://shortwayround.co.uk/suzuki/

ANYTHING THAT YOU DON’T KNOW HOW TO DO…. YOUTUBE IT!

-DIY WINDSCREEN

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vbtnlF4XGso

-BREAKING THE TIRE BEAD

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NSOFqH3Wk9Y

-CHECKING THE NSU

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MYOTkkPRz38

-CARB JETTING WITHOUT REMOVAL

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zcjnypGfqUs

Entry 23: Panama

sneaver — Fri, 27 Jun 2014 11:25:00 GMT

Panama, I love you! You are what I had though Cost-a-lot Rica was going to be and I thank you for holding onto cultural autonomy (Panama City excluded) from the US cookie cutter developments and assimilation machine that has affected your northern neighbor. Ok, done-ski with CR bashing.

My first few hours in Panama were spent riding in rain. This was not the fly by night rain variety which rattles driver ed. students or prompts the experienced trucker to calmly dial the windshield wiper setting up a couple of notches and call it good, this was the kind of rain that kills anything that is smaller than a Kestrel and disrupts the flight patterns of large raptors, Cessnas and the ever elusive duck-billed sea Osprey (also a raptor).

Due to the rain, my incompetence or a lack of GPS guidance, I overshot the turn to Boquete by 50 miles and ended up staying the night in Santiago. Not too much went down during my stay in Santiago other than meeting a cool cat from the Czech Republic that had bought a 200cc bike in Mexico and managed to make it all the way thru CA with a 65lb backpack on his shoulders. Czechs – I’ve only met two but, I like them!

The next day I headed towards La Península de Azuero and had a lovely ride which took me down to Pedsi, around passed Tonosi & the coast and then up and over a small mountain pass that led back to Chitre . Fantastic scenery, mixed surfaces, mixed skies and curvy countryside roads made this one of my favorite rides of the trip.

From Chitre I headed back north, crossed the Pan-American Highway and had another great ride up to the mountain community of Santa Fe. After getting settled in on the edge of town, I donned my helmet, rain pants and a tee shirt with torn off sleeves and set out exploring. There are three roads that lead NW, N & NE out of town and I was lucky enough to put and eye on all three. My only regret is that (due to the fun factor) I didn’t take any photos of the ride. Short and skinny: green, curvy, steep, lush, smooth and pastoral.

South to the Pan-Am, east 40K and then north for about 30 minutes found me in El Valle de Antonio. Turns out, there are folks from Tennessee soaking up the Ex-Pat lifestyle and offering cheap and clean and new accommodations at the Windmill Hostel. I stayed for four nights, shared bi-lingual company and conversation and managed to do a little planning. The four night trifecta culminated in the realization that Panama will be in my rear view mirror in three days. Talk about creaper…Dang!

After the Windmill Hostel I headed to Panama City and checked into the Panama House B&B - the rendezvous point for six or so motorcyclists who were taking the Stahlratte (Steel Rat) to Colombia. Among the steel horse posse representing at the B&B were the freshly married Regis & Emma aka: Wolf & Zebra (French & South African Californians) rocking a couple DR650’s, Marcus & Karin (Team Swiss) sporting Yamaha Tenere 660’s, Marcos (California – Not Mexico!) on a KLR 650 and they call me Peter (from London – we met at the Backpackers Hostel in San Cristobal de Las Casas, Chiapas, MX) who purrs along on a BMW F800GS. It’s nice to get inspired by cool kids on bikes.

With only one full day in the city I decided to check out the manmade wonder of the Panama Canal and the old part of town. The Canal and Old Town were good but I didn’t start speaking in tongues from any sort of spiritual experience from visiting the two. Come morning, the international moto posse rolled out of town and began the 2.5hr ride east & north to the village of Carti, a sailing ship named the Stahlratte and our departure point from Central America.

