Have a Little Nerve, Don't Follow the Crowd - Jeanette Beattie

Back to Palma Life

2008-10-22T04:28:00.000-07:00

So there is a huge gap from the last time I have updated the Blog. I went to Jordan, Spain, Italy (including Sicily), back to the States to Seattle, Alaska (to visit my brother and new nephew), Chicago, London and now back here! Been a whirlwind of a couple months and I can't believe its almost the end of October.
It's great to be back in Palma. I have reconnected with some great friends and of course made some new ones. I haven't really been looking for day work which has allowed me some more time in the mountains, at the beach, and I have joined a yoga studio. I have really been enjoying myself!
As you can imagine after landing back in Palma I felt quite exhausted from moving around so much. I started to wonder if I was a bit done with travel (of course for the moment only). My mind became very active with the different possibilities of paths to walk down. Slowly I decided that being in the yachting industry was going to continue my wanderings and not let me feel any more grounded than I was. The same was true for the chef school in the spring, so both of those got knicked. Luckily one of my good mates here is actually a life coach, so she helped me organize my thoughts and get a big picture back. So after all of that I slowly narrowed my options more and more.
I found my crossing to the Caribbean on a 60 ft sailboat that leaves at the end of this month. I will be with 3 others and we plan to stop at Gibraltar and the Canaries. The boat is ending in St. Maarten, but does not need to be there until the end of the year. The job includes a flight back to Seattle and I should be home for Christmas, which I have not been in 2 years! I am quite excited about that.
One goal accomplished, but still what to do with that. While I was working on my resume and realizing the great and interesting projects I was involved with at my old job and that the fate was sending me back to Seattle I thought maybe I should check into that.
Long story short, it looks like I will be back to my old diggs starting sometime in January. I am really excited to move back and start somethings that traveling prohibits a bit.
And for your visual stimuli ... some amazing hikes I have been on here in Mallorca ...
(some explanation 1. at an amazing lamb restaraunt in the mountains, 2. Valledamossa, 3. beach hiked into from Port d' Andratx, 4. Isla Sa Dragonera off the NW coast, 5. the terranced town of Banyalbafur, 6. another veiw of Valledamossa, 7. Cala Mayor, a nice beach just outside of Palma, 8. the north coast of Mallorca.

Back in Bangkok

2008-05-03T07:48:00.001-07:00

So a pretty interesting day here in Bangkok. Started off the day in search of breakfast and ended up at a families house for breakfast. We proceeded to swap stories until they started to teach me how to play a bit of poker and then how easy it was to cheat at poker ... which of course turned into let's go to the casino after I have this woman come over and we can practice fleecing here. Needless to say I said thanks for the breaky but see ya later. I did get some good travel advice from them though and they were nice even after I refused to participate.
On my search for replacement flip flops and other things (which all went well by the way) I ran into this random concert with all these people dressed up and having thier photos taken. I joined in but felt a little weird about it. I had to post a couple to show. Lastly, ended up on a marathon walk that took me to several parts of the city. One apparently being the scrap street in Chinatown as well as a crazy market. All those scraps were being salvaged by the way. Lastly I walked into this quite large temple that was not on my map but thought the stone guard looked like something out of the Beattle's Lonely Heart Club Band.

Vientiene, Laos

2008-05-03T07:39:00.000-07:00

John, Eliza, and I set off from Vang Vieng together to Vientiene. We took a pick up if you can call it that. It was covered with benches on each side. We had about 10 people at the most in it at one point. I got to see a family eat bbq'd bat as well as some interesting things done with eggs, some sort of scramble but still within the egg shell. I couldn't figure that one out.
Just spent a night in Vientienne and was pretty low key there. I have been a bit tired so saw a couple of the sites, the most holy site in Laos and a market or 2, in search of the new flip flops. Ran into some others from Vang Vieng ... all of us feeling pretty exhausted. Also realizing I will miss Lao and especially the SA-BAI-DEE (hello) everyone says to each other.

Some more Vang Vieng

2008-05-03T07:36:00.001-07:00

The first two photos were the view from the 'sala' of my guesthouse. The sala is the traditional lao gathering place, a kitchen/living room if you will. You would innocently go for a cup of great coffee in the morning and all of a sudden it was almost 1 (and no I wasn't getting up at 12:30 ... I had a friendly rooster that started at about 7). Eliza and John met up with me in Vang Vieng for a Seattle inspired Lao Float.

The Float, Lao Style

2008-05-03T07:32:00.000-07:00

These photos really represent the 3 days of floating that ensued. I just kept getting pulled into groups ... damn. It was a lot of fun though. Good music, fun rope swings, and of course a little drink here and there. Needless to say, not much happened in the evenings of these days. The last day, I have the said job to report that my dutiful Reef sandals met there match to either a stone or the current. Just like that, the right flop was rendered useless. It was a sad loss for me to deal with.

Vang Vieng, Laos

2008-05-03T07:28:00.001-07:00

Some activity during the first day of Vang Vieng. I had great intentions of rock climbing, however my incrediable guest house that had a way of sucking time and will out of you a the while enjoying good conversations with all the people and alternate activities seemed to make this not happen ... even though I was to stay here another 5 nights. The first photo is the blue lagoon, some phenomenal swimming in clear cool water ... something new and refreshing. Met a 65 year old woman traveling with her son. It is her first time out of the US. You can see her climbing out of the water on the bottom left after a go at the rope swing. Other are the most famous buckets of SE Asia and a fire dancer who must have been one of the travellers here in Vang Vieng.

To Vang Vieng, Lao

2008-05-03T07:25:00.000-07:00

The trip to Vang Vieng was a road full of hairpin turns and amazing views. I was able to snap a couple of photos without losing my camera out the window or an arm to an oncomming truck. Did see a couple of young boys flying down one of the hills on bicycles ... amazing they are still alive. Was glad the view was so incrediable since reading was not going to happen.

Trek out and Kayak down the Nam Song River

2008-05-03T07:21:00.000-07:00

In the morning we had a shorter trek out of the village, and some tastey food, beer, and of course some lao lao the night before. We then transfered to kayaks for a 4 hour trip back towards Luang Prabang. We saw some great scenery. We saw some people net fishing from the lao version of a long boat. We also saw families panning for gold. We stopped and observed them. Though we didn't see any nuggets, they were gettings some great gold dust.

Hillside Village Trek Outside Luang Prabang

2008-05-03T07:12:00.000-07:00

I had a really awesome overnight experience with 2 couples from New Zealand, and a Canadian. We started the first day with a 6 hour trek up through several villages. The lower elevation villages are considered Lao people, the mid elevation Khmu people, and the high elevation Mung People. Lao has more than 150 different ethnic minorities and these are the most common. Each village style is a bit different including house construction, language, dress, and daily life. I took loads of photos of children, though most or some were naked. So in addition to feeling like a voyeur, I didn't want to feel like I am posting child porn as well. We spent the night in a large Mung, Khmer mixed village (this is happening with the modernization of Lao). It had 600 people in it, 2 communal showers, and no official toilet facilities. We stayed in the chief's house of the Khmer village.

Lao New Year

2008-05-01T20:52:00.001-07:00

New Year was April 14-16 but seems to last forever. I crossed the river from the tourist area of Luang Prabang and ran into this New Year party and was invited over. Quite a friendly group. Only one guy spoke english but there was a lot of communication with hands. There was a lot of food, lao lao (local fire water) and beer. One such dish was a lettuce wrap with a whole fried fish in it. Miraculously I did not get sick from this. There was some loud music and karaoke. Part of the New Year tradition is to pour ice water on people and cover them with talcom powder. Quite a fun afternoon, even if I unintentionally got a bit tipsy around noon. Made me miss the waterfalls but hey, a better experience I suppose.

