Thoughts & Stops Travel Diary

South-America

  • Getting to the Airport

    We started out in a snowstorm trying to get safely to the Seattle airport at 3am. It was a harrowing ride, with cars spinning out and overturned in ditches all around us. We couldn’t believe how much traffic was on the road (or sliding off the road) in the middle of the night. As passengers…

  • Day 1 of Our Journey

    DAY 1 (2/4/19) Had a 6am flight out of Seattle and this trip is an adventure from the start.  Huge snow storm predicted for the NW and after struggling to get the car out of the icy driveway we got all our stuff loaded and Mom and Chris and Sadie bravely took us to the…

  • Day 2- Belize City, Belize

    We left DFW and arrived in Belize around 2pm where we met cousin Taylor who flew from Portland that morning.  The second we lifted all our backpacks and got them loaded on our backs (and fronts) we knew we brought way too much stuff.  We immediately started thinking of what we could get rid of…

  • Day 3- Caye Caulker, Belize

    After a warm night in a small room we felt ready and excited to explore the next thing.  As we read about, Belize City wasn’t really a place we felt we needed more time in.  We decided to head north to the island of Caye Caulker. We loaded our packs and made it to the…

  • Day 4 – Caye Caulker, Belize

    2/7/2019 So the night in the tent was a bit rough.  We kept the rain fly on the tent as we didn’t want the cats peeing on the inner part where we could smell it all night.  This meant there was no air movement and it was HOT and MUGGY.  We also had to keep…

  • Day 5- San Pedro, Belize

    Feb 8, 2019 After a slightly better nights sleep in the tent we packed up camp and headed to the water taxi for San Pedro. We first stopped for a traditional Belizian “fry jack” which is a delicious fried dough pocket with whatever filling you want in it (I chose beans, cheese and eggs, and…

  • Day 6 – San Pedro, Belize

    Feb 9, 2019 (Happy Birthday Dad!) San Pedro was busy (with tons of golf carts).  We also decided to blend in and rent a golf cart for the day so we could go north on the island to the not so secret “Secret Beach”.  It was a really fun 45 minute golf cart ride out…

  • Day 7 – Hopkins, Belize

    February 10, 2019 We decided to head back to the mainland and start to head south towards Placencia.  Before catching the water taxi back to Belize City we took the golf cart out for one last spin.  On our way back we got caught in a monsoon type rainstorm and got pretty soaked.  It was…

  • Days 8 & 9 – Hopkins, Belize

    Feb 11-12th, 2019 We liked the town of Hopkins and the Funky Dodo so much we ended up staying two more nights.  The town had such a nice energy and was very relaxed.  All the locals were very welcoming and friendly.  We spent most of the days hanging out on the beach and taking walks. …

  • Day 10 – Placencia, Belize

    Feb 13, 2019 We woke up and checked out of the Funky Dodo.  We hit up our favorite Hopkins food cart which was tacos (3 for .50 cents).  Our first day we started off with ordering 3 but ended up going right back for 3 more.  They were not big but fresh homemade tortillas made…

  • Day 11 – Maya Beach, Belize

    Feb 14, 2019 We got an invitation from some people we met on the plane to Belize City who are builders and own an Inn on Maya Beach.  They did not have any rooms available but offered to let us set up camp on their property. We packed up camp in Placencia and took the…

  • Day 12 – Maya Beach, Belize

    Feb 15, 2019 We decided to stay a second night camping at Steve and Michelle’s Rocky Point Inn.  Taylor had a conference call for school she needed to do at 1pm so we just relaxed until then and caught up on laundry etc.  We went to a local beach bar with a pool after her…

  • Day 13 – San Ignacio, Belize

    February 16, 2019 We packed up camp and left on a very early 6:30am bus from Rocky Point Inn.  As the bus stops all along the way for anyone who flags it down it quickly became crowded.  Brendan generously gave up his seat again and was standing in the aisle for the majority of the…

  • Day 14 – San Ignacio, Belize

    February 17, 2019 We woke up early and booked a tour to the Actun Tunichil Muknal (ATM) caves.  National Geographic voted it the most sacred cave in the world.  This was a place the Mayans would come to make sacrifices to the rain god.  They started with food sacrifices and there were many pottery artifacts…

