Thewesternprovinceblog

Stayin’ Alive

Hola todos! It’s been a few days since the last blog so putting out a general update to fill you all in on the last few days. It is a bit of a long one.

Monday after the canyon tour was rather uneventful just ended up going to the music bar again and having an early one.

Tuesday in the day not too much happened just had a bit of a wander round San Cristobal and not much else happened but then in the night things got interesting. I go out to eat order a beer and some tacos on a promo then the waiter guy at the door chats to a guy sitting on his own next door eating some noodles. He was talking to me in English and spotted this guy who was American and invited him to come sit with me for a drink if I wanted. I say yes and over he comes. 

Meet new Best Friend Ricky from the Deep South. This lad is a Crazy Georgian fella from Atlanta and now lives Here in Mexico. He is a very knowledgeable bloke who has been to 60 countries in his life and me and him got on like a house on fire. We are into very much the same stuff. He even has been to Wales and is pretty knowledgeable on the history; he spent 2 months volunteering on an archeological dig up By Castell Henllys near Fishguard some years ago around the time they built the Iron Age village replica. Said the locals of Pembrokeshire loved him. We end up having a few beers and tequilas there then head on to a vino bar where we then also bump into an English pal of mine who I’ve also been hanging round with and we have a good craic. 

This night gets better as this hippie looking young lad comes talking to us. Explains how he got robbed twice in Tuxtla, first by locals and then the cops. He is due to fly back to Tijuana and then from there he has to go over a border pass back into the US. Explained he didn’t have any money but was getting fed by his hostel for doing some light work. We ended up giving him a few bucks each after chatting and he was super thankful as he can at least get the shuttle bus to the border as opposed to hiking 2 hours in a dodgy area. That folks is how you beg properly – don’t ask directly for money, tell the story and build a rapport before you say you haven’t got cash. Nice lad but have to admit someone I wouldn’t have given the time of day back home. Goes to show you have to be open when you travel.

After this we are chatting some more and he gives me some good tips for Lake Atitlan – which is the next leg for this trip. Said it was his favorite place in the whole world and would still be there if he didn’t have to leave town in a hurry a few years ago – He ended up in a love triangle involving him, an ex supermodel and an ex SAS forces bloke – yes you don’t want to get on the wrong side of the Hereford boys! Apparently the man was looking for him and had to leave in the wee hours of the morning – was a small place and he would be found sooner or later! Great story.

After this we head on to a place called Revolución and have some more beers and then turn in about 1:30 am.

Wednesday I didn’t do much in the day other than start porting my blog over to the WordPress site and didn’t finish all of it. I go out have some pizza then go back to the clovern music bar and end up talking to some local geezers.

We’re having a laugh though they want to talk to me in English because they have family in the states they are visiting soon. That’s fine I guess. Little later they offer to buy me a beer so I say yes. Then they offer to buy another one and okay sure then I offer to buy them a round before I pay my tab and turn in. 

Music is going on and one of them has a word in the waitresses ear before the bill comes that I can’t catch it because the music and lo and behold both the beers they ‘bought’ me and the round I got them in is on my tab. I grumble under my breath but I’ve only been stiched for £3 quid more than what I probably would have spent anyway there so I pay up and leave and promptly delete these guys from my Whatsapp list. Sorry but friends don’t stich friends on bar bills! Gillipollas be the word for them.

Thursday rolls round and the weather here isn’t great it’s actually cold around 10 degs in the day and slightly drizzly so going to be a slow one Today. I spend the morning finishing putting the blogs on WordPress then launch the site. I then go out for a coffee and a light bite but apart from having a look in the cathedral I don’t do much but go back to my gaffe and chill for a bit. 

Ricky messages me saying do I want to hang for tonight and I say yes sure why not. Meet at the vino bar for 7.30. so evening rolls round and I meet him and in his own words he says “brother I’m lit AF!” Turns out he had been on the pop for 2 hours before we caught up but still he’s a good craic and we’re having some good banter.

After some time and a few drinks he starts having a bit of a sing song – the songs of choice being Louisianan blues songs that are rather rude and sung in the same way Louis Armstrong would sing 😂😂😅 it was a real hoot but you could tell people were starting to get annoyed – Imagine trying to have a romantic dinner and right behind you, you got Louis Armstrong singing lewd numbers from beyond the Grave!!

About half 10 we pay up there and head to Revolución again. We made sure to give them a nice tip in the vino bar for putting up with the choir!

Revolución is a good craic again and we bump into my English pal again and he’s got some mates including some cute French girls. We have a bit of a dance then they head out somewhere else after the band stops but me and him stay there and I make an effort to chat up a pretty looking local lady next to us. First proper convo in Español for a while but before it goes anywhere her friend grabs her and they drink up and leave. Shame! She was cool.

We hang about for another half hour and now it’s 1am and my pal is in a bit of a mess so we decide to call it a night. He’s wobbling about so I end up walking home with him – he didn’t need to be walked back being held onto but he could have been in a mess if he was on his own and fell over or something. Got to look out for your friends and all that. We get him back to his place all good then I head back to my Hostel. I’m back safe and sound about 1.30 am and call it a night. Despite the shenanigans he’s been a real fun guy to hang around with!

Today is Halloween and tomorrow is Día de los muertos! Ay joder could get interesting but hey be rude not to hang around for this since we’re in Mexico! Monday 3rd I leave for Guatemala.