The Road More or Less Traveled

I hope your VD gets better...

Thu, 14 Feb 2008 17:08:48 GMT

Happy Valentines Day.

Still Alive and Kicking

Sun, 06 Jan 2008 04:48:42 GMT

After having an inactive account for 90 weeks (!), I thought I should give the ol' LJ a dust off and let my friends know that every-ting is alright with me.
I'll make every effort to be a better LJ-er in 2008.
Be good to each other...
Sarah

Going North...

Sat, 25 Mar 2006 04:09:01 GMT

After the crossing of the Rio Grande (legally, but I was tempted to swim across after the absolute hassle of leaving Mexico), ARU and I stopped at the nearest Krispy Kreme (I needed a fix bad, man!) and began the journey back through Texas. Rudy's BBQ was just as good as the first time (I had the chopped and smothered - chopped brisket and turkey covered in Rudy's special "sause" - creamed corn, white bread and a dill pickle with a root beer) and the people were all just so damned friendly! I still love Texas and it appears Texas still loves me. Why else would they put all these BBQ and Krispy Kreme joints right on the highway within easy reach?
We drove past San Antonio and spent the night in New Braunfelds at a nice little hotel and I enjoyed a night of (mostly) English TV. Can anyone tell me if the guy with the grey hair is still a contestant on American Idol? He was my favourite and I'll be sad if he's gone.

Being in Central America turned me into a big wuss, too. It was 12 degrees today and I was absolutely freezing! I had to put on long pants and socks as well. WTF?! I swear to God that I will probably cry when it starts to snow.

After a good breakfast (sans refried beans and tortillas), we got in the Jeep and headed north past Austin, Fort Worth and Waco, through Oklahoma and wound up in Kansas. We are currently in Newton (no, really...), which is just north of Wichita, and will be heading up through the Dakotas tomorrow.

I have discovered a new love for the central states in the U.S of A and I will be sad to leave. I promise that I'll be nicer when I talk about America and Americans in the future (but I'll probably still rag on the Easterners and Californians...).

And that's all I have to say about that.
Peace.

Dear Texas...

Sat, 25 Mar 2006 03:39:10 GMT

Thank you for welcoming me back with wide open arms!

Thank you for putting a Krispy Kreme right on the highway as we exited the border area so that I could have an original glazed instead of a crappy Mexican donut (they could stand to learn a thing or two about pastry in Mexico!).
Thank you for putting a Rudy's BBQ in every town as we drove along the highway to Austin. I am full of smoked meat and I am very happy.
Thank you for all the friendly people who want to go out of their way for me, whether it's giving me directions, bringing me food or just saying "Y'all have a good now now, y'hear?" and not expect a "tip" for their time.
Thank you for loving me like I love you Texas.

I'll be back for sure!
Love,
Sarah xoxox

Dear Mexico...

Thu, 23 Mar 2006 13:58:42 GMT

Thank you for being such a pleasant host over the last month.
I appreciate you being patient with our language barriers and cultural differences.
I have enjoyed your beautiful scenery and (mostly) delicious food.

I will not, however, miss the following things:
Having to pay to use a toilet that has no seat, no toilet paper and no soap to wash my hands;
Throwing my used toilet paper into the bin beside the toilet;
Being stopped every hour at a military checkpoint to be questioned or to have the car searched ;
Being asked for a "tip" (read: bribe) by every official I am forced to do business with;
Not being able to brush my teeth unless I have a bottle of purified water;
Morning rush hour in Mexico City;
Insane Mexican drivers and even crazier Mexican pedestrians

Thanks again Mexico. It's been nice getting to know you.
I'll see you again, I'm sure.

Love,
Sarah xoxo

You won't Belize what I did!

Thu, 23 Mar 2006 05:06:10 GMT

I had a great time in Belize!
It was good to see my Dad after 8 years and to meet all the people that he has been spending his time with. They are all very nice and extremely generous people and they are all taking very good care of him.
Here´s a brief recap of the week we spent in Belize -
Monday March 13: The Belize Zoo (see entry from 3/15 for details)

Tuesday March 14: The Belize Museum and Shopping (see entry from 3/15 for details)

Wednesday March 15: Altun Ha and Old Belize (see entry from 3/15 for details)

Thursday March 16: Dave, ARU and I took a water taxi from Belize City to San Pedro via Caye Caulker. The ride was a little over 1.5 hours through the beautiful blue Carribean Ocean, right beside the Barrier Reef. I saw dolphin and rays and got a wicked sunburn. We walked the beach at San Pedro and gawked at all the fancy schmancy resorts and stopped to have lunch, just like real touristas! Most people rent a golf cart to get around San Pedro, but we walked it. ARU and Dave found a nice shady bench to sit on (right in front of a place called "The Jerk Spot"... coincidence or not? You decide.) while I shopped. Shopping in foreign countries is so much fun! Everything is the same, but different! Even buying tampons becomes an adventure! I stocked up on rum and trinkets and more rum and then we got back on the boat for the return trip back to Belize City. On the way we passed by the only golf course in Belize. Fees are $200 UDS per day and it's got one hell of a water hazzard! Needless to say, we didn't stop for a round. We headed back into Ladyville and met up with Patricia who cooked us more good food. Have I mentioned how good her cooking is? I could eat rice and beans and stew chicken everyday and be pretty happy. Well, maybe a little Texas BBQ now and then as well...

