Homeward bound

Buses, taxis, colectivos, rental cars, ferries and airplanes have landed me here in Venice Beach, CA at my big sister's apartment.
I arrived 2 nights ago after an amazing last week in Mexico. Re-cap:

After my last post several things unfolded. Ken, Thea's boss, really wanted to buy my surfboard from me. I kept ignoring his offers with hopes that he would give me a better deal for it, and he did! ... I had started planning a solo trip down the Caribbean coast towards Belize. I was going to rent a car and say goodbye to Thea, Luna and Tulum for a week. As this was unfolding Ken brought up the surfboard again. I agreed to sell it to hm if I could have Thea for a week! Yes, this is called human trafficking at it's best! It worked. I sold my board to him for almost the price I bought it, and got my girl Thea and her little white dog for a week!

Our trip was perfect. Not rushed at all. Consisting of many lingering meals, chatting around the table. Sometimes just Thea and I, sometimes with the locals in whatever town we were in, and sometimes with other travelers.
We started at a local sea turtle reserve north of Tulum. Thea's friend showed us this amazing beach where we camped one night. In the morning we went snorkeling in a cenote (underground river/ cave system) and explored this tranquil beach.
From here we drove to Xcalak which is far south on the little tip of land towards Belize. Here we snorkeled, ate Berracuda, and camped with a perfect view of the sunrise over the Caribbean. The locals told us our campsite was haunted by a man who was thrown off the bridge 20 years ago. A little scary, although the only thing that resembled ghost presence was when we found Luna asleep on top of the tent! Not sure how she was able to climb the tent, or balance well on top of it, most have been the ghost...
From here we went to Bacalar, the lagoon of seven colors. In the town of Bacalar we were welcomed in strange ways. We pulled up to a crowded and crappy looking campground to check out the options. The guard would not let us even look in without taking our money. We left and went to a little public beach towards the lagoon. Here we saw a baby crocodile. The cops came and threw it in the back of their truck to take it to the local crocodile breeding station. Luna was being as cute as ever. I took her to the lagoon to rinse off her muddy little body when a crazy old Mexican lady started screaming at me. "This is for people, not dogs! What is wrong with you! I will call the cops" I grabbed Luna and Thea and we left as she continued screaming at us.
This was good, because we found this beautiful eco-resort just north of town. We pulled up, paid, and grabbed a double kayak. We paddled out into the lagoon with Luna. This was officially her first boating trip. She cried a little, but did well over all! The water is crystal-clear and beautiful shades of blue and green. A storm came in after we finished kayaking. It rained harder than I had experienced in Mexico. As I hiked up to the car in my Freer raincoat I had distinct memories of rainy days at work. This feeling includes a knowledge that in Oregon the rain will likely not stop for several days, or weeks. I shook myself out of it, realizing that yes, I was still in Mexico and knowing that I will have to face my rainy, muddy days in the field later, with a Mexico tan and a large dose of Vitamin D!
That night we ate shrimp curry made by the local German couple (so good!). In the morning we swam and swam (this is the highlight of the town).
We drove North with plans to check out the ruins at Chichen Itza. We stopped in Tulum to pick up our friend Laura Dawn. This turned into an event that kept us in town for the night, drinking margaritas and watching Flamenco guitar. We had a blast and ran into some friends, old and new, including Davison from Tucson. I had met Davison and his 3 friends several days ago on the beach in Tulum when I was running around with Luna. Luna is responsible for most of the friends I made in Tulum!
The next morning we headed to the ruins, only making it as far as Coba. In Coba we wandered around in the heat of the day with Luna. Each picture I have of the ruins includes a little white dog! We ate a long lunch and decided that my last night in Mexico should be at the beach. From there we drove back to the Tulum beach to a little palapa resort called Papaya Playa. I know this place well because I spent several days on the beach here, pretending like I was a guest. This is the local "clothing-optional" beach as well! All of the kitchen staff here knew Luna by name and were excited to see us (her!).
We laughed, swam, ate and laughed some more. Thea fell asleep in her jeans and Laura Dawn, Davison and I went to a restaurant down the road seeking live music. Instead we found sangrias, which were also exciting. We swam at night and I said goodbye to the Caribbean sea.

My travels to LA were easy. The flight was nearly empty leaving me with a full row to myself. The flight attendants were hilarious. I don't think I had ever seen such a lively, happy group of air travel people before. I was greeted by my wonderful sister Crystal at LAX. Our first stop was Pinkberry's which is apparently a new LA trend. Non-fat frozen yogurt with fruit, so good! Then we went back to her beautiful new home. An upstairs apartment on Venice Beach with a huge garden, great light, and a 1/2 block walk to the beach! My parents arrived on Friday after I spent the morning in high school with Crystal (she is an art teacher). Her kids were hilarious, and reminded me what high school was all about (social life, fights, sexual energy, etc.).

Yesterday was full of friends, family and food. My uncle, aunt and cousins came by as did lots of Crystal's friends. The guest of honor was Kaya, Chris Michael's beautiful daughter of 15 months. We went to the Monarch butterfly park and the beach. She showed me the sign for butterfly, very cute.

