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[inkedadventurers]

Bright and early the day after 4th of July, I was up and about getting ready to head up to Northwestern Washington state to Kitsap county near Seattle…. but before I headed out of Hood River, I stopped at my new favorite local coffee joint, Kickstand Coffee, for a coconut milk latte.

Latte from Kickstand Coffee

I stopped a few times along the Colombia River to take some shots along the always beautiful drive west from Hood River to Portland.

I arrived in Poulsbo, Washington in Central Kitsap county about 4.5 hours later, just in time to meet Echo, my friend’s daughter who had visited them from California.

Echo and I

Echo and I have been Facebook friends for a while and have several things in common so it was great to finally meet her in person!

We all decided to quickly head to Port Gamble to check out the town’s festival, Old Mill Days, before she had to leave for the airport.

Port Gamble is on the Northwestern shore of Kitsap county, the town is tiny, consisting of less than 1000 people but the historic district is an US National Historic Landmark.

That night I ran some last-minute errands and then went to dinner with my friends and hosts, Hans and Jimi who make this area of Washington state their home.

Boats in historic Poulsbo

Beyond visiting Hans and Jimi, the other reason I came up to Kitsap county was for something really exciting… drumroll please… I was here to get my Washington state motorcycle endorsement through the Pacific Northwest Motorcycle Safety course.

Motorcycle Safety Motorcycles

After two days of learning the rules of the road for a motorcyclist and many hours spent getting familiar, riding the bikes and learning motorcycle skills, I passed both the practical and written portions allowing me to visit the department of licensing to get my official endorsement.  Watch out world.  Or more like, drivers watch out for me!

Boats in historic Poulsbo

Hans, Jimi and I of course celebrated my passing the course with a few good bottles of wine and dinner and more great conversation.

Hans, Jimi and myself at Tapas Bar in Poulsbo

I stopped in Poulsbo the next morning at the department of licensing to do the paperwork for my updated license and of course a stop at the world-famous Sluys bakery for a snack for my drive back to Hood River.

It was a great few days up in Kitsap county, mixing business with pleasure and I hope some day soon to return to see more of it but for now….

//The I.A.

Three Days in Kitsap County Bright and early the day after 4th of July, I was up and about getting ready to head up to Northwestern Washington state to Kitsap county near Seattle....

[inkedadventurers]

Hood River, Oregon is in the Columbia River Gorge about an hour east of Portland.  I first came here in 2006 on an interview and shortly afterwards sold my house in Georgia, moved across the country and have never really looked back… and while I’m still full vagabond mode, it is still the place that I consider home to me.

Multnomah Falls lower falls en route to Hood River from Portland, Oregon

So I’ve been back here in this special place a week now and each day I have been fortunate to be surrounded by people who have followed me virtually the last eight months of my adventures, have listened when I pour my heart out on Facebook messenger and now that I’m home they are here with me daily, both laughing and crying as I talk about the last eight months and my thoughts on life and as I sit and listen to get up to speed on theirs and everything that I have missed.

One of the biggest things that has changed this travel period is that my friend gave birth, and I’m now Auntie to the handsome Hiko-san.

Some days are full from Breakfast to lunch to dinner, and its these moments that I hold on to when I’m gone because truly the best gift we can give to each other is time.

It never hurts that we all live in a place I still consider one of the most beautiful in all the world and an outdoor mecca.

Mt Hood over Hood River Airport

Which has allowed me accessibility to mark items off my bucketlist, like my climb of Mt St Helens….

Mt Helens Sunrise Summit

Enjoying mosquito free evenings outside drinking wine and talking about future life and future babies…

Adam and Vanessa

As well as a plethora of other adventurous activities like my day spent rafting the White Salmon River with Robin and Dani from our Kilimanjaro hike as well as more old friends :)

And of course, this week we also got to celebrate 4th of July together… which is my favorite holiday and a day that generally incites memories that I never want to forget.

How lucky we are to call this place home and how blessed I am to have these fabulous people here to enjoy it with.

//The I.A.

//

Back in the Hood Hood River, Oregon is in the Columbia River Gorge about an hour east of Portland.  I first came here in 2006 on an interview and shortly afterwards sold my house in Georgia, moved across the country and have never really looked back...

[inkedadventurers]

A few days ago my friends Robin and Dani, my infamous partners in crime from climbing Mount Kilimanjaro messaged me wondering what my plans were for Friday because they were headed out to my old stomping grounds in White Salmon, Washington with the intent to head down the White Salmon River, rafting with Zoller’s Outdoor Odysseys.

Mt Hood from WA-141

I of course said I was in… as I am always up for practically any adventure and was excited to catch up with them as well as I haven’t seen them for 8 months.  However as I had just annihilated Mount Saint Helens the day before my body wasn’t feeling amazing but I was pretty sure some cold water therapy might just do me some good.

Also in for the ride was my friends Greg and Shari as well as some of Dani’s relatives who flew in from Pennsylvania giving us two full boats of fun.

Robin had organized for us to raft the Upper White Salmon, which although slightly more expensive, it offers the furthest upstream commercial launch site on the White Salmon river therefore giving us a few more class III and IV rapids.

Zoller’s guide giving us the rafting brief

One thing that was different about this experience White Salmon River rafting compared to my adventures rafting elsewhere was that we were using mini 4 person rafts.

