Between Americas

Costa Rica 2011 part 2

2011-03-26T14:45:00.000-07:00

Hello friends,

It has been a short six months since our last blog update.

Coral is turning two. She isn't a baby anymore. She is the sweetest thing. She is our little Tica with her blond hair and tan. It's so neat watching her become our buddy andmore independent. She is taking dance class twice a week and is swimming in the ocean daily.

Dorian is great as usual. He is super stoked on the waves this week. He really enjoys the garden. He is growing tomatoes, bell peppers,garlic, watermelon, papaya, pineapple, cocoa, bananas, coconut....

I am doing great as usual. I am taking yoga three days a week right now. I have love and
good health. I am exploring the inner workings of Angelina. I am learning about myself and
the world everyday.

We love living in Costa Rica. The beautiful jungle meets the sea, the wildlife, and freedom. We love being away from the city. It helps me focus on what's important in life. Being in nature allows me to connect with myself easier. Our friends the Andrews' visited us. We always have a great time with them. It's nice to share the beauty of Playa Hermosa.

So we are visiting Cali in two days. This is the first time we have used the word visit.
Mainly because we are moving out of 36th st after over a decade. We will be spending less
time there now but we will still be visiting a few months out of the year.

I am so excited. Excited to see my family and friends. I can't wait to dance, take Coral to Disneyland and celebrate her 2nd birthday. Unfortunaly Coral and I have to travel sick. Dry season is turning into rainy season here this month so everyone is gettin sick. We are hosting huge garage sales over the month to clean out the apt. in Newport. We are going to the Encinitas street fair and San Diego Gator by the sea festival during our visit.

We hope to visit with all of you in California and I hope all of you are doing well. We
would love an update from all of our friends and family. Nos Vemos. "we'll see you"

Costa Rica 2011

2011-01-23T03:51:00.000-08:00

We are all having a great time in Costa Rica. The weather has been nice this year and we are enjoying settling into our home. It makes it difficult to go back for our semi-annual visit. We are buiding a concrete storage room that will be done before we visit California. We are getting bids for the dance floor so I can train Coral. We are planting fruit trees, veggies and spices. Dorian's knee is fully recovered and he is surfing better than ever. I hope you are all doing great. You are more than welcome to come visit us in Costa Rica. We booked our flight for CA on March 28th and we are able to stay as long as we want. I am excited to spend some time with the people I love and take some dance classes. We will probably spend more time in the states later in the year during rainy season. Please give us an update on you and your family. We love to hear from all of you.

Thanksgiving 2010

2010-11-28T08:00:00.000-08:00

We hosted a Thanksgiving dinner at our house this year for our friends. It was soo great to have soo many kids in Coral's room today. Her social skills are great! I taught Coral how to do the middle splits and we are starting dance with our friend Naomi next week regardless that our dance floor is not built yet. Allisun and Jordan are out from Washington and they also get to spend the holiday with us. We are having a blast. Allisun, Coral and I got to spend some girl time going to the nearby waterfall.

I love the sense of community in Playa Hermosa. Earlier today Coral was swimming with her Tica friends on the beach. Everybody greets us and loves Coral. I love Costa Rican culture.

2010-11-13T10:53:00.000-08:00

3rd Chapter of Coral's life. Halloween in Costa Rica 2010. She did great on the plane. Coral was amazed at the clouds and the earth below the airplane window. Traveling went smoothly. Uh oh! The bed guard rail that I was going to use to help transition Coral into a big bed didn't make it on the plane. Well we will figure it out right?

Driving home from San Jose was awesome. The new road was built and it only took us an hour on a highway rather than 2 1/2 hours on a windy mountain road. Aw humidity. I love it. Costa Rica is a magical land filled with thick jungle and wildlife like monkeys, iguanas, and macaws. People work less, have less and are much happier.

It's our first week back in Costa Rica after being in California for almost 1 year. Coral is having a difficult time adjusting to the new house and climate. When we arrived the inside of the house looked like "Jumanji". We had to stay with our friend Virginia for the first night so we could hire help to clean. Coral woke up 4 or 5 times in the night sleeping on a big bed in a room alone but she didn't fall off the bed. I'm tired and jetlagged. I need yoga!

We are back into our house and in the middle of the night Bam!! Aww! Coral managed to stay on the bed the first few nights. Luckily we covered the surrounding tiled areas of her bed with rubber mats. She was fine. Dorian built Coral a homemade bed rail that she is getting more comfortable with. Go Dorian, he built it in less than a day without electricity.

Today I finally got to take yoga at Vida Asana. It was awesome and wonderful to see some friends. Our intention of the day is to follow our dreams. My personal intention is to try and relax and wipe away these city lines on my face.

Dorian got to paddle heavy hermosa on a small day and stood up on one wave. His knee felt weak but it didn't cause pain. He was stoked of course to be in the warm water with that surfer rush. Coral got to swim in a river with Kayden. I loved watching her live it up in nature.

Well the first week went pretty well. Coral is completely adjusted now and has found the Tica in her. Dorian's knee is progressing and he has been standing up more and more in Hermosa. We have been swimming a lot and Coral has met many creatures.

We have babyproofed the house, got our phone turned on, hired help to extend the back of our roof to cover the patio, bringing in gravel for driveways and pathways. Dorian killed a poisoness snake called a "Lora" at Virginia's already, we have Nicas in trees with machetes cutting the jungle back.

The weather has been incredible after the week long tropical storm we had with no running water. We are totaly professional campers and it really didn't bother me until the 5th day. I eventually figured out that I can pirate off a neighbor's well. He has not given me permission so for emergency reasons shh. The sun is out, there is a cool breeze and the tropical humidity is always kickin. I am in my element. Today's intention is to find that place where I am not being a part of nature but my wisdom is reflecting on it. Grand and important fullfilling a purpose. My plan is to raise Coral to be an amazing person.

Today is another day. Seriously the yoga here is insanely awesome for me. I took a 3 hour class with my favorate Rose. It is taking me back to where I can find happiness and relax. Costa Rica is special. Dorian pulled his first turn in the water with success and Coral has learned so much like to trust herself to laydown belly first in the water and pretend to swim, how to play on tile floor and unfortunately what a time out was for hitting. We take her to the beach every morning where she stands on everyones board before they paddle out and says (surfboard) in Coral’s accent. She is learning more spanish like saying “dias” for buenas dias and Chow.

Hopefully I can get some pictures to attach to this summary. We miss all of you and your friendship and support means very much to us. Let us know how you are doing. We enjoy getting your emails on how everything is on the other side of the Americas and everywhere in between.

Love,
The Smileys

18 month Coral

2010-09-27T14:05:00.000-07:00

Coral is now 18 months, We are planning to be back in Costa Rica before Halloween. We are still waiting for documents for residency but they should all arrive by the end of the week. We will be starting a new chapter tittled "Construction in Costa Rica". We are building a screen room, dance floor, ect

We have enjoyed being with our family and friends this year in California. We will be up for goodbye celebrations this month including visit to Temecula on Oct. 16th and I am planning a spaghetti factory dinner in Newport the sunday before Halloween for those of you who are close enough to attend. Thanks for your support everyone. We would love to hear how you are doing. The Smiley's look forward to your update as well.

Peace, Aloha, Namaste, Pura Vida

The Smileys

Summer in Newport Beach

2010-06-25T11:47:00.000-07:00

Coral's hair is getting longer. She is now 15 months. Time to tie it up and get it out of her eyes. I think she looks soo cute in her pigtails and pebbles.

Coral's first trip to Disneyland

2010-06-09T11:30:00.000-07:00

merry-go-round

Princess Coral

The Smileys had a blast at Disneyland with Gramma and Grampa Hicks. Our favorates were It's a small world and Dumbo. Coral was a very good girl!

The Hicks Visit

2010-06-07T08:29:00.000-07:00

The Hicks flew in from Pennsilvania to visit The Smileys. It has been great all week! Four generations spending a beautiful Sunday together. Great fun!!

Doheney Blues Festival

2010-05-26T10:01:00.000-07:00

She is of course pointing to the dog in his beautiful tattoo.

The festival was so much fun. My favorate was Crosby, Stills and Nash. Coral did amazing. Took her naps in all the madness. What a trooper. We love music! This was her first show.

Newport Beach Urban Jungle

2010-05-18T10:17:00.000-07:00

Our Newport Beach urban garden is on it's way with my dad's help this summer. There are tomatoes growing everywhere. We plan on making our homemade organic tomato sauce with our homegrown tomatoes. Yum! Coral also enjoys participating in the family garden. We are enjoying our stay in Cali this summer. I can't imagine how much our fruit trees have grown in Costa Rica. We will be back home starting Oct. or Nov.

pura vida

The Smileys

Daddy's surfer girl

2010-04-30T14:16:00.000-07:00

Coral's Cali boyfriend Tosh rides over in the mornings. They love eachother. Watch out Kayden!

family

2010-04-22T15:12:00.001-07:00

The Gatrells came for a visit. Cousin Logan and Landan played with Coral. She had a ton of fun! It was great to see my sister and her family. xoxo

Coral's first birthday party

2010-04-22T15:06:00.000-07:00

Coral's first birthday party was so much fun. We kept is small but great! We used reusable dished homemade cupcakes without paper, and flowers for decorations. The kids took home balloons. We did not encourage birthday presents and Coral had just as much fun without them. All she needs is love. Thanks for your support!

family

2010-04-22T15:01:00.000-07:00

Coral is now 10 months

2010-02-22T10:45:00.002-08:00

Yay! My dad bought me a camera for my 31st birthday. Now I can post pictures again. We are living in our Newport Beach apartment this winter. Dorian is working for a while and Coral and I are enjoying the fresh winter with family and friends. During the week us girls a carless but we have everything we need right here along with many visiters. Please come and visit us and play with Coral at the beach. On the weekends I have been taking dance and yoga classes. We also cook up a storm from homemade pizzas, pastas, soups, and salads for the week to try and keep it all natural.

