Gunnarssons Globe

Newsletter1
970915

This is the first newsletter on my way to the Real America. After a busy week in Uppsala and Växjö, when I emptied my apartment in Uppsala, making room for the "Fisher King" also known as the "car roof jumper", I went to Lund to spend a few and glorious hours with the marvellous and good looking computer genius Mr. Erikson, and his lovely girlfriend miss Melo. Later tonight, when Erikson is drunk, I´ll take the bus from Lund to the airport of Copenhagen. My flight to Mexico City leaves in the morning. And tomorrow night I´ll be in Acapulco sipping marguaritas and eating tacos. God, I´m looking forward to meet the sun....

Newsletter2
970930

Hello good people, I´m writing this from Mexico City. I´m sitting in a Internet Café here and everything is just great. I don´t have much time now so I´ll continue this newsletter later this week. I stayed in Acapulco for about two weeks. It was wonderful to be back there but I couldn´t find Gopher. I looked in bars and restaurants but he´s not there anymore. But I found capt. Stubing deadly drunk close to La Quebrada. I got a little bit restless in the sun.My friend Kike is very sick so he couldn´t hang out with me so much, so I strolled around on my own. There´s is not so much to do in Acapulco except for sunbathing and drinking. I saw lots of movies and museums (NOT) but I got sick of it all. Thats why I decided to go back to the capital, where I stayed for about two hours on my way to Acapulco. And here it´s really nice to be. Lots of things to see and enjoy. I´ll tell you more later this week. Until then, have a nice and rainy day. El enano en el sol!

Newsletter3
971002

Hello again, well I´m still in Mexico City but I won´t be here for long. On Wednesday I´ll go to Cuba and I´ll stay there until the end of October. Among other things I´m going to see the funeral of Che Guevara, Viva Che. Mexico is still really nice. I´ve met some really nice people here, mexicans as well as europeans. And one swedish girl but I don´t know where in Sweden she´s from. I´m "travelling" with two english guys and we explore the city together. It´s always nice with company. I kind of missed that in Acapulco (but Hello Klaus and Claudia!)
Today JJ and I went to buy tickets to the soccergame, Mexico-El Salvador, on Sunday. We spent two hours there in the line because the mexicans have found out a new way of making a buck: They sell their spot in the lines. Loads of people, mostly women, stood in the lines and let people, mostly males, for a small amount, pass them. And when they reached the counter they started all over again. It was quite annoying after a while but you have to love their attitude, NOT.
Yesterday was a black day. We watched some games from the Champions League in Europe and Barcelona only played 2-2 with PSV. I hated that and I still do. But we´ll make it anyway. After the game, we left the bar and as we where walking along the street we heard someone yelling behind us. It was the waiter from the bar. He was I kind of angry with us because we only tipped him 5% instead of the normal 10%. We payed him a couple of pesos and continued. Do we go back there? I don´t think so. It was kind of embarrasing, mostly for him.
Otherwise both the city itself and the people are really nice. Everybody, well almost everybody, are nice and are willing to share their experiences with you. The ex-gangmember Poli, who´s guarding the hotel Isabel, is a brilliant source of information and the spanish guy who runs the hotel, José-Luis, is extremely friendly, even though he´s a fan of Real Madrid, and we hate them.
Lots of mexicans are interested in talking about Europe and how it is over there. They like to compare to their own country and they find that it differs a lot. Natural, since I find that lots of things are different here. Neither Acapulco nor Mexico City can be said to be the true Mexico since they are very much "civilized" but they still offer a piece of Latin America.
Well, my time is out. I´ll continue in a few days. Until then, have a nice and rainy day. Saludos from the biggest city in the world.

Newsletter4
971006

Mexico City, October 6. Hello again, yesterday I went to the Azteca stadium and watched the game between Mexico and El Salvador (5-0). The game itself wasn´t that good but what a PARTY. 120 000 spectators and the mexican colours, white, red and green filled the stadium. Everyone was shouting and singing and it was fan-fucking-tastic to be there and enjoy it. The mexicans certainly knows how to party. I´ve seen lots of fotball in my days but this was just outstanding, even compared to Camp Nou in Barcelona. Värendsvallen in Växjö is of course in a division of its own...
Thursday night me and Tony, from Leeds, went to Plaza Garibaldi in the very centre of México D.F. Loads of musicians, mariachis, were playing and the plaza was filled with people drinking tequila and singing boleros. All the mariachis were dressed in black (Just like Elvis)"uniforms" and sombreros, with silver ournaments. Everyone were happy. We met some really nice people and talked about everything from fotball to politics. The whole evening was just great. (Tony celebrated a mexican lady´s birthday as you´re supposed to do in a Leedsway.)
The other day we also went up in the highest tower in this part of America, the Latin American tower. From there you could see all over the city and it was fantastic. We went there during the day but next time I´ll get up there after sunset.
Well, that´s it for now. I´m not sure whether I can send any letters from Cuba but otherwise I´ll update my experiences when I´m back here at the end of october. Then I´ll tell you about the pollution here among other things. ´Til then, have a nice and rainy day. Cheers, Johan in the sun.