Luang Prabang, Laos

2008-05-01T20:49:00.000-07:00

Cool little town I have to say. Not much to do but just wander around. Really low key, which is a nice pace change from Vietnam. Quite a picturesque place. There is a photo of some rice paper drying, I think for spring rolls. I tried to get out of the main tourist area to get a bit of a better idea.

To explain the last photo, Lao is the most bombed country in the world. Of course it was by the US during the secret bombings of the Vietnam war. You see these bombs in many uses around Laos. This bomb shell is a flower pot stand in a temple.

Hanoi, Vietnam - The last day

2008-05-01T20:46:00.000-07:00

My last day in Vietnam. I went to visit the Masoleum of Ho Chi Minh. Kind of creepy but really interesting. Looking forward to Laos and I thought I would add a photo of the Lao Air plane.

Hanoi, Vietnam

2008-05-01T20:41:00.001-07:00

Back in Hanoi, here are some street scenes. One from the fruit shake street, quite tasty indeed. By the way, yum means horny in Vietnamese so try to remember that if you are ever here. The other is a Bia Hoi, which is a street restaurant that serves "fresh beer" at rediculously cheap prices. Usually they have good food as well. Pretty good people watching there as well as meeting place.

Last Day in Ha Long

2008-05-01T20:37:00.000-07:00

We went to go visit the AMAZING cave on our last morning. It wasn't terribly amazing, but quite large and was originally discovered by a French woman in the early 1900's. There are floating stores all over Ha Long Bay (well near the tourists). This woman was selling her fresh seafood, though I am not sure to whom. After that we headed back to Hanoi. I thought this picture of the guy with the chicks is pretty representative of Vietnamese traffic.

Ha Long Bay, Vietnam

2008-05-01T20:31:00.000-07:00

After the night on the beach, we headed back to the boat to spend the night, our last night on Ha Long Bay. Since Ha Long is a UNESCO site, the mooring is restricted so we had to share the bay with other boats, but still quite beautiful.

Cat Ong Beach Resort

2008-04-19T23:35:00.001-07:00

As part of the trip we got to spend a night on a private island in beach bungalows. The other option is in a hotel on Cat Ba Island, the largest. I was very glad to not be there and be in this peaceful tiny place with only 11 people and with phenomenal food! Listened to the waves all night. They have a crazy dog that loves rocks! Once you threw it for her you were hounded to play more. Met some a great Australian couple on this trip.

Floating Villages

2008-04-19T23:33:00.001-07:00

There are people that live on floating villages in Ha Long Bay. Only 1 of the 3000 islands is inhabited, the rest live in these villages. These may be the source of most of the garbage as they don't get a regular garbage service.

Ha Long Bay, Vietnam

2008-04-19T23:27:00.001-07:00

Another Unesco Heritage site. Amazing geographical formations, which no one really seems to know how. The pictures don't nearly do it justice. Unfortunately the water is quite polluted with plastic bags and garbage. Got to do some kayaking which was great. There are tons of boats on Halong Bay and luckily I went with a boat that is able to avoid the crowds. So there were only 7 of us kayaking. I have talked with others you said they were surrounded by hundreds of people.

Hanoi, Vietnam

2008-04-19T23:22:00.001-07:00

Finally I have arrived at Hanoi. The great trek northward is over. Two overnight buses and 4 cities in 3 days! I really like Hanoi, it is a city and doesn't appear as touristy as the cities I have been in previously. Seems a little more 'real'. I met up with John and Eliza here for some bia hoi (street draft beer, only about 30 cents) and some great food. I might meet up with them in Laos as well. Just a bunch of wandering around and taking in the sights.

Hue, Vietnam

2008-04-19T23:18:00.001-07:00

Like Na Tram, I was just in Hue only a couple of hours during a bus transfer. I visited the forbidden city in the imperial palace. Much of it was destroyed by US bombs during the Vietnam war. They are slowly working on trying to rebuild it. You can really see the Chinese influence. I didn't get the best feel for Hue, I didn't really like it but I was only there such a short time. I have met a bunch of people that seem to love it there.

China Beach

2008-04-19T22:49:00.000-07:00

Pretty beautiful beach. The water was much cooler than in the south which was nice. I just visited for two hours or so. Had my obligatory swim in the S. China Sea. The weather wasn't beautiful but still nice enough to lay around and read a book.

My Son Ruins

2008-04-19T22:45:00.001-07:00

We passed a bunch of school children getting out of school on the way to My Son. They can either go to morning school or afternoon school to allow enough time to help with the family business. At My Son we hiked out a bit and it really felt like we were in the middle of the jungle. Amazing! Including butterflies, and misc. bugs that we saw, there were tons of tunnel spiders around the ruins. Amazing webs.

Hoi An, Vietnam

2008-04-19T22:41:00.000-07:00

Hoi An is a World Heritage Unesco site, an old french colony. Many people go to Hoi An to have clothes made. The town was alright, I was expecting a bit more, but the food was amazing! I met an Australian guy who told me about some ruins close by. We took some motorbikes through the rice patties to get there. Definitely not as impressive as Angkor but great to get out in the middle of nowhere for a while. Hoi An is also at the southern edge of China beach which runs up to Danang. There are loads of resorts being built along the beach, it's amazing.

Na Tram, Vietnam

2008-04-19T22:36:00.000-07:00

I have been very surprised how developed and 'luxurious' Vietnam is (compared to Cambodia). Na Tram had a Miami Beach resort town feeling. I only had a couple of hours there waiting for a bus transfer but saw the beach and some of the town and went to the Mud Baths. I went in the communal bath and you sit in a tub of mud for about a half hour, then there is a mineral shower, then a hot bath, then you go to the pool which was at 38 degrees C. Crazy hot! It was pretty fun and ended up joining a group of guys who were vacationing from work. I think they worked on a boat from what I understood, which would have been fitting. Pretty funny guys and a bit perverted too.

Dalat, the Central Highlands

2008-04-15T02:35:00.001-07:00

So away from the hot sweaty beaches and into the highlands, where it is cool and you aren't sweating buckets. An amazing drive up into Dalat, mountainous jungles and winding roads. I took a motorbike tour of the country side. This area used to be a bunch of hillside villages but they grow coffee here and since the price of coffee has sky rocketed, everyone is wealthy and has villages. We saw a waterfall, silk worm factory, and some agricultural sights.

This is also the southern part of the Hoh Chi Minh trail, so a bit of war history here. It is also home of the 'Crazy House', a house that looks like it is out of Alice and Wonderland. Pretty cool, but my photos don't really capture it that well.

Mui Ne, Vietnam

2008-04-15T02:30:00.000-07:00

Left the hectic city and went off with Cherylle to the sleepy fishing beach side village of Mui Ne. Nice to relax and slow down for a day or two. The place was beautiful and had some awesome sand dunes nearby. Cherylle had meant a Hungarian guy named Georgie (?) who had been in Mui Ne for awhile learning to kite surf. He had a motorbike and took us around the sites. Funny story, we didn't want to pay the parking fee at the sand dunes so we parked outside the gate and walked in. When we went back at dusk, the bike's fuel tank had been drained and the bike wouldn't start. Knowing it was the parking guy, we got some help of some young Vietnamese guys who ran the food shacks at the dunes to teach us how to drain a tank. We "gained entry" into the parking guy's shack and got some fuel and replaced a helmet that was missing as well. The young guys helped us put our fuel system back together. All in all, pretty fun and educational!

And now Vietnam

2008-04-15T02:22:00.000-07:00

Going to have a quick trip through Vietnam. Only one night here in Saigon and then try to spend more time in places where I think I should. I met a British lady on the bus who has been teaching English in a village in Cambodia on the bus. We had similar quick trip plans. We went to the War memorial museum. Pretty depressing as you can imagine. It was shocking how bad the Americans were in that war, massacres, raping, etc. On a brighter side, a man having breakfast in the morning. And the post office, with a portrait of Ho Chi Menh in the background.