Pura Vida

xmas

2010-02-22T10:45:00.001-08:00

Coral's 1st Xmas. Our camera broke and we did not get pictures this year. Our friend took this from his phone one day. Coral loved the xmas tree and decorations. We do not celebrate with gift giving but we spent time with eachother.

1st Halloween

2009-11-01T17:50:00.000-08:00

Today was Coral's first Halloween. We decided to dress her up as a bee. Her homemade costume is 95% made from recycled materials. She had a play date with her boyfriend "hawaiian bubba".

back in Costa Rica

2009-10-25T08:22:00.000-07:00

Back in Costa Rica. Coral did great on the flight home. A little fussy but not bad at all. She has started solids and is eating well. I make her homemade food like Super Porridge, fruits and veggies. She missed her boyfriend Kayden but also met a new boyfriend in California named Tosh. She is now almost 7 months. She started sitting around six months and is trying to crawl. I give her plenty of room and time to practice.

Nana's house

2009-10-25T08:15:00.000-07:00

Coral got to spend the night at Nana's house. They enjoyed hanging out on the porch together. Many relatives came and enjoyed the weekend.

family at the beach

2009-10-25T08:14:00.000-07:00

A day at the beach to help celebrate Aunt Tara's birthday. The Gatrells made a drive up from Murrieta to Newport to meet their cousin Coral. It was nice to hang out with the kids, Aunts and Uncles.

Grandma and Grandpa Hicks

2009-10-25T08:12:00.000-07:00

Grandma and Grandpa Hicks flew from Pennsilvania to Newport Beach to meet their dear grandaughter. They enjoyed walks in the park. It was so nice for Coral to meet them and for all of us to spend time with eachother.

The Andrews' BBQ

2009-10-25T08:11:00.000-07:00

Coral met our friends at our annual Andrews' BBQ. This week she played with Sophia, Sara, Milo, Tosh, and Avrum. We didn't take many pictures because we were to busy having fun. We had a great beach day. As you can see Coral is teething bad. We are waiting for her first tooth.

Grandpa Petitte's House

2009-10-25T08:01:00.000-07:00

Coral did great on the flight to California. She had a 20 min freak out after her 14th hour of traveling but understandable. She met her Grandpa Petitte and her cousin Jenny. We spent time together at Dad's house for a couple nights with Tara and Nick cooking homemade raviolis and homemade sauce. My father even grew the tomatoes we used. They turned out awesome and it was a fun activity for the family.

2009-08-24T15:57:00.000-07:00

Coral is now 4 1/2 months. She loves to jump and is a very happy baby. She is in the pool, at the beach, in the sink, in the tub. This kid loves the water. She is Dorian's clone with blue eyes and mommy's nose.

We are planning to travel a lot more after our visit to California. We will be in the OC months at a time for the next 6 months to a year. We plan on traveling to Hawaiian islands, possiblyvthe virgin islands, possibly a road trip up the coast of Cali and possibly the Somoa islands.

Family Beach Day

2009-07-26T08:43:00.000-07:00

The Smiley family finally brought their camera to the beach. We have a family photo posted requested by grammy Karen. A surf contest is held for locals every Sat. and the whole community gets together. All Coral's baby friends come out and play at sunset.

Our little bee is almost 4 months old now. She is a chubby little girl weighing at 14 pounds. Wow! She is so much like her daddy. As you can see her hair is a strawberry blond. She may get this from my mother Kaye or Dorian. Dorian's hair was very light as a baby. Coral is very alert and likes to grab everything. She is a very busy bee. We take her to the market and she is amazed at all the colors and shapes around her. We sit together every morning and watch 10 minutes only of baby einstein online. She loves it. This girl gets so much attention. aahh

Thanks for all your support friends. It means so much to us when we get such great emails from you. I give it up to all those mommies who cook, clean, and raise their children. We got a housekeeper two days a week to help out so I can focus all my attention on dance, yoga and our family. I am losing weight slowly but surely. The waves here are all time right now. Dorian is stoked. The ISA world games are coming to Playa Hermosa this week. It will be super crazy around our little country beach town.

Mike's visit

2009-07-20T15:42:00.000-07:00

Dorian's surfboard shaper Mike and his wife visited us for a couple of weeks. Mike was up for our rustic accomodations. We moved into the big bamboo house this month. We are enjoying the extra room and the natural elements. I am in love with my Shala.

Coral is now 3 1/2 months. She is our little gordita. She is quite chunky but the doctor assures me she will lose it when she starts crawling. We bought our first toy for her. An exersaucer is not only a great babysitter but also helps develop her motor skills. We prefered to buy used but with no luck. It worried me buying something new after watching that video about stuff. Dorian and I will give it away and recycle it to a family less fortunate when Coral grows out of it.

I cut off 13 inches of hair and donated it to lock of love. My hair is till to my mid-back. Amazing how long hair grows when pregnant. I have been enjoying the early stages of Coral's life. We are so close. Dorian is doing great. He is working, surfing, world's best Dad, and husband.

I hope all is well with our friends and family. We are postponing our trip for a couple of months. We are waiting for a copy of our marrage certificate to get Coral's U.S. passport. We hope to hear from all of you soon.

Pura Vida

Angelina

2009-06-21T23:43:00.000-07:00

This is a picture of my mother with baby Coral when she was just one day old. Coral is so big now. She weighs 13 pounds and is developing quickly. She slept for 8 hours last night for father's day. I don't expect that to happen regularly. She is almost three months now.

I was able to shed a couple pounds this week. My bamboo dance floor in our new bamboo house is awesome.

Dorian enjoyed his first Father's day today. He has been working hard to take care of his family so we can visit CA in Sept. The waves have been good lately. He was able to hang out with Alex Freyre who visited us this week. Kirk and Gina fly in tomarrow. Hopefully I can post more pictures soon.

Days go buy quickly with our busy bee. We are managing to maintain our pura vida lifestyle. We are enjoying every second.

xoxo

The Smiley's

Dennis, Dylan and Angelique made the blog

2009-06-06T06:15:00.000-07:00

Coral is now 2 months and growing. She loves to dance to her mobile. We are trying to establish a sleeping schedule with luck.

We are moving into a spacious bamboo house sometime this month. The house is very baby friendly,very natural and artistic.

Dorian has been working hard this week. We all have been going to the beach together again. Coral likes to fall asleep while walking with Dad. The ocean is very soothing. I was able to jump in the warm water for the first time in months.

I have permission to work out again from the Doc. I started last week and obviously have a long way to go. I have been stretching, walking up a huge hill everyday and swimming. Hopefully I can get myself strong enough before we move into the bamboo house because it has an incredible outdoor dance floor waiting for me. I can't wait! I will start yoga again when I am ready.

We got a visit from our Dutch friends. We initially met them in La Ticla, Mainland Mexico during our tour down here. They stayed with us for one night. It was great to have them over. As you can see it wore Coral out.

Rainy season has started here. It is so great not to be hot anymore. Everything is getting greener. The Iguana's are everywhere. Paradise as usual in Costa Rica. We are working on getting our baby Tica her U.S. passport so we can visit Newport in Sept. Hope to see you all then.

We would love to hear how you are doing. We miss all of you!
pura vida
The Smiley's

2 months

2009-06-03T09:40:00.000-07:00

Tara and Nick made the blog

2009-05-03T10:34:00.000-07:00

Aunt Tara and Uncle Nick visited the Smiley's this week. We were lucky to get some great weather with relaxing tropical rains and sun. Coral enjoyed meeting them and we all can't wait for their next visit. Tara and Nick love Costa Rica. They went on an ATV tour, a zipline tour, and a crocodile tour. They saw a couple of spider monkeys, scarlet macaws, crocs, Iguanas and more. It was fun making big breakfasts and dinners all week. I even got to enjoy a beer. I happen to find some San Adams for Dorian's 32 birthday. Happy Birthday Daddy!

Coral is now 1 month old. She is doing great! She enjoys tummy time on her surfboard, cuddling, and pooping while we are changing her.

Pura Vida

two week Coral

2009-04-21T06:45:00.000-07:00

Two week old Coral sure has grown a lot in such a short time. Amazing! She is getting chubbier. I was asked to post a family picture that I will be working on this week. I will get plenty of photo opportunities when Coral's Aunt Tara and Uncle Nick come and visit this weekend.

Her first Doctor's visit went great! She gained one ounce and grew one inch. She is very healthy and alert. Can you believe she is only two weeks. She is such a big girl!

Coral is a good baby bee. We have been keeping her busy during the day so she sleeps good at night. We have been getting a 4-6 hour stretch most nights. What a gal! She has been fascinated with the bird and plant life around. She loves Daddy time and hamock time with Mommy. Dorian is so animated when he plays with her. We have music time everyday and when she is up to it we walk around and visit neighbors. She looks like me more this week but she is constantly changing. We love our baby bee.

Thanks for your support
Angelina

Coral's arrival

2009-04-08T17:39:00.000-07:00

Coral Ocean Kaye Smiley was born on April 4th. She is 8 pounds, which is rather large and 19 inches. Big and healthy. We made it back to the beach where Coral was introduced to our pura vida lifestyle.

She clearly has Dorian's round face and lips. She has my nose and blue eyes. She looks very developed to me with lots of hair. Coral has been eating and sleeping well. I could not have asked for a sweeter little girl. We love her.

Coming Soon!

2009-03-23T16:26:00.000-07:00

We are going to San Jose tomorrow to wait for Coral's arrival. Without the miracle of pregnancy and reproduction there would not be so much beauty and life in this world. I am honored to contribute our natural baby to the nature she will soon be a part of.

38 weeks pregnant

2009-03-18T12:22:00.000-07:00

Just when you thought I could not get any bigger. I did. Waiting for something to happen. Meditation is helping me get ready for Coral's big day. This will be my last belly shot. Wish us luck!