Newsletter5
971021

Newsletter, Havanna 971021
Hello again, amigos out there, right now I´m sitting in my hotel room in the heart of La Habana. Tomorrow I´ll fly back to Mexico City and I am kind of looking forward to it. Not that I don´t like Cuba but I don´t have more time and to see more I´d have to had lots of time. I´ve seen what I came for and now it´s time to go back.
The first couple of days I stayed in Havanna. What a beautiful city. (To get the right feeling, listen to the Ramones´ song "Havana affairs"!) I strolled around in the centre and in the old part, La Habana vieja. I saw so many nice old buildings and so many nice old cars that you can´t imagine. The streets are pitch black in the evenings but all the people go out at night and sit outside their homes, doing what they want. Even though many buildings, and cars, are impressive, they are very run-down. The lack of paint and cement is very much obvious in this country. Many monuments, like the Cathedral, monuments over famous cubans, La Plaza de la Revolución and el Capitolio, are still fantastic and very much worth seeing.
Anyway, saturday the 11th of October THE event started: the funeral of Che Guevara. His coffin was placed in the Memorial de José Martí at the Plaza de la Revolución. Tens of thousands of cubans and foreigners lined up to see the coffin. The whole square was filled up with people. At first we all behaved quite good but after a while everything turned caotic, people ran all over the square and screamed. But after a while everything calmed down and after four hours I passed by, and caught a glimpse of, the coffin. That was impressive. Fantastic as my good friend Tony, from Leeds, would say.
From Havanna the coffin was transported to Santa Cruz the 14th, the same way that the guerillas came in 1959. And on the 17th they had the authentic funeral ceremony for Che in Santa Cruz. In one of the lines I met Klaus from Germany (I met him in Acapulco about a month ago). After the "show" we went to a bar and pounded down lemonades ´cause it was a warm day, really hot.
Later that night we joined his travelcompanion Claudia, german-paraguayan, at the La Bodeguita del Medio, Ernest Hemingways favourite bar, and we had some "mojitos". Great drinks at a great place.
Well, on the following Monday we, the three of us, rented a car and took of for Playa Girón and the Bay of Pigs. It was quite an adventure to see the cuban highways and to see so little traffic on the roads. (Probably because of the fuel shortage) The site itself was really nice but we couldn´t find any monuments or other "reminders" of the invasion in 1961. Then we headed or for Cienfuegos were we stayed overnight. That night we went to a disco, open-air, which was great fun but also kind of weird. Everybody could enter that place, cubans as well as foreigners, but only the foreigners could afford to buy drinks which ment that the cubans hassled the foreigners to buy them drinks. A crazy place but it is like that in a country were doctors and teachers make about ten dollars a month, in pesos. Then you have certain places were you can only buy things, or drinks, in dollars, like the disco.
As a foreigner it´s no problem since we travel with dollars but for the cubans it´s a big problem. I mean who can afford to pay one dollar for a drink when you make ten dollars a month tops.
The following day we headed for Varadero, across the country. When we got there I wanted to leave immediately, and we did. Varadero is a great place if you´re looking for beach and sun and nothing else but I get extremly restless in those kind of places. (Watch out Pene Micke Motorcycle-Psycho and Cotty!)
Back in Havanna I decided to stay in the capital instead of travelling elsewhere. I really like this city, very much and since I didn´t have a lot of time I wanted to see one place and meet the people there instead of travelling around like a rat without goals. That´s the way I like to do it. So the last few days I´ve been wondering around the city and I´ve met some really nice people. (Vladimir, Cherry, Eduardo, Antonio and others)
So now it´s time to leave this place. I´m quite sure that I´ll come back to Cuba one of these days but this is it for now. I´m also sure that I havn´t told you everything about my staying in Cuba so I´ll tell you more, another time in another world. Until then, have a nice day.
Saludos del enano en el sol!
Jojje in the sun.

Newsletter6
971027

Mexico City 971027
Hello again friends out there, now I`m back in Mexico City after a couple of weeks in Cuba. In a few days you`ll be able to read about my adventures there, as soon as the Webmaster in Sweden gets the electronic letter.
I got back here a week ago and since then I`ve been sick. I caught a cold (!) in Havanna and I didn`t feel to good but now I`m OK again. Last Thursday me and Tony, and his Newcastle mate, Jed, went to a David Bowie concert and that was fantastic, de du Bajje. According to the local papers we were about 40 000 people there but I would say more like 10 000.
The name of the game is domino. A perfect game for night activities (even though Jed is a very bad player indeed). Everywhere you can find the "bricks". But sometimes you have to sit in the back of the bar if you want to play. Why? I don`t know.
I promised to tell about the pollution here and I will. Sometimes the pollution is so bad that you can see big clouds over the city. The authorities decided a couple of years ago that they didn´t accept the pollution so therefore, some days you can`t use your car in Mexico City. Today for example, those cars with numbers, on their registration, 2, 4, 6 and 8 can`t circulate in the city. I don`t know whether it helps against the pollution or not but I guess it does.
Well my time is running out so I`ll write again soon. Until then, have a cloudy day.
Jojje in the sun!

Newsletter7
971105

Mexico City 971027
Hello friends out there, my Corazón came a week ago and everything is fine with us. We´ve both been a little bit sick but what can you expect down here...
We´ve been touristing a lot the last few days. The other day we went to the pyramids at Thehotihuacán outside Mexico City and that was just great. The old Aztec site is a paradise. Two big pyramids, one of them is the third biggest in the world, and ruins of a whole city. Impressing. Then we´ve seen the Chapultepec forest, the anthropologic museum, we´ve been up to the Latin American tower (again), and we´ve strolled around in the City.
The weather is still fine, about 25 Celsius and sunny. Tomorrow we´ll leave for Acapulco and then to Oaxaca via Zepolite, Puerto Escondido (the surfers paradise) and Puerto Angel. Since I don´t have mote time now I´ll try to send more information to the webmaster later.
Until then, have a nice day! Gunnarsson in the sun!

Newsletter8
971118

Oaxaca, November 18.
Hello friends out there. Right now I'm sitting in our hotel room in central Oaxaca. The Corazón is here as well of course.
We came here yesterday from Puerto Escondido, also in the state of Oaxaca. That place is also called the Surfers' paradise and I can understand why. Loads of surfers, mostly North Americans, fill the village with their boards and images 'til you get sick of them. They are just too much. I mean the surfers and not the North Americans.
The place itself is quite nice with a beautiful beach and some nice shopping streets but you can't do a lot in a place like that. I get restless on the beach since there's nothing to do but reading and getting burned by the never-ending sun.
I spent a few hours looking for Gopher and Stubing but the only one I found this time was Lance Cumson, alias N Manson, getting stoned out of his mind.
The Corazón likes the beach more than I do so she kind of appreciated the beach stay but not for long she neither. So we went here instead.
But before Ill tell you about Oaxaca I have to inform you about the hurricanes, the roads and our stay in Acapulco. Ill start with the hurricanes Paulina, Ricki and the roads.