  • Day 15 – San Ignacio, Belize

    February 18, 2019 At the hostel we met another Brendan from Portland, Oregon!  He and another traveler (Natalie from Germany) were renting a car to go out to another Mayan ruin site, Caracol.  We also wanted to go to Caracol but the price of tours was too expensive for our budget.  They offered for us…

  • Day 16 – San Ignacio, Belize

    February 19, 2018 After two adventure filled days we decided to spend one more night in San Ignacio so we could recoup and catch up on things like laundry and school for Brendan and Taylor.  There was a raptor center which we thought was not too far away that had a free bird show, so…

  • Our Travel Tips for Belize

    We found Belize to be a laid back, Caribbean feel type country.  A couple things we didn’t know that might be helpful if your planning a trip: As of now you don’t need to exchange currency.  The exchange rate is about 2:1 (2 Belize dollars for 1 US).  They gladly take US dollars and give…

  • Day 17 – Flores, Guatemala

    Feb, 20th 2019 Today we left Belize and crossed the boarder to Guatemala.  This was the first time we had ever walked across a boarder.  We took a cab from San Ignacio to the boarder (about a 15 min ride) where we paid a $20 USD exit fee per person to leave Belize.  At the…

  • Day 18 – Flores, GT

    Feb 21, 2019 After only a couple hours of not very good sleep we got up at 2:30am and were outside by 3am to catch the shuttle to Tikal.  It was about a 1.5 hour long ride to the site.  We hiked in the dark to reach the tallest pyramid there (and the 2nd largest Mayan…

  • Day 19 – Flores, GT

    Feb 22, 2019 After another hot and muggy night in the 9 person dorm room we decided to book a private room in Flores for another couple nights.  We decided we would ‘treat ourselves’ and spend a little extra to get a hotel with a pool.  We packed our things and crammed into a tuk…

  • Day 20 – Flores, GT

    Feb 23 2019 We knew our next stop was going to be the town of Lanquin where you can reach the pools of Semuc Champey.  We stopped at a travel center in Flores and found that we could take an 8 hour long shuttle ride to Lanquin the next morning for about $14 usd per…

  • Day 21 – Lanquin, GT

    Feb 24 2019 Today we head to Lanquin to get to the pools of Guatemala’s favorite Semuc Champey.  It was a 6 hour long shuttle ride for only 110 Q (about $14.25 USD each).  Driving through the countryside was beautiful.  However, the shuttle was jammed packed and we even had a person sitting on the…

  • Day 22 – Lanquin, GT

    Feb 25, 2019 Excited for a rest day in a beautiful place today we just hung out.  Our friend Josh that we have been traveling with from San Ignacio, Belize was in a hostel across the way from us.  After a leisurely morning the three of us with Kyra went over to his hostel to…

  • Day 23 – Semuc Champey, GT

    Feb 26, 2019 We woke up early and started our tour with Josh and Kyra to Semuc Champey.  Just getting there felt like an adventure as they put us all in the back of a truck where we stood holding onto bars and went on an extremely bumpy 45 minute ride into the jungle.  It…

  • Day 24 – Antigua, GT

    Feb 27, 2019 Today we took a LONG 9-hour shuttle ride from Lanquin to Antigua with Josh and Kyra.  We also were going to reconnect with 2nd Brendan from Portland and are all staying in the same hostel.  Once we finally got there, we set our things down and walked around the streets of Antigua. …

  • Day 25 – Antigua, GT

    Feb 28, 2019 So for the last week or so we have heard everyone talk about climbing the volcano Acatenango. It is the best thing to do in Guatemala and even while other travelers are here.  You go up in one day and camp at base camp where you can watch Fuego erupt with an…

  • Day 26 – Acatenango, GT

    March 1, 2019 We got up early with our backpacks loaded with water, food, and warm clothes for our overnight adventure up Acatenango.  We were all pretty nervous knowing that it was probably going to be the most physically demanding thing we have ever done.  Without any preparation, we went from office jobs to vacation…

  • Day 27 – Acatenango, GT

    March 2, 2019 Our day started at 3:30am as we had to get up and hike in the dark the last stretch in order to make the summit of Acatenango for sunrise.  It was about another 300 meters in elevation from our base camp.  We had hiked about 1200 meters in elevation the day before…

  • Day 28 – Antigua, GT

    March 3, 2019 Being very exhausted from the big climb, we took this day to chill.  I booked our shuttle for the next day to go to Xela and we just took it easy.  We explored Antigua a little bit more by foot and enjoyed our last night with Josh and Kyra as we will…