Rain, traffic jams, toll booths that don’t accept cash or credit and one bobsled style motorcycle push start aside, it was a pretty normal day of riding in CA and we all arrived in one piece. At the dock we met the rest of the ship’s passengers, loaded up the bikes (using an effective, ship mounted pulley system that caused a few bike owners to twitch), loaded our gear onto the ship and then took small boats to one of the Kuni’s 365 islands. On the island we stayed in thatched huts, drank Cuban rum & beer, ate local fare and enjoyed a traditional dance that dates back to pre-Columbus times.

In the morning, we boarded the Stahlratte and set sails for Cartagena, Colombia.

**********************************************************************************

Having arrived at the travel journal’s destination, let’s take a line to reflect…

I’ve been gone from home in Colorado for 6 months, driven over 10,000 miles, rode 3 different ferries, changed my oil & filter 5 times, switched the carb jet 3 times, replaced the rear tire & tube, re-sealed the upper-end, snapped/replaced the clutch cable, cleaned the air filter 3 times, replaced the front & rear brake pads, reshaped a bent luggage rack and fixed an oil leak at one of the radiator hose connections – not too bad for a 2003 DR650.

The original intent of this travel journal was to cover my trip from Colorado to Panama on a DR650. That said I have decided to take the Sthalratte from Panama to Colombia and extend my travels into South America. With mission accomplished & for better or for worse, the journal will end here in Panama.

I hope that something entertaining or informational was gleamed. Cheers, Salud & Adios!

Photos: Entry 23: Panama

sneaver — Tue, 17 Jun 2014 01:03:00 GMT

Photos: Entry 22: Ometepe Island – San Juan del Sur – Costa Rica: Playa Montezuma – Fortuna – Jaco

sneaver — Mon, 2 Jun 2014 01:19:00 GMT

Entry 22: Ometepe Island – San Juan del Sur – Costa Rica: Playa Montezuma – Fortuna – Jaco

sneaver — Mon, 2 Jun 2014 01:09:00 GMT

The dirt roads from Playa Popoyo to Rivas headed west and then north and dissected small villages where I encountered roadside children doing their best Usain Bolt impression, large pigs doing the road sniff waddle and freshly awakened dogs contemplating the perfect ambush tactic. Apparently, motorcycles inspire.

After shelling out $20 and waiting in San Jorge’s heat for an hour, I boarded the ferry that connects Ometepe Island with the Nicaraguan mainland. An hour later & upon landing, I took a hot lap around the town of Moyogalpa, spied Hospedaje Central and took up digs. My Spidy-sense failed me something fierce on the crib selection because the HC ended up having bed-bugs and, as I later discovered, a possible connection to the ecoovie cult.

Look it up – Manson scary!

http://retirenicaragua.wordpress.com/2012/05/10/the-anatomy-of-the-cult-ecoovie/

Itchy, bat-shit crazy hostels aside, Ometepe is a relaxing and beautiful place. The twin volcanos of Concepcion and Maderas dominate the landscape for miles and are, literally, the Island of Ometepe. Concepcion is around 5,280’, is still blast active and has the textbook conical shape; Madera is shorter, has a lake in its crater and has mucho vegetation – jungle style. '

Since leaving my job as a wildland firefighter (job synopsis: …carry heavy shit up & down mountains…), I have tried to steer clear of steep, vertical ascensions & descents using my legs but, in spite of this, I agreed to join my buddy Timo (German artist/coolio/left the Fatherland 2yrs back/we met in Honduras) on a trip up Conception. All that I’ll say about summiting the highest lake-born volcano in CA is that my knees hurt just thinking about the 3.5hr trip down. I figure that the descent cost me five ski days in Colorado.

San Juan del Sur also has cults – drinking cults, and they are everywhere! Sunday Funday! = Dear God! + MTV debauchery. And that’s all I’ve got to say about that.

