From Guatemala all the way south to the bottom of central america has been nothing but a blur and thats because i have done a three day bus journey the whole way.After having enough of centro america and really keen to get into south america (especially for the peru surfseason,now) i decided on a bus trip rather than a plain to save a little cash,but in the end with accomodatin and all it will work out pretty similar.At least this way i got to see a little more and do my favourite tavelling thing,cross more borders.
So the first leg was into el salvador,i arrived in the city at about five and found out i had a connecting bus to catch at three in the morning,great.Luckily there was acomodation at the bus termianl,a bar and a restuarant.I had to have a couple of beers considering the stress i was under,he he and there were some other travellers doing the same thing as me so we had a couple salvadorian style.That night i got two hours sleep,hardly worth the ten bucks for the room but once on the bus i slept for the rest of the night.These busse´s were´nt quite as spacious as the one from mexico but all is good for a shoestring budget.
At the borders they would announce everything in spanish and apart from understanding a few words i had no idea on what was about to happen,i just did the old follow the crowd and it all worked out well.I was lucky to get into Panama as legally you need an onward ticket out of the country or 500 dollars in cash to prove you are leaving again.Of course i had neither of these,i saw three people before me get done and refused entry.I had a good feeling as somehow i can usually spin my way out of a situation.Anyway i handed over my passport and got the big smile and,"oh australian hey,you have good soccer team",that was my avenue and i talked a little shit and my new border officer buddy flagged me through.God bless the socceroos,they are so popular for having such a good go,every time i meet a local and say im from australia it automatically turns to the soccer with a smile,A perfect time to be travelling a soccer crazy continent.Go you good ozzy´s.
Apart from that the borders were the usual drag, getting hassled and woken up at all hours to get off the bus and cross borders.At one border we had a crim on board that got arrested with fake passports and god knows what,a bit of action.Also once in costa rica and panama there was random inspections from the law,they would come aboard and check your passports,more a pain in the ass than anything.
I passed countless amounts of volcanoes,they still amaze me no matter how many i see.Saw some big active buggers also,they stand out like ayres eock around here and are the main focal point for everyone,love em.The land flattened out at nicuragua for the first time in a long time on the trip.It was nice to travel some flat land as i was getting over hills and seceretly playing corners with the stranger beside me.The hills dropped off and it seemed like a scene out of an african doco,but everything was green and tropical.Nicuragua,costa rica and panama had flatter landscapes with those big fat beautiful trees that you only see in tropical climates.The lands here look perfect for roaming and on my return to the states to fly out in i dont know how long,i hope to spend a little more time in these regions discovering.Also passed through some wicked storms with fork lightening touching down in close proximity to the bus,i was so hanging to see something get struck but to no avail.
I had this guy from amsterdam,the second in as many weeks that would´nt leave me alone.I relly think that they may both have been gay as the liking they took to me was a bit much,man they are a different breed.One was just totally blowing out on me and my barefoot travels with so many questions like "so when did you start wearing barefeet,and what happens when you walk over glass".So in true ozzy style i talked it up and said we are all bushmen that wear no shoes and are able to walk over glass without cuttin our feet.As soon as the bus got into panama i was outta there as he wanted to come in the taxi to the same hotel,i wish the girls were paying me that much attention.
So 5 countrys in three days was quite draining,the bus trip also completely crap,long,hot, and lacking of sleep.But the veiwing and the people i met were all worth it,plus its allways better than working.By the time i reached panam i had bloodshot eyes and stank like a cross country runner in an army suit.I hit a hotel,showered and chilled with 75 channels of nothing.
