volcano surfing

Hi guys
It takes one comment by a passing traveller to plant the seed in my mind... "you should try volcano surfing.. its great.."

Extreme sports.. not my thing anymore after getting fished out of the Zambezi River in 1997..... whilst whitewater rafting in Africa.I cant surf or stand on a snow board.. out of the question....

But the damage is done...and the seed is planted... Anthony Robbins once said... "if you CANT then you MUST"....so yep it goes onto my 101 things to do when travelling list......maybe i will do it some day...

So I kept travelling... enter stage left.. one new travel buddy... Ben Kelly from England....and when we got to Leon in Nicaragua.. you know what was on the top of his list of things to do.............. VOLCANO SURFING....

Ben says... "you should do it".... and I feel sick at the thought of it..... but he books it anyway....

Now let me put you all in the picture of how this is going to work...
Take one live and active volcano called Cerro Negro which is 728m (2388ft) high... it has errupted 23 times.....usually every 7 years....
Its last erruption in 1999... when it burried a small town in 4 ft of volcano ash...
For all you maths geniuses out there... yes it is overdue by 4 years...

Somepeople have surfed it doing 80km per hour... someone has died climbing it and for those adrenaline junkies... Eric Barone tried to break a record riding his bike down ......it when he came off doing a mere 172KM or (107mph)and spent 3 months in hospital.
(check his crash out on u tube).

Anyway back to the picture..then take something that looks like a snow board(for standing) or a plank of wood with a rope (for sitting), a fireproof jumpsuit, a set of goggles, a set of elbow and knee pads and sit ontop of a active volcano and go as fast as you can down.... making it down to the bottom unscathed....
Now do you get the picture??????mmmmmmmmmmmmmmm
Dam that list.......

Neverless I awoke at 6am in the morning.... felling sick and having visions of coming off and doing serious harm....
After putting on my favourite volcano surfing gym gear.... t shirt with FAITH printed on the front ......I spent the next 2 hours listening to every personal development track I had on my Ipod for facing fears....

I then pulled out every personal development tool I had available from Theta, Anthony Robbins, NLP, Demartini... including incantations and pattern interupts...
The bus soon picked us up and we were on our way..I sent the goddess to the spa for the day and Joan of Arch came out to play...there was just me and Robbie Williams present in the moment.

We soon arrived after 45 minutes to sign the register book....I am sure it was for body identification incase the volcano errupted when we were on it...so they could find us..... name.... nationality.... age.......it was at that point I was questioning as to whether I should lie about my age.....I am sure I still look 34?

We visited some reptile cages to fill in time (excellent pattern interupt by the universe) and the parkranger put a Boa Constrictor around my neck..... great..... if I wasnt going to die volcano surfing and I would be strangled by a snake before I even got there....

We put our back packs on with our survival gear..... grabbed our planks and started hiking up the volcano....Piece of cake you may say.....not exactly...

Backpack, plank of wood, no path, and about 100km winds (not quite... but almost).
The skill was not getting down the mountain alive on the board it was getting to the top of the mountain without being blown off....nothing quite like the sweet smell of sulpher to remind you that the volcano was still alive and kicking....

Then it was the moment I will never forget... standing in my overalls listing to Bitter Sweet Symphony on my Ipod and looking down the volcano.....what am I doing here....my heart was coming up to my throat....
Yep more incantations, pattern interupts and of course the infamous firwalking powermove...

And just as the universe likes pushing my buttons....bees everywhere....attracted to my pollen coloured jumpsuit. Now it was a moment of life and death....
For those who know me... I am highly allergic to bees... I couldnt get off that volcano fast enough.....

More incantations and I was off.. down the hill.. I managed to make it to the bottom unscathed and at the same time managed to stay seated on the plank of wood....
I think I had volcano ash in every exposed orifice... mouth.. ears and nose...

Thank you lines men... thank you ball boys and thank you to my boarding buddy.. Ben Kelly....
Tick number 56 off that list.....

kat

Corn Islands

Hi guys
Next... the Corn Islands...Nicaragua....
Little Corn Island... Population 700...a tiny unspoiled gem in the Carribean ideal for more diving....with deserted white sandy beaches....palm trees and national food .. local spiny lobsters caught straigth off the reef....and no cars... only foot traffic. To get there catch a small 18 seater plane to Big Corn and then a small but wet boat ride to the Island...

Typical day... diving..... hammocking and then cocktails at sunset....

I have a new travel buddy and we have hired a small fishermans hut on the beach...
it is just 2 metres from the water line... out backyard is the Carribean....

Diving was our highlight of the stay....with the night dive for 50 minutes in the middle of the ocean..
20 minutes was with torches off.... and boy its pretty dark out there with no light

Then we dived through the biolumessence.....now for anyone who hasnt experience this... its one of my top 5 highlights of my trip.... (if you have seen avatar then you will know what i mean)
Its the closest visual you will get to travelling through space....
the bio lum looked like stars in the universe with small structures looking like pearls of necklaces...it was unbelievable trippy... why do drugs when you can night dive..

