BobRat

Central America

Sunday, September 19, 2004

House Arrest

By Eric

During our recent stint in Florida (between Africa and Mexico) we rented a little cabin in the Everglades National Park. I'd always wanted to see the Everglades and we got to see a little of it... from the safety of our car and with the windows tightly rolled up and the outside air vents closed. Why so cloistered, you wonder? 

First, some context: As many of you know, I spend a fair bit of time outdoors; and Jill and I have been a goodly number of places around the world. But no place--and I mean no place--we've ever been has mosquitoes like the Everglades during the rainy late-summer season.

I'm talking about a pestilential plague of absolutely Biblical proportions. I'm talking about hiding pets and small children who could easily be carried off by the swarms. I'm talking about 27 different species of mosquitoes, according to the ranger. And I'm talking about sprinting from car to cabin feeling dozens of bites on my insect repellent-soaked skin in just a few seconds.

But the mosquitoes were a blessing. Six weeks of nearly unrelenting stimulation in Africa, a crushing Johannesburg-Zurich-Miami flight, jet lag, and other stresses had left us exhausted. And because leaving the cabin was essentially just a form of suicide, we were forced into a much-needed house arrest. So we read books, played cards, cooked for ourselves, napped, and thanked our lucky stars that the mosquitoes were finally forcing us to take some much needed R & R.

A brief follow-up: our rest in Miami was much-needed, but it clearly wasn't sufficient. We arrived in Cancun yesterday and, in keeping with local custom, took a siesta at 3:30. The siesta, however, lasted until 10:00 at night, at which point we decided to call it a day and slept soundly until 5:00 this morning.

Miami, USA

By Jill

Leading  up to our three days in Florida, Eric and I wondered whether it'd feel like we were back ''home,'' as in back to the country of our birth. Miami is as geographically far from Seattle as you can get and still be in the lower 48 (and it may be as far as most places in Alaska and Hawaii), and culturally it's light-years away as well. There have been plenty of times that I've landed in NYC from Seattle said to myself, ''This has to be a different country.''

Miami turned out to feel like home, but we're not really sure why. Most of the people we encountered didn't speak English, at least most of the time. The weather was oppressively hot and humid and the terrain was totally flat. When we thought about it, parts of South Africa were far more similar to Seattle than Miami. 

We think Miami felt like home because we told ourselves it was home. That is, we let our guard down in a way we hadn't on the trip so far because we sort of knew how things worked. Miamians drive on the right-side of the road, they use American dollars if not English, and they have American cable TV in the hotel room.

The whole experience left us wondering what it takes to feel at home. Our time in Miami suggested that its more about psychology and rules of the road than language, culture or climate.

Viva Cancun

By Jill

We headed to Cancun not really knowing what to expect. I think in the back of my mind, I expected it to be a lot like the beach destinations we'd visited in SE Asia. It is not.

In fact, I've never been to a resort desination of Cancun's scale before. Flying in yesterday the Hotel Zone looked like someone had moved the Las Vegas strip to the ocean. Getting off the plane we were surrounded by hundreds of vacationing Americans, many coming off gigantic tour buses. And this was low season.

I was amused by the spectacle of mass tourism. In fact, I rather enjoyed it. Eric didn't fare as well, at least at first. Waiting in the immigration line, his eyes grew wide, he moved from side to side, muttered a few derogatory comments about Southerners (my apologies to any Southerners reading our posts; I'm sure he didn't mean you), and then begged me to make a run for the border--the Belize border. Thankfully, I calmed him enough to enter Mexico, where we immediately made our way to Downtown Cancun, several kilometers away from the Hotel Zone and most of the tourists. Our closest enounter with the tourist machine was getting Welcome Bags full of coupons for chain restaurants in the area.

Being suckers for a bargain, we rummaged through the Welcome Bag to find a place for lunch. We found a restaurant promising authentic Mexican food with a fiesta atmosphere, plus 10% off our meal. We were sold. Next thing we knew, we were drinking two-foot tall margaritas at a Mexican restaurant that could have been in Bellevue as easily as in Cancun. But the funny thing is, we liked it. In the afterglow of two-foot tall margaritas, Eric (and I) had to come to terms with the fact that we were just another two American tourists in Cancun. Border forgotten, I bet we stay a week . 

Viva Cancun II

By Eric

Cancun can, I think, best be characterized as a fusion of two robust cultures--American and Mexican--neither of which is known for subtlety or refined taste. I won't elaborate further at the moment. Instead, I'll let the U.S. State Department do the talking for me.

