Happy New Year 2012

We've been skipping about Puerto Vajito and Cahuita Costa Rica for the past 4 or 5 days. Lots to see and do. Miles of walks on the beachs and back roads and hippie boutiques to roam through - bought a $5.00 dress.

In Puerto Vajito we stayed in a beach parking lot but it is a bit of a party town and was on the loud side. We enjoyed swimming altho I got a bit nervous once as the under-tow proved stronger then me. Luckily Sterling was playing in the nearby surf. Later that day I saw a Red Flag which meant no swimming but it seemed as though everyone else was. Oh well.

We especially loved the beach parking lot as there was lots of things to watch, soccer, picnics, coconut shucking, bus-stop action, waves, a beautiful tree providing shade to lots of local families who came and went. We stayed for 2 days and nights but moved on up the coast, heading north to a smaller town called Cohito. This town was recommended to us by Gary Moise, one of our first stops on this trip. Gary comes and spends winter here and we can see why - it's one of our favorite spots too.

We're staying in a Reggee Bar & Motel Courtyard. Electric, wi-fi, toilet, shower for just $3.00 per person. It's a lovely spot right across from the Playa Negro (black sand beach). The water is changing into beautiful aqua Caribbean colors today in the sunshine - the waves really pound the shore here. There is no tide in this area which is strange to me but it is apparently the reason the waves are so large and swimming is not recommended.

I'm distracted tonite with the Reggee Music and Fireworks - gotta go celebrate! Happy 2012!~

Random thoughts about Panama

Stayed in a great beach in Las Lalles Panama - meet a nice Italian fellow named Paulo - we enjoyed several hours of great conversation. Nice to speak with another adult other then my son. Paulo was fed up with Italy and had retired from being a Chemistry and Math teacher in Italy to his van in Panama where he had lived modestly for 4 years while he was looking for other opportunities.

Sterling has decided the women are the prettiest here so far. They are starting to look more Myan and less Mexican. Not sure I see a difference, but Panama is a very metropolitan mixed culture.

Still having no trouble finding a peace sign every day.

Panama is a thoroughly modern, cosmopolitan city but stark differences between the rich and poor. The slums in Panama city are the worst I've ever seen anywhere including the Bronx. Absolutely filthy and so sad but the people were dancing, eating, celebrating and even swimming in one photo. The wealth was extraordinary as well.

Panama does not have much of the Central American culture the other countries have that we've been through - it's been gobbled up by Gringo tourists.


We were stopped 5 times on the Pan American Highway in Panama alone. One guy stopped us and found out Sterling was driving without his license and so he tried to bribe us for $100, then dropped it to $40 when I couldn't speak Spanish. I asked for the Chief and he got his other guy who showed me one sentence on a cell phone - do you have any gifts? I just kept pounding my heart and telling him it was Christmas to have a heart. He let us go. Funny thing I thought about in hind-sight was these guys had no paper, no desk, no computer, no phone, just a building with a raised counter. I gladly said Feliz Navidad to these fellas and skipped out on my way. It was the third time we were stopped, bribed and let go because we couldn't speak Spanish. I just gave them one of my cards and they smiled and didn't know what to say expect bye. Funny system they have worked out.

Finally saw another RV and guess what it was - an older Toyota then mine.

Finally found a Dunkin Donuts in Panama City.

Fabulous architecture in Panama. Some of the most unusual buildings I've ever seen!

Did you know the USA sells their old school buses to Central America where they are re-painted in fabulous colors and designs and used for the city buses.

We notice lots of product knock offs . . . like Star Troops instead of Star Wars and AB instead of AE for American Eagle and even a rendition of a Black Barbie.

We went to Catholic Mass and found a standing room only crowd and since we didn't understand the Spanish and Latin we decided to leave after saying a prayer. We went to the Islamic Mosque next and found the men very friendly but probably shocked to see my blonde hair, blue eyes and nothing on my arms or legs. I forgot, but they were nice and polite just the same. Found the Mosque to be really beautiful, as was the Catholic Church just so different. There's a lot of tolerance in the world even though, like love and peace, we can always have more.

Fabulous day planned for tomorrow 12/26/2011 - Stay tuned.

December 20 - 22 Nicaragua into Costa Rica

December 20-22, 2011

Crossing into Costa Rica was more difficult then I had imagined. Everyone seemed to think it was the easy border, but we took close to 6 hours to leave one country and check into another. It is one entire process to check yourself out, then your vehicle out and then you go about 100 feet and you check yourself in to a new county and then your vehicle. Costa Rica was difficult in particular because it had NO signs. None whatsoever. It had rained and was muddy and slippery to boot. The truckers were at least 1 mile deep waiting to leave Nicaragua. Making matters worse is that we lost the NH Registration long ago at one of the border copy machines and are now working from a copy which throws them all for a loop.

However, once you arrive in most countries about 5-10 miles in your greeted by armed Police and or Military. Every country is the same. They check your papers once again. But, in Costa Rica, you get to the Police and they are literally lying back on their elbow relaxing while the second cop waves to you like you’ve just arrived home. Happy to see you and most welcome!
It is a totally different feeling from other Central American countries. There is no military here.

Costa Rica is HUMID! Other countries are hot, but the geography changed dramatically today. We’ve gone from arid desert in Mexico to rain-forest muggy here. CR is about the size of West Virginia and the roads are expellant, and the country is much cleaner then others. There are lots of gringos here and they are glad to take American currency but not so fast to give you your change in American USD.

We had a bit of a hard time finding the coastal route but once we did we found a great beach with very few people and some interesting drift-wood which the birds loved to play in. We walked for about 1 hour or so exploring the area. The vultures were feasting on a dead sea turtle and I saw my first macaws in the wild which are spectacular! Such a treat!

