Archive for July, 2008
Tuesday, July 29th, 2008
Belize -> Guatemala border crossing
Crossing the Belize -> Guatemala border with a motorcycle
EASY!! I’m waiting for these horrible Central American borders that I read about. Maybe I keep getting lucky, but this one was even easier than the Mexico -> Belize border. The whole experience only took about 30 minutes. None of it was waiting in lines. Most of it was me just chatting with a money changer. BTW, if you use a money changer, use one on the Guatemala side. They gave a significantly better rate than the changers on the Belize side. You just have to do your negotiating in spanish. I uninformedly (is that a word?) changed $25USD (50 belize) on the Belize side. They offered me 6 quetzales per USD, I got them up to 6.5. On the Guatemala side, you can get 7.10 / USD.
Anyway. Here’s the step by step.
What you need:
* Passport with Belize entry stamp for you and your motorcycle
* Customs declaration page for your motorcycle
* Your “Original” title (see note)
* 1 copy of your title
* 1 copy of your drivers license
* 1 copy of your passport
1. Park bike under the trees under the P sign right next to the final checkpoint
2. Enter the Departure Hall and present passport and $37 belize to immigration. The $37 is your exit fee.
3. After paying the bill, get your exit stamp at the next counter
4. Walk all the way back out of the door you entered and enter the “Entry Hall”. There will be lots of taxis and tourist promoters. They’ll ignore you because you’re going the opposite way that everyone else is
5. Stop at the customs desk ignoring the desk at the end of the hall with the big line. That is for people coming from Guatemala. You only need to visit customs.
6. Give customs your passport and your customs declration page for your motorcycle
7. They will cancel it with a stamp and take the paper from you
8. Exit the hall from the door you entered. Now all the tourist guys will bother you even though they just saw you walk in from the Belize side 4 minutes ago.
9. Remount the bike and show checkpoint gaurd your stamped passport
10. Drive to Guatemala side
Guatemala Side:
1. Bypass the fumigation station by driving on the pedestrian section
2. Park on the sidewalk right next to the migration building on the left.
3. Stand in line at the Migration Entry side. There are two lines. One is for exiting, the other is for entering. In my case, the Exit line looked like it would take about an hour. The Entry line only took 1 minute.
4. Stamp into Guatemala. This costs $7 quetzales. I paid $3 belize
5. Hop the rope barrier to your left and talk to customs
6. Show them your “Original” title, and present them the 1 copy each of your DL, title, and passport
7. The officer will enter your info into the computer and hand you a sticker for your windshield
8. Cross the bridge and BOOM, you’re in Guatemala
NOTE: I thought I was going to have a close call. I never present my original ANYTHING except my passport. Everything else I present, even as originals, is a copy. I have a fantastic photocopy of my title that I use. I was afraid I’d get questioned about it because the guy next to me was importing his VW Jetta from Texas. So there were two Texas titles within 5 feet of eachother. Mine looked a littttle fake. I guess he never actually asked me for my original. He just assumed that the little doublesided printed piece of paper was my original title.
The immigration/customs building:
Skip this fumigation:
Across the bridge, you’re instantly in a new place:
A preview for my next post. This is the main highway to Belize. Lots of fun!!
Comments Off - Posted in Uncategorized by daveg
Tuesday, July 29th, 2008
You better Belize it!
Yeah, that is the pun that too much of the product literature uses here. I think I heard my tour guide for the ATM say “UnBELIZEable” twice. Despite that, I love Belize!
My initial impression of Corozol was not too great. The hotels I found cost more than I was planning to spend and they were not exceptionally nice. The hotel that I ended up staying called Hotel Maya was not too bad. It had internet access and a great view of the water. No AC, but that is something that I’m getting used to. The main problem I had with that city is that when I tried to find dinner I was unable to find any place that was open. I ended up having Pollo Asado (BBQ chicken) again. That is pretty much the dish that I had daily in Mexico. The good thing about it is that it is usually tastey and cheap. The other problem is that there were stray dogs ALL over the place. Corozol just needs to be cleaned up. It has alot of park space and some nice hotels.
I left Corozol after being there for less than 24 hours. My plan then was to just drive through Belize and get to Guatemala.