37 week Coral

2009-03-10T05:15:00.000-07:00

Coral is all set to go. She turned around AGAIN. She is now in a normal position. The doctor said she could be ready anytime until my due date which is April 3rd. We are going to give this natural childbirth thing a shot. Wish us luck although we are trying our best to be prepared for whatever happens. She clearly has my fat nose and Dorian's big lips. I am in love with her big Dorian lips. We are curious to see if she will have my blue eyes or Dorian's hazel eyes. I think the first picture captures her actual features the best. The other photos are a bit wider. She is getting nice and chubby in there right now. She is already weighing almost 6 1/2 pounds. The doctor said she is completely average size and he has never seen a baby turn breech again after 37 weeks. We can't wait to meet little Coral.

Dorian is working very hard with a company in CA. He is also working on a sustainable living website that will be up probably by the end of the month among other projects. It is very hot and uncomfortable being this pregnant in Costa Rica. I have been grateful to swim in a pool everyday. I plan on using deep meditation and exercise to help me with my upcoming labor. I figure if I am strong enough to cross Central America for six months in a tiny truck camper anything is possible. haha

pura vida

Angelina

neighborhood birds

2009-03-06T10:36:00.000-08:00

We saw two wild turkeys in our tree this month

We see woody wood pecker pecking away almost every morning. He even sounds like woody I think.

Blue and white swallow.

Black bellied whistling duck

There are always tons of vultures across the street

The Grippo Family Visit

2009-02-26T14:42:00.000-08:00

Hi friends,

I thought you might like a post that is not about the baby. haha As you can see dry season is taking effect here in Costa Rica this season. It is very hot and I am very pregnant. I carved a heart for Dorian on Valentine's day. This way when he parks his bike he will always remember that I love him.

Our friends The Grippo's camped out this week. We met them on the road in Celestino Mainland, Mexico while driving down. They camp in Mexico often for months. Our neighbor Tanesha became instant friends with them. These cool kids threw me a surprise 30th birthday pool party. It was really sweet. The Grippo's also drove down in a truck camper from California. My friend, Toni home schools her children on the road. They are very smart children and very environmentally aware. They inspire Dorian and I on how we would like to raise Coral. It is great to spend time with a family that spends so much time with eachother. It is our pleasure to be friends with the Grippo's.

p.s. Don't you love to see little girls hugging!

33 week Coral

2009-02-10T05:15:00.000-08:00

Hi,

I don't think this picture turned out as good as her last ones but I thought I would post it anyways. We think she is looking more and more like her mommy but time will tell. The distortion makes it difficult to analyze. We can't wait to meet her.

My ultrasound went good. Coral is a normal size and everything is excellent. Unfortunately she decided to turn around and is breech again at 33 weeks. The doctor was shocked! I could actually feel her turn around yesterday before our drive to San Jose. He said that she must have a lot of room in there at this stage and she may flip again before our next appointment at 37 weeks. The doctor will scedule a c-section at 39 weeks if she doesn't turn or arrive earlier. It is Coral's decision he says. I still have 7 weeks left and anything can happen. Overall, I have a very low risk pregnancy.

I will send another update next month. Wish us luck and thanks for your support!
Angelina

32 weeks

2009-02-03T05:42:00.000-08:00

Hi friends,

Yes that's me! Can you believe I still have two months to go. No, I am not having twins! We are now 32 weeks which means we have 8 weeks left. My little hips are having trouble carrying the extra 30 pounds. I am forced to do all my exercising in a pool now. I am doing physical therapy on my hips and legs.

We are composting all our organic trash and growing tons of bell peppers and papaya trees as you can see. Dorian works hard in the garden every morning. Check out the 9 inch stick bug we found. He was really tranquil and enjoyed living on our house for about 3 days. There was another spider monkey spotted in our park last week also.

I will be posting another ultrasound picture next week of Coral if you would like to see. I know not everyone enjoys ultrasound pictures. haha We are hoping to post some pictures of Playa Hermosa next week too.

Dorian and I are still working towards a sustainable way of life. We love Costa Rica. Enjoying our life day to day has incouraged us to not want more and to be happier with less. We are so fortunate to have each other and a baby on the way.

Pura Vida

Angelina and Dorian

Coral's room

2009-01-17T07:22:00.001-08:00

We have finished our babies room. We didn't make it too fancy since we are trying our best to only buy things that are absolutely necessary in our lives. We feel that our future and our family time are more important. The space is small but it suits our needs. We borrowed a twin bed from our neighbor for my mother on her visit. Our neighbor also donated the dark pink curtains. Dorian made Coral wood shelves to save space and I glued shells from the beach on them as a border. Dorian bought me a mama rocking chair for Christmas that I love. I must say the best thing about her room is the view. My mom is bringing us our babies play yard, bassinet, and changing table all in one that I bought at babies R us on our last visit. It was very economical and another space saver. We wanted our daughter to have a comfy bed. Almost 10 more weeks left until Coral Ocean Kaye Smiley is born.

Thanks for your support

Pura Vida

Angelina

28 week Coral

2009-01-09T19:01:00.000-08:00

28 weeks ultrasound. Coral is doing great! Everything is normal. She has turned around and is no longer breach. I have gained 25 pounds already. The doctor thinks I will gain 37 total which he says is normal. 12 weeks to go!

We actually took pictures of our video with our camera because we were unable to rip the pictures from the DVD. They are distorted but with a good imagination you can see what she looks like. We still think she has my nose and Dorian's lips. We both see ourselves in her pictures.

Dorian and I are doing great! We were in the 6.1 earthquake in San Jose, Costa Rica yesterday. It was intense. Everything around us was fine but it did give everyone a good shake.

We can't wait for Coral to be born. We have been nesting here getting ready for her arrival.

Thanks for you support

Dorian and Angelina

3rd trimester

2008-12-29T14:38:00.000-08:00

Could I get any bigger? I didn't realize until I saw the pictures. I am still stretching and dancing a bit. Mostly walking on the beach in the mornings. I am starting my third trimester this week. 27 weeks. I am thinking I need to work extra hard this trimester to keep in good pregnant shape. Coral is kicking constantly. I swim in the ocean a lot and she goes right to sleep. My only complaints are that my ribs and back hurt, I am constantly sneezing and it is getting hot. Otherwise I can't complain. It's not so bad when you live in Costa Rica and every woman is pregnant.

We photographed a couple daily visiters. Our frog stares into the screen every night. We thought he was staring at us all the time and wanted to come in until we figured out he hunts the flying bugs that run into it. Our Iguana we named Mama the Iguana. I used to feed her apple cores. I didn't see her for a while and now she has doubled in size.

Dorian washed the car for the first time. It was really muddy before. We are much tanner in person and my belly is bigger than Dorian's. haha He has been surfing once or twice a day. He also can't wait for little Coral to be born. He works from home. We just hooked up skype. So if you have skype email me your user name. Our user name is Dorian.Smiley

We also have a mailing address now.

Angelina Smiley
Apdo #189 - 4023
Jaco - Costa Rica

Thanks for your support
pura vida
Angelina and Dorian

22 weeks

2008-11-28T12:32:00.000-08:00

I am officially giant. 22 weeks. We finally bought a car because I am just to big to ride my bike for miles. I have been walking every day. I am not practicing yoga anymore, but I teach dance twice a week for a friend who is also pregnant and a dancer. Dorian is really excited to be a dad. He is working from home so he will get to enjoy being with his baby. We are proud to be starting a family and we are very honored to have our child continue the Smiley name.

pura vida

Angelina

baby at 20 weeks

2008-11-12T13:06:00.000-08:00

Hi friends and family,

These are pictures of my second ultrasound at 20 weeks. Yay! I am halfway done. I will post pictures of my growing belly in a couple of days. The pictures shown are distorted but we think that she has my nose, cheeks, and jaw. We think she has Dorian's lips, eyes, and forehead but we will see in 5 more months.

Coral is definately a girl. She has been moving a lot the last couple of days. We have been walking along the beach every morning and swimming in the tide pools.

I have gained 12 pounds which I am very pround of.

Thanks for your support.

18 weeks

2008-10-27T14:17:00.000-07:00

almost 18 weeks. I have doubled in size in 2 weeks.

16 weeks pregnant

2008-10-18T06:21:00.000-07:00

I am not that big yet friends. This is my first prego picture posted. 14 weeks. The doctor says his educated guess is a girl, so say hello to Coral Kaye Smiley. I am feeling a hundred times better now that I am in my second trimester.

The first trimester was really difficult. I am taking Yoga regularly and still dancing. Baby Coral doesnt seem to mind doing pirouettes and spotted handstands with me. Don't worry I got my doctor's permission. He said that I can be as active as I always have been as long as I don't twist or work to hard. My doctor has a picture of a yogi 8 months pregnant doing a handstand while in the middle splits so I am not worried.

I have thought more about trying all natural childbirth.

Dorian is really excited to be a Dad. He is really nervous about raising a teenage daughter however. He is making up lullabies on the guitar.

Playa Hermosa

2008-10-08T07:17:00.000-07:00

Dorian and I are still live in Playa Hermosa, Costa Rica. We moved down the dirt road to a house that was in better shape. We have now been in this house for several months and we love it. Our neighbors are great.

Dorian is finding programming work from the states and we are learning how to grow fruits and vegetables. I am teaching dance to a little girl next door. I have been studying yoga and Dorian has been surfing. The waves are giant in Playa Hermosa. I cannot go swimming in the ocean unless the waves aren't gigantic. I always make sure my lifeguard Dorian goes with me. The ocean water is always really warm. I do enjoy riding my bike to the nearby waterfall.

We have visited the States twice since we left. It is always nice to see the people
we love, but Costa Rica is definitely a better fit for us. The last few months have
been life changing. We are now almost 4 months pregnant. We are having the baby
here in Costa Rica which will give us all residency.

