Top 3 Travel Journeys (so far)

Low Cost Holidays are running a competition for travel bloggers to write about their top 3 travel experiences (gold, silver and bronze …get it) before passing on the baton to tell about theirs and so on. I’m a bit late on the band wagon for this having only just discovered it but have chosen my top 3 travel journeys (so far).

In reverse order….

3rd and Bronze Medallist – Road Tripping Around the Southern US States

In 2011 to escape the endless obsession with the Royal Wedding and take advantage of the glut of British Bank Holidays myself and Katrina grabbed a cheap flight to Texas and a hire car to explore the Southern States.

I’d never really seen much of the real America, mostly just Washington, New York and Florida so this was a bit of new one to me. The America I knew was one of stereotypes from modern media but the America I found was so much different.

We took in Houston, New Orleans, Montgomery (well you’ve got to see the city with your surname), Nashville, Bowling Green, Memphis, Hot Springs in addition to small towns galore. We ate big plates of soul food, dodged huge tornadoes, cruised long interstates and explored backwaters when we tired of the highway. I discovered a love for American microbrews when before I expected to be inundated with weak light beer.

As a Burnley football (soccer) fan I took pleasure in watching minor league hockey and baseball games as well as the passion of the crowds attending them. We met some of the friendliest people on earth who were fascinated with all things British (especially Simon Pegg it seemed) in the same way we were becoming engrossed in America.

In short I saw a chunk of America and fell in love with it.

2nd with the Silver – Hitchhiking to Morocco for Charity

During my first week at University at one of the many freshers events I was asked a bit out of the blue “have you thought about hitchhiking to Morocco?”

Funnily enough I hadn’t but over the next couple of days I couldn’t get the idea out of my head which made the answer obvious, “I’d love to hitchhike to Morocco!”

The event is actually a little more common than you’d think. Organised by a charity, Link Community Development, students from all over the UK raise money thought sponsorship and over the Easter break (2007 in my case) set off with whoever is brave, crazy, stupid enough to give them a ride along the way.

In my case I hitched rides with truckers, OAP coach tours, train companies, French driving schools, and most weirdly a very romantic French couple on a second honeymoon – awkward!

My highlight wasn’t arriving in Morocco (although the 2 weeks I spent exploring there after was incredible) but a Moldovan truck driver who took me through the south of France while he was travelling to Portugal. At first sight he could have been an Eastern European gangster with scars and tattoos. He spoke almost no English and a very small amount of French – my Romanian and Portuguese weren’t very good at this point (and to be honest still aren’t great today :p ).

However despite this, I couldn’t have met someone more heartwarming. He shared his food, showed pictures of his children at home and souvenirs of his his days in the Soviet Special Forces. In return I tried to explain more about me but I don’t know if he understood so I tried listing footballers from Romania (close enough to Moldova right?) That said, he did get very excited about Dan Petrescu and Adrian Mutu.

Hitchhiking to Morocco was probably my first big travel experience and played a big part in me wanting to explore the world today, I think about how crazy an idea it was but how incredible an experience it turned out to be.

In 1st place to drumroll, cheers, applause and tears is the winner of the Gold – Sailing from Panama to Colombia

A more recent experience and part of the journey I’m currently on, from Cancun in Mexico to Rio de Janeiro in Brazil. With it not being possible to cross the Darien Gap by road (the only gap in the Pan American highway) you need to look for alternatives – fly or one of a number of different boat crossings.

In Panama is San Blas or Kuna Yala, effectively a collection of paradise coconut palm islands, surrounded by electric blue sea and inhabited by a tribe that escaped other tribes in the jungle many years ago. Pretty much incredible.

To see these and get across to Colombia we booked 2 places on a sailboat to see the islands and make the 2 day crossing. To get to our boat we took a jeep through the jungle from Panama City and a small lancha out to where it was moored. The boat was called Sacanagem, which upon boarding we were told by the eccentric French / Colombian captain means a sex act in an orgy in Portuguese. Lovely.

As our lancha left to return to the mainland he also informed us the boat was currently broken and we would have to wait while he installed a part to fix it. Not a problem at all in paradise.

