Unbelizeable!

hey all!

Just one more quick note, before we return to the northland in a week.. (aah!!)

After we last wrote, we ventured with a couple of new friends to Caye Caulker, Belize. After a smooth ride over from Belize city on a fairly quick boat, we were greeted at the landing by the town ´helper´, Gilbert. He put our bags in his push cart, and showed us a few of the cheaper accomodation options available. We ended up settling on a house, Casa Giselle, which was a few bucks more than we´d planned on spending, but was really nice, in the middle of town and had a huge kitchen with all the amenities of home.
We located the grocery store and distillery and began 5 days of relaxing. The streets of Caye Caulker are made of white sand and there are no cars- only golf carts. The air is salty and relaxing. We found it was basically impossible to be unhappy there.
We had a wonderful time with our friends Dana (a fellow Canadian) and Sanne (a Jolly German= Dutch ;) ) hanging out, walking around, checking out the clubs, running into and being serenaded by a very drunk Gilbert and swimming at the split- a spot where the island was ripped in two by a hurricane in the mid 80s and now serves as a cement dock for lounging, diving, gawking and sunning.

It was sad to leave, but with only a week and a half left in our trip- we bid our pals adieu and we headed to Tulum, Mexico. We´ve been here about 5 days.. And its been a great wind down from all our recent adventures. Defintely the most beautiful beach I´ve ever seen- the carribean turquoise water, white sand, dramatic plam trees and cheap cerveza.. We´ve been staying at a hostel in town, and have done a couple of snorkeling trips, and a day trip to Playa del Carmen, but spending most of our time at the beach.

Yesterday, after the beach we decided to check out the first night of Tulum´s town exposition.. We went over and it looked like a Mexican version of the Ex. Except smaller, with louder music and with more frightening gangs of hoodlums. We started to watch the Tulum beauty pagent at the grandstand, when I remembered I had somewhere to be.......... in a ringside seat, at my first cockfight!

It involved a lot of weighing in, taunting, catcalling and waiting. But when the action was underway, it was quick and brutal. I was berated by one of the trainers for photographing with a flash, mid-fight. When his cock won, the victory was decisive... beak to jugular. I made sure to beat it before the loser blamed me for blinding his (now dead) bird.

Anyway... it was an experience. I made it over to the Pageant to see the winner crowned and many a large firework be set off directly over us in celebration..

Today, we went to a water park called Xel-Ha. Kind of a neat idea- a natural water park.. with snorkeling- down a river, into cenotes/sinkholes, cliffs to jump off, caves to explore, bikes to ride, trials to hike and unlimited food and drink.. we had a nice time.. But we mostly realized how happy we are thay weve chosen to stay away from large scale resorts.

So, I guess thats it for now- from here we go back to Playa Carmen for a couple days, Isla Mujeres for a night and then two nights in Cancun to wrap ´er up.. Its been such a great journey and we really feel fortunate for our time here, and more importantly, rejuvenated by the whole experience. Thanks for keeping tabs...

Looking forward to seeing everyone soon! If we don´t see you, happy holidays!!

J and K

One more from the road..

Hello!

Since we last spoke.. Kyla finished her next Bridgehead blog. Check that out if you like (brigeheadblog.blogspot.com)..We said goodbye to Estelli and spent a long day traveling to the capital of Honduras, Tegucigalpa. Tegus'- if you're cool. It involved 4 different modes of transportation and took about 6 hours including connections, but we arrived in one piece. Or two, I guess.(random aside- Its really amazing how no matter where you go in Central America, you are guaranteed to be somewhere near a rooster. You can be staying in the country or the middle of town, or in a bigger city- but you can be sure at around 11pm, 2am and 5am, roosters will call out to each other and start their annoying chorus for a least 10 minutes. It's weird, but Ive come to enjoy it. Especially when the roosters sound especially pathetic.)

