Party, Rest, Air Show, Rest and Photos

January 29, 2012  Day 15
Miles from Huntington Beach, California to San Salvador, El Salvador: 3227

We are at Carlos' in San Salvador.  We arrived Friday afternoon with him escorting us from the Guatemalan border.  Since arriving here we have rested, enjoyed a late night surprise birthday party which included a mariachi band, rested, had the bikes washed, attended a fabulous airshow and now Carl and Carlos are down in the garage working on the bikes.



I got behind on the blog and hope to get it caught up before leaving here on Monday morning. Mario, a friend of Carlos', will be escorting us out of town. Do they want to make sure the gringos get out of town? or is that just the hospitality they have shown us over and over again? It is definitely the later. Central Americans are wonderful people.

Here are some photos from along the way.

On the ferry to Mazatlan at sunset

Sunset on the Sea of Cortez

Riding the bikes into the hotel, secure parking




The bikes get to stay the night by the indoor pool.  Our room was directly behind the bikes.  Nice!

The next nigt they got to rest in the dining room.  This hotel was hot with no air conditioning, but the only one in town.
  Hotel Paris in Santiago Astata.  Carl had to ride the bikes up the stairs to get in. 
He did good. 

Mexico has some beautiful beaches.

Hotel in Tonala, Chiapas, Mexico.  We decided to knock off early in Tonala to do laundry and get caught up on the ride report.  We got checked into the hotel and turned on email and received the news that the Heritage had sunk.  Our oldest son Steve is the Captain of this 68 foot fishing vessel in Kodiak, Alaska.  All crew were safely brought to Kodiak!  You can go to the Anchorage Daily News for a report.  The engine room filling  up with water was the final problem.  Steve said the crew worked perfectly together, getting the life raft deployed and getting into it.   The Coast Guard does an outstanding job.  They rescued a total of 11 people on 2 different fishing boats with no casualties!  We are so thankful that all were safe and unharmed. This kind of incident is always a reminder to us how precious life is.


On to a lighter side!

The story of the stick.  Note the stick holding up the back of my motorcycle.  With my bike having the original "dog bones" and the shock lowered one inch, when we put it on the center stand the rear wheel will not go off the ground enough to freely turn the back tire.  So, this stick that we found in Mexico is a prop and I carry it on the back of my bike.  I receive quite a few questions about the need for carrying a stick.  Of course, the real answer is to keep Carl in line!

Even motorcycles like chocolate.  Carl thought he would try using 90 weight gear lube on the chains and needed a better container than the original container so we had to sacrifice a jug of Hersheys syrup for the trial.

Alec, a young man Carl met in Coatepeque, Guatemala while I was in the bank. When we need to bank or do immigration, etc ,I usually go in and Carl stays outside with the bikes. He thinks he has the hard job sitting outside in the hot sun guarding the bikes, taking pictures, and talking to the locals. He does not think it is fair when I come out from the air conditioned offices complaining that it is too cold. I have a tough job too, I tell him. It is not easy going in and doing business with people who do not understand you, never mind that most have been bilingual and have been very nice, helpful, patient good looking Latin American men! We both have tough jobs!

Hotel San Pablo in Mazatenengo, Guatemala.  When Carlos saw us he asked why we stayed there.  Well, it was nearing sunset and we did not think we could make it to the town he had recommended.  The roads in Guatemala are in horrible repair.  Many chuck holes and the topes have returned!  This was a nice hotel, air conditioned, locked gates and a security guard on all night (and all day and it is the same guy, hmmm wonder when he sleeps). Come to find out this area is the heart of Narco trafficing in Guatemala. 

These are the two characters that helped us at the border of Guatemala and El Salvador.  The one on the left got stuck with me telling me where to go and what needed to be done.  The other one had the job of sitting outside in the blazing sun talking with Carl.  They both spoke good English.  It took 2-3 hours from the time we hit the Guatemala side until we left the El Salvador side.  I think Carl paid them $15.  Carlos showed up just before we completed the process.  Perfect timing on his part!  He then escorted us to his home.  The traffic in San Salvador is hard and they do not respect motorcyclists.  Defensive driving at it's best here.

Carl resting by the pool at Carlos'

Mario took us to the airshow in San Salvador.  Wow!

This lady Patty Wagstaff, is from the US, an aerobatic flyer and she put on one helluva show!  Here is a link to a story about her.  http://blogs.smithsonianmag.com/aroundthemall/2009/10/pilot-patty-wagstaff-to-speak-at-air-and-space/

This is a poor picture of her plane.  Damn sun!

So now it is Sunday, January 29,2012 we are headed to Honduras. Our escort will be here at 7AM in the morning to lead us out of town.  This should beat most of the rush hour traffic, we hope! and get a start on the day before the heat of the day.