Guate Guate Gaute

Back to the blog now that I am back in travel mode. I am here in guatemala with Marina and enjoying every minute. Some highlights of the first week include.

- Roasting Marshmallows over lava on a volcano. Pacaya was the volcano.

-Climbing another volcano and seeing others erupt. Santa Maria was this volcano. This was a tough climb bu tdefinitely worth it at the top.

- Seeing a 3 or 4 year old chop a coconut with a machete.

-Chicken busses. One trip between 2 cities that should have taken about 4 hours took us 7 busses and 7.5 hours to do. Included on this was the crazy guy who would climb over the bus while it was moving to talk to people at the back or collect money.....NUTTY! I would have died several times. Of course this was the only way for him to get back and forth as the bus was so packed.

- Lake atitlan was really beautiful and the boat ride was quite relaxing.

- Pineapple soda...man it is so good.

More to come!

A couple examples of travel fun

One of the coolest things about travelling is of course meeting people from all over the world and here are 2 fun examples of what can happen.


4 of us were hanging out in the hostel, laughing having a grand ol time when someone asks us where we are from (she assumed as she told us later we were all travelling together). we kind of chuckled and had to ay, France, Sweden, Canada, and Holland. I love it.



I was in el Chalten in the hostel on a rainy day and met a french girl, so we spoke in french, then met an American girl, so we spoke in english, and then the 3 of us spoke together so we spoke in.......Spanish.


Cheers
Off to the pool.
Bus tonight is heading into Brazil

futbol game

sorry for the delay in writing folks!! I am now in Uruguay, enjoying the sights and sounds, but what I really want to talk about is the soccer game I went to last week.



It was a championship game for the copa sudamericana. It was packed at 50 000 people, and everyone was wearing red, I had to go through 2 security checks to get in and there was no place to move, it was rush seating, and we had troubles finding a spot even 1 hour beforehand. The atmosphere was electric right from the get go and did not stop. The fans from the opposing team were cordoned off in one section, with sections left empty around them for security, with 3 lines of police on either side to prevent intermingling. These fans were also not allowed to leave right after the game, they had to wait for everyone else to leave first.

During the game, we stood up the whole time and sang songs, the entire game, we did not stop, it was nutso. The game unfortunately ended 1-0 for the wrong team but was still a great south American experience!

Free Hugs

So yesterday in Santiago, Me and a couple of friends were walking downtown, having a great day with ice cream and what not, and ran into a group of people giving out free hugs. When asked why, they said simply to bring good cheer to Santiago.......sweet. I think there should be free hug groups everywhere.

Argentina

Welcome to Argentina!

So , the first few days in Argenitna have been a little bit of an opposite culture shock. I feel like I ma back in the developed world now.
The shock came rather quickly, on the first bus-ride into Cordoba.

WHAT? no garbage lining the roads?
WHAT? organized farming with Tractors?
WHAT? Seats on the toilets?
WHAT? No vendors hounding you at every turn?
WHAT? A taxi-meter?

All things that have changed drastically from my first 3 countries.

ANother shocker is he time frame here. Let me explain.
People here go out ridiculously late. In fact, you cannot even eat dinner here until after 9pm. Most restaurants will not serve dinner until that time. SO you eat dinner until 10 or 11, then go home and get ready to go out, start pre drinking, and then actually go out around 2am. That is correct folks, people go out after the bars back home would close. It makes for an evening that stretches to 6-7 am....kinda kills the next day but is super fun.


ANother difference here in Argentina is the accent. I was doing great in Bolivia with conversing in Spanish but this accent is goignt o take some getting used to . WOW they speakl fast. It is like the Newfie of South America. (sorry if any wonderful Newfoundlanders are reading this)


Cheers

Bolivia

IS very beautiful!, Some highlights,

Death Road. Man this was cool, from 4700m to 1100m on a bike, with cliffs and waterfalls and rivers, pics soon I hope!

Halloween in La Paz. Big Party in the Hostal, everyoine was dressed up, it was quite cool, a nice halloween seeing I was away from the real halloween parties.

Markets. You can buy ANYTHING in the markets here, I mean anything. Electorinics, Irons, Food, Clothes, anything.

Salara de Uyuni, mind boggling amounts of Salt.

Why are there no seats on the toilets?

Why are there no toilets on the busses? Why does the bus without toilets only stop once in a 12 hour ride?

Why do the fake tourist police have to have robbed sooo many people (not me luckily...knock on wood)?

A few random thoughts

Oddest bathroom so far.
So of all he bad bathroom swithout toilet seats or utterly gross or just a hole in the ground, this next one is the strangest. We were at a restaurant in Chivay, Peru, for lunch. This restaurant had obviously been an afterthought and a roof added as there was a water spout that entered into the restaurant. SO as a solution, they had a plastic bag divert the waterspout into the mens washroom. Into the sink you may ask? Nope, onto the floor. So it was of course raining when I used this washroom. Imagine standing up, doing the normal business, but your feet are getting wet due to rain being funneled in.....odd experience, makes you second guess your aim a little bit.


Awesomest Dinner of the trip so far.
For 7 dollars (roughly)- Steak, Pork Chop, Chicken Breast, Sausage, Hot Dog, Fies, Salad, Drink.........I love South America.

Other random thoughts.

So many Beatles (the car) here, it is nutso.
Thought I got my bag stolen today after a quick bus switch that seemed really sketchy, luckily, all was legit and our bags made it.

Condors are large.