The locals are great and I am limited in still practicing my spanish.. the event of the month was Triva night....which we were lucky enough to experience....
I am now better informed that the three countries in South America that the equator runs through are Equador,Colimbia and Brazil (thanks Ben). I am sure I can use this some where in my life...

Adios Amegos
Kat

The chicken bus

Hi guys

I was travelling to the Isla De Ometepe which is a huge lake in Nicaragua... and I was on a chicken bus.... and thought I would share my experience with you all.
Now for those who have travelled central america ... you will know that I mean....
and for those who havnt experienced a chicken bus... then something to look forward to for the bucket list.... to try at least once in your life.....

Take one USA defective unroadworthy yellow school bus...(the ones they have in the Simpsons) and sell it to a third world country like Nicaragua or Guatemala.. where lives arent worth as much in the western country....Paint it with bright colours so its no too obvious.....

Dont clean it for at least a year..... let alone service it for more....and pack it full of hot sweaty central americans.....on a humid day.....

If the passenger limit is 50.... then at least double it....with locals coming home from the markets with fruit and veges, tourists with backpacks and even cannisters of gasoline (but no chickens).

Now only 2 per seat is out the window...try 3 or four and some of them are actually leaning out the window because they cant fit in the cabin....
Closing the doors is not an option ... because at least 5 people are on the stairs half out the door... and hanging on for life....

Turn the temperature up to at least 35 degrees and make sure that no one has put on underarm deroderant that morning.... for women... it is required that you dont shave underarms (they will be inspected)...

With a dog fight to find the next available seat... yes I am finally seated....carefully watching that my back pack doesnt get stolen....
My seat is so low that my nose happens to be at crutch level of all the people standing........I am not even going there..... you dont want to know what happens if someone passes gas.....

Now the driver has just graduated from Kamikaze school of rollercoasters.....because you better hang on or you will be thrown off your seat.....
Next comes the conductor who has managed to crowd surf his way to collect the bus fare which is $1.

A mother gets on with a baby... she cant find a seat... so she passes her baby to a stranger....so babysitters are pleantyful here....

Your stop is coming up... so you manage to wade your way through the buses mosh pit to your back pack and alight.....you just want to pray and kiss the ground because the bus didnt roll off the cliff on the way to your destination... but cant because its it pouring rain.......you just found out that you are now backpacking in rainy season.

So next time you are pissed off with the transport system in your country... think of me...

kat
the ultimate journey

a taste of paradise

Hi guys

Welcome back... you are all going to love this blog.... I think it is one of my most favourite months of my whole journey.....

I left Guatemala and headed for the country of Honduras where I met up with my German travel buddy... Jan...
We stayed on an Island called Utilla which is one of three Bay Islands in the Carrabean....We are staying in accomodation attached to the Captain Morgans Dive Centre... and have attached a photo of Hotel Kayla...
Not much to do on the Island except Dive, dive and dive... and relax in the hammock.

The Island is tiny, with only a selected eating places and a few corner shops... and of course no hot water... which is ok because it really hot out here....I decided to go for a run the other day with my ipod and when I got thru the first song I got to the end of the Island.... so I gave up and went back to meditation...

I have just completed my Advanced dive certificate which was really fun... I have dived with some am amazing people and had some incredible dives... my deep dive went to 100 ft and last night we completed on a night dive.... I hope to do a wreck dive on the weekend...

Just to complete my diving experience we had an amazing swim with spinner dolphins in the wild and then the ultimate experience of a life time........ ....

YES you guessed it.... we swam with whale sharks in the wild....

now these beautiful creatures are the largest fish in the world (not to include whales which are a mammal)... they are actually a shark and dont realy have teeth becaue they feed off plankton. ......Which was lucky because when we came head on with one about 1.5 metres away under water it opened it mouth and I think I saw its tonsils.
I felt like Joanah and the whale...I thought it was going to eat me...
They can grow up to 12 metres and 21 tonnes. We swam with 3 different ones and I think the largest was about 10 metres... I have posted you a photo as to put the image in perspective.

Just to top off the ultimate paradise experience we rented Sandy Cay Island for the night.... now where can you rent a whole island (and house) for a night in paradise for just $125 US.....
It was pure heaven..... (I have attached photos.....to give you just a taste..)
It was so tropical with many things to keep us busy... snorkeling off our own beach, fresh kingfish for dinner, bananna pancakes for dessert and sunbaking for a complete tan.

Well thats the news for the week... I hope that this email inspires you all to live your dreams and please keep the emails coming in...


kat
ps i think i am growing gills

easter in xela

Hi friends and family
I hope you all had an amazing easter... and the little fluffy bunny was kind to you all with lots of chocolate....

I spent Semana Santa (easter) in a little town called Xela.... (pronounced shayla).
I moved in with my homestay family of 8 (and one bathroom) which was fun....
Myra (mother) and the rest of the family couldnt speak a word of English and I couldn't speak a word of Spanish which was rather interesting.... especially when we were cooking together....
It bought back some memorable moments of when I moved into the English Family when I was 15...

Then 8am in the morning... off to intensive spanish speaking lessons... which were very intense.... in fact 5 hours of complete garble....
I felt like I was back at school again.....now I know why I disliked school so much.
I dont think it was a good idea coming from a mediatation retreat and a weeks silence into a family of 8 and spanish lessons. Anyway I can now manage to buy myself veges at the local market, greet people as they walk by and ask for the time in spanish.....

