They can fly?!

It was just a normal night like any other. The sun was down for hours, and a storm was raging as usual. As per tradition, the power eventually failed, and we scrambled to turn on the generators so that we could have some lights. In about a minute we had power restored, but the internet was down, so I tried to paint something. After painting on my art program, I looked up and saw something about the size of an eraser fluttering around the lamp on the other side of the room.

I wasn't sure what it was, perhaps it was a moth, we do have a lot of those around here. Well, we have a lot of every type of creepy crawly around here. Moths, butterflies, spiders, lizards, frogs, birds, etc... If it exists, we have it here in one form or another. What I didn't realize at this time, was that the flying thing was none other than...

Pictures of Guatemala - 2

I feel too lazy to write anything today, so instead, have these pictures.

What will they think of next?

A lot of people here don't have money to spend on nice things, and generally you can see that just by going to the store. One of those luxuries are sweets, we don't have very many available to us, and those that we have are usually not that good in the first place. The one thing we do have that I would consider acceptable, are Oreos.

Yes good old fashioned Christie brand Oreos, the cookie everyone hates, but the filling everyone loves. I admit, I like them, they're far from my favourite cookie, but they'll do nicely. Personally, I would love nothing more than to buy a tube of cookie dough and bake some good chocolate chip cookies, but you can't do that here.

Homemade

Today the Vista Rio was advertising a New Orleans styled jambalaya as their special of the day. Now these guys are from Louisiana, so it's got to be pretty authentic, so what could go wrong? Dad loves jambalaya, so he completely abandoned all the food he bought in Guatemala City, and took me on the boat to Vista Rio. We are currently in the process of buying a new boat to travel around town in, so we went to the marina owner and borrowed one of his. After a long ordeal of starting the boat, we finally got it going, and set off for some jambalaya.

Mystery Fruit - Revealed!

So with the past two days giving you ample time to guess what the mystery fruit was, I had one person saying that it looked like an eggplant. Well, no this isn't an eggplant, but something much more local than that. something so normal, it seems peculiar to name call it something no one here has ever seen before. The fact is, this is an extremely common fruit, what is uncommon, at least in these parts, is the size that beast grew to. 

Journey to the South - Map 3

Upon leaving America, we headed into the great unknown of Mexico. While we originally planned to go through Mexico quickly, we were advised by an expert on Mexico to take at least five days, or else we would be charged by the Mexican authorities a fee for travelling though Mexico, and not as tourists. Heeding his advice, we went through Mexico slowly as you can tell from the blog. This is perhaps the safest route of going through Mexico, so if you ever find yourself there, remember this map. Route taken is shown in purple.

Flotilla

There was an unusual occurrence here today, something I've never seen before in my life anywhere. Apparently this thing happens quite frequently, but it's the first time I've seen it, so I was kind of freaked out by it.

What I saw, was a series of islands floating down the river. I know that sounds crazy, but it's exactly what they were, huge chunks of land that broke off, but are light enough to float on the water. All the life forms on the land naturally stays alive as it moves down river, so it's very dangerous to go on it. Besides the fact that your boat will get stuck, all the native snakes and spiders aren't gonna be very happy to see you.

Mystery Fruit 2

My parents returned from their trip late this evening, and they brought back a variety of things from Guatemala City. They stormed Wal-Mart when it opened this morning (we have no big stores here), and bought $1000 worth of goods. At least we won't have to go to the store for a while...

One of the things they brought back was a giant fruit, one like I had never seen before. I have had this fruit before, but never one this big. I was truly amazed and even a little repulsed by the sight of this large bulging fruit. But enough of that, can you guys guess what this is?

This thing goes to above my knees when standing on it's end. 

If you think you know what it is, post your answer in the comments!

Still Expanding my Mind

Continuing from yesterday, I'll talk some more about how I am educating myself in these days of boredom. 

As I was reading about Phantom of the Opera, I did as most Wikipedia readers do, and began exploring the links to other pages. The one page which captivated me above all else, was the page about Palais Garnier, the opera house which serves as the setting for Phantom. It is rare to find a setting that becomes more than just a time and place, but an actual character which stands among the heavy weights.

The Palais Garnier does that and so much more. Can you imagine replacing the majesty of this Napoleon III era structure, with a boring and run of the mill opera house like the Jubilee Center? Doing such a thing would rip out a massive chunk of the soul out of Phantom. This discussion about the architecture of the Palais Garnier brings up my next point of interest: Architecture.

Expanding Mind

Once again, my parents have gone to Panama, and I'm left babysitting the three dogs. Since there is nothing really to do, I spent the day reading about things of various interest, finally reaching a climax only a short while ago. I began first by reading about the great novel, Phantom of the Opera. The truth is, as I was trying to go to sleep last night, I had the main theme of Phantom playing in my head non-stop. Therefore, it was only logical that read up about this literary masterwork.

Did you know that when it was released, the public actually didn't like the book? I was quite amazed by that fact, as it wasn't until a silent film based on Phantom was released in 1925, that it caught on with the masses. Yet really, you can't talk Phantom without mentioning Andrew Lloyd Webbers, fantastic score. Truly it captures the grand style of the period of opera, while also creating a piece which sets the bar for all musicals to come. If only he didn't waste his time working on that abomination Cats...

Chimichanga

Who here has ever had a chimichanga? I honestly don't remember ever having one before, as I was mostly a person who only ate tacos and burritos, always staying away from the "other" types of Mexican/Southwestern food. I only tried a quesadilla a couple years ago, and it was quite alright, but nothing that really wowed me. A week or so ago, I had an enchillada from Vista Rio, and while it was quite good, again it wasn't anything special.

