Mexico, A Divers Journey Through Central America, Continued

We have a post coming out at the TravelExperta today about our time visiting Tikal in Guatemala. We aren’t lying when we say that it is our favorite ruin in the world. We wrote about Tikal in an earlier post about our Favorite Ruins of the World back in May.

I started thinking about how I really need to visit Central America again in the near future. I love the energy there.  The music, the food, the people and the scenery. We didn’t get to spend a lot of time in Guatemala, we had only just entered the country and made it to Flores and Tikal when we received and email for Dave to come home and work. We never have work in January, but that year, Dave had a very big feature film that started in the middle of winter and we were back home in the freezing cold after spending a couple of months in tropical paradise.

We haven’t made it back and we really would like to.

So, to keep the theme of the day to accompany our post at the Travel Experta, I think that we will take a trip down memory lane to Mexico.

Dave and Deb in Cozumel

Mexico has been getting a lot of bad press here in Canada lately. Crime, violence, fear. It is all over the news. But we found it to be very safe and friendly. We aren’t huge par-tiers, so we weren’t at the nightclubs every night, but we did start our trip on a package tour so we could have been targets, but we found everyone to be friendly and welcoming. People are the same all over the world, most are good and true while only a small few cause problems. The media has certainly latched onto talking about crime in Mexico lately, are any of you in Mexico now and what is the situation like regarding crime against tourists?

our dive boat

When we took our trip to Central America, it was to dive. We were certified rescue divers and we wanted to go to Honduras to do our dive masters. But our trip started in The Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico.

We booked a package tour at a resort and spent a week with our diving club from Ontario. Believe it or not, it was cheaper for us to book a week long all inclusive vacation and simply not use our return ticket, than to buy a flight to Cancun. We stayed at a modest resort on the island of Cozumel.

Cozumel can be reached by ferry from Playa Del Carmen. It is quieter than Playa Del Carmen and Cancun, but it is by no means secluded or remote. We had been to the Riveria Maya before, so we had no need to visit the mainland again, until our week was up at our resort.  We were there to dive and dive we did.

The diving on Palancar reef is incredible. The visibility can range from 150 to 200 feet. You really have to pay attention to your gauges because the water is so clear, that you don’t notice just how deep you are going. This reef was made famous by Jacques Costeau as one of his favorite diving destinations and I can see why.

Between Dive's Relaxing in the Oh So Comfortable Wetsuit

There are 40 dive sites with popular areas being the horseshoe, caves and the gardens. We had several swim throughs at deep depths and the colours were bursting in the shallow waters.

We did a lot of deep dives. Being with a diving club, competition runs high. But it was the shallow dives that were my favorite. Our air lasted longer as we kept a mellow pace. We stretched our time underwater for as long as we could and we ended our dive drifting over a field of starfish. There were so many of them in the sand, that I almost thought that the dive shops placed them there for tourists to think that they were actually real.

We saw trumpet fish, seahorses, sting rays, eels, barracuda’s, and the coral was outstanding. . For one dive, we had a shark follow our same path for the entire 45 minute dive. I couldn’t tell how far away it was because of the clarity of the water, but it was clear and fairly close swimming just below us. We weren’t nervous or scared, it was just minding its own business, probably just following the current like we were.

Deb Frolicking in the Clear Water

It was a week of solid diving and when it finally came to an end, we were ready for a break.  It was great diving, but we were happy to see the 25 other people we were vacationing with leave and be on our way to our Central American adventure. However, we didn’t have the need to move on quite yet.

We spent the next week in Playa Del Carmen at a Luxury hotel. Not because we were rich, but because we gave into a high pressure sales pitch for the first time in our lives and bought into a vacation club. We were talked into going on the ferry back by them enticing us with 100 US each to come and take a look. They stayed true to their word and gave us 200 bucks, but not until we dropped  $1000 on an offer that was too good to be true. We have never used one deal that they send us, but to this day we still get offers on discount cruises and holidays. We were so upset after our purchase that they let us stay for the week to try it out. So we figured we broke even. With the $200 that they gave us for coming out, we had only dropped $800 for two of us to stay at luxury resort. We made the best of it and took full advantage of all the amenities.

You can read more about our stupidity on this subject and more at our post here at Strange Travel Experiences

If we are going to throw money away, at least we did it in style

I just loved the vibe of the street at night. Music, food, tons of tourist. At times, I really love a crowd. It had changed a lot since we had been there in 1999. Then, Playa Del Carmen had a Senor Frogs, the pier  and  a few streets and dirt roads with vendors and markets. Now it has been built up almost to the point of Cancun, although it doesn’t have the high rises.