In the middle of our rafting trip, everyone got the chance to cliff jump into the river.  Let’s just say the White Salmon is fed almost purely by glacial melt off nearby Mount Adams, so brisk was an understatement.

Cliff Jumping on the White Salmon River

The other highlight of almost any White Salmon river rafting trip is the grand finale, pushing the boat into the Class V Husum falls…

After kicking out of Husum falls, we made our way to the bank and it marked the end of our 2.5 hour rafting adventure.  We all decided we hadn’t spent enough time together so decided to rendezvous across the river at Solstice Pizza where I ordered up a country girl cherry and chorizo pizza, a pizza named one of the best 50 in the country and rounding out our meal with some wood-fired s’mores.

By the time all was said and done it was late afternoon and everyone but lucky me had to make their way back to Portland, but I was very thankful to be able to spend yet another adventure with Dani, Robin… and even more friends and even better this time in our own backyard

//The I.A.

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White Salmon River Rafting with Zoller’s Outdoor Odysseys A few days ago my friends Robin and Dani, my infamous partners in crime from climbing Mount Kilimanjaro…

[inkedadventurers]

For the past four years, I’ve tried unsuccessfully to gain the required permit to climb Mt St Helens and my luck finally changed this week when I was fortunate enough to buy one off of purmit.com after another couple decided to cancel their hike.

Permit and Parking Pass for St. Helens

After I paid for the permit, the man I bought it from happened to mention it was going to be a full moon and that I could technically begin hiking at midnight…. hmmmm…. I began to think this was the best idea as it has been 100+ degrees in the Gorge and climbing a mountain in direct sunlight and that level of heat didn’t sound glorious.  So I followed his recommendation and after a two-hour drive there from Hood River, Oregon (the place I still somewhat consider “home”) I began my hike at 01:25 in the morning.

It was just me, my headlamp and camelback setting off into the wilderness…. a completely still night, the heavenly smell of the wild pacific northwest and the full moon to guide my way above the treeline.

I ended up summiting at 5:27 just as the sun was peaking over the horizon.

Mt Helens Sunrise Summit

It was an amazing sight to behold as I contemplated the eruption that occurred here only 35 years ago cutting the former 9,677 ft (2,950 m) mountain to 8,363 ft (2,549 m) and replacing its summit with a mile wide crater.

The Mt St Helens eruption was the deadliest and most economically destructive volcanic event in the history of the United States. Fifty-seven people were killed; 250 homes, 47 bridges, 15 miles (24 km) of railways, and 185 miles (298 km) of highway were destroyed.

Seismic activity station on St. Helens

The downhill hike was much easier and I descended in about 2.5 hours, and was very happy to have begun my hike and ascend in the cooler night air as I passed the day hikers already beat red and sweating in the hot morning sun.

My feet were happy to finally reach my car and head off back towards Hood River, but as I drove away, my heart was happy too and I felt accomplished to mark another item off my bucketlist and time spent in the wilderness, to me are moments never wasted.

//The I.A.

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Bucketlist Item #2123423, Climbing Mt St Helens For the past four years, I've tried unsuccessfully to gain the required permit to climb Mt St Helens and my luck finally changed this week when I was fortunate enough to buy one off of…

[inkedadventurers]

“Well, it’s been a quiet week in Lake Wobegon, Minnesota, my hometown, out there on the edge of the prairie.”

Fawn at SJU

If you’ve never heard of Garrison Keillor,  these lines may not make a lot of sense to you but he is the radio show host of A Prairie Home Companion.  

Lake Wobegon is technically a fictional town, but it is based on of several small towns in Stearns County, Minnesota…. the place I was born and raised and where Garrison Keillor lived while taping his radio show….

In the radio show Lake Wobegon is characterized as “the little town that time forgot, and the decades cannot improve” and every time I drive back into central Minnesota and finally veer off the Interstate it is indeed like a virtual time-warp back to a simpler time.

A time when men still valued an honest day’s hard work, hunting, fishing, providing for your family and playing baseball were cornerstones around which you built your life, a time when you knew and trusted all your neighbors and patriotism ran strong…

….and the people that still live here prefer things to stay this way.

The only thing that has really changed since I’ve been gone the last 13 years is practically everyone I know has gotten married (to their high school sweethearts no less), made babies and all together they grow older…. passing on the century old family farms and their ancestral knowledge on from generation to generation.

It’s a place where every night patriarchal families still gather around an oak kitchen table, give thanks and eat dinner together.  Here, the bull is shot in the sing-song voice made “famous” in the movie Fargo while leaning against a John Deere tractor or the back of a Chevy truck with a cold beer in hand… and if there is scandal, it’s the talk of the entire county…. for months.

Most towns range from population 50-2000 people, each one consisting of a catholic church, at least one bar and a baseball field… these small villages dispersed over thousands of acres surrounded by miles and miles of corn, alfalfa and soybean fields and silos of beef and dairy farms dotting up across every direction of the horizon.

In the radio show, Lake Wobegon is the home of hot dish, snow, Norwegian bachelor farmers, ice fishing, lutefisk, yards landscaped for show with flowers “like Las Vegas showgirls”,

Sweet corn…

Magnificent grain elevators…

Albany Roller Mills

And pleasant lakes…. all of which very much still exists and are integral parts of the daily lives of the people who live here.