Life isn't always paradise in Costa Rica. I think it is a harder life but a life
worth living. I wash all the clothes by hand in our pila. We eat mostly fruits and
vegetables only. The water and electricity goes out on a daily basis. It takes
tens times longer to get anything done here than in the U.S and we do battle giant
spiders and snakes.

The advantages are we get to see scarlet macaws and toucans everyday. We don't have
many monkeys near us but the howler monkey across the street howls at us every
morning. The weather is great and the exotic gray sand beach in gorgeous. The jungle is full of life and we get to spend our days together.

Pura Vida "Pure Life"

p.s. I will post pictures of the beach and jungle soon. We have actually been carless for six months. We are purchasing a car in the next couple of weeks and we are excited to contiue our adventures.

Cordwood house in Playa Hermosa

2008-10-08T06:39:00.000-07:00

I was asked to give an update for those of you who have not heard from the Smileys
since our last post on blogspot.

Dorian and I settled in Playa Hermosa, Costa Rica after our journey through Central
America. Since then we rented a cordwood house for six months. A cordwood house is
made of hay and clay with a wood frame. It was so beautiful but unfortunately it
was already falling apart. We loved this little hobbit house. It was just our
style and taught us a lot about what we want to build in our future.

We spent this time getting to know the neighborhood while Dorian picked up some
programming work in town. It was so nice to be in one place for a while. Being on
the road for six months will make any woman mad, although the journey taught me to
be happy without my American comforts.

our baby

2008-10-06T06:46:00.001-07:00

Our ultrasound pics.

playa negra, Costa Rica

2008-01-10T08:44:00.000-08:00

The border crossing going into Costa Rica this day were relatively quick. We were now experienced border crossers and we knew what to expect. As we drove through Costa Rica we immediately noticed why we wanted to move here a year ago. The jungle turned thicker and the insects grew larger. The life around us became more abundant. We stopped at the giant supermarket on the way to Playa Negra. Dorian and I were shocked by the thousands of products that consumed the shelves. We had just came from a land where the locals raise their own food.

We continued our journey until we came to a fallen bridge. The road was impassable and Dorian and I once again were on a race with time. It was getting dark and we were forced to find an alternative route without street signs. We were unable to make it to Playa Negra that night so we shacked up in Tamarindo. Tourists flourish here. Even Pizza Hut exists here.
The next morning we were forced to take a short cut in the wet season through several mud pits. We literally crashed into the earth and drove in and out of huge ruts that swallowed El Grande Rojo's giant tires. This road was as gnarly as the road from hell in Guatemala. Fortunately our life was not in danger this time, only the life of our truck. We managed to make it one house away from Tony's house where we were going to camp when the giant mud pit that we risked driving through swallowed the front right tire. The entire truck began to sink into the underground river. We were officially stuck!

Dorian contemplated detaching our wench from the front of the truck and attaching it to the rear. We needed to get pulled out backwards. The road that lied ahead of us was to watery to pass. Tony's brother-in-law graciously helped Dorian for hours dig out the truck. Dorian was covered in mud from head to toe. He even arranged for two ox to try to pull us out. After that failed we luckily met the neighbor Juanito (a gringo from Orange County) who came to our rescue. He had a wench on his truck. After Dorian cleared the earth from the bottom of the truck they wiggled El Grande Rojo out of the mud pit. We were finally free. It was steaming hot and we were extremely tired and hungry.

Juanita invited us into his house to get cleaned up. We were so thankful to meet an instant friend. He made it clear that he was impressed that we drove all the way down. We told him pieces of our story and he reminisced about the times when he made the trip. He continued to hook us up when he introduced us to his best friend Jerry who lived next door. Jerry is a gringo who moved from Hawaii. He is in his seventies but doesn't look a day over fifty. He let us camp on his property for only $5 a day. We really liked our two new friends.

We continued to meet the people who lived here and contacted Brad who had the house for rent. The house needed alot of work. There were howler monkeys everywhere. We were almost going to move in and make our new life in Playa Negra when we got cold feet. Dorian and I made the decision to drive further south to Playa Hermosa. We made the six hour drive south through the cloud forest. We realized that Playa Hermosa was a better fit for us right now. I did not want to face the dry season in Playa Negra, Northern Costa Rica.

Gigante, Nicaragua

2008-01-10T06:12:00.000-08:00

Dorian and I entered Nicaragua in the middle of August. The weather was hot this month with light rains in the evenings. We drove south and stopped for a night in a town called Leon. This was a colonial style hip town with few tourists. Overall, this country is poor and the government is very corrupt. It is important to be aware of your surroundings. We tried our best to avoid the policia, but it's difficult when they spot El Grande Rojo with gringo license plates a kilometer away. We battled numerous bribes.

Nicaraguans are called Nicas. The Nica's I met were very hard working and humble. A skilled worker like a fishing boat captain earns seven dollars a day. I noticed that the people here are affected by the recent war. Although they were the poorest people we met on our journey, they were the kindest. I quickly became close with a family in Playa Gigante. Eva, Silvio, and their two year old son Dale David worked for a gringo we visited named Dale Dagger. I enjoyed helping Eva with David when she was working. They are a really honest hard working family.

Dorian emailed Dale Dagger before leaving the U.S. after reading his story online. Dale was ship wrecked in Playa Gigante, Nicaragua in the seventies. Since then he bought property there and built a surf lodge. There is now a small Nica community there. We showed up on his doorstep ready to camp. He told us that we could camp on his property for free. We took the opportunity for a few days until I just couldn't take it any longer. Remember I had been camping for six months straight. Imagine! Dorian worked out a deal with Dale and got us into the five star surf resort with hot water and a porcelain thrown. We met Tom who runs the surf lodge. He was now our new roommate. Tom is a free spirit from the mid west who moved here a couple years ago. He took us fishing almost everyday on Dale's hand made outrigger. We caught fish after fish.

The surf in Nicaragua is awesome. Dorian surfed thick turquoise blue barrels with a few guys out everyday in September. I will let the pictures speak for themselves. In October everything changed. This is the rainiest month of the year. The ocean turned muddy and the surf turned stormy. Troy and Lanae our friends from Newport Beach flew out to visit us. Were they in for a surprise.

They took their chances on the weather and went for the adventure. We were late picking them up at the airport due to five stops from the policia and getting lost. They were almost going to make alternative plans until we showed up. I didn't realize that Dorian and I were now accustomed to the heat and the madness. Poor Troy and Lanae got a taste of adventure when we tried to find our way back to Gigante. There isn't any street signs. A four hour drive at least that we failed to tell them about prior. It was steamy hot and the truck was packed.

Our friends and Dorian scored good waves the first few days. We were able to make one fishing trip in a panga, not the cool outrigger Dale constructed. I was able to point out my favorite place in Nicaragua to Lanae on the boat looking over the amazing coastline. The coast is filled with green forest/jungle and had seamed untouched. It is a natural land that is free and wild unlike Southern California. We were stoked when Troy caught a giant mackerel. Tom also caught a big Dorado. We cleaned and fried the fish for dinner. It was awesome.

The weather turned south shortly after our fishing expedition, and we grew weary from the rain. There isn't much to do in Gigante when it's pouring and the ocean is muddy. We spent the last few days of Troy and Lanae's visit playing cards and drinking lots of ice cold Tonas. We were sad to see them leave, and hope to see them again soon.

The next week we were flooded in. Rivers had formed where streams once existed, and quickly flooded the dirt roads. It was impassable. After three weeks solid of none stop rain the sun finally showed up. We decided to take advantage of this break in the weather and try to reach Rivas. We put El Grande Rojo to a true test when Dorian made the decision to drive up a slippery muddy embankment to avoid a sink hole that had formed in the road. This type of sink hole is caused by ground water, and is like quick sand. It will swallow a vehicle. I was standing along the road praying that Dorian and our portable house wouldn't slide off. He made it safely up the slippery mud embankment a road crew had constructed. After that things started to take a turn for the worse, literally. The car lost traction and started to drift off the embankment and towards the sink hole. This was very bad. Dorian quickly straightened out the wheel and gassed it hard. Once he had a little momentum he veered hard left and went straight into a barb wire fence. After bouncing off, and taking a little of the fence with him, he gassed it again uphill. When he was almost to the top, and safe, he got stuck. He quickly reversed hard then floored it off the embankment, around the sink hole, and to safety. It was some crazy stuff!

Our visas were up for the second time so we needed to cross the border again. The first time we crossed into Costa Rica a month earlier we bribed our way back into Nicaragua on the same day which is highly illegal. We were now ready to officially finish our journey and head to Playa Negra, Costa Rica. Our friend Tony Roberts, an accomplished photographer who we also met at Dale Dagger's surf lodge hooked us up with a friend who was possible going to rent us a house.

Overall, we love Nicaragua. The people are great and the land is beautiful. The wild life in Playa Gigante consists of hundreds of crabs that wander the beach, a myriad of hermit crabs, unfortunately ticks and mostly farm animals. The Nicas in this town raise and eat most of their own food. That includes the hanging of giant pigs and chickens. There are wild monkeys sometimes on the road but the most commonly seen one wears a leash and his held against his will. The mosquitoes can be difficult to deal with but the beauty of the beach makes up for it. We encourage everyone to visit Nicaragua just be careful and watch your belongings. It will be an adventure for sure if you let it.

Honduras in one day

2007-10-16T11:23:00.000-07:00

We drove through Honduras in one day. We took the Pacific coastal route. We were surrounded by green rolling hills and small villages. There didn't seam to be a middle class in this area. The pore are extremely pore and the rich are considered wealthy. We didn't have time to explore this country but we would have loved to check out the Carribean coast. We have met many other travelers who raved about it.

The police are very corrupt in Honduras. We were stopped five times during our day trip. The first bribe in Honduras took place directly past the border crossing when the officier insisted that there was a toll for that particular road. We couldn't argue through so we paid the small bribe and left without a delay.