Still haven't left Phnom Penh

2008-04-15T02:20:00.001-07:00

So I am having some trouble leaving Cambodia. I really like it. Nice and laid back. So here are a couple more photos. Some of the old French colonial houses that were abandoned. Some dried fish that I thought actually looked quite beautiful. Finally, the family whose outdoor food stall I ate, really delicious!

Phnom Penh, Royal Palace

2008-04-15T02:16:00.000-07:00

The royal palace in Cambodia. I have to admit not as phenomenal as The royal palace in Thailand but pretty cool. A nice place to relax in the gardens. The royal family still lives on the grounds and uses these areas for official ceremonies.
There were some people playing some traditional Cambodian music. The brass drum style drums are really cool.

Rural Cambodia

2008-04-04T00:11:00.000-07:00

After several failed attempts to try to get to rural Cambodia without spending days and days at getting there I decided just to head back to Phnom Phen. I was hoping to be there on Friday for this apparently crazy Ex-Pat party that happened the first friday of every month. So tonight I should be meeting up with Emma and seeing how crazy this party is. However, I did pass through rural Cambodia on my trip between so I tried to capture it as best I could.

Siem Reap, Cambodia

2008-04-04T00:08:00.000-07:00

I toured Siem Reap a bit after my trips to Angkor. I didn't enjoy the town too much, very influenced by tourism and it was a little too much. I took a picture of on the outskirts of town and one in the main area of town. There is a nice slow river that moves through the city. Since I wasn't too excited about the city, I decided to leave a day early.

Ta Phrohm

2008-04-04T00:06:00.000-07:00

This temple/hospital was used in the first Lora Croft movie. An amazing temple with the jungle seeping in around it.

The Bayon, Angkor

2008-04-04T00:04:00.000-07:00

An amazing temple which I had all to myself in the morning. It has 54 towers and 216 faces of buddha carved into.

Angkor Wat, Cambodia

2008-04-03T23:58:00.001-07:00

I took a long slow bus to Siem Reap to visit the ancient city of Angkor. I went on a sunset tour and a sunrise tour. At sunset I climbed the Phnom Bakheong to watch the sunset and enjoy a beer. I ended up sitting next to a girl I had met in Diu, India 4 months earlier. She is still traveling and will be returning to Kashmir, India in May. I may see her in Laos. Ankgor Wat, the most famous ruin is an amazing and HUGE complex. Words can not accurately describe it. I met a 60 yr old German woman who invited me to her house in Germany if I should pass through. She had recognized me as the guy from Seattle, but had no clue where I had met her.

Tokyo, the dog

2008-04-03T23:57:00.001-07:00

Just an awesome dog of the Guesthouse Top Banana in Phnom Phen

S-21, Phnom Penh

2008-04-03T23:52:00.001-07:00

We next toured Security 21. This was originally a middle school, turned internment camp and execution base during the Pol Pot genocide in 1975 - 1979. During that time it is estimated that almost 3 million people were killed. The stories of torture and prisoner treatment are horrific. It was a solemn experience. A little background. Three brothers took over power in Cambodia to start a socialist movement. They wanted to destroy the cities and make everyone farmers. Security 21 was responsible for the security of brother 2 and brother 1. These prisoners were interrogated for the security of those brothers. Confessions were pre-written to condemn other citizens. As many as 100 people were killed a day in a place called the killing fields. Pol Pot refers to the Political Potential of the 3 brothers.

Phnom Penh, Cambodia

2008-04-03T23:48:00.001-07:00

My first stop in Cambodia was a stop at the capital. A friend from Argentina in my Spanish class has ended up here. I found a great guest house and met some great people from Denmark, Holland, and Germany. We tooled around together a bit. We found some more delectable looking insects, though this time it included spiders (the black ones on the right) and also some more temples with numerous Buddha statues.

Bangkok: Settling In

2008-03-29T06:01:00.001-07:00

From the last trips I have figured out that I don't entirely enjoy large cities when traveling, only when living there. Too much to try to figure out in a short time. That said I am looking forward to getting out of Dodge, but as all cities it's growing on me. Had a bit of frusterating day but it all worked out in the end. I saw the reclining budda, an enormous budda in a temple. I think it was 40m long. A huge complex around it. I got a little templed out today but went inside the Grand Palace which was just overwhelming. Everything was so large and so detailed. At a distance the buildings are quite beautiful and up close you see all the ornate detail that can not be seen from a distance. The last photo is a statue within the complex. There are too many photos that only give a glimpse of what is there. The photo on the right are two guys who just finished a chess game. It was a good one, but I bet I could have beaten them. Well, maybe not

Bangkok: Day 1

2008-03-29T05:51:00.000-07:00

After a long set of suprisingly good flights I finally arrived to the heat and all. I immediately met 2 guys from Seattle as well as we tried to figure out the bus system from the airport to the center of tourist town. I ain't gonna take no shuttle! So we got relatively close ... but still needed to take a taxi from where we arrived. Still between the 3 of us, A whole 3 dollars cheaper than the shuttle!

When I went looking for the things I forgot, a pen among other things, I found these in a 7-11 (which are everywhere and sadly the source of the cheapest water) Not really sure what they are but thought they were pretty interesting, especially the disposable part. Not really sure what that's all about. Did some bumming around and decide to wander a bit. I ran into a protest, which was interesting. I found out is was one party opposing the gathering of another party. I saw a royal procession, as the royal family left the Grand Palace. The police were upset I was intent on walking and eventually got me to stop. I finally understood what was going on, after the procession passed. Took a photo of the Grand Palace at night and some interesting street food that was offered.

Vadodara, India

2007-11-17T06:36:00.000-08:00

Well, the first week has flown by. But first a note. Of the 40 cables that work with my camera that I have at the house, none seem to have made it with me. Who packed these bags? I am on the fence on getting a new one to add to the collection, but I will see if I run into a cheap one. So for now, these will have to remain photo-less. I apologize.
Things have been great here. The reception at L&T has been stellar. I am working with some great people and it really has been a pleasure. I am in a cool hotel that is next to this big park. Every morning I wake up to the monkeys causing a rucus in the trees just opposite my windows. I have been running a couple of times in the park. There are many people out early in the morning.
India is amazing. The food for one has been so great! Everyone is so nice. People stop you on the street to say hello, where are you from, what is your name. Probably mostly to practice English, but Vadodara is a bit off the tourist track. The streets are insane but completely a controlled chaos. I don't think the 'Give 3 Feet' campaign would fly here. There really are no rules and you just go when you want. There aren't really lanes, you just honk and flash your lights and weave and try to avoid oncoming traffic. There are buses, trucks, cars, three wheelers (tuc-tucs), motor bikes, bicycles, pedestrians, cows, goats, and dogs ... in no particular order. There are few stop signs. The driver has been phenomenal. He is able to weave through the traffic like there almost isn't any. Leaving inches between us and a motorbike or cow. The U-turns are my favorite though (my new book title 'Learning to make a U-turn in India'). You just wait for a break, meaning about a 20 ft gap in traffic, honk like crazy and just slowly pull the U-turn forcing the oncoming traffic to stop.
We were taking to the center of the city today, which I had not seen yet and it was amazing. We just drove through today before Jay went to the airport. I can't wait to get back. It is the old walled part of the city. Old 4 story buildings, shops and vendors everywhere, wires all over the sky. I am planning on going there tomorrow to get some great photos.
Well out to explore some more. I hope this finds all of you well!

