The Central and South American tour was about seven months. Did it all by bus, except the Darian gap; caught a plane for that one
The Central and South American tour was about seven months. Did it all by bus, except the Darian gap; caught a plane for that one
You went through Columbia ? And Brazil ?
Pics, please !
Coffee at Panajachel, Guatemala
The Waitress
Last edited by Lancelot; 12-02-2017 at 09:14 AM.
Panama Canal
El Tunco Beach, El Salvador. Some hot surfer chicks there
Beach Bar at Costa Rica. You don't even need to get out of your golf cart
Last edited by Lancelot; 12-02-2017 at 11:22 AM.
My delicious $8 steak in Argentina- before the devaluation
Last edited by Lancelot; 12-02-2017 at 11:29 AM.
Great thread, Lancelot.
I've been to Guatemala two times, Honduras, and Belize.
I've never thought about going south of Nicaragua in CA.
Do you recommend Panama?
I know they use USD, like El Salvador and Ecuador. I have funds but will be very frugal to stretch out my time.
Really awesome thread. Makes me seriously want to add Quatemala to "the list". Cheers OP!
Guatemala is one of my favorites countries.
I think part of it is because I met friends there 22 years ago and still keep in touch with them.
Lots of Spanish Academies to study Spanish one-on-one.
Lots of interesting aspects of indigenous culture and natural sites from active volcanoes to Tikal, flora & fauna and animals.
Any safety issues beyond standard precautions? Would love to do the multiple country bus tour with the wifey.
I never felt uncomfortable on the busses, even the night trip from Calli to Ecuador, supposedly through bandit country.
But I did take precautions; if I had to check a map on my phone, I would stand with my back to the wall, so I could still see in my peripheral vision. I was always super aware of my surroundings.
I met one Aussie biker in El Salvador, then saw him again at the Honduras- Nicaragua border. He hooked up with a motley crew traveling the world. Some of them had been on the road for five years!
Hell yes!!!
Gauchos in Villa General Belgrano, Argentina.
After the Germans scuttled the Graf Spee in the Argentine/Uruguayan estuary, many German sailors were allowed to settle in this town. Looked like a village right out of Bavaria
Last edited by Lancelot; 15-02-2017 at 02:08 PM.
Belize has a lot of German mennonites that settled there to, I was travelling with a German guy and he had trouble understanding them, they spoke in an old fashioned kind of German , dressed very drab, maybe a bit like the Amish in the states, I found them interesting and a bit strange in a country where they are 90% black and 10% Hispanic. Belize was interesting but kinda weird to, I didn't wanna be the guy to tell them that bob Marley was already dead, fuck that. They were waitin on his next album coming out, was staying on key caulker no internet then.
Not trying to derail your excellent Central American thread Lancelot, but I also went to the largest whorehouse I've ever seen. This was called Raul's rose garden . Only found it because I got drinking with some pommie squaddies and a couple of Gurkhas who sort of adopted me as some kind of an Aussie mascot, ended up on there military base and had a gander at the harrier jump jets ( impressive) woke up in the morning in the rose garden in a back room. No idea how I got there , wallet was intact but I had no idea which direction Belize city was , still can't remember if I got a shot away.
Great diversion BLD! Social history meanderings are not really "diversions" in my view. More of a titillation.
I always wanted in find the site of the house of 500 girls in Saigon but no one would volunteer to show it. Course they would all be grannies by then, but, the memories eh!
As for Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras, crime has gotten worse in the last 20 years, as it's the most violent area on Earth that's not at war.
That said....
Families with children, tourists and backpackers are still reporting on the Lonely Planet Thorn Tree forum with great reports from Guatemala and El Salvador.
The only place many people seem to avoid is Honduras, except for Copan, which is a town with ruins, near the guatemalan border. Honduras seems to be the worse of the three. Nicaragua, on the other hand is much safer (b/c people from Nicaragua did not go to the US in the 1980s, get involved in gangs, and then get deported back to Nicaragua. This is exactly why Guate / Honduras / and El Salvador are so bad. Illegals in LA gangs that were deported back. 18th street and Mara Slavatruca.
You can take the public buses (aka "chicken buses") b/c they're so packed with people. Or, you can take mini-vans for a couple/few more dollars that go direct to your destination.
I would be watchful of where you go at night, avoiding isolated areas or paths or streets that are dark and barren. I'm not paranoid, but it's reality there.
But again, the vast majority of reports from families, friends and solo travelers are very good.
Cool thanks man. All that sounds like a pretty fair assessment. Cheers
Great thread! Thanks for all the pics and info. Lately I am considering a move to that region so I am interested in everything I find about these places.
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