Everyone knows everyone and no matter of how good of a kid you are, it’s perfectly normal to start drinking at the county bars at age 16, then load into jacked up Chevy or Dodge trucks and hightail it across the county from bar to bar all night, breaking beer bottles against street signs along the way and pursuing whatever other mischief comes up along the journey.  It’s a place where life is not so much about what you “want” it’s about what you “need.”

So coming back here, back “home” makes my mind easily slip  into a walk down memory lane for me, country music blaring as I roll back into my old stomping grounds memories sometimes making me laugh, sometimes making me cry and sometimes making me wish that I wasn’t the only thing here that’s changed.

Lake Wobegon Covered Bridge

//The I.A.

“Well, that’s the news from Lake Wobegon, where all the women are strong, all the men are good-looking, and all the children are above average.”

// < ![CDATA[ // < ![CDATA[ //

Growing Up In Lake Wobegon "Well, it's been a quiet week in Lake Wobegon, Minnesota, my hometown, out there on the edge of the prairie."

[inkedadventurers]

This morning I reported to the ferry dock to buy my cruise ticket on the Rio Dulce, Guatemala’s sweet river, from Livingston to Rio Dulce where I will then catch a bus back to Guatemala city.

Livingston Guatemala Port

I’m pretty happy to be leaving Livingston as it’s sweltering with humidity and definitely the most “dismal” place I’ve seen in the Caribbean.

Goodbye Livingston!

Many travelers had great things to say about the Rio Dulce and maybe the river itself was better, but I probably already had my fill of sitting around the middle of the jungle sweating my a** off in Semuc Champey/Lanquin so that’s about how I feel about that.

Old Boat near livingston Guatemala

The mouth or “Buga” of the Rio Dulce was beautiful and the water was nice and calm making for an enjoyable boat ride that was supposed to take 2 hours.

Entering the Rio Dulce

For a portion of the ride, there were steep limestone cliffs (some replete with graffiti) also covered in thick green jungle.

Limestone walls of Rio Dulce

A few miles up the river there was a Mayan community which I had read about as this area is more renowned for the Garifuna people I wrote about yesterday, but they do work together in this area and live in perfect harmony.

About 30 minutes up the river we stopped at Agua Caliente or the hot springs… that’s just what I want to do when it is 90 degrees out and 85% humidity… sit in some hot springs.  But we were there for 15 minutes so I dipped my feet in.

Considering it was RIGHT on the river, that water was HOT.  I’d probably have boiled up if I put my whole body in, as if I haven’t been miserable enough from the heat.

A few minutes after we departed Agua Calientes where they also charged me 2Q to use the Banos, we came upon a place filled with lots of lily pads.  They called it the Laguna de flores (Flower Lagoon).

Laguna de flores

Some people commented they had never seen lily pads before…. I grew up in Minnesota which is the land of 10000 lakes, so I’ve seen my share.

Next up seemed to be an egret nesting area, although the guide/boat captain didn’t really comment much about it.

About an hour after we left Livingston I knew we were already in the city of Rio Dulce as I began to see hundreds of docked sailboats.  Apparently this area is renowned for being safe harbor during hurricane season and many people send their boats down this way until the end.

Sailboats on the rio dulce for hurricane season

About a minute later we passed over a massive soaring bridge before pulling into the dock.  Our 2 hour “tour” took about 1 hour 10 minutes and I was already in Rio Dulce Guatemala…. so now I just have to waste 12 hours away before my flight takes off this evening.

Bridge over the Rio Dulce

Luckily? if you can all it that, I’ll be stuck on a Guatemalan bus for at least half of that watching bad American action movies in Spanish…. so I’m on my way back to the US for a few days to see my family, friends and do a much-needed resupply before the journey continues <3

//The I.A.

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Cruising on the Rio Dulce, Guatemala’s Sweet River This morning I reported to the ferry dock to buy my cruise ticket on the Rio Dulce, Guatemala's sweet river, from Livingston to Rio Dulce where I will then catch a bus back to Guatemala city.

[inkedadventurers]

I decided to head back out to the Caribbean coast to Livingston Guatemala for my last few days in this amazing country as many people had great things to say about this area as it was supposed to be completely different from anywhere else in Guatemala.

Ferry to Livingston from Puerto Barrios

You see, while the rest of Guatemala has mainly Mayan ancestry the people of Livingston Guatemala are Garifuna.  In the 17th century, a boatload of slaves shipwrecked on the Caribbean island of St. Vincent… eventually mating and mixing with the indigenous Carib blood and these became the Garifuna people.

In the 18th century after a lot of fighting the British colonized St. Vincent and decided to deport the Garifuna people to Roatan, Honduras where many of the surviving Garifuna starved.

Street fruit vendor in Livingston

This led to them leaving Roatan and spreading peacefully across here to the Caribbean Guatemala which today has the highest concentration of Garifunas, but to Honduras, Nicaragua and southern Belize as well.

Livingston community bath/laundry

Livingston Guatemala is a landlocked town only accessible via boat and the Garifuna’s call it “Buga” which literally means “mouth” in the Garifuna language due to its location at the mouth of the Rio Dulce which I am going to explore tomorrow on my way to the airport.

Tienda in Livingston

The Garifuna people still speak their native language which is 45% Arawak, 25% Killinagu, 5% French, 10% English and 5% Spanish… there is also still a lot of traditional Garifuna food in Livingston, the most “famous” dish being Tapado which is a seafood filled coconut milk soup.  Probably delicious, but soup doesn’t feel so amazing on a sweltering hot day.

