Archive for August, 2008
Monday, August 4th, 2008
dg The Tourist
So after my great experience in San Ignacio, I decided to give guided tours another try.
I heard there were caves in the area and that there was a nice out outside Champey. So, like a good tourist, I went to a place that said in English “Tourist Information” and booked a full-day tour that included breakfast, lunch, a waterfall hike/swim, and a cave. I love caves!
I started the day with a shower in my room at the “Hotel Virgen del Rosario” where I’ve been staying for a few days in Coban. They have “hot water” but only in the shower. Check out the death heater.
^^^^ Careful! This is the third one I’ve used. They’re actually not bad when they are new and not clogged with hard water. They spray a nice little jet of hot/warm water. The problem is that when they get old and clogged, there is just a trickle of hot water. In order to disperse the stream, you’d normally just turn up the water pressure, right? Well, the problem here is that the higher the water pressure, the less heat you get. So I find myself huddling under a trickle of hot water. I’d really complain more, but it is only USD $10 a night. This is also a pretty nice place for the area. What can I say, I like the Virgin.
I took a couple of shots while I was waiting for the guy to pick me up. Check out more balancing stuff:
This dog has places to go:
The tour starts with a very good continental breakfast of hotcakes and fruit. The hotcakes were different, they were much like the ones that Gary (of G&H) had once in Real de Catorce (yeah, the is significant for gary only, but give me a second, I’ll describe). They were awesome.
Take a normal US sized pancake, reduce the footprint by about 70% using the same volume of pancake mix. They were great. A little crunchy on the outside and nice soft cakey in the middle. Add a tiny hit of syrup, and you’re doing well.
After breakfast, we loaded into our minibus.
It was very full. I actually think it was full + 1 and the poor guy who was the + 1 was a large (tall/thick) El Salvadorian. The bus ride was interesting. It is a hard thing for me to relinquish control of driving. I guess that is the deal with motocycle travel. It was nice being to look out the windows at all the various crops. In addition to all the fruit I saw in Mexico and Belize, I now have been to where coffee and chocolate come from. That beverage you’re enjoying daily comes from really far away. Not only that, but the locals drink crap Nescafe instant. I haven’t seen espresso either. Just drip.
While I was told this was going to be an English language tour, I ended up being the only Englisher on the bus. Fortunately, I met a great couple from Spain (Barcelona) who were very patient with speaking to me in Spanish.
The bus makes a brief stop at Champey. This town is about an hour from the main paved road and has a few hotels. My first sign that I may not have made the right choice with this tour.
After remounting the bus, we went to a national park. The tour ($40 USD, the cost of 4 nights at my pretty nice hotel) took us on a slow hike to some waterfalls. They’re actually really pretty, but I was unable to get a good picture.
See, I’m a good tourist.
We then hiked up a steep mountian for about an hour at deserved this view. Another view that was poorly captured by me in a photo. I miss my big Nikon.
After the hike, we had a nice guided swim and pack lunch. The sandwich had mayonase. Get this: I ate an apple. I don’t eat fruit. I’m a carnivore/breadavore. But that sandwich had mayo on it and had been baking in the bus for half a day in the jungle. No thanks.
The tour continued to its final destination. The cave. You know the caves I was talking about in the US that had paved pathways and handrails… well, this was one of those.
Blah.
Blah.
Blah.
The cave was ok. The formations were ok, it had some big open caverns, but nothing too dramatic. All the formations that were kinda cool had stupid signs naming them like “El Femar” and of course, there was the BS about human Sacrifice. There was supposidly a shrine where humans COULD have been sacrificed. Maybe it was my spanish that let me down, but I called BS. The “Sacrificial Alter” just looked like a flat spot on the cave. Blah.
The best part of the tour was making friends with couple from Barcelona. They are really great people. I really appreciate it when people take the time to speak to me in DaveSpan. It must be pretty frustrating speaking to an adult as if they were 3 years old. They took their time and help me with a few new vocab words and some usage issues that I was commonly having. It reminds me that I really want to visit Spain.
I’m going to wait a while for my next organized tour.
7 Comments » - Posted in Uncategorized by daveg
Saturday, August 2nd, 2008
A day in the life of a biker trying to not smell
I got an email from my sister asking how I was my clothes. I only brought 3 shirts, 1 shorts, 1 pants, 3 socks, and a towel. Whats funny is that at home, I don’t have much of a routine, but to stay organized and sane on the road I’ve developed one:
On days where I travel:
* Wake up VERY early to avoid head (<6 am
* Pack gear. Everything has its spot. I use the Eagle Creek Cubes like an OCD person, so everything has its cube where it belongs. It is the only way to not lose stuff constantly
* Load bike. This takes almost no time as the only thing I remove is my top box which is a Pelican case. It goes on and off in about 21 seconds. Thanks Caribou luggage!
* Last check of hotel, pay bills
* Check bike (tire pressure, oil level, just look to see if anything is loose or gushing)
* Drive
* Maybe breakfast at about 10. I try not to stop while it is still cool outside.