Now the salsa lessons that I took were fun.... as you all know me ... I really love dancing.... and yes... I managed to find a great pair of stilettos at the markets....

My homestay family and I spent the night before good friday visiting all the local churches viewing the Easter displays.... which was really exciting....
some of the displays were carpets of coloured sand...(photo attached) which were pretty spectacular.
Over the next 3 days we had a religious Mardi Gra..... of themed easter floats....in procession in the streets with thousands of people.....I must say it was pretty amazing.

I managed to get some pampering in true Guaetmala style... visiting the hot springs after school.... they were natural springs and soothing after a hard day... so we all jumped in like vegetables in a pot at a cannibals suprise dinner...

A group of us managed to take an interesting afternoon volcano hiking for 4 hours..in Antigua..... which was great exercise....
When we got to one of the craters... the guys managed to pull out sausages and marshmellows and the a cook off was on.......
yes the volcano was live.... and at sunset when we were near the bottom it gave us an amazing display of fire...and erupted......

After the hiking (which I dont think was on the flash packing agenda sheet)I booked in for a real pamering session in true Myan style... For a mere $54 I spent a whole day (yes from 9am to 4pm) being pampered at the Spa and Suna.... this included 1 1/2 hours massage, 1 hour facial, hair treatment and blow dry, myan sauna and manicure, relaxing tea.....what a bargin....

Yep the flash packer is back....

Well I am off to Hondourus onto the Bay Islands to go diving with the Whale Sharks..

I will keep you all posted of the next adventure.....

Kat on the ultimate journey

meditation on the lake

Hi guys......
Since we last spoke I have been to an amazing yoga and meditation retreat in Guatemala. I have been staying in a little Myan village in San Macos which is on Lago de Atitlan.. (lake atitlan.).. the lake is surrounded by 3 exciting live volcanoes...and several little villages....
The cabana you can see on the lake is my favourite meditation place... and when you can see the view and am sure you can understand why...

There is a photo of me in a Guatemalian hot tub... which was decieving... it was extremely hot and had a cold one next to it.... and of course it overlooked the beautiful lake....

The yoga retreat was refreshing... with 4 weeks of yoga, meditation and metaphysics.....the sunrises were something worth getting up early for.The meditation temple was a pyramid and was rather interesting when we were hit by earthquake tremors.....

The man you can see with the cigarette in his mouth is known as Sam Simon... He is known as the smokin god...He is a god made out of wood and is popular in the highlands. He is usually draped in silk scarves and smokes a fat cigar.. or cigarettes...now how does that work when he is made out of wood..... go figure... but when i bought him a cigarette.... yes he was smoking it.....He is the god of vices...
so if you want a hit on your next door neighbour... you can go to ask him.... make sure you bring rum and cigars..... of course you can ask for good things too.. like money...

Well i finished the retreat off with a weeks silence (yes you can get up off the floor now)... because I did it... and a week of fasting ... which was great....
just what i needed.. a months meditation in a vortex living with the locals and living off the land....life is so simple here.....
A huge thank you to such a great room buddy Christina.....you are an amazing woman and it was a pleasure sharing my experience with you..

until next time

chow chow
katrina

somewhere in the jungle

Hi guys

well i am somewhere in the jungle in central america.
i arrived in guatemala about a week ago and came here because i like guaccomole....the name sounds similar.

I have ditched my trolly bag and high heels for thongs and a back pack.... yes i no longer look like a flash packer... i now look like a backpacker in mid life crissis.

Its all happening here... i have bee travelling with 3 guys who just want to drink beer, party ad get laid.... yes 2 aussies and 1 nz.....

My sidetrack has let me to an adventure.... so far i met some students from Canada who have been shot at..... then when we all went caving ... the NZ guy cut open his foot which is always interesting getting 6 stitches in a third world country.
And on the way hitching to the doctors he was in the back of a truck which rolled off the road.

Not to mentioned the earth quake that we had ... but it was only minor... not as bad as chile.

We visited an amazing Maya ruin site which was a whole city which was called Tikal.
It was where Mel Gibson based his movie called Apocolypso which looked at the human sarifices. The Maya settled here around 700 BC with a population of 100,000 people.
The place was amazing with the wildlife here cosistig of the howler monkey... which i have attached.... it is the loudest animal in the animal kingdom and lets off a sound to a jaguar.... other animals included spider monkeys, crocs, tucans, many birds and jaguars at nite.

Next we went on a 10 hours bus ride... in 35 degrees... with no airconditioning.
when we arrived at the camp ... they had run out of water.... oh i love this back packing....
The next day we went caving.. which is a bit like Jeonlan Caves filled with water.
We waded through with candles in our mouths...it was incredible.
Next tubing.. which is going down rapids on a inner car tube.
Then we went swimming in the limestone pools called Semu Champey.

That now leaves me on a boat today to stay at a retreat to do yoga, meditation and relaxation for the next month... after that i am doing homestay and an intesive spanish speaking course...

until next time

kat