Friday March 17: ARU, Dave, Particia and I drove the Humminbird Highway. It was absolutely beautiful. Lush green valleys and dense tropical jungle. ARU and I visitied the inland Blue Hole, a natural cave with icy blue water and visited with a young Mayan girl who was selling handmade jewelry and embroidery. We continued south, past vast orchards of oranges and grapefruit, plantains and banannas. Then Dave and I got swarmed by bees (see entry from 3/18 for all the gory details) and after that brief detour, we visited some friends of Dave´s at Toucan Sittee, a gorgeous cabana-style resort with beautiful gardens and an incredible assortment of native plants and animals. Patricia walked around the grounds with me and patiently answered all of my "what's this" questions. Now I know what a guava tree looks like! We left Neville's place and stopped at the property formerly owned by my Mom and Dad. It was a nice spot, just across from the river, with huge mango trees all over the place. There were lots of flowers and jungle all around and a nice little house that my folks and Eli (my dalmatian) lived in for a while. I can see why they liked it so much... apart from the sand fleas! We left the Sittee and drove further south to just before Puenta Gorda to visit with Patricia's sister Concha and her mother Hortense. Hortense is a highly respected traditional healer and herbalist who has taught all over the world and is considered to be a master healer in her country. She is a small woman with strong eyes and a powerful laugh. I am really happy to have met her. And Concha was so kind as to let us rest and have a cup of tea after the bee attack. She gave me a big hug at the end of the visit and told me that I was her niece now, so I should consider myself family. I am very lucky to have such a large extended family (who just happen to live in a beautiful tropical country with great food and good weather most of the time!). After we played with the puppies ("potlickers" is what they call mutts in creole) and said our goodbyes, we headed back home, past the orange juice factories and sugar cane trucks, through the jungle highlands and the arrid plains (they have pine trees in Belize! The biogeoclimactic zones were very impressive.) back to Ladyville for more good vittles (even leftovers taste great when you fry them in coconut oil!). I went back to the hotel and nursed my wounds as best I could, but I still woke up with a swollen eye, hand and leg. Stupid bees.

Saturday March 18: A day of shopping for souvinirs and going to market. I love going to foreign grocery stores and bought all the spices I would need to make traditional Belizean food at home. I bought presents (some for you, some for me) and just hung out and talked with Patricia. It was good to get to know her better, not to mention to pick her brain about her cooking! We finished off the night with Belizean fast food - panades (like a deep fried perogy), salbuttes (like an open-faced taco) and some other things that I can't remember, but boy, were they good. I washed it down with a pineapple fanta soda (which I liked so much that I brought home a half dozen!) and headed off to bed with visions of panades dancing in my head.

Sunday March 19: Today Dave, Patricia, ARU and I took a boat trip down the New River to the Mayan ruins at Lamanai. We had an excellent young guide who pointed out all kinds of wildlife (birds, bats, crocs, fish, yadda yadda yadda) and who guided us through the temples and acted as naturalist as well, showing us traditional healing plants and herbs. Lunch was excellent as well (stew chicken and rice and beans and Coca-Cola, which tastes very different in Central America due to the use of cane sugar and not corn sugar). I met two girls from Squamish on the tour (!) who climbed that temple like it was nothing. I asked them if they were "Chief" climbers and they laughed and asked how I knew. I knew because it took them, like, two minutes to go up all 50 steps to the top!
Figures I go halfway down the continent to meet girls from up the road!
After the tour, we all went out for a nice dinner at a swank hotel where we had conch fritters, seafood creole and cheesecake for dessert. I love pineapple, but have learned that I do not like papaya (it tastes like feet smell!). Lessons learned, right?

We left Belize on Monday morning and although I was sad to leave my Dad, I know he is in a good place with good people and that made it easier to go. I'll try to get back and see him again before the end of the year. Chriatmas in Belize doesn't sound like a bad idea...

ARU and I dropped off a Belizean police officer (who had asked us for a ride into Corozol after he stopped us at a police checkpoint) and crossed the border back into Mexico (with the obligitory bribe to the border official who stamped our visas and then waived us through. What is it with Mexico and officials being asshats?). We made our way to Villahermosa, through Tabasco (37 degrees!), where we saw chiles drying on the side of the road and a dead puma and stopped for the night (same hotel as on the way in ) and had a mediocre dinner. I missed Belize already!

Tuesday morning we drove from Villahermosa to just outside of Puebla where we stayed at a strange skeevy little hotel called the "San Isidoro Auto Hotel". It was a place for truckers, but I say it was more for f*ckers... it had an hourly rate, mirrors all over the rooms, plastic sheets on the mattress and free porn. You be the judge. I did watch some some excellent vintage porn from the 70's starring John Holmes though. Classic stuff man. You can't even rent it anymore... or so someone told me...

Wednesday morning we steeled ourselves for the journey into hell, also known as Mexcio City. We got lost... many many times and it took us about 3 hours to go 100 km. We finally got some nice man to lead us to the freeway and we got the hell out of there. I'm sure it's a nice place, but I won't be going back anytime soon!
And now I find myself in Saltillo, Mexico, writing this long overdue update. We'll be crossing the border into Texas tomorrow and heading straight for Rudy's BBQ in San Antonio! Welcome Home, Sarah! If I'm not too full of meaty goodness, I'll write again tomorrow.

Thanks for all your comments to my past posts. It's nice to hear from familliar people when I'm so far away :)

Peace.

Well, at least we can rule out anaphylactic shock...

Sat, 18 Mar 2006 04:37:43 GMT

The bad news: my Dad and I were attacked by a swarm of "killer" bees today. The good news is that we're fine and apparently not alergic to bee stings!

Seriously.

ARU, myself, Particia and Dad took a drive south today to see the jungle and Settee River and the property that my Dad used to own, Along the way we passed through huge citrus orchards and plantain and bananna plantations. I asked ARU to pull over to the side of the road near an orange orchard so that I could take a picture of the trees with full fruit. Dad jumps out of the Jeep and says, "C'mon... you want an orange straight off the tree? I'll grab you one...".
We step on an old tire lying in the drainage ditch and get up close to one of the trees. I snapped a quick picture and thought to myself, "Man, these flies are really big!". The the fly bit me. And another one and another one and I realized that they were bees! Hundreds of them flying around me and my Dad. He shouted and literally pushed my into the ditch, grabbed my hand and dragged me back into the Jeep. They were everywhere and stinging us on our faces, hands, heads, legs...everywhere! A few followed us into the Jeep and ARU took of at high speed with the windows down to suck the remaining ones out of the cab. I grabbed some hand sanitizer and rubbed it all over my face in an attempt to stop a reaction to the venom. My hands were shaking so hard, which made it hard to pick out the stingers and I was a bit concerned because I was stung under my right eye and it was beginning to swell up. Thank the gods that Bill and Patricia were not stung!
We turned around and went back to the gas station we had just left and waited to see if either one of us was going to go into shock. I was stung 7 times and Dad was hit about 8 times. We got some ice for the swelling and after about 10 minutes we continued on our journey. For the rest of the trip I was very happy to just look at the orchards from the safety of the Jeep.