Bags of water!!!!!!!!! Coolest thing ever. It is a 12floz bag with ice cold purified water. Perfect for motorcycle travel. Just make a pitstop, buy the water, bite the corner, chug it down in all its coolness, and get back on the road.
If you look closely in this picture you can see two guys sleeping on top of produce. I kept driving closer and closer trying to get a picture and they didn’t even budge. Unfortunately my one handed photog skills are lacking. This is the best I have. A crop of the original high res pic is in order but I keep forgetting to install the GIMP.
East Belize is very coastal– flat, hot, and humid. Reminds me of home. Unlike home, after heading about 50 miles west, you start to enter hilly jungle.
I was making pretty good time so I thought it was a good time to get rid of the spare rear tire I was trucking around and replace my aging tire. I still had another few hundred miles left, but I really wanted to lighten my load for Guatemala. While I *COULD* do the tire change myself on the side of the road, I figured I’d help the local economy and pay $10USD. These guys were pretty good. The guy holding the kid really knew his stuff and was good about not trying to hurry the job.
The problem then turned out to be that it took longer than I expected and the sun started going down. My goal on the trip is to start looking for a hotel at 4 or 5pm. It was already 6:00pm and I just arrived at San Ignacio, the town that I planned to stay the night before going to the border.
My first stop was the “Trek Stop”, a place that is highly reviewed as a cheap but good place to stay for those without alot of money. The problem is that it is quite a few miles outside of town and worse yet, was full. For biker’s reference, it didn’t look like it had good parking for motorcycles. I didn’t ask if you could pull the bikes up the hill to the rooms. The sun is starting to set at this time. I then proceed to drive to another place outside of town that has nice signs but doesn’t look too expensive. I drive off-road for about 20 minutes on a pretty rough road and get to the hotel. Closed. Great. The sun is just peeking over the hills and I have no place to stay. I’m about 20 minutes to the “Western Highway” then another 20 minutes to town. Not where I want to be.
Let me take a moment and tell you why I don’t drive at night. No, it isn’t banditos (well, in Belize they speak english, so I guess it isn’t the bandits). In the US, while annoying, we have all these rules about getting cars and trucks inspected. You have a tail light out, you get pulled over. You’re missing a headlight, you get pulled over. You have no lights at all, you’re going to jail. In Belize, you just drive EXTRA careful. Or so I’m told. You crest a hill and all of a sudden there is a family of four walking in the street. There are no blinking LED tail lights for bike. You’ll be lucky if you see a SINGLE reflector on a bicycle. It isn’t like in the states, lots of people use bicycles as transportation. Who knows what they’ll be carrying. Driving at night is a wild experience in Belize or anywhere south of the US that I’ve visited on my trip so far.
All that being said. I wanted a hotel. Now.
After being upset by already having the feeling of oozing cash, I decide that I will stay at the next hotel that is on the Western Highway heading towards town, regardless of cost. I just needed something as I planned to go to Guatemala the next day.
The first place that I try is right next to the road. Looks nice. Is closed.
The second place I find is Windy Hills. This place is swank. Not Francis Ford Copola swank (apparently he has a resort in town), but by far the nicest place that I’ve looked at during my trip.
I pull up, go to reception, and happily pay $70USD a night for a Cabana (No AC!) but private bath and they have a restaurant on site.
At dinner I meet a guy from Belgium. He had stayed a few nights previously in San Ignacio and told me about a tour he took that day of the “ATM” cave. ATM stands for something, but I can’t get online and look it up. UPDATE: Actun Tunichil Muknal… Just google ATM cave belize. There is only one. Apparently it is unBELIZEable and a once of a lifetime experience. The Belguim guy who told me this during a fantastic conversation over dinner reiterated that if I’m in the area, I have to tour this cave. I love caves, but I didn’t want another US cave “exploring” experience where you go from room to room over a concrete paved floor and the uninformed guide tells you things that you already know. I guess I’ll stay another day in Belize.
Good bike parking too!! It was strange as almost all of the guests I met were from the US. There was a group of teachers from NY state and I also met a family from Houston. Small world, right? The nice things about meeting people from the US at places like this is that they are usually pretty cool. This isn’t your typical tourist destination, so they aren’t your usual Americans. Though we do stick out.