  • Day 29 – Travel to Xela, GT

    March 4th, 2019 We got up to catch an 8:30am shuttle from Antigua to Xela (Quetzaltenango).  We signed up to do one week of Spanish class in Xela.  We will stay with a local family for our lodging and meals.  We are starting our class tomorrow and are supposed to arrive at our homestay early…

  • Day 30 – 34, Xela, GT

    Marth 5th-9th, 2019 We spent the next 5 days doing our Spanish class and staying with Bilma and Jorge.  We each had our own private instructor and would walk to school (10 min) every morning after breakfast.  We would be done by 1pm where we would go back to the house for lunch and then…

  • Day 35 – San Pedro, Lake Atitlan, GT

    March 10th, 2019 We had our last breakfast with Bilma and Jorge, and said our thank you’s and goodbyes.  We arranged for another shuttle to pick us up and take us to San Pedro on lake Atitlan where we are going to spend our last few days in Guatemala.  Our next stop is Panama where…

  • Day 36 – San Pedro, Lake Atitlan, GT

    March 11th, 2019 Today was a rest and chill day for us.  It was very exciting that this hostel had a hot shower.  We have had few hot showers on this trip so far.  I spent most of my afternoon around the pool. B got caught up on some homework and we just hung out. …

  • Day 37 – San Pedro, Lake Atitlan, GT

    March 12th, 2019 Today is our last full day in Guatemala.  We leave tomorrow to fly to San Jose, Costa Rica and then take a shuttle down to Bocas del Toro, Panama where we are meeting my friends from Tacoma, WA.  I started my day at 3:30am when I got up to go do a…

  • Day 38-39, Guatemala to Panama

    March 13-14th, 2019 Today we start our journey to Panama where we are meeting my friends from WA for the week.  We got up early to catch an 8am shuttle from San Pedro, GT to Guatemala City where we fly out of.  Being nervous of any road delays, we gave ourselves ample time to get…

  • Day 40 – Bocas del Toro, Panama

    March 15, 2019 Today was our first full day in the beautiful Bocas del Toro, Panama.  We walked around the little town and explored.  We found a nice beach (or so we thought) and hung out for a while.  What we didn’t realize at the time was while at that beach, we were literally almost…

  • Day 41 – Bocas del Toro, Panama

    March 16, 2019 Today we packed our stuff from hostel Mamallenas, and I went to greet my friends Mike and Kellee at the little airport in Bocas.  It was super exciting to have friends come and visit us on our journey. They got to town and we explored a little and got some groceries and…

  • Day 42 – Bocas del Toro, Panama

    March 17, 2019 Today we woke up and spent the morning hanging out and watching all the fish swim around the house.  A free water taxi is offered to go to town every day at 11am and return at 2pm.  We took the taxi into town and explored some more and got some pizza to…

  • Day 43 – Bocas del Toro, Panama

    March 18, 2019 Today was my birthday and I couldn’t imagine a better way to spend it.  I watched a beautiful sunrise over the water, and Mike and Kellee were very sweet and made some birthday brownies.  We took the 11am water taxi into town and headed to the dive shop.  Taylor opted out of…

  • Day 44 – Bocas del Toro, Panama

    March 19, 2019 Today we went out for our second day of diving to finish our PADI open water dive certificates.  We did two more dives, the last one being another shipwreck.  This was our deepest dive going down to 60 meters where we could swim underneath the ship.  It was super awesome.  We were…

  • Day 45 – Bocas del Toro, Panama

    March 20, 2019 Day 45 (3/20/19) Another day waking up in paradise.  The mosquitos were the only thing that reminded us that sometimes paradise comes at a price.  Each night we had battles with massive amounts of mosquitos.  There was no way to keep them out of the house even with bug nets, or our…

  • Day 46 – Bocas del Toro, Panama

    March 21, 2019 Today we decided to have a rest day and take it easy.  We headed to town on the 11am water taxi and stopped by the dive shop where Tony generously let us borrow his truck.  We took the truck to ‘Skullys’ a cool hostel on the beach that had a pool.  We…

