Let's go!
Towards the end of my PhD, my friend Michelle and I decided to travel to Central America, as I had another friend working and living in Guatemala and I wanted to go visit her. We decided to make a Proper Journey out of it all, travelling through Guatemala up to Mexico, and then flying over to Cuba from Cancun:
As we were on a tight budget, we decided to not to book anywhere in advance, and just travelled as the mood took us, staying in hostels along the way (I distinctly recall that not one of these had hot water, and I only had one proper shower the entire duration of our trip). We were also determined to stay away from the more expensive tourist buses, and take the cheapest transportation possible. As it turned out, this mainly involved chasing after crazily-decorated buses with our big massive rucksacks and sleeping bags (and some very heavy traditional handwoven bedspreads that we had picked up in the market), chucking them up to extremely brave men riding on the roofs of the buses who stowed them away with the other luggage on top, and then hopping on to share our seats and food with all manner of on-board species (they're not called chicken buses for nothing). This wanton disregard for any sort of comfort while travelling makes me feel so old now...
Travelling in Guatemala
We started off in Guatemala City before heading to Lake Atitlan. This was so incredibly beautiful, and we spent several days travelling around all the lakeside villages and 'hiking' (kind of, if you can call scrabbling around the side of a mountain in flip-flops hiking) before heading off to the market town of Chichicastenanga, further north - it was here that I had my Proper Shower, complete with hot water. I think I probably cried a little...
We then travelled to Antigua and managed to climb to the top of the active volcano Pacaya, which was belching out yellow clouds of sulphurous smoke. This was not pleasant, but we just about survived (I had red eyes for about two days afterwards. Breathing sulphur cannot be good for you). As we had to catch a flight to Havana from Cancun in Mexico in a couple of weeks' time, we travelled north to Flores. Flores was so small that we got to know all the locals, especially the woman who ran the launderette, as she sat outside her establishment during the day. We said 'buenos dias' when we passed by in the morning; 'buenos tardes' when we passed in the late afternoon or evening; and 'buenos noches' when we were going to bed. It was lovely!
Mexico!
In order to reach Mexico, we had to get a bus from Flores all the way up to Tulum, through Belize. This was the first time I had ever seen the Caribbean and it completely took my breath away - I had never seen white sand before! The beaches were stunning (I'm more accustomed to the rugged Atlantic coast of Ireland where, instead of sand, we have rocks - and we're glad for them), and the colours were so vibrant and dazzling.
After spending the best part of 24 hours on a bus, we arrived in the middle of the night in Tulum and there was a mad dash to the nearest hostel to get rooms. We ran the fastest (elbows out) and got two beds - yay!!! We had made friends along the way, and we spent our time in Tulum relaxing and chatting and visiting the Mayan ruins that it's famous for. So lovely after being on the road for so long...
After spending the best part of 24 hours on a bus, we arrived in the middle of the night in Tulum and there was a mad dash to the nearest hostel to get rooms. We ran the fastest (elbows out) and got two beds - yay!!! We had made friends along the way, and we spent our time in Tulum relaxing and chatting and visiting the Mayan ruins that it's famous for. So lovely after being on the road for so long...
Finally, Cuba...
The ultimate leg of the journey (after bussing it to Cancun) was a flight to Havana, where we stayed for a week. We also travelled further inland to Trinidad, which was really beautiful. I had ALWAYS wanted to travel to Cuba, and really didn't know what to expect. It's such a fascinating country, and I found that all the stuff you read in guidebooks is true: the old cars, the cigars, the salsa, and so on. However, it also felt a bit sad to me. It's certainly incredibly photogenic and INTERESTING, but to be honest, I think it's impossible for an outsider to give any kind of meaningful insight into the psyche of such a complex nation...