Egg and Chorizo wraps are our choice of the week. It’s about all we can keep fresh down here. Do you know they don’t refrigerate their eggs down here? And milk spoils pretty instantly. We try to only eat out one meal a day if need be. Again Costa Rica is a far richer country then others so the cost of food just went up pretty dramatically. A bag of Frito Scoops were about $5.00 so we passed but only because we had enjoyed a piece of Macadamia pie earlier in the day. It’s kind of like pecan pie but made with Macadamia nuts instead. Delicious!

We woke this morning to a hot sun and it was just 8am. We were on the road early and went to the Neofauna Butterfly Farm which took about 2-3 hours. It had all sorts of snakes which were gross and poisonous and some wicked cool frogs. The butterflies were interesting but hardly very many. They were sleeping I guess - they like to come out in the hot sun and it was over-cast. The farm was folky and we learned some pretty significant things about local reptiles etc. which I probably could have lived without, but it was our splurge of the day at $15.00 each.

There are an amazing amount of eco-tourism spots, but they tend to be pricey coming in at $40 to $90 per head but we’ll pick one soon as our Christmas present to ourselves, as if this trip wasn’t enough. It’s been such a huge learning curve for both of us~as well as a prenominal life memory.

We heard a few Christmas carols today. There is very little outward expressions of Christmas here which really makes you question the American Christmas traditions which are so over-blown. Traveling in a third world country really makes you focus on how little we need to survive and then to thrive.

We found another fabulous beach, better then yesterday and we parked for the night. We had the entire beach to ourselves as far as we could seen in either direction....and the sunset put on a magical show for us. It’s been a good day.

December 22, 2011 - We drove a few hours today as the roads have been crappy again. We’re staying in a Port town which is more small town then tourist town although there is a few cabanas here. We are staying in an exceptionally modest room tonite with ac, cold shower, tv in Spanish and Internet. Not bad for $30.

Tomorrow (12/23) head to Panama to spend the holiday. The water color has finally started to turn today, not so much dark sand constantly being dredged up - Looking forward to the Caribbean side.

Darlene is started getting things up on the website. She's been working on a selection of costume jewelry and Christmas Tree pins for starters. Check out her work....dragonfliesantiques.com

If you love the pictures you can follow us in more detail at zigzagexpress.com or ask to be a friend on facebook under Cathy Sykes

December 18 - Oasis Hostel in Granada & San Juan del sur Nicaragua

We spent to days in at the Oasis Hostel in Granada Nicaragua which is a very old city which has gone through many wars with bombs and fires. It is slowly being rebuilt and it is truly an oasis for young back-packers passing through to Costa Rica. The city was dirty and raw but there were also bright spots of color teaming with life.

The first night we stayed we arrived late in the afternoon and crashed fairly early but not until walking about and seeing the beautiful Architecture much of which dates to the 1500 and 1600‘s and is quite spectacular all in various states of disrepair which can attributed to different natural disasters, wars, politicians, poverty, laziness, etc. There is a very strong retail buzz which surrounds the plaza and the church which is congested and filthy.

The hostel buzzing with back-packers from all over the world. It has lovely little pool we both enjoyed. We always opt for a double room with a private bath which is usually around $25. It’s a good way to get a cold shower and air conditioning once or twice a week which is a whole lot cheaper then heating my old colonial wooden house in New Hampshire at $50 per day.

We enjoyed a huge fruit plate for $2.00 in the morning with free sweet shortbread and tea and set out for the markets. We came back to the pool, laid low in the afternoon and then the second night we decided to tag along with 7 others from the Hostel as they went out to see the active Volcano and the views, caves, etc. I was of course the oldest there which was a new experience for me. Don’t quite know how that happened but I kept up with all those 20 some-things.

We arrived at sunset and quickly made it to the top of the Volcano which was a first for all of us. This night the walls of the crater had crumbled in on the base and smothered any hot ashes we might have hoped to see and a repulsive sulphur smell poured out which was the last thing I had ever expected - didn’t really know too much about volcanos. . . .not sure I still do.

We looked over the city of Masaya and were told they had been practicing for Disaster Evacuation drills today because they expected the Volcano to blow and the last time it went off it wiped out an entire village and closed the airport for a very long time. They were experiencing up to 400 tremors a day. We luckily had already made our own plans to leave in the morning. Why tempt fate when there’s another beach town waiting to receive us?


www.dragonfliesantiques.com and www.zigzagexpress.com

After the sunset volcano tour our handsome, Latino, 27 year old guide brought us to the edge of the lake below as the lights were coming on in the city behind us. Very beautiful but then we went into these bat caves which were down a very steep set of stairs about 25 feet down. We were all instructed to turn off our flashlights and these giant bats all came rushing towards us - none of us getting hit of course because of their sonar, but man they were huge like the size of NH crows or blue jays. Very weird experience.

So then we went in this other cool cave which had a much higher roof but wicked thick roots we had to climb over. It was another strange reality based experience and all I could think about was of Indiana Jones should be there with us as we explored this awesome, deep chasm under ground. The stalactites were even spookier at night with flash-lights on them. He had us all turn out our lights again and it was black, just black - another un-nerving experience, but no bats this time.

Apparently when the National Park Service took it over they found bones of local Indians in there. There are also petroglyph which we couldn’t see but apparently could if we went in the day. It was spontaneous, a good work-out in the evening which wasn’t wicked hot and $50 well spent creating a memory with my son.

