Panama city, the city of tomorrow, but not until the day after tomorrow...

So Bobs and I made it to Panama City, Panama. We hopped a Ticabus from San Jose and enjoyed traveling in style for once. It was hard leaving the Pangaea because its an amazing place and the atmosphere is a must see in Costa Rica. We did however have issue with the cab ride over to the station, Bob and I have an unfortunate habit of getting in cabs of ill-repute and merely getting lucky and arriving safely. This time was more towards the other side of the coin. We arrived two or three minutes later outside Ticabus HQ and expecting to pay two or three dollars in fare as was our past experience, we were shocked to hear the driver say he wanted 23,000 Colones which is about $50. Bob and I having realized we broke the cardinal rule and the other cardinal rule and the other one:

1. We got in an unmarked cab.
2. We got an unmetered cab.
3. We failed to negotiate the fare beforehand.
4. At first sign of trouble I didn't just punch that stupid fool in the throat.

So when we make it known that we refuse to pay his insane price he continues to drive the cab, most likely because it looks like we'll make a run for it. His next move makes us both laugh out loud, he says hes going to drive to the police station and turn us in, as though it wont be evident that there's no amount of driving he could do in a day equaling up to his outrageous fare. So we throw five bucks at him and I sit in his cab while Bob unloads the bags and he curses at us most ungentlemanly like. Now I consider Bob to be a peaceful guy but he got riled up and for the next hour at the bus station we thought of various ways to bring street justice to the corrupt cabbies of San Jose.
Once calmed down and boarded on our bus we relaxed and enjoyed comfortable seating and conditioned air. It was about six hours to the border and we had no trouble getting out of Costa Rica, after walking across to Panama we met with some resistance. We have been told repeatedly that Panama is notoriously hard to get into and the paperwork will make the strongest willed man cry, but after jumping through minimal hoops we get our stamps, tourist visas and immigration forms and were on our way. Another eight hours into Panama and were in the capital, we hail a cab and find out that most of the hostels are full, so after driving around we pull up to the La Luna hostel and although full they let us crash on the couches.
We set out the next morning in search of our recently accosted now in exile friend AJ. After much detective work and some broken Spanish we determine him to be located in a hostel downtown. Finding him not much worse for wear we all return to La Luna and settle in with the intention of planning our escape from Panama where "you'll never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy".
We look a flights and we look at boats and we briefly debate crossing the Darien gap. Somehow we end up meeting a crazy Italian man who happens to be the first mate on a sailboat headed for the San Blas islands and eventually Colombia so the plan as it stands is to catch a ride with them on Tuesday and sail the high seas in search of treasure and Bobs lost innocence.
Until next time...
-Dean

The embassy is not for you stop trying to get inside.

So last night we all decided on a plan of action for today, just a nice quiet night hanging out in a hammock reading and getting to bed around 10 or 11. Didn't work out so well, instead we all ended up wandering around town with about 10 of our new friends and drinking until for or five am. The only real issue with the plans failure is that Bob and I have to get on a bus to Managua and try to get the embassy to help us get to Costa Rica, and AJ is supposed to go figure out the best way to get to San Jose. So running on one or two hours of sleep we all set off in our respective directions. Bob and I walk down the the bus station and get on one headed for Managua, it takes about an hour or so so we both catch a little sleep. We catch a cab to the embassy which is the largest in all of Central and South America. Now having never been to a US embassy before I suppose I don't know how it works, but I would assume that when two American citizens walk up and have a problem that needs resolving inside the giant $100 million compound would be able to help. Not so, instead were not even let inside and told to deal with the local police in resolving our missing van mystery. So Bob and I hop another cab to what is apparently the barrio and the shadiest looking police station I have ever imagined. We wander around knocking on unmarked doors hoping to find someone who speaks English and come across a policewoman who managed to help us get a report filed in just under three and a half hours. Were told to take the report back to the embassy and so starts cab ride number three. The embassy let us in eventually and they proceed to be very little help at all, we file an incident report and they tell us to go find the customs office near the airport to have the van detached from Bob's passport. Cab ride four. We get dropped off outside a run down warehouse two blocks from the airport and once we get our point across to the people inside were told to go to the actual airport. No cab this time just a half mile walk. You can imagine where this is going, the airport customs guy tells us that we need to find the customs central office and that they close soon. Cab ride five time. Here's where we catch a break, the guy who offers us a cab ride is an old guy named Ronaldo and hes very friendly and likes to work on his English. We negotiate a good deal where he'll drive us to the customs office, wait outside and then drive us back to Granada so we don't have to catch another bus or stay in the capital. He actually goes into the office with us and explains our plight to the woman at the main desk, and after much talking and several phone calls were informed that we can get across the border now and if they have any issues we just refer them to her office with her number and extension. So if all goes well we should be on our way to San Jose tomorrow, hopefully on a newer air conditioned bus. Ronaldo drove us back to Granada and even drove the route that goes right by the active smoking volcano and around the lake. He really earned his pay and of course our respect. We shook hands and parted ways with the friendliest cabbie in Nicaragua.
We opted to stay somewhere a little quieter so were hanging out at Los Amigos hostel down the street from the Bearded Monkey. I think its food time so I'll leave you here and promise to keep everyone updated.
Until next time,
Dean


Also we parted ways with Ryan, its sad and it wont be the same without him. To find such a good friend and someone who fits in so well instantly is not something life allows more than a handful of times. Best of luck brother, via con dios.