Dorian and I got a little tougher throughout the drive. We put on our game face when we got pulled over. Dorian would play the cop's buddy while I basically yelled at both of them in English and Spanish. We had extremely good luck with this routine. The officer usually would back off thinking "Crazy Gringa." They don't usually want to work that hard for their money.

When we made it to the Honduras/Nicaragua border crossing there wasn't a guide to hire, so Dorian and I were on our own. We noticed that the Nicaraguans, "Nicas", speak differently than in the other countries. It was nearly impossible to communicate with the people working at the immigration office. A nice lady physically had to direct us to the correct office. It was confusing since the office was in the garage of the building.

We registered the truck, got our Visa's stamped and had the dog inspected. The people in line were trying to help us although none of them spoke any English. We were beginning to realize how nice the locals are in Nicaragua.

El Salvador/Honduras Border

2007-10-15T10:39:00.000-07:00

Crossing into Honduras from El Salvador was difficult. This is the craziest and most confusing border that we have ever crossed. We camped at the border town in El Salvador the night before. A guide actually approached us as we woke up in the morning. We could not understand him. The hotel owner came out and started yelling at Dorian. We could not understand the guide or the owner. We heard the owner say "no vaya" over and over which means don't go. Dorian didn't like the tone in the old man's voice and told me to pack it up as quickly as possible. We broke down camp in record time and bailed.

The guide followed us and eventually showed us his badge. We realized that the hotel owner was telling us to not pay the guide. We wish we had understood him before. When the rest of the guides rush the truck. We made sure to hire a guy who spoke English. All of the guys working seamed shady including the guy we hired.

The process of crossing the border is insane. It would be nearly impossible to cross without a guide. Even with good Spanish skills. We were dragged in the heat across the town for more than three hours. The offices are unmarked and dirty. The guide zig zagged through the crowd to get us our necessary papers. The whole process is incredibly unorganized. We were unsure if our guide was legit but he did manage to get us across eventually. Other travels notified us that they went through the same tedious process. It didn't seam like we got ripped off or bribed. It was just very confusing and very unorganized.

El Zonte, El Salvador

2007-10-11T10:56:00.000-07:00

Entering El Salvador wasn't that difficult. Other travelers informed us about the pushy and sneaky guides that want to help you cross the border. We made sure to be very firm when the guides rushed the car. Dorian and I demanded that we only wanted one guy who spoke English throughout the entire ordeal. We generously tipped our guide ten dollars at the end. I didn't even need to leave the truck.

We drove a few hours to El Zonte. Dorian knew of a surf camp there. The coast in El Salvador is beautiful. We drove along lush green headlands. Many locals sell watermelon along the twisty mountain highway. We searched for the dirt road and headed towards the beach. El Zonte consists of shaggy seafood restaurants and an amazing surf camp. The camp is so nice we enjoyed the clean bathrooms, refreshing pool, and the manicured garden. We also loved camping with the parrots and guard dogs. This is a great place to stay. They offer cabanas also.

The surf was good. Dorian was excited to get back into the water. The water is dark from the black rocky sand beaches and the locals were very unfriendly at first. They are still effected by the war. We got to know them one night over some beers.

We met Edwardo here. He is a french guy who manages the camp for an El Salvadorian family. Unfortunately the wages are very low here. He only earns five dollars a day and he works very hard. My Amiga in the picture visited me daily. I bought some interesting art from her. She was really pore and I didn't mind helping her out. I took her picture for a dollar. Isn't she beautiful.

We stayed in El Zonte for a couple weeks. Dorian was excited to surf every day again. The jungle was awesome although I did not see any monkeys in El Salvador. The dry season turns everything brown here like in Nicaragua and Northern Costa Rica.

We enjoyed visiting El Salvador although we only stayed in one other spot. The south west dirty border town.

The Coast of Guatemala

2007-10-10T12:31:00.000-07:00

Dorian really wanted to check out the coast in Guatemala. We heard many rumers of the coast being swampy and pore. We had to find out for ourselves. Dorian had previously read about some surf breaks in Guatemala and he was desperate for waves. It had been over two months since he surfed.

The drive was great although it was raining. The road to the coast is luckily brand new pavement. When we arrived we realized that the rumors were true. The coast is swampy and it is the porest part of Guatemala. We were happy to camp under a covered parking lot instead of staying in the dirty hotel. That night the rain turned into a heavy storm that flooded the beach town's little streets.

In the morning Dorian wanted to check the surf. We were distracted by the long swampy river that blocked our view to the beach. The locals told Dorian to paddle across. He took one look of the chocolate brown river filled with trash and said "Lets get out of here." The beach seamed to be the local dump and Dorian did not feel like getting sick.

We also visited another beach in Guatemala closer to Honduras. The ocean was also brown and the beach was mainly used for fishing. The locals were going crazy. Signaling us to park. I did not feel very safe there so we turned around and headed for the Guatemalan/El Salvador border town.

We love Guatemala but we do not advise our friends to visit the coast.

Our Guatemalan Family

2007-09-29T17:56:00.000-07:00

Even though we had our brakes fixed in Chichicastenango we still needed some repair on the truck. We stopped at the nearest city. A local mechanic showed up at the service station and directed us to his house. We couldn't understand him at all. We followed him to his yard and the entire family came out to greet us.

He told us it would take a few days for him to fix the truck. He had to take the bus to Guatemala City and get the correct parts. We were to camp in his yard. I immediately started socializing with the family. It was difficult to communicate with my little Spanish skills but we managed. Mama had seven children from a different husband who is not in the picture. In order to support her children and mother she married the mechanic and had one child. She has sacrificed alot for her family.

I taught the kids how to make bracelets and played with them all day everyday. Mama made us breakfast, lunch and dinner. She would feed us before her husband. Then her husband and their child would eat. The other children had to prepare their own food in a separate kitchen. The mechanic didn't seam to want them around.

Dorian became friends with the two sons. They practiced their Spanish and English together. He also learned how to fix the truck with the mechanic. He had an amazing experience with our new Guatemalan family too.

Dorian and I would lay at night in amazement of this family. We were so thankful of their acceptance. I tried to help out like everyone else. Mama was shocked when I started doing all the dishes after dinner. Eventually she just started treating me like another daughter. She asked us several times to move in for one year.

I fell in love with Grandma. She is ninety and so sweet. I would sit as close to her as possible on the ground while she sat in her chair on the back porch. She thought it was amazing that I didn't need a hair tie to put up my hair and how blond my hair was. She would put her hand on my leg and smile by the end of the night we were basically cuddling on the porch. We loved hanging out together.

I became really close with this family in just a few days. We taught each other so much. Mama gave me a ring to remember her by. A storm hit us as we were packing to leave but we didn't want to stay another night. We were warned not to walk around the town and the mechanic didn't even want the locals to know we were at his house. This is not an appropriate place for a gringo to live but we enjoyed every minute of this experience. Meeting this family was the most significant part of our journey.

Chichicastenango, Guatemala

2007-09-23T12:05:00.000-07:00

I have always wanted to go to Chichicastango in Guatemala. This is where they hold the world known market. The colors and culture are absolutely amazing. The artisans are all so talented and creative. Thursdays and Sundays are market days and all off the Mayan Indians come from distant villages to buy and sell there crafts. We loved it so much that we decided to shop there both days that week. Dorian and I were planning to sell some of the art in Costa Rica but half of it has been sold along the way.

We haggled our way through the crowd when the chicken buses showed up with tourists. Dorian and I figured out that when the seller give you a price cut it in half and haggle with them. We would usually find a price in the middle that they would agree on. Another tactic is to buy in bulk.

As we were walking back towards the hotel I witnessed a young girl helping her grandmother walk. I looked down and the old woman's foot was twisted backwards. She was walking on her ankle bone like a cane as her foot dangled behind her. I wanted to help her so bad.

Even the children are working hard at the market. A young boy about six years old was following us trying to sell us a trinket. I started messing with him and pushing him around. At first he thought I was strange and then he started to mess with us back. We ended up pushing each other back and forth all the way to the hotel. Dorian bought him a coke at the store. His eyes lit up and he ran away.

We were able to get our brakes fixed here for a small fortune. We were very lucky to find a mechanic. It took several days but we enjoyed the market so much. I think everyone should take a trip to Chichicastenango, Guatemala.

Sacapulas, Guatemala

2007-09-23T09:30:00.000-07:00

We drove through many small villages. Many of the people stared at us. I don't think they had ever seen gringos before. I love to see the houses they built. The materials are so natural. It amazes me how little they need from the outside world.

While driving down the mountain through jungle the brakes started to smell like burning rubber. It was a miracle when we found a brand new service station just around the bend. The owner was a little younger than us and spoke perfect English. He had gone to college in the States. Dorian immediately jumped out and looked under the truck. The brakes were now on fire. Dorian yelled fuego fuego (fire, fire.) Most of them just stood there while Dorian jumped in the back of the camper to retrieve our fire extinguisher. While Dorian was putting the fire out a local comes running to the truck with a shovel of dirt. They said that brakes catch on fire frequently when driving down the mountain and that it wasn't a big deal. Guatemalans are hard core.

The owner was so nice. He insisted that we camp in his shop that night. He had a security guard and he said the hotel in town was bad. We talked with him most of the night.

The mechanics were uneducated and they could not figure out the problem. We were worried about El Grande Rojo as we drove in second gear to Chicastenango. It was a long an stressful drive. Meeting our new friend was a blessing and he didn't charge us a penny for anything.

The Craziest Road in Guatemala

2007-09-23T08:20:00.000-07:00

The drive from Coban to Chichicastanango is seriously dangerous. This road is marked as highway on our map but as you can see it is far from it. We battled mudslides on sheer cliffs. The boulders in the picture were coming down while we were driving. We had severe rain the night before that just destroyed this road. There was actually a huge mudslide in Coban when we were there that killed a few locals.