The next day, I gave a ride to the Belguim guy (Can’t remember his name, despite him telling it to me multiple times. I need to write stuff down!!!) from the hotel down to San Ignacio. He gives me the tour from the back of the bike as I stuggle to keep a fully loaded 2 up bike on two wheels. He shows me this great looking hotel in Bullet Tree that I plan on staying that night (pending other prices around) then shows me the tour guide office to find the best ATM tour.
We go separate ways and I visit the aforementioned tour shop (Pacz Tours). I arrange the tour for $75 US and the guys offers to call the Trek stop so I don’t have to drive down there again. Full. So now I ask the tour guy if he knows of other places outside of San Ignacio where I can stay for cheap. Somehow I start talking to Andy, who moved to Belize four months ago and started an offroad motorcycle tour company. He says that he has a guest house (Cabana) and can give me a good price for a night or two stay. He seems like a good guy and I decided to go with it. It’ll be more fun staying at a private guest house any day over another hotel. Especially one who runs a motorcycle tour company!
The guest house looked great, Andy was a reputable person, and I’d be parking next to a couple of other motorcycles. Great find! After chatting a bit and returning to the bikes, I got a reality of what it is like to stay in a town that was carved out of the jungle:
EEP!
Andy told me many things about living in Belize that he learned from locals and the time that he’s lived there: Always watch where you step, never go outside barefoot, shake out EVERYTHING you put close to your body (shoes, shirts, pants, bed sheets, etc), don’t drive at night, respect the locals and they’ll respect you, and all sorts of other Belizian information.
I got to Andy’s at about 2 in the afternoon and didn’t really have many plans so I decided to repack my bike. Not only did I find a _very_ important envelope that I thought I forgot, but it gave me a chance to see what I actually brought and what I’m using. I joined Andy for dinner in Bullet Tree then drinks downtown San Ignacio at Faya Wata. Both were great places and I was introduced to all sorts of characters.
The next day, I got up early and was eventually picked up by Pacz Tours. Western Belize is quite pretty. Above are some orange groves. The oranges here are actually green (even when ripe) and are sold as hand-eaten fruit only to locals but exported internationally as orange juice concentrate.
I’m ready for the cave! You have to swim/forge through an underground river to get to the main cavern. My mind was blown. Just swimming through the cave was easily the best caving experiences. I kept stopping to look at formations and the guide (Ben) kept telling me that this was just MUCH more to come. I just couldn’t believe (belize@!) it. The water level was very high because of the massive amounts of rain Belize gets this time of year. It only added to the adventure.
The formations inside the cave were amazing.
Not only that, but it was a archaeological site. Mind blown even further. This was truly an adventure. There were no ramps for the elders, no dramatically lit up rooms, no crowds of screaming kids, only a few people taking pictures, AND there were artifacts that were over a 1000 years old. There were pieces of pottery of various sizes and functions. At one point, this cave was believe to be used as a sacred site of worship. I’ll leave it to wikipedia but the short summary is that the artifacts indicate that they were used as part of a tribute to the underworld.
There were no fences, no guards, just small pieces of neon tape pointing to artifacts so that you did not accidentally step on one. It is amazing how much this country trusts its people. I really appreciate not being treated as a child who will just poke and steal everything he sees. Ben, the guide, did an excellent job explaining the significance of the artifacts and how they are spread out all over the cave that I was acutely away of every step. In fact, we had to wear socks (no shoes) so that we could be even more careful.
Its a howler monkey!
I’m a happy cavedave. This makes the shortlist of best experiences in my entire life.
I never saw any of the ads, but this is apparently the picture on all the brochure covers. Evidence indicates that human sacrifices were performed in this cave. There are several well preserved human skeletal remains in the caves.
The ATM tour is reason alone in itself to come to Belize. Did I mention this yet? COME TO BELIZE. They speak english here! It is easy!
Dinner at Hannas with Andy and drinks at Faya Wata. Hana’s was excellent. Highly recommended for San Ignacio.
