Theses are the words from my journal... I may change the way it is written on paper slightly, but I can assure you that the stories are exactly as they happened.
I learned at a young age to keep a journal when traveling, and this one is all about my very first backpacking adventure, on my own without adult supervision!
Unfortunately, there are almost no photos from this trip.. but hey we'll get creative, use midjourney and read it like a book!
I've wanted to tell my story forever, and the time has finally come to transfer these experiences onto the internet. And who knows, maybe you'll let me know whether these stories are worth making a book one day too.
I couldn't tell you what it's like today for 20 somethings to travel the way I did, if it's safer or more dangerous, but I can tell you that it shaped the rest of my life and traveling the world became a winter ritual for me and eventually for my family too!
These are the stories of my youth, stories I never want to forget. I hope you enjoy them, but most of all, I hope they inspire you.
January 22 2000.
We got up at 9:15 am. That means the 9:30 bus to Palenque was a no go. So we had breakfast and at 11am we went to the bus station. All the buses were full, the next one we could take wasn't until 4:30pm so, we went back to the main plaza of San Cristobal. We sat down on a bench and of course, all the children that were around came running to harass us with their bracelets, purses, belts and other things for sell. Sandrine and I bought a couple small handmade Zapatista soldiers. When we got fed up with the constant approach of kids of kids asking us for money, we got up and went to our favorite bar once again.
Those kids are actually really great once you buy something, give them a toy or just talk to them, they're king of fun. I made a paper airplane for one of them and he loved it.
At the bar/restaurant we had some pasta and about four hours to kill. Vero had about 5 cups of coffee and a beer. The rest of the day was spent on a bus. The ride was OK the driver really took it easy. At least that wasn’t scary (going around the thousand turns in the mountains), but what was scary was when the bus pulled over & some guy jumped on who wasn't quite dressed like a military in blue but almost. My heart started to pound! It only was a check point, but still, since I didn’t have my permission slip you had to pay for at the boarder, I wondered what was going to happen when they checked my passport.
Well nothing happened! I think that’s the second fright when a passenger walked up to the driver, but that also was nothing. And then of course another check point, by military this time, at the entrance of Palenque.
Tonight we just walked around after having found a hotel and got hamburgers off a street vendor before coming back to the rooms.
Holy shit! The Pyramids of Palenque are just Fucking great! This morning we dicked around a bit looking for and waiting for the Internet Café to open. After we had breakfast at the hotel at 9:15am, it still wasn’t open so we decided we'd go later in the evening. We got on a VW bus to the pyramids. I think we were there until about 2:30pm.
When you get there (normally you have to pay, but it was Sunday, so it was free). You have to sign in and walk up a few steps (100 or so). Once at the top it seems so much bigger than the pictures. We walked up the first one. It felt great to be on something that ates from more than 1000 years before Christ!
We walked around to the back of it and Sandrine led us into the jungle thinking we could find some hidden Pyramids. This was our first jungle experience. The air is thick, so thick it’s hard to breath. You can smell (and of course feel) the moisture in the air. We only walked in there for 10 minutes, but I can say that the vegetation is amazing. There are all these huge plants with very big leaves that could be used as umbrellas and big trees that have all sorts of other plants growing on them and hanging down.
Anyway, we got out of there and went exploring the ruins. The view from each one of them is fabulous. In the Palace (the main Pyramid!) there are tunnels you can walk through and come out at different spots in the Palace. Each Pyramid has a great number of steps which are very steep and kind of big for small people (as they are supposed to be).
These Pyramids were used to hold religious ceremonies. In the Palace lived the “king” of this Maya region. We stepped out for lunch and water. All that hiking up and down the stairs makes you real thirsty. Plus, it’s hot like a mother fucker out there in the sun. We got some water and coconut water like you get in Brooklyn, tho it's right off the tree and cut with a big knife so you can put a straw in it.
Then we went to a restaurant and had rice and beans. We went back to the ruins and visited the rest we hadn't seen, than on the way out we stopped at a museum. There are all the artifacts they found in the pyramids. We did lots of reading and lots of looking. It's all beautiful stuff. Out of there and back at the hotel, we all took showers and went to the internet, walked around a bit and went back to the rooms.
The town of Palenque's not much. We sat around reading and talking about what we read then went for dinner. After dinner it's back at the hotel. I took another shower. Tomorrow we're supposed to get on a boat and go down the river which follows the Mexican-Guatemalan border. It should take a few days, and we'll finally sleep in our hammocks for the first time.
Next time... A near death experience on a river between Mexico and Guatemala, where no one knows where we are!
My First Backpacking Trip:
Chapter 01: NYC to Mexico - Y2K
Chapter 02: NYC to Mexico - Cajun Wedding
Chapter 03: Everything is Lost
Chapter 04: Mexico City Finally!
Chapter 05: Robbery at Gun Point
Chapter 06: Sick but Safe in Veracruz
Chapter 07: Tlacotalpan and the Eyipantla Falls
Chapter 08: In the Land of Zapatistas
Chapter 09: Zapatistas and Skinheads
Chapter 10: Horseback To Chamula
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