As soon as we crossed the border into Honduras, the landscape immediately became much more lush and dramatic. Reminicent, I'd say, of some areas of Alberta and maybe a bit how I imagine Montana to be.. lots of hills and valleys. And tall pine trees, which we have not seen thus far. We arrived into Tegus' and found it to be quite the pleasant town.. Of course there are dangerous areas, but the downtown core felt very protected and we spent the day walking around checking out the markets, various jesus-related stores, churches (something we've been enjoying lately) and eating some weird chinese food whilst cringing to high volume regga-ton.. We also spent our first night in a dorm room as the privates were all booked. It was fun to get to know our dorm-mates, especially when the Bermudian fisherman exclaimed he was off to San Jose the next day to hook up with his 2 wives! (dont ask)

NExt we took two buses (via San Pedro Sula) to get to Copan Ruinas. An amazingly cute little town in northern Honduras, with a very prosperous vibe.. about 2 kms from the actual Mayan Copan Ruins. The place we wanted to stay was booked up, so we followed one of the bus station trolls to his family's place. It was ok i thought, really cheap and up a big hill. I could put up with the saloon doors on the showers, the stink from the bano, and I didn't even mind the gash I got on my thigh from the protruding springs in the mattress. But when the owner started playing Traditional Honduran folk songs at 6am- I took issue. I emerged in my underwear, at Kyla's insistance, from our room and asked the man in the cowboy hat, (sporting a gun in his belt), standing atop the balcony overlooking the courtyard (where our room was) to 'Senor, Por favor, alto la Musica!' I probably wasnt making much sense as I was half asleep, because I had to make the hand signals of me covering my ears and turning down the volume knob for him to understand....

Anyway, we got an early start. Had a lovely few days there (after changing hotels), went to a bird sanctuary which was great, as well as the Ruins themselves. They were a little on the expensive side, but we really enjoyed the tour.. Especially learning of the rulers of Copan and their various periods.. Some of our favourites were, '18 Rabbit', 'Tiger Lilly Jaguar' and the best of all- 'Butz Chan"- we laughed about those a little too long.

From Copan, we took a transfer to Antigua, Guatemala- where we currently reside. It was long day, with a stop in Guatemala city, but we had an interesting crew of people who made the ride fun. Antigua is yet another colonial town with cobble stone streets and many churches, except it has a lot more hipness than the last few. We went out for our first splurge meal in a while, to this place called Las Palmas, and ate like royalty for 25.00. We were both hooing and hawing- best food weve had yet.. Since then we've been doing lots of walking around, checking out the markets, visiting some of the awesome ruins and sights in town and relaxing. We went to an 18th Century convent called 'La Cuchinas' yesterday.. so cool. There is a circular courtyard area surrounded by the individual nun's chambers. Below the courtyard, there is this huge circular room with a massive pillar in the centre and dome shaped ceilings. The resonance and echo in the room was so amazing, we hung out there for like half an hour signing and playing echo games. It was FUN.

We've realized that were down to our last month, so we're really trying to take it all in. Tomorrow, we head to Panajachel from where we will launch a week or so visiting different towns around Lake Atitilan.

And now.. I think I've got a computer fast enough to add some pictures, so take a look at a few selections from the last 2 months....





Kyla and I in Monteverde, Zipline tour. I think Kyla looks very impressive in helmets




Kyla's new best friend. This bird actually fell asleep on her shoulder, for a while.


The bullfights in Merida, on Ometepe.


Me, with birds



The tide coming in, San Juan Del Sur.



The Young Sandanistas truck rally, in Estelli

nicara-fun

Hey everyone,

Lessee... After our last update, we went out for dinner at an Argentinian steakhouse.. I was in meaty heaven and Kyla enjoyed some steamed veggies, and didnt seemed to mind so much because i was so happy! We've been eating mostly veggie stuff. Not only was I in heaven because of the fat juicy steak, but also because there was a big screen TV playing a Beegees dvd in surround sound. It gave me night-fevah.