When I was in Cuba the hurricane Paulina struck the pacific coast of Mexico. About 500 people were killed and thousands and thousands of people lost their homes. Paulina also destroyed entire villages like Zipolite and Puerto Àngel were we planned on going. The government spent millions of dollars to restore Acapulco, since that is the national pride, but neglected the other places. Anyway, people started to restore their homes, hotels, restaurants and beach huts just to face the other hurricane, Ricki. This one wasn't as bad as Paulina but destroyed lots of homes and roads.
The bad thing is that the tourist season is coming up and those who make their living on tourism are in deep shit right now. There seems to be no end to the misery in some places. We were in Acapulco when Ricki struck and we were quite all right. It rained a lot but as a foreigner you're always safe in concrete. The roads all over the states of Guerrero and Oaxaca suffered a lot because of the bad weather that followed the hurricanes. It rained cats and dogs and the wind was sometimes blowing at over 200 kilometers an hour. They closed down a few roads since big parts were simply washed away. Even paved parts. When we left Acapulco for Puerto Escondido we could only reach Pinotepa, where we had to spend the night, until the following day when the road was reopened. Even then the bus driver had to use another route to get around the destroyed parts. And when we went to Oaxaca from Puerto Escondido we had to pass Miahuatlán because the direct road was washed away. That trip took us almost 12 hours instead of the scheduled six to eight hours. That was a bad one, I mean the trip.
We stayed about five days in Acapulco. We didn't do a lot there, like you never do there, but at least I won a dance competition on a boat. Since I'm a gentleman I gave the prize away, to a female competitor, but the Corazón can witness that I actually won. It rained a lot in Acapulco. In total I think I've spent about a month and a half in Acapulco and I still think it's a great place. Apart from the things worth seeing I just love the atmosphere in the old part of town, nice and easy going.
This time we also went to the Pie de la Cuesta, about 10 km away from Acapulco. It's a beach place with wonderful surroundings. Paulina struck there as well so every-where we could see people working to restore their places. Normally it takes about half an hour to get there but this time we spent more than an hour and a half. It's still worth the trip. Oaxaca is a new place to me, I haven't been here before but I like it a lot already. Like in almost all Latin-American cities the central square, in Mexico its called Zocalo, is really the very center of the city. Cafeterias, street salesmen and trees surround the square. The atmosphere is very nice and nobody seems to be in a hurry, not even the German or French tourists.
Today we went to the old Zapotec capital, Monte Albán, about 9 km outside the city center and like the pyramids outside Mexico City it's a fantastic place.
The zapotecs started to build that city more than 2000 years ago so you can imagine there's a lot of history to get inspired by out there. I think we'll stay here in Oaxaca a few more days.
We're planning on going to Mitla and Yagul, other ancient Indian sites around Oaxaca, and to some other places. We're not in a hurry so it'll take some time. After Oaxaca we'll probably go to San Cristobal de Las Casas as we planned but then I don't know if we'll go to Pelenque before we head for Guatemala or not. It all depends on the weather and our moods...
Well, this is it for now. Now I'll go to the post office and mail this letter to the great webmaster in Lund, Sweden, so he can put it out on the Internet.
Have a nice day and drop me a line when you have the time and will. And write to the excellent webmaster as well and tell him what a great job he's doing. Saludos del enano en el sol.
Gunnarsson in the sun.

Newsletter9
971130

Palenque, Chiapas, Mexico, 97/11/30
Hello friends out there, this will be my last letter from Mexico, since we're crossing the border to Guatemala early tomorrow morning. We're leaving Palenque for Corozal, also in Chiapas, by bus and then we'll catch the boat from Corozal to Bethel in Guatemala, and from there another bus to Flores in the Peten area in northern Guatemala. From Flores we'll go to Tikal to see the magnificent Mayan ruins there.
I've been looking forward to that ever since I saw Machu Picchu in Peru in 1990. When I started to travel in Latin America, almost eleven years ago, everybody told me that there are two things you simply must see in Latin America, Machu Picchu and Tikal, so I guess this will close my Latin American circle. That's that about the future.
We stayed about five days in Oaxaca. We went to see some Maya ruins at Monte Alban and Yagul, and we also went to see the magnificent view at a place called Hierve el Agua, the boiling water. I think my favorite ruin was Yagul (the Corazon prefers Monte Alban) because of the splendid view surrounding that place. And of course it's darn impressing to see something that old but still so advanced. I mean, the Mayas had it all worked out while we lived in caves.
Their advanced civilization, with steam baths, toilets, saunas, sewer systems, etc, compared to our society at the time, is incredible. And apparently men and women were equal as well, something we're still trying to accomplish. Anyway, both places are well worth visiting. Hierve el Agua is a fantastic place, surprisingly not very well known, but it will be in the near future, because places like that don't stay unknown. The place is situated high up in the mountains, and the view is just gorgeous. There are hot springs, water coming up from nowhere (?) through the rocks (limestone), and close to the site you can see a stone waterfall as well. An old waterfall shaped the rock into a creation that looks like a waterfall. Beautiful.
We hung out in Oaxaca City as well. We saw some movies and strolled around the Zocalo. A very nice city but we had to get going. It's about a month since the Corazon got here, but we're still in Mexico. I don't know why we're moving so slowly, but I guess I, or we, misjudged the distances and things worth seeing.
After Oaxaca we took off fro San Cristobal de las Casas. At the same time we left the state of Oaxaca for the world famous state of Chiapas. And as we entered San Cristobal we became aware of the big issue there. Wherever we went we saw t-shirts, posters, graffiti, etc, reminding us about the Zapatistas (EZLN), Subcomandante Marcos and the rebellion. Everywhere. The city is as nice as Oaxaca but colder as you can expect on that altitude (approximately 2200 meters above sea level). A very nice Zocalo, as always, surrounded by narrow streets, and from any point you can see huge mountains and volcanoes.
The city is very international with hundreds of travelers from all over the world, youngsters and older people as well. In a way you could compare San Cristobal to Antigua in Guatemala or Banos in Ecuador. They're all travelers' favorites where you can stay for weeks doing nothing but enjoying life. And almost everybody traveling in Mexico comes to San Cristobal sooner or later.
We visited Na Bolom, which is a house in the city where the famous Dane Frans Blom and his wife Trudy Blom lived and worked. Today the house is like a museum. The place is not very interesting if you're not very much into the Mayas and their lives since that was the Bloms' big thing, the Mayas. But from Na Bolom we went on a tour with the excellent guide Pepe, to the Mayan villages of Chomula and Zinancatan. The villages were like night and day. In Chomula we could see beggars, aggressive salesmen and drunks everywhere, but in Zinancatan we could see nothing of that. The priest in Zinancatan had banned alcohol in the church (!), begging in the streets, etc, and we all wondered why the priest in Chomula hadn't done the same. Apparently it all worked out in Zinancatan, so why not in Comula? We went to some Mayan homes and Pepe told us lots of interesting things about the Mayas and their history. We also saw a video film about the Zapatistas and their movement, In all, it was a great day.
Another day me and the Corazon went walking in the Huitepec National Reserve. A nice walk but not very spectacular. We also went to see the caves, las Grutas, and that was nice and impressing. The caves are actually one huge cave which you can walk into on a catwalk. The cave is about three or four hundred meters deep so it took us a while to reach the end. A nice walk.
San Cristobal is a very nice place and I highly recommend it. It's a place you like to go back to every now and then. (Right, Tony?)
From San Cristobal we went to Palenque to see the Maya ruins there. I felt quite weak yesterday when we went to the ruins, because of the revenge of Montezuma, but it was just amazing. Surrounded by jungle, the ancient city stood out like something from an Indiana Jones movie. A few big palaces and a big square and lots of other smaller buildings and it was just great. We spent the whole day out there and we enjoyed every moment of it. I find it hard to describe it in words but fantastic is the word I think of when I think of the ruins of Palenque.
Today we went to see some waterfalls at Misol-Ha and Agua Azul, the blue water. Nice but nothing special I would say, so we went back to Palenque city instead.