Also happening in SJdS – Surfing. Going off a tip from my friend Dave, a fellow North Carolinian, I checked into the Yajure Surf Hostel. The next day I jumped in the back of Chelly’s (ex-surf competitor & hostel owner) pickup with 6 other hostel-lites & caught bumpy road air in route to Playa Madera and my first surf experience. After a ten minute pointer session from Chelly, I was able to stand up & straight line shred some nar froth and the occasional 3 footer. Like any sport, one must be at a certain caliber/level in order to fully appreciate what the real deal cats are doing and I, I am nowhere near that understanding but, I can tell you that surfing is fun!

From San Juan del Sur I rolled down to Costa Rica & the Penas Blancas border crossing which, as it turns out, was the longest/suckiest crossing yet. The fun fest in Nicaragua lasted 33 days - three days longer than the allotted 30 days stamped in my passport and the oversight cost me more money in fines than what I paid to enter the country with my bike…balls!

Long story short on the Nic/CR border: 3hrs to leave Nic. + 2hrs to enter Costa Rica = 5hrs of sweaty hell.

Green is the word in Costa Rica. Man! The electric green vegetation is so radiant - it’s semi-crazy! Also green crazy in CR is the cost of things. Apologies to all the lovers and nationals but, CR and its inflated $$$ can go to hell! It is more expensive than Steamboat Springs, CO – the beautiful & mountainous land where one can flush toilet paper, drive mostly pothole free highways & if so inclined, legally smoke the pot. With “my mind on the money and my money on the mind” I only stayed for a week and skipped stuff that I wanted to do – like Vincent in Pulp Fiction, I was (figuratively) inclined to “shoot that bitch on principle.” One thing that I didn’t skip out on was the Nicoya Peninsula and Playa Montezuma. Good call – waterfalls, beautiful beaches and laid back peeps. A $7 ferry ride and scenic byways led to the beach and short hikes led to goodness. Being the rainy season, the unpaved roads offered a challenge and the pools beneath the falls were turd brown but the pros outweighed the cons and if I had more dough, I would have stayed longer. After three days I retraced the roads leading back to the ferry and once upon the mainland I went north, skirted up and around Lake Arenal, then around Volcano Arenal and on to the town of Fortuna. All in all, it was a sweet ride and the views were nice but my llevos were floating in H2O by the time I arrived and all outdoor adventures involving zip lines and bungee jumping were cancelled (by me) due to the two days of solid rain…balls!

Signs from God taken, I rolled out of town and on to Jaco – the land of 20’ crocs, surfing and a less expensive existence. I did little in Jaco. I visited the beach, saw reptiles, drank rum and met some cool peeps; two of which were heading down to the World Cup in a Dodge van full of soccer balls to dish out to children along the way – badass! Also badass is the fact that they did in 10 days what took me 5 1/2 months. Crazy!

Not much happened in CR after Jaco. I rolled towards the border, overnighted in Ciudad Neily, and left the land of dichotomy green.

Photos: Entry 21: Laguna Apoyo – Granada – Playa Popoyo

sneaver — Wed, 14 May 2014 03:32:00 GMT

Entry 21: Laguna Apoyo – Granada – Playa Popoyo

sneaver — Wed, 14 May 2014 03:06:00 GMT

A quick 20 minute ride north from Granada and nestled in a volcanic crater, one will find Laguna de Apoyo. There is a very chill vibe around the lake which is shared by its breezily pleasant weather and because the waters here are the cleanest of Nicaragua’s lakes, one would be wise to make a visit. Like all beautiful locations that are situated around volcanos, there is a hint of danger. At Laguna de Apoyo that danger comes in the form of a Nelly-esque monster legend that keeps many of her locals on the shore and entails a giant sea serpent that, once upon a time, rose to the surface and parted the lake. I never saw ol’ Nica-Nelly but I did enjoy several refreshing swims wherein the water temperature ranged from Baby Bear’s porridge (i.e.: just right) to Baby Bear + 3 degrees and depended upon sub-surface heat vent proximity or perhaps Serpent farts.