I still loved walking along the cobblestone street and finding a great place to eat. The entertainment at dinner is second to none.

We could not get over how talented the musicians were.

We went back a second night to watch a band and we noticed that they were down a member at the beginning of their set. Everyone had jostled around playing different instruments from the night before, and when their final band member arrived, they just switched back to playing their other instruments. They are truly talented.

We bought their CD of course. We always love supporting local artists, especially as good as these guys. They are in our ipod and we listen to them regularly.

We spent time on the beautiful beach drinking buckets of Corona as we worked on our tans,  and we didn’t want to leave.  We were living the life of the Lazy Tourist and loving every minute of it.

We had already been to this part of Mexico before, so we didn’t feel the need to go out and be tourists, we had been to Chichen Itza on a previous trip and since we had been diving solidly for a week, we just didn’t feel the need to go and see much. Sometimes you just have to slow down and enjoy the moment and that is what we did.

We were going through funds quickly however (we just cut $800 out of our budget) so it was time to move on. We caught a bus south to Tulum.  These Mayan Ruins are not spectacular in our opinion, but the view and location certainly is. Situated on a high cliff overlooks the Yucatan Peninsula it is absolutely stunning and I can see why the Mayans decided to make this their home.

Tulum over looking Yucutan Peninsula

We weren’t blown away by the ruins themselves though. It was over run with tour groups and we just didn’t find them as spectacular as Chichen Itza and not even close to the Most Amazing Ruins of Tikal, but the location made up for everything. Besides, you can’t go through travels comparing sites to every other place you have been you will end up not liking anything. We just simply didn’t like Tulum for the plain fact that we didn’t like it.

After spending some time in there, we headed south again toward the Belize border via Chetumal. I must say that Mexican Buses are super. They are clean, efficient and we even had movies to watch. We weren’t paying for special tourist buses, that is just what they had. Contrary to popular belief the buses in Mexico are great.  We road in luxury and comfort all the way to the border.

Another View of Tulum

Mexico is a very popular destination for Canadians to get away in the winter and rightfully so. It is beautiful, warm and truly paradise. And hey, maybe one day we will take up our vacation club on their offer and actually make our money back.

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Remembering Belize: A Diver’s Journey Through Central America

At the Belize Border, Lugging Dive Gear

We have just arrived in Belize City on a bus from Mexico. Dave and I had decided to dive our way through Central America and are towing thousands of dollars of gear with us as we go. What were we thinking?

We started off our journey a dive resort in Cozumel, Mexico. It was such a great deal that it was actually cheaper to book  a 1-week round trip all inclusive vacation. We ate the airfare home, and moved on from Cozumel. A one way ticket to Mexico would have been more money, can you believe it? So we enjoyed ourselves in Luxury for a week until moving on.

We bummed around the Yucatan Peninsula for a couple of weeks and then made our way to Belize. We had heard that Belize City was a very rough town and we were a little weary getting off the bus upon our arrival. We started walking down the street and felt like a couple of targets, with our Rucksacks on our backs and towing along two huge pieces of luggage behind us. We could only have one thing it those bags and it had to be dive gear.

Kids Happily Posing in Belize City

We decided to take our gear with us because for one thing we had spent a lot of money of the stuff and wanted to get our moneys worth and for another, we felt safer using our own regulators and BCD’s.  In retrospect, we would just use the dive operators gear. Never again will we lug around that heavy cumbersome load. Our gear is for sale as we speak. Anyone interested? (just kidding-no seriously, anyone interested?)

But I digress…

We arrived in Belize City and walked along the streets looking for a cheap guest house feeling completely exposed when a man yells, “Look Up!” Freaked out we are taken aback and at first we worry that he was trying to distract us. Is someone lurking behind us about to relieve us of our expensive cargo? Instead, we are treated to a view of thousands of birds flying overhead as he said, “welcome to my country, enjoy the beauty of Belize”.

Instantly we were put at ease and smiled knowing that we were going to love this country.

Waterfront in Belize City

Whatever your vision of Central America is, check it at the door before entering beautiful and welcoming Belize. Many travel guides will tell you to “get out of Belize City and head for the islands.” It is too bad really, because they are causing people to miss out on meeting the very proud and helpful citizens of this vibrant town.