Under no circumstances walk to the lake at night...

We have spent the last few days just hanging out in Granada, Nicaragua enjoying the town and the people. Its a great place and I'm really enjoying it, we would have left a few days ago but we have to go to the embassy so Bob can get the van mess off his passport. We'll take the bus into Managua and once its all resolved we'll probably just catch a bus to Panama city. I wouldn't mind spending time in Costa Rica but its supposed to be very touristy and comparatively expensive. So hopefully we'll be on our way south soon, I'm missing home and feeling rather burned out but there's so much more to do and see so I'll stick it out.
Lately we have just been hanging out at our hostel The Bearded Monkey which is great and has lots of fun people in and out every day. We seem to be building a reputation for partying pretty hard and very late, people like to hear our stories and I often overhear them being retold. Our favorite pastime is paying the street kids and locals to do crazy things my favorites are as follows:

1. We gave this old lady 100 Cordoba to hit Ryan a bunch of times with a broomstick she was using as a cane.

2. AJ gave some street kids 100 Cordoba to let him get in their giant woman dancing costumes and dance on the main street through town.

3. AJ and I paid 30 Cordoba to borrow the instruments from a mariachi band and serenade unsuspecting tourists.

4. We sat on a street corner and learned how to break dance with some locals who also like tossing fireworks at your feet when your not looking.

Its been crazy and there's so much more to write about I need to be better about blogging more often but I guess I haven't been in the mood. Ill let everyone know how it goes for Bob at the embassy and where were headed of when we get there.
And I swear ill post pictures as soon as I can.
More coming soon,
Until next time,
Dean

Van not here, van gone...

So long story short were in Nicaragua.
Thee details of our recent journey are varied and absurd.
We rolled out of Guatemala city with the issues and made some wrong turns and decided to just head for El Salvador instead of Hondures as planned. So not a big deal, El Salvadore is a very beautiful place lots of greenery and friendly people. We got a little lost as we left San Miguel but figured it out around 11pm and made our way to the border. The Salvadorean border jefe on duty was very excited to see us and talk politics concerning the pending inauguration. This is the point where everything goes to shit, we cross into Hondures around midnight and proceed to get most of our paperwork done except of course the permission to bring the van in. We end up spending the night in a less than reputable truckstop each of us sleeping with one eye open. Were up bright and early to finish the papers which turn out to not be as complete as we thought, each person in the chain wanting a few more dollars or more copies of this or that. Copies and copying papers seem to employ more Latin Americans than any other industry and the totals really start to add up. We finally get through and instantly are stopped at a seemingly impromptu police checkpoint where im being written a citation for AJs liscense being "expired" (1/5/2009 is not jan 5th its may 1st didnt get through) ten dollars later we had an understaning and were on our way only to run into another 11 checkpoints where we were the only car stopped and the following reasons were given for either cash donation or driving infractions:

-We need drinking money
-Were unpaid police volunteers
-We need water money
-Your Car is missing the reflective safety triangle on the sides
-No fire extinguisher
-Expired Liscense
-No reason just give me money now
-and various unintelligible reasons

In short Hondures is the most corrupt place ever.
A fact which was ver soon underscored as we tried to leave their shit-hole country.
At this point we have 23 dollars US to our names and we need 28 for migration stamps. The van cost all sorts of extra but we have decided to ditch it and just walk. However Bob cant leave Hondures unless the van leaves or we pay the police to impound and destroy it. We settle on selling it. I guess a 1990 Chevy van for $20 in Hondures is not a great deal because it doesnt draw any buyers. Finally one of the guys helpiong us in imigration says he wants it but we have to get it into Nicaragua first so he can keep it there while he gets different plates for it. So he runs all our paperwork through and we prepare to cross the border. While were negotiating the other guys start selling everything in the van we dont need (binoculars, boxes, tools, spare tire, etc) all we needed was enough for the bus to Leon on the other side of the frontera. Eventually the bus gets over the border and we meet our buyer, he suddenly doesnt want the van and we send him on his way with ten bucks for his troubles. We make it about 20 miles down the road when the plot twist happens, this being a tragic comedy of course, we get a flat tire. So here we are in rural nowhere with no spare tire and a van we didnt want in the country to begin with. A couple farm boys walk up to the road and we have a good laugh as we pull the plates and VIN off and strap on our packs. I toss him the keys as we walk off in the the sunset and the looming shadow of the local smoking volcano. So truely begins the start of this grand adventura.
We walk about a mile down the road and a guy in a pickup offers us a ride. Hes delivering dough from place to place and as it turns out he lived in California for 15 years back in the 80s and 90s. I chat with him as we ride toward Leon and he makes his stops. He buys us some coffee and then drops us at a gas station outside the ciudad where cabs hang out. We meet a cab driver who will take us to a good cheap hotel for around four bucks. He reccomends the Via Via and as it turns out he knows what hes talking about. Its a very nice hostel where there are many people from around the world and a few we have seen on our way south. We got settled in and AJ and I ran across the street to post our blogs and here we are. Seems like a great place, lots of friendlies.
Costa Rica tomorrow? No se.
We`ll keep you updated.
Until next time,
Dean