A couple of days passed, the boat was not fixed and a storm was passing through the Caribbean causing the solar panels not to work and meaning we had no electricity. Therefore we would have to abandon ship to a nearby island (it didn’t feel it as our little boat there crashed through the waves) and wait while the boat was fixed (a job that seemed to be getting ever longer).

With no idea how long we were to be stuck in paradise, those of us who decided to wait it out settled in for the long haul and plundered the supplies of rum – no burying it for us! 2 days later we were told the Sacanagem was still a week or so away for being fixed but we could ride with another lady making the voyage – saviour.

4 more days sailing around islands and 2 nights at sea later we were to arrive in Colombia. In that time we ate lobster, snorkelled to our hearts content, sunbathed on deck, staved off seasickness, tried our hand at sailing and marvelled at dolphins. The experience made all the more memorable by the extra days on our first boat and being stranded.

There’s a bit more about this journey from earlier in my current trip – here.

I’m going to nominate Katrina Mackey who writes Dollface Travel to continue what is currently a very short relay chain!

Best of Central America

After spending an awesome few months travelling the length of Central America, from Cancun in Mexico to San Blas in Panama while taking in as much as I could of each country. I thought I’d run a little summary of my highs, lows and favourite picture from Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama.

Mexico

Just a small part of the trip due to cheap flights into the resort airport of Cancun. We took in Cancun and Tulum before heading to the border with Belize.

Highs
– An easy introduction into Latin America
– Gorgeous beaches of Cancun and using the pool/bar of the Ritz for free
– Scuba Diving at the Underwater Museum
– Swimming in a cenote (a crystal clear freshwater lagoon) where limestone rock has given way into an underground river
– Delicious sugar cane mojitos with free buffet in Tulum

Lows

– Cycling a very heavy bike in 40 degree heat turned out to be a bigger challenge than expected

Favourite Picture

Converted VW Beetle (an iconic car of Mexico) used to make sugar cane juice for mojitos in Tulum.

Belize

Such a relaxed country that feels so British Caribbean. The people really were the highlight of Belize, you will struggle to meet such friendly and relaxed souls anywhere else in the world.

Highs

– Hearing people shout “You got to Belize it!”, “Unbelizeable”, “Drink but don’t get drunk” and “Woah man, it is hot today”. Really made us laugh!
– Relaxing and reading on the beach in Placencia
– Luckily finding a tubing company to float through caves and appearing on local TV

Lows

– Despite 3 attempts, not being able to dive the Blue Hole due to weather and lack of numbers to make a trip

Favourite Picture

Many a day was spent relaxing in the beach town of Placencia on these colourful sun loungers. Bliss.

Guatemala

We popped into Guatemala as we travelled south through Belize to see the stunning Mayan ruins at Tikal before returning to the country after we’d visited Honduras. On our second stop we spent much of the time taking a crash course in Spanish, soaking up the town of Antigua and visiting Lake Atitlan.

Highs

– Climbing temples lost in the jungle Tomb Raider style at Tikal
– Cooling off in a bar in Flores watching the sunset
– Learning Spanish and attempting conversations about football with my fantastic tutor Rolando
– Staying in a Guatemalan apartment in Antigua and being able to settle in a place for a couple of weeks

Lows

– Foolishly jumping into a lake with my sunglasses on top of my head only for them to sink to the bottom
– Going from the high of speaking Spanish with my tutor with a clear accent to not being able to understand another person’s accent

Favourite Picture

I’ve chosen this as the view from the tallest temple at Tikal where you can see others poking their heads above the canopy. I also loved Antigua where I became addicted to Instagram.

Honduras

Honduras was a strange one. It really has the highs and lows of travel. One of the main reasons to visit was Katrina taking her PADI Open Water course while I took the rescue qualification. Sadly while here we had trips to the hospital and police station but still came away having loved the country.

Highs

– Qualifying as a PADI Rescue Diver – just one more step towards Divemaster
– Taking in the La Ceiba carnival, the largest in South America
– Zip lining in the jungle followed by a massage and a dip in natural hot springs
– Climbing underneath a waterfall in the morning and spending the afternoon relaxing at a brewery

Lows

– Katrina being taken ill and going to the hospital for an endoscopy
– My wallet being stolen in La Ceiba

Favourite Picture

I’ve chosen my picture of the amazing Pulapanzak waterfall which you can climb right behind and jump around pools underneath. Great fun!

