*** Update 11-Apr: right, mañana… anyway the pics are up. Uploading took terribly long so couldn´t be bothered too much to do a quality check. Better luck next time! ***

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Rio Dulce + longest bridge in Central America

My speedy kayak (the left one!)

Kayaking shot...

As I said, time to move on! I was shocked to see that my trail through Guatemala is actually making sense; it’s starting to become a (near) perfect loop… not quite in line with the way things have been going so far!

So the next logic step went down to Finca Tatin, a place on the Rio Dulce, between the equally named city and Lívingston - indeed, close to the Caribbean coast again! Somehow that area keeps attracting me but I’ll elaborate more on that in the near future (trust me, it doesn’t all end whenever you think it will ;)). Anyway, what’s to encounter here; sweltering heat and 3 litres of sweat per hour to begin with. Apart from that; kayaking, lots of community-based eco-tourism, great swimming spots (in the river, not the sea this time!), lovely indigenous villages, a devastating jungle-hike, Lívingston (a Garifuna / Caribbean coastal town) and last but not least: a rope-swing in combination with my self-destructive attitude! May I suggest you check the cartoon-like sequence at the end of the picture gallery :) All in all, time to be hyperactive again!

It all started with a 5-hour kayaking trip to a nearby biotope (Chocon Machacas - have fun pronouncing!). Just what my arms, shoulders and abdomen needed after all this sitting still! Besides, kayaking is fun and the trip was beautiful. Next day, next level: 32 degrees Celsius, extreme humidity and an unforgivingly lot of sunshine: time for a jungle-hike! This hike took us to some indigenous villages which gave a great insight in what everyday life really is like in Guatemala. Also, it felt reassuring to see my guide being just as worn as me at the end! The hike ended in Lívingston, so why not check it out straight away; it’s amazing how quickly Q’eqchi’ culture changes to rasta, yah man and reggae in just a few kilometers!

The final day was a chill-out day - after all the old man still needs to watch out for his foot (and lazy bones). Nonetheless, rope-swinging was still fun (and unsafe)!

The following days were mainly marked by transits and a weird border crossing into El Salvador, but I’m saving that one for the next post, in order not to drag on as I usually do :) Come back soon, more is on the way!

-René *no quote this time* Miltenburg

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… or whatever way you’d like to pronounce yet another word for “island”! Arright once again! After almost a week of gray skies, it’s time for a little more sunshine, blue skies and oceans, palm trees, reggae, yah man, etc! (Look here for more terminology!)

After a little bus-and-boat ride we arrived on Caye Caulker, home to everything which is slow, sunny and very Caribbean! Time to continue enjoying the sun, swimming, snorkeling and … surprise … diving! The first few days mostly consisted of “decelerating” - after all the motto down here is to go slow. This appeared to be pretty easy, even wildlife seems relaxed when approached! We also made a brief visit to San Pedro… Madonna might have fallen in love with the place, we sure didn’t!

Our “plans” sort of separated after a while; Mayo went off to do an Open Water Diving course, however due to a cold she could not complete it. Yes - Caribbean nights can get chilly - trust us! She’s happy to receive some comforting messages from you guys though ;) René (that’s me!) on the other hand did another six good dives at the Turneffe Atoll, the famous Blue Hole and some other keys (or cayes…). Yep - the diving counter has really started rolling now! :)

Right now we’re off to the jungle again, back on the mainland (in the hills, even…). Our main “concern” at the time being is where we should be celebrating Mayo’s birthday (Jan 27 people - don’t forget! ;))! Any suggestions are welcome or course! And again, enjoy the pictures and to all you guys in Northern America and Europe - good luck with the weather!

Take care!

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Our house! ("on the middle of the beach")

Our view!

Rene's hammock + content!

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Arright! Please allow me to break the silence down here, the last couple days have been sort of disconnected, if not hectic, if not both. Anyway, after two earlier intentions (aka semi-attempts) to go to the Corn Islands, I finally managed to get there! You know what they say - third time lucky ;)

The entire story on the subject is quite extensive, so bearing in mind the majority of visitors prefer a short story (and lots of pics ;)) you´ll find the “director´s cut” below. The full monte can be found by clicking on “read more” at the bottom of this article. Sounds fair, doesn´t it? :)

So here we go… As the islands are pretty isolated (70km off Nicaragua´s east coast), there´s basically two options to get there: by air (aka recommended and preferred) and by bus and boat (aka adventurous and dodgy). This makes for an easy choice: let´s take the latter!

That morning I got away from Lago de Apoyo by throwing both myself and my backpack over the fence. A quick busride took me to Masaya, famous for its “artesanias” - this is where I decided to buy a hammock, bearing in mind the large number of uncomfortable journeys I still had ahead of me (trust me, there´s more to come after this one!). Been there, done that and another busride took me to Managua. Three hours (and three attempts of theft, all unsuccessful) later I was on the bus to El Rama … what is it with Central American capitals!? One I got there all hotels appeared to be full so I spent the night sleeping in the bus - the hammock instantly came to good use :)

After being kicked out of the bus by its personnel (sorry, I have a hard time waking up!) I took the fast boat to Bluefields, and I mean F-A-S-T - the scenery was lovely though I didn`t get to see much as our boat hung almost vertical with speed :) Down in Bluefields I met up with some people (hello Rita and Mario) and together we learnt we missed the ferry to the Corn Islands by about an hour - bummer! Speaking to locals appeared to help though and we learnt a fishing boat would be leaving for the islands from El Bluff, a key just 1km off the coast. Friendly locals and even friendlier fishermen (yah man) allowed us to hitchhike and we got to Big Corn that same day.  We spent Saturday night on Big Corn (Reggae Palaca was nice!) and I left for Little Corn the next morning. I fell in love with the place as soon as I set foot on the dock - once again the pics should speak for themselves! Spent the next days enjoying perfect weather and, more importantly, went scuba-diing! You read that right: I CAN DIVE AGAIN! It was well worth it too; swimming among sharks and stingraysis quite an experience!

Unfortunately all good things come to an end eventually, and I now find myself in Cancun after spending 4 days on boats and buses, ready for the next journey. YAH MAN!

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Sunrise on Rio Escondido ... on the way to Bluefields

More Rio Escondido sightseeing

Our ride to Big Corn!

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