Cruise ships stop here regularly and whisk tourists off to Tikal in Guatemala, or to Ambergris Caye off of the coast. The port is well developed and you can spend time walking around the shops in the comfortable terminal. However, walking around the city is where you get the true Caribbean flare.

We settle in at our guest house on the water and walk the streets looking for a meal.

We really feel that we are in the heart of Latin America. Belize City is a mix Colonial buildings and Creole Culture. The streets are alive with energy. Music pumps from inside shops as smiling people great you speaking perfect English, only to turn to their companion and talk in rhythmic Creole.  We had read that we shouldn’t walk around after dark, but we find ourselves out once the sun goes down and run into a group of men at the waterfront. We have a great conversation where they tell us about their lives and we all share a laugh that both of our currencies have the Queen of England on our bills.  People were friendly, kind and helpful and we would go back to Belize City in a heartbeat.

Street in Caye Caulker

But it is time to move on and we catch a water taxi to Caye Caulker. For $10, we are transported to paradise. Far less crowded than its overdeveloped neighbor Ambergris Caye, this little island is a laid back chill stop for anyone looking for fun in the sun.  We walked along the sandy street to look for a beach front hotel and had little problem finding a beach front room for about $30. Only golf carts drive on the island, so no  worries about exhaust pollution or noise.

Located just 1 mile from the Belize Barrier Reef, it offers some of the best diving and snorkeling in the world. And we were ready to take advantage of one of Jacques Cousteus favorite diving destinations. But first we had to go for a swim at Shark Ray Alley.

We had heard of Juni in both Honduras and Guatemala and were told to hire him to take us out to Shark Ray Alley. A place on the reef where Eagle Rays, Manta Rays and Nurse Sharks hang out. We didn’t know if we would find him, but sure enough after just a few minutes of walking down the main street we chatted with him and signed up for a day of sailing and snorkeling for $25. I remember him telling us to not think of the marine life as fish burgers today and to just enjoy their company.

Dave about to swim with the Sharks

It was an amazing experience. We were a little worried to jump in the water with sharks and manta rays but Juni put us at ease; and to see how the fish reacted to him was a comfort. They were like obedient puppy’s waiting for their master and they followed him around while he swam.
We followed the family of nurse sharks all along the reef and manta rays brushed up against us, we saw barracuda’s, octopus, eagle rays, eels and lobsters.  I had never felt so relaxed in the water.  It was because of Juni. He put us all at ease and even the Sharks seemed to love him.  He said “this my fish family”.  He had been swimming on this reef for 60 years and had a strong connection with its inhabitants. A marine preserve for the past 12 years, the coral and marine life is second to none in the world. We loved our day so much, that we went back for another dose. Originally planning on diving, we felt that we had seen so much wildlife in these past two days that we were content to relax for the duration.

Up Close and Personal with the Sharks

It was time to make our way to another Paradise beach in the country and we found ourselves in Placencia.  We just had to stay at Dave and Deb’s Last Resort. Feeling like we were staying in our own little paradise and imagining owning a place like this in the future. Dave and Deb’s it has a good ring to it. I think we will call ours Dave and Deb’s Hide Away if we ever are lucky enough to own our very own hotel.

Beach in Placencia

We went for drinks at a bar and talked to the owners who were from Toronto. We had even worked with them on set. We thought they looked familiar.  They said to us that the Toronto film business paid for that bar. How come we can’t do that? They took us out and we went to a local bar and sang some Karaoke and drank so much, that i don’t even know how we made it home. Ahh, The things you do in the Islands.
Our time had come to an end in Belize, but we will always remember the hospitality and its beauty. I had my best days ever in the water here and I hope that the reefs will be preserved for years to come.

Manta Ray at Shark Ray Alley

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Strange and Surreal Travel Moments

Life can be pretty surreal at times. And travel is no exception to the rule. We seem to have some of our strangest experiences when we are on the road. Some of them are completely out of our control and we just have to hang on and enjoy the ride. While others have been completely our own doing. A momentary lapse of reason if you will.  Either way, they make for some fun stories around the campfire. Here are a few of ours in no particular order.

Dave Bathing in the Dongola Zoo, Sudan

Camped in a zoo in Sudan-We arrived in Dongola, Sudan after 6 days of cycling in the desert.  We hadn’t showered and we were covered in dirt and sweat. We weren’t treated to luxury though, we had set up camp in an old abandoned zoo.  Apparently a turtle still roamed the grounds but we never saw it. The zoo had high steel walls and nobody was allowed in.  It was pretty strange, because we were fenced in while the town looked at us from outside. We were monkeys in a cage?  This may sound a little odd already, but it didn’t become really strange until we all started bathing in our red supply boxes.  They were carried on our supply trucks and held all of our gear. someone found a hose, so we all filled up our little 100 litre boxes and took a bath.  Weird.