One more day here, then back to Portland where the forecast is calling for rain, rain, and rain all week...

Tulum, Thea, beaches and travel decision-making

Here I am. I have one week left in Mexico and feel some pressure to make it exceptional. I have not decided what that means yet, but have ran through about 200 options in my head of what I think that means. Several days ago I was ready to bus down to Guatamala, or maybe to Central Mexico. I thought about going to Belize, maybe just hanging out here, maybe going to a small beach town to the south.
So, I have decided that I have ants in my pants, and I should stay here, see the local sites, join in the tourism, and spend as much time with Thea and Luna as I can. This is my decision this morning, all subject to change.

Tulum has been quite a change for me. Bigger town, more noises, people, tourists. Most tourists are more of the ¨backpacker¨type, which is refreshing from the Cancun crowd. I am realizing how spoiled I was in Nexpa, and that finding gems here is a little more work. Of course, I am still enjoying my days, spending time on the beach, meeting friends, and mostly re-uniting with Thea, who I might not see at home for a long time!

One more week...

Arrival in Tulum...Thea and Luna!

I am currently sitting in an Internet Cafe next to Thea with Luna in my lap. Luna is a new member of the family, hopefully you will all get to meet her soon... Yes, Thea adopted a Mexican street dog! She is a pup, about 7 weeks old. She´s all white and very very small. We think she won´t get too much bigger, which won´t make her the best river dog! Ha! Really though, I am convincing Thea that she should let me take her home with me because I am totally in love.

I got in last night after a full day of travel from Zihuatanajo including taxis, airplanes, buses and colectivos. It has been wonderful to catch up with Thea and see her new home away from home.

Let me back track a little...


I decided to stay in Rio Nexpa for about 3 weeks total, for which I am so thankful. It was an amazing place to be for so many reasons. By the end it was just Allan and I with a few new friends. Gabe and Heather left, as did the family from Morelia. We met new travellers, and continued our life of surfing, eating, hamicking (yes, it is a sport), sleeping, yoga, etc. Some of the new characters we met:

Oliver- a French surf instructor with a lot of energy. He liked to call me a ´lazy girl´when I was in my hamick.

Jason- from Montreal. He showed with a longboard and an amazing attitude. Instead of learning Spanish phrases, he would speak to Mexicans in French, and smile.

Cumpa- from Rio Nexpa. I don´t think I talked about him before... he worked at the grocery store which was also a surf shop and internet place. Every day he joked with me about the coconut popsicles I would buy. He called them my cocaine popsicles, since I was obviously so addicted! He wore a white hankerchief over his shoulders every day. His facial expression usually looked like he had just eaten something sour... very cute.

There were many more, including some of the local surfers, who were each amazing people to watch and chat with. Some cockier than others, but I quickly realized that doesn´t really matter when you are a female surfer!

Leaving Nexpa felt like a chapter ending in a book, maybe even the whole book ending. I left with gratitude for the time and memories, and knowledge that this new chapter would be very different.


I took a few buses south to get to Zihuatanejo. Jason, the Canadian, came with me and showed me the restuarants and hostel he knew from before. We ate fish tacos, drank margaritas, and watched the fisherman paddle out into the bay. It was a cute town, very touristy.

My travels yesterday were long and exciting in many ways. I was transferring buses in Cancun and ran into my friend Lalo. I knew that he would be in the area, but it was very random. We ate tacos at the local stand, and he went on his way. I met lots of people on the way including a cranky business woman from Chicago, a man who works for the federal gov´t in climate change studies, a bus driver who proposed to me, and a baggage checker who asked me to marry his son. Ha! I love this country!

Now I will see what the Carribean has to offer while spending time with Thea and Luna.

Rio Nexpa and the hard life...