I have to say I expected something else from Livingston as I’ve already been to the Keys in Belize, Roatan and the Corn Islands of Nicaragua, I felt it was more in the same culture-wise but dirtier, trashier and a lot less to offer.

Livingston community basketball

So hopefully tomorrow my boat ride up the Rio Dulce will be a charming experience and making the long trip out this way to Livingston Guatemala will be worth it.

//The I.A.

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Exploring the Garifuna Culture in Livingston Guatemala I decided to head back out to the Caribbean coast to Livingston Guatemala for my last few days in this amazing country as many people had great things to say about this area as it was supposed to be completely different from anywhere else in Guatemala.

[inkedadventurers]

Yesterday I did another longggg road trip from La Antigua to a town on the Caribbean coast, Livingston Guatemala.  According to the owner of the guesthouse I was staying in, I should have arrived in the afternoon, but this wasn’t the case at all as it was well past 7pm when we finally were able to drop our bags at Casa Nuestra.

The owner of the guesthouse is on vacation but had sent me a list of recommendations of things to do here while in town.  But first let me say, my God its hot here… I have two fans in my room and I’m dying, even just laying there, I’m drenched in sweat.  It’s horrific.

So it took some willpower to make myself go on the first recommended activity, a hike to Siete Altares.  I didn’t know anything about it, except that Siete Altares was some type of waterfall area.  So I threw on my bikini and trudged off down the beach along Bahía de Amatique… in the sun… for 3 miles each way.

I was sweltering…. and thought about turning around several times…it also didn’t help that the stretch of beach I was walking on was filthy.  ABSOLUTELY the most polluted disgusting stretch of sand I have ever seen…. most of it being plastics…. it made me sick.

But finally I eyed the lush entrance to Siete Altares, luckily lacking filth.

I paid the 20Q entrance fee, used the clean bathrooms and climbed my last hill… and found myself in a pleasant oasis.

first pools

Siete altares is a series of seven waterfalls joined by a pleasant slow flowing creek.  The water looked pretty clean and I was relieved to find a private little swimming hole with a waterfall to cool off and relax in.

My pool at Siete altares

As I was sitting there, relaxing I saw three germans hiking toward me from up the river… they told me that 5 minutes further upstream was a larger waterfall that I had to check out, especially since I had already come this far in the heat.  So I threw my flip-flops back on, and walked up the river.

Large cascada at Siete Altares

It was nice up there as well, but with a few more people…. some were jumping off the falls into the pool below, and it was also pleasant except for some idiot who kept yelling out at the top of his lungs “piscina” every 30 seconds to make his kids laugh… which was enough to annoy me, so I turned back around and went back to my private pool to read, bathe and nap the afternoon away.

Little crab

The worst thing was, I knew I had to pull myself away from the Siete Altares oasis and walk in the heat and humidity the entire beach back to Livingston…which was awful.Siete Altares is definitely an amazing place to visit and due to it’s lack of people, although smaller than Semuc Champey, I actually prefered it as I felt I had the entire thing to myself (except for the biggest falls area).  I’d definitely recommend it if in Livingston Guatemala along with lots of water for the hike there and back.

//The I.A.

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An Afternoon Adventure to Siete Altares Yesterday I did another longggg road trip from La Antigua to a town on the Caribbean coast, Livingston Guatemala.  

[inkedadventurers]

After spending a bit of time in the remote Guatemalan jungle highlands, I made the long trek back to La Antigua, aka civilization.  When I was in la Antigua the first time in May, I was a bit sad that I hadn’t spent a lot more time there although it’s a smaller city of only 35000, it has a lot to offer.

So although my revisit was unplanned, I decided to make the absolute best of it this time around while I tried to decide where my unstructured life should take me next.

So after a morning workout and breakfast, most days were spent randomly walking the cobblestone streets further exploring the fabulous spanish baroque architecture of la Antigua.

La Antigua Guatemala literally translates to ‘ancient Guatemala’ but back in 1543 Spanish conquistadors founded the present day city, it was then called Santiago de los Caballeros.

La Antigua also has claimed the title as the food capital of Central America and to this, I agree.  I could spend ANOTHER month in this city just trying various restaurants.  To say it’s over-saturated with goodness is an understatement and it’s incredible to find charcuterie, stores selling Trader Joe’s products, a French deli (Metiz) and a plethora of other organics stores and restaurants in such a small city, much less in the middle of Central America.

Then there’s the drink offerings…. most nights I’d have a few glasses of vino during wine happy hour at one of the wine bars before moving on to dinner, where more wine sometimes was had before checking out the live music at Cafe No Se or relaxing back at another wine bar.

Some afternoons I’d take my coffee from one of the many coffee shops around central park, if you sit on the rooftop patio at La Casaca, you could watch Pacaya volcano exploding every 20 minutes or so…

Pacaya Volcano erupting

The week in la Antigua went by quickly and I have already resolved to return, my plans are not concrete but I may come back here for a month after exploring more of Mexico to study my Spanish, eat healthy organic food, work at the wine bar and use one of the gyms in the city… a travel detox if you will, as I’m starting to feel like it’s time for a little break.

Street art in la Antigua

//The I.A.

//

Life in La Antigua After spending a bit of time in the remote Guatemalan jungle highlands, I made the long trek back to La Antigua, aka civilization.  