El Salvador

Our stay in El Salvador was relatively brief. We came here for a bit of surfing and to see a lesser travelled part of the region. We turned out to be pretty poor surfers but enjoyed the chance to cool off thanks to some less sunny weather. San Salvador gave us a taste of urban metropolis for the first time in a while.

Highs

– Taking in the incredible scenery of the Pacific coast
– Sampling some great food in Juayua
– Making the most of western life in San Salvador’s malls and cinemas

Lows

– Finding out I’m not very good at surfing while getting caught in a riptide

Favourite Picture

I love this shot of a surfer meeting his match on this wave in Playa El Zonte. Watching other people fall off made me feel slightly better about my own performances.

Nicaragua

A fertile land of volcanoes and lakes would sum up Nicaragua pretty well. We took in Leon, Managua, Masaya, Granada and Ometepe. Despite being bogged down with a mysterious fever like illness I loved my time there, so that must say something for the country.

Highs

– Climbing an active volcano, sliding down in on a sled before climbing another, sleeping on the summit and descending the next day for a refreshing lake swim
– Scuba Diving in a volcanic crater lake
– Playing ‘Quetzalympics’ with a random bunch of people we’d just met
– Getting over my paranoia of horse riding amongst the beautiful scenery of Ometepe

Lows

– Feeling incredibly ill when all I wanted to do was explore
– A strangely high number of incidents of waiters trying to exploit tourists

Favourite Picture

Upon arriving at the peak of the El Hoyo where we to camp for the night we could not see the sunset as the fog rolled in. Thankfully sunrise in the morning made up for it!

Costa Rica

The jewel in the crown of Central American tourism, Costa Rica is where you will find many holiday makers. We spent just a week here but enjoyed the experience back on the beaten track.

Highs

– White water rafting on Class III & IV rapids near La Fortuna
– Watching all kinds of wildlife like Attenborough in Tortuguero
– Randomly finding a softball game in Puerto Limon being played by some very out of shape players gave us a good laugh

Lows

– Spanking our budget with the highest prices we’ve had so far
– Being a little disappointed by other tourists behaviour when watching turtles lay eggs on the beach

Favourite Picture

I love my photo of this lizard blending into its habitat in Tortuguero. This part of Costa Rica was like a mini Amazon rainforest.

Panama

Central America saves the best till last. Panama has gone straight into my top 5 favourite countries. We took in Bocas del Toro, David, Santa Catalina as well as longer stays in Panama City and San Blas. A combination of stunning scenery and the buzzing capital city kept us well occupied.

Highs

– ‘Glamping’ on the pristine Red Frog beach in Bocas del Toro
– Scuba Diving with sharks, rays, eels and countless fish in Coiba, part of the same chain of islands as the Galapagos
– Celebrating Katrina’s birthday in the luxurious Trump Hotel in Panama City, the tallest building in Latin America
– Getting stuck in the paradise that is the San Blas islands while waiting to sail to Colombia

Lows

– Going to visit the Baha’i temple outside Panama City to find it closed for renovation work

Favourite Picture

I went a bit photo mental in Panama as I’m sure my Instagtram account will show. However the one I keep looking back on is this incredible island in San Blas. Will I ever see paradise quite like this again?

Pirates of the Caribbean 5: Backpackers Quest

These last couple of weeks I’ve been getting excited about the journey from Panama to Colombia. This is a border that takes a bit of thought as although 98 years ago man was able to build a canal across Central America, he still has not managed to build a road through the Darien Gap. Nor has a ferry service been able to operate for any significant period of time – despite many attempts.

We decided on taking a sailboat from San Blas in Panama to Cartagena in Colombia. It’s a route that’s been operating for a few years and seemed somewhat well travelled. Despite that, it comes with many warning of unscrupulous captains overfilling sailboats which in the worst case scenario can sink. A nasty reminder in the recent case of Fritz the Cat!

We felt pretty secure in the thought of taking the Sacanagem, a boat with a great many good reviews to be found on the internet. Kinda funny really when you consider the boat is, according to its captain Federico, named after a sex act during an orgy! Nice.

Arriving at the boat on a sunny Saturday morning off the coast of Panama among tropical coconut islands surrounded only by shocks of electric blue water, all seemed well.