The following excerpt is an adendum to the official "Consular Information Sheet" that our government provides for Americans who are traveling abroad. You can find the full text here. For some reason, I find this absolutely hilarious.

Disturbing the peace, lewd or indecent behavior, littering, driving under the influence, drinking on the street or on public transportation, using public transportation without payment, or making obscene or insulting remarks are considered criminal activities by Mexican authorities...

American citizens should remember that when they are in Cancun, they are subject to the laws of Mexico... the fact that someone is a U.S. citizen in no way exempts him or her from full prosecution under the Mexican criminal justice system... U.S. consular officials in Mexico cannot arrange for Mexican officials to release the arrested American...

Suffice it to say, this stands as fair warning to my disreputable brother and his unruly wife who will be joining us here in three weeks time.

Tuesday, September 21, 2004

Cancun Arrest

By Jill

Although the mosquitos are minimal, our travel-weary bones have demanded a break. We're laying low in Cancun for a week spending time sleeping, reading, writing, and relaxing. Africa and Asia were such amazing experiences that we feel the need to process them as much as possible before we head out on another adventure. We've got a list a mile long of ideas and experiences we want to write down before they are forgotten.

We've found a delightful hotel with a pool and a kitchenette, and we discovered a terrific running route (as long as you run before 6 a.m. to avoid the heat). Plus the Internet in Cancun is lightening fast and dirt cheap (about a dollar an hour). All signs suggest that Cancun is our place to recoup. But, I expect we'll be searching for another adventure by the weekend.

Cheap Interent has finally given me time to get our Africa Pictures in the right place on our website. If you haven't looked at them already, check out Travel Pictures on the Navigation bar. At the moment, these are just the pictures I put up about 2 weeks ago. I forgot CD of pictures from our last two weeks in Africa in the hotel room, so new pictures will have to wait until tomorrow.

Thursday, September 23, 2004

The real Cancun

By Eric

We've been fairly sheltered here in the city of Cancun. It's a place with a definite tourist presence, but where actual Mexicans living and working constitute the vast majority of city life. A couple of days ago, however, we ventured out of the safety of downtown Cancun into the notorious "hotel zone," a 13 kilometer strip of unrelenting development along Cancun's beaches. Yikes.

I'd relate my actual comments at the time, but they're not suitable for print; also I think the USA Patriot Act bars me from saying such unkind things about my fellow Americans. To be fair, however, the powdered-sugar sand beaches are lapped by lambent turquoise waters. So it's easy to see why Cancun has become such a popular destination. Now if we could just do something about it's popularity... 

Tomorrow we'll do what tourists have been doing since time immemorial: try to find some place with fewer tourists. For us, that place is Playa del Carmen, a resort town about an hour south of Cancun. Okay, I know Playa del Carmen isn't exactly undiscovered either, but the hordes there are supposed to be less, uh, horde-y than in Cancun. From there, we'll continue our migration down Mexico's "Mayan Riviera" on into Belize and an area that is terra incognito, at least for us.   

Oh, speaking of the Patriot Act, we finally saw Fahrenheit 9/11. It's a movie that will blow your hair back, even if, like me, you don't have much hair. Yes, there's plenty of invective and ad hominem and emotion, but there's also plenty of well-documented information and enough specific human stories to make a great two-fisted attack on some guys I really don't like.

Anyway, as I mentioned, "mañana" we will "vamos a la Playa del Carmen." (For you non-Spanish speakers, that means "tomorrow we eat tacos with Carmen.")

Monday, September 27, 2004

Into Belize

By Jill

Greetings from Belize, likely the last new country we'll visit on our journey. We arrived in the little dusty town of Orange Walk about an hour ago. Actually, being tremendously humid, it's not a dusty town literally, but the adjective is nonetheless fitting. We've booked a birding/Mayan ruins tour tomorrow up the New River to the Lamani Ruins. We're quite excited about it. We've been laying low in tourist hell for too many days and we're hungry to be out in nature for a while.

Speaking of tourist hell, the theme of this section of our trip is the promise and problems of ecotourism. I expect that our experiences in the Yucatan and Belize will be interesting comparisons. Belize has been a leader in ecotourism development, Mexico has been a leader in tourism development, but rather slow on the eco-thing.

For example, after spending nearly a week in and around Cancun, we've begun to understand what tourism can do to pristine beaches--in just a few years. We've been told that Playa del Carmen, where we just spent three days, is one of the fastest growing cities in the world. I wouldn't doubt it; our guide book was absolutely useless because of all the changes, and many of the buildings looked less than a year old. The lightening speed of development also explains why just seven or so years ago my friends described Playa as a rustic out of the way spot. We didn't encounter any rustica, but we did encounter McDonalds.