I was, quite literally, Covered In Bees.
After the fact, that made me laugh.

I have a lot more to say about the last two days, but honestly... my left hand got stung pretty badly and it hurts to type. I'll update again before I leave on Monday.

Peace.

See it... Belize it!

Wed, 15 Mar 2006 22:48:14 GMT

I've just been having too good a time to stop and post an update.
This poor, tiny country is so beautiful and the people we have meet have been incredibly nice (even Vincent the Pimp!).
We arrived last Saturday night and found Dave on the side of the highway, waiting to direct us to the house that he lives in.
He stood out as the only white guy in a sea of dark faces (and it was night, too). I hadn't seen him in about 8 years and was worried that I wouldn't recognize him, but as it turns out, he looks pretty much the same, just thinner, darker and wrinklier!

He got in the Jeep (which I have nicknamed D'ora the Explorah - thank you LB for the suggestion. You win a bottle of Belizean Rum!) and directed us down this pothole filled pressed dirt road, past abandoned shacks and burned out vehicles, though a gang of kids ("the two-bit gang") and a group of crackheads (Dave knew them all...), down a lane and into 110 Dawn Road in Ladyville (about 10 miles from Belize City).
The house was a very nice, well kept 2 room home with a tile floor and a nice yard. There are palm trees and aloe plants and almond and mango trees and parrots and nightingales and squirrels and geckos (both inside and out. They make a loud barking noise. Such a big sound from such a small animal!).
We met Patricia and her daughter Helen (who is all legs and has a teeny tiny squeaky voice...) and settled in for a cup of tea and catch up time, which consisted of the telling of the stories that are mandatory at every Newton family gathering, even though you have heard them all before and they never change!
Dad and I stayed up until 2:30AM talking and filling each other in on the last 8 years. Then he woke me up at 6:30AM, asking if the parrots had woken me up.
"Nope, just you," I responded :)
Patricia made a most excellent breakfast, the best one I have had since being on the trip, mostly because it did not contain any refried beans, tortillas or tomatoes! Just good old fashioned scrambled eggs, baked beans, bacon and Belizean fry bread (must get recipe!). She has proven to be a most excellent cook and I have been pestering her at every meal, asking "What's this?" and "What are you doing now?".
I like Belizean food... cook anything in coconut oil and I will probably eat it, including "Gibnut", which is Pacca, a large jungle rodent. I know you are all probably very sad that we cannot get it in Canada! Perhaps I will have it shipped and we can start a new Christmas tradition...

Sunday was spent touring through Belize City, which, just like any major city has its share of rich and poor, the have and the have not. Being from Vancouver, where the richest neighbourhood borders the poorest neighbourhood and where sometimes the neighbours are lawyers or crackers, or both at the same time, I was not overwhelmed by the poverty. I accept the difference and do not speculate about how these people feel about being impoverished. I refuse to feel bad for these people; they live a life that is different from mine, that's all. Not better, not worse, just different.
ARU and I checked into the Global Village Hotel, about 1 km from Dad's place. It is huge hotel run by a Taiwanese family (there are a lot of "Chinee" in Belize... and Mennonites - who knew?). The rooms are big and the ceilings are high and the internet connection is in Taiwanese. Thank god the TV is in English! I finally got to watch Family Guy (oh TV... I missed you so much. Don't ever leave me again!).

Monday we went to the Belize Zoo to see the local wildlife. I was there to see the Tapir, Belize's national animal (also called a mountain cow; related to elephants and rhinos) and the Jabiru Stork, the largest flighted bird in the world. It was a well put together place and focused on educating the locals, who usually only see these animals in restaurants on plates. ARU was most happy with the bench and shade exhibits. He spent a lot of time at those ones.
Monday night Patricia made Ricardo Chicken ("Stew Chicken") and Coconut Rice and potato salad. It was so good. The best meal I've had since Texas! I will have to go to the grocery store before I leave and stock up on spices.

Tuesday was spent at the Belize Museum, housed in the former jail, and sampling rum at the Tourist Village (you have to be a cruise ship passenger to be allowed in this area. The place was packed with Yankees and reminded me why I would never want to take a cruise (What an artificial experience. Being herded into one area after another, everyone buying the same tshirts and keychains, every girl having her hair braided and buying duty free vodka to pour into your new "I Heart Belize" waterbottle before you get back on the ship. Thanks, but no thanks. That's not the vacation that I want to have). We did go to the Pirate Museum, which was really just a liquor store with pirate flags and staff wearing eye patches, but hey, free rum! ARU and I each bought a bottle and we made our way back to Dad's place for a cup of tea before dinner. We went to a local restaurant and bar called Celebrities and had the fish. The fish was delish. For dessert we had "Belizean Coconut Pie" which just turned out to be regular coconut cream pie from a box, but I guess because it was on a Belizean plate and cut with a Belizean knife it was somehow Belizean. Whatever. I ate it. It was good.

Today we went to Altun Ha, a major Mayan ruin in Belize. We arrived first thing in the morning, ahead of all the Yankees on their shore excursion and had the place to ourselves for about an hour. We climbed the temples and now my gimpy knee is paying the price! It was beautiful and quite spectacular. Most of the site has yet to be excavated. You really should go and look at the pictures! We bought a cherimoya (custard apple) from one of the vendors (picked from a tree on the grounds of Altun Ha) for the road and left before the sun (and the Yankees) drove us crazy.
After that, we made our way to Old Belize, another tourist area complete with a fake beach and long bar. The only redeeming feature was an interpretive museum showing the history of Belize, complete with a tropical jungle, Mayan temple and a chicle farm. There was a second generation chiclero (chicle maker) who showed me how he collects, boils and kneads the sap of the sapodilla tree to form a chewy rubber gum substance. It was very interesting and very informative, much better than the museum and, to my sheer joy, devoid of any tourist but me!

