We took a shuttle bus from El Salvador to the town of Leon, in Nicaragua, skipping through Honduras in the process. We were quite thankful that the driver took care of the border crossings for us in and out of Honduras, as borders always attract the dodgiest people of the region. The whole day was lost in transit and we arrived in Leon itching to get out of the bus. Leon is known for being a colonial town with a bunch of decent museums to see. However, the onl...

Our stay in El Salvador was short but sweet. We decided that we would stop in on one of the small beach towns for a night as we made our way towards Nicaragua. The tiny town, El Tunco, really seems just to exist for foreigners looking to take advantage of the great surf. Not being surfers, we knew we wouldn't find a lot there to keep us busy even if it was a pretty place. We took a short "chicken" bus ride to the nearby town of La Libertad, which had a much clear...

Our time in Antigua was mostly taken up by a hike to the top of Acatenango volcano. From Acatenango, it's possible to get great views of Fuego Volcano which has become quite active over this past month. The opportunity to see an erupting volcano up close was the deciding factor in going ahead. We were part of a group of 13 hikers and one guide, with the plan being to hike most of the way up Acatenango in one day, camp overnight, then head to the summit for sun...

Getting to Guatemala was an adventure in itself, what we thought would be a simple 8 hour shuttle ride was 13 hours, two buses and a tiny boat that broke down half way across a lake, all the while with a group of rather rude Israelis. Granted, the unexpected boat ride was actually our own fault, when the driver asked who was going to Panajachel we were the only two with our hands up so we quickly lowered them again and followed the crowd since we had no idea one ...

Further south in Mexico, we stopped for a few days in San Cristobal in the region of Chiapas, arriving on Jansen's birthday. They clearly got the memo that there was something to celebrate as we spent the day surrounded by celebrations, parades, fireworks, music, drunkards and partiers. We happened to be in the area during the Autumn equinox celebrations. With some dumb luck we made a day trip out to the indigenous town of Chamulla to be surprised by a huge fest...