After our birding tour, we're heading to the Cayo district for some time in the jungle. I'm anxious to see if I react to Central American jungles the way I did to Southeast Asian ones. I hear here they have some nasty scorpions.

Tuesday, September 28, 2004

The Crocodile Hunter

By Eric

In keeping with Jill's post yesterday about the promises of ecotourism, we had a fascinating breakfast conversation with the owner of our little riverside hotel. We talked crocs. And there are many that inhabit the sluggish stretch of river that winds past his front yard.

For twenty years, he hunted crocodiles for their lucrative skins. He hunted them every which way you can imagine, including crawling on his belly into little muddy river caves and roping them by hand. (Hey, an office job isn't so bad after all.)

These days, however, he's the first to admit that his former avocation was based on a lack of education about the health of Belize's species and ecosystems. He still catches crocs, but now he does it to contribute to crocodile population surveys. He even told us about rehabilitating a croc who'd been injured by steel hooks used for illegal croc baiting.

The younger generation will further the trend away from natural resource extraction and toured a brand of conservation that springs from foreign dollars. His son, an earnest twenty-year-old, is studying at the university in Belize City. His major? Tourism management.

Something I Am Not Good At

By Eric

Water acrobatics. In the water, Jill flips and twists and spins like she's part otter. But my pathetic attempts to do backward somersaults resembled the frenzied thrashing of a drowning man. I had so much salt water in my sinuses that part of my brain's frontal lobe was permanently eaten away.

Thursday, September 30, 2004

Places to go

By Eric

This morning we left Belize City, where we spent the last two nights. It was easily one of the most entrancing cities we've ever visited. There's something dreamlike about the narrow streets crowded by weatherbeaten clapboard buildings. It's a mishmash of odd corners and alleyways and coconut palms. It's not entirely safe, but the (faint) whiff of danger actually adds spice to the city, instead of detracting from it. Despite a small tourist presence that is confined to a cheesy "tourist village," it's easy to interact with the locals. And the food--holy cow, the food--is unbelievable. Last night I had a fried snapper marinated in lime and vinegar and smothered in grilled spicy peppers; I thought I was going to die from sheer pleasure. In some future trip I will spend a week just eating in Belize City. It's a great place and you should go there immediately. Plus, it was founded by pirates.

The other place you should go immediately--at least those of you who are northwesterners--is almost too obvious for me to state: Mount St. Helens. I'm dying down here! The geologic event of the decade is unfolding in my backyard and I can't even go there to be part of the circus. I'm promising all of you that if it hasn't errupted by the time I get back, I'm going there the first chance I get. And anyone who isn't going there this weekend, I consider a sissy. That's right. Sissy.

Friday, October 1, 2004

You Are All Going to Die

By Eric

And again, I mean those of you who live in the Northwest. You and everything you love will soon be annihilated in a fiery reign of destruction. I'm so envious I can't stand it.

Day 100

By Jill

We hit a milestone yesterday by surviving our 100th day on the road. It was an auspicious day all around; we discovered tropical paradise on Caye Caulker and received the terrific news that the package we sent from Singapore arrived in Seattle, which means that we still have all of our pictures from Asia. We napped; we swam; we ate seafood; we had a drink with a very fun British couple we met a couple of days ago. Plus, I bought a really nifty hat to provide much-needed protection from the most intense sun I've ever experienced.

As I'm sure you can tell by our posts, we love Belize. To be honest, Belize probably was the country I was least excited to visit--not that I wasn't excited, but in comparison to the other places, I thought it might be a little generic. Like so many times before on this trip, boy was I wrong! It's got heat, diversity, history, culture, energy, heat, ecology, birds, heat, and much more. It's much less developed than I'd expected, and also much friendlier.

As far as tourism goes, it's managed--at least so far--to mostly dodge the brand of tourism that's plaguing Mexico's waters and, at least according to the folks we've talked to, there's a hesitancy to go down that path. There seems to be a wide-spread environmental ethic and a pride in the country's natural heritage that we haven't encountered before. This ethic and pride--along with the country's success in ecotourism--is probably aided by the fact that Belize is a small country with a small population of just 250,000. In fact, archeologists estimate that at the height of the Mayan empire four times as many Mayans lived in the area that's now Belize.