Santiago de Chile

2007-03-14T11:24:00.000-07:00

I unfortunately got really sick on my way to Santiago. I had a 13 hour night bus that I did get some sleep on, but not enough. I was pretty sure I was feverish by the time I arrived. I wasn't too happy then about getting on the subway during the morning rush hour and trying to find a place to stash my bag and myself, only 12 hours here. I don't think the morning commuters were too happy with me either. Found an amazing hostel in the Brasil neighborhood. It must have been quite a mansion at one point. It was huge with tons of public space, 2 courtyards, a huge kitchen, and a backyard with tiki bar and swimming pool. I was wishing I was staying longer. I felt horrible so I decided to go see the city ... you know the guilt of I am here I can't waste it. So I wandered around for a bit, slept in a really nice park for about an hour. I didn't really get to see much. There were places that looked interesting but felt they were too far for me to reach. I headed back to the hostel a bit early and found a couch to sleep on. And that was my sad Santiago adventure.

Puerto Varas

2007-03-13T11:08:00.000-07:00

A small and beautiful town by a huge lake, Lago Llanquihue. We found a dorm in the middle of town that fit us all, excpet for this one other guy who we didn't know ... poor guy. The weather was great so on a walk around the waterfront we ran into Reg and Grayson. Apparently Reg's friend is Douglas Tompkins, who owned Espirit clothing, and owns the largest private reserve in Chile, Paque Pumalin. The park is open to the public. We decided to meet up with Grayson and Reg later for dinner at a locals restaurant with some of his friends that work in the Administration of the park (headquartered in Puerto Varas). We lazed the rest of the day in the sun, on the rocks, next to the water. Great small, chilled out town.
Top: Ana and Bel on the rocks (sounds like a drink) Bottom: Bel wading in the lake.

Disembark in Puerto Montt

2007-03-12T11:00:00.000-07:00

That amazing PA system I mentioned earlier was working fine this morning, and even earlier than usual. The announcements began at 6:30 AM, beautiful indeed! It did give me the chance to get some nice pictures of Puerto Montt, a town I had not heard great things about. We were kicked off the boat at 9, graciously of course. I was surprisingly one of the last people off the boat and found the entire group of people we had been hanging out with hanging out on the docks. Cathryn was terribly sick so Cathryn and Claire were going to find a place in Puerto Montt for the day/night. Jon had gotten back on his motorcycle and was going to continue his journey. Reg and Grayson had to catch a flight back to the US after they dropped the kayaks they used at a friends. So Ana, Laure, Bel, Craig, Luc, Caroline, and I decided we would head to Puerta Varas, only about 20 minutes away from Puerto Montt and aparently incrediably nicer. We all swaped our email addresses and went our ways.

Last Night

2007-03-11T10:54:00.000-07:00

Apparently, people were a little partied out by the time the official boat party rolled around and it would be an early morning in Puerto Montt. There was "Patagonia Bingo" which is really just like normal bingo, but it was like watching bingo on Telemundo. I realize that people may not have watched much Spanish TV, but basically there is the bingo game, and then all of a sudden for some reason there is load music and dancing. Pretty funny to see. So I do suggest watching some of those talk shows. Bel and I were luckily picked to pass an apple back and forth between the nape of our necks. You will be happy to hear that we trounced the competition, 13 to 4. We got 2 bottles of wine for that, that's right. The picture shows a great Dutch couple I hung with a lot drinking some Donkey Juice, don't ask and never try!

Lazy Days

2007-03-10T10:36:00.000-08:00

Not much to do aboard the boat. The weather hasn't been particularly stupendous, much like the drizzly grey Northwest. But though that does mean that views and outdoor activities are a bit hampered, it does not mean that entertainment was at a low. These amazing people I have ended with are so fun and so funny. This picture of Jon was one of his not-so-rare moments. We have no idea what got into him at this point but he as well as us were all laughing so hard that tears were streaming down our cheeks.
We did hit some rough weather today, part of the entrance into the Penas Gulf and our section in the Pacific Ocean. We had to drop anchor for a couple hours to wait out a storm. Therefore we ended up making the transit at night. I decided to not take a sea sickness pill to see what would happen. There was one point where I thought I would get sick, but I was fine. I wish I could say the same for the rest of the boat. The bathrooms were definitely dangerous territory. Breakfast the next morning was pretty funny though. There were trays of food going everywhere. A particularly dangerous spot developed in the center of the room where numerous drinks had been spilled and created a slick lake. This poor Spanish guy fell with his whole tray of food on top of him, twice. The third time, he was escorted by the galley staff and the boat erupted in applause when he finally made it to his seat.

First Day

2007-03-09T20:08:00.000-08:00

This morning at 6 am I found out that the ship is equiped with an amazing loud PA system, that is used quite liberally. They announced our departure, three times. I decided I might as well go look at whats going on ... but all I found was darkness with some small lights here and there. Figuring that climatic event of departure could be better experienced in my bunk, I returned below. Later in the day we navigated through some narrow passages with some small islands.
There wasn't much to do than read, write, and hang out. I met a Dutch couple who were very fun and I was able to amaze them of my knowledge of dutch with the hello and goodbye I had learned last week in El Chalten. Shortly before dinner we found my two cabin mates. Reg and Grayson. Reg is a kayak guide from Ferndale, Wa and Grayson is a reporter for Outdoor Magazine. Reg had got a grant from Gore-Tex to kayak to a glacier that has never been reached before. This was his third attempt (first by kayak) and was successful. Super interesting guys and I now felt like I was lame kid in the cabin by quiting my job and traveling by such conventional means such as bus and plane.

I ate lunch with some of the Swedes and was informed of a costume party in the evening. I was quite surprised the extenses that the Swedish will go for a costume party, especially when backpacking. The lounge turned into quite a little party complete with DJ and dance floor. You can't get much better than a sexy Swedish Nurse.

A day of chores

2007-03-08T19:57:00.000-08:00

I took a bus back to Puerto Natales in Chile to catch the ferry. I had to check in by 9 PM, but got in to town on an early bus. I met a girl named Anna from Australia and we dropped off our laundry, caught up on emails, stocked up on supplies for the trip (aka cheaper drinks), lazed around in a coffee shop, and had a great fish dinner with the famous Pisco Sours. All in all a great day. They loaded us on the boat at around 9:30 PM. We walked out to the pier, our luggage had already been brought to our rooms, and walked on the stern ramp and took the cargo lift up to the main deck. I had been transfered out of the 16 bed cabin and into a 4 bed cabin. There is a group of 40 Swedes on board with us, so some last minute shuffling was necessary. I did not complain. On top of that, two of my cabin members would be picked up half way ... from kayaks. I met my first cabin mate, Jon. He is 58, from Luxenbourg, married to a woman afraid of flying, and motorcycling around South America for several months. Needless to say, a pretty cool guy. I ran into the people I had met before, Laure, Bel, and Craig as well. After a bit of exploring we all headed up to the lounge for some entertainment. There we met two girls from England Cathryn and Claire and two Frenchies as we called them, Caroline and Luc. Somehow I ended up with in the noisy group who was being asked to go to bed. I have no idea how that happened. Photos: Caroline, Craig, and Bel ... Bel and Laure.

On the road again

2007-03-07T19:50:00.000-08:00

The calendar dictates that I have to return to El Calafate. I don't like schedules, but must admit that I am excited for the ferry trip. I headed back early in the morning so I could visit the Portito Moreno glacier in the afternoon. It is spectacular. Apart from being just enormous, there are pieces that drop of quite regularly. The noise is quite spectacular. The smallest pieces (or at lease percieved as small) make loud sounds. I got to see an entire slab the full height of the glacier, 30 meters, fall into the the lake. It was interesting becuase it sheared off vertically and slid down into the water. As it slid, the piece fell away from the glacier creating a huge wave as it hit the water at an odd angle. With such great momentum, the whole piece submerged itself for a while and then came shooting back up in two pieces. Quite a dramatic display. The first photo is a pit stop between El Chalten and El Calafate.