Dirty in Ethiopia, We Would Shower Anywhere

Showered in a Brothel in Ethiopia- Yet another African experience.  We had been cycling once again for days on end through sand.  Once we crossed the Ethiopian border, we camped in a patch of grass which we shared with cows and donkeys.  We had to keep an eye out for cow patties and at one point I saw a cow drinking out of the bottom of one of our trucks.  Our trucks carried our water through the desert in a big bladder underneath. They kept us alive through the unforgiving desert and here was a cow slurping from the bladder like it was sucking on its mums teet. This may sound like a strange experience, but it didn’t get wierd until we all lined up to have a shower at the brothel next door.  We raved about how amazing it was, your standards lower a lot when you are in the desert. The stalls were tin shacks with cement floors and cold water, but the pressure was good and we loved every minute of it. And we even sat down for a beer in the bar afterward as the “ladies and gentlemen” watched on.

Strange Sculptures in Namibian Campsite

Camp Site in Namibia-We approached a camp site in Namibia that completely freaked me out. I was riding alone and in the distance I saw a scary looking guy standing at the side of the road.  He never moved. As I road closer, I was beginning to wonder if I should turn back. But I was on the right route, I followed the flags, it had to be O.K.  Then I realized that it was a statue.  I was relieved, but then again, why is a statue standing alone in the Middle of the Kalahari desert?  I hope I didn’t make a wrong turn?  I kept riding down the long abandoned path and more of these creepy sculptures kept popping up.  They were set up in various strange scenes. Sitting on motorcycles, working at a wagon and perched on go carts and bicycles. They had these heads that looked like pumkins and every horror movie from my childhood flashed through my brain. I eventually made it to camp thank God.  I was happy I was with a crowd, I wouldn’t have been able to sleep at night if it was only Dave and I.

Shared a bus with a load of Lobsters -  This one was pretty surreal.  We got on a bus downtown Hanoi enroute to Vientiane Laos.  It ended up being a 24 hour journey. There were a handful of us waiting for the bus and we assumed that we would be picking people up at different stops along the way.  Well, we stopped alright, but instead of people, we picked up flour, rice, electronics; you name it, we got it.  We actually started to wonder if we were on a bus that was smuggling stuff across the border.  Oh yeah, I said Lobster didn’t I?  Dozens of lobsters wrapped in pretty packaging  that started to” turn” in the heat as time went on.  It was getting pretty ripe in there by the end and we couldn’t understand why they weren’t packed in ice. Were the lobster carrying something??? We’ll never know.

Loving My Clothes in Hoi An

Shopping in Hoi An-It doesn’t sound very strange, but in Vietnam, Hoi An is famous for its designer suits and cocktail dresses tailor made for a steal. Well, we were backpackers and our jobs at home never call for suits and formal attire.  We told everyone that we were never going to buy clothes in Hoi An. We just wanted to see the town and the sights around it.  However, when we were approached on the street we thought we would be nice and humor the sweet lady and go to her shop. We ended up spending $250 on suits, dresses,  silk shirts, pants and skirts we bought it all.  We stressed about our purchases that night and reprimanded ourselves thoroughly. When we went back the next day to pick up all of our clothes, we loved them so much, we bought more!!  That night again, we kicked ourselves again and again.  What were we thinking? We ended up sending a giant box home to Canada and speding over $300. That cut into our travel budget quite a bit. When we were staying at inns for $4 a night and eating meals for a couple of bucks.  Well, thats a lot of days on the road that we just spent on clothes.  What is strange about this you ask? Well we would love to know where our brains went while we were in Hoi An. (Travel tip-if you get clothes made in Hoi An, be sure to make them double stitch the threading.  It lasts better.)