However, before we left, we met a man from the Misquito Coast of Nicaragua. Very interesting guy who just came up and welcomed us to his country and started practicing his English on us. He was a Village Leader who had come to Granada (Capital City) to have a gold tooth removed from his mouth so he could use the money for rice and bean seeds. The dentist wouldn’t do it because he said it would cause infection.

He talked to us at length about Daniel Ortega and all the awful things he did which got me thinking about my pre-conceptions of the situation. I graduated from high-school in 1976 in Framingham Massachusetts in the United States, so I know very little of the war in Nicaragua other then this was a bad place and there was no reason on earth to ever want to come here. Case closed! Boy was I ever wrong.

So we drove into San Juan del sur this afternoon which is close to the Costa Rican border which we hope to cross in the morning. It’s another surf town on a half moon bay which looked like it had crappy waves compared to the other places we had been, but Sterling assured me it was just the rental shops and that the waves were on the outside of the bay which made sense.

We enjoy walking around these towns although many are starting to blend into just another day. Enjoyed the hand made crafts the street kids were selling. Some were actually pretty awesome quality with interesting local polished stones. Since we splurged yesterday on the Maysaya Volcano National Park we decided to go easy on the pocket-book and just ordered a rum and pineapple drink and a water so we could watch the sunset and tap into internet. It’s so important to keep those fluids to us.

We just witnessed a wonderful, Christmas Fire-works display that would rival my hometown on any Fourth of July. The thing that made it so interesting was the explosions were different then those we see at home. I had never thought about the history of fireworks so I looked it up on Church Google which always sends me to wikipedia which is my other font of knowledge and found this http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fireworks.

We waited a bit and went out for a walk and found a semi-professional boxing exhibition and then went across the street to the coolest, most primitive carnival you’ve ever seen. I finally found some popcorn and went back to the Peace Mobil and fell asleep to a gentle breeze from the Pacific ocean and some beautiful tunes coming from the local park. Another day in paradise but we’re moving on in the morning - Costa Rica is calling us.

Random thoughts on Central America

Random Thoughts and Cultural Observations from Central America.

There are very few obese people here in Mexico and Central America which eliminates my thoughts about Coca-cola because that’s pretty much all the drink. Further south we go the fatter they get. We’re in Nicaragua now and I have started seeing bigger people again. Rural Mexico is just emaciated I guess - the people, the dogs, the cows, everyone.

Very few people don’t have tattoos down here. . . . except for foreign travelers.

I haven’t seen anyone with weird body piercing, except for one women from Sweden that had about 5 rhinestones in her belly button.

You don’t see many people smoking, other then in the hostels which are filled with foreigners. I still love two people speaking completely different languages try to find common ground in Spanish or English.

Men carry the infants around here when in public so they are carried to look out on the world not nestled like a women who holds a baby inward. They also like to sandwich small kids in between two adults on a motorcycle or bicycle.

We saw a funeral procession yesterday which was interesting. It consisted of about 125 people walking down the road to the cemetery led by a white Toyota pick-up truck which carried the flowers and the deceased in the bed. The one way we could tell it was a funeral procession was they were carrying large, black umbrellas with advertising for the funeral director.

I loved seeing a three generation power struggle all done without words. Grandma and baby wanted to play and the Mom wanted to get out the hammock for the two to nap. Grandma and the baby won with a triumphant giggle as they walked away. The Mother just hung up the hammock and went back to her kitchen duties in the taco stand.

We are in El Salvador - 12/9/2011 - and we’re finally seeing Christmas lights and activities, albeit very little. Now in Nicaragua on the 17th we are seeing more. Last night in the middle of a traffic rotary there was a well lite, green and blue Christmas Tree with a large manger and a bunch of people hanging around looking at the manger. A bit strange - guess we just don’t hang out in our rotary’s.

You see a lot of random fireworks explode in the sky. Many of them just make a loud bang but every once in a while they actually work. Apparently the closer to Christmas we get the louder the evenings become. They actually like fireworks for any occasion. Births, deaths, weddings, birthdays, any little thing that happens in a village is a good reason to be loud.

Finally saw another RV (from France no less) and also went Volcano climbing with someone else wearing Merrill’s.

There’s no hot water down here.

The have VERY gentle hand-shakes down here. Not sure why.

Grocery shopping is always fun. They bag their liquids like milk, cream, etc. There’s no such thing as a milk or oj container. I get to the counter knowing I’ve spent $75 + or more and they say $31 and I feel like I hit the jack-pot.

All of the food packages are much smaller. All of the vegetables are smaller. The food is not on steroids like in the United States and it’s reflected in the size of the people. Small Oreos = small people.

Toyota Dealerships down here don’t work on anything prior to the year 2000 because I think there are too many old Toyota’s down here they’d go crazy.

There is a major issue with trash everywhere. In El Salvador where the people are very proud and clean, they burn it on the sidewalks but most places they just wing it out the window. It’s disgusting!

Soda is everywhere! Especially Coke - altho the more south we go the more Pepsi we see but no where like the Coke products.

You see a lot of Cowboys here in Nicaragua usually hanging on the side of the road with their herds which can be anywhere from 1 -20 but usually right around a dozen cows. At first I thought it was unusual to see cow herds in the road but they graze on the very edges of the road so they just go any place they want. It’s kind of like Moose - it’s best to slow down.

Horse and buggy is the major means of transportation for most locals. There are cars, but they are interspersed with horse riders, carts led by donkey’s and lots of bicycles too.

December 12 or 13 - The Green Bottle Lady

December 12, 2011

Sterling just keeps saying, Can you believe we’re in Hondorus? Well it is kind of difficult to believe we’re here in our Toyota RV in a bus-stop parking lot on CA-1. We were both quite impressed with El Salvador. It was the cleanest and most friendly of the 5 countries we’ve been through. We did make it through the border into Hondorus almost by mistake.