  • Day 47 – Bocas del Toro, Panama

    March 22, 2019 Our last full day in Panama together with Mike and Kellee.  Tony and Lana offered to take us out on their boat for the afternoon which was really awesome.  We went to a floating island bar that had great drinks and tacos. In the middle of pristine waters, we all hung out…

  • Day 48 – Panama to Costa Rica

    March 23, 2019 Brendan’s birthday!  Unfortunately, it wasn’t as jammed packed with fun activities as mine because this fell on a travel day for us.  We had to leave Panama and make our way back to Costa Rica.  We packed up from the beautiful over-the-water house and made our way to the water taxi where…

  • Day 49 – San Jose, Costa Rica

    March 24, 2019 For our birthdays, my Mom and Chris treated us to 3 nights in a beautiful hotel in San Jose.  We rented a car for the week and headed to the hotel.  Even though the house-over-the water in Panama was incredible and clean, sleeping in a room with no bugs, cold AC, and…

  • Day 50 – San Jose, Costa Rica

    March 25, 2019 Today we got up and enjoyed the most amazing buffet breakfast that our room came with.  I think we each made two trips and ate until we couldn’t anymore.  Feeling great after a good night’s sleep and big breakfast, we set out to explore the area in our rental car. We cruised…

  • Day 51 – Jaco Beach, Costa Rica

    March 26, 2019 After another great breakfast, we got ready for a day trip to Jaco beach.  The beach was about 2 hours away and we got to see some more of Costa Rica from the car.  Jaco beach was a cute little town with many shops and restaurants.  We walked around the town a…

  • Day 52 – Costa Rica

    March 27, 2019 After eating our last breakfast at the hotel and spending ample time saying goodbye to our “bed” while taking several pictures of us in the bed, we checked out and started on our next journey.  At the hostel where we stayed at the first night in San Jose, we saw an advertisement…

  • Day 53 – Rio Celeste, Costa Rica

    March 28, 2019 Since we arrived at “Posada Rio Celeste” after dark the night before, we got up excited to see our surroundings.  This hotel/campsite was very cute with gardens, a restaurant, hammocks, dogs, and even 2 pretty birds that would mimic you.  Brendan and I went for a jog and saw a bit more…

  • Day 54-55 – Costa Rica to Patagonia

    March 29-30th, 2019 This morning it was raining, and we had to pack up a wet camp.  We shook the tent and everything else out as much as we could before loading everything up and making the drive back to San Jose.  We spent the morning on the road until we got back to the…

  • Day 56 – Punta Arenas, Chile

    March 31, 2019 We decided to stay in Punta Arenas today before leaving by bus to Puerto Natales.  We took this day to go to the store and get groceries for whatever hiking we do once we get into the National park of Torres del Paine.  We also did some shopping for some last-minute items. …

  • Day 57 – Puerto Natales, Chile

    April 1, 2019 Today we took a bus from Punta Arenas to Puerto Natales which is the closest town to enter the National Park of Torres del Paine.  We found a really cute hostel called the Corner House that we checked into on arrival.  This town is totally a backpacker hub for those entering the…

  • Day 58 & 59 – Puerto Natales, Chile

    April 2-3, 2019 Rain filled all the days we were in Puerto Natales.  We were hoping and praying that it would stop once we began our hike.   We couldn’t imagine coming so far and not being able to see all the beauty and mountains around us.  We had an easy couple of days in this…

  • Day 60 – Torres del Paine, Patagonia

    April 4th, 2019 We got up very early to catch a 7am bus into the park of Torres del Paine to start our trek.  Once the sun rose we started catching out first glimpses of Patagonia!  The beautiful mountains, the blue lakes, lamas, emus, and flamingos!  The clouds were clearing for the first time since…

  • Day 61 – Torres del Paine, Patagonia (Chile)

    April 5, 2019 After an exhausting first day of our trek and not sleeping that great in the tent this morning when the sun came up, I decided to keep resting.  I didn’t think we needed to get up extremely early or anything.  No one else was getting up, I kept resting and felt it…

  • Day 62 – Torres del Paine, Patagonia (Chile)

    April 6th, 2019 After the roughest night we ever experienced, we got up and made the journey to the bathroom where we could use our cook stove to make breakfast.  We had another grilled cheese and were beyond happy to see that the rain had finally stopped.  Taylor’s morning started out bad as she slipped…

  • Day 63 – Torres del Paine, Patagonia (Chile)