After the caves, Andy graciously offers to let me ride his dirt bikes on some of the local trails. I’m pretty excited. I had never ridden a proper dirt bike, just my sorry excuse for a dual sport. I can’t remember the name of the brand, but it is a Chinese dirt bike. They are allll over town. Apparently they just got imported for the first time to Belize and the poeple are going crazy for them. They’re pretty good and very inexpensive.
I’m used to my pig of a motorcycle and this thing feels like a BMX bicycle. You can actually pick up the rear end of the bike and move it yourself! I’d like to see anyone try that with my loaded F650.
Andy takes me to a dirt (and I mean dirt, not gravel) “road” that is heading out of town. Oh yeah, it rained all morning. That being the case I almost died trying to get through the mud. I kept getting stuck and was exhausted and was only about 10% of the way in. I threw up all over the place and just had to stop. I did manage to get my helmet off first. That would make the next 6 months less pleasant.
So we turned around and rid slowly back to the house. I went to the cabana then drank water and slept. I think the caving and drinking the day before was too much for me. I was completely dehydrated. At one point, I even thought I was sick from the different food. I ended up lounging the rest of the day. It did give me the opportunity to take this picture from the hammock of Andy’s guest cabana:
The next day starts with me playing with a machete. This is my next piece of kit for my bike.
Then we drive the dirt bikes to Mountian Pine Ride. This is part of Andy’s Belize Offroad Adventure Tour.
^^ me and a local rider. Not the ATGATT Belizian style. Atleast I have a helmet and gloves.
We take a break to look at the falls (Rio On Pools) and a big ol’ Texas style F350 ford pulls up. Upon greeting us, Bird offers us beers and BBQ. He and his family were extremely generous to include us in their weekend party. I got the chance to try some fantastic BBQ (pork chops, beef, and tastey Italian sausage) and chit chat about all sorts of things. It was yet another great time. The people of Belize are great. Like Texas, they assume friend.
Bird at his finest:
We then left the first falls and headed to Big Rock. This is also part of the Offroad Tour.
This is Andy. Thanks Andy for your generosity and for showing me around Belize!!!
I really had a great time in Belize. After my first so/so day, I had planned on booking it through the country as just a gateway to Guatemala. San Ignacio is a destination on its own. You could easily spend a week here and have some unBELIZEable adventures. (sorry, had to)
10 Comments » - Posted in Uncategorized by daveg
Tuesday, July 22nd, 2008
Belize Border Crossing Info
The border crossing at Chetumal to Belize: I was expecting the worst. Lots of people, cramped quarters, insecure parking, people trying to rip you off, and total chaos.
I could not have been more wrong. This was easier than the US->Mexico crossing. I talked to the Immigration guy (small unofficial looking shack before the border) then he signed off my Tourist Visa and stamped my passport. This was in DaveSpan and I was having a little trouble understanding him. It all worked out great. Then I went to the Banjercito to cancel my Temporary Vehicle Import Permit for my motorcycle. That is the document that I filed for before my trip taking out a bond or garentee that I would not sell my motorcycle without paying taxes. I handed in my sticker and paperwork. Done with the Mexican side in about 20 minutes. No lines. No BS. Tuesday morning at about 10.
I then crossed the imaginary line in the dirt and signs were in English and people were speaking to me in English. Well sorta. Not US English, but it was close enough that I could follow. In Belize, they speak a caribean style english and everyone kept calling me chief, chief.
There was an ambigious turn that went to the Free Trade Zone where Mexicans can buy stuff without paying taxes (duty free) and another turn that went to a VERY unofficial looking shack in the middle of the road. There were no official looking signs, just some guy in a T-shirt flagging me to stop. First thought in my head: They’re going to try to sell me stuff. They were telling me that I had to fumigate the bike. I was very hesitant to believe them that I needed it for the motorcycle, but then I recalled my previous research on Belize: You need to fumigate your vehicle and insurance was mandatory. My perception shifted from annoyed to that of it being quite handy that there was a shack in the middle of the road where I could take care of all my needs to enter into the country. $1.50 US for fumigation and $25 US for insurance for 1 week. It still seemed a little sketchy, but was reasonable atleast and of minimal financial risk. They also gave me some sage advice: “The darker the berry, the sweeter the wine, chief”
They then pointed me to immigration/customs building that was poorly marked on the Belize side. I proceeded to park under the “NO PARKING” sign right infront of a checkpoint. Gotta love motorcycles.