We started our day fairly early in the morning although we were driving through El Salvador on CA-1 which is both the Central American Highway 1, but also known as the Pan-American Highway and is really awful in some sections with wicked bad pot-holes. Anyways, so we’re cruising along with a little green house catches my eye. I slam on the brakes and just run back to catch one picture but as I capture one shot, the owner comes to the door and waves her hand to me “entrada”.

Well, I don’t know much Spanish but my heart skipped a beat when she welcomed me into her home built of soda bottles she had painted green with white dots. AMAZING! As I stepped in I couldn’t believe the soda bottle tops decorating the floor in a floral motif or the hand made hammock. I loved it! This was the most primitive and pure folk art I’ve had the pleasure to see in situ.

So I looked out her side door and spyed a pile of corn-cobs the family was using for fuel. Her daughter and grand-daughter were in the kitchen and they invited me right in. It was about 9:30 am and already at least 80 degrees and 90 in the kitchen building made of tin cans with a good size fire burning in the corner.

The owner and artist was 78 year old women named Maria ????????? . It took her 3 years to build this house which doesn’t surprise me one bit. Such ecological thought, creativity and perseverance in her execution doesn’t come together in many folks but she definitely had it going on! Her daughter kneaded the batter and prepared it for the grill, using her hand to flip these flat bread tortias until done. I so wanted to grab one hot off the grill but I thought I might be pushing me luck.

We went on our way.

Several people in El Salvador have gone out of their way to talk to us in English. I feel like Meryl Streep in Out of America. The people point and stare, wave, flash peace signs and several people have just stopped us to tell us we would be safe, El Salvador welcomed us.

Last night I was invited to a Sweet 15 Party which nearly blew my mind. I was just hanging around outside this church when it came upon me. It was an amazing show of wealth, family, community, traditions, rituals. They thought we were from the press. I captured the church scene and then Edwardo, the truck driver cousin from South Carolina invited me to the Party of more then 200 people. Check out these photos - it’s hard from me to believe!

El Salvador and turning sweet 15

December 11, 2011

Well we found the nicest plaza yet in a small town, still in El Salvador. We took our time all day and had a pretty relaxed day because of it. We left El Tunco around 11:00 and drove until 6:00, only making one wrong turn, realizing it quite quickly and correcting the issue.

Saw another funeral in session today and explored through the largest cemetary we’ve seen yet. At the town we stopped in for the night there was an extraordinary Sweet 15 Party. We hit the jackpot for Central American rituals and traditions today.

We took hundreds of pictures and videos today to tell the story of what we’ve found here today.
People are so friendly and curious. Lots of people wave or stare and I flash as many Peace signs as I can. Some people return the gesture - some even dance - kids fight for the attention. They love when I take pictures of them.

We finally had some macaroni tonite. Sterling made it and I stood outside. Maybe there’s a some reason he doesn’t trust me just yet but I can’t imagine what it could be . :)

Torching Sterling!

Well our odometer turned 88,000 miles today. We started at 82,037, so we’re making time,although these mountain roads are very treacherous in that they are wicked curvey with lots of up and down hills. We’re in second gear much of the time. It’s a very rural road with speed humps every few miles where a small village pops up each with a few taco stands. Carne asada tacos are the best.

Sterling has done the vast majority of the driving. I spelled him one afternoon and hit a dog which just rolled under the rig, I mourned him for several hours even tho he got up and limped away. Someone was passing me and three dogs ran into the road in front of the two of us. Ce le vie!

We got LP gas, gasoline, and choose a small village to stay in for the night. Most communities of any size down here all have a Central Plaza near the church where everyone comes out to visit after dark. We park there because we feel safe.

Well tonite, Kevin and Dan left the rig immediately to go find a beer as they often do and check out the general area to make sure we are safe. Kind of reminds me of our dog Oscar who takes a pee on every corner to stake out our territory.

Anyways, I said I’d make spaghetti and went about my duties. Well I let the pot boil over and flames shot everywhere. Sterling had been sitting in the front seat and came to the side door to grab the fire extinguisher at the same exact time I grabbed the burning pan and went to throw it out the same door he was coming in. He ducked and I threw it over his head and sent the scalding hot water right down his head and neck.

His hair caught fire and luckily he remembered the stop, drop and roll routine. His hair kept flaming and some Mexican guys came out of their hammocks and houses and tried to help but there wasn’t much to do but give me back my pan.

Sterling pulled his T-shirt up over his head to put his hair fire out but it singed his arm and leg hair too. I really got him! So I went to find ice. The first well lighted house I came to had a freezer on the porch. Bingo I thought! I said “ICE” and he opened the deep freeze and there were a 1/2 dozen Popsicles in the bottom. I explained cubes and he said 2 or 3 for a big one. We struggled over if it was 2 or 3 cubes, or 2 or 3 pesos and I just said FINE!

That well lit house asked me to come park my “home” in his yard and he got me a large cube of ice. Sterling laid flat and I kept putting ice and cold water on him until Dan and Kevin showed up with drunk Paco who they met in the bar which probably was really a taco stand during the day. Paco invited them for a sandwich so Sterl and I feasted on red peppers, chips and guacamole which has become our meal of choice.

Paco was so excited 4 Gringos had come into his village for him to practice his English. They hadn’t had any tourists for 2 years and it showed. When Dan asked where to pee, Paco said any wall and asked them to please pee on his house. Go figure!