Adorable Yes, but watch out, those staffs can be deadly

Being Stoned all the way Through Ethiopia-No it is not what you think….In Ethiopia the children have an odd pass time of throwing rocks at cyclists.  They get a kick out of using us as target practice.  We spent 23 days in Ethiopia, and each day we could count on getting a rock whipped at our heads or sticks stuck in our spokes.  It was nuts! Most kids carried these big staffs to herd their cattle and as we rode by, they tried to stick them in our tires to take us out.  You may think that it was because they wanted us to stop and talk. But no, even when we stopped and shared a nice little conversation, they would hurl rocks at us as we left.  It was infuriating.  They had great aim and they could run fast.  I would try to get off my bike and run after them when I was hit by a particularly painful shot, but they were long gone. They didn’t do this in Sudan, or Malawi, or Tanzania, or Namibia….so why in Ethiopia.  I also have no idea who taught them this, but as we cycled from the Sudanese Border in the north all the way through Ethiopia in the south, everyone yelled You, You, You at us. It is weird.  Not a hello or even a wave,  “you, you, you” oh and “give me my money.”  I was luckier than most, I had Dave with me to keep me safe and I didn’t get it near as bad as other riders.  Plus, we rode fast.  We were through early in the day, and it wasn’t so bad yet.  As the day went on however, people got hit worse. They knew people were coming and they were ready for them.  Here is a list of what happened to other riders in Ethiopia.  While cycling by, a woman was peed on, a man had cow dung thrown at him, another woman ran into a child and the town mobbed her demanding money and would not let her leave. The child was ok by the way, and after settling on a payment, she was allowed to go.  Many including myself were whipped with a bullwhip, and yet another woman was asaulted, but a bunch of villagers came to her rescue. Thank God. Most people are good in this world, it is just an few that make everyone else look bad. Unfortunately, Ethiopia is a very populous country and as we were cycling we passed thousands and thousands of people.  So the hundreds and hundreds that got us, made it seem like everyone was out to take us down.

Going to Bokor Hill- A popular tourist destination in Cambodia, we thought it would be a good place to visit.  We hired a truck to take us up themountain.  He asked us if we wanted to pay a couple of bucks more and he would take us on a hike to the waterfall. Sure, OK we said.  We hiked a path and then came out to a bunch of rocks.  It was dry season, and there wasn’t any water. No biggie off we went to the casino.  Another creepy place that is said to be haunted.  I don’t know what it is like today, but back then we just walked through dark hallways and looked at the abandoned hall.  It was a little unsettling. But the view was beautiful. I think they are turning it into a big resort now, I am glad I saw it when it was all run down and abandoned makes for a better story.  Oh wait, that’s not the strange part yet.  Our truck broke down at the top of the mountain, so we all had to pile into the back and coast our way down.  I remember the guys checking the engine scratching their heads and wondering what to do.  We decided that we would have to walk, but a while later, they came up behind us and we had no choice but to hop on. It was night time in the Cambodian Jungle, plunging down a mountain in the box of a coasting truck seemed like a safer option.

Bed Bugs in Malaysia, I have already talked about when we were eaten by bed bugs in Chang Mai, Thailand in a previous post, but there was something very surreal about this bed bug experience in Malaysia.  We were in Penang in a highly recommended guest house which will remain nameless. I was walking back to my room after a morning shower and I saw Jimmy the owner, squishing these creepy creatures leaving bloody smears all over the floor.  He had a big piece of wood and was swatting at them in the room next to ours. All the while, he had a big smile on his face and kept reassuring us that we didn’t have any in our room. I was so grossed out by the blood all over the floor and wall, that we had to get out of there.

Diving in Cozumel, Happy before we spent all that money

Getting taken to the cleaners in Mexico-We had just spent a week diving in Cozumel and were about to embark on our Central American Adventure. On the ferry from Cozumel to Playa Del Carmen, we were approached by a time share seller.  We know all about time shares and weren’t interested.  But they offered us $100 US Cash each to come and take a look.  We said, wow, we can go see it and make sure to say NO, collect our $200 and be on our way.  Well we got their and the pressure was high.  They kept throwing everything our way and we kept saying no. The price kept going down and down and then they finally said that they would give it to us for $1000 and upgrade us to the level where we can get African safaris and luxury tours for cheap cheap cheap.  We gave in and bought.  Right after I freaked out and wanted my money back to no avail.  We did get our $200 though and they agreed to put us up in their luxury resort for a week in Playa Del Carmen. It was beautiful and we were pampered staying in this incredible hotel.  We had just come from an all inclusive dive resort  and this one made that one look like a Days Inn. So we figured it all evened out in the end.  $800 bucks for a week at a luxury resort. Why is this surreal, we were supposed to be back packing in Mexico and should have been roughing it in Tulum by now. Insead we had white robes and slippers and were sitting by the pool bar. We cut almost a month of travel off of our trip because of that resort, but we still talk about how nice it was and to this day, we still get emails from that vacation club offering us great discounts.  They do have great discounts admittedly, maybe one day we will take them up on it

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