Granada, which was once sacked by rum loving Capitan Morgan, is much like many of the other picturesque colonial cities throughout Mexico and Central America but it is located on the shores of Lake Nicaragua - the largest lake in Central America. I kicked it for a few days at the Oasis Hostel (real nice) and walked around town (without a camera), ate at local holes in the wall and socialized. Yep, been there & done that…

With another colonial town under the belt, I made plans to rendezvous at Playa Popoyo with my buddy Stefan from Germany. The rhythm of companionship is a tenuous thing while traveling – sometimes people are there and gone in a day & other times they linger longer and by default, you get to know someone. Stefan falls in the latter category.

Although well-known within the realm of international surfers, Playa Popoyo has escaped the corporate development seen in places like Puerto Escondido, MX and has also escaped paved roads and directional signs found along their shoulders. Speaking of rhythm and in typical fashion, I did about three laps on various gravel roads & dirt single lanes, dodged four legged locals (pigs & cattle were the most common), got three different sets of directions from two different bystanders and eventually arrived at a little slice of Heaven on the Pacific. Stefan, who was traveling by bus, was already there.

After three nights (4 days) enjoying the beach at Playa Popoyo, I have concluded five things

The sunsets here are amazing.
It’s time to try surfing (where I won’t die in the process).
International surfers are generally good people.
Experiences are best shared with a friend.
Nicaragua is all right by me.

Next destination: Island of Ometepe on Lake Nicaragua.

Entry 20: Lake Yojoa, Honduras – Leon, Nicaragua

sneaver — Fri, 9 May 2014 06:42:00 GMT

With the extra-large goblet of Jesus week flowing over and covering most all of Antigua, I split town with a feeling of having been in a relationship past its expiration date. Antigua is a beautiful place but, being a chico del campo, I was peopled out & tired of seeing the Son paraded around town. Gracias y Adios!

With a half-assed plan of heading towards the border of Honduras near Copan, I traveled west towards Guatemala City and became immediately turned around in the hustle and bustle of mucho trafico and the poorly signed streets of the City; I pulled off to the side of the road to do some figuring. I was like a puppy at an ill-fated four lane highway crossing until a local cat on a chromed out Harley read my body language and pulled over to lend some navigational guidance. After explaining my intended destination he (like the moto cop in Mexicali, MX) gave the “follow me” signal and we rolled through the heart of G – Town. After fifteen minutes of lefts and rights and dodging drivers hell-bent on something, we emerged like Jesus from the cave on Sunday and into the proverbial light on the other side of the City. With a handshake and a friendly adios wave from Harley man – I was back on track and rolling towards my stopover point for the night – Chiquimula.

Chiquimula is only 45 minutes from the Honduran border and apart from rapping with a local who had lived in US for a spell and seeing a nightwalker that looked like Halle Berry in a party suit (just looky, no touchy), my stay was uneventful.

The border crossing from Guatemala to Honduras was not quite as bad as I had prepared myself for but it did take about 2.5 hours. Those traveling by moto should be prepared for some evasive maneuvers as they approach/leave the border or suffer the fate of a taco’d rim from one of many jumbo sized potholes that tend to congregate around the frontier zone. That said, once one reaches CA4 near La Entrada the road turns silky. Having arrived at the border fairly early, I was able to travel for an additional four hours and find digs well before night fall & south of San Pedro Sula in the town of Villanueva. I had planned on throttling through Honduras in two days but I had a change of heart and decided to check out Lake Yojoa. The D&D brewery, restaurant and hostel was a wise choice in lodging on Lake Yojoa. I didn’t realized it before arrival but I’d been needing a solid chill out session from travel in a tranquil, natural environment with good peeps and with no agenda. Yep, I stayed four nights.