I am still in Rio Nexpa enjoying the surf, sun, and hamick time. I will back-track a little bit... After my night in Melaque I took 2 or 3 more buses to La Ticla, a small beach where I could meet Allan and Mark. The bus dropped me off at the top of the hill. I started to walk, then got a ride from two old men. I found Allan and Mark and met some new friends... Mark gave me the tour of the beach, river and the best place to get shrimp tacos. I stayed with them that night with plans to catch a ride to Rio Nexpa in the morning with Gabe, a new friend from San Diego.
That night I met the local doctor and we had a great dinner, some laughs and beers. The next day I took Mark´s board out for my first Mexico surf. Within the first several minutes I got to know the local jellyfish population. They left me with a bubbly rash along my arm and legs which is just beginning to clear up. We left shortly after for Nexpa.
Arriving to Rio Nexpa it was Allan, Gabe, Heather and myself. We found a nice, cheap cabaña and made ourselves at home. After a quick move in we grabbed boards and paddled out for an evening surf. The sunset was beautiful and I felt so blessed to be here.
Since then we have found a routine here. We have been here for a week now. Each day we wake up, look at the waves from our balcony, stretch, snack, lay in a hamick... surf, eat a huge meal, pass the day... laugh, walk, eat more, maybe surf more, beach run, walk, read, write in journals, play guitar and laugh some more. Our group is very dynamic with a variety of different characters around.
Gabe is a 21 year old from San Diego who is spending his winter on a Mexico road trip in his parents old minivan. Heather is a Canadian surfer, firedancing, massage therapist with a wicked laugh. Allan is my amazing friend/ co-worker from Corvallis who is also spending the winter here, surfing and running around. Together we make a great group. We enjoy eachother´s company, while still doing our own thing each day.
This town is very small and the local characters are a lot of fun. There is Gerry- the Mexican surf instructor. He can be found randomly wearing a ´lucha libre´ mask while surfing or running around town. Downstairs from us there is an amazing family from Morelia. It is a 3 generation family, all here helping run the cabaña and restuarant for the winter. Reina Marcela is the 4 yr old. She is super cute and quite demanding (Reina means queen). We have a lot of fun with her and her parents and grandmother are very sweet and hospitable. Next door you will find the group of Israelis. One looks a lot like the guy from Knocked up. He likes to wink at me while I try not to bust out laughing. Also, there is an amazing couple from Washington staying in their camper next to us. Frank and Laurel. They are road-tripping Mexico for 6 weeks this winter. They have a variety of travel board games including Scrabble (great memories from my recent trek!). Frank sold me his surfboard after letting me ride it for several days. It is a great learning board for me. I would like to think that I am learning to surf, it is a difficult process including lots of salt water in my nose! The locals are patient with me in the water, which is great.
Today´s highlight was when I went to sit in my hamick after lunch. Apparently I didn´t tie my knot very well and fell dramatically on my ass. Everyone at the restaurant next door saw, as did my friends. We all got a good laugh and I will probably only have a few bruises...
Well, that is the news as of lately. Life is easy here. I will stay here at least a few more days, then travel south. I am not sure where at this point. I will eventually get to Tulum to see Thea- I will probably fly there. That is it for now. I hope you are all going well...

Rio Nexpa is the love of my life

Hi friends,
Im spending the next week at this wonderful, beautiful beach called Rio Nexpa. The internet is slow and expensive, so this will be quick.
I am surfing, relaxing, eating great food and spending time with amazing people, including my co worker Allan. I hope you all are well and you can look forward to a longer post in a week or 2...or 3...

the first two bodies of water I swam in...

I arrived to Puerto Vallarta around 4 pm yesterday, which seems like a decade ago. The flight was easy and smooth. I got to chat it up with some awesome ladies from Spokane and a flamboyant Mexican flight attendant.
I got off the plane, put on my flip flops and walked out to taxi drivers hollaring at me. I ignored them and hopped on the shwankyest looking bus that went in the direction of the hostel. The roads, cars, stray dogs and trash looked like most latin american countries I´ve been to, and then I saw Walmart ( This is awful!!). The hostel was very nice and everyone there was super friendly. I took a short nap and went out for dinner. Looking around I noticed that every 3rd person walking down the street was either a gringo or Canadian, usually over 50 years old! The Mexicans all assume my Spanish is very limited or non-existent and speak to me in English. When I respond in Spanish they don´t usually know what to do and continue to talk to me in a Spaniglish mix. It´s been a fun experiment and my Spanish is coming back quickly.
After dinner I went back to the hostel with a plan to fall asleep. I was almost asleep when my 2 suite mates asked me if I wanted to go dancing. Randomly enough, one of the girls was from Halfway, Oregon which is a tiny town we went through on our way to the Snake River this summer. My friend Brain grew up there and his adorable parents are still there. Small world.
So, I went dancing, but not just any dancing. This was a gay club with a swimming pool. Random, yes. I was with my 2 suite mates, Stefanie and Jeanne, and Dan from Isreal (none of us are gay). First we went to a different place, not knowing that we would be experiencing the entertainment of two Mexican male strippers... They were not very attractive and sort of clumsy, although I think any male stripper looks a little clumsy! We had enough, and went to the swimming pool place. We danced, swam and had a blast. The beauty of these places is that men didn´t hit on us, they just sort of laughed and danced and grabbed each other´s asses. It was awesome.
This morning I got up and said goodbye to all of my hostel friends. I was very ready to leave Puerto Vallarta. It is far too big and touristy for me. I took the bus to Melaque, a small beach town. It is cute and cheap and every Canadian goes here to die, I am convinced. At least they are less amnoxious than Gringos! On I go to Rio Nexpa tomorrow....

On my way to PDX

It is the day before my little adventure. Saying goodbye to my home is always difficult. I am ready, yet hesitant to say goodbye. My first stop is LAX where I will eat some overpriced bad lunch I am sure, then hop on the plane to Puerto Vallarta. My plan as of now (might change at any time), is to stay in a hostel for 1 or 2 days, then travel to Rio Nexpa beach. From there, we will see.
Wishing you all a safe and fun winter. I am not sure how much I will update this. I guess it depends on the internet availability and how much time I want to spend on computers!
Much love,
Rachelle