Cerro Fitz Roy

2007-03-06T19:30:00.000-08:00

The hike to Mt. Fitz Roy is an all day hike. We again had beautiful weather for it. The hike gave us some great views of the geological features that glaciers create, look mom I am learning something! Of course, all of the names are spanish names. The first picture shows the valley created by glaciers that have receded long ago. In the distance you can see where the head of the glaciers were. As the glaciers moved (snow compacting and becoming ice in the mountains advances the glacier below) they carved these valleys. The silt that filtered out of the ice and remained from the rock being carved creates a flat fertile land in the valley. The receded glaciers form morrones, which is a ring of smaller rock built up usually around a glacier lake. These are deposited as the rock is scoured by the glacier and carried to the lake where it is deposited. Thats the end of class today kids. This second picture is Mt. Fitz Roy ... amazing!

El Chalten

2007-03-05T19:22:00.000-08:00

Having a set time to be back to Puerto Natales dictacted my schedule, so I figured it would be best to get to El Chalten first, before returning to the other glacier outside of El Calafate. I met two people on the bus from the Netherlands, Bert and Natalie. We looked for cheap accomodations together and found one place that was slightly resonable. We got some food and took off together to do some hiking. El Chalten is inside Parque Nacional Los Glaciares. The town is all dirt roads and just a hodge podge of buildings. However, a development that looked like it should belong in some US suburb was being constructed ... paved roads and all. The afternoon hike we chose was up to Lago Torre, where you can see the tall spires Torre, Egger, and Standhardt (left to right). The glacier to the left is Glaciar Grande.

Tourist Hell

2007-03-04T19:15:00.000-08:00

With lack of good judgement I booked a tour on Lago Argentina (largest lake wholly in Argentina) that toured 5 glaciers. We left pretty early in the morning for the boat and found myself like cattle being ushered onto a catamaran boat that held around 200 people, and it was full. Not my best idea. I did get to see some great sights: a huge condor with it's chick in their nest, some impressive iceburgs, and some amazing glaciers. I did meet some pretty cool people as well. We ended up meeting for dinner and had a pretty good time. We laughed almost all the way through dinner.

Back to Argentina

2007-03-03T19:10:00.000-08:00

I returned to Argentina today, to see the Portito Moreno glacier and Mt. Fitzroy before I headed on my boat trip. I took a bus to El Calafate, a town that reminds me of Whistler when it started to be up and coming. There is a pretty touristy main st. with trendy bars, cafes, and shops but two blocks off the main road and you will be on a dirt road. A lot of construction of large and grand hotels. Pretty weird, but seems to be a common theme in Patagonia. I met a girl on the bus from Austria, who was learning spanish and starting college courses in Santiago. I think I would be pretty intimated to start an MBA without being pretty fluent. Here is a picture from Puerto Natales last night, something about El Calafate didn't inspire me to take many photos.

Last day of the W

2007-03-02T17:49:00.000-08:00

An amazing day today, beautiful weather ... amazing views ... I think I will let the pictures speak for themselves.

When we got back, Andy, Steve, I, and some others went out in Perto Natales ... as much as one can go out. Steve being a bit of a techno freak found a club to go to. I think we were the only ones older than 15, but we were the only foriegners ... it was a good time.

Lago Grey

2007-03-01T17:44:00.000-08:00

We got up early to hike up into the French Valley. Again the snow came last night and again we had a bit of a cold night ... though a bit improved from the first. We saw an avalanche as we passed the French Glacier which was an amazing site. We hiked on to Lago Grey today, a long day. The weather seemed to repeat a bit of yesterdays craziness and we got some good views back on the French Valley. We took a break at Albergue Pehoe to rest and then forged on to Albergue Grey, getting to camp at about 6pm. We ran into Moritz from Germany who had been at all the same campsites as us again. I am surprised how social this trail is. You get there knowing no one adn by the 3rd day you feel like you know so many people. Incrediable. Tomorrow is our last day and we have to be back at Pehoe for the noon ferry to get us back to the buses to Puerto Natales.

Valles de Frances

2007-02-28T17:37:00.000-08:00

Hiked up to the Torres again this morning for sunrise and it was good that I had hiked last night. The clouds and snow were so thick, you could not see anything. I met quite a few number of people up there as we waited in hope that the torres would majestically appear, but unfortunately we just could not will it to happen. We also had a short discussion how everyone had froze the night before, I was glad not to be alone on that one. I had the same route and timetable as these two guys from the UK, Steve and Andy and so ended up hiking to the next place together, Campiemento Italiano. The hike was crazy weather wise. We started with snow, descended into light rain, then into beautiful hot sunny weather, then incrediable winds, driving rain, then back to high winds. They say the weather changes quickly in Patagonia ... though I don't really believe that. Had some amazing views as we hiked along the glacier lakes. Most of the mountains hid from us in the clouds.

Torres del Paine

2007-02-27T17:32:00.000-08:00

So the morning was mostly a travel day. Started hiking around 11:30 if I can remember properly. Even though the weather was a bit cloudy I decided to start with the Torres side of the "W" anyway. I hiked up to Campiemento Torres, setting up camp around 2:30. I took a nap, which was great and hiked up to the Torres around 6. Still at bit socked in, but a good view anyways. Decided to keep to myself tonight and try to get as much rest as possible.

Puerto Natales

2007-02-26T17:25:00.000-08:00

Nothing too exciting to say, ready to leave Punta Arenas ... 2 days is enough. If I had more time, there seems to be some good hiking around. This is an idea of what it looks like in between towns when you are not on the coast. The exciting news is that I was able to arrange a "trek" (apparently you can't call it a hike in Patagonia) through Parque Nacional Torres del Paine in a couple of hours, so I will get 4 days! Leave tomorrow at 7 am. Over my head ... possibly.

And Finally ... Penguins

2007-02-25T17:18:00.000-08:00

I went to a park Seno Otoway to see the local penguin population. It was a bit weird because there was no snow or ice burgs. Just rocky beack and grass. Quite not what you think of when you think penguin habitat. It was really neat to see them in their natural environment though. There were penguin trails in the grass where they had stamped down the grass, they had burrows in the soft peat. You could also see how incrediably social they are.

To Chile

2007-02-24T17:13:00.000-08:00

Today I took a day bus to Punta Arenas, Chile. Met a cool girl from the UK on the bus named Nic that had been camping in Ushuaia for the past week. She was headed to another town Puerto Natales though. Punta Arenas is another pretty small town, with less going on that Ushuaia. Not that less going on is bad. An interesting town as it used to be quite wealthy but is no longer. Has some impressive old buildings. I met an Isreali on the bus, Jacob, who I ended up hanging out with for a bit. Oh yea, and I crossed the Straits of Magellan today ... crazy stuff.

Parque Nacional Tierra del Fuego

2007-02-23T17:06:00.000-08:00

One of the reasons that people go to Ushuaia, besides to say that they have been to the Southern most city in the world (though Chile has a claim as well) is to visit the park Tierra del Fuego. I couldn't figure out why they called it the Land of Fire but it was an impressive park. To cut costs I decided to try to hike as much as I could in one day and avoid the park transfers fees and entrance fees for 2 days. The most memorable hike was a hike up Cerro Guanaco. You hike to the peak and have a full 360 degree view of the surrounding park, glacier lakes, and Beagle Channel. Quite amazing. I met a couple from NYC up there and we talked about why Americans don't seem to travel like the Brits or Aussies. I figured careers and homes, but seemed to meet enough Americans of all ages who were traveling for extended periods of time. However, one thing that I found in common is that we all had quit our jobs. Hmmm.

Beagle Channel

2007-02-22T17:01:00.000-08:00

Did the tourist thing, as you are obliged to do from time to time and took a boat tour of the islands of the Beagle Channel, mating grounds for Commorants, Sea Lions, penguins, and other animals. I skipped the pricey los pinguinos tour and went for the standard island tour. Landed in a small boat with only 9 people on it which was really nice. This is one of the islands with the Commorants. They use feces, feathers, and sticks to build their nests which you can see in the foreground. That gives a great scent to the islands when you are downwind. We also stopped at an island where the Llamans (native people of Tierra del Fuego) lived. It was amazingly windy and unimaginable that people could live in such an environment.

