Solid White lines of the Americas Part 2

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First off, we would like to thank all of those who have been reading our blogs, and leaving messages for us. If you have not already, you can subscribe to this blog and have automatic updates sent to your inbox when we have updated our blog in anyway.

Guatemala:
We left off in Antigua, Guatemala with a broken window and little knowledge of how and where to replace it. Deciding to have a change of scenery we headed up to a hostel that rested on the edge a moutain, which over looked the city of Antigua and the active volcanos in the distance. This was a Canadian owned hostel called Earth Lodge. We took this time to relax and prepare ourselves for what was ahead in our journey, starting off by setting up our tent and wandering the hill side to adjust outselves to the higher altitude. We set up the tent just in time because yet again, another terenchol down pour greeted us. Dane stood outside and watched the dark cloud climb over the mountain and braced himself for the wall of water. Over looking Antigua at night was a beautiful sight, along with a few dotted lights spread over the mountain side from the nieghboring houses. Being the only guests, the hostel employees had made us ample amount of homemade pizza which would not have been made had their been too many visiters. We spent the night relaxing by playing some darts and watching a movie before turning in. After a refueling sleep we met up with a Guetemalan couple who assisted us in purchasing and installing our broken window for a very affordable price of $50. The only reason we found out that this couple was able to help us was because of Carl's method of "talk to everyone". Luis the man who helped us, informed us that Guatemala City was very bad for street signs and that he would take us in and out. Not only were they very helpful and more than kind, it was also Luis' birthday. After getting our window replaced and eating some lunch with them they sent us off in the right direction to the El Salvadorian border.

"Happiness is nothing more than a good health and a bad memory."

El Salvador:
After a few short hours we arrived at the border, and with little hassle. The only thing that took some time was our persistance in having our passports stamped. In the end we had to tell the man at the border that our mothers wouldn't believe us that we drove all the way to El Salvador unless we got our passports stamped. Finally we were through and anxiously looking for a safe sleeping spot when we found a Texaco gas station which was fully guarded by a vicious dog and a man with a shot gun, able to sleep at ease we dozed off soundlessly. The next morning Dane took the wheel, and drove us straight through to the Hondurain border stopping only once to fix our newly installed window which had dropped out of its holding. Lucky for us we were watching while the window was being replaced and had a good idea of how to fix it. We also took this oportunity to nab something to eat.

"Home is where you make it."

Honduras:
Our arrival at the Hondurain border would leave us with a bad taste in our mouth, and we hadn't even entered the country yet. Firstly by being bombarded, by men who insisted on helping us cross the border for a "small propina", secondly by the tedious process of copying and signing and re-signing and re-copying of a tremendous amount of documents tallying up to 30 pages and copies. Lastly the shady border patrol officer who fancied Dane's utility knife, was convinced that we were going to use it to kill people and decided it was best that the knife stay with him. Sweaty, thirsty and with little money we headed into the dry and mountainous landscape of Honduras. Not far from the border, we found ourselves eating some of the best and cheapest tacos our pocket change could afford. Our lack of monies in this country was solely due to that fact that Carl's debit card was not working and we could not find a place to take out more money. We found a lot of places that would have been perfect to take out money with Dane's card, but that was stolen in Antigua, Guatemala. This was not a major concern because Honduras was only a small streach of land and would take us only 3 hours to cross.
So believing that we would have enough money to at least make it to the border and have better luck there, we went on our way. However in the short drive that we had through this country, we were stopped 3 times at police check points, 2 of which cost us more than we had expected. The first time we were informed that we had been speeding and needed to pay them directly or else be left with the hassle of settling the ticket at the border. In all honesty, we were not watching the speed limit and were probably driving like Mexicans. So we gave what little american money we had and continued, all the while the policemen were laughing mockingly at us. The second time we were stopped, the policemen insisted that our vehicle looked as if it was being used to transport goods. The reality was that these people were trying to swindle something out of us for nothing. So after a long heated discussion with them and Carl making them feel guilty for what they were trying to do, they subdued any notion of an infraction and we went on our way. Frustrated and left with little else but our will to continue, we arrived at the Nicaraguan border, with 20 cordobas, which is equilivant to $1. Also, there was no bank or machine in sight. The closest bank was on the other side of the border. To make things even better our gas tank was almost on empty.
With no other option but to sell some of our belongings we pursued anyone who looked interested in what we had. It didnt take long for our cooler, a hat, flashlight, stove, lamp and gas containers to sell at a total price of $20 along with a free dinner from a curtious family who lived on the border. They entertained us that night with their stories of ambition and travel within Honduras, as we ate a plate full of uncooked kidney beans, 2 pieces of baloni, a slab of cottage cheese and bland tortillas. Lucky we had coke cola to wash it all down. The family had very little but would give what they had. It reminded us that however difficult our situation might currently be, there will always be someone out there with harder times ahead.
Believing once again that we had enough money to cross the border in the morning we headed to the back of the car and tried to fall asleep. However, due to our wearyness of the poisonous bugs that we were introduced to that night, the hot and stickyness of the climate and the constant passing through of loud trucks and people all around our vehicle, we found it hard to fall asleep. In fact if it were not for the later onset of heavy rain to drown out the noise, we may never have slept.