Rested and ready for something, I decided to make a push for the border town of Danli. About 30 minutes from Danli my clutch cable broke as I pulled into a gas station – Balls! I had feared this since reading of the same happening to another traveler on their CA journey and had searched for a spare in several places since leaving the Pacific coast of Mexico. With a little disassembly and cable rerouting, I was able to rig up a vice-clamp, clutch engagement apparatus that worked but wasn’t pretty and offered little confidence for lasting more than a day or two of use. As luck would have it, the third building that I saw in Danli was the Supercross motorcycle shop and they had replacement cables in stock – I bought two.

The next day I spent the better part of three hours going through the gringo shakedown at the Las Manos border crossing in Nicaragua. A couple hours after the border and while exploring a rocky sidetrack near Somoto Canyon, I viewed blue sky surrounding my front wheel which had responded to a large rock encounter by taking up the posture of a horse in double front hoof attack mode. End result of the rocky road horse shuffle was a bent right pannier rack. With the newly customized pannier slant, I righted the bike and heading back to pavement and easier terrain. Once back on the pavement I headed an hour south to Esteli.

Esteli seemed pretty cool until I found myself on the downwind side of some anti-gringo shit talking by three different locals, at three different locations, at three different times and all during the daylight hours. No big deal but I decided not to stray too far from the hotel at night. Sometimes you feel a place and sometimes you don’t. Adios shit-talkers!

Leon was a different story all together – no smack talking, cheap digs at the Sonati Hostel and new friends. The sole detractor came in the form of the 90 degree temperatures that increased thirst, sweat, lethargy and swimming hole daydreams. Despite the heat, I ended up staying in Leon for a full week. Highlights: Cerro Negro Volcano boarding, salsa dancing, beach swimming, revolutionary war museum touring with a guide that was in the war, pannier rack fixing, friend making and beer drinking.

Next stop – Laguna Apoyo…

Photos: Entry 20: Lake Yojoa, Honduras – Leon, Nicaragua

sneaver — Mon, 5 May 2014 07:41:00 GMT

Photos: Entry 19: Lake Atitlan - Antigua

sneaver — Fri, 18 Apr 2014 07:37:00 GMT

Entry 19: Lake Atitlan – Antigua

sneaver — Fri, 18 Apr 2014 07:30:00 GMT

“I never met a fly without a buzz” was etched into my memory while attending high school in Virginia and from what I saw in San Pedro la Laguna, it may also be the unspoken mantra for many of her hostel inhabitants. Case in point-- Mr. Mullets Hostel offers free shots of tequila for breakfast and continues to pour until the wee hours.

Party scene aside, Lake Atitlan is a natural beauty and has more moxie in and of herself to offset the fly whisperers. For me, the Lake was a good place to chill out, rest up and do nothing. My only semi-adventure consisted of teaming up with the French Connection (Mateo & Pamela) for a lap around the lake on our motos.

On ride day, the sky threatened a rain which never came but the clouds did occasionally drift, drape and envelope the roadway. As we rounded Volcano Atitlan, a frontal-esque wall of fog surged down steep slopes and blanketed our path – it was purdy. Shortly after the misty mountain tranquility, and keeping with the yen and yang of Latin America, we came across a pissed off chicken bus that was tearing ass up a nasty route that would have been marked 4WD only in the States. The ruckus caused Pamela to turn around in the saddle in disbelief as I, sharing her sentiment, tightened my grip and focused on keeping my squirrely tires from fleeing their terrestrial roots and joining the ranks of the flying. In the end, the squirrels stayed grounded, the bash-plate did its job and the top of the hill was reached. Although we paused after arriving back on pavement to contemplate and laugh, we didn’t stick around long enough for the oversized yard bird with a nasty disposition to catch up. Winning!

After the ride we parked the bikes in San Pedro and birddogged a friend of M&P whom they had met somewhere else along the way. Said friend – James, is a former BMX X-Gamer who’s riding his bicycle down to South America and raising money for Cancer research.

http://pedalingforpennies.info/

As it turns out, James also shares our love of having a good time and to cut to the chase – someone bought a bottle of Red Label and Pamela & Mateo didn’t leave San Pedro that night. Two nights later James and I found ourselves on the other side of the Lake at the French Connection’s crib which is just outside of Panajachel. We were treated to a home cooked meal, good views and great company. Friends.