I’m sure Sterling will be seen as a shooting star for some years to come in this village. We really got everyone going and they all know we’re here. The local skinny dogs all got to feast on 1/2 cooked macaroni. Once Dan got back and was able to smooth the fellow over with his Spanish, I gave the ice owner 10 pesos and Dan and Kevin went to find a hole to climb into for the night.

The cat and the chicken is fighting and the old women just yelled at them but now the Rooster is crowing. Most every night as we fall asleep we hearing barking dogs but this time we added in a few Roosters who howled on and off all night.

I was kinda freaked out at this point and finally admitted to Dan I hoped he’d stay with us long enough to cross into Guatemala. Once you exit Mexico and enter into Central America you can use one Visa for the other 4 countries and Costa Rica doesn’t require one. Sounds easy.

We found Dan and Kevin had spent the night on top of the jail which was covered with glass but it was better then the night they spent on the beach with the crocodiles. Back in the Peace Mobil and on our way again thank heavens!

December 1-4 Southern Coast of Mexico

We spent several days at a beautiful RV park in Sayulita which suited all of us really fine. There were beautiful beaches which we all lazed around, except for Dan who rented a surf board for 24 hours and used it for as much of that time he could. We walked into the town which offered all the typical souvenirs, you’d expect and a fabulous Cake Lady that Kevin wanted to marry so he’d have endless cakes.

It was December 1st and we were rested, bathed and jumped back on the road. None of us said much of anything all day falling in and out of naps as we drove along. Kevin devoured a book.

Puerto Valeta was one of the first major cities we’ve seen in some time and we were greeted by a Mexican cop looking for some extra American money. Luckily we had all been warned about the scene we were caught in. Sterling was driving in the left lane and was pulled over. He should have kept going. but didn’t and had to leave $20 tip with the cop who so kindly told us not to do that again and reminded my son he should find his passport and license if he was to drive in Mexico. Ce le vie! That’s what I call swift justice! We later met a man in Acapulco who was from Germany and had paid 2 cops off for as little as $10 each.

Flowers are beautiful with pinks, purples and red being used for landscaping and near homesteads, while the countryside is lined with flowering trees in vivid green, yellow with violet colored morning glories which grow wild and are especially fond of wet, swampy areas.

The refrigerator door just fell off - it usually just opens every time we take a sharp right. The stove door fell off last night. The hot water heater never worked. We lost and replaced the gas tank cover. Our tires are going along quite well. The brakes often smell like burning something or other and have started making a jingling noise. We’ll need to get them fixed soon enough. We’ve almost ran out of gas again this morning. We found a tiny village where the guy was selling black market gasoline for $4.00 for 2 liters but then we were desperate. He threw in 3 cups of freshly brewed beef broth with onions and cilantro. We’ve gone in and out of vast miles where they won’t accept American credit cards and others, further south who gladly do.

We’ve been lured by signs that say Play Azula for quite some time, about a day and half. We only went 100 miles each of the last 2 days. Getting gas, groceries, money exchanged, and finding a spot for the RV have all become the chores for each day often sucking hours from each day. I learned long ago the mother who just went food shopping is the one who has the gang of boys around. Some things you can count on. The best part about the meals is the abundance of fruit for $1.00 or less so we buy it often but you need to because it’s so ephemeral in the heat.

We’re seeing lots of horses, pigs, chickens, goats, burrows just grazing especially alongside Route 200 which we have been following for miles along the Southern coast. There are also piles of coconuts and large groves of palm trees. We hardly ever see mountains anymore because we’re in the mountains.

It’s been my pleasure to feed these young men. I’m used to cooking for a family of 4 anyways.
I’m sure that over the past 25 years there have been plenty of people who have feed my boys on more then one occasion. Dan is great - I caught him having Doritto’s, spoonfuls of peanut butter and a beer for breakfast or a ham sandwich as an appetizer to whatever meal I’m making. Kevin is naturally thin, lanky and tall.

The southern shore of Mexico is not un-like driving along the shore of California, just more of the Pacific. We wind in and out of different topography, the flowers, palm trees and mountains paint a glorious landscape for us, constantly changing with every passing mile.

Sterling and I went to a Catholic Church in the town square of celebrating Mass for the beginning of advent. The center of most all Southern towns have a communal courtyard. We hung around this small fishing village one night on the street. The hitchhikers found a spot on the beach and enjoyed seeing an early morning fire. Vendors set up on Sunday morning with Mexican pottery you see available everywhere around here. Some vendors sold used clothes (jeans, shorts, etc.) and we moved on.

Other observations include: Twenty vultures eating a freshly dead black cow. Two goats fucking. I love seeing people tie their horses up while they go into a shop, or when they’re at the beach, or even just riding along the side of the road. Lots of older men use horses and wear jeans, a crisp white shirt, boots and a big white straw wide brimmed hats. After work today we saw someone walking home with a sewing machine and another walking home with his machete.

Coconuts are plentiful in big piles on the ground. Reminds me of Lobster Traps in Coastal Maine. Quite evident it’s a major source of their income.

The 3 young men have decided most Mexican women aren’t very pretty but when they are they are totally, over the top, beautiful. There are lots of young pregnant girls here. And also lots of umbrellas to keep the sun away.

Kevin spends much of this trip looking out the back window while Dan sits up front and helps navigate since I can’t read the signs and he can. He’s so helpful with keeping us on track. We'd probably still be in Northern Mexico if it wasn't for Dan. . . a blessing and a curse.

