You get a flat. Sofia continues on. The plan is to meet up again beside the road at Chiquimula. But you dont see her and you each spend some time in town looking for each other.
And then you find her. You find a cheap hotel but the guy wont let you look at the room. Why should I waste my time showing you the room if you wont take it? He says, in Spanish. Youve been in this situation before. Best not to take it. You go elsewhere.
Welcome to Honduras.: To Copan
Saturday October 20, 2007, 80 km (50 miles) Total so far: 5,473 km (3,401 miles)
For the first five km on route 10 you enjoy lots of applause from people along the road. Today is the first day of the Guatemalan cycling race and you are the first cyclists they see. You could almost be convincing if only you were headed in the right direction.
There are a lot of ascents and descents to Copan Ruinus. But seemingly more ascents. As usual in Guatemala many kids shout Gringo at you and make weird noises to catch your attention.
Eventually you reach the border, pay the bribes to exit one country and enter another and off you go. Youre in Honduras baby. Just one more climb and one descent to go and into town you are. Now, wheres Sofia? Perhaps you shouldnt have left her behind. Oh well, four times in four days youve played this game. You find each other in the end. And you do. But she isnt happy so best just let her be for now.
Back into Guatemala.: A crowded minivan
Monday October 22, 2007, 24 km (15 miles) Total so far: 5,497 km (3,416 miles)
Yesterday you saw the ruins of Copan. They were interesting and all but with all the hype generated they were a bit of a let down. Still, you got your requisite photos. Tensions remain high between your comrade and yourself and dont really settle down again until today. Will you go your separate ways? Is enough enough? Not yet apparently. You both still get something out of this relationship. Arent you? Perhaps youve been alone for too long. You dont know how to relate to other people anymore.
You get a lift in a pickup the ten km to the border for five Americanos. Then across the other side for little more than the same amount you get a minivan the forty km to Vadu Hondo back on route 10. Everything is fine. The van is at most half full. Then, with only maybe ten km to go you pull into a town and change vans. You jump on the top of one van and help lift the bikes over. Then you all cram into the overflowing van for the rest of the journey. As overflowing as it is there is always room to cram one more in, which they do.
Finally out of the van you cycle the twenty km into town. It is still early and youve spent barely two hours on the bikes but youll call it a day. Only twenty km till the border. El Salvador awaits.
Welcome to El Salvador.: To Santa Ana
Tuesday October 23, 2007, 97 km (60 miles) Total so far: 5,594 km (3,476 miles)
For once you get an early start on the day. But theres no beating that heat. Its another 33 km until the border. And..
Welcome to El Salvador!!!
An early afternoon downpour coincides with lunch. And off you go again. Most of the way on this side of the border is downhill. The roads are good here and there is a nice shoulder to enjoy.
At last Santa Ana comes into view. Dark clouds, well, darken the sky. You find a cheap place to stay mere moments before they open up. Heavy rain and thunder is heard. Maybe stay in for a little while. You have an 8:30 curfew tonight. But why?
San Salvador.: A lift up.
Wednesday October 24, 2007, 65 km (40 miles) Total so far: 5,659 km (3,516 miles)
Its not so far to San Salvador so you leave relatively late on the autopista. Out of town the road gains shoulders and for thirty odd km you enjoy a nice smooth mostly downhill ride. Then the road goes crap. Road works drag on and on and you find just how bad El Salvadorian traffic can be. Later on you grab hold of a slow moving truck on the ascent. Sure, its cheating but why the hell not.
Traffic in San Salvador equals that of Guat. city. It is a big adrenalin rush. Sofia doesnt see the fun side of it.
You make your way into town to the hostel and off to find some food.
San Vicente.: Heading east
Friday October 26, 2007, 60 km (37 miles) Total so far: 5,719 km (3,554 miles)
San Salvador is surprisingly nice to visit. The centre has a pretty cool market where seemingly anything can be bought. A couple girls say some things to you. Are they prostitutes or do they just want to sell some clothes? And why does everyone want to sell you the most ugliest clothes?
You leave Sofia in San Salvador. She wants to see a couple of things and you want to ride on. Besides, it will do you both good to spend some time apart. Traffic isnt so bad with the notable exceptions of course.
The road is nice and gets nicer further out of town with a nice wide shoulder. Some ascents and a couple long deep descents. You get a flat. You change it easily enough but with the new rims you cannot inflate the tube. But you get by.
You leave the highway for a nice descent down to San Vicente. It is a sizable town yet only has the one restaurant. Nice.
To San Miguel.: Riding at night
Saturday October 27, 2007, 80 km (50 miles) Total so far: 5,799 km (3,603 miles)
With the most popular bar in town a mere three metres down the corridor from your room you couldnt help but have a few beers. And after chatting to a few guys you couldnt help but have a few more. You are invited to stay another night for a big fiesta in town. Perhaps you should but then again you really just want to ride on. TV and wifi internet also help to waste your night away.
So you wake up late. You go to the only restaurant in town and have a look around the market. Much like San Salvador many people are over eager to show you some very ugly shirts.
You climb the hill back up to the panamericana. There are some shops to buy food there but after that is nada for a very long time. Along the road people sell a myriad of different foods. You see your very first live armadillo. Maybe. And it is yours for only ten dollars, cooked and served on a platter.