Now we are preparing our trip to Guatemala. We'll come back to Mexico in February and there are plenty of things to see here so I'm kind of looking forward to it even though I think it's about time to enter another country.
Well, that's it for now. Have a nice day and remember how good it is to feel great and sane. Saludos de Johan i solen!

Newsletter10
971208

Antigua, Guatemala, December 8
Hello again friends out there, right now we´re in southern Guatemala, in Antigua, about 50 kms from the capital, Guatemala City. We came here a few days ago from Flores, in the Petén area, in the north, where we visited the ruins at Tikal.
We invested 30 US dollars in a flight from Flores to Guatemala City instead of going on a bus 14-15 hours. That's what I call a good investment.
We left Palenque in Chiapas early in the morning. We took the first collectivo, at 6 am, from Palenque to the border town of Corozal. It took us about three hours to get there.
In Corozal we had to wait a couple of hours for the boat to take us to Bethel, on the Guatemalan side of the border. The boat was actually just a narrow canoe with a big motor in the rear and it was a really nice 40-minute trip on the river.
In Bethel we waited another hour and a half for the bus to Flores. The bus trip from Bethel to Flores took us a good five hours on a very bumpy road. As in Mexico the heavy rains had destroyed the dirt road. So we were quite happy, but tired, when we reached Flores.
On the way to Flores we bumped into a group of European travelers, Germans, French and a Belgian, and with them we went to the ruins of Tikal the following day. We came to Tikal early in the morning to see the sunrise, and it was beautiful. Then we simply strolled around the area and enjoyed the ancient city.
The scientists think that approximately 90,000 Mayan Indians lived there and the city is still pretty big even though they haven´t dug out the whole place. Tikal is surrounded by jungle and all over the place we could see different animals such as foxes, spider monkeys, thousands of birds and raccoons. It was lovely. The site is huge so you can't really see everything unless you stay there for days but we did our best. In the afternoon we hired a guide to tell us about the ruins and the Mayan history. That was a wise thing to do because he told us lots of interesting things about the ruins that we had missed earlier.
After a while we all felt tired so around 4 pm we went back to Flores, or Santa Elena. My impressions of Tikal are mixed. Of course it's a beautiful and fantastic place but my expectations were high and Tikal didn't correspond to them. I think it's a joke that some compare Tikal with Machu Picchu in greatness. I don't think they are even in the same league. But Tikal is still a must-be-seen-place in Latin America. We weren't very lucky with the weather either and that of course also matters.
The next day me and my Corazón took the plane to Guatemala City and from the airport there we continued, without going to the city itself, to Antigua.
Antigua is a place that you just can't dislike. It's surrounded by volcanoes and high mountains and the narrow streets and the beautiful Central Park are very nice. Antigua reminds me a little bit of Oaxaca in Mexico. It's a small town, with about 30.000 inhibitants, and lots of travelers come here just to relax before going elsewhere. In a way you can also compare it to San Cristobal de las Casas in Chiapas. You don't meet to many travelers in Guatemala that haven't been in Antigua. The international influence is obvious wherever you go in Antigua. Everything is set up for the tourists, like volcano tours, international restaurants, laundry service etcetera. It's a place to enjoy.
Today we went to Guatemala to arrange the trip to San Salvador. We strolled around a little bit in the city center as well but we were quite lazy. Guatemala City is one of the few places in the whole of Latin America that I don't like at all. It's a dangerous place without any charm what so ever. There's no reason to stay there more than necessary.

Well, it's time to move on. Of course, a little bit more than a week is not enough in Guatemala, but... We'll go to San Salvador tomorrow. From Guatemala to El Salvador and I'm looking forward to it.
El Salvador is a favorite of mine. So I'll write again from El Salvador. I don't know if we can find Internet places there so: I wish you all a Merry, but cold, Christmas and a Happy Wet New Year.
Saludos del enano en el sol!

Newsletter11
971229

San Jose, Costa Rica, 971229
Hello friends, yes, we are in Costa Rica. Since I wrote you in Antigua we have passed through El Salvador and Nicaragua. We came here a couple of days ago so you understand that we have traveled quite fast lately.
We stayed about a week in El Salvador. First we went directly to the capital, San Salvador, and then on to San Vicente and Santa Rosa de Lima before we crossed the border. It felt great to be back in San Salvador. We picked up some mail at the post office. THANKS a lot to all of you who wrote me.
One day we went to a place just outside San Salvador, los Chorros, which is a place with swimming pools and a jungle like atmosphere. We spend a full day there and enjoyed being out of the city for a while, Specially the Corazon since she is not a big fan of big cities. We also went to see a guy from my hometown who is working in San Salvador.
After a few days in San Salvador we decided to move on. We went to San Vicente about one hour east of San Salvador. It´s a nice little village but there´s not a lot to do there. The Corazon felt a little bit sick so we stayed a couple of days anyway.
One day we went to the beautiful lake of Llopango and another day we went to a turicentro, like los Chorros, outside San Vicente. Neat places as K Costner would say. After a while we decided to move on to Nicaragua and some decent Christmas celebration.
We headed east and stayed one night in Santa Rosa de Lima before reaching, not Nicaragua but, Honduras. Going from El Salvador to Nicaragua you have to cross some Hondurian territory unless you don´t go via the Gulfo de Fonseca. After a couple of hours in Honduras we finally came to Nicaragua.
But that´s another story and my time is out. Tomorrow we´ll continue to the Caribbean coast of Costa Rica and the village of Puerto Viejo. We´ll stay there ´til the 4th of January when we´ll be back here. And then I´ll continue the story.
Until then:

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!