Tomorrow we will take a boat to San Pedro Town and tour through the Quays (islands) and hopefully eat more delicious food and drink rum and lie on the beach and do... nothing!

Now go and look at the pictures. I haven't labeled them yet, so make up your own stories!

Peace.

Posting Comments and Updates

Mon, 13 Mar 2006 15:36:29 GMT

Sorry to hear that you're having troubles posting comments.
The computer at the hotel is giving me some problems, but it's all in Taiwaneese and I don't understand!

Send your comments to rockstar.sarahnewton@gmail.com and I will post them when I can.

The Pimp, The Players and The Gringos...

Mon, 13 Mar 2006 03:40:42 GMT

WE MADE IT!
I am delighted to report that after 6,300km and about 75 hours of driving, ARU and I pulled up to Dad's house at about 7:00 last night. We were tired, hot and a little worse for wear, but we made it nonetheless. In true fashion, crossing the border was an adventure (the motto of this trip is becoming "Lessons learned, lessons learned...).
We pulled up to the Chetumal, Mexico crossing at about 3:30PM and were directed to pull over by a young black man. Picture it:
He's wearing a Dallas Cowboys jersey (Aikman), jeans that are so far down his backside that they were in danger of sliding off his lanky frame and a camouflage cap that hides a mess of cornrows. He's got three gold teeth and giant diamonds in his ears. He's got bling on all his fingers. He's smoking a cigarette, smells of beer and has the hiccups.
He points us over to the side of the road and sprays the tires with formaldehyde.
"For de boogs", he says and hands us a bill for $10 BZ (about $5 USD). ARU pays him and then utters the words that this guy was just waiting to hear...
"This is our first time here... is this where we cross the border into Belize?"
"Foorst time een Belize, eh? Welcoom to ma kountree". He thrusts his hand through the window.
"Vincent gonna take good care a yoo. Ah will assist you, help yoo get troo immigraashon, get da permidt. Ah treet ya good and at de end, you give Vincent a tip for de good help. OK? You got da room fer me inna backseat?", as he opens the rear passenger door and jumps in.
(in my head I am thinking "WTF are we doing letting a stranger in the car?!", but I said nothing, even though this guy was staring at me in a way which made me feel very uncomfortable)
"OK, drive up dere, park de trook as cloose as ya can. We go inside de buildin. Ah been woorkin here for faurteen years. They all know Vincent."
ARU and I get out and follow Vincent inside.
"Belize is de heaven, you gonna love it. Bedder dan the USA. USA is foor Boosh, but Belize is foor de Lard. It's heaven. You gonna loove it. Give me da passpoorts"
...
AND WE DID!
AND HE WALKED AWAY WITH THEM!
...
I look at ARU and his eyes are fixed on the passports in Vincent's hand. Vincent takes them to the guard behind the desk, motions to us and gets two declaration forms for us to fill out. All the while Vincent is saying things like "Mees Lilly. How you be?", and "Baws mon... you take car o' dem ladees naw"
(I swear to God I am not making this up!). ARU and I fill out the forms and get our passports back (I have never held on to something as tightly as I did that passport, I tell you what) and Vincent motions for us to come to the front of the line, cutting infornt of about 15 people.
We get our passports stamped with a one month entry visa and then he motions for us to go to the next desk to get the vehicle registered.
"Mees Reyah, she da Queen. She da baws ladee. Mees Reyah... Vincent is good, yah?"
In between bites of mango dipped in salt and pepper, she writes up the paperwork and we go outside to the car for inspection.
She goes through the luggage and our emergency car kit and my bag of souvineers (Vincent is pulling out the bags and loading them back in for us. He is still staring at me and running his tongue along his three gold teeth).
While she was inspecting the vehicle, Vincent tells me that I should exchange my pesos into Belize dollars.
"Where can I do that?" I ask.
"Right deer," and he motions to a guy standing on the other side of a chainlink fence (actually, it looked like the exercise yard of a prison) with a calculator hanging from a chain around his neck. I laugh and ask him if he's serious.
"Oh Mees Saaaraaah, is for de trooth. He goona give you a good rate. Better dan de bank. Seex to won, Mees Saaaraaah." So, I poke 300 pesos through the chainlink fence and get $50 Belize dollars off of a HUGE wad that this guy (who actually looks like he belongs in a prison exercise yard) pulls out of his pocket.
Everything was declared to be in order with the car (I don't think she really cared) and we got back in the car with Vincent and drove a few hundred meters to the insurance corporation of Belize to get the car insured.
"Wait heer," he says and heads inside. We don't. We go in and ARU gives his information and asks if he can pay by credit card.
"Da machine ees offlhine," he says. "You gonna have to pay da cash."
("Uh huh... suuure" I says in my head. He is still staring at me. He calls me "Mees Saaaraaah" and licks his teeth)
We get the car insured for one month and head outside.
"See? Ah toll you dat Vincent gonna take good caar of yoo. See? Faast throo de immigration and insurance. Vincent is a good guy, Mees Saaaraaah."
ARU thanks him for his assistance and takes two $20USD bills out of his wallet.
"Now ah gots to give dem each one (he motions to the people inside immigration), and den whaats left fer Vincent? Dis is how I make me living. I gotta baby coomin and ah isn't lahing to yoos. You know, some money for de babee, for de muther, get some good food from Mexico. When you come bak, you look for me. Ah assist you to cancel de permit, help you get home, no charge. Vincent is good, right Mees Saaaraah?"
ARU gives him another $20 USD.
"And what Mees Saaaraaah got faur Vincent?", he asks staring and licking.
I pull out $11USD and he smiles a big, toothy gold grin.
"Tank you both veery mooch. Welcome to muh countree. You gonna loove it in Belize," and he jogged back to the road to catch a ride back to the border to await another pair of stupid gringos so he could begin all over again.
ARU and I got back in the car and laughed and laughed at how we had been taken. I laughed all the way into the next town.

Lessons learned... lessons learned.