Laguna Margot

2007-02-21T16:56:00.000-08:00

Hiked up to another spot just outside of town. Got some great views over the Beagle Channel. The weather has been a bit rainy but not too bad, similar to the Seattle drizzle. The lake was pretty unimpressive, but the surrounding landscape quite amazing.

Fin Del Mundo

2007-02-20T16:53:00.000-08:00

Ushuaia is a pretty interesting town. Quite a bit bigger than I thought it would be. A good number of cruise ships that go to Antartica call this home port. Paul Allen came into Ushuaia yesterday as well after a couple weeks in Antartica. You can see his little boat dwarfing the cruise ship next to it for the plan folk willing to shell out $10,000 for an 8 day trip. Incredible! Went for a hike to the Morenito Glacier, if you can call it that. Its not worth a photo, really sad actually. However, the hike was great and they had an interpretive trail that was actually quite good.

Chillin

2007-02-19T16:42:00.000-08:00

Just been laying low the passed couple of days. My friends didn't have to work on Friday so we just have been laying low and hanging out. Been exploring Palermo, the barrio they are living in, a bit. Its the hip trendy neighborhood right now, but is enormous. Went to the market in Recoletta on Saturday for a little bit, and then to the market in San Telmo on Sunday. It was crazy blocked in San Telmo, I hadn't seen that many people on the street in a long time. Though the weather might have been a factor as it was the first sunny day in a couple days. I stopped by the local farmers market, but didn't end up getting anything. Tomorrow ... Ushuaia!

Back in Bs As

2007-02-15T16:36:00.000-08:00

Landed back in Argentina around noon today. I had made arrangements to stay with my Italian friends who had an apartment. I was looking forward to something homey. Lousia and Stefy were at work so luckily Carlo (Stefy's boyfriend visiting from Sicily) was around to let me in. They had just gotten back from a 10 day trip in Bolivia and were wiped out so we laid low for a bit. Italian home cooking was on the menu for dinner. Here is a picture of making some pizza! It was great to watch ... and try to learn as much as possible.

9 Hours in Miami

2007-02-14T16:29:00.000-08:00

I had never been to Miami before so I decided that even though I love the airport so much, I would venture out into the world and see what was there. I had some errands to run downtown so I started there. I have to say I wasn't too impressed. Seemed like a pretty dead core, but I just randomly chose a place and went there. So I am pretty sure I missed some things. I definitely ended in an odd area of town. After spending way too much time trying to complete the things I wanted to in my short touch down in the US, I decided to splurge on the cab fare and go out to South Beach. Out of all the people I polled before going to Miami, South Beach was the one thing I was told I could go see in under a day. The sights were pretty cool, though I didn't really have the time or the money to enjoy it properly. It is pretty amazing what people have done to all these retro buildings though.

Bermuda, Bahama, Come on Pretty Mama

2007-02-13T14:44:00.000-08:00

Quite a contrast, but I guess it was a welcome one. Obviously the Bahamas are pretty sedate. It poured when I arrived, but I did get a couple of hours of sunshine to spend at the beach. It was a little sick, as I was a bit news starved, I picked up the paper and saw that the lead story was Anna Nicole Smith. I admit that I was a bit shocked to read that she died, but the subsequent media frenzy seemed to be a bit too much. I was treated with some American TV and as I flipped passed the news channels it seemed that she was in control of the headlines, well except on the BBC. I have to admit I did enjoy watching some of the TV shows I used to watch.

Day 4

2007-02-11T14:42:00.000-08:00

The city is really beautiful. Most of the buildings are either of a classical or art deco style. Most buildings are delapidated, but the government has been restoring buildings in the tourist center. This is a view at night, they have quite beautiful lighting on these buildings that capture their architecture. The tower in the background is part of a new museum that has not been finished yet. An interesting mix of modern and classic architecture.

Day 3

2007-02-10T14:40:00.000-08:00

These basically explain themselves. The markets here are pretty impressive. This picture was taken at one of the larger markets held inside a large building. This was a little outside of the city center and more representative of daily life.

Day 2

2007-02-09T14:37:00.000-08:00

People do seem generally happy here, amongst themselves. Which is amazing given the lack of things provided for them. I can understand an animosity towards the tourists as the government has provided Mercedes and Puegot taxis for them, while the rations the common citizens recieve are much too little.
The old car culture, which is basically forced, is definitely alive. Its great to see such pride.

Day 1

2007-02-08T14:33:00.000-08:00

The graffiti was incredible here. I guess I should start with a general overview. It was amazing, difficult, inspiring, saddening, friendly, cold, and frusterating all at the same time. I really enjoyed my time but was actually ready to move on. I did wish I could have gotten out of the city, but time did not permit.
Dominos is big, as most of the caribbean. We found these gentlemen in an odd 3rd floor courtyard with a bar that was above what seemed to be a music academy.

End of Guatemala

2007-02-07T12:32:00.000-08:00

Have had a great time here. I highly suggest it. It still is a bit dangerous I guess I will say. I have heard stories, but you always hear stories. Really enjoyed the environment, the people, and the travelers here. Have to sign off now and will hopefully update this soon ... but this takes a lot of time! :)

This is the couple from Portland, my last nights drinks ... Happy Hour 2 for 1!

Tikal

2007-02-06T12:23:00.000-08:00

Tikal is amazing and HUGE. Not really sure what to say about the ruins except that they are massive and when you climb them you get amazing views of the surrounding jungle. I met a group from the Sierra Nevada Club who showed me some Tucans and Parrots through their binoculars. They were specific kinds, but beyond my knowledge. Also saw some Howler Monkey wandering around, which sound like lions. I took some video so hopefully the sound comes out. I spent the night up here in a hammack ... was pretty cool with all the jungle noise around you. It was a bit colder than I thought it would be.

Flores

2007-02-04T12:17:00.000-08:00

Flores, not much happening here but a jump off point to see the ruins in Tikal. A really sweet hostel called Los Amigos is where I stayed. Very homey. I ran into some people from Portland that I met in San Marcus here. A cool couple. The town is situated on an island, the another town Santa Elena just across a short bridge.

Amazed!

2007-02-04T12:09:00.000-08:00

Though I would share this with you, found these in a tienda in Coban ... crazy how far these puppies make it!

Semuc Champey

2007-02-03T12:11:00.000-08:00

A crazy Natural wonder in Semuc Champey. The river disappears into a 300 m long tunnel. But other tributaries flow on top of this tunnel into these limestone pools. Amazing waterfalls, water, all of it. The water is super clear and pretty warm. I was more expecting seattle style rivers but this is much warmer. A beautiful, beautiful place

Coban, Coffee

2007-02-02T12:02:00.000-08:00

Took a coffee plantation tour while I was here so you all know what goes into that cup of joe sitting in front of you. On the left there is a flower, to the right the berry. The berry is hand picked and then the seed (the coffee bean) is shelled out by machined. It is then soaked for a while to get the sweetness of the berry out. Then a selection based on density is done (with water as the medium) and the good beans are dried, needing to be raked every hour. A final hand selection is done for the best beans to be exported.

Lago de Atitlan, San Pedro

2007-01-29T11:42:00.000-08:00

Lago de Atitlan is amazing. Beautiful, peaceful, and full of a bunch of great people. In addition, its super cheap! So these pictures arent really from San Pedro, they are from San Marcus ... both on the lake. San Pedro is a bit cheaper and more of a party town as chill party towns go. Its touristy, but all the tourists are in one part of the town and the town itself is actually up a steep hill. So it seems different. There was a phenomal cafe there, where the guy got local beans, roasted them himself and made one of the better lattes I have ever had ... all for about $1.15. I ended up staying 4 days total here. Two days with Lars (on the right) and two days with Nina and Daniel (left, Daniel not shown) The second two days were in San Marcus, supposedly having magical powers. So you can guess the kind of people were there. A bunch of holistic centers and the such. But there was some great swimming off some rocks there.