At the beginning of the drive we passed the construction workers that assured us the road was passable and to go ahead. We had no idea that the road would continue this way and that we would be driving through huge Guatemalan mountain ranges.

The road thinned as we climbed the mountain. We were unsure if El Grande Rojo could even stay on the road at times. The road looked just big enough for a dirt bike not our rig. I took a picture looking down and prayed that we would make it. We had no choice but to live or die here. Our truck's right wheels were half way on the trail at one time. It was so scary. Luckily we made it through the worst and after the bridge the road finally turned into smooth pavement. We stopped and jumped out of the truck. I fell to my knees. I was so thankful that we were still alive.

Down the road we picked up an old Guatemalan woman and her granddaughter hitchhiking this crazy road. She didn't understand us very well but we tried to explain to her what we had just experienced. Guatemalans are hard core. We even saw a huge truck pass us with mothers and babies hanging off the back. Many people thought we were crazy for being so scared.

Coban, Guatemala

2007-09-23T07:21:00.000-07:00

Before Coban we stopped in Chisec for the night. We didn't take any pictures and there wasn't much to report there. It was not a touristy town but they did have one overpriced dirty hotel with a nice restaurant.

Coban was very interesting and full of culture. The locals were very nice to us. I even had one really old mayan lady who stood about four feet run up to me and grab my arms. She wanted to look at me up close. The lady stood there almost hugging me with the biggest smile on her weathered face. We both come from very different places and we were both excited to have crossed each others path. It was a new experience for the both of us.

Coban is known for their coffee plantation. We could see why. They have the best coffee here that Dorian and I have ever tasted. We spent three days hanging out in the coffee shops and walking around the city.

Tical Mayan Pyramids

2007-09-20T13:47:00.000-07:00

The Tical Maya Ruins are amazing. These are the steepest pyramids of the Maya world, and many ruins are still hidden underneath tree covered hills that have formed over the centuries. These ruins inspired a deep sense of history in us, and we feel these are the most natural pyramids we visited. None of the ruins had been rebuilt like in Uxmal.

The Mayan world is so amazing and their architecural accomplishments are amazing. Tical is so different than the other pyramids, especially the use of stelas. These huge decorative stones are posed at the entrances of many ruins and are significant to this particular Mayan culture.

There are monkeys everywhere in Tical which just adds to the experience. These gigantic pyramids sit in Guatemala's most lush jungle. We were stopped the first time when we tried to enter with Ivy. We wanted to camp inside the park but the park rangers assured us that we could not enter with a pet because the wild animals, including Jaguars, would seek her out and attack her. We then went back to the nearest small town and got a hotel. We were able to leave her there and drive back to the park to explore.

This adventure was very special to us. We are officially in love with Guatemala.

The highway to Tical

2007-09-20T12:44:00.000-07:00

We thought this was a really good dirt road until it turned into a constant washboard. The small bumpy highway took it's toll as you can see. The door to the overhead storage box decided to fly off while we were driving and cartwheeled down the road. Luckily Dorian brought every tool we own. We were thankful that we could fix it and be on the road again in about fifteen minutes. Also, we were lucky that our gear in the storage box didn't splatter onto the road.

We were so surprised and no serious damage had happened. It wasn't so bad. We were even serenaded by the howler monkeys that were in the thick jungle behind the road while we fixed the door.

Belize/Guatemala Border Crossing

2007-09-20T11:44:00.000-07:00

The manual bridge at the border

The guy who checked our visas

The dirt road at the border that took us to Tical

Entering Guatemala was really exciting. I think this country was kind of a mystery to us and I was really looking forward to meeting the artisans and seeing their crafts. This border crossing is the easiest of them all. Even easier than crossing into Mexico from Arizona. haha

It took us no more than a half hour to cross. Everything we needed is in one office here. They did not care about Ivy at all.

Before crossing the manual bridge we had our papers checked by the man above. The road immediately turned into dirt from here. We stopped into town and noticed right away how nice the locals are. Everyone had joyful expressions in this rural border town.

By this time Dorian and I were freaking out. We were in Guatemala in the middle of Central America on a dirt road. We were on our way to the most significant Maya pyramids we intended to visit. We were in amazement that we had made it this far.

BELIZE

2007-09-12T13:44:00.000-07:00

Our second stop in Belize was towards the Guatemalan/Belizian Border. We stayed at a camp called Cosmo's Camping. This place is beautiful. It has a huge mango tree and tons of open space.

The family who lives here are really nice. We were able to hook up power from their cabana that they rent out. I met three children named Nathalie, Karina, and Kevin. I taught them how to make bracelets and they hung out with me all day. I now enjoy getting emails from my new Belizian friends.

I recommend camping here. We really had a great time. The owners email is cosmoscamping@ btl.net

WE LOVE BELIZE

Corozal, Belize

2007-09-12T11:47:00.000-07:00

Dorian and I thought we were well prepared when showing up at the border early. Unfortunately after turning in our car registration the truck decided not to start. Dorian worked on it for an hour with no luck. I met a mexican girl my age working in a Chinese restaurant and told her our problem. I asked her if she could help me find a mechanico in my broken spanish. She introduced us to her boyfriend who then walked us all over this border town to three different shops. It was getting later and our luck had not changed.

We finally found a mechanic to help us. The problem was a loose wire under the truck that Dorian could have fixed himself in minutes. They charged us a nice expensive gringo price and we made through the border eventually. The couple who helped us was so nice. We gave him a pair of board shorts to say thanks for parading us all over in the heat. Without them I don't think we would have fixed our problem that day.

The culture in Belize was shocking after being in Mexico for 31/2 months. The border crossing is simple and orderly. This is the most honest border we have crossed. We were able to take care of everything without a guide thanks to our Canadian friends. The dog inspection was expensive and they did make us wait around for a short while to inspect the truck but that was easy.

The locals here are so nice and friendly. Most of the people are Black but there are many other different cultures. The indigenous Indians, Spanish, Chinese, and even Amish people and the main language here is English. The land is green and swampy. There are a ton of mosquitos just like in Mexico and the country has a very low population.

There aren't many street signs in Belize so picking the road to follow can be difficult. We took the wrong road and ended up in a great town called Corozal. This town has a positive spirit and the architecture is really cool. Corozal is a beach town although we didn't swim in the foggy green water. We would have loved to travel to the islands and snorkel but having our dog Ivy made that difficult.

There aren't any waves in Belize but they do have the second largest barrier reef in the world. The currency is two to our one which is expensive for Central America

MAINLAND MEXICO

2007-09-08T16:51:00.000-07:00

That concludes our trip through Mainland Mexico.

We crossed through the Arizona/Nogales border crossing and drove our camper along the pacific coast. We visited some of the most amazing beaches. Dorian surfed everywhere. His favorite wave is Puerto Escondido. We met amazing people from all over the world and saw incredible sunsets. It was much dryer than we imagined although the beaches were more beautiful than we expected.

Once we headed inland towards the Yucatan Peninsula everything changed. The landscape quickly became lush green jungle. We actually went a different way than we planned but thankful we did. The drive was amazing.

The landscape quickly changed again as we climbed the steep mountains of Mexico. The lush jungle became brisk pine tree forests. We had to break out our jeans and sweatshirts. This was a huge surprise to us but thankfully we were prepared.

The Maya world is huge. There are over twenty five languages and ruins spread throughout Central America. We are still stunned by our experience. The Mayan culture is amazing and we admire them.

The Caribbean Coast was undoubtedly gorgeous. The white sand beaches and turquoise blue water there is just like a Corona commercial. We wish the hotels didn't block most of the beaches. The ocean is as flat as a lake. This is not a surfer's paradise.

We love Mexico. We now think this developed country is on it's way to looking like the U.S. We felt completely safe traveling through. We learned that in the high season Mexico is loaded with French and Canadian tourists. It's just a matter of time until Americans catch on.

On this trip we learned that many people in this world consume more than their share. We encourage our friends to think about how much electricity they use in one day. Many Mexicans do not even have electricity and they all seam to be living happily.

Also think about how much trash you are making or how much stuff you have. The resources in this world are limited and one day there won't be anything left to consume. We encourage everyone to think about what they would do.

We can't wait to post our Belize entries. We miss all of you and your support means alot to us.

WE LOVE MEXICO

Chetumal

2007-09-08T16:16:00.000-07:00

Chetumal was our last night in Mexico. We found a hotel here that had wireless internet. We needed to research the Mexican/Belizian border crossing so we decided to leave Ivy in the camper over night by herself for the only time on this whole trip.

The beach here does not exist although the ocean does as you can see in the picture above. The town is built up with hotels and restaurants and the architecture actually reminded me of Newport Beach. This is not a bad place to get organized before crossing into Central America.

The next day on our way to the border a cop stopped us for speeding. He initially said that we had to go to the court the following day and pay a fine. Then he quickly said that he would pay it for us for $100. We talked him down to only $20 and a pen. He then tried to take my warn out rainbow thongs right off of my feet. I of course yelled at him. He was actually laughing and quickly backed off.

This was our first and only bribe throughout Mexico.

Driving to Tulum

2007-09-08T15:42:00.000-07:00

Driving to Tulum was great. The road was really nice and we found an interesting spot half way down. This place was empty besides the few local kids swimming. Ivy could not help to go for a swim in the calm tranquil water.

Tulum was a pretty big city unfortunately I didn't get any photos of it there. The beach looked just like in Puerto Morelos but less built up and cheaper. There are many hotels and hostels here for the frequent backpacker. We stayed at a quiet homey hotel while Dorian repaired some minor stuff on the truck. It is beautiful throughout this whole area although we discovered that the entire Carribean coast is lacking in waves for Dorian.