We caught the 9am bus the next morning from Liberia to the border, which was interesting, because we were the last 2 people they let on, and we were packed in to the point that we were basically hovering over the driver. Hanging on to whatever we could. It was an interesting hour long ride, memorable for sure. At one point, pretty close to the Nicaraguan border, the bus braked really hard and swerved left- Kyla and I looked out to see this frightening old witch-like woman on the road.. babbling loudly and reaching for the bus, wearing strange robes. It scared us a little bit, and the bus driver as well. 'aaiieee, abuela loca*...' I thought to myself. *crazy granny.

Got to the border, and went through a half a dozen short lines getting out stamps, and in stamps, and walking a kilometer or so in between. Nicaragua immediately felt a lot less organized, and a lot more poor. Immediately you get an idea how much more developed Costa Rica is in comparison to its neighbour. Although at first unsettling, the people seemed a lot more helpful, and this has held true thus far, nicaragua has an amazing people.

We shared a taxi with a couple German girls to San Juan del Sur. A beach town around a beautiful bay that seems to constantly be filled with stinky fishing boats. We arrived and spent a few days there hiking around, checking out the beaches, atmosphere and town.. We were amazed by the huge mansions sharing the same hilltops as steel roofed shanty towns. Lots of huge barbwired fences in between, of course. On the second day we started Spanish lessons, which we took for a few days. It was very helpful and we're looking forward to taking more time for Spanish school in Estelli, before heading into Honduras later next week.

From San Juan, we took a chicken bus to Rivas and then onward to San Jorge where we sailed on a tugboat to Isla Ometepe. At the docks on both ends, the boat is immediately engulfed with young Nicaraguan men, Nicas, jumping onto the boat from the dock, hoping to help you with your bags and convince you to come to their hotel, or take a ride in their taxi. Watching them clamour on the docks in an unbeleivable sight. We landed at Moyogalpa.

Ometepe, which basically means two Islands connected, truly is, each with its own massive volcano. We took the advice of a random dude we met and took another bus to Charco Verde, on the southern coast of Isla Concepcion, which is bascially not a town but an eco-resort. Got a great room and took a nice little hike to check out the volcano and the lagoon. Came back and noticed a huge increase in the number of mosquitos. We got dressed and came out for dinner (in the open air restaurant) and the air was thick with mosquitos.. it was hilarious, because they werent bitey, but they were everywhere. The staff kept them hovering around the lights and we ate in the dark, with another couple. It was fun.

After a couple nights, we went on to Merida. The bus wasnt going all the way there that day, so we decided to take it to Santa Cruz and hike in.. 6km was a tough hike with our bags, but once we got there, we found an awesome little family run place with cabinas for 8.00 a night. The father Jacinto runs the show at Monkey's Island Hotel, but all his kids and wife are helping out too.. really amazing atmosphere- as they are built on the former General Somoza's hacienda stables. *the Hacienda itself is an American run hostel next door for twice as much dough. Relaxed the rest of the day, went down and peered over to the actual monkey island- where there lives a family of biting monkeys. We considered swimming over to it, but turned back halfway. Later, we found out that it was Merida's anniversary, and therefore a 2 day party weekend. The next day we went to the rodeo to watch the bullfights. We went down with a couple from Scotland, drank some Nicaraguan Ron (which is unbelievable) and watched some young macho men nearly get impaled. It was pretty awesome actually, especially the town nutbar in the middle of the ring trying to direct traffic... We returned the next day, as it was the 'real bullriders' who challenged the bigger bulls on Sunday.. the whole town was there dressed up with shiny shoes. Everything seemed a lot more serious, so we didnt stay for the whole thing.. but what we saw was intense.

We traveled the next day by bus from Merida to Moyogalpa... Took the ferry back to San Jorge, and shared a taxi with our Scottish friends to Granada, from where we write you now. Its an amazing colonial town, with dozens of crazy old cathedrals, and lots of character and history. we spent 5 hours walking around today in the 35 degree heat, and Ive got a serious red glow happening.. Apparently Daniel Ortega of the Sandanistas- who are predicted to win the election- was here Sunday speaking at the Parque Centrale- that wouldve been a neat thing to see. We're sticking around here until Friday... Then to the birth place of Ruben Dario- Leon.

Thanks for checking in. A big Thanks to those who leave the comments!! Its nice to know people are checkin in.