ANTIGUA:

Back when I was in college and deciding on where to study Spanish, Antigua made the final cut but came in second to Seville, Spain. Antigua’s people are lovely and predominately Mayan, the streets and buildings are as colonial as they come and, like Lake Atitlan, it’s surrounded by volcanos.

I arrived on the 9^th of April and shortly after, so did Semana Santa or Holy Week.

I have created a simple formula en lieu describing my time in Antigua during Semana Santa:

Latin America + Catholicism + Semana Santa = Game on, Jesus!

A photo = 1K words so, for brevities’ sake, please refer to photo Entry 19: Lake Atitlan – Antigua.

Jesus-Polooza aside, Antigua was also a good place to get some work done on the bike. The French Connection told me about a cool little bike shop named MotoMundo. Taz is the owner and mechanic of MotoMundo and after walking into his shop mid-day and rapping with him for ten minutes, he agreed to take a look at my bike. In less than 2 hours Taz resealed the top-end of my engine, changed my oil (new filter in stock!), cleaned and treated my air filter and lubed the chain. And just for the record – that was the first time that anyone other than myself has touched the engine on my bike – just saying...

http://motomundoantigua.wordpress.com/

Cheers & Thanks, Taz!

Today is Good Friday and in the morning I will be heading towards the Honduran border near Copan.

Hasta later!

Entry 18: Lanquin – Lake Atitlan

sneaver — Wed, 2 Apr 2014 10:42:00 GMT

I split Flores, stopped for the night in Chisec and then traveled along potholed roads that bisected the scenic Guatemalan countryside. The beautifully steep slopes were only outdone by the native Mayans who sowed the high landscape with corn and the like – all by hand and seemingly with a smile. I wasn’t quite sure where to stay nor what to expect at the “must see” destination of Lanquin but as I closed within 10K, departed the pavement and descended graveled switchbacks leading to town, I was starting to get pretty excited. With experiences now in the back pocket I can answer “must see?” with a Hellz Yeah!

The Zephyr Lodge, although a little pricey by Guatemalan standards, is an amazing place with cool staff, good food, fun travelers and convenient tour arrangements that made my visit to the area the most fun that I’ve had in Guatemala and in the top three since leaving the US. It’s hard to beat wading and swimming and scrambling thru a cave holding a lit candle with a group of fun loving international cats or watching said international cats fling themselves off rope swings, bridges and high trees into sometimes murky and sometimes crystal clear water or joining an inter-tube beer drinking expedition down a jungle river. Laughter and love is abound in Languin—check it out!

Leaving Lanquin with eyes set on Lake Atitlan, I followed a route suggested by Tom (one of two owners of Zephyr Lodge) that included 50K of vista packed, payment free dual-sport moto pleasure. Even though I did experience a “Guatemala Drift” spinout going about 20mph and had my ass in the saddle for 6hrs, the fun factor of the ride prevailed. Cheers, Tomas!

Arriving in Santa Cruz del Quiche with an hour of daylight to spare, I found economical digs and inexpensive food slingers in the nearby market that afforded full-belly sleep and enough WIFI to do some route planning (my map for Guatemala sucks and I don’t have a GPS) to the volcano rimmed Lake Atitlan. The Lake was only an hour and a half away and in spite of the cloud cover which fogged the high sections of the turdy road leading to Atitlan, I was able to able to catch a vista of the Lake—majestic jewel if I ever saw one. Once again I’m in agreement with the guide book’s “must see” moniker. Damn, she’s purdy!

Yesterday, I arrived in San Pedro la Laguna and checked into Mr. Mullet Hostel for $7 with the bonus option of being able to get a mullet haircut and win a free night – I’ll get back to you on that one. I also touched base with the French Connection and made loose plans to meet up tomorrow or the next day. Mateo and Pamela (said French Connection) have rented a small cottage on the other side of the Lake for a whole month!