* Stop for lunch/brunch/brunchinner and gas. Depends on where and how far I feel like going
* Stop for the day after 7 or 8 hours of riding. This can be as early as 1pm but no later than 5pm regardless of start time
* Find a hotel. I like to check out a few places. My ideal place would have good bike parking, a fan or AC, internet connection, and a restaurant
* Unload bike (only one trip!)
* Laundry:
Washing synthetic clothes is no biggy. It only takes about 5 minutes and everything will by dry by AM. I repackaged some super ultra mega tide into a small bottle. One quick drop per item of clothes.
I try to clog the sink with something plastic or my sock. I put all the stuff that fits into the sink and start kneeding.
It is amazing how nasty the water gets. I may do it a couple of times if the water is realllly dirty:
^^^ Not too bad
I then rinse until the water is perfectly clear.
The most important part is wringing. If you don’t do to this enough, your stuff will be wet. Wet clothes is no fun the next day.
IF the place I’m staying has a fan or AC, I’ll line everything up in front of it. With a fan, my shorts/shirts/pants/underwear will dry in an hour or two.
* I then setup my creature comforts: If I have no TV, I’ll setup my radio (shortwave/am/fm)
^^^ The thatched roofs are great for hanging the antenna. I get all sorts of shortwave stuff like this.
^^^ I’m s slave to having the right shoe. I’d have so much more space if I wore just boots and crappy flipflops
* Get some food before dark if I have to leave the hotel, otherwise whenever if I don’t have to
* Read maps/lonely planet to figure out next destination
* Prepack as much as I can. This is usually limited as everything I was wearing that day is wet
* Sleep! (no alarms, of course)
Sleeping in a jungle area is pretty rough. I’m trying to get used to the fact that there are bugs everywhere. There is nothing I can do. I’m going to have mosquito bites, sand fleas, wierd little blood sucker worm headed things, and spyder bites. The locals deal with it, so can I.
Here is a sampling from one of the places I stayed: ALLLL these pictures came from the same night and from inside my room (except moth, that was on my door)
Stop reading here if you don’t like bugs.
^^^ ONE BIG MOTH
^^ In my bed. Andy told me to ALWAYS check your sheets before you hop in, unless you don’t mind company.
5 Comments » - Posted in Uncategorized by daveg
Saturday, August 2nd, 2008
To La Libertad
After Tikal, I planned on starting to head towards somewhere to study spanish. I’m still not sure where, but either Xela or Antigua. I left Tikal at 1 in the afternoon and started heading south. It was nice to head south again. Too much west. This is supposed to be All The Way South!
I first checked out Flores. I was going to stay there intially and figured I’d get lunch and finally pick up some Quetzales (Guatemalan money). After cruising the main highway you veer off across a bridge and you’re in Flores. It is a very clean and well kept tourist area. Tons and TONS of restaurants and hotels. Backpackers and regional tourists everywhere you look. This wasn’t what I was looking for so I just U’d off the island. It still felt like Guatemala though. There was total chaos on the road. Here is the only pic that I took in the area. Note all the tuktuks. They’re motorcycles converted into multiperson taxis.
I stop off at a bank and grab a small bag of Doritos for $.30. I start heading south for about 5 miles and start to get the feeling that I’m on the wrong road. I pull over and ask some women “LA LIBERTAD!??”. They look at me blankly. I try again “La Lib.Er.Tad, Este es la calle a La Lib.Er.Tad” They shake their heads and point the other way. Crap. I am going to wrong way. Since I am already pretty sure of this, I turn around immediately. I then head back into town and take another turn off the main round-about. I head a few blocks and ask a guy at a gas station “La LIBERTAD”. He points the direction I’m traveling. Good. I head another mile or so, pull off and ask agian. Confirmed. I *am* heading the right direction. This is the way I navigate. I never _really_ know where I’m going. I just kinda have an idea from looking at the map earlier, maybe a road on the GPS that is a mile or so off, and rarely signs. I head a bit in the direction I think, pull over, ask.. drive some more.. ask again.. drive.. ask.. and eventually I’ll have a composite idea if I’m going the right way. If you speak spanish, this wouldn’t be the case. Oh, one more rule, I try not to ask people who aren’t in some vehicle of sorts. Lots of people walking never leave the town, so they have no idea. Everyone always wants to be helpful.
The drive to La Libertad is hot. VERY hot. Even though the roads are good, I’m averaging about 50 mph. My GPS says the FASTEST I’ve been on this is 65. So I’m not setting any landspeed records. I’m not in a hurry, I want to be careful, my pace shows. I have knobby tires on, so it is good to stay slow, they’ll last longer.
I find La Libertad, buy some gas at the Texaco and start looking for the hotel I got directions to from the gas pump kid. For those of you who haven’t ridden around this area, you don’t have to pump your own gas. I haven’t since Texas. It is pretty neat. Very fast when you want. I’ll stop, ask for “soup her”, they start pumping. Whil they’re pumping, I’m resetting my odo and getting money out to pay. The stop takes less than 3 minutes if everything goes well.
I find a hotel off the main square that has Air Conditioning. I’ve earned it. I’ve spent the last week-10 days without. It was a humble room, but it had AC and HBO. Not bad for $12 USD. They were asking $13 =]
As I’ve said before, the food in Guatemala is great.