As our lancha left us on the yacht to return to the mainland, Federico introduced us excited tourists and travellers to the luxury boat and we all settled in. Even as he told us his engine didn’t work and we wouldn’t be going anywhere till it was fixed. An easy job apparently but we were warned about arriving a day late in Colombia. Do you think I cared from the photo below?

Two days passed where we enjoyed the sun, sea and generally life. Who can really complain when the clear waters are teeming with fish? Strangely however, we hadn’t eaten any of them but we did have some of Federico’s slightly odd but very tasty spaghetti with papaya. Tastes better than it sounds!

Sadly poor Federico was starting to look a little stressed with his attempts to fix his engine. Not a good sign. Even less so when bad weather set in – especially bad for a sailboat with no engine as it means no power from the solar panels.

The diagnosis was not good. We would have to abandon ship. 4 of our group decided to take a refund and return to Panama City. The remaining 4 took a chance and Federico’s kind offer to leave us on a nearby island while he fixed the boat … for “maybe a week”. Oh dear. The weather didn’t help, somehow the tranquil blue Caribbean had turned into a merciless beast of swell and spray. Silly to say but I was more bothered about keeping my electronics dry – the youth of today!

However, unlike the Pirates of the Caribbean movies, the rum was not all gone so we settled in for the long haul. To be honest I still didn’t care.

2 …maybe 3 days passed where we sat in hammocks, played volleyball, read books, ate fish (at last) and watched Pirates of the Caribbean 3. If Carlsberg did airline delays they’d be this good!

One day (I’ve genuinely lost count) we were awoken from our hammock slumber by an English accent asking if we knew Federico. This was Alice who had a boat leaving for Cartagena that day with conveninently … 4 spaces! It seemed Federico was still having trouble fixing the engine and had transferred us to Alice’s boat, the Odyssee II.

After 3 more days of island hopping we would set sail for Cartagena. Now when things work out well, they work out well. The Odysee was much more of an old fashioned boat, made of steel with a wooden interior it felt like a proper boat. And for dinner that night? Crab and Lobster. I mean, come on, I am one hell of a lucky sod.

The area itself is governed independently from much of the rest of Panama under the local tribe, the Kuna. The Kuna are a tribe who it is believed fled their homelands in the jungle of Colombia due to incursions by other tribes. They cleared much of the islands of natural mangroves and planted coconut palms to create the idyllic looking islands there today.

Much of their livelihood depends of this as they barter coconuts with passing ships and other Panamanians. Tourists for example are not allowed to touch fallen coconuts. Tourism provides a welcome bonus to the Kuna through a tax levied on entry and relatively high prices of souvenirs etc. From my experiences they are doing relatively well to minimise the impact of tourists on their home, however you can see the incursion of paved roads, new airstrips and US television impacting some of the younger generation.

The Kuna maintain their own law and culture, for example Kuna are not allowed to marry foreigners, minor law breaking is dealt with by their own courts and much of the society is matriarchal. During our (extended) stay in the area we were able to gain a little insight into life here.

Our 3 days on the boat were just incredible, blissful, beautiful, relaxing, the pictures say more than I can put into words. We sailed around the paradise islands of San Blas taking the chance to snorkel, sunbathe, swim and generally just relax.

With the possible exception of when I took the tiller with a bottle of rum. Arggh me hearties.

Alice and her captain Umberto (it helps to have a Colombian national as captain for entry reasons to Colombia) decided for us to leave for Colombia at sunset, giving us extra time in the islands and helping us get through any seasickness by sleep.

Katrina was especially worried about the crossing as she has felt the onset of seasickness during a couple of boat journeys on this trip. Thankfully, the Caribbean was a great deal tamer than the day of abandoning the Sacanagem and plenty of deck space allowed for fresh air. Nobody chundered.

After our days in the island which on reflection passed by far too quickly, our only full day at sea of the 40 or so hour crossing did drag a little. It’s a bit strange seeing nothing on the horizon all day. My highlight was small pods of dolphins swimming up to the boat, sadly they departed as quickly as they arrived without the chance to take a photo. We did however get an amazing sunset.

After another night on the ocean and with dawn breaking over the southern Caribbean we were greeted with an incredible view of the city of Cartagena and my first glimpse of the South American continent. A perfect way to say hello to a new country and end what has been one the most enjoyable journeys I have ever taken.

