The Pan-American Highway ends in Panama and if you want to ride to South America you need to contend with the logistics of the Darien Gap. The ~100 mile strip of undeveloped mountain rainforest and swamplands make it virtually impassible by motor vehicle. That leaves flying and sailing as available transport options for moto riders […]
I’m trying to figure out why the soldier is not responding helpfully to my queries for the location of the Rio Soreno border crossing. He asks for my papers and is visibly flustered as he flips through my passport. His fatigues don’t look like anything I’ve seen in Costa Rica. I crashed hard on a […]
I’m scheduled to set sail from Carti in less than two weeks and still in Nicaragua. Not especially good since I’m in no particular mood to leave San Juan del Sur. I didn’t want to leave Leon either but somehow managed to throw my leg over the bike and point it south. My hastened pace […]
I wish I could say something poetic about Palenque and its history but I struggle to get my head around the significance of the Mayan people who lived there during its day. A cursory glance at their society reveals a seemingly barbaric time with little by way of creature comforts but a closer look exposes […]
Points of Interest: Oaxaca, Cuajimoloyas It’s election time for many states in Mexico and as I explored the city of Oaxaca the signs of political strife were evident. The campus was overrun with teachers from all over the state protesting wages. I listened to accounts of corruption under the current PRI party and observed a […]
Points of Interest: Guanajuato, Patzcuaro, Taxco Coincidentally I’m traveling through the heart of Mexico during the 2010 World Cup. Like many Americans my age I had little exposure to the sport growing up and I’d be hard pressed to name one player on the US soccer team. I do however enjoy team sports and I […]
“What does seem to be required of the individual is that he learn enough pieces of expression that he be able to fill in and manage, more or less, any part that he is likely to be given.” –Erving Goffman Learning conversational Espanol is a stated goal of this trip and in that pursuit I’m […]
Zacatecas takes its name from the Aztec name given to the grass abundant in the region. History of the region’s settlement prior to the Conquistadors is uncertain and accounts vary. The general consensus is the Zacatecos were part of the semi-nomadic indigenous tribes of the Chichimecan peoples who inhabited the region. Evidence suggests the Chichimecan […]
