Day 1, Santa Monica. Compared to every other tiny little wooden hanmmock-filled place in Central America, the massive H.I. Santa Monica came as something of a suprise - it was HUGE. Like a hotel. We arrived at about 10pm, and went to bed in what seemed to be the most boring dorm imaginable - two couples fast asleep and one other couple who seemed pretty intent on not sleeping. (It quickly became apparent though, when the guy dropped off into a land of thundering...

Quick update on the last few days in Mexico... We left Flores early morning on a painfully slow and bumpy bus up to Bethal on the Northern border. The bus took us to immigrations then dumped us on another brightly painted longboat thing over another river where a shuttle took us into Palenque in Mexico. The difference between the two countries just from this journey was so stark it was crazy! Mexico in comparison is luxurious. In Palenque we checked into a ...

Quick update on the last few days in Mexico... We left Flores early morning on a painfully slow and bumpy bus up to Bethal on the Northern border. The bus took us to immigrations then dumped us on another brightly painted longboat thing over another river where a shuttle took us into Palenque in Mexico. The difference between the two countries just from this journey was so stark it was crazy! Mexico in comparison is luxurious. In Palenque we checked into a ...

The journey to Flores was an interesting one. We started off on a 5am chicken bus adapted for Lanquin roads, this one was even smaller than normal, not that that meant there were any less people on board - I spent an hour and a half bouncing uphill half on the wheel arch and half on a very large lady's lap. She thought it was hilarious and kept saying stuff to me in really fast Spanish, waiting for me to look as confused as possible, and then laughing her head ...

The journey to Flores was an interesting one. We started off on a 5am chicken bus adapted for Lanquin roads, this one was even smaller than normal, not that that meant there were any less people on board - I spent an hour and a half bouncing uphill half on the wheel arch and half on a very large lady's lap. She thought it was hilarious and kept saying stuff to me in really fast Spanish, waiting for me to look as confused as possible, and then laughing her head ...