We started our day today, December 4th on the shores of Acapulco. Acapulco Bay is a semi-circle so as we drove in during the early evening it was pretty spectacular with the city lights coming on in all the terraced houses. It was kind of like driving into Times Square for the first time, but not quite so cheesy. I really expected to see the typical American hotels but not so we took any exit because it said Playa (beach) or Marina or something that meant good and sure enough we ended up on a Mexican tourist town with a beautiful terraced hotel where we went in for coffee and tea overlooking the bay with a cool breeze, internet. Perfect way to start the day.

We drive most of the days while it’s wicked hot so we can have the AC on in the Peace Mobile, but at night we find a small village or beach to camp out in. Last night was beautiful. We were parked in a police / town hall lot in the center plaza and watched local boys place Basketball, old men chatter, the women had a candle lighting ceremony celebrating Aids awareness. Dan and Kevin jumped in and played BB, Sterling and I played cribbage and enjoyed walking around and checking out the local church. A wonderful night to a beautiful day. Things are good in Mexico!

November 27-30 Sayulito Mexico

I take notes during the day which are basically a reflection of what’s going on but they sometimes just reflect my thoughts either thinking back or forward.

Quite often they take old tires and paint them white and use them as a sign.

They also paint the bottom of their trees white - we think to keep the bugs away.

Did you know Mexican men don’t grow much facial hair.

Pemex is the only gas station down here but they know exactly how long I can travel on one tank of gas.

There are lots of Toyota’s, Nissan, and Honda’s. They also make a very small Chevy which I had yet to see in the United States. Oh surprise!

The animals are emaciated, but they all seem very mellow. Especially dogs.

Can you believe we got a ten year permit for our RV for $49.50?

There are a good number of abandoned cars here from the States with long expired license plates and thick, grimy, dust. We saw plates from 2002, 2005, etc.

Everywhere you look there is fancy iron work. They use it for safety on doors, gates, windows, flower boxes, fences, etc. It’s beautiful.

Bimbo is the name of a loaf of white bread at WalMart.....seriously!
They sell cactus in the WalMart too as a vegetable.

We saw about 10 brush fires in the past few days.

Did you know an expert climber is graded as a 5.15?

Saw my first red fire ants along with a 4“ black scorpion this week.

Rural, country folk here are dirt poor and make houses from concrete block which is quite often falling apart but there are a good many of those same homes which have a sattelite dish. Either bright red or cobalt blue.

When I stopped to let Sterling out on the side at the Tropic of Cancer, I randomly picked a spot which had a dead dog beside it exactly where Sterling had to put his feet. He was so spoked...it was quite a gory site.

I drank Hibiscus tree here. Delicious with just a little bit of sweet.

Lots of people flash you the Peace sign, especially children and Police.

My credit card was declined at a Pemex and I forgot my ATM number. Panic set in for a couple of days thinking I was down to $23 USD in a foreign country until I reached the bank and they said there was no trouble at all. It was the gas station in trouble not me for once! Thank heavens!

Our hitch-hiking friends Kevin and Dan have spent a night under the truck in a dirt field with lots of trash, a night in the truck, another night behind the truck on a concrete pad, two nights on the beach near the Grafitti House.

Glad I know what bed is mine every night.

Kevin has had insomnia and often gets up quite early. At the last Pemex he watched as a young girl got in one truck and then back out of it and into another truck right afterwards, doing her early morning rounds.

Much of Dan’s thoughts and experience has come from being in the Army so when he talks he's a reflection of a war time soldier. I loved picking his brain and he induldged me. He was a graphic artist in Germany for much of his 6 year hitch but then he also went to Afghanistan for 6 months before he was released. We all talked freely with one another about things having to do with war, our opinions, politics, etc. He told me about Jingle trucks which the US soldiers have nicknamed and are in effect decorated folk art trucks in Afghanistan. It’s been so thought provoking I wish I had taped it so I could listen to it again and again.

All three of these young men are for Ron Paul. Kevin and Dan are 28, Sterling is 23.

My son Emerson had his 22nd birthday this week. I sent him a card by email.

Drive, Drive, Drive - Had been on the Pan American Highway for a good part of the beginning which was Route 15, but we’ve now dropped down along the coast to Route 200 which goes in and out of small, tourist towns.

We have been in and out of the desert with Mountains faraway to far bigger thick, lush trees, coconut trees, giant palms.

Love this campground. There’s Paco and then there is the funny old man who owns the place. It has lots of International clientele, young, beautiful, clean cut adults many speaking Spanish, surfing, swimming, bouldering or just enjoying the incredible blue sky and endless sunshine without a cloud to be seen.

At night we fall asleep to the crashing waves on the shore while a cool breeze takes our dreams away. Worth every cent of the $20 per day it costs me to stay here.

Saw this bumper sticker today - Ever stop to think and forget to start again?...

November 25, 2011 - We found Kevin and Dan today hitch-hiking in Mexico.

11/25/2011

Started our day in the sunshine, lots of it. We got in Guaymus in which we finally got to see the Ocean as it’s a major shrimp port. Not much else there so we moved on and picked up two young American men hitch-hiking. One in particular had blazing blue eyes and reminds me of my son Emerson. His name was Dan Petty and has come off a 6 year hitch in the Army about a year ago. The other was named Kevin Mohler and together they were headed to Argentine Patagonia to follow their passions of rock climing the mountains there. Nice kids albeit wicked smelly shoes from the torrential rains last night. Good thing about Dan was that he had grown up in Venezula where his parents taught Spanish and English, so he spoke fluent Spanish which has turned out to be extremeley helpful.

The topography has flattened out significantly and the mountains are getting smaller, fewer and more far off. The trash has subsided some, but the guys selling stuff on the side of every speed bump has probably increased. They sell everything from mangos, to shrimp, candy and even one guy was selling parrots and another young women to the truckers.