[inkedadventurers]

I’ve spent the last week or so in Lanquin, deep in the Guatemalan highlands and more specifically back to the area around Semuc Champey, the place I just left a little more than 3 weeks ago.

Little semuc champey waterfalls

I generally never go backward, and definitely not back to the same place twice in less than a month time, but the day I left Lanquin the first time I felt that someday I would possibly return so when opportunity presented itself, I decided to come back sooner than later from Playa del Carmen.

So I traveled two days from Mexico to come back out to the Guatemalan wild 45 minutes from the small village of Lanquin.  A remote paradise surrounded by the soaring lush green peaks and indigenous banana farms, practically living the local life of the surrounding Mayan people, some of whom who also worked at the hostel.

It was an adventure unlike many will never have…. one day I even had the opportunity to be welcomed for lunch into the dirt-floored stick home of a neighboring Mayan family.  The smiling ladies laughing as I attempted to pat out my own maiz tortilla, sitting on a log eating freshly butchered chicken soup as my eyes watered from all the wood-fire smoke, staring into the eyes of the family’s laying hen also nestled in the corner 4 feet from me…

I think people from my previous life would be a bit shocked at the conditions which I chose to “live in” while out in Lanquin… it was definitely a life of “simplicity” although to be honest, I had everything I needed (wanted may be another story).

I was living in a wood hut by a beautiful streaming creek, its hammock a place of refuge where I spent many hours reading my Kindle and thinking about life and traveling and what my “plan” should be….

It was always really hot and humid with no AC or fans, the windows had no screens, there was only power from 5:30pm – 11pm at night and practically no wi-fi which is my why blogging and thus all my posts are well-delayed…. and…. I had to hand wash all my laundry and line-dry each piece as well.

The little Mayan women ( only reaching up to my mid-rib cage in height) who worked in the kitchen and laundry room laughed at me hysterically the first day I rolled into the little washroom and I stood there trying to communicate that I needed them to show me how to hand-wash my dresses.  But eventually I got it, and then did laundry daily as the thought of having to hand-wash a mass-pile of clothes sounded horrific.

These little lizards reminded me of dinosaurs

I was invited to stay for as long as I wished, I could have stayed a day, a week or 4 months and it quite easily have been a place of quicksand for me… but my problem was between being surrounded by the Israeli owner and many Israeli hotel guests speaking hebrew to each other, the kitchen staff speaking Mayan Capuchan, and no wi-fi to communicate with my friends or the outside world, I felt disconnected and I began to get very lonely.

Everyone was wonderful, but I felt that this wasn’t the place for me so I felt it was time to leave.

Israeli Shakshuka

I am glad that I returned to Lanquin as the time spent there has been the longest I’ve been in any one place since the beginning of November and it was a nice refreshing pause, something I probably needed.

Keegan and Sami

But a small part of me is also sad, that this time I know I’ll probably never go back there, yet I was fortunate to have the time I did surrounded by the Mayans closing yet another chapter of this adventure.

//The I.A.

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Living Like a Mayan in Lanquin I've spent the last week or so in Lanquin, deep in the Guatemalan highlands and more specifically back to the…

[inkedadventurers]

So there I was a few weeks ago (this post apologetically is way delayed), back in Playa del Carmen, Mexico…. The place where my traveling life all began, where practically a decade of wanderlust was born.

Bill, Candice, Ben and I

Nine years ago we rolled into a country and a place I knew nothing about… yet I had thought that I knew everything there was to know about the world, after all by that time I had already spent a year “at war” and if I didn’t know everything, then surely my much older boyfriend did.

So it makes me cringe yet slightly smile every time I think of the young dumb blonde idiot I was back then and the way I thought my life would go.

Cactii in Playa del carmen…

Back then in 2006, Playa del Carmen was a small charming village in the Mayan Rivera, population of about 80,000.  I fondly remember strolling along the dirt streets, under the Mexican jellyfish lights and tin star lanterns, eating chicken nachos, taking tequila shots and drinking my body weight in Dos XX at our all-inclusive resort.

Mexican Jellyfish lights

And so… I came back to the Mayan Rivera, a place my friends joke with me is a place way too mainstream for me to visit…. and the phrase “all inclusive” practically swear words to a well-seasoned traveler.

Beach in Playa del Carmen

Mainstream it now is but I wanted to see what it felt like to come full circle 9 years and 55 countries later as not only is Playa del Carmen is now a different town, now busting with a population of over 500000 but I’m a different person too.

My 2006 virgin passport with it’s freshly inked Mexico entrance stamp now is now well-worn with extension pages, that stamp somewhere buried among many.  The military regulation haired girl in the photo, looks like a weird bobble-headed alien.

2006 passport

So coming back to Playa del carmen was a time of reflection and on every experience I’ve had since then.  Who I was a decade ago is now only a small part of a much more complete picture of who I’ve become today.

A decade ago, I never would have imagined any of this coming…5 more years in a war zone, 3.5 years invested as a mother to an amazing child I’ll love forever, masters degrees completed, two houses bought and sold, three years treading water in middle management managing half a billion dollars worth of contracts, diving the worlds oceans, trekking through some of the world’s most rugged terrain and forever eating my way around the globe, ever-expanding my palate and vocabulary… Foie gras, bunuelos, bun bo nam bo, pho, chaote, horchata, mole, au poivre… I don’t think I can keep going on without getting hungry :)

Is this what growing older is, to come back to a place that meant something at some earlier time to reflect on who we were and who we are now…. Connecting life’s moments together like stars in a constellation, a path from there to where we are now?