"Nothing is either good nor bad, but thinking makes it so."

Nicaragua:
The following morning was a dreary one, not just outside but inside the vehicle too. Our moral was low due to hunger, fatigue and the loss of some of our belongings, not to mention our uncertainty of how we would be able to cross the border and what more we might have to sell. Following the same procedures as the last border we copied our documents and had them signed only to be copied again later. After which we would need to pay for a police security insurance that would hopefully keep police from harrassing us. The trouble with that was we were still short $6, so in a desperate attempt to sell more we searched through our vehicle for items to sell, when Dane miraculously found 500 mexican pesos. Bargaining with an exchange man we got 70% of its worth in dollars. We were now able to pay who we needed to in order to get into Nicaragua. We left the border with little money and the fuel light on. We searched, not only for a gas station, but for some kind of miracle. Pulling into a run down station, we found both. Despite the fact that Carl's mastercard would not work, Dane's visa lucky did. We were able to fill up the gas tank and get a $50 cash back to hold us over both for food and gas until a bank machine would accept our one and only debit card. Stopping at a Shell in hopes to find both food and an ATM, we found both. After ordering some breakfast we realized that we had just ordered the same meal we had had previously eaten the night before, but this time cooked alittle bit longer and better.
Deciding it was about time we indulged ourselves in a bit more R&R, we searched for a nice hotel along the beaches of the volcanic lake of Nicaragua and encountered one called La Mar. What an experiance it was, bathing in 90 degree fresh water, with the sight of 2 volcanoes vastly covering the horizon of the lake. The sunset was breath taking, followed quickly by a lightning show on either ends of the lake. A pool and slide made for a fun and relaxing afternoon along with a delicious and incrediably cheap dinner of fish fillet and sandwiches. This coupled with a deep sleep had us re-engergized by the morning to take our last pictures of the resort and eat our free breakfast before getting on the road to costa rica.

"There are times we walk in the sun, and others we stand in the rain, but our most defining moments, are represented by the choices we make in the circumstances we are in."

Costa Rica:
In the morning we headed to the border of Costa Rica that was not more than 15 minutes away from La Mar. This time we decided not to fight with the people at the border who claimed that they wanted to "help us" get our paper work done, but instead made friends with them and acknowledged their help. As we predicted, 6 - 10 men ran up to the car as we arrived at the border, telling us that they were the best ones to help us. We decided that the best way to pick one was to flip a coin. One man was not happy with this method and instead, wanted to arm wrestle Carl, (this was his first mistake). In all the time that I have known Carl, not one person has beaten him. The arm wrestle was over in no time, and that man left us alone. As we pulled away after picking our new helper, we could hear the group of guys say "those guys are cool". This was better for us because every other border we were at, they were not happy with us, simply because we were able to do the paper work ourselves. Once again we ran into a problem with money and in the end Dane had to go into the Duty Free shop and talk with the young girl behind the counter and asked her kindly for a cash back. Regardless, money in hand, we were off like a turd of hurdles into Costa Rica (so we thought). We drove for 1 minute and hit the next stage in the paper work process. We have never stood in so many lines to get paper filled out and signed. We were at the Costa Rican boarder for over 4 hours. The good side of this is, we met a few people that had already traveled in Costa Rica and knew of some really nice hostels to stay at and where to find a good place. We took their word and drove with it. We arrived in Tamarindo a few hours later. Tamarindo is a small surf town and has everything we needed, when it came to rest and relaxation after all that driving. We find ourselves in a hostel called La Oveja Negra, owned by a few friends from Argentina. The only reason we found this really chillin place was because we picked up a hitch hiker on our way into Tamarindo. We forget his name but he was from Miami Florida, and has been living here for 2 years now. He filled us in with all the hot spots of where to get food, drinks, surfing, and anything else we wanted to know about the town.
As of now, we are staying untill Monday night (maybe) and then moving further along down the cost untill we hit Panama, when ever that will be. We have also spoken with a few more people who have known people who have already done the same drive we are doing and they have taken boats to get into Colombia from Panama. We have an option now, take the ferry to the north of Colombia, take the road, or take the ferry to a more southern destination in Colombia. This would be perfect for us because we will be going into Ecuador next.

"Seek esctacy in life, being alive is joy enough."


Once again, thank you to everyone following along with our trip.
until the next time we have a computer...
Dane & Carl

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Comments

[Matt]

Kick Ass!
Hey Guys, Good to hear you got your window fixed. I was curious what you were going to do about that. Sorry to hear about all the border crossing mayhem, particularly the paperwork and about those crooked cops in Honduras. Rest assured as they will 'get theirs'. On a better note its good to hear of all the friendly people you have met and about their kindness and generosity. Again it's awesome to hear from you guys, best of luck in the rest of your journey and keep the stories coming (take lots of pictures too). Peace, Matt W