The armed police hang around the toll booths although they’re quite friendly and quite often flash us a PEACE sign which of course is quickly returned by us. There is also military which ride around in trucks of two with armed men in the back, totally dressed in black including covered faces. Other then the black uniforms and the sandbags which are quite intimidating they actually remind me of our camouflage weekend warriors in the US Guard Services who are always ready but not always called upon.

So having Daniel with us has been God sent even if these kids don’t believe in God. Kevin keeps me laughing, he could be irritable if he wasn’t smart and funny. Kevin is an Aethist who was raised a Catholic. My son, Sterling is an Aethist who was rasied Congregational Protestant and Daniel was raised in a Protestant Church in Venuzala. You can only imagine the wonderful, charged, imaginative, political, religous, musical conversations we’ve been having as we travel down the road, which for the most part are dirty and somewhat boring.

The first night they slept behind the RV, which we parked behind a Pemex and the cops came after a couple of hours to wake us up and tell us it wasn’t safe for them to sleep outside, so one went under the van and the other went and got up on a shed roof and we all went back to sleep. Like WalMart at home, Pemex is the only gas station anywhere and everywhere in Mexico and boy do they come in handy. They all have clean bathrooms which is important down here and they don’t mind if you stay in their nearby lots.

Coke pretty much owns Mexico. Every taco stand has red plastic tables and chairs which coke labels on them, as well as advertising, billboards, etc. everywhere. Sterling finally tried one for 50 pesos (40 cents) because everyone said it was better because it was made with sugar vs. high fructose corn syrup but as far as I’m concerned it still was icky coke. ce le vie!

And so I end this day after Thanksgiving with a Spanish word of the day Vibradoes = not what you’re thinking, they are little speed bumps slightly worse then a back, washboard, country road in Spring but the come in about 9 strips that end in a wicked giant one which always comes before the sign telling you it’s there. Rattles your teeth right out of your head.

Facebook

November 24, 2011 - Thanksgiving in Mexico

We got in line to cross into Nogales Mexico at 11:00 which was a simple nothing procedure quite hyped up with very little hoopla. About 25 miles into Mexico is when you have to stop and show all your documentation, passports, licenses, etc. and get your tourist visa and your car entry permit. The whole process from beginning to getting on the open Pan American highway (Route 15) took 2 hours.

Interesting to note that a person coming into Mexico in a car has to pay $400 for their Visa and $400 for your car and when you leave you get about $350 back, however if you come in a Motor Home you have to pay $49.50 for a ten year permit and about $35.00 for each Visa. We were excited to have a motor home in this instance.

Also more interesting to note, we made it all the way from Woodstock New York where our license plate was stolen to Nogales, Mexico without any plates, no insurance because we live in a state that doesn’t require insurance and an outdated inspection sticker. Really makes you wonder why we spend so much money on these items each year. We did buy a 180 day (6 month) Visa and insurance which was around $170.00.

We drove about 1 hour into Mexico and couldn’t help ourselves but to stop at a Taco stand. There were lots of them, but just like in the US, you stop at the restaurants that have lots of local cars because you know it’s got to be the best and it was! Four tacos and a big plate of condiments and fresh vegetables. . . delicious, healthy and cheap. Less then $5.00 bought us all we could eat and a windshield wash to boot.

Funny things we’re noticing is these small religious huts which are about the size of an American dog house on the side of the road with crosses on them. At first we thought it was a spot where someone had died but then realized they were probably just a prayer station or almost like a mini church. Cars for the average person just must be out of reach. Coca-cola is a MAINSTAY of the diet down here, probably because there is no such thing as cold tap water....luke warm at best.

The other thing which is quite prevalent are the greenhouses growing things hydroponically which are HUGE. Acres and acres of them, lined up like soldiers. We saw a couple of sites which probably had 1,000+ greenhouses on them. At some of the greenhouses you’d see 10+ guys waiting for a ride after work. There are lots of people hitchhiking

We kept on driving seeing signs for a “Hassle Free Zone”’ which we liked although we never did know what it meant but it made us feel good. The first major city we came to was Hermosilla which was a city of over 600,000 and home to a gigantic Ford Plant. People hunkered down in small concrete houses lined up right next to each other, many painted bright bold colors. We just expected to fly right through but as the sun was setting the rain started and we got lost.

No big deal except that a man was driving my RV and you know what they say about men and directions. Well once it got dark and the rain turned into torrential rain and the streets started flooding, I demanded Sterling stop so I could ask directions. Luckily, I found a young girl about 15 years old with a heavy beard who spoke a bit of English and got us turned back in the right direction.

Great, we thought, until the flooding got deeper and deeper. Sterl decides to go to the middle of the puddle vs. the edge and he guns it, rather then going slow, making a GIANT wake that came up over the hood of the truck and windshield, stopping us flat dead in the middle of an intersection. Slight panic set in but as they so often say about Mexico roads, there are no rules and the Angles appear when you’re in trouble. Sure enough, almost immediately, a guy pulled up beside us in a big truck and said he’d push us out of the way. He hit the back of the RV a couple of times getting us out of the depth of the flooding and our faithful Toyota Peace Mobil started right up again and we drove off. My atheist son started singing Halleluia and thanking patron saints of somewhere for getting us back on track.

We finally get back on the Pan American highway heading south at about 50 mph, when a man, dressed in a black trash bag rain suit appears on the medium strip and trys to step out in front of us with a white cane. Talk about panic! We swerved and we got the hell out of that City never to return!