If you’re considering this trip yourself I highly recommend Alice and the Odyssee II. If you decide to take the Sacanagem, then despite the engine trouble it is a very nice boat and Federico is a very friendly and humourous captain. He also has an adorable little Poodle called Reina.

If you decide to take a different boat then read the reviews online. Check you are happy with the boat before you hand over your cash. If you’re fussy over food it may be best to take some of your own as well as any alcohol you may want as it is expensive in the islands.

Further, as we left Panama we heard of a new $100 tax soon to be enforced on all passengers leaving for Colombia. It remains to be see how this will impact the route. I have also heard stories of Colombian authorities looking to take a piece of the action.

The bottom line is this however, if you have the chance to take this trip. Go.

Killing time in Panama City

Having arrived in Panama City just over a week ago, we’ve had quite a bit of time in the city. It started off pretty lazily with time to relax in the luxurious Trump Hotel for Katrina’s birthday and it’s continued as we await our boat that will take us to Colombia via the San Blas Islands.

In my last blog post I mentioned all I really knew of Panama as a country was the canal prior to my visit. Well the same applies for the city, I wasn’t sure what to expect. After 3 months in Central America, plus a couple of weeks in Cuba before that it came as a shock to the system as the bus rolled over the Bridge of the Americas and the city skyline came into view. No other city so far has had buildings like this, nor have we seen anywhere as much construction work as appears to be taking place here.

As part of our stay in the Trump (which is also the tallest building in Latin America – for now), we were lucky enough to be taken to the top floor and shown around the penthouse apartment. 5* Birthday Service and the view wasn’t too bad either!

I’ll be honest, we didn’t do a whole heap in the Trump with the exception of lazing by their infinity pool overlooking the Pacific Ocean and eating one the best meals ever in their restaurant, Tejas. If you like fish and you’re in Panama City then treat yourself. There’s more about that in Katrina’s blog here.

Following our weekend of luxury, I admit to feeling like it was back to reality with a bump as we left the Trump and found a hostel in the old town, Casco Viejo. It’s a very pretty part of Panama City that in ways resembles bits of Havana. However, at the moment it’s … well … a bit of a building site.

Despite the workers taking breaks to play football they’re pretty hard working as the noise goes on quite late and starts rather early. That said, you have to appreciate the effort to restoring buildings that are near to collapse and in time I’m sure it will be gracing the cover of the Sunday Times Travel section and so on.

After all, how many other cities in the world can you see a Sunday afternoon baseball game on the beach?

Throughout this trip, we’ve been rather laid back when it comes to planning ahead. This kind of showed when it came to looking for a boat to Colombia. Following a trip to the canal I was pretty convinced we’d be able to blag our voyage on a container ship. That turns out to have been a bit optimistic, though I still have hopes of doing so one day.

The way we finally decided on is by sail boat from the reputedly gorgeous San Blas islands for a few days followed by a 2 day open sea crossing to Colombia. The sea sickness pills have been purchased. By being slow to organise this, it left us with several days still in Panama City.

So what to do? Well I’ll be frank here, my clothes smell a bit and it’s really hot and humid. So we went to the mall. Blah blah blah – you’re not seeing the local culture etc. Well there’s lots of malls in this city so there.

One of the things that I liked the most (in my geeky business graduate way) was the targeted advertising many big brands had to their stores in the city. This one for Converse stood out to me as well as another for Hermes featuring an old Red Devil bus (sadly I didn’t have my camera for that one).

Sadly a few months travelling has made me a cheapskate so half the items I actually bought in Panama City have come from Avenue Central and feel like they’ve fallen off the back of a passing container ship. For example, a $3 bright red digital watch. If it lasts 2 weeks I’ll be stunned.

The mall wasn’t a total waste however, we were able to bask in the gloriously over air conditioned cinema to see The Dictator. If you love crude comedy by Sasha Baron Cohen then I recommend you watch – a bargain here at just $2.50 each. Further, we got to go bowling at the world’s most slippery alley – well that’s my excuse anyway for not scoring over 104.