Jay and Kyla

ps- Kyla was going to write this one, as we try to take turns, but we traded.. she is busy in a hammock reading '1984'. She'll do the next one.

pps- Pictures seem to work sometimes on blogger, but not others for some reason. I have been trying to upload a few, but its not working.. hopefully soon.

Nicaragua bound..

HOLA!

Well its been a little while, but as promised, we´re checking in! How is everyone doing? I hope happy and well.

Santa Elena was a great place to hang out for a few days. We visited a coffee coop (that provides Bridgehead´s Costa Rican blend = yum), which was fun, delicious and informative day. The next day we went on a zip line tour in the hills of Monteverde with Aventours. Wow, what a fun way to spend a day. We both took a few runs to fully get the hang of it, but by the end we were zipping around like monkeys. Well, I looked like more along the lines of a sloth. About 25 lines, a few hikes and rappeling area- which I sucked at. They also had this amazing Tarzan swing, that was a real blast of adrenaline. Jumping off a platform 60 ft high, and swinging out over a huge valley. I made a sound that I´m not sure I could reproduce if I tried.

We hung around another day, then took two buses and a ferry to Montezuma. A neat little paradise town on the southern tip of the Nicoya Peninsula. Very quiet this time of year, which was nice for us but choc full of interesting locals and expats. The most amazing ´town drunk´ I think I´ve ever encountered.

We got some sun, and did a few great hikes. One day we went up to the waterfalls, a couple kilometres outside of town.. which was really nice. It was kind of a ciffside hike at points, and I am far from agile.. but we met a local kid who showed us the ´easy´ path. He then proceeded to climb about 50 feet up the wet rocks of the falls and jumped in. We did not, but we applauded when he emerged from the water alive.. He wanted me to climb up the cliff with him to the second set of falls that had a ´beautiful view´, but I was more than happy to decline and watch him risk his little life once again. (I knew he could do it)..

From Montezuma we decided we were heading to Samara. A beach town, some friends in Ottawa had reccommended, and also the home of Brian Pearson, the dude I met on the plane from Toronto to San Jose.. We found out it took 14 hours travel to get there, including 5 buses and 2 ferries.. So we decided to spend a little extra and take the transfer, which takes some scary roads between Paquera and Playa Naranjo which buses could never handle- Kyla did ok, after injesting some gravol. The trip only took 4 hours this way, which we figured was sorth a little extra dough.

We met a woman from BC on the ride and ended up finding Brian´s hostel together after eating some casados and giving him a call.. It wasnt the easiest place to find because it doesnt have a sign- he´s thinking of calling it ´hotel motalpo´- but apparently the local kids have named it ´hotel taliban´ becuase he used to have a big beard. I´m glad we all thought that was funny.

It was such a great place to stay for a week. Enjoyed the nicest beach, weather, vibes and waves we´ve encountered yet- and got to know some really great people from around the world. Best of all though, was the host Brian- who is all kinds of awesome- born in PEI, worked most of his life as a fisherman in The Queen Charlotte Islands of BC, he is very well traveled, really interesting and always on the go, doing something to his place, cooking, or heling someone figure something out. Getting to know this guy was a huge bonus.. although he is probably the same age as my father, I really feel like he could be my age (or younger) at heart. He and his hilarious Tica girlfriend Sandra, cooked up some unbelivable food, curries, shrimp dishes, ... ooooh gaad. so good. Taught us some great games, and marguerita recipes. He even sent us off to the bus stop today with a care package of cookies, pasta and two bottles of ice cold water. I hope I get to cross paths with him again some time.

From there, this morning, we took the bus to Nicoya and then another to Liberia. It might be best described as the Cornwall of Costa Rica. Not so bad, but meh.. But it is a neccesary launching point to our next portion of adventure- Nicaragua. We head to the border tomorrow morning... Should be interesting. It seems that there is a national election on the 5th of November, so we might try and get to the other side before then. Wow, time is flying. Luckily, we have met a lot of folks who have traveled through Nicaragua and have given us lots of tips- I think its going to be a real highlight of this trip.