Newsletter12
980101

San Jose, Costa Rica, Jan 1, 1998
Hello amigos, I hope you didn´t drink too much last night (Bajje, Villan and Steffe) and that you all feel OK today (Niax). Me and the Corazon partied a little bit as well with two guys from Falkoping and it was very nice, to party that is.
But now I´ll continue the story.

After leaving El Salvador we crossed southern Honduras. We took a direct bus from the Salvadoranian border to the border of Nicaragua. And after crossing the border we went directly to Leon where we spend a couple of days. We met an english lad, Jonathan from London, a Crystal Palace fan, and we hung out together. We strolled around in the very nice city and we partied a little bit at an Italian restaurant where we could eat on a table decorated with the Swedish flag. Leon is a very beautiful city with a magnificent cathedral but after a couple of days we had to get going.
We went from Leon to Managua where we changed bus heading to Granada. I have been to Managua and I don´t like that place, not at all, so we just passed through. We spend a couple of days in Granada as well.
One day we also went to the nearby city of Massaya and that was a nice excursion. Granada and Leon used to fight each other and you can still sense some rivalry between these cities. Both are very beautiful places and it´s quite hard to understand why they picked Managua as the capital. To end the fighting between Leon and Granada yes, but still, why...?
After Granada we went to San Juan del Sur in southern Nicaragua where we spend Christmas. We stayed in a very nice place, run by a Norwegian fellow, and we had a gorgeous time. We swam a lot and spend hours and hours on the beach.
On Christmas eve Santa Claus came to see us and gave us some presents. Strangely he was dressed in a bra and panties. After San Juan del Sur we took of for Costa Rica but now my time is running out again so I´ll continue another day. Have a nice day until then.
Saludos de Jojje i solen!

Newsletter13
980121

Liberia, Costa Rica, Jan 21
Hello friends out there, Right now I´m working on a brand new newsletter and I´ll send it to the excellent webmaster in a couple of days.
We are rihgt now in northern Costa Rica, we stayed about two weeks in San Jose and then we went to Orosi. From there to Montezuma, Nicoya, Tamarind and to Liberia where we are at the moment. Everything is great. The weather is almost too perfect. Hot and sunny.
Well, this is it for now. Stay on line for more useful and interesting information from the real Americas.
Saludos de Johan i solen!

Newsletter14
980121

Liberia, Costa Rica, Jan 23
Hello friends out there, It's been a while since I wrote you a "real" newsletter but here's a brand new one from the real Americas (Fuck off, Zeke!)