Cancun, Puerto Morelos

2007-09-07T16:10:00.000-07:00

We call Cancun the Las Vegas of Mexico. To avoid the all the tourist and expensive hotels during August we decided to camp further south in Puerto Morelos rather than in Cancun. We were surprises to see how flat the Yucatan is. We drove across it in one day. Traveling down towards Belize we noticed that the backpacker's haven is actually Tulum which you will see in my next entry. A large beach city with cheaper accommodations. The beach there is just as beautiful as in Cancun.

The white sand beaches here are amazing. The white sand is actually made from coral and is a natural air conditioner for the beach. The ocean water is picturesque although the seaweed here is black and covers the ocean's floor. Some hotels net there beaches to prevent the seaweed from flourishing. Ivy loved swimming here and just for clarification she is not a drug sniffing dog. (See photo above)

Progresso

2007-09-07T15:35:00.000-07:00

Progesso Beach is at the very top of the Yucatan Pennisula. The ocean water is foggy green like in Sabacuay although the landscape is as dry as a dessert. This was suprising to us since we had been traveling through lush jungle for two weeks prior. The town we stayed in is popular with the locals and the coastline is packed with hotels and vacation rentals.

There is a pier here that is about six miles long. Yes, six miles. The beach has such a gradual slope that they built this pier for the cruisliners. It is the longest pier we have ever seen. Of course, we didn't get a picture of it.

Uxmal Maya Pyramids

2007-09-07T14:41:00.000-07:00

Uxmal isn't as old as Pelanque so the architecture is more modern and the pyramids contain more art. We call these pyramids the White House of the Maya world. We felt the ruins presented order and a political importance.

Dorian and I hiked down a dirt path to other ruins that were less visited. We then found ourselves underneath one of the pyramids and found hidden burial rooms. We love to go off the tourist path and find uncovered ruins.

Although these ruins are amazing this sight is very touristy. We camped in the parking lot and noticed they even offered a light show at night. There aren't any cheap accommodations here only two hundred a night hotel rooms. We were not on the backpackers track anymore but we enjoyed learning more about the mayan existence.

Sabacuay Gulf of Mexico

2007-09-07T14:16:00.000-07:00

Sabacuay is on the gulf of Mexico. This was my first time on the gulf and the first time I saw foggy green water. It was beautiful although strange to swim in. There were absolutely no waves here and Ivy loved it. Of course, Dorian felt differently.

The beach was really dirty with trash everywhere. It has so much potential if only the locals took better care of it. The shells here are abundant and beautiful and the landscape is loaded with a myriad of bright greens. There are buildings going up here so Dorian and I felt very lucky to have visited this beach before construction projects take over.

We only stayed for one night while we struggled in a huge lightening storm and very strong winds. This was the biggest storm of our whole trip and El Grande Rojo stood up to the challenge.

Pelanque Maya Pyramids

2007-09-07T12:40:00.000-07:00

Pelanque for me was definately the most significant place we explored in Mexico. We hiked all around these maya ruins for three days straight. This place is steaming hot and the stairs to most temples are challenging to hike up but in the end it was all worth it.

This is an amazing place that I think everyone should visit. The feel of these ruins are quite ancient compared to other ruins in Mexico. While walking around the common quarters of pelanque where the workers once lived, Dorian and I felt a strong sense of history.

There are many gringo's who are permanently camping at the campgrounds around Pelanque. Dorian and I can understand why. This place has beautiful jungle, wildlife, history and the artisans who live here make incredible belts, purses and jewelry. We love it here.

Agua Clara Mainland Mexico

2007-09-06T15:26:00.000-07:00

Agua Clara is one of my favorate places in Mexico. There isn't any accomodations here besides dry camping but this place is so special. As you can see the fresh water river here is light turquise and clean. It is the most beautiful river in the world in my opinion.

We were greeted by the mayan indians who lived there. I became friends with a young girl named Ana who taught me some of here native language. She spoke Celtal which is one out of about twenty five mayan languages. She helped me carry water up from the river and I taught her and her friends how to jump rope. This was a very special experience for me. By the end of our stay in Agua Clara all of the neighborhood kids found their way into our camper.

San Cristolbal de la Casas

2007-09-06T15:01:00.000-07:00

We stayed here in San Cristolbal de la Casas for a couple of nights while we did some minor repair on the camper. We were able to really see this colonial style city after getting lost in it for over an hour. We finally ended up camping at a rv park/hotel. Not a bad city although not suitable for El Grande Rojo for the streets are tiny. We found it nearly impossible to manuever our rig through these cities.

The Submarine Canyon

2007-09-06T14:35:00.000-07:00

The Submarine Canyon is between Tuxtla Guttierrez and San Cristolbal. It is a beautiful place with amazing wildlife and the landscape speaks for itself. We saw tons of crocodiles, monkeys and exotic birds here. Dorian and I call it the grand canyon of Mexico. We were fortunate to have a guided tourand even Ivy was allowed the experience. The locals thought we were crazy when we brought Ivy onto the boat.

Tuxtla Guttierrez

2007-09-06T14:04:00.000-07:00

Tuxtla Guttierrez is the nicest city we traveled to. It is not loaded with tourists and we were able to enjoy live music at night. We really liked watching the locals dance merigue and Samba as the band played at the park.

We went to the zoo here where they have local animals displayed. Yes, I said local animals. The zoo has alot of shade so it is really enjoyable to walk around. The animals there seamed to enjoy it too. The rat looking animal is called an Agounti and they are everywhere. The pig looking animal is actually not even in the pig family.

We stayed in a nice hotel. Well we camped in back of the hotel with access to their pool and bathrooms. It was a really nice place and we enjoyed it there for three nights.

Salina Cruz and Cinatepa

2007-09-06T13:39:00.000-07:00

We stayed the night in Salina Cruz but didn't get a chance to enjoy it there much. We were hit by a huge storm that was flooding the port town so Dorian and I decided to head inland through huge mountains covered in lush jungle.

We almost pulled over and camped on the side of the road because it was so beautiful but we kept driving and found a nice little hotel. After giving the owner our fifteen dollars for the night we were swarmed by winged insects. They completely covered the camper. They made it impossible to even open the camper door. We frantically left without even getting our money back. These bugs have really delicate wings and we still have pieces of wings throughout the camper and truck.

After we raced the sun to a town called Cinatepa where we stayed in one of the dirtiest hotels during our trip. This was a difficult day of traveling but the views made it all worth it.

Barra de la Cruz

2007-09-06T12:54:00.000-07:00

This is Barra. The well known surf spot in Mainland Mexico. It's about a twenty minute walk to the beach from the camp. It starts to get really jungly from here on. The surf is insane and there are tons of guys in the water. The beach is beautiful with huge rock formations. The current is strong for swimming but I still went in about every ten minutes because of the heat. The sand was hot then and Ivy and I took refuge under a falling down palapa while Dorian surfed.

There is a gate collecting a small fee to enter the beach road. We stayed at the only camp on the inside of the gate. The locals were great. I really liked the girl who ran the restaurant but she spoke as little English as I do Spanish. Our view was amazing. We camped with cows, chickens and horses here. Ivy really enjoyed chasing them while Dorian and I gazed at the lush rolling hills.

There were many gringo surfers here when we camped. It was crowded there and loud at night so we only camped for three days. We probably would have stayed longer if it wasn't so crowded. This is a beautiful place that Dorian and I may consider visiting again.

Zipolite Beach Mainland Mexico

2007-09-06T12:04:00.000-07:00

Zipolite Beach is awesome. This beach is graced by well built palapas and meditation lookouts. The waves here are great and the water is clean and clear. The current is strong so I made sure that lifeguard Dorian was present when I went for a swim.

We stayed at a small camp and met our new friend Jeff who manages the property for a local mexican family. He is a very spiritual guy who has been enlightened by getting rid of everything. He only owns a few things that he can fit into a backpack. Dorian and I thought he was really cool. We hope to cross his path again one day.

We also met two canadian families who drove down from Canada. I was able to trade with them macrame classes for some books on Central America. They also gave us some information on border crossings that we would be crossing. They were both really cool families.

The beach here is very tranquil. Dorian and I loved sitting in the hamacks for hours a day.

swimming beach in Puerto Escondido, Mainland Mexico

2007-08-06T21:25:00.000-07:00

Zicatela Beach, Puerto Escondido

2007-08-06T21:04:00.000-07:00

Zicatela Beach in Puerto Escondido is awesome. Dorian surfed the best waves of his entire life here. Unfortunately the pictures I took of the waves were on the smallest day. The waves are very heavy and huge just like pipline in Hawaii.

Dorian quickly fell in love with the hollow barrells he surfed here.I was impressed when he went out with the Pros on the biggest day there while many surfers sat on the beach in amazement. Even Ivy gave it a go.

Many specators come to visit Zicatela just to witness the massive water breaking. This wave is a site to see and surf. The beach down the way (see pictures above) is great for swimming.

The tide pools here are full of fish and beautiful shells and the turquise rolling waves glow in the sunlight.

Zicatela Beach, Puerto Escondido

2007-08-06T21:00:00.000-07:00

Pinotepa National

2007-08-06T20:08:00.000-07:00

We unfortunately stayed in the city of Pinotepa National at Pepe's hotel. They were kind enough to let Ivy stay in our room. The city wasn't very attractive and again only a one night stop. We later discovered that a beautiful national park lied ahead. We wished we had camped there instead.

Our goal was to get to Puerto Escondido (the pipeline of Mexico in surfer terms.) The coastal road was currently not near the coast and we were excited to get to some lusher greener land.

San Marcos

2007-07-27T07:08:00.000-07:00

Arriving in Acapulco was hectic. We were not expecting a city that big. It reminded me of LA and New York Mexican style. I quickly took these photos so our friends could see why to avoid visiting Acapulco. We quickly stocked up at the Gigante (the large supermarket) and then carefully maneuvered our way out of the city to San Marcos.