It was good to see my Dad after 8 years and we talked long into the night.
But that's a story I'll save for another post.

Peace.

Ahhhhhh-topista!

Sat, 11 Mar 2006 03:06:57 GMT

And we're off!
Pucked up the Jeep yesterday from the dealership and took it for a test drive along the tourista playa (tourist beach). ARU was happy with it's performance and we told the hotel staff that we were checking out in the morning (I susupect that they were happy to get rid of us, as every morning we had to go down to the desk and have our key card reactivated. Every time they would ask "When are you checking out?" and roll their eyes!).

We celebrated with helato (frost... a type of ice slush flavoured with fruit) from GueraGuera, a local chain that attracts attention by having young men stand on the street and yell "Guerra Guerra!" really loud and really fast. AND, you can stop your car infront and give them your order and they'll deliver it to you before the light changes! Now that's progress!

We left Veracruz this morning and got onto the Autopista (a toll highway). The roads are wide, well maintained and chock full oif armed guards at all the stops. The bathrooms are clean, free and have toilet seats (that's a big deal here!) AND toilet paper! Oh, and the prerequisite armed guard. I have never felt safer while I was peeing.

We drove through lush valleys overflowing with coconut trees, sugarcane, pineapple shrubs and coaco trees. It was very beautiful.
We also saw many waterbirds and an iguana sunning itself on the highway.
We arrived in Villahermosa at about 3:30 in the afternoon and checked into the Best Western Maya Tabasco (Tabasco is the state that Villahermosa is in).
The hotel is beautiful (the bar is built around a giant living tree) and the staff are very friendly, even with my fractured Spanish. ARU and I took a siesta (that's a Mexican tradition I could get used to) and then went for dinner. It was tasty, but expensive (300 pesos for us both).

Tomorrow we leave for Belize. I hope I can get a good internet connection while I'm there!

Thanks for reading this far. I'll write more soon.

Peace.

Photos

Thu, 09 Mar 2006 19:47:18 GMT

I am having some technical problems with my photo hosting site.
Sorry that you have to contort your bodies to see the pictures the right way.
I am working on it!
Sarah xo

Interesting factoid...

Thu, 09 Mar 2006 18:32:00 GMT

Try this at home...
Chew a PeptoBismol tablet and then brush your teeth right after with Aquafresh toothpaste. See what happens.
(I'll give you a hint: the charcol in the tablet reacts to the toothpaste and turns your entire mouth black! You'll be spitting out gobs of black crap for 10 minutes and your teeth and tongue will look like you've been chewing tobacco all afternoon!)

Just a heads up!

Sarah xoxo

Ola from Veracruz...still

Thu, 09 Mar 2006 18:24:15 GMT

So... where were we?
Right, stranded in Veracruz with a broke down Jeep.
Now I know some of you (Ron Freeman) have been wanting to know where all the updates and posts have been. Some of you (Ron Freeman) think we've been lying on a beach all week eating tamales and drinking piña coladas. Some of you (Ron Freeman) think I have nothing better to do than sit in a hot, cramped Internet cafe at $15 (pesos) per hour while my photos take 9 minutes per batch of 10 to upload. If you look at my photo album, you will notice that there are about 120 pictures from Mexico. Do the math. I have spent more time in this bloody cafe than I have on the beach! So, for those of you (Ron Freeman) who have been demanding... uh, strongly suggesting... that I add more photos, this post, and the new photos are for you! :)

So, what the hell have we been doing while in Veracruz?
A brief recap-

Saturday March 4: Jeep starts to act funny outside of Tampico. Limp through Tuxpan and make emergency stop in some unnamed village beside a cute house (casa) to let the Jeep rest. Limp into Veracruz (but at a bit faster speed this time). Check into the HoJo's on the main Boulevard across from the waterfront and about a 40 minute walk from the Zocalo (main square). We know we can't take the Jeep in until Monday, so we rest (well, I rest and ARU chews on Tums and plans our escape from Mexico. We haven't even made it to Belize and already he is planning on ways to spend as little time in Mexico as possible on the return!)
*ARU's interjection - "The correct version will come at the end of trip"* (he is sitting beside me as I write this ;)
LOL!

Sunday March 5: Explored the beach area across the street from the hotel. The beaches are small and grimy but a big hit with the locals who come by the hundreds to have a nice afternoon in the sun with their families. The tourista beaches are about 7km up the road, and although I'm sure they're beautiful, they probably don't have the atmosphere that the local playas do. Hawkers everywhere selling fruit and juices and food and shirts and yadda yadda yadda... it was crazy busy!
We got back to the hotel in time to watch the Oscars (I think the bit with Lilly Tomlin and Meryl Streep was funny, but I couldn't tell as it was voiced over by two deep voiced Spanish men.) and Bob Esponja (try to guess what that is!). Also, when speaking Spanish, you must speak as though you are an announcer at a tractor pull (Sunday, Sunday, SUNDAY!), that makes it muy authentic!

Monday March 6: Dropped Jeep at dealership. Through some master charades and an excellent vocab sheet that ARU prepared, we were able to convey the symptoms and left it in their capable hands. Took a taxi back to the hotel and I went off to the local Aquarium. It was very nice, clean and well maintained. The highlights were a large shark habitat and a giant turtle display. I was a fan of the manatees and spent a good half hour at their tank. I bought a combination ticket that was also good for the Wax Museum so off I went to see mediocre statues such as Elvis, Frieda Kahlo and... Mr.T (?!). There was also a House of Horrors, a chamber of mirrors and a distortion room, complete with a barfing wax statue at the end (and we all know how I feel about vomit, wax or not!). It was a fun was to kill a few hours.
We checked in with the dealership and understood (kinda) that the Jeep wouldn't be ready until Thursday! Apparantly, there is no spare fuel pump (bomba gaselinero) in all of Mexico, so they had to order one in just for us.
So, here we are until Thursday then. Time to start playing tourista!