The Caribbean Coast!

Hey all,

We're 5 nights in to a relaxing, sun-filled week on the Southern Coast of Costa Rica. We arrived on Friday after a really twisty bus ride through the mountains surrounding San Jose. Lots of scenery reminiscent of Jurassic Park. We took the bus almost all the way to the Panama border and got off at an awesome little town called Puerto Veijo.. that is part Rasta, part surfer vibe but all slacker.. Lots of great cheap restaurants, bars and neat little stores line the streets with beautiful beaches about 10 feet away.. Upon our arrival, we used the advice of our guidebook and checked into the Hotel Puerto Veijo. This ended up being a litte bit like a college dorm, without the books or smart people. nice folks and all, of course.

We also realized, after paying for it, that our room (10 bucks each, a night) was right beside some kind of water pumping device. I woke up thinking we were being attacked by mer-men more than once..Also the communal showers and sinks were on the other side of the room- which got annoying. After getting to know town, we moved (thankfully) to Rico Cafe cabinas. Awesome place. The owner Roger is this laid back british James Bond type, who runs the cafe (with two lovely birds)for breakfast and lunch from 6-1pm, then surfs. He's given us tips on a few wicked beaches we've biked to in the last few days. Free laundry, bikes and snorkel gear included in the room rate, as well as a private shower! The other mainstay at the cafe/cabinas is Cliff. He is an x-insurance salesman from Arizona and now Puerto Veijo's official conspiracy consultant. He is up on everything and listens to his shortwave radio 5 hours a day to learn more. From The Bilderberg Group, to Chem trails, to Bohemian Grove, to the Cancer conspiracy- he is very passionate. to say the least. He shows films nightly at the Cafe and makes Collodial Silver every couple of days- it is apparently the cure for everything.

Yesterday, we took the bus to Cahuita for a 7km hike through the national park. We met a super nice New Zealander and shared the afternoon hike and a drink afterwards. We saw some howler monkeys and some aggressive white faced monkeys, as well as a huge frightening spider. I quivered, but Kyla held me tight. We had dinner with him- and we're hoping to catch up in Monteverde as well.

Have met a few very interesting locals (foreigners who live here) around town and its been surpirisingly easy. The German owner of one place basically joined us for dinner one night and revealed that she had dated a guy who did the voice for the Transformers cartoon.. I was excited to find out he did the voice for everyone's favourite mischevious Autobot, 'Bumblebee'. They dated for 8 months, but he continually quoted the show, in character, and would even jump on open mics and verbally preform the transformer noises. She hadnt seen the show, so she got sick of it.

We're happy and safe, getting to bed relatively early and up by 8!! everyday! We are eating fruit for breakfast, and I think it might be good for us, or something..Exercising everyday and working on our Spanish. (kinda difficult as everyone here speaks english). Kyla is already looking like a mediterranean goddess, and I, her pink, almost purple guardian.

One more day here, and we'll be heading back to San Jose on Thursday. we're going to stay in another part of town and check out this Jazz Club we've heard about. Then we'll be leaving early on Friday to La Fortuna for a couple nights, to check out the Aernal Volcano, as well as the corresponding hotsprings.

The climate is supposedly completely different, so it will be interesting to see if all this crap we've packed will come in handy.

Thanks for reading! Love'n'stuff!!

Jay (and Kyla)

ps- the infamous "Leatherman" came in very handy today at the beach as we chopped up and devoured a fresh pineapple..

One week and counting...

Hello,

Kyla and I have established this blog to keep you abreast of our adventures in a strange land. We might not be updating very often, but we will try to have something on here once a week.

We depart in 7 days for our adventure through Central America. We're begining in San Jose, Costa Rica on the 20th of September and flying home from Cancun on the 15th of December..

We'll be starting out on the Caribe coast, then checking out the highlands, then the pacific of CR. Then onward to Nicaragua for a couple weeks.

We have managed to get our hands on a digital camera, so there will be images, but we will still try and use colorful descriptives.

Jay