I think I left you as we came to Costa Rica from Nicaragua about a month ago. Anyway, after a very nice Christmas in San Juan del Sur in southern Nicaragua we came to Costa Rica. We traveled together with a very nice Danish couple, Peter and Liv, and my old friend JJ, the Manchester lad I met in Mexico City in early October.
We bumped into JJ on the beach in San Juan del Sur when he was traveling with the Danes. The five of us came to San José, our first stop in Costa Rica, after a kind of boring trip from Nicaragua. Boring mostly because we had to stand in line at the Costa Rican border station for four hours. By the time we got to San José my eyes started to get wet, really wet. Like fountains they produced water and other liquids that covered my eyes. I already knew what the problem was because the Corazón just got better from the disease: conjuntivitis, an eye infection. The Corazón got it in her right eye but I got it in both. So we had to stay in San José more or less two weeks in order for me to get better.
We strolled around in the city, doing nothing basically. I couldn't see very much so the Corazón had to lead me from the hotel to the breakfast place, to the Internet café and back to the hotel. Then we normally rested a little bit and in the afternoons we went for another walk. That was the procedure during almost two weeks.
The Danes and JJ took off the day before New Year's Eve, to Ecuador (Have a great time down there, kidders!). On New Year's Eve we bumped into two Swedes from Falköping, and we spent the evening and night with them. First we went to a fun fair with bars in the outskirts of San José and then we went to another place in the other part of town. We were actually in a taxi between the two places when 1997 turned 1998. Anyway, the evening was great and we got a little bit under the influence so the following day we felt a little bit delicate. At the end of the first week of 1998 we went to the post office to pick up some mail, Christmas presents and letters (Thanks a million mum & dad and sweet soul sister of mine!). It's always nice to hear from people back home.
After a couple of weeks I felt better so we took off for Orosi, in the valley with the same name, about two hours south of San José. It's a very nice place and I highly recommend it. We stayed in a nice hotel and from there we made some nice excursions. One to the Irazú vulcano, where the Corazón saw a crater without clouds for the first time. We went there by car and on the way back we visited Cartago and some other less interesting places. The Vulcan was nice, though.
Another day we went to see the nearby waterfall. It turned out to be quite difficult to find our way there but we met a really nice guy who lived up there, Fernando, alias Nano. He took us around in the mountains and showed us the waterfall and the surroundings. I even had a shower in the waterfall, and I'm still proud of it. The water was darn cold and the pressure, from the falling water, was very high. It takes a man to do things like that.
On our last day in Orosi we went to look for "the Yakuzi". And we found it and spent the entire day there. In the normally very cold river someone discovered a vein of hot water, coming up from the bottom, and put some stones and rocks around the place, building the Yakuzi. Hot water trickles down from the volcanoes, underneath the surface of the ground, and bubbles up in the middle of the river. We sat there, enjoyed the stay and admired the surrounding mountains and coffee plantations. A beautiful day, one of the best, actually.
After Orosi we went back to San José to pick up some mail and to get more money from the bank. The next day we left the capital for Montezuma. San José might be a nice city but I really don't like it too much. Mostly because we had to stay there for such a long time while I was sick, doing nothing more or less.
In the capital we took a bus for Puntarenas where we had to wait an hour or so. Then we took the ferry across the bay to Paquera on the Nicoya peninsula. On the ferry we met a Swedish party animal from Stockholm and as soon as we got to Montezumas she lured us into the booze swamp. We stayed in Montezuma about five days.
One day we went to see the National Park of Cabo Blanco on the very southern tip of the peninsula. A Swede and a Dane founded the park, and Sweden still support the park, so we got in for free. We walked about 10 km in the rainforest and we saw lots of animals. Monkeys, spiders, raccoons, woodpeckers and other birds. And the Corazón met a jellyfish in the water!!! The beach in the park is just beautiful but we didn't have enough time to hang out there since we had to be back at the park entrance before dark. On the way to the beach we walked really slow looking for the animals but on the way back we had to hurry up. It took us about five hours to reach the beach and about an hour and a half to get back. It was a very nice walk in the jungle. Surrounded by trees and other vegetation we felt a little bit like Tarzan and Jane. And it's very exotic to walk in a rainforest.
Another day we went to a nearby waterfall with a natural pool below it. Beautiful but kind of crowded with people, but what do you expect in a place like Montezuma? The village is very small. I don't know how many people who live there but I'd guess a couple of hundred. And the village is crowded with gringos and other foreigners. The international climate is obvious wherever you go in Montezuma. The local beach, where we went one day, is crowded with white-skinned Europeans and Americans during our winter. Here it's very hot, about 35 degrees Celsius and the sun is sharper than a knife to your skin.
From Montezuma we headed for Tamarindo, but that's easier said than done. There's no direct way between the two places, unless you are prepared to pay a four-wheel-drive taxi between Paquera and Playa Naranjo. We didn't. Instead we went from Montezuma back to Paquera by bus, then the ferry again to Puntarenas. There we had to wait for another ferry to Playa Naranjo, also on the Nicoya peninsula. And from Playa Naranjo we took another bus to the city of Nicoya where we spent the night.
The following morning we took the bus to Santa Cruz and there we changed for Tamarindo. In all, it took us a day and a half to get there from Montezuma but with your own four-wheel-drive vehicle you could do it in three or four hours!
In Tamrindo we met our English friend Will from London. He biked down to Costa Rica from Mexico and we met him in San José in late December. He's in Tamarindo working with the giant marine turtles, the leatherbacks, as a volunteer, and we joined him for one night. The leatherbacks come to the beach, in this case the Langosta beach, to lay their eggs. Normally they live in the ocean, hundreds of meters below the surface. The leatherback is the second biggest turtle in the world, only surpassed by the land turtle at the Galapagos outside Ecuador. Normally each turtle lay about 120 eggs but only one in a thousand survive and become a big turtle, so to say. The leatherbacks are up to almost one meter and a half long and one meter wide, so they are quite impressive. We went to Playa Langosta with Will and his working mates just after dusk. We didn't have to wait more than a couple of hours before the first turtle came up from the ocean. It was fantastic to see the big creature come up and lay her eggs. After the turtle laid the egg she went back to the sea. During the night another five turtles came up and two more came to the beach but went back to the water without laying any eggs. We slept on in the sand, looking at the stars and it was gorgeous. A very nice experience.
Daytime we didn't do a lot in Tamarindo. We hung out at the beach sunbathing or throwing frisbee with Will and some Costa Ricans. It was almost too hot for any action whatsoever. After a couple of days we decided to leave and we went back to Santa Cruz and then on to Liberia where we are now.
Yesterday we went to another National Park, Rincón de la Vieja, to see some hot springs and volcanoes. We walked along a natural trail in, threw the rainforest, and we could see mysterious "holes" in the ground where smoke came out. It smelled of sulfa (I think it's called sulfa in English. Some people think it, the sulfa, can cure diseases and bring health to you, but I don't know.) We also saw some bubbling mud pools where the smoke, and the pressure from below, provoked bubbles in the wet mud. And we saw a miniature vulcanoe as well.
In the afternoon we left the national park and went to a lodge to go horseback riding. And we did. For the first time in my life I sat on a living horse. During two hours we rode the horses and after a while I kind of enjoyed it, even though my behind hurts like hell today. On the horses we went to see some hot water pools, with sulfa, where I dipped my body and tried the action. I felt really good but I still don't know whether it's good for your health or not.
The site was very beautiful, a little bit like the Yakuzi place in Orosi, but we didn't stay there long because the horses where waiting.

Well, that's what we have been up to. Tomorrow we'll be back in Nicaragua. We haven't decided exactly where to go yet but we'll go to the Ometepe Island and the Corn Islands at least and we'll probably go back to Granada as well. But that's about the future and we simply don't know yet.
This is it for now. We hope you some good wherever you are. Until the next time.
Saludos de Johan i solen!

Newsletter15
9802006

Tegucigalpa, Honduras, Feb 06
Hello friends out there. Now we are back in Honduras.
The last time we where here we only passed through on our way to Nicaragua, but this time we'll stay a little bit longer. Our main purpose is to go out to one of the Bay Islands, Utila, to do some diving and snorkeling. A few years ago I went to another island out in the Caribbean, Roatán, which was really nice. But I'd like to see something else now.
We came to Tegucigalpa yesterday, from Nicaragua. The town is not a favorite of mine but it's not bad. After a couple of weeks with beans and rice in Nicaragua it was nice to get some burgers and other kinds of junk food. But apart from that I'd like to leave as soon as possible. The day after tomorrow we'll fly to La Ceiba and from there we'll fly to Utila. But here's the story about our stay in Nicaragua. And it's a story about the Nicaraguan islands.
When we came from Costa Rica we headed to San Jorge, next to the Lago Nicaragua and not very far from Rivas. From there we took a ferry to Moyogalpa, on the Ometepe Island in the Lago Nicaragua. We traveled with an American couple, Michael and Leah, from Eugene, Oregon, whom we met while crossing the border from Costa Rica. The Ometepe Island is surrounded by fresh water. Wherever you are on the island, you can see two huge volcanoes, Concepción and Madero. The island is formed like an "8" with one volcano in each circle. The lava streams built up the land between the volcanoes during and after several eruptions. Anyway, the lake used to be part of the Pacific and that explains why you still can see fresh water sharks in the lake. The only ones in the world. The island is not very big but it's very nice. I like it a lot. The first day we hung out a little bit in Moyogalpa before we went to a beach near the city. I'm not sure but I think the name of the beach is Jesumaria or something like that.
The beach was actually just a 150 meters long black sand strip out in the lake, about 5 meters wide. It was sunny and hot and very beautiful. Even though I'm not a beach fan I had to admit that the place was great. We stayed there the whole afternoon. The second day we rented a car, the four of us, and drove around the island. The road was extremely bad so it took us the entire day. We saw lots of monkeys and other animals and we met quite a few nice people. We intended to see some petroglyphs but we came too late to the place where they are. It was pitch black when we got back to Moyogalpa. Another day the Corazón and Michael went horseback riding but my behind was still pretty f***ing sore after the experience in Rincón de la Vieja so I stayed in Moyagalpa and enjoyed a "day off". Ometepe is very nice and I'd love to go back. The two biggest cities, Moyogalpa and Altagracia, are just tiny villages actually and the atmosphere on the island is very relaxing and easygoing.
After a few days we went back to San Jorge and on to Granada, again. While the Corazón stayed there I went to see a Swede who lives in Jinotepe, good old Kjelle K. A very nice man. I spent the day there and got back to Granada in the evening.