Today, I returned to the Vista Rio, and they're daily special was the chimichanga. As I said before, I can't remember ever having one before, at least not of the frozen variety, so I was hesitant about having one. The owner explained to us that it was a traditional Texas styled meal, so I gave in easily.

Chicken

Now I know a lot of you guys are quite familiar with the comedy stylings of Dave Chappelle, and I want to start this post with some of his wisdom.

One Nasty Storm

I didn't update yesterday because a storm once again knocked out our internet, and our land power. The land power wasn't a big problem because we can always run the on board generators to restore power, even if it does use our fuel. However this storm was like no other storm we've experienced here in Guatemala.

This thing, was the remnants of a tropical storm. In this case, it would be Tropical Storm Helene which is now dissipating over Tampico, Mexico as I write this. Living in land locked Alberta, I never experienced something like this, and even as this was just the remains I can't really claim to have experienced such a storm.

Pineapple Meatballs

Not everyday can be takeout, and frankly I'm quite glad for that. For the past two days, we've been having some good old fashioned home cooking, if only we could do this everyday...

Now one of the things mom loves making, is her pineapple meatballs with rice. I remember having them even way back when I was kid living in Edmonton. They taste really good, and they're fairly easy to make, rather than go on about how awesome they are, I'll tell you guys how to make them instead.

Stuffed Peppers

Back home in Fort McMurray, my friends and I used to get together every so often with our own homemade dish. I remember the first time, Dustin brought over stuffed peppers, he loved making stuffed peppers. Those gatherings were virtually the only times I would eat stuffed peppers, as my parents didn't really make them all that often.

Yesterday evening, we planned to go to Vista Rio to get cheeseburgers as they were the special of the day, but Mom was being difficult. She didn't want us to go there, so instead she made us travel the other way to a restaurant we've never been to before called Rosita's.

Mystery Fruit

Every night, it seems like the internet quits before I get around to doing the blog. Therefore, I intend to start updating it everyday between late morning and early afternoon to avoid such issues.

Now continuing from the other day, it is time to identify that mysterious fruit that I posted about. This fruit is like a combination of many other fruits, it's rather surreal. The outside is spiked like a pineapple, when you cut it open, it looks and smells almost like an apple, but when you eat, it tastes almost like a potato.

Journey to the South - Map 2

Following from the ancient post detailing our route through Canada, today I bring you the American leg of the journey. As you can see, this is goes from out entry into New York state, ending in Cincinnati, Ohio. The next day shows our journey from Ohio into Kentucky, Tennessee, and Arkansas. Finally, the last bit of trail shows our hellish campaign from Arkansas all the way to McAllen, Texas, a drive which forced us to sleep in our truck overnight.

Back Again

The past few days have been rough with regards to the internet, thus I wasn't able to post anything in that period of time. Now however, our internet woes seem to be gone for good, so I can update regularly once again. (Watch the internet kick the bucket after this...)

Today I bring you something a little different. Yesterday, I was out at a restaurant, and I met a very nice woman from Belgium. She brought in this fruit I had never had before, and I simply fell in love with it. I should also explain this restaurant a little bit.

History

As you all should know, I consider myself an expert on Canadian history. I pride myself on knowing more than the average Canadian, and what I don't know, I look up to discover the truth. As I sat through another internet dry spell, I asked my parents who they would put on new Canadian dollar bills if they had the chance to design new ones. Here are their answers.

Mom: 

1. Tommy Hunter
2. Gordon Lightfoot
3. Anne Murray
4. Peter Mansbridge
5. Peter McKay

Dad:

1. James Wolf
2. Frederick Banting
3. Laura Secord
4. Samuel de Champlain
5. John Cabot

Some interesting choices if I do say so myself, if some are perhaps a little disappointing. Here is my own list of great Canadians, with justification of course.

Pictures from Guatemala

I think I've ranted and complained enough for little while. Time to exchange these large walls of text with some pictures of the land. Enjoy.

 The setting sun of Guatemala.

Food on the Rio

There is a story about a land where food is cheap and tastes delight your palate as never before. This land is full of colour and life, the chefs wanting to please every patron who comes through their doors. I was told about this promised land, and I was told that there were great culinary delights to be had. I don't know if such a place truly does exist, but I do know for sure that it is not here.

River Fresh

Today my parents wanted to buy a small barbecue to install on the fly bridge. Tired of having restaurant food half the time and mediocre spaghetti the other half, this seemed like a good idea. So charged the battery of the dinghy, and my parents left to go to the store while I took care of the hounds. Unfortunately for them, the dinghy quit half way to the store, and they had to paddle the rest of the way. Now the store they went to wasn't a grocery store, but more of a convenience store trapped forty years in the past. The place has some food, but not exactly stuff to make a decent meal out of. So they grabbed what they could and returned back.

Ingram Asked - Answers Part 2

So let's get this final installment of Ingram Asked off right away. This huge list of questions comes once again from Lucy.

Do you feel cold during evening time?

Absolutely not. If anyone ever feels cold in the evening while being here I strongly suggest seeking immediate medical treatment. It's too hot for chills!

Ingram Asked - Answers Part 1

So after a lot of waiting, the first answer session to Ingram Asked is here. Since I got so many questions, I have extended the deadline for question up to Saturday morning. Therefore, those who haven't yet submitted their questions (Dustin), can have the opportunity to do so. So now without further ado, let the answering of questions begin!


This first question comes from my good friend Ali Malik.

Enjoy the Little Things - Update!

When living on the Rio Dulce, like living in a zombie apocalyspe there are some rules you need to follow to stay alive and in the right state of mind. Some of these rules are common sense, but necessary all the same. Today, being my mothers birthday, we stopped to enjoy some of the little things, and now things don't seem quite as bad.