Life is good, mis amigos!

Photos: Entry 18: Lanquin

sneaver — Mon, 31 Mar 2014 05:44:00 GMT

Entry 17: Flores, Guatemala – Tikal ruins

sneaver — Thu, 27 Mar 2014 10:38:00 GMT

I’ll be honest with you – I didn’t want to leave Mexico and for a brief spell I seriously contemplated turning north. With Mexico love and border crossing trepidations damned, I said adios Mexico, hello Belize, adios Belize and hello Guatemala. All of the exits and entries were like butter but being a little leery of the ease at which visas & such were attained, I figured that the Latin version of Roscoe P. Coltrane (Dukes of Hazard) was going to jump out of the bushes and shake me down for some silver.

Going off of a hot tip from Ken & Carol (Yoda class adventure riders), I took up digs in Flores - my jumping off point for the ruins of Tikal. The town of Flores was built on a small island in Lake Petén which is now accessed by a manmade land bridge. The rough cobblestone streets follow the island’s anthill shape and are framed by faded pastel buildings. On one of said streets I found the Los Amigos Hostel and following the rhythm of things I ended up staying for five days.

After getting acquainted with some hostel folk over a few cold pops and turning in before midnight, I woke up early enough to enjoy breaky and be bouncing down the steep streets of Flores and heading to Tikal by 0800. Good enough for Star Wars, the ruins at Tikal are pretty sweet. However, I may have to take a break from kicking it around Mayan Ruins because they are all starting to feel akin to National Lampoons European Vacation: “Big Ben, Parliament!”

Bonus highlight of Tikal: taking a different route back to Flores by following the dirt road that looped around the other side of the lake…Vroomm, Vroom!

The day after Tikal my friends David and Michelle from Ireland, whom I meet in Valladolid, rolled into Flores. Travel is cool and travel connections may be cooler. That said, I blame at least one of those foot dragging days at Los Amigos on those damn Irish! They made me laugh all night and feel like crying the whole next day. It’s kind of hard to leave a place that houses cool people, has good eats for cheap and two bars – one for day & one for night.

In the a.m. I will be heading south towards Lanquin with a stopover somewhere around Chisec.

Photos: Entry 17: Flores, Guatemala – Tikal ruins

sneaver — Tue, 25 Mar 2014 04:47:00 GMT

Entry 16: Tulum – Chetumal – San Ignacio, Belize

sneaver — Sun, 23 Mar 2014 13:31:00 GMT

After washing off the Gomorrah-esque residue of Playa del Carmen, I searched out the seaside town of Tulum. The former Mayan port and stronghold of Tulum has a chilled out vibe that is personified in its people and adopted by her visitors. I figured on staying for a night or two but, in typical me time, I soaked up a week of Freudian Id. There was no table dancing to be had nor Mexican karaoke to be sang but I did meet some awesome internationals taking up digs (or working) in the same hostel and who were up for seeking the goodness.

I made fast friends with an Italian Lady that was working at the hostel, had her lovely mother in town from Palermo and basically took me under her wing. A couple of Sevillana (Flamenco) moves might have been busted out to recorded music pumping out of a late-night bar and I am certain that we killed off a bottle of tequila (el Jimedor) a night or two later. I was also befriended by a couple of German cats that grew up together, were intent on enjoying all to be enjoyed and accompanied me on a mescal journey. It should be noted the said mescal journey was supposed to have been taken by my bros in Loveland, Colorado but as it turns out, you cannot ship booze to the US from Mexico – Sorry SORO!

Sobriety be damned aside, I also visited the Mayan ruins of Tulum and Coba. It is cool and all that Tulum is on the ocean but for me the ruins at Coba were way more enjoyable. Coba is more vast than Tulum, has 6km of trails which one can rent a mountain bike for about $3.50 and by default introduces a new fun factor to archeological spectating. On the same day that I visited the ruins of Tulum and Coba, I also went snorkeling in the Grand Cenote. Despite the fact that there were a few other patrons enjoying the site, swimming around in a large submerged cave with stalactites and fish and turtles was pretty damn cool!