The next day we had to go to Managua to get some money from the bank and then we took off for Rama. The road from Managua to Rama wasn't that bad until after Juigalpa but then it got very bad indeed. So we sort of sat on the bus from noon till about 20.00 flying around like snowflakes in the wind. I have experienced lots of bad roads down here and this is absolutely one of the worst so far. We were totally exhausted when we got to Rama and after dinner we crashed into our beds.
The next day we took a small boat, a panga, to Bluefields. After about two hours we got there and went straight to the airport looking for a flight to Corn Island, or Isla de Maíz. In the afternoon we got a flight and 20 minutes later we landed in another paradise. There's not a lot to tell you about our stay there, we snorkeled for a few hours but that was it. We stayed at a very nice place and spent hours and hours on the balcony reading or just enjoying life. Corn Island is loaded with beautiful beaches and the water is crystal clear. And everywhere you can find shade under palm trees.
Corn Island is another tropical paradise yet not discovered by the masses. Tourism isn't a big thing there yet but the place is just too beautiful to remain unexploded.
After four or five days we left Corn Island. We said goodbye to Leah and Michael and flew back to Managua to get more money from the bank. Money is a problem in Nicaragua, especially if you're travelling with a credit card. You can only get cash from one bank in Manuagua, in the whole country. That's what they told us there, in the bank, and when I said that we managed to get cash in Leon as well they simply said that that was not possible. I must be a miracle man.
The same day we went to Leon where we relaxed and the next day we took a bus to Chinandega and then to Guasaule and then, after crossing the Hondurian border, we took another two buses to get to Tegucigalpa.

And here we are. After lots of lazy days we have to hurry up a little bit. The Corazón is leaving in early March, when my mum comes down, and before then we have to get to Mexico City. But we'll make it. Stay tuned for more information about new ad-ventures.
Until then, have a nice and cold day.
Saludos de Johan i solen!

Newsletter16
980311

San Cristobal de las Casas, Chiapas, Mexico, March 11.
Hello friends out there. Now I'm back in San C and lots of things have happened since I wrote you last time in Tegucigalpa. The most important thing is that the Corazon is back in Sweden and that Mum is here with me now.
Well, from Tegucigalpa, the very much uninteresting city, we flew to one of the Bay Islands, Utila. A couple of years ago I visited Roatán, also a Bay Island, which I liked very much, and I was looking forward to see that part of the world again. High expectations that is and they were all fulfilled. Utila is a very nice place, beautiful and sunny. There's not a lot to do there apart from one thing: diving. And since I'm a man of adventures of course I got certified and I think that was one of the best things I've done in my life. The feeling of being totally weightless 18 meters below the surface is just incredible.
We saw lots of corals and fishes, but no sharks. I took the Open Water course, with a Canadian, a Dutch and a couple of Danes and we had a really good time. Two times the Corazon came with us, she got certified in Thailand half a year ago, so we enjoyed it together. At night we saw some movies and went to a couple of bars but since we had to be in the water early in the mornings we relaxed a lot.

From Utila we flew to Belize City since we found a good offer to fly there. In Belize, the last country for me to visit in Latin America, we took the bus to Chetumal in Mexico. I found Belize very expensive and I still haven't met a single person that likes the country, except for Cayo Caulker, I couldn't get out of that country fast enough. And I felt really good back in Mexico.
We stayed in Chetumal a couple of days. Once we tried to travel away from the city, to Tulum, but I forgot my passport at the hotel so we had to go back and stay another day. Finally we went to Tulum were we stayed a couple of days. We saw some nice ruins, well the ruins are not very interesting but they are very nice situated, right next to the Caribbean Sea. A beautiful place. From Tulum we went to Cancun. We thought about staying in Playa del Carmen but we heard it's expensive and we thought we had seen enough beaches so we headed for Cancun to pick up some mail at the post office there. We stayed for a couple of days and we didn't see the sea!! Most people go there to swim and enjoy the beach, but who gives a damn!! Instead we went to see some movies.
From Cancun we went to Valladolid, close to the Chichen Itza ruins. The following day we actually went to see the ruins but since we were quiet sick and tired of all these old stone creations as well as beaches but spend half a day there and then we continued to Merida where we took the plane back to good old Mexico City.
Well, from Mexico City we went to see the very nice city of Taxco and we went back to our good old Hotel Isabel, where everything started but since I don't have more time now Ill continue tomorrow. Until then, have a nice and cold day!
Saludos de Jojje i solen!

Newsletter17
980312

San Cristobal de las Casas, Chiapas, Mexico, March 12
Hello again friends out there, now Ill continue the letter I started yesterday.
We came back to Mexico City and it was really nice, even though it was full at Isabel so we had to go to another hotel. We met good old Tony again and hung out with him sometimes. We stayed the weekend in the biggest city in the world and then we took of for Taxco.
Taxco is a very nice place, awesome. It's a colonial place and all the buildings, new and old, are in the same style. The streets are narrow and you walk around in alleys all the time. Taxco is famous for silver and we bought some, very cheap. In the evenings we hung out in a nice bar and went to see some movies.
In Taxco they also have a cable car and one day we went up the mountain "on the wire" and from up there we had a marvelous view over the entire city. It was a beautiful day.
One day we celebrated the Corazons birthday with picnic and cakes etceteras. Also a very nice day. We stayed in Taxco about a week since we had no urge whatsoever to travel,
The following Monday we went back to Mexico City and Isabel and in the afternoon we went out to meet Mum at the airport. The backpacking Mum!! The three of us stayed in Mexico three days. We went to some museums, the Latin American tower etceteras. And on the 5th of March the Corazon left me for Sweden and that was very sad indeed. What a travel mate she is!!
The Mum and I continued to Oaxaca, where we went to Monte Alban, Hierve el Agua and Mitla. For more information you can go back a couple of months cause I've been there before. Then we went on a day long trip to Tuztla Gutierrez and from there we went to the Canyon de Sumidera, a canyon with some of Mexicos best views. We traveled along the river in a small boat and some of the peaks surrounding us where up to 1000 meters high!! The boat trip took about three hours. In the afternoon we continued to San Cristobal, where we are at the moment.
Yesterday we went to the villages Chamula and Zinacantan and it was just as interesting as the last time. Pepe, the guide, is great. And today we're relaxing. In the afternoon we'll go to the Caves and tomorrow we'll continue to Palenque, Flores, Tikal and Antigua.