The Market at Chichi

2007-01-28T11:35:00.000-08:00

The Chichi market was pretty cool ... in a town called Chichicastenango. There is a huge market there on Thursdays and Sundays, everything you cold ever want. I ended up getting a couple of things. Bargaining here was pretty fun. Only spent a couple hours here but there was plenty to see!

Volcano Pacaya

2007-01-27T11:16:00.000-08:00

So this program isnt the best for pictures but trying my best! This is Volcano Pacayo, about an hour and a half outside of Antigua. The last large erruption was 9 months ago. We hiked up to the top and walked on the lava flow. It was amazing the heat that it puts out, some peoples shoes were melting. Then we spoted a huge flow shown on the right and we hiked further into the flow to get a better look at it. The guides weren´t too happy about it, but it was a new flow so they were excited as well. Pretty cool and pretty crazy to think that you are standing a foot or two away from flowing lava!

Antigua, Guatemala

2007-01-27T11:09:00.000-08:00

Antigua is a nice town. Its pretty touristy but a cool place to meet backpackers. Within 30 minutes of arriving I was having dinner with another girl from Seattle. I swear ... Seattlites are everywhere. We ended up partying with one of the bartenders, this is the view from his house ... AMAZING. I ended up meeting the people that I essentially traveled with for the rest of my time in Guatemala here.

Guatemala City

2007-01-25T11:02:00.000-08:00

Hey everyone, so Guatemala City is a bit of a hole, no offense to anyone out there. Its got its benefits but not much going o

n around. Actually most tourist avoid it like the plague. Its got some cool things to do. Weirdly, there is a section of town Zona 10 or Zona Vida that feels like California to me. Bunch of gringos, hotels, nice open air restaurants. Though there are two cops with shotguns per corner so perhaps thats why all the foriegners congregate there. Just a bit of a weird experience.

Seattle Sculpture Park

2007-01-24T18:22:00.000-08:00

The Seattle Sculpture Park opened the weekend before I left, so I went to check it out. Pretty cool! It makes Seattle seem a little more metropolitan. I had a nice day and it was so great to see so many people out and about in the park. Here are some sculptures that I liked. I have to admit that I didn't take as much time as I should have, as I typically waited until the last minute.

Sweet, Sweet Crystal

2007-01-20T18:15:00.000-08:00

Spent the night at Crystal and visited the great Snorting Elk bar with my friend Chris. What a great place. We got some great runs in at North Back. I went back the next day and continued on North Back with Charlie, Dara, Susan, and Erich. Had some great ski days while I was back. Here is a shot of Mt. Rainer to the left, and my friend Chris on Brand X to the right.

Back to da 206!

2007-01-11T18:12:00.000-08:00

Its snowing here! I was pretty excited that my first winter day actually included snow. How lucky and unusual for Seattle. In keeping with my vacation style I spent my first day having a long lunch at Salumi including a couple glasses of wine, then heading to Zeitgeist for a nice latte and a bit of dessert. That pretty much took up my whole day. A photo to be posted soon.

Nassau

2007-01-09T17:53:00.000-08:00

Nassau was a great time, some highlights include breaking in, well maybe that is a strong conotation more of a wandering into the Atlantis resort and the Compass Resort. We rented a car one day and felt really old. We went around the island and had lunch in this tiny town on the South West shore. We also "wandered" into an abandoned mansion that was on the South East shore. The most details we could get out of any one was that it was just unliked and the owner had not been there for about 10 years.

The Honeymoon Begins

2007-01-06T17:48:00.000-08:00

We spent our first day of our honeymoon going to Treasure Cay, one of the top ten beaches in the world, according to someone. Darci's scooter's seat hatch broke, in which the gas tank was contained. Some local help was recruited to pry into it. It was pretty funny. On the right is the beach, we didnt feel it was top 10 material, but neither of us decided that we had much authority on the issue.

Our Last Day

2007-01-05T17:35:00.000-08:00

Our sad last day on the sailboat. We had some great sailing. It was a great windy day and was a beautiful day. We really lucked out over the week with weather and it turned out to be a great week to sail. We met some pretty cool people and had some pretty crazy nights. The days too ended up being a bit crazy.

The Wedding

2007-01-03T17:27:00.000-08:00

The wedding ceremony was a beautiful day. We were married by Capitan Tad just off of Spoil Bank Cay. The Maid of Honor, Photographer, and Wedding Planner did a great job making our day a special one. Unfortunately, our song 'Its only just begun' wasn't able to be played.

Great Guana Cay

2007-01-02T17:19:00.000-08:00

We sailed back south to Great Guana Cay to partake is some fun at Nippers, get a bit nipped at Nippers. I don't that is official, but it should be. The Nippers Freeze is pretty deadly. The town on Great Guana Cay in tiny, only one real road. We met some great people at Nippers and infromed them that Stephvyn and Darci were going to be merried the next day. Stephvyn and Darci are pictured on the left. Aren't they a great couple.

Green Turtle Cay

2007-01-01T17:11:00.000-08:00

We sailed to Settlement Harbor to partake in part of their New Year's Day Junkanoo celebration. Had some great food, including Guava Duff. A bread with guava in it that is sliced and drizzled with a guava sauce. It was great. Afterwards, we ended up at the Pineaple Bar. Here is Tad, getting a little excited at the bar. There we met a guy named Mitch from Chicago who ended up picking up our tab. Pretty nice of him but we slipped him some cash, no where near enough though.

New Years Junkanoo

2006-12-31T16:59:00.000-08:00

These are some of the only respectable pictures from the evening. We spent the night at the only bar in Hope Town, well that was celebrating New Years. It was a great time with a bunch of random people and some great dancing stylings of my cousin! After the fireworks, the Junkanoo parade started. It processed all throught the town, which isn't that large, and everyone joins in. The official members are dressed very colorfully and there are drummers and people with bells.

Hope Town

2006-12-31T16:54:00.000-08:00

We sailed to Hope Town for New Years on Man 'O War Cay. A small little town, with a very protected Harbor. This is the Hope Town lighthouse. We pulled into the harbor in the afternoon and got ready for new years. Most of the restaurants were closed or rediculously expensive, so we got some take out food from a small hole in the wall called Munchies and ate our food on one of the harborside decks of the closed restaurant. It was actually quite perfect, nice setting and we were by ourselves.

Tilloo Cay

2006-12-30T16:44:00.000-08:00

That small speck is our sailboat. We anchored overnight off Tilloo Cay and hiked on the island. We were about a days sail from Marsh Harbor. We spent a quiet night there surrounded by no one. It was fantastic! The other picture is of the sunrise, over Tilloo Cay in the morning.

Marsh Harbor, Great Abaco, Bahamas

2006-12-29T16:39:00.000-08:00

Well I recieved a pretty great welcome to the Marsh Harbor when I arrived; a scooter with an enclosed bar. Ironically Joelle and I had the same flight from Florida (I had a short stint in the US) and Tad met us at the Airport. The weather was perfect when I landed. Unfortunately, mi prima, Kristin was delayed and will come in tomorrow, when we set sail for the Abaco Sea.

Leaving Buenos Aires

2006-12-28T18:00:00.000-08:00

It seems a bit weird to leave. I am ready to get out of the heat, but excited to return as well. I have made some good friends here and some will still be there when I return. I am looking forward to some time on the water. One thing I havent talked about yet is that there are people who are called 'The Cardboarders'. They come out at night, families and groups, around 11 PM to sift through the garbarge put out on the street. They take out all the valuable recyclables: cardboard, paper, and glass. Then in the morning the garbarge workers come out and repile the garbage for collection. Its a pretty interesting process. And here is a picture that has nothing to do with that, but I like it. It's in the neighborhood San Telmo.