Now I begin starting the process of legally importing myself and my bike temporarly into Belize. No lines. It was awesome. The ratio of customs officials to country visitors had to be 3 to 1. I walked straight up to a gentleman who started at me in spanish. As I answered him in DaveSpan he switched to english, chief. 1 passport stamp and 1 temporary vehicle importation form later, we were off to check the VIN on my bike. Did I mention no lines? We walked to my bike under the NO P sign and he started with the standard battery of questions “how much? how fast?” I try to make up a new story for each time someone asks. After eventually finding the VIN he waved me off. No Lines!!!!!!!
Non-prose version for people planning to cross the border:
Required documents:
* Passport
* Original paperwork that you were issued in Mexico for your Temporary Vehicle Import Permit. This is the backing to the sticker.
* Tourist Visa from Mexico
* Copy (maybe original, I used a REALLY nice copy) of your bike’s title
* Either USD, Belize Dollars, or Mexican Pesos
1. Go to shack right before the last Mexico checkpoint poorly labeled “Migration”, park infront of it
2. Cancel your tourist visa
3. Go straight ahead 50m (cross checkpoint) and take a left at the building poorly labeled Banjercito, park infront of it
4. Cancel permit. Show them the paperwork, then they’ll ask you to remove the sticker and hand it to them
5. Enter Belice by crossing tollfree bridge
6. You can buy insurance (probably) or do it later in step 7. Just keep on the major road straight ahead. There is a casino, insurance places, and other random buildings. Don’t worry. You’re going the correct direction
7. The road Ys and stick to the right. Stop at the fumigation shack. Get sprayed for $1.50 US and buy mandatory insurance
8. Continue ahead 50-100m and stop at building before Belize checkpoint. Park in parking lot or right infront of checkpoint
9. Get passport stamp (visa is on stamp)
10. Watch customs guy fill out vehicle form. Make sure it is correct
11. Check VIN with customs guy, KEEP paperwork to turn into your exit border
16 Comments » - Posted in Uncategorized by daveg
Tuesday, July 22nd, 2008
To Chetumal, erm I mean Xpujil
NOTE: I’m going to fix pictures later. The hotel in Belize where I am has a really crappy internet connection.
The drive from Isla del Carmen (not to be confused with Playa del Carmen by Cozumel) was quite beautiful but boring. It was incredibly beautiful along the coast but straight. My understanding of the west coast of the Yucatan (the state Compeche side) is that it is for Mexicans and the east coast is for gringos. I can’t speak for the reefs, but the beaches were perfect and the water clear. Plus, it brought me back home a bit as I saw a few oil rigs 
. You have to do something to keep those roads paved. I had my fill of shrimp plates (shrimp la diabla was my favorite!) and fish that looked at me while I ate. Overall, the food was fantastic and the prices were not that bad. There is a little town outside of Veracruz that I’d like to return to if I ever want to do the beach thing.
My original plan was to drive to Chetumal, but I kept seeing all these signs for ruins and my curiosity got the best of me. As I was blazing down a freshly paved road, I came upon “The Buc Dreams” hotel. They had 3 flags: Mexican, Canadian, and British. They also had a sign that said “TOURIST INFORMATION”. ENGLISH!!! I had not spoken english for a few days and figured that this may be a way to find some good ruins to see. Not only that, but if directions were given in English, I may actually be able to find them.
Anyway, I met the woman who runs the place and stated that she is one of the most knowledgeable people in the area. After she asked me my price range and recommended other accommodations, she drew me a map and an outlined which ruins to see.
The road was pretty good but it kept getting smaller and smaller. Not the place I’d want to drive my Mini.
^^^ MONOS in the wild!!!! Right at the park enterance!!
After returning from the ruins and realizing that the Pemex just outside of town was under repair, I had a minor freakout about gasoline. It was possible that I had enough to make it, but not 100%. So I went on a hunt for gas. I may have bought crappy gas at an exorbitant price (80 pesos for 5 liters), but I got a classic photo out of it.