Well, that's it for now. In a couple of weeks ill be home in Sweden again but I think Ill have time to write you again before then.
Until then, have a nice and cold day. Saludos de Johan i solen!

Newsletter18
980414

I'm pretty sure that I left you in San Cristobal. From there we traveled the same route as me and the Corazon did to Palenque, Tikal and Antigua. Palenque is my favorite, what a place! My mum liked it as well and she even climbed a steep pyramid, not bad Mum!
From Palenque we took the same road to Tikal as we did in November. Someone had put a lot of new gravel on the road from Bethel to Flores so it was much better this time. We traveled with an Australian couple and with them we visited the ruins the following day.
From Tikal we flew to Guatemala City and from the airport we got on a bus to Antigua. The first day in Antigua we just hung out and relaxed a bit. Another day we took of for Panajachel, an old hippie place, next to the Lago Atitlán. The village is very nice situated and the atmosphere is also great but Panajachel is way too touristy for my taste. Along the main streets we couldn't see anything but restaurants, small hotels and salesmen with their stands. Terrible!!! We thought about going on a boat trip but it was a cloudy day so we stayed on the mainland. Instead of going with the tourist bus to Pana we decided to make it on our one. It took us almost four hours to get there instead of two hours, and it was a hassle, so we went back with the tourist bus. I gave a Guatemalan boy some lessons in English (how did that happen???) and in return he gave us a discount on the fare. Nice of him!
From Antigua we took of for Mexico again. We traveled an entire day on different buses and late in the evening we crossed the border and came to Tapachula in Chiapas. We stayed there one night and the nest morning we flew to Mexico City. We didn't stay there long before we took of for the beautiful city of Taxco. We stayed a couple of days there, relaxed and walked around in the city.
Taxco is one of my favorite places in Latin America. Id love to go back there once more. Instead of going to Mexico City we took a bus to Acapulco where we stayed one day and the following day we traveled back to Mexico City. In the afternoon we, Mum Tony, and me went to Coyoacan again. And the next day we flew back to Sweden from Mexico City.
It was really nice to travel with the Mum. With the Mum I traveled very much faster but it turned out to work out alright even though I normally hate to travel fast.

Now it's all over. The journey is finished. I just like to say that I'm a big fan of Nicaragua, Chiapas and El Salvador, and the Bay Islands of course. If you ever get the possibility, go there!!!
And now I'm back in the land of rape and honey again. So until the next time I'm your travelling eyes: Have a great life and thanks for all the e-mail!!!

Saludos de Johan, no longer in the sun!

Special Report 1
980415

My travel mates, Tony from Newcastle and JJ from Manchester, and me went to Plaza Garibaldi in Mexico City. We met some really nice Mexicans and had a good time with them. We had to finish around three o'clock in the morning ´cause we ran out of money. On our way back the police stopped us. They claimed we were drunk and since we didn't bring our passports they told us to get into the car. The three of us in the back and two of the policemen in the front seats.
Surprisingly enough they drove away from the city center and headed for the outskirts. Soon we came to a dark alley were we were met by another policeman, an officer. He told us to hand him everything we carried, money, watches, necklaces and other stuff. Fortunately they couldn't see my watch, since I carry it "backwards", so the only thing I lost was 20 cents, two bus tickets, a small commercial pocketknife, and a lighter. The other guys lost their watches as well.
The officer wasn't very happy with us since we couldn't pay him a lot so he told the other policemen to head for the center again, with us in the back seat. I still don't know how but without us saying it they took us to my, and JJ:s, hotel. They stopped about a block away from the entrance and told me to get out of the car. One of the policemen told me to get more money from my hotel room and at the same time he reached for his gun. I ran for the door and went in. At the same time the other guys started to "fake vomiting" in the car. That was probably the deciding thing ´cause the police car took of, drove a couple of blocks and then the policemen released my friends.
JJ came back to the hotel and we called Tony to be sure he was all right. He was OK. (But the following day he was mugged on the metro, but that´s another story)

Later, when I talked to Mexicans about our experience they weren't surprised at all. These things happen, frequently. In most parts of Europe we know that we can turn to the authorities when we're in trouble. In Latin America it's not so. They know that they can not turn to the authorities when they need help. This fact creates a society were the citizens themselves play the role that was created for the police. A society where the people take the law into their own hands.
I can't say I'm a big police fan but at least they make me feel secure. Mostly I don't need them but Ill always knows that if so, I know I can trust them. In the long run this is what democracy is all about. Trust to the authorities, and the police are the authorities.
What about that???

Special Report 2
980415

When we came to the airport in Bluefields we wanted to buy tickets to Corn Island so we went to one of the two airlines there, Atlantic Airlines. They had tickets for us but we decided to wait half an hour for the other office, La Costena, to open. Meanwhile a Canadian mate came and told us that La Costena charged the same price so we decided to buy the tickets from Atlantic. But they said they were full so I went up to La Costena and bought the tickets there instead. When I came back to Atlantic, where we left our bags they told us that we could buy the tickets there after all. But then we already had the tickets with La Costena so...
The Atlantic plane took of half an hour before us at three o'clock in the afternoon. We flew the half an hour trip to Corn Island at three thirty. When we came to Corn Island a taxi driver told us that the Atlantic plane was late, very late. The plane was on its way to Costa Rica.
Someone had hijacked the plane!!!.
Armed with a Molotov cocktail an islander threatened the captain so they had no choice, they went to Costa Rica.
It was really close that we had been on that plane and we where quite happy to be on the island instead of being up there with a crazy guy with a gasoline bomb. Anyway, the Costa Rican police captured the hijacker in Puerto Limon so no one was injured. The plane came back to Bluefield the following day.