I’ll return to the more unique aspects of the city shall I? Well following a feeling of guilt from being lazy and gluttonous it seemed a little walk was in order. This took us to Parque Metropolitano on a swelteringly humid day. The park is more of a mini jungle in the middle of the city where there are deer, monkeys, sloths, 250 types of birds and so on. We saw a weird guinea pig type creature, a woodpecker, several butterflies and a grasshoppper (what can I say – I’m not David Attenborough).

Despite our efforts are nature watching, we were rewarded with an amazing view of the city skyline. Though it seems from the picture I was more interested in the clouds.

As if to enhance the point about Panama City’s skyline and the nearby Canal, we also went for a walk along the Causeway. A 3km long strip of land reclaimed from the ocean with material from digging out the canal. From here you are provided with another beautiful view of the skyscrapers as well as ships entering and exiting the canal.

To cool off from wandering around Panama, street vendors have the perfect treat – Raspados. Similar to a snow cone, these cups of shaved ice are flavoured with fruit syrup then topped with condensed milk and/or honey. I’m addicted, so it’s fortunate they’re only 50 cents.

Our final little exploration in Panama City wasn’t quite so successful. We thought we’d try something a little different a get a taxi up to a temple atop a hill on the outskirts of the city. Panama City is home the Latin American centre for a religion known as Baha’i (I hadn’t heard of it either).

As you’ll see it’s a rather curious looking building shaped like an egg. Sadly this is as close as we got to the temple as we were told it was closed for renovation work. We did however get to watch a video that made us feel like we were back in Religious Education classes at school – we giggled inappropriately.

And that pretty much brings us to a close with Panama City, a beautiful city (albeit much of it still being built!) that I am sure in years to come will be an even bigger tourism and business destination.

I say Panama, you say Canal!

Before coming to Panama, all I really associated with the entire country was the canal. Now after being here for a couple of weeks of which I’ve spent time on the beach, diving with sharks off an island in the same underwater mountain range as the Galapagos and staying in Latin America’s tallest building for Katrina’s birthday. I now know the country has a lot more to it!

As they say – “when in Rome, do as the Romans” – well in Panama I followed the many tourists to Miraflores Locks close to Panama City to see this amazing 98 year old feat of engineering in action. It was incredible.

I’m a big kid when it comes to these things. I’m fascinated by big stuff whether it’s buildings – like the Trump Tower I’d earlier be escorted to the top of – or planes, trains and automobiles type things. I wish I could have been an engineer but sadly I’m not really blessed with the mathematical nor scientific skills so it’s the consultants life for me!

The incredible view from the top of the Trump Tower. The canal has been the catalyst for such huge development.

The canal itself spams the isthmus of the American continent at its narrowest point and is vital to world shipping – without it much of the world would find Chinese manufactured goods more expensive to come by while boats would take the more dangerous and costly trip around Cape Horn or by railway across the States.

As we arrived at the Locks which host a slightly pricey museum ($8 for full entry and $5 to just watch the boats pass through the locks) a ship almost as large as the canal can take was midway through its passage. The canal is actually being expanded to accommodate larger and more lucrative ships – 80% of Panamanians (I think) were in favour, nice to see democracy at work!

The Miraflores locks are the last set of 3 locks from the Atlantic to the Pacific side of the canal. The ship must descend by about 54ft to reach the bottom. I was in awe watching the ship process through. Locomotives are attached the the ship on either side, slowly keeping the vessel in line, something I hasn’t expected but cool to watch especially when they descend like a roller-coaster to meet the level of the ship.

The spectacle of the boat passing through wasn’t just of interest to the tourists but it seemed much of the crew of the ship turned out to wave and watch as their office squeezed through tight walls of rock.

I’m equally fascinated by the whole organisation of the process. Ships often reserve their slot through the canal over a year in advance with the passage costing an average of $54k. A Disney cruise ship recently paid over $300k to pass through. From Panama City it is possible to see the ships queuing to make the passage. If you miss your slot, you’re I’m trouble. An empty tanker vessel once paid over $200k to skip a 90 ship (3-4 day) queue when typically the trip would have been 20 times less. FYI, the lowest fee paid for the trip through the canal was $0.36 in 1928 by Richard Halliburton, he swam.

C.15,000 ships per year use the canal and this is expected to triple following expansion works making the locks 60% wider and 40% longer. Even at the cost of $5.5bn it’s not a bad investment!

If you ever find yourself in Panama – I strongly recommend you see this.