Reorganization

2006-12-27T09:19:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas everyone! I have to admit it does not feel like the christmas season at all to me. Its hot, there wasn't too much decoration or christmas music, and its just not that big of a deal down here. I joined the ranks of many of travellers who has had their stuff stolen ... camera and phone. But not too broken over it. I had recently downloaded my photos so I only lost a few. I took them out with me at night ... which was just a dumn idea anyway.
I have decided that no plan plan is the the way for me to travel. Some semblence of planning is required for the simple fact that if everything is done on a whim then all of my budget will be spent on the last minute airline tickets. So I have decided to come home for a couple weeks are rearrange things ... which I admit feels a bit lame, but ultimately I think it will lead to a better experience for me. Being down here for 6 weeks has allowed me to learn a lot about South America and what I want to do. I already have a ticket to return to Buenos Aires mid february from the Caribbean ... might try to add a cruise in there (thanks for the suggestion dimps). So my unresearched plan for now is to go to Ushuaia (the most souther city in the world). A quick trip to El Calafate to visit the Glaciers and back to Ushuaia. From there you can go to Antarctica but that cruise costs $3,000. A cheaper option that I think I will go on is a $300 trip through the fjords or Southern Chile. This leads me to Puerto Monte and from there back to Argentina and the lakes district. Make my way through Argentina to Mendoza, then back to Chile to Santiago where I hope to make a stop at Easter Island. Continue up through Northern Chile to Bolivia, Peru, and Equador. I have heard good things about all of these and would like to visit the Gallapagos. I didn't bring a South America travel guide with me, which was brilliant so will have to start doing my research when I meet up with my cousin in the Bahamas, who is graciously bring it with her. Now that I know what I will be doing I will have a better idea what I will be needed and can dump a lot of my stuff.
There are some benefits to this as well, leaving the hot sweaty heat of BsAs and avoiding the crazy crowds in Patagonia. And of course I have been crazy jealous of the phenomenal skiing that you have been enjoying back in the Northwest. Consider yourself very lucky as Europe has not had any good snow. (I looked into that). So I guess that means I will be seeing some of you earlier than I anticipated, but I will be focusing mainly on skiing, studying my spanish, and planning my trip ... no messing around ... well maybe a little.

Schools Out For Summer

2006-12-22T14:13:00.000-08:00

Last day of school today! Phenomenal. I am definitely ready to be done. I didn´t realize how much time it would take out of my day. The usual day was class 9 until 1:30, go out for lunch afterwards till about 4, if I went to see something it would be until 6 or 8. Dinner at 9, then get ready to go out at 12. The days flew by. Its been great though. I am looking forward to all this new information slowly solidifying over the next couple of weeks. And actually having time to review. Things are starting to become clear to me and I am able to at least convey what I am trying to albeit in really broken spanish.
Claire got into town this week, a friend I met when I was travelling 6 years ago. I haven´t seen her in 4 and its great to get back together. We partied in a crazy hotel room last night, one of her friends from this trip had the presidential suite at the Sheraton ... crazy. It was great to finally get above the city to see some of the views. It ended up being a bit of a rough night. But met some great people from Amsterdam.
I can´t believe Christmas is this weekend, it doesn´t feel like it at all. Its my first hot Christmas and Argentinians don´t go as crazy as we do ... or at least in the same way. Christmas Eve is one of the biggest party nights. People generally eat with their family, then go out partying all night. They sleep in on Christmas day and then have another dinner with family.
Well I had a bunch more earlier but the program crashed and I lost it ... so its gone and lost forever now.

Things Fall Apart

2006-12-20T10:58:00.000-08:00

My highschool lit. teacher would be so proud that I remember that book, or not. Well for those of you that know my decision making process, this isnt too hard to envision, but for those who don´t let me explain. I am somewhat incapable of making decisions ... the bigger ones. What to eat, I can handle. Anything larger than that and my brain gets too confused with too many options. (Have you read the book Paradox of Choice ... interesting read) Coming down here with no plan, I landed in Bs.As. and only had to find a hostel and find a school. Easy. However as the weeks progressed (and the weather got hotter and sweatier) I realized that soon I should leave BsAs and needed to at least start thinking about it. The Southern Argentina is nice this time of year, but really crowded as everyone who can leaves the heat of the city and heads to cooler climates. Uruguay was an option as well, but still hot and couldn´t find accomodation for New Years Eve. Bolivia has a cool climate because of its altitude, but its the rainy season there (Jan/Feb). So I have annoyed many a people in the past couple weeks trying to figure out what to do to escape the South American heat. Well, I have ended up buying a ticket to the Bahamas to meet my Cousin and Joelle for New Years and a bit of a sail. I have a return ticket to Bs.As on February 14 so I have about 6 weeks in the Caribbean. Complete departure from original idea but that is the point of making it up as you go along I guess. Though its nice to do that ... the cost and stress involved was a little much. I decided I don´t like plane tickets too much. It should be more like train stations where you just show up and hop on. So I think I am giving up the idea of a round the world trip for now. I realized that not having plane tickets really stressed me out and not having a general plan really stressed me out. Since you have to buy a plane ticket at least a month in advance so you don´t pay an exorborant amount of money that means that you need to decide where you want to go, how long you think it will take, where you think you will end up. A little intimidating when your actual flight date is creeping up on you. So I have spoken with other people about their flights and the Oneworld Alliance around the world ticket requires that you book your cities and dates when you book, but you can change your dates for free and its 125 to change your city. So I have realized that I want to do some planning for that trip but that requires me to come home (a tempting idea with all the snow that is falling in the mountains!). I am not ready to come home (well for more than maybe a 2 week ski trip) and spend time planning so I will continue only with South American which is completely doable by bus. I will rondevous with a travel guide (oh yea and my cousin) in the bahamas that covers South America so I can plan a bit for that trip. But I am estimting now a month in Patagonia, couple weeks in Chile (perhaps more in the north), a month in Bolivia, Peru, and Ecuador. I have made some friends who have been or are from Columbia and have heard some great things about Bogota ... but not too sure, its a bit sketchy. So thats my new plan ... but I usually have a new plan every day ... but at least this plan includes tickets.

Americanata

2006-12-18T15:01:00.000-08:00

Americanata is a word that the Italians use to describe things that can only be American ... the best example I can give is in movies. When things that aren´t logical happen just to basically improve the plot. Its been a pretty fun word to throw around. I have used it a couple times when I have seem some obvious American tourist pass by or attempt to communicate with the locals, by which I mean no attempt at all.
On the topic of Americans, I have asked several people I have met about their view of us. This has mainly been Europeans, South Americans, and Australians. I thought I would pass on the review and it isn´t too good. The worst I have heard are: we are viewed as believing we are open minded but in actuality close minded, we are war mongering continually in a ¨conflict¨with someone, and the worst I think is that Americans were likened to German citizens during Nazi Germany. The public ruled with fear so that the general population goes along with the flow. Pretty sad picture but of course this has only been a small population of people. And of course the conversation always involves that this is just the impression and not really a reflection of every American and everyone has been very nice. I guess it just puts things in a bit of perspective.
My last week of class started. I am a little excited. I completely underestimated how much of my day would be absorbed by class. When I go out to lunch with someone from class, which has been quite frequent, I usually am moving on to my next thing around 4 pm. I am ready not to be in class during the day. This week we did get some new students, two Americans (Austin and New York) and a girl from France. We have been studying a lot of grammer and it is fortunately starting to make a bit of sense. Still haven´t really done any studying though ... too busy. I am sure I will get to it ... at some point.