Smallness aside, Belize still wrestles with issues of poverty and development. We couldn't help wondering if it's not a just matter of time before the large resorts found Belize. Large floating resorts already have. Both days we were in Belize City we saw cruise ships the size of skyscrapers parked in the bay, and there's talk of dredging the bay so that cruise ships can dock at the harbor. Eric and I both had the sinking feeling that we may be having the same discovery experience that folks did about 10 years ago when Playa del Carmen was still a quaint fishing village with a beach to die for.

Monday, October 4, 2004

Shark Attack!

By Jill

While the Northwest was being annihilated by a firey volcano, Eric and I were being attacked by vicious sharks.

Okay, so St. Helens didn't actually rain fire on Seattle; it just coughed up a little steam and ash. And, okay, we weren't really attacked by vicious sharks; we just swam in the water with friendly nurse sharks, which have been described by scientists as "slow and sluggish." 

We went on a snorkeling trip today, our second since being on Belize's Island Cayes. Our second stop of the day was "Shark Alley." Shark Alley is an area of shallow water, maybe six feet deep, on the landward side of the barrier reef that nurse sharks like to frequent. Whether sharks liked to frequent the area before snorkelers did is an open question. Alfonse, our guide, readily admits the sharks are in the alley today for one reason: free food. No, not us snorkelers.

When we arrive at the alley, Alfonse leaves the motor idling so that the sharks can hear that we've arrived. Then he throws pieces of fish into the water. Suddenly the water looks like it's boiling as the sharks scramble over one another to get at the food. Next, he throws in a plastic tube filled with fish to ensure that the sharks stayed around for a while. Followed by Eric and I. Suddenly, we were in the middle of the fray. At one count, I saw 20 sharks in the waters right around us. Although they are docile, I wouldn't call these guys small. On average they were about 5 feet long.

Like so many of our wildlife experiences on this trip, this one was truely amazing. It was a thrill, but I woudn't call it wild. There wasn't the thrill of discovery we'd had on our previous shark sightings, seeing them swim off into the shadows. These sharks were practically tame. In fact, they were so tame that our guide easily grabbed hold of two and slung them under his arm. This act of bravery was followed by putting a sting ray on his head like a hat.

After proclaiming to Eric that I thought it was wrong, I'm a little ashamed to admit, I jumped at the chance to hold a shark when Alfonse pushed one my way. They didn't appear stressed and, hell, this was a chance in a lifetime. Post hoc, I rationalized my actions with the fact that if the sharks were upset they could just swim away. It's not like they were in cages.

So I held one. It was about six feet long. It's skin felt like sandpaper. It's eyes were yellow. It's mouth was surprisingly small. I stoked its head and rubbed it's belly. I never thought I'd say this, but it was kind of like petting my cat.

Tuesday, October 5, 2004

Back to the jungle

By Eric

We're briefly in Belize City, in transit from the island life to the jungles of western Belize. By this afternoon we'll be in the Cayo District, a mountainous region of tropical rainforests, waterfalls, birds, and Mayan ruins. We're staying at Macal River Camp, which is the poor man's way of visiting the upscale eco-resort, Chaa Creek, that the camp is connected to. Chaa Creek is particularly interesting to us because the owners were pioneers in developing ecotourism in Central America. That is, they were among the first to realize that foreign dollars spent on ecologically sensitive recreation could be instrumental in justifying land and species (and even archeological) conservation.

Eco-tourism tends to be low-impact and high-revenue (translated, that means few people, but each person spending a lot of money). While this makes sense from a conservation standpoint, it also often puts legitimate ecotourism beyond the reach of people in our tax bracket. To my mind, it's still an open question whether ecotourism can flourish on a larger scale and still retain it's ethical underpinnings. If ecotourism is a good thing--because it injects money into local economies, provides economic incentives for conservation, and educates tourists about environmental issues--then it should be encouraged on a bigger scale, yes? 

But sadly, the larger-scale scale ecotourism we've seen doesn't really deserve the "eco" appellation. For example, gargantuan cruise ships (which are implicated in a bevy of environmental problems too many to discuss here) disgorge thousands of visitors into fragile marine ecosystems. The result, according to every last native Belizean that we've talked to, is damaged coral, propellor-scarred manatees, political graft, and re-development schemes that screw locals to serve tourists.

Okay, in truth, what I've written here is something of an over-simplification. But these are the main questions we'll be wrestling with for the next few days. And while we're wrestling with these questions we'll also be incommunicado--there's no affordable Internet access in the jungle, can you believe it!?.

Postscript: Looking at photos of the steam erruption from Mount St. Helens, I could swear I saw the steam clouds form letters that spelled out "Kerry 2004." Sign from God?

Tuesday, October 12, 2004

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