Will I come back to Playa in another decade?  I’m honestly not sure. I’ve come to realize that planning is futile, I’ve learned that life throws the things at you that you’d least expect.

This even exists now in PdC…. the scandal!

Every person I meet, every experience further filed into my memory and every place that I am fortunate to discover will too become a part of me and the middle-aged woman I become…. So in another 10 years, if I can look back, with a small smile spread across my face realizing then as I do now how much I’ve grown as a person, it’s going to be another damn good decade and I have to say, I’m very much looking forward to the adventure.

//The I.A.

//

Coming Full Circle in Playa del Carmen So there I was a few weeks ago (this post apologetically is way delayed), back in Playa del Carmen, Mexico….

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I’ve got a bit chided on Facebook recently about being here in the Mayan Riviera of Mexico which is major mainstream tourist land even replete with a SuperWalmart….which, is pretty unlike me as I generally prefer to be off the Gringo trail.

Why I decided to come here I’ll talk about more in my next post but beyond practically feeling like I’m back in the US, a benefit of being here is that there are a plethora of things to see and do, and since I’m here I’m trying to make the most of my time although I’m still pretty sick with a head/chest cold.

So yesterday, I crossed another goal off my bucket list, I went scuba diving with Phantom Divers out of Playa del Carmen in a cenote, Cenote Dos Ojos, which is located just north of Tulum, Mexico.

A cenote is basically a flooded sinkhole and here in the Yucatan, they were sometimes used by the Maya culture for sacrificial offerings.

Mayan female warrier

Cenote Dos ojos is a sinkhole with a flooded cave system which can partly be snorkeled or entirely scuba dove, and I of course, chose to dive it.

Cenote Dos Ojos is part of a very large underwater cave system that is still being explored.  So far, it has been mapped out to over 51 miles! and has over 28 sinkhole entrances.. the entrances themselves are what we call the cenotes.

The Dos Ojos system is actually one of the top three longest known cave systems in the world and as I said, is still being explored.

Unlike most diving I do, which is saltwater… Dos Ojos is freshwater and quite cold which required a 5mm suit and more weights as we are less buoyant in freshwater.

A wonderful roll model, this amazing lady is 78 and still diving.

The Cenote Dos Ojos dives are shallow, between 5-7 meters and both were 40 minutes long.  It’s cave diving, so lighting was all done by flashlights and let’s face it, there isn’t much to see beyond a few very small fishes, and underwater stalactites/stalagmites….

Entrance to dos ojos from water

Just like diving in the Blue Hole, or the underwater MUSA museum, you aren’t really diving this site to see sea life or coral, you’re here to experience diving something “different.”

I again was shooting with a goPro Hero 4 silver, and I’m not really happy with my photos.  Days like today make me wish I have been back in the US for a resupply and to order a dive casing for my normal camera because the pictures would be a lot clearer.  The combination of a lack of sunlight, paired with me moving, my flashlight moving and no control over shutter speed resulted in a lot of blurry photos…

Departing dos ojos

After we were done with both of our dives, each exploring a different branch of the Cenote Dos Ojos cave system, we packed up the gear and headed back to Playa.

I walked the 5th street strip for a bit before heading off to have an authentic Mexican lunch at El Fogon, for $8.95 I had Bean & Pork soup, chips, vegetables, two pork chops, grilled onions, a baked potato, charred peppers with cheese, guacamole, fresh flour tortillas and a strawberry juice.  Not Colombia-cheap prices, but a legit Mexican-authentic post diving meal for sure.

Today, I was supposed to dive Cozumel, but really need to get over this head cold, so am taking it easy the next few days so I can continue on with some crazy adventures.

//The I.A.

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Diving Destinations – Cenote Dos Ojos, Tulum, Mexico I've got a bit chided on Facebook recently about being here in the Mayan Riviera of Mexico which is major mainstream tourist land even replete with a SuperWalmart....which, is pretty unlike me as I generally prefer to be off the Gringo trail.

[inkedadventurers]

Onward North I continue to travel, yesterday crossing the border into Mexico.  I have a few days of intensive diving lined up and first off the chalk was MUSA Underwater Museum Cancun.

My Playa diving breakfast. Yes I eat a lot before diving :)

I’m not staying in Cancun, rather it’s “smaller” neighbor to the South, Playa del Carmen, so was picked up this morning by arrangement with Phantom Divers and driven to Cancun by the wonderful Eddie and he dropped me off at Phantom’s sister dive shop in Cancun, Solo Buceo.

There were only six certified divers on a boat with 20 people, the rest of the people were all doing discovery dives.  It was a madhouse as for the first hour on the dock, they were getting Scuba 101 to try to prepare them to dive… but finally at about noon, we set off from Cancun towards Isla Mujeres.

MUSA is a non-profit organization devoted to the art of conservation.  The underwater museum Cancun has 500 sculptures that were submerged by the end of 2010 into three different galleries.  As when anything is sank in the Ocean long enough, in a healthy ecosystem coral will grow on it.

Yellowtail Snapper

Today I dove the “Silent Evolution” gallery which has art done by Jason deCaires Taylor.  Taylor’s goal was to create works that show the relationship between humans and their environment.