Chetumal – I stayed there for two nights, visited the Mayan Museum and hung out by the pool at my hotel.

San Ignacio, Belize – I just got here, it’s my birthday and I’m crossing into Guatemala tomorrow.

Cheers!

Photos: Entry 16: Tulum - Coba - Chetumal - San Ignacio, Belize

sneaver — Sun, 16 Mar 2014 13:12:00 GMT

Entry 15: Campeche – Merida – Valladolid – Playa del Carmen

sneaver — Thu, 13 Mar 2014 11:39:00 GMT

Campeche’s 16^th century anti-pirate wall apparently worked because the colonial core that it protected is looking pretty damn good these days and affords good walk and gawk turf. That said, I failed to bring a camera while out and about so you’ll just have to trust me. The first week of March is Carnival time and the townsfolk had a little pep in their step which may or may not have come with a zig-zag walking pattern. The nighttime parade that I witnessed followed the seaside malecon, was well attended and its participants ranged from kids in costumes to mariachis on a flatbeds to sculpted Sol beer girls shaking their shakables aboard a party float.

Merida is the cultural hub of the Yucatan peninsula and day trips to ruins and cenotes aren’t too far from the city’s colonial core. One could easily spend a couple of weeks exploring the area and still not see everything. I bedded down at the Nomadas Hostel and I would recommend it to those who like hammocks over swimming pools, salsa dancing, cooking lessons, yoga and listening to live acoustic music. Another bonus of the Hostel was that I was easily found by The French Connection (Mat & Pamela). More and more I am starting to realize that I kind of like sharing experiences rather than just doing something with no one to enjoy it with. Anyway, guided by Mat’s GPS we toured some back-roads south of Merida, swam in the awesome cenote Kankirche, climbed down a of couple sketchy ladders into the Calcehtok caves and took a 30 minute self-guided tour of the ruins at Oxkintok just before closing time – all free of charge.

Valladolid, like Campeche, is a purdy little colonial town that has a bunch of ruins and cenotes that lie within easy striking distance – it’s no wonder that Lonely Planet listed them in the same sentence on their places to see in the Yucatan list. I took up digs with the good folks at Hostal del Fraile which also had a little pool and hammocks but not quite as chick as Nomadas. Apart from strolling around town, checking out the local festivities in the square and eating stuff, my two main excursions were to the ruins at Chichen Itza and Ek Balam. And unlike the similarities between the aforementioned colonial towns, visiting the two ruins was anything but the same.

Chichen Itza’s entire sight was polished, manicured, developed and full of tourists running the gauntlet of trinket slingers camped between sites while the sometimes chilling but most often annoying leopard shriek was being emitted from a carved cat head. PS - one is not allowed to set foot on any ruin.

Ek Balam was only partially excavated and partially polished, it wasn’t busy and was free of leopard shrieks, trinket slingers and if something had been excavated and spruced up then it was game-on for those compelled to scramble around buildings and bag a pyramid (peak-bagging reference).

I won’t go into much more detail about the two sights other than to say that they are both well worth a visit. Chichen Itza has the biggest ball-court in the peninsula and Ek Balam has Mayan Angels.

Playa del Carmen: I met up with the Swedish Grizzly Adams / Kenneth with whom I was out till the wee hours – saw Mat & Pam in said wee hours – saw the beach but didn’t go swimming.

Next stop – the Mayan port city of Tulum.

PS: I found a new rear tire in Merida and slapped on that puppy... the old one wasn't going to make it to Panama.

Photos: Entry 15B: Ek Balam

sneaver — Tue, 11 Mar 2014 12:47:00 GMT

Photos: Entry 15A: Chichen Itza

sneaver — Mon, 10 Mar 2014 12:30:00 GMT