And then there were four...

So much has happened since I had a chance to post last time. Were in Guatemala City Guatemala and we've been here the last few days. Its an amazing place, lots of culture tons of old missions, ruins, monasteries and museums. We stayed with a great lady named Flotche "Flo" whose a school teacher from France who's here teaching English in a French school and was gracious enough to let us stay at her flat and show us around town. We met a lot of great people including a Ska band named "Horchata" and a handful of seemingly shady revolutionaries who took us from underground bar to underground bar well after last call in some of the less than reputable zones. I cant remember if I mentioned it last post but we picked up a guy named Ryan from Texas who happened to be walking on the side of the road as we came into Guatemala. It turns out hes a great guy we all have a lot in common and were already sharing some crazy adventures, just don't ask him to tell a complex joke if hes been drinking. Anyways were headed out of town towards Honduras and possibly south from there, were on a 30min time limit so Ill let someone else on here and be back in touch soon.
Until next time,
Dean

Its either a papaya, or some kind of Granny Jose apple...

We made it to Guatemala city today, no real issues, except the border crossing. The place is packed with sheisty dudes mobbing your car trying to get paid for helping you get through customs. We just kept driving as more and more of them jumped onto the running boards and held on while Bob went faster and faster. We managed to get our entrance and immigration stamps easily and for a total of six bucks, the next part involved getting the van into Guatamala which required the following:

1. The title (which is not in any of our names and causes much confusion)
2. A copy of Bobs passport (which is probably being made into a perfect copy now)
3. Papers showing permission the enter Mexico with the van (we didn't have that)
4. A pass showing fumigacion of the van (which is just a $4 paper and a spritz of mystery liquid on the van)

So after much arguing and all the while being mobbed by dudes trying to sell us Guatemalan currency, we managed to get the car through and aside from some overheating and traffic were here and about to go meet a friend we might stay with.
We picked up a guy named Ryan from Texas who happened to be walking along the road as we were driving through the jungle, so hes hanging out with us now and is actually headed for Panama as well so we might be the four musketeers for a bit.
So much seems to happen every day its borderline overwhelming. We meet the most interesting people who if not for chance or providence we never would have noticed.
The world is a strange strange place and I'm thankful for the opportunities Ive had to see as much of it as I have.
Until next time,
Dean

Those border town blues...

So were here, in only took four days to get here despite what the lady at the Mexican Visa desk told us. The last two days have been really intense and at this pace were going have more adventures and stories than we can keep track of. After we left Mazatlan we drove down Mex15 headed for Guadalajara and made good time and enjoyed the view. They have a rather nice toll road system here but it gets pricy as they enjoy charging a new toll whenever they feel like it so we often go the long way. Once we got to Guadalajara all the fun stopped, their major cities are a disaster, no signs no lane markers and everyone here makes California drivers look like saints. We drove on through and made our way to the outskirts of Mexico City and planned a route around to the south. As you can imagine it didnt work out like we planned, Bob and I drove for five hours at one point possibly within the same 30 mile radius. Around four or five in the morning we made it out and started heading southeast only to find ourselves on the longest windy mountain road ever. Bob drove it like a champion until we realized that we were low on gas and showed no signs of escaping the mountains. Right as we were contemplating our options we started getting tailgated by this crappy little car who refused to pass us, so Bob pulled over and they stopped in front of us. it turns out that they were two guys from Czech Republic who had driven their little car across Europe, Russia, South Korea, and down through Candada and the States. They told us they were almost out of gas and might need help so we followed them until their car died and then grabbed one of them and headed further down the orad praying for gas. I guess they dont have much use for gas cause its like a 400kilometer zone with no stations and we ended up buying gas off some people for $40 a gallon so we could get both cars to an actual station. The worst times always make for the best stories so we all had some laughs and some cervezas and then parked both cars down a dirt road by a farm and crashed there for the night. Martin and Michael are some cool guys and if your interested they have a site you can check out but it might need to be translated, www.mbkolemsveta.cz . We parted ways and hopefully we see them as we both make our way south to Panama and beyond. It surprised and amazes me that we could run into two guys from the other end of the world on much the same journey as us, and that karma would bring us together in such a way. If we hadnt offered to follow them and help if they ran out of gas we ourselves would never have made it to the next station. We got some great picture with them and more of the countryside to include some great old churches. Ill be sure to post them when we get a chance and we'll be in touch.
Until next time,
Dean

Dont drop the soap... in the ocean.