Luckily, we drove another 50 miles until our nerves settled down and sleepiness started setting in. Our rig is leaking and the curtains bounced and ripped right off the walls but we made it through a harrowing day. Sterling asked I make his favorite dinner, macaroni and cheese with Kielbasa and the storm has passed. We parked out back of a seedy hotel in a dirt parking lot, both thankful for this gift of each other and one of the most grateful Thanksgivings ever. Sure beats working at the church, I think.

ZigZagExpress Visits Salt Lake City Utah - November 17

We came through the foothills of the Rockies and on into Utah yesterday. We were lucky enough to get a beautiful camping spot on the edge of a lake at the Jordenalle State Park. It was beautiful, we settled in early and watch the sun come down. Water, Elec, Wi-fi, Showers, Scenic, Quiet = Everything was right in our world and then a new day started.

November 17, 2011 - We were less then 50 miles from Salt Lake City when we woke. Salt Lake City has been on my bucket list for years. Kinda like Willie Nelson, but you don't seem to get the chance to often, but when you do, it's good to grab it. We woke up to a Ranger with a citation because when we checked in we didn't know if we wanted to stay so we didn't pay, but then when we found out how fabulous it was we felt honored to be US Citizens and to have this beautiful opportunity for a mere $20 that we were anxious to pay but the Ranger didn't know that.

We landed in Salt Lake City about noon after having our first serious disagreement on the trip. Not bad for 2 1/2 weeks but none-the-less, it set us both on edge. As we approached Temple Square, a day I had always dreamt would be an awe-inspiring lift to my life turned into a cyclone of negative swirling energy which dragged me down into a complete rut. Talk about bad Karma!

The Mormon Church is not open to the public. It is only open to members in good standing in the LDS group. Upon entering the visitor center, a modern building with Jesus paintings everywhere, I was uneasy reading the explianations on the walls of what Jesus and God could offer me. There seemed to be a serious disconnect in the fairy tale between birth, matrimony and children and the pre and post journey we all gone on. A major disconnect as in millions of years and much of the world's population which is not brought into the world within matrimony with a mother and father. There were Jesus movies playing and a dozen or more young Missionary girls who would greet everyone. Each had come for an 18 month "volunteer" brainwashing program from all different countries thereby making someone available which spoke most different languges, lucky I got one who spoke English. She told me the boys get to attend for 24 months - yeha!!!

We went into the dome roofed auditorium which was donated by three women, one of which is Ex-Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney's mother, Marion. It was a very simple building, albeit grand in it's scope, it's round-nees, acoustics, and it showcased a magnificent organ. This is the building where the Mormom Tabernacle Choir practices. We went into another church, still in Temple Square, which is an open place of worship for all religions and it seemed to feature what I've always known as a Star of David. It was odd in that setting yet again a very beautiful church with typical gothic details and stained glass. Apparently it had been built by the "leftover" granite. There is absolutely no question these people believe in Jesus. They had the largest, most comprehensive, nativity scene we've ever seen, even if the manger looked like a cave.

The entire Temple Square is surrounded in massive stone walls, the Temple itself is built in magnificent granite, but there are no windows, let alone stained glass windows. There is a mini-doll house version of the interior of the Temple which can be viewed in the Visitor Center. Temple square is 35 acres in the heart of Salt Lake City and is surrounded with all things Morman as you would expect. Everything was attributed to Joseph Smith or Bringham Young. It all seemed way too exclusive for me. No room for for so many different groups of people. I have firmly come to the conclusion that no man from this group, weather it be John Huntsman or Mitt Romeny, can rule the world, as President of the United States of America if they come from such a small focused, primitive tribe. The World is so much larger now.

I walked back to the Peace Mobile emotionally exhausted, and took a two hour nap on the city streets. Sterling skateboarded to the nearest book store which of course had "The Book of Mormon" which had belonged to the President of the LDS church for $30,000. Sterling's father had set a World Record on selling this book at NH Book Auctions, back in the early 1990's selling it for more then $36,000. Guess inflation affects all things. Sterling then went to an antique shop around the corner which he raved about as being very high end early 20th century through the 1930's. The owner didn't want to let him in. It was a locked door sort of thing and Sterl was on a skateboard which he docked at the front door. After a few minutes, the fellow decided Sterling wasn't just a street punk once he started talking about the Jazz Posters and Maxfield Parrish prints.


Sterling woke me up and we re-discussed our plans for going to the Bonneville Salt Flats where we had hoped to camp. We decided to head south finally and went to start the RV only to find out it was dead as the black bear roadkill we had seen on the highway yesterday. After fighting with Triple AAA for over an hour, we finally got a nice guy to attach the cables to our battery and bam the Peace Mobile was good and ready to go - didn't even need a jump start. Our budget is $20 per day plus all the gas we need. Utah has been easy on that, we're on the outskirts of Salt Lake City tonite and gas is $3.03 per gallon. We've seen a high of $3.79 in the Rocky Mountains. We ended our day at Applebees and saw a family with 6 kids. I just looked at all those beautiful, matching faces and just felt sorry for them. So once again, it's WalMart parking lot for the night. We can't eat out and camp out on the same nights. I smoked my last joint tonight. Time to open the windows as we head for the border. Tomorrow is a new day.

Traveling through the Rockies - Colarado and Utah

We’ve been driving the past couple of days since leaving the Frisco/Breckenridge area. The first night we stayed in Steamboat Springs Colorado. When I came through 25 years ago on a similar trip I took with Aunt Sue, Steamboat was a small ski village. It now has a WalMart and McDonalds and just isn’t the same. We were disappointed by the build-up but coming through the Rocky Mountains when they are just dusted with snow is a magnificent sight. This is where they must have written “Oh Beautiful for spacious skies . . . .”

Some of the things we’ve noticed out here that are so different from