    April 7th, 2019 Today was the day we had to hike the furthest with our bags.  Fortunately, they were a little lighter than when we started since we had been eating the food along the way, and they still felt heavy.  We woke up to another fantastic day of sun and NO wind.  This was…

  • Day 64 – Torres del Paine, Patagonia (Chile)

    April 8th, 2019 We woke up at 2:30 am for our last hike up to the base of the towers for sunrise.  We would go there and back and then take a bus out of the park to go back to Puerto Natales tonight.  The hike was estimated at 4 hours there, and 4 hours…

  • Day 65 – El Calafate, Patagonia (Argentina)

    April 9th, 2019 Today we had to get up extremely early.  We had arranged to take a 7am bus to El Calafate which is in the Argentinian side of Patagonia.  We crossed the Chilean border and went to Argentina on the six-hour long bus ride from Puerto Natales.  We were really excited because Taylor found…

  • Day 66 – El Calafate, Patagonia (Argentina)

    April 10th, 2019 Happy Birthday to Mom!  We celebrated it real big for you by doing a glacier ice adventure.  Taylor left early for her kayaking tour and Brendan and I left a little later on a bus that took us into the National Park.  Once we got there we were able to explore for…

  • Day 67- El Chalten, Patagonia (Argentina)

    April 11th, 2019 Today our plan was to rent a car and start making our way north to Buenos Aires.  We were going to take a few days for a road trip to do this and stop in El Chalten to see the famous Fitz Roy.  However, our plans went awry when there were no…

  • Day 68 – 70 – El Calafate to Buenos Aires, Argentina

    April 12-14, 2019 Happy Birthday to Nanny!  Today we got up early to drive back to El Calfate, return the rental car and make it to the bus station for a 10:30am bus.  We stopped at the store and picked up some food and snacks for our very long bus ride to Buenos Aires (it…

  • Day 71 – Buenos Aires, Argentina

    April 15th, 2019 Today we got up and the three of us did a 10:30am walking tour.  The tour took us through the nice aristocratic neighborhoods of BA and included a visit to Recoleta Cemetery.  After our tour we went back and changed hostels.  We rested for a bit in our new hostel and then…

  • Day 72 – Buenos Aires, Argentina

    April 16th, 2019 Brendan had school work to catch up and he stayed at the hostel to be on the computer today.  Taylor and I went out to go to the Palermo neighborhood where we heard there were cute boutique shops.  We took the subway to get there and walked around for a while.  Taylor…

  • Day 73 – Buenos Aires, Argentina

    April 17th, 2019 Today Brendan had to work on more school studies for the first part of the day and Taylor was still on a shopping mission.  I walked around with Taylor awhile before heading to the neighborhood of San Telmo.  I went to the San Telmo market and wandered around that part of town. …

  • Day 74 – Buenos Aires, Argentina

    April 18th, 2019 Today we parted ways with Taylor as she was going to Peru and Brendan and I were going to spend five days in Santiago, Chile.  In the morning we said goodbye.  Taylor had one more night in Buenos Aires and Brendan and I were flying out that night to Santiago.  She headed…

  • Day 75 – Santiago, Chile

    April 19th, 2019 Today we woke up after napping in the Santiago airport and started our day taking the local bus from the airport to city center. Once there, we got on the subway until we reached Santa Lucia (an area of downtown Santiago).  We were there very early in the morning, so I knew…

  • Day 76 – Santiago, Chile

    April 20, 2019 Today, we had another free walking tour that took us through Santiago’s markets and ended in the cemetery.  We have seen quite a few cemeteries in Latin America at this point, and this was definitely the largest one.  You could fit 117 soccer stadiums in this cemetery and over two million people…

  • Day 77 – Santiago, Chile

    April 21st, 2019 Happy Easter!  We celebrated it by sleeping in!  We had a leisurely morning and took our time getting ready for the day.  We switched to a different apartment down the road today because the WiFi wasn’t very good at the one we were in.  We got to our new apartment and it…

  • Day 78 – Santiago, Chile

    April 22nd, 2019 Today, Brendan was working on school, so I explored on my own.  At first it was difficult for me not to have a phone (Brendan’s phone only works on WiFi so it doesn’t do much good when you are out exploring).  However, I started to get used to not having my phone…

