Thoughts on Mexico, from the bloke's perspective...

So far we've been here at James & Karla's in Cuernavaca a good coupla weeks. Early on we went down to the coast for a day at Acapulco and another coupla days camping right on the sand at Playa Ventura further south. We had the tents up under el-basico lashed-together poles and cocount palm frond shady things.

Mexicans really seem to love their speedhumps. Not that there's any quality control around to speak of – the height/ depth/ shape / inconvenience & riskiness are even more varied etc than the boobs on those tacky T-shirts you get at the beach...

And toilet seats too are oddly uncommon for some reason - things that make you go hmmm...

I've gotta say I rather like the architecture here. Not that we've seen any of the properly old stuff yet. What I mean to say I like are the dodgy ubiquitous built-by-the-masses reinforced concrete homes that spring up organically from day to day in places like here, Jamaica, China and Vietnam. Folk here tend to leave a few feet of rusty re-bar jutting out of the ends of cast concrete uprights ready for the next level to be whacked up as needed. That said I was reading in a magazine - Time maybe - last week that said eathquakes round the ring of fire occur on average once every 250 years – and I'd certainly rather not be anywhere near some of the less robust structures, especially those perched precariously on the slopes of the canyons hereabouts.

Next up we're off to Mexico City in  few days for a week or so of museums, ruins, bike-parts shopping and stuff.

THEN the big trip resumes properly. We'll have somewhat less than 2 months to cover the 2000km to Cancun [on the coast to the left of Cuba] for a flight to Miami and 89days in the US. From here, CUERNAVACA, the route meanders us through VERCRUZ and reputedly beautiful SAN CRISTOBAL DE LAS CASAS on the way to holiday-hot-spot CANCUN.


In broad terms the plan for the US is to reassemble the bikes and get back on the road in Miami, in JUNE, and cruise at least as far north as Atlanta. From there we've got a slew of sidetrips planned off of the bikes...

• The first is 2 1/2 days through the Florida Keys in a hire car - it's my birthday - so why not ?
• The 2nd is to Atlanta; and the West Coast - LA, San Fran, Yosemite, Death Valley, Las Vegas,  and  the Grand Canyon;
• The 3rd is Washington DC; 
• and the fourth and final before we prepare to ship out is to New York.

So anyway, that's it for me for the moment - I dare say Gaby will add to her own take on Mexico and our plans soon enough...