So we made it out of Guaymas (which means more fantastic), and we drove through Los Mochis looking for a ferry to Baja but decided to push on to Culiacan and then to Mazatlan. We rolled in to the coastal town of Mazatlan and had a much harder time finding the beach than one would expect. We got some Mexican food at a restaurant frequente by gringos and then did some walking around, met some people from North Dakota who I would describe as a long way from home. After some exploring we came to an empty pay parking lot that backs right up to the beach, so we conspired to park our van right at the back almost where the beach starts. The van became stuck immediately which surprised no one, but luckily there were three Garbage men sitting across the way laughing at us the whole time who offered to pull us out, Ill post the pictures to Flickr of the ordeal. So at this point the van is parked safely on the hard-packed parking area, and after taking in the beautiful ocean view with a full moon rising, its decidedly time to break out the soap and bathe in the water. Half a bottle of wine(thanks to Carl) and two bars of soap later, were headed back to the van where the Policia are waiting to make sure we know how wrong it is to swim at the beach. Maybe it was the dozens of puffer fish washing up on shore they were worried about, who can say.
Anyways, were headed for Guadalajara today and I think we might just push through past Mexico City. Its a pretty ambitious drive but we all feel like Mexico City is not somewhere we want to spend time or be overnight. So no idea if they have Burger Kings of free wi-fi that far south but we'll be in touch and I'll be posting pictures whenever possible.
Until next time,
Dean

So far so good...

We made it to Nogales with no incident. Then we got stopped at the border, they made us get out of the van after no believing that we were headed for South America with no real plan. We got put in a "waiting room" which is a nice name for a cell. After they thoroughly searched our van for drugs bullets and firearms they reluctantly let us go, no love for a couple old war heroes. We drove from there and made good time arriving in Guaymas by 8pm. Drove around looking for the ferry to Baja and then parked the van out by the boardwalk and slept there for the night. Its that point where I'm in a new country and its still surreal, I dont feel like were in a whole other world. Were doing very well communicating considering no one speaks English. My many years of Spanish and that trip to Spain to see family really paid off I guess cause I find my vocabulary is much more extensive than I would have given myself credit for. Anyways, just checking in, were headed for Mazatlan after this, should easily make it by night. The lady at Mexican Immigration laughed at us when we said we would be to Guatemala in 8 days but we'll show her, Como se dice "in your face"?
Keep checking in, as long as we can keep finding McDonalds we should have access to free wi-fi, God bless American capitalism..
Until next time,
Dean

Arizona City gona set my soul on fire...

So were just outside Phoenix headed for the border crossing in Nogalas. Making rather good time and the vans holding up so no complaints yet. The road through Mexico is going to be a whole different story and were trying to get out of there as soon as possible.
I have no idea why someone would choose to live in this state, the landscape might be ruggedly beautiful but once your on the ground its just dirt and scrub. Mexico probably won't be much more enticing but were headed for greener pastures. I'll keep everyone updated as soon as we get the chance to stop somewhere with internet.
Until next time,
Dean

So it begins...

Were hitting the road tomorrow, the adventure begins. South America or bust. Were headed for Nogalas and then south straight through Mexico, should take a little under a week. Ill do my best to update and post but no promises, I would expect radio silence for the first week and then i should have a chance the post something on here. Check back at OperationSA.com and see if theres anything new or if anyones sites or blogs are updated, when I get the chance Ill be sure to put pictures and such up. Anyhow, its getting late and were leaving early so I might as well get a few hours sleep. Take it easy all, see you when we see you.
-Dean

South America Trip

So this is my first post in quite a while, hopefully I'll be on here more often. The trip to South America is looming and I just spent the last few days packing the rest of the apartment up and buying a few items for the trip. Bought myself a Cannon Rebel XS for the second time, since the first one got stolen in Iraq before I ever got it. With any luck and pending our first mugging, there should be lots of pictures forthcoming. I posted the trip website which links to everyone's respective social networking sites. Check it out, www.OperationSA.com.
Better get some sleep, gotta meet AJ, Bob and the rape-wagon up in Nor Cal tomorrow.
High-fives all around.
-Dean