One of the most interesting parts of the Underwater Museum Cancun Silent Evolution gallery was this amazing group of “people.”

Taylor made each statue out of PH balanced cement (which allows for Coral to thrive) and each resembles a person from the small fishing community where he lives.

Forbes corporation has voted the underwater museum Cancun’s silent evolution exhibit as one of the world’s most unique places to visit :)

After a 40 minute dive, we surfaced and then after changing out tanks, jumped in again, this time the goal was to explore a local natural reef, Manchones…

After another 40 minute dive, we headed back to the dock in Cancun where Eddie was waiting for me to return me to Playa del Carmen…

After I checked into the Phantom Divers dive shop making sure all was in order for my special dive trip tomorrow, we decided to grab “mediana” or an afternoon meal together.

Eddie explained to me that sometimes Mexicans eat 5 times a day, Desayuno (Breakfast), Almuerzo (mid-morning), Comida (lunch), Mediana (afternoon) and Cena (dinner).  He wanted me to try the amazing fresh seafood tostones at a local restaurant, Las Aguachiles, and I’m glad we did.

Seafood Tostones at Las Aguachiles

Eddie and I then rounded out our day together with some fine Italian espresso from a coffee shop in another part of Playa…

There seems to be an awful lot of Italian restaurants around Playa del Carmen these days, not that I’m complaining as the Italians sure know how to make a fine cuppa, but I do find it strange that almost all the top restaurants here are Italian… and not Mexican.

Diving MUSA’s silent evolution

An any rate, some Italian espresso was a great way to end another diving day and I’m blessed that I got to visit one of the most unique museums in the world, underwater noneless!….

Tomorrow, has “big fins” to fill as I dive into something different….

//The I.A.

//

Diving Destinations – MUSA Underwater Museum Cancun Onward North I continue to travel, yesterday crossing the border into Mexico.  I have a few days of intensive diving lined up and first off the chalk was MUSA Underwater Museum Cancun.

[inkedadventurers]

As I said yesterday, the reason I’m even in Caye Caulker Belize now was to play Jacques Cousteau and dive the Great Blue Hole… which also happens to be my favorite, a World Heritage Site.

Great blue hole, photo cred: http://cdn.belize.com/

While many people think the cost of diving the Great Blue Hole (3 tank dive-day for $240) isn’t worth the reward, I don’t know how you can be a serious diver, come to Belize and not dive it even though it means getting up before the sunrises to show at the dive shop (in my case Frenchies Diving).

Frenchie’s Dive Shop in Caye Caulker

Frenchie’s did offer us a breakfast of bread, cheese, vienna sausages and coffee, but I was up even earlier to make my own because I’m trying not to eat wheat, sugar, or dairy at the moment.

Blue Hole dive breakfast at Frenchies

We then boarded the boat and headed off for the two-hour boat ride to the Blue Hole.

Frenchie’s Dive Boat

We were the first to arrive at the Blue Hole and quite honestly, I wasn’t sure we were there.  I could see shallow coral arcs from the dive boat, but nothing was so apparent as the Blue Hole is from the air.

The blue hole is basically a sinkhole or a giant flooded cave (even with stalactites!) and is 1000 feet across and 407 feet deep.  It was first made famous by Cousteau when he decided to dynamite the reef, so his ship could enter as he wanted to chart its depths and then later declared it one of the top 10 dive sites in ALL THE WORLD.  The Discovery channel has also rated it one of the 10 most Amazing Places on Earth.

Blue Hole from Dive Boat

So here I was, in what is apparently one of the most amazing places on all the Earth.  Once we were tied on to the buoy marker, we received a very thorough dive briefing.  Frenchie’s appears serious about safety and it was one of the best briefings I’ve had in a while.

Then it was the moment we had all been waiting for, time to jump in and descend… Here’s the truth about the Blue Hole…. you don’t dive it to see sea life, you dive it just to do it.  We jumped in, descended to 155 feet for 8 minutes and then ascended for 15 and then had a 5 minute safety stop.  Entire dive was 28 minutes… making it THE shortest dive I’ve ever done.

We did see some Caribbean reef sharks but they were even deeper than our 155 meters so getting good shots of those were a no-go.  We did about an hour surface interval as we headed off to our next dive site, ate watermelon and enjoyed the sun before jumping into our second site at the Lighthouse reef, Half Moon Caye Wall.

This was a beautiful coral wall with swim-throughs and really healthy balanced coral formations, along with some smaller fish.

After a good 50 minute dive we surfaced and headed off to Half Moon Caye for lunch….

It was absolutely beautiful on Half Moon Caye and I found out that it was the first protected area of Belize and it makes the eastern most landmark in Belize.  There is also a red-footed booby nesting area on the island so after lunch I went on the short trail to check it out.

We spent about an hour and a half eating lunch and exploring the island before re-boarding the boat to head off to our next dive site in the Lighthouse Atoll, called Aquarium.

After completing our third dive which was also 50 minutes, it was time to board the boat and head back towards Caye Caulker.  After an hour we arrived to the Turneffe Reef area and we had a short boat ride-break, complete with Rum Punch and snacks :)

Rum Punch post dive day

So there it is, another 3 dives marked into my belt and the Blue Hole to boot.  While it may have been my shortest dive ever, it was interesting and the beautiful reef and sea life at the other two dive sites more than made up for everything that the Blue hole was not.

//The I.A.