I then continued to the hotel suggested to me earlier, Hotel Mercedez. I loved this place at first sight. Charming and inexpensive. Only 150 pesos (~$15 USD) a night gets me a cabana with electricity, overhead fan, lots of windows, and a private bathroom. Excellent!!
Not only was it a great value and ran entirely by a small family, they had MONKEYS!!
This guy is my Mexican Hero. He does everything himself. Out by the back of the hotel he has pens of over 100 turkeys and chickens, and 10-12 pigs. He slaughters all his own meat at the restaurant.
The next day I watched him starting to prepare the evening’s meat. Being a product of the suburbs, I’ve never seen anything like this. He happily showed me how to clean a turkey then gave me a tour of the backyard with the other animals.
^^ He was also telling me which parts are good eating and which are bad. These are turkey eggs, un…. well, un popped out?? He said that they’re some of the best eating of the turkey.
^^ He doesn’t waste anything from the turkey. He feeds the rest of the bits that the guests or his family don’t eat to the pigs after cooking them. Not that there really isn’t alot that they don’t eat.
Anyway. The next day I started heading to Belize.
The first sign that you know you’re no longer in Mexico:
NO MORE TOPES…. but bumps 
7 Comments » - Posted in Uncategorized by daveg
Saturday, July 19th, 2008
Haircut time
I’ve needed a haircut for a few weeks and I finally have the time to get it. Not only that, but I intentionally did not bring a razor, nor do I plan to have a beard.
As you can see, I’m at a critical level of fluff. I got a shave and a haircut for $7.
I am glad that I got my hepatitis shot. My shave was bloody. I *think* he used a new blade on me and I sure hope that he doesn’t use that blade on someone else. It was one of the most painful experiences. I miss Mach 3 or Mach 4. Maybe it was the cold shaving creme and fan blowing on my face contacting my hair folicles. All I know is that it was pain.
-break-
I’m taking today off of the bike. I’ve been on the bike 8ish hours a day since last Saturday. I would have liked to make it to the Yucatan but am ok here in Campeche.
Oh, at my hotel, I find my motorcycle’s clone. I can’t seem to find the owner and it hasn’t moved for almost 24 hours.
^^ This drink was terrible. Luckily it was only 50 pesos. It tasted like a thawed freezer pop. WAY too sugary. I couldn’t even finish it.
^^ Half of everyone’s favorite famous motorcycle duo. Heh.
10 Comments » - Posted in Uncategorized by daveg
Thursday, July 17th, 2008
Police love me
On my way from Tampico towards Veracruz, I was stopped twice by police.
See this picture?
I pulled the bike over in the median of a major road to take it. There were already lots of tire tracks and I did not notice the transit cop watching me. So I take the pic and get regeared up to go and filter to the front of the line at a red light. As I pull off the line the cop motions me over to stop. I wasn’t even sure he was pointing to me and he didn’t have a car or bike so I even considered not stopping. Then I saw he had a radio. Funny thing about radio waves being faster than any biker.
Anyways, I pulled over, took off my sunglasses but left my helmet and gloves on. I spoke even worse spanish than DavegSpanish in order to further confuse him. He proceeded to tell me what I did (drove in median) and that I needed to pay a ticket. He kept opening up doors for me to “Pay on the spot” because he kept saying how far the transit police station was and how much time it was going to take. I started asking for directions to the transit police station and then he just started asking me about the bike. How fast? How much? What type? Are you crazy? Heh, he thought that it was crazy even though I just told him that I was riding to Veracruz. In the end, he started smiling all big and just let me go.
The second time was several hours later. There was a transit cop on the outsirks of a medium sized city and I was 100% legal in everything I was doing and he motioned for me to pull over. This time he just asked if I was going fast. I immediatly busted into the standard trip story and he just kept asking more and more questions and never said why he pulled me over. He started giving me hotel advice for the next few cities. Then after the concluding handshakes, he asked me for some money for a drink. Even though he was really cool and I was conflicted about this I told him I only had a credit card. I would have bought him a soda if I had started talking to him on the street. I just don’t think it is right to have the legal authority to pull someone over then hit them up for cash. Not cool
I will make it south of Veracruz tomorrow.
