Ah Trini Travelogue Trinidad & Tobago's most travelled blogger through 99 countries. Create and Re-Engineer your life for travel.
it’s now 5.49pm here in Flores, Guatemala.
I don’t know how backpackers do this anymore, I’m getting old, cranky and just won’t tolerate cheap ass shit no more. Seeing them in their scruffy, unshaven, bohemian selves makes me shiver …. since when do Europeans and Israelis think it is not cool to shower for days then get on a bus with a bunch of people. Like I just wanted to slap people all over my bus. I get the fact that students don’t have money and what not, but when ur a bunch of 30+ yr old people backpacking and arguing about sharing a room for 4 people, when the room is 11$ USD a head.. which makes the total cost per person of about …ummm , this math is hard… it will take a while to divide that much money… unmmmm…yeah about 2.75$ a head.. the fuckers.. i just wanted to slap them dotish.
So anyway, I woke up this morning about 5am to pack and catch the 6am bus from Palenque. It was about 400 Pesos.. so about 37 USD to get the bus, and the bus included the transport to the Yaxchilan and the river, then the 30 min river ride to Bethel, then the 4 hour bus transfer from Bethel to Flores. I think by the second time, you do a trip, you start being an expert, I think by the third time you show someone around an area, you are a defacto expert.
Flores is nice, small island in the middle of a huge lake and about 70 mins from Tikal, which is the largest Temple in the “Mayan” world. I use quotes around mayan, since a lot of things I have seen on this trip have made me reconsider a lot revisionist Catholic history. This trip has confirmed a lot of things, I have thought since I started temple hopping across the world. Palenque in particular, has such a mix of Egyptian, Hebrew, Hindu and Chinese elements, that it really does question the whole Columbus discovered the new world in the 1400’s and yada yada yada. Revisionist garbage, I think…now I kinda wish I did some type of history in university but no reason for me not to get the booklists for my own personal readings.
Anyway back to these blasted backpackers and all….someone needs to tell people that being stinky and unkempt is not a fashion statement and doesn’t make you a cool traveller. Anyway, after moving around for two hours to find a hotel in this place that has an Internet connection and reliable A/C, I am dead tired and need a good shower. But definitely getting here was part of the experience, who takes a boat with their 60lb backpack and 20 lb technology backpack…. now if only I could find a gym here tomorrow after Tikal, although I suspect that I will be so tired by noon, I wont want to go anywhere.
Oh yeah, forgot, I actually met a trini girl on my backpacking this morning, she was very nice… it is nice to meet trinis when I’m travelling and all… Simone got sick this morning on the way from Palenque to Yaxchilan… but she ended up with some medicine from some Frenchies. Anyway, time to grab some food… I dont know about walking around here and all…and shit I am so tired of fricking frijoles now, I never wanna see them ever again…..