Some observations on Mexico - they love TV almost as much as I do. Everyewhere you go, there is a TV on, mostly showing football (soccer) games or Mexican soap operas. Even the vendors at the market have tiny portable TVs to watch. Even at the Burger King! And they like them LOUD! I also have seen a spanish-style Jerry Springer called "Laura", FYI - a bitch slap in Spanish is the same as a bitch slap in English. But she has huge bodyguards that physically hold the guests to their chairs to limit the physical contact somewhat.

The food has been pretty good. Veracruz is known for it's seafood and a style of cooking called "a la Veracruzana" which features lots of fresh tomatoes, onions, olives, bay leaves and spices. It's very tasty and I have had fish and tacos and tamales all a la Veracruzana. And lots of seafood cocktails served in avocado and lots of cafe con leche (coffee with hot milk). It's pretty cheap, too. 6 beers for $9USD! Can't beat that! And the chocolate is awesome! Totally different from the chocolate at home. Tastes different. I enjoy a bar called "Carlos V" and it's only 5 pesos!

Monday night we walked to the Zolaco along the waterfront and took in the sights. Vendors all along the waterfront selling... everything! Shoes, food, toys, fishing gear... you name it! We went to the central square and saw Mariachi and Marimba bands, more hawkers selling cigars and jewelry and food. I bought some religious icons from a vendor (my first experience bargaining in Spanish!) and made our way back to the hotel. Watched a bit more TV (thank god for the Warner channel which is broadcast in English and subtitled in Spanish) and drifted off to sleep.

Note for future travelers: when you check into your hotel, inquire if there happens to be a naval school across the street. Inquire if they happen to parade every morning at 7:30...WITH A BAND! Inquire if they do this SEVERAL TIMES A DAY! No need for a wake up call at the HoJo's in Veracruz...

Tuesday March 7: Got woken up at 7:30 (see above), but managed to go back to sleep until about 10:00. Had a lazy breakfast (desayuno) and returned to the central square to hit the internet cafe and to post photos for those of you who have been harassing... uh, requesting that I post more photos (Ron Freeman). As you know, it took forever and I have come back every night for the last 3 days trying to upload and post. See?! That's how much I love you guys (Ron Freeman) <3 We had dinner at a boring restaurant called Sansborn's (or something like that), the drinks were strong but the food was bleh. I walked out with a heavy stomach and wandered back to the hotel for a shower and more TV (teacher, mother, secret lover...). The Simpsons isn't as funny in Spanish, but they do get Marge's voice right. King of the Hill isn't funny either. I mean, Boomhauer speaks like a normal guy! How lame is that?!
We saw our friend Pero, the mangiest, most banged up old street dog I have ever seen in my life. (We have seen him a few days in a row now and I am currently in posession of some leftovers that we had packaged up from dinner in the hopes that we will see him tonight. DB was worried that I was not ready for the level of poverty that these people live in. The people seem fine to me, I am bummed out about the dogs!)

Wednesday March 8 (is that today? I think so. Time and dates have lost all meaning to me. I used to be able to tell what day it was by what was on TV, but now I can't. So confused. Is anyone watching Amazing Race? Is it good? Who do we love? How's Phil? God, TV, I miss you so much!):
Back to the garage. The Jeep will be ready on Thursday night at 6 (so they say...) (ARU says 18:30, but who talks like that?!). We got some of ARU's laundry out of the Jeep and his sandals and headed back to the hotel area for a walk along the beach and up the Boulevard. We had dinner at a chain called VIP's (reminiscent of an Earls back home, but without the eclectic decor or deep fried cheesesticks) and now we find ourselves back at the internet cafe, uploading pictures and writing this update.

The people in Veracruz have been very nice. They are tolerant of the estupido (but muy polite) gringos and humour me when I butcher their language. DB was *SO* right about no one speaking English. I was so confident that in a tourist area like this they would cater to the english speaking tourista, but hell no! I am so glad he made me take the dictionary. And LB - your book is the most handy thing ev-ah! I think it is the only book I've actually read cover to cover. I'm pretty sure it has saved me from a few embarassing moments (for example: "hway-vos" is eggs, "way-vos" is testicles. "Em-bar-a-sada" doesn't mean I'm embarassed, it means I'm pregnant. You can see how this could be difficult!). The locals are eager to practice their English and we are even more eager to help them. The best English speaker so far has been a very nice young man in the liquor store who shared some of the local booze with us (a creamy mixture of juice and cane sugar and something that doesn't translate into English).

Even though it wasn't planned, it has been a not too bad diversion (says me... ARU feels very differently.). Like I says, if you're going to be stuck in Mexico, there are far worse places to be stuck than Veracruz. My Spanish is, like, a million times better than it was 5 days ago (from 0 words and phrases to... oh, about 4. Not too shabby, eh?) and my farmers tan is coming along nicely.

We *anticipate* leaving Veracruz on Friday (if the Jeep is behaving itself) and *hope* to be in Belize by Sunday. The Jeep does not have a name. I am taking suggestions and will suggest to ARU that we christen it on the way home, if it makes it that far. ARU says that "if you're not in it, you won't know how far it goes!". What a kidder. I know he loves me (and he's sitting right here...)
Details: 1998 Jeep Grand Cheroke, kinda goldish in colour.
Interesting note: I happened to be in ARU's last vehicle when the fuel pump broke. I'm sure it's just coincidence, and that's what I keep telling him, but I'm pretty sure he won't be bringing me along on any more road trips (at least in his vehicles, he says). LOL! In all we're getting along pretty well. My navigation is getting better and I am compensating for my shit directions by doing most of the speaking. ARU's Spanish is getting better every day (from non-existent to nearly non-existent!), although he is valiantly trying to teach the Mexicans French (mistakenly saying "oui" when he means "si". Makes me laugh every time!)

And that's Mexico so far. No problems with la policia since Tampico (so far... and did you know that all the security guards in this city are armed with machine guns?! Crazy!), so we've got that going for us.

I have more to say, but I'm already at 30 pesos for 1.5 hours and I have to go for some ice cream.

Thanks for all your comments guys, I love reading them, even if I give you guff about it (Ron Freeman).
Peace.

Mexico, why can't you love me like Texas?

