mel71

Well I made it alive. The reason for no blog till now is simple.....I didn't feel like it! Haha, that and an evening of cafe mescal might of played a role too. So as of today I have done NOTHING (read perfect). Did my grocery shopping and other than that...Nada. As for generally happier people....this is easy! When I left the states, TSA and customs were glib and not too happy on the whole. And here I thought a gov't job where you could practice widening your a$$ might be coveted! Reckon I was wrong, on the flipside Mexican immigration and Aduana were pleasant and welcoming. Maybe folks here are just happy to be employed. No pictures in this blog because I've not taken any yet! Ate breakfast so now its pool time. Float around a ... read more

Well not junk per se! But certainly new. It seems I made around 1250 USD worth of electronic purchases this last month. Before folks gasp and throw things....it was worth it! In gearing up for next trip (details to follow.) I bought some new camera gear (photos to follow). I've not really even had the chance...sadly...to break it in yet. Weather has been typical Jan-Feb (read garbage). So onto choice for next trip, and an abbreviated reason why. It's going to be Puerto Escondido Mexico again for two months. It's familiar to me and a great base at my friends resort. And the Mexican Peso has been doing well against the dollar...unlike the Brazilian Real. There are a few reasons the Real is fairing so well whilst the Australian Dollar and the Canadian Dollar and some ... read more

Sadly Colombia will pass at midnight tonight when I board a flight to New York. I had an awesome time here, was truly a game changing experience! As I've a little less than four hours before I must head to airport I won't ramble and no pictures till I'm in New York or home in Seattle. Where's next trip? Well I've ideas floating through my head already but won't divuldge them just yet. Stay tuned! Hasta pronto a todos.... read more

So after wandering the city quite a bit,and seeing what I wanted to see....I'm ready for a change! So tomorrow morning I'll head off to Santa Marta a 4-5 hour trip. This blog is simply for pictures as seems the teen/20 something hippies are out for the evening haha. So blog short and I will try and annotate as many pictures as I can stand! Oh and to my Sister..the golfball is slowly receeding but growing in girth haha. Hasta pronto a todos.... read more

Hello from Cartagena....finally! What an odd trip here to say the least. So Monday afternoon I headed to my fave little bar to say goodbye to Octavio,Eduardo,Donna and a few others. Pleasant enough right? Right,but its the rest of the next near 48 hours that was hell on earth! So arriving at bus station at 9pm the woman tells me despite my ticket saying 630pm i will leave at 11pm. Sure I will haha. 11pm rolls around she now tells me my bus will leave at 6am. Haha this is still hilarious as I wait in the waiting area for 6 hours! Lo and bbehold a barely 18 year old policeman looking very official tells me I need to exit the area! I'm livid...jumping up and confronting an armed man isn't my idea of smart but ... read more

Hola from a hammock in a very warm locale. I am kind of glad I was forced out of my last hostel due to lack of room. Here noone speaks English and it forces me to think a bit. And I'm away from glitzy Avenida 70 the odd discoteque are here. So my days I've been passing by sitting at a corner bar watching old farts play cards and talking smack to each other! It's awesome,and even as a gringo I'm accepted with a Norm from Cheers scream everytime I show up! A local retiree named Octavio invited me next year to stay at his house. So bottomline is I'm glad I stumbled across this freindly little barrio. Makes a huge difference in attitude when you meet good people. So I leave here tomorrow..possibly. I say ... read more