8 Comments » - Posted in Uncategorized by daveg
Thursday, July 17th, 2008
The Dona Juana Hotel in Tampico
Everyday that G/H, and I were on the road, we planned on getting an early start to beat the heat. I think the earliest we got on the road was 9:30. That is just the reality of traveling with friends and having fun at night. Since I am now solo biker, I made it my mission to be get out early. I did quite well, if I can be so humble. I was ON the bike and had even made a few wrong turns before the official sunrise time (6-something AM.. my GPS switches from a black background to a white one when sunup occurs).
Re: GPS and wrong turns. The deal with GPS is that you always know EXACTLY where you are at any moment. The problem is that it lacks context. I tried to get some latin america/world maps loaded onto my GPS (Garmin Zumo). I had to give back my garmin station (erm, my work laptop) so I was unable to really get it loaded properly. So that leaves me with only the base map. The base map outside of the US is really only an approximation of roads could be. It isn’t like in Houston where I-10 moves a couple of hundred feet a year. Of the roads listed, they are never even near the map’s location. I am now mostly using the GPS as a track log so that if I take a wrong turn, I am able to back myself out of it. It also has key cities on there so I can do an absolute range and make sure that I’m heading in the correct cardinal location. Don’t get me wrong, I still love GPS.
I start heading to Tampico:
Immediately after making my last turn for the final 50 km to Tampico, I see a group of 4 sport bike riders at a tire fixing shop (vulcanazadora). I flip a U’ey and went to talk to them. I attemped to speak to them in DavegSpanish and after studdering and stammering Juan Carlos stepped up and started speaking to me in English. We chatted it up for a few minutes about the standard things motorcyclists talk about and he invited me to ride along with them to Tampicos. The coolest thing every. I was really impressed with the spontaneity of it all. The next thing I know is that we’re drinking my 750 ml traveler of Wild Turkey by the beach. Como chinga no, wae? They were a really cool group of guys, despite the massive langauge barrier. In talking to one of the guys, I figured the key to foreign languages. He spoke english extremely well and was self taught because he played video games! Coolest thing every. Plus, I got to nerd out about gaming for a little bit. I really figured that the only people who I would have any non commercial contact (like at restaurants) would be other tourists. Hanging out with los Mexicanos de Monterrey was awesome.
^^ Never used my name, only called me Gringo
ps.. I’m going to rotate those images later.
4 Comments » - Posted in Uncategorized by daveg
Thursday, July 17th, 2008
Made it to Mexico!
After spending more time than I planned getting to the border, I am finally here! Here’s the thing though: Whatever happens … happens. One of the things that most attracted me to a six month long road trip was that I did not need to follow a schedule. You _could_ make it to Mexico in a day, but why?
Heather and Gary are great friends that escorted me into Mexico with style at the hand-operated ferry across the Rio Grande at Los Ebanos. It lets two cars across at a time and then everyone gets out of their cars and helps pull the ferry through the water. The three of us on bikes realized the advantages of two wheels while waiting in line: No lines. We skipped possibly 30-45 minutes of line and went straight to the front. There they loaded us right next to the two cars that were already on the Ferry. It was a tight squeeze for my heffer of a bike. Gary and Heather had no problems with theirs.
Unfortunately, because of the rush of loading and unloading the ferry, I did not get any good shots of the bikes. Gary got some video that he will keep hidden to himself and never post on YouTube (yeah, I’m subtle, I know).
UPDATE: Thanks Gary for the Video
After disembarking from the ferry we instantly knew we were in Mexico. Buildings were no longer built out of wood, but white painted cement and stone. I didn’t hear a lick of English when talking to anyone on the streets or during my paperwork fiasco. H & G left and headed back to Austin. I started driving south.