  • Day 79 – Lima, Peru

    April 23, 2019 After a 2am wakeup we flew from Santiago to Lima, Peru landing around 7am.  The public transportation system in Lima is not nearly as good as in the other cities we had visited.  We were told a taxi was our only, and safest option to get to our downtown hostel.  Taking a…

  • Day 80 – Lima, Peru

    April 24th, 2019 There is so much to do and see in Peru, it is hard to decide what you can fit in.  I was torn today whether we should do a 4am wake-up, and go on a day trip to the desert, or go to another really nice area of Lima to be on…

  • Day 81 – Lima to Cusco, Peru

    April 25th, 2019 Today we got to sleep in and had an easy day before our afternoon flight to Cusco.  Brendan worked on school and wasn’t feeling all that well.  Yesterday afternoon he started to have some stomach issues and had a rough night.  He rested as much as he could and took advantage of…

  • Day 82 – Cusco, Peru

    April 26th, 2019 Today, we had to rest and explore Cusco and set up our tours to decide what we wanted to do with our next 10 days here.  As I mentioned before, there is SO much in Peru to do, you really have to pick and choose if you have limited time. Last night…

  • Day 83 – Cusco, Peru

    April 27th, 2019 This day we also had to rest with no activities planned.  This was really good because I still felt awful.  This is the first big city where I haven’t taken one of the free (tip-based) walking tours.  I was hoping to today, but just didn’t feel up to it.  We walked around…

  • Day 84 – Cusco, Peru and Sacred Valley

    April 28th, 2019 Today we had to get up at 5:30am for our Sacred Valley tour.  I slept horribly (like you sleep when you have a cold) and told Brendan that I barely felt good enough to even go on the tour.  I would of course been massively disappointed if I missed it, so I…

  • Day 85 – Cusco, Peru and Rainbow Mountain

    April 29th, 2019 Today we had a day trip to “Rainbow Mountain”.  We had to be walking out the door of our hotel at 4:15am.  I had a rough night’s sleep with my cold symptoms, but overall woke up feeling the best I had in four days.  Thank goodness!  We walked to our meeting spot…

  • Day 86 – Cusco, Peru

    April 30th, 2019 Today was our last full day in Cusco before we began our 5-day trek to Machu Picchu.  After a couple full days of activities, and still recovering from being sick we took this day to rest.  I felt pretty good on Rainbow Mountain yesterday but know I was still a little drained…

  • Day 87 – Salkantay Trail, Peru

    May 1, 2019 Today we got up at 3:30 am to get ready for our shuttle bus pick up.  We were told by the company that they would store our big bags while we were on the trek and could pick them up when we get back to Cusco late Sunday night.  We were quite…

  • Day 88 – Salkantay Trail, Peru

    May 2nd, 2019 It was this day that caused the most anxiety.  We would hike up and over Salkantay Pass which sits about 15,000 feet.  It was also our longest day as it was 24 kilometers and with our breaks took about 12 hours before we reached the next camp.  LUCKILY, it wasn’t as bad…

  • Day 89 – Salkantay Trail, Peru

    May 3rd, 2019 On this trek we have someone who wakes us up and hands us a cup of hot tea where we are sleeping.  It feels quite luxurious.  We had another early start, but this day of hiking was WAY easier and shorter than the previous two days.  We were no longer in the…

  • Day 90 – Salkantay Trail, Peru

    May 4th, 2019 Today we got to sleep in until 7am, and after breakfast were taken by shuttle to a ziplining place.  Brendan and I have done this a few times before in different places, but I have to say I am super happy we opted for this activity in this location as this was…

  • Day 91 – Machu Picchu, Peru

    May 5th, 2019 Today is Machu Picchu!  We had the option to take a bus to the top or do the final hike and walk the 1800 stairs to reach the entrance.  Although the bus option sounded really nice, our whole group felt after we hiked the whole trek to get there, we couldn’t not…

  • Day 92 – 95, Traveling Home

    May 6th – 9th, 2019 Brendan and I spent the next few days traveling back home.  He flew to Eugene, OR and I flew to Seattle, WA.  Brendan had to get to Eugene as soon as possible as our party bus was rented and he needed to get it ready.  At the last moment before…

  • Reflections on Central & South America

    As the first part of our journey ended and we returned home, Brendan and I had time to reflect on our travels through Central and South America.  In our experience the places we visited in Central America were more primitive than where we were in South America.  For example, it was most likely that you…