The next morning I head to Coban. I wake up at 5am to get an early start and avoid the heat. I’m on the road by 5:15 (I know this because of my new watch):
The jungle is pretty thick at points, but some of it is cleared. Check out this massive tree that wasn’t cut down. It TOWERS above all the regrowth.
I come upon Saxypesomethingrather. Lots of flooding and the river is way up. Luckily they have a ferry running:
Here are some more pics from the drive. I started doing the one hand camera, other hand motorcycle thing. So the pics are kinda shakey.
At this point, I’m starting to get into the highlands. The people are shorter, all women wear dresses. Some balance stuff on their heads:
^^^ Girl heading to school balances notebook on her head. Crappy pic, but I loved the content
^^^ Jugs of water
Not a happy chicken.
I’m really starting to climb now. The temperature dropped significantly. It starts raining as I head to Coban. For the first time:
I AM COLD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I AM COLD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I AM COLD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I AM COLD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I AM COLD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I AM COLD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I’ve been roasting on this trip and finally with all this rain and altitude, I’m actually a bit chilly. SO HAPPY!!!
^^^ I’m pointing to the only dry spot.
I’m in Coban now and going to be here for another two nights. I’m at the Virgin of Rosario. Nice hotel, not the best parking situation (off-site locked parking lot). I’m going to stay here for a total of 3 nights as I’m going to just hang out tonight (night 2) and going to tour caves tomorrow. I have this new cave obsession to feed.
2 Comments » - Posted in Uncategorized by daveg
Friday, August 1st, 2008
Tikal
Tikal gets its own entry. Even though I’m not much into archaeological sites, this is one worth visiting. I got there at about 7 am (I thought it was 8, but my watch was an hour off) and it was empty. Only a couple of buses of French people had made it there before me. I spent about 4 hours but could have spent 2 days. I’ll let the pictures speak for themselves.
^^ GIANT SCORPION!!!!!! Tikal IS in the jungle. Can’t forget that.
7 Comments » - Posted in Uncategorized by daveg
Friday, August 1st, 2008
Guatemala!
I’m finally back into Latin America. Belize was very nice, but it will definitely be the outlier for the trip. I’m back to tortillas with every meal and only having a cursory idea of what is going around me. I need to learn Spanish. I am making a serious effort to learn new vocabulary. I’ve started carrying a little book around and when I don’t know something and someone tells me the word, I write it down. If you’re wondering, this is a great way to get strange looks.
From Belize I wanted to visit Tikal, on of the most intact and well restored of all the Mayan sites. At the border, I was talking to an Ex-Texan who told me to stay in El Remate, not Flores as I had planned as a dive off point for Tikal. The ruins are in the middle of the jungle in a nature preserve, so there aren’t many options for accomodations near the park. El Remate is 28 km from entrance to the park. It is on the eastern most side of the giant lake (which, of course, I can’t remember its name). There are a bunch of lakeside hotels with cabanas or rooms for a very good price. It is touristy, but not overwhelming like Flores.
I stayed at Casa de Ernesto. They are family run operation that is just across the street from the lake. I was overwhelmed by the friendlyness of this group of people. They spoke no English but were very patient with speaking to me in Spanish. I planned on staying there for one night but it was so nice and such a great deal that I decided to stay another night.
^^ This is the view from the street. I spent 2 days lounging on the dock swimming. The most interesting part of swimming was the fishlife. It is CRAZY! I swam with tetras! You know, the “tropical” fish that you get at the pet store. There were some tetras (can’t remember the specific name) and a plecostomus fish that was eating algae off the ladder. I also know why you need to have a heater for your fishtank. The lake was far from refreshing. It was about 80something degrees and it was 100ish outside. I’m used to the heat now, so I just go with it. The nights are a little cooler (high 80s) and there was no AC at Casa Ernesto, but it isn’t hard to find. It’ll double the cost of the room though.
I’m obsessed with thatched roofs. I was talking with Ernesto and he said that the cabana roof took a week or two to put up himself and will last for about 15 years. Not bad!
There is not much going on in El Remate itself. Along the lake side, there are 5 or 6 hotels / cabanas. What was strange is that most of the guests at the hotels were French. Unfortunately, my French is even worse than my spanish, so I only contributed a couple of “Bon Jours” and “Pardons”. But I’m never one to complain about topless sun bathing (sorry, no pics). The first night I ate at my Cabana, Casa Ernesto. This was my first introduction to Guatemalan Empanadas. Pure culinary joy. These things were tastey. Imagine well seasoned chicken covered by a semisweet pastry dough, then deep fried. They are similiar to the ones at Guayaba but only cost $4 for a huge plate and a salad. It also comes with queso ranchero. Everything is better with cheese. Complete the meal with a Gallo, the beer of Guatemala, and you’re in pretty good shape. Total cost: $5 USD. Finally I will be able to stretch my budget like I was planning. My total tab at the hotel for 2 nights, several bottles of carbonated water, a coke or two, 2 Gallos, and a complete mail was $18.