Sun, 05 Mar 2006 05:28:34 GMT

Flashing lights are never a good thing.
They usually are accompanied by sirens, or gay nightclubs, or annoying florescent bulbs.
Or... your car breaking down.
Yeah, that's right.

A little preamble... the roads are in terrible condition in Mexico. Even on the major highways, they are uneven and full of holes and there are HUGE speedbumps in every little village and no shoulders and mostly one lane in either direction and the road is shared between busses and farm vehicles and travellers and chickens and donkeys and dogs. ARU is a very... um...efficient driver. He does not like to be behind slow vehicles and is a bit obsessed...no, let's say concerned, with getting good milage on each tank of gas. We spent most of the second hour on the road speeding up and passing tractors, then slowing right down to, like, 2km to go over the bumps. Repeat, repeat, repeat. ARU called the road "A two handed, hands at 10 and 2, white knuckle¨" kind of road.
I mentioned that the roads were shit, eh? We were bouncing around like two Mexican Jumping Beans as ARU spit out more profanities than I have heard anyone utter in a long time.
Just as we entered the most beautiful lush green valley I have ever laid eyes on (full of trees heavy with ripe oranges and bananna trees and coconut trees and sweet smell in the air from the vanilla fields nearby), the Jeep starts to sputter and lurch forward pretty dramatically. We dropped the speed to 20km and crawled along the mostly non-existent shoulder, while passing the locals who had set up vending stands on the side of the road to sell fruit (20 pesos for a huge barrel of freshly picked oranges! I would have asked ARU to stop, but I don't think it was an appropriate time to shop) with our engine sputtering loudly, the Jeep jerking and ARU showing the international sign for "I have no idea what's going on" (shoulders raised upwards and palms facing the sky... you know the one...).
We continued on like this for a while, the Jeep would be fine, then jerky, then fine again. We tried new gas in the tank, we tried fuel additive, we tried good old fashioned prayer. Nada.
We limped into Veracruz on a Saturday night and found a hotel with relative ease (well, more ease than last night!).
So now we are stuck in Veracruz for a few days until we can get the Jeep serviced. I say "stuck", but really, we are across the street from a long beach right on the Gulf of Mexico - we can see the ocean from our hotel room and there is a nice lounge here. So if we're going to be stuck, this is the place to be!

It hasn't all been bad...
Things that have made me happy today, in no particular order:
Big trucks with BIMBO in big letters written on the side (it's a bakery-type company). Hee hee... Bimbo.
A bag of Lime Potato Chips with *2* prizes inside!
Seeing giant beehives on the trees in the Valley of Oranges (can you imagine how good that honey would taste?!).
Passing through La Mancha (ah, Don Quixote! For a long time I thought it was Donkey Hoe Tea!)
Lots of puppies playing on the side of the road (shout out to Lenny, even thought I'm pretty sure he's not reading this...).

Thanks for leaving all the great comments, guys (RF - Bill and I laugh hard at your emails. Keep 'em coming!).
It is really nice to hear about what's going on in our respective homes. And please keep telling us about the weather back home, so we can be smug and mention that it's 11PM and 24 degrees outside! I have a great tan, but only on my right arm and right side of my face.

We finally have a day off tomorrow, so we'll be playing tourista and venturing out into the markets. With my Spanish I'll probably end up buying a donkey when I really wanted a postcard! Live and learn, right?

Peace.

Mexcio (or, WTF were we thinking?!)

Sat, 04 Mar 2006 03:35:05 GMT

I was always told that if you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all.
So, I'll start this post by saying that Mexico has beautiful flowering trees and very cute boys.
But frankly, the rest of it is sucking big time!

Crossing the border was relatively easy... in fact, we didn't even realize we had crossed. We went inside to get the Tourist Card ($20USD) and vehicle permit, had out passports stamped and then pulled out of the parking lot. We thought we would have to wait in line atthe actual crossing, so we pulled ahead and realized "Hey! We're in Mexico! Well that was easy!". And that was the last easy thing about the day.
The roads are in terrible shape, the drivers are crazy and the maps are pretty sucky! And don't even get me started about the bathrooms at
the service stations in rural Mexico!
We drove for about 6 hours and arrived in Tampico in the late afternoon.
Just as we crossed the city limits, we were pulled over by the police. From what I understood (which was very little), ARU had gone through a yellow light (I guess that's bad) and they were going to give us a ticket. we could aviod getting a ticket if we were to give the officer 5,000 pesos (that's $500 USD!). We repeated over and over again that we did not speak or understand Spanish (so he just repeated himself... big help) and handed him all the money in our pockets (about 500 pesos or $50USD). Then we raised our hands in the universal symbol for "I don't know what to do!" and smiled and he gave up trying to extort more money from us.
Then we drove into the downtown, where the streets are so narrow and crammed with people and freaked out and drove back to the highway and checked into the first hotel we saw, which also happens to be the most expensive one in all of Tampico. But it's beautiful - just like a tropical resort, with a pool and cabanas and everything. I have not tried the shampoo yet... I'll report on that later.
The food in the restaurant was very good (I have learned the hard way to taste the condiments before I heap them on my food. How was I supposed to know if was piquante salsa and not gravy?! Lessons learned... lessons learned) and very inexpensive for such a swank place. And I was able to convey what we wanted to the staff in very broken Spanish (I do know how to say "No ice, please" and "That was very good. Thank you.", so I'm not too useless.).

Mexico gets a big fat MEH from me right now.
Maybe I'll feel different in the morning, providing I wake up and am fluent in Spanish.

I wonder if it's too late to turn around and go back to Texas?

Say a little prayer for us... we're going to need it!

I Love You Texas, Part 2 (or Can I have a side of Meat with my Meat?)