Eventually you find a restaurant but after wasting too much time waiting for your meal you waste even more time arguing over your bill. Darkness comes way too soon and you spend an hour or so riding in the dark. From here it is mostly downhill though so its not too bad. There are nice wide shoulders but their condition is variable so you stay on the road. You need to concentrate hard on the road. But wait, headlights coming straight at you are cause for concern. But traffic isnt that bad and it is a nice cool evening.
You come into San Miguel. Someone drives by and offers to show you to a hotel. So you are shown to a hotel. Apparently its not too safe in town. So you stay in for the night. Perhaps you should have stayed in San Vicent after all.
Welcome to Honduras. Again.: To Nacaome
Sunday October 28, 2007, 95 km (59 miles) Total so far: 5,894 km (3,662 miles)
The first order of business is to find a bike shop. Unfortunately it is Sunday and they are all closed. So you press on. Its 58 km to the Hondouros border apparently. The road is nice. The traffic is nice enough. You have a late lunch in Santa Rosa. From there it is 30 km to the border. And the border closes at five. Better get going then.
The first order of business is to find a bike shop. Unfortunately it is Sunday and they are all closed. So you press on. Its 58 km to the Hondouros border apparently. The road is nice. The traffic is nice enough. You have a late lunch in Santa Rosa. From there it is 30 km to the border. And the border closes at five. Better get going then.
Its not 30 km to the border. Its ten km max. You go through the usual border formalities including half a dozen guys wanting to change your money. Theres at least one hotel on either side of the border. But theres at least an hour of daylight left so why not use it.
Oh yeah. Welcome to Honduras.
Apparently the next hotel is 35 km away in Nacaome. You better get going then. You pass some young men standing by the road. One calls out to you in English. Get the fuck outta here man. Best keep going then. Apart from the one antagonistic almost everyone else is happy to see you. You get more than enough hellos of various descriptions. A lot are actually bye byes and adios.
Then it gets dark. There are a lot of insects about which makes the going even more difficult. Just before town you spot a nice hotel. You pull up outside. Two men battle with a snake. Its not poisonous. I think. So says one. The hotel is too expensive so you keep going. So is the next one. You head into town where two more hotels are. They are still more expensive than you would like but what are you going to do? So you take one.
To the border.: Cant wait to leave the place
Monday October 29, 2007, 90 km (56 miles) Total so far: 5,984 km (3,718 miles)
You move out, having a look around town and in search of breakfast. People here call out to you but they are angry and aggressive. Hey gringo. They shout. And when you dont respond immediately its like who the fuck do you think you are? No hablo Ingles. You respond. Hablas Espaniol?
Hello amigo. Give me five dollars. Some guy shouts at you. You keep riding. Up ahead you find something to buy. You are half way through sorting your money when the guy catches up to you, still asking for money. No. No. You say. The guy stays. Eventually he leaves, about a meter. You wait for a little while and just go, business unfinished. Perhaps the store owners told him to go away until you finished the transaction. Or maybe he just told him to go away. Either way he cost the guy business. And you still need to go elsewhere to buy the things that you need.
You leave town. Hungry. Five km up the road is the turnoff to the capital. Here you find something to eat. There are also a couple hotels here. A few short km further is San Lorenzo which almost resembles a resort town. You immediately get a strange sensation to buy fried fish and a milkshake and sit on a pier. There is even a bike path along side the road.
The thing about bike paths though is that they guilt you into using them no matter what condition or obstacles are about. The same replies for the shoulder along the road. Sometimes it is fine. Sometimes they are crap. Often cars park there. Usually buses and vans overtake just to pull up directly ahead of you to let passengers on or off. This one isnt so bad though, except when pedestrians use it to walk on with scarce concern for the cyclist behind them.
As you have just eaten and dont really have any interest in hanging about you move on. Its a long hot ride to Choluteca. The town doesnt look like much but they have a selection of restaurants and a few nice looking hotels leaving town. After lunch it is only 45 km to the border. You miss the turnoff due to lack of signage and it is another kilometer of so before you turn back.
You start to miss El Salvador. The traffic is a little nastier here. The shoulders arent so good. And the people are less than friendly. Children are trained to hold out there hand and say dollar at you. You patience wears thin. Some girl says I love you. You say How much? Time to leave this country.
You get to the border. A swarm of money changers engulf you. No gracias. You repeat but the chance of a fresh fish is just too great. There is a hotel on the Hondouran side and you check it out. One of the money changers lingers, trying to corner the market. Solo cambio. He proclaims. No solo. You shout back.
China town.: Im number one
Tuesday October 30, 2007, 82 km (51 miles) Total so far: 6,066 km (3,769 miles)
Spending one last night in Honduras was not a good idea. The only hotel on the border is infested with insects leaving you with a rather restless night swatting cockroaches, mosquitoes, spiders, and other random insects. You leave the hotel. You make it almost one meter before being approached by a money changer. This time the exchange is about right although he doesnt quite give you all your money. He just walks away. Well, you are still better off than yesterday.
You cross over into Nicaragua. Hello Nicaragua. Good riddance Honduras. For the next fifteen km about the road is really, really shite. So much so that you are able to overtake two semi-trucks with ease. You stop for breakfast five km in. Good thing too as you get a flat and your spare tubes cannot now be inflated with you tire inflator.
After another hour traversing on that nightmare of a road you are presented with a nice, smooth, pothole free stretch all the way to China town. The land is flat but boy is it hot. Damn hot. Like in Honduras passes by sometimes hold up their index finger and say something incomprehensible as you ride past. Im number one? Why thank you. You ponder. Or is it you just want one dollar?