Yeah, the paperwork. I thought I was going to be crafty and as a seasoned veteran of Mexico Motorcycle Travel I prearranged my vehicle import and used an entry point that did not have any government officials watching it other than some security. After driving the 30 minutes to make it back to Reyanosa, we found the puente international and presumably where I would go and just get a simple tourist visa. Wrong building. This only took me 45 minutes in talking to several people in my terrible spanish. Did I mention how bad my spanish is? I am not a “language person” and it does not come naturally to me. My ability to comprehend a spanish speaker is only as patient as they are willing to be. IFF the person whom I’m speaking to takes their time, annunciates, speaks loudly and slowly (YES. THIS. HELPS.), and most importantly cares to be understood by me, then I have very little problem following a conversation. This was not the case with the first round of people who I spoke to at the boarder. The first person was terse and just looked at me like I was a pinche gringo who had no business being here if I didn’t speak spanish. Eventually I was confident that I was in the wrong place and chose to walk about a 1/2 mile to the other building in full moto gear that takes care of vehicle registration AND tourist visas. Not just tourist visas. Eventually I got it all sorted out in the next building with broken spanish and very helpful government workers.
Why walk? Because I had the best parking spot ever, gaurded by my new friend with an automatic weapon. Thank you.
That was my first bike and armed guy photo in my trips to Mexico. I’m so happy now! This trip is already considered a success.
Day one of traveling solo and I’m loving it. So far it has been good roads and I met a new friend while swimming at my very harsh accommodation. They were so harsh that they had gaurded parking, 2 very clean beds, cable tv, air conditioning, breakfast buffet (not free), and a pool. We had some great conversations over tacos and beers.
I think I’ll continue south tomorrow.
5 Comments » - Posted in Uncategorized by daveg
Saturday, July 12th, 2008
Packing / Loading and Houston to Victoria
Here is almost everything that I am bringing spread out. I love it when people post these pics, so here are mine.
Camping Gear
Gadgets
Books/Maps
Personal stuff
Moto stuff
Rain gear / cold weather gear
Things started coming together last night as I basically packing all my gear into Eagle Creek Pack-it Cubes. Did I mention how much I loved the PackIt cubes? My first big trip I packed all my gear plastic shopping bags then placed them in my luggage. My second trip I used ziplock bags. For this trip, I graduated to Pack-It Cubes.
I sort all my stuff into separate appropriately sized cubes. This way, I can sort through everything very rapidly. It is the only way to stay organized on the road as well as compress everything into such a small space as motorcycle luggage.
Earlier in the evening I met with Billy and Anna and we had dinner and a drink. After battling Houston traffic on I-10 (which I will miss dearly), Heather and Gary finally made it in town. Their plan is to ride with me through Mexico for a couple of days.
Heather’s Dakar broke a clutch cable… and fortunately I had a spare with me so we could be on our way in the AM. Unfortunately we did not make it on the road until just after 12pm.
I underestimated the amount of time that “loading” the bike would take. Plus, I had to address the final items on my list to prepare the house.
We found this nice shaded area next to a pumping station on 59. The station pumped water, but we didn’t know why. Maybe irrigation? It is called the Pierce Pumping Station. Thank you GPS!
The trip has officially started
Anyway, because of the delayed start, we only made it to Victoria. No worries though. Why hurry?
8 Comments » - Posted in texas by daveg
Wednesday, July 9th, 2008
Final trip prep for Saturday departure
!!!!!
I will be leaving Houston on Saturday! I’ve more excited than nervous, but barely. I have two days left at home to do the final preparations (like canceling internet service, my cell phone, last minute maintenance, and the actual packing of the bike.
Later tomorrow I will be editing the packing list with my final gear list. Yes, I will be bringing a towel. Also tomorrow in addition to an oil change on the Mini (which did great on my 3 weeks of road trips), I will change the oil on the bike, top off the battery, change coolant fluid, adjust chain tension, and loctite appropriate bolts (like luggage rack). There seems to be tons to do and I’m a bit overwhelmed, but I really want to start the trip on Saturday.
My proposed route is:
Houston -> Cuidad Victoria, Mexico -> Villahermosa -> somewhere on the beach in the Yucatan. I’ll spend a few days going down the coast trying to find cheap lodging and good diving. I want to check out some of the diving in Belize and some mayan ruins.. then head to NW Guatemala.
For those of you in Houston tonight, I’m going to hang out at the Onion Creek from 9+ for steak night. What a better way to leave the USA than a traditional meal of Steak and Potatoes.