San Marcos was a dusty dirty little neighborhood. We were lucky to find a clean hotel in back of a local families home which consisted mostly of a yard. Ivy got tagged again when the families dog bit her, again she was lucky he did not draw any blood. She was fine although her feelings were hurt. This was a one night stop but Dorian and I did enjoy the fire flies at night.

Ixtapa

2007-07-26T13:21:00.000-07:00

Our next stop after Rio Nexpa was Ixtapa. We originally were going to stay at Playa Azul but we needed to visit an ATM machine and the one machine available five km. east in the next town of Playa Azul was out of cash. We quickly headed south to Zihuatanejo but the rapid city drove us back up to Ixtapa.

Ixtapa is the Lahaina of Mexico. It is neatly gardened to resemble Hawaii. The signs are in English and there is a Dominoes Pizza. Although the beach is blocked by huge expensive hotels it is beautiful with turquise warm water and white sand beaches.

We were able to find a modest hotel meant for families. A nice mexican butist woman managed it who we enjoyed talking to. Unfortunately I was unable to snap some shots of Ixtapa.

We haven't been staying a many nice hotels. It is very difficult to find ones that allows Ivy inside.

Rio Nexpa

2007-07-25T19:00:00.000-07:00

We are experiencing so much it is hard to keep the blog updated. I hope to keep you still connected through pictures and emails. Although we are still in Mexico we have seen what seams to be several countries.

Rio Nexpa was our next stop after La Ticla. This is a well-known surf destination and Dorian was excited to get in the water. The waves were very rolly that day. They were great for long-boarding.

This is the first destination where we agreed it was now jungly. From then on it was warm, humid at full of vegetation. I love humidity. We found some new friends there that we had previously met at Lat Ticla. There alot of waves to be found in this general area. A few of which are world class. Most go unridden every day.

Friends at La Ticla

2007-07-07T09:07:00.000-07:00

Pictures in La Ticla

2007-07-07T09:05:00.000-07:00

Our Camp at La Ticla

2007-07-07T09:02:00.000-07:00

Waves at La Ticla, Mainland Mexico

2007-07-07T08:43:00.000-07:00

Boca de Iguanas

2007-07-07T08:33:00.000-07:00

Boca de Iguanas

We drove through a few surf spots along the way to check out some waves, including a spot called Tecuan. This abandoned town has strong ocean currents. There wasn’t anyone around for miles although we did spot a women walking slowly down the creepy dusty road. We felt we could have stayed there unnoticed, but there were no waves to be found.

We continued to head south to Boca de Iguanas. This camp is expensive and the waves were small but we knew it was getting late and we needed to camp. We soon met the only other group of people camping. Dorian was not fond of these three guys as they were really drunk, so we politely tried the shrimp they offered us and then found a spot to camp further towards the southern end of the campground. Unfortunately we found out later that we were not far enough away when the drunkest of the three decided to prance around naked on the beach trying to get our attention.

Boca de Iguanas didn’t have any frills although it did have gorgeous palm trees of all sizes. Dorian was able to fix the ungrounded electricity the campground provided. Although the facilities weren’t that nice, the different levels of foliage gave us a lot of privacy and was amazing to be around.

Later that night Dorian cracked us open a coconut and a bottle of wine. We didn’t want to set up camp completely so we hung out until dark and rested our traveling bones.
As we woke I started experiencing excruciating abdominal pain. Dorian said “ah, you just have mexibelly” and I was not worried. We packed up and headed towards highway 200 again. We were both sick of one nighters so we continued our journey south in search of waves and a place to stay for a couple of weeks.

Punta Perula

2007-07-07T08:11:00.000-07:00

Punta Perula

Luckily when we arrived in Punta Perula we found a campground we both liked, although Dorian was unlucky in finding waves there. We were the only campers there, and the hotel/campground offered a pool to cool off in. I met some local kids and passed out surf stickers. They came back with more kids and I made some new friends.

The beach was private and beautiful, although the ocean water had a brownish tint. We walked down the beach where we found our dream house/hut. Dorian said with confidence “I can learn to build you that Ang.” We dreamt together and walked back to camp. Punta Perula is a quiet town, just how we like it.

The next day we decided to check our phones. They did not work previously but we thought we would give it a try. I tried calling my mom and to my surprise the phone started ringing. “Hello, Hello”, I shouted through the phone. After the second Hello I could hear my mom’s voice. I shouted we are doing great and we talked and talked. I was so excited to be able to make a few calls. Our friends’ and family’s voices were good to hear that morning since we had not talked to anyone since entering Mexico.

Before leaving I was able to get a picture of some of the local kids we had met. I also showed them pictures of the U.S. and northern Mexico which they really enjoyed. The local kids were very kind. As we left the campground our new amigos quickly ran up to the gate to open it, and wished us well on our way out. We enjoyed talking with them even though I had trouble understanding them, as usual. We got back onto highway 200 and start heading south. We weren’t sure where we were going to stop next.

2007-07-03T11:22:00.000-07:00

Puerto Vallarta

Today was our most unpleasant day so far. Dorian was frustrated from his injured foot and I was not in the best of moods either. We were having trouble agreeing on a town to stay in for a night. So we kept driving south in hope of finding a spot we liked. Once arriving in Puerto Vallarta I was interested in watching the people walking around. “Civilization” I said to Dorian (we had previously been almost alone for close to a week). We were then greeted by our first rain. It was a refreshing gift. We were hot of course from the drive and I immediately took in the cool humidity.

After the pleasant rain turned into a downpour we got lost, grumpy, frustrated, and tired. We had not found a place to stay for under $100 that allowed pets. Of course, we thought of the no tell motel (there were two in this town), but we were unable to pull our rig under their low entrances. We discovered while driving in circles that Puerto Vallarta is an illusion. The main strip is kind of clean, has big fancy hotels and a mall. Don’t be fooled though. On the outskirts of highway 200 it’s smelly and dirty like most cities.

We found ourselves turning onto a cobblestone road that led us to condos and clubs. We found a hotel near a marina for about $100 a night and we decided to sneak Ivy in though the entrance. It was really funny. When I pulled Ivy close to me while passing the concierge counter she barked. I started coughing like that bark just came from me. I was shocked when I was not stopped. Dorian and I were laughing in the halls while walking to our room.
That night we slept in a huge bed that seamed unfamiliar to us already since the camper is limited in space. We hade become attached to our home on wheels. We quickly left in the morning after practicing our Spanish with our waiter while eating breakfast at the hotel. It was nice not having to break down camp this morning.

Ivy came waltzing down the stairs while we were all leaving. Everyone stopped in their tracks but they didn’t seam to want to argue about it. Unfortunately one more incident happened before we were able to continue our journey. We noticed how crowded the parking lot had gotten over night while getting into the truck. The camper was now boxed in. While Dorian tried his best to maneuver the truck he accidentally hit the bushes that bordered the parking lot. The parking attendant came out. He tried to help us but with little success. It didn’t seamed to bother him that the bushes in back of us were now standing diagonally.

After a while the guy who blocked Dorian in came out and moved his car. We shouted out the window “lo siento, gracias” and smiled while we drove away. We felt bad about the bushes but we decided to just keep moving forward. There wasn’t any damage to the truck thankfully.
We stocked up on supplies at the Gigante down the road. Today was turning out to be a good day and we again continued south down highway 200.

Santa Cruz

2007-07-03T10:20:00.000-07:00

Santa Cruz

Rising early with the sun, we set our destination to San Blas.in hope for finding some of the world class waves that are rumored to exist there. After arriving in San Blas we found the RV park I researched and we decided to move along. San Blas is known for its abundant mosquitoes, and the park had millions along with those thorns that like to attack Ivy’s fluffy coat. There were also numerous Mexican dogs roaming freely. We headed south to Santa Cruz.
Reaching Santa Cruz we drove up tiny alleys made of cobblestone in search of another RV Park. We soon found one. Pulling into the park giant trees, Hawaiian flowers and meadows of grass surrounded us. We had arrived. This place was beautiful, and the giant squirrels jumping from limb to limb agreed. We met a nice couple with a trailer who were camped next to us and proceeded to get comfortable. We stayed here for four nights.

The park had four pools and we again after the first night had the hotel/RV park to ourselves. Unfortunately Dorian while surfing out front stepped on a sea urchin and it broke off in his foot. He looked to me for help digging out the urchin spine as it was in a part of his foot that was hard to reach. I couldn’t do it. He finally got it out by digging it out himself with tweezers and a healthy beer buzz. He’s the man. In his eyes I think the worst part was not being able to surf for the following four days.

We treated ourselves to fresh margaritas at the restaurant and met the guy maintaining the property. He worked extremely hard and seamed very used to talking slow so the tourists could understand him. Although we had the place to ourselves we were told that it gets packed during our winter.

Dorian quickly grew frustrated from not surfing so after relaxing at this paradise we continued our journey. We were excited to have rested up and to start another adventure.

Back to Mazatlan

2007-07-02T18:36:00.000-07:00

Back to Mazatlan

Our first day going through the border at Nogales was easy like I said before. What we failed to tell you is that when asked our destination from the guy giving out visas, we replied “we are going to Guatemala.” He then said “trasito” and only permitted us with a one month visa through Mexico.

We were not happy with this but instead of arguing with him we decided to figure this out later which brings us to the reason why we went back to Mazatlan for a night. There are immigration offices there that could extend our visas and car registration. The offices we needed to visit were hidden in the compact, dirty streets of the cities sea port. Many dogs roamed freely injured and hungry. I wanted to save one and bring it with us.

Once we found the offices it was quick, and easy. The lady who assisted us in extending our visa just turned the three in 30 days into a 8 and added a 1 in front to make 180 days. Awesome, I love Mexico. It was quick easy and free and we now have visas for six months.
It was getting late so decided to stay at San Diego RV park where we stayed before. It was a quick stay. I was thankful the camp was there as it offered safe refuge from the city.

Waves at Celestino, Sinaloa

2007-06-28T18:13:00.000-07:00