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Diving Destinations – Great Blue Hole, Belize As I said yesterday, the reason I'm even in Caye Caulker Belize now was to play Jacques Cousteau and dive the Great Blue Hole...

[inkedadventurers]

After my very unique caving adventure in San Ignacio, I jumped on a local “chicken bus” to the capital of Belize, Belize City where I then grabbed a ferry to take me back to the Caribbean… to the Belize island of Caye Caulker.

Street of Caye Caulker

Caye Caulker is actually much larger than I expected, approx 5 miles long and 1 mile wide.  It’s bigger than Utila in Honduras and something else that I also love about it is that all the streets are made out of beach sand and there are no vehicles beyond golf carts on the entire island.  This is because the island itself is basically a sandbar over a limestone shelf.

There is also a fabulous beach path that circles most of the island that I have found perfect for morning runs, and as it is right along the shore, it get’s a nice ocean breeze to cool me off.

The only thing Caye Caulker is really missing is a legitimate beach.  It seems that most people hang out on the North end of the island called “The Split” where there is a bar/restaurant/hammocks and no sea grass in the water.

The Split

I’ve actually been sick with a head/chest cold though the entire time I’ve been here (probably cursed from the ATM cave) so unfortunately have avoided going in the water thus far because the ultimate plan and really my biggest draw to Caye Caulker was to play Jacques Cousteau tomorrow and dive the Great Blue Hole.

Great blue hole, photo cred: http://cdn.belize.com/

But I have still enjoyed the relaxed beach scene of the town, scored in finding some natural anti-sandfly lotion (because I don’t do DEET) and have had some great delicious seafood.

And of course, as in most places in the Caribbean, the sunsets have been lovely…

I originally couldn’t decided whether I wanted to stay here in Caye Caulker or the larger Ambergris Caye, but I felt I made the right choice as a local Belizan called Ambergris “little America” and speaking with some other people over lunch yesterday who were visiting Caye Caulker on a day trip from Ambergris they said that Caye Caulker was more laid back and much cleaner… both of which I love.

So it’s 8:30pm and I have to be at the dive shop at 05:30 for a very long day of diving tomorrow, so check back tomorrow night to see if Jacques Cousteau was right when he declared the Great Blue Hole one of the top 10 dive sites in the world :)

//The I.A.

//

Back to the Caribbean in Caye Caulker After my very unique caving adventure in San Ignacio, I jumped on a local "chicken bus" to the capital of Belize, Belize City where I then grabbed a ferry to take me back to the Caribbean...

[inkedadventurers]

ATM Cave Belize - The Cave of the Crystal Maiden

ATM Cave Belize – The Cave of the Crystal Maiden

After exploring the magnificent sprawling Mayan ruins of Tikal, I made my way across the Guatemalan border to Belize (this was the easiest border crossing ever and took less than 5 minutes even with a line!) and on to the town of San Ignacio.

Entering Belize was like entering another world.  EVERYONE SPEAKS ENGLISH.  What????   I’m so engrained with speaking Spanish now that having to speak…

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[inkedadventurers]

The only reason why I had made my way to Flores Guatemala was to visit Tikal, a very popular archaeological site over which was one of the Mayan’s largest cities and (my nerdy favorite), a UNESCO world heritage site as well. It’s deep in the jungle over an hour bus ride from Flores. I jumped on a 12:30 shuttle with my luggage, checked into a hotel within the park and set out at about 2:45pm to see the park. This, in my opinion was the perfect time as there was a mass exodus of people and school kids leaving at this very same time, which meant I ended up with many ruins all to myself. One thing I didn’t realize was HOW ENORMOUS Tikal was, the map I received was NOT to scale and I could have spent hours and hours and hours there and possibly still not have seen everything… but I did see a lot.

Plaza of the seven temple

Tikal dates back to the year 400 BC and that in itself is amazing that these structures are even standing, much less that some are stories-high over the tree canopies.

Mundo Perdido

With the decline of the Mayans around 900 AD, Tikal was eventually abandoned, the jungle overtook it and it was forgotten until stories of it began appearing in the 17th and 18th centuries among the indigenous people about a lost city of their ancestors.  Finally in the mid 1800’s expeditions on horse and foot were sent to find it, finally being discovered in 1848 .

In the 1960s and 70s the University of Pennsylvania oversaw major excavation work until the Guatemalan government took over and is still working on excavating and discovering more today.

As I had decided not to take a tour, I was roaming around the park quietly for hours… sometimes it was a bit spooky, but I’m a true believer in this philosophy…

Considering it is the middle of the jungle, I’m sure most people see animals, but I saw Coati, 10+ toucans, a Occellated Turkey, paroquets and monkeys…and today on my little nature hike deep in the jungle, I was terrified by a few wild boar as well.

My favorite area was the Grand Plaza, and I could have spent two hours just there by itself.  I happened to be there during dusk and it was absolutely stunning.

While the temples at Angkor in Cambodia in my opinion are overall much more stunning due to many still having their carved facades, it was wonderful to spend a day stomping through the jungle feeling as if i were the first to stumble upon this wonderful place, Tikal, the once lost city, now found.

//The I.A.

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Tikal – Lost City of the Mayans The only reason why I had made my way to Flores Guatemala was to visit Tikal, a very popular archaeological site over which was one of the Mayan's largest cities and (my nerdy favorite), a UNESCO world heritage site as well.