Thu, 02 Mar 2006 05:50:13 GMT

Good Morning Amarillo!
Both ARU and I survived a potential bout of Meat Overdose (thank you Big Texan!) and headed out of Amarillo this morning on our way to Happy, Texas (I kid you not. It seemed pleasant enough). We passed through Plainview (making the obligatory "It's in Plainview" jokes) and Lubbock and hit Big Spring at about 12:00PM (and the temperature hit 31 degrees! I hear Western Canada is in a deep freeze right now. 2 feet of snow? Haw haw!)
There are many Roadrunners in Texas and once again, TV has lied to me! The Roadrunner is not a big bird, it does not run very fast and it does not say "Meep Meep!". They are small and brown and have a long tail and I saw tons of them on the road (some of them were even living! There is an awful lot of roadkill in Texas...). I'm still waiting to see a real, live armadillo.
Onwards to San Angelo and Eden (the Center of Texas) and Brady (the Heart of Texas). I'm sure there's a difference...
ARU can't decide if my Indian name should be "Tinkles Alot" or "Dilly Dally". Both are accurate. When you gotta go, you gotta go, and when you don't, take some time and enjoy the scenery!
Through Fredricksburg, which was decidely German, with lots of Bierhauses and Germanic Bakeries and Amish souvenir stores... but no Texas BBQ and ARU and I were jonesing for some meat. None was to be found in Comfort, either (although I wanted to stop for "Comfort Food", just to make a joke).
We went through Welfare, Texas (I am not making this up!) and arrived in San Antonio at about 6PM.
There was a sweet smell of grape soda in the air (must be all the trees heavy with fragrant flowers...in MARCH!) and the hunt for BBQ was on!
We headed north of S.A. to an amazing BBQ joint called Rudy's, "The Worst BBQ in Texas".
They lie. It was fan freakin' tastic! You could order by the pound (!) and they had all kinds of fixin's.
ARU had Pork Ribs and Sausage and I opted for chopped brisket and turkey smothered in Rudy's "Sause". Go look at the pictures!
Spicy Beans and Creamed Corn for us both, plus beers and white bread and ice cream to finish. I can hear my arteries hardening from here...
Have I mentioned how much I Love Texas? Or more accurately, how much I love Texas food?
Maybe I can find a TShirt...

More soon...

Who Dat?

Thu, 02 Mar 2006 04:32:41 GMT

Hey Friends!

Just a small request...
if you are going to leave a comment, please tell me who the heck you are!
The Big Buttes joke was funny, but I don't know who to credit.
You know who you are... but I don't.
So leave your name.
That is all.
On to the fun stuff...

Snow, Deep Fried Cheesecake and More Snow

Sun, 26 Feb 2006 03:40:00 GMT

Quick update:

Great party! Thanks to A&A for hosting (and huge props to A who put in a good showing even though she was sick as the proverbial pooch. You rock big time! I hope you're feeling better...) and thanks to all my friends who came out and drank Tequila with me. LB, DM, DT - the after party was a good time. Next time, we *will* see the sun rise!

Wednesday - flew to Calgary (WestJet kicks ass, BTW. TV screens on the seats in front of you. *REAL* TV, not just made for airplane TV. Ah TV... I love you...) where I arrived to 8 inches of snow! I went from blossoms to blizzards in an hour! I actually thought we were still in the air and flying through a cloud, but no, we were on the ground in a blizzard. And you ask why I don't like Alberta that much? Well, that and the rich religious racist rednecks...

Thursday - privatized liquor stores, baby! Liquor world, liquor barn, liquor castle, liquor liquidator... that's one good thing Alberta has going for it. Thank you Ralph Klein :) And meat. I'm talking AAA Prime Grade Alberta Beef. I think I may have been suffering from a meat OD (but I had room for the Deep Fried Cheesecake at Montana's Outback Steak House in Craptown, er, Red Deer. Yeah, it was as good as it sounds. now if they could just find a way to put it on a stick, I might be persuaded to move back...)

Friday - the passport finally arrived (thank you DB, DM and CM!)! It's a terrible photo - please don't give *that* one to the media if something should happen to me...

Saturday - on the Greyhound back to Calgary to meet up with Bill (who will now be referred to as ARU - Anal Retentive Uncle) for a last minute trip briefing, some pizza and the obligatory phone call to Grandma.

We'll be on the road tomorrow to Montana and probably stopping in Butte (tee hee, you said Butte!)
Ahmerica! God help us all...

Where is my Mensa Invitation?

Sat, 18 Feb 2006 06:35:17 GMT

I swear, sometimes I think I am surrounded by incompetence!
It is Friday and my Passport still isn't here. It turns out that, contrary to what the geniuses at the Passport Office told me, Canada Post will NOT deliver registered mail to the door of persons living on a rural route.
I have to go and sign for it at my local postal outlet (this one in the Mall that routinely runs out of stamps. It's a Post Office, for the love of God!) which is not exactly convenient for me, what with me living, oh, 10km away and I HAVE NO CAR!

(calm blue ocean...calm blue ocean...)

On the upside, I spoke with Mail Lady Meagan and she told me that if it was in on Monday, she would bring it to me! Now that's a perk of living in a small community.

-------------------------------
I am really looking forward to my "Go Away!" party tomorrow, being held at the downtown Vancouver apartment of two of the best people I know.
I am very lucky to have an embarrassment of good friends and people who love me very much.
I hope to post mildly provocative pictures of them all in the next few days.

I'm off in 5...

9 Days to Go...

Tue, 14 Feb 2006 02:23:34 GMT

and my passport still hasn't come in the mail.
I will not freak out until, oh, say... Friday.

¡10 días y yo están fuera de aquí!*

Sun, 12 Feb 2006 22:20:33 GMT

Hi! Thanks for stopping in.

There isn't much to see here right now, but eventually this page will be full of interesting photos and anecdotes from my upcoming road trip through the USA, Mexico and Belize.

I can't promise it will always be exciting, but I'll make stuff up just so you have something good to read.

I'll be updating here as often as I can and I'll post pictures from the road here. This way, you can keep tabs on where I am and what I'm doing for the next few months. I encourage you to check these pages frequently, especially when you're at work just so I can rub it in! Feel free to leave comments at both sites; I'll reply when I get the chance.

I'm very excited about what lies ahead.

I'm also very nervous, anxious, and unsure about what lies ahead.

Deséeme la buena suerte en mi viaje!**

Sarah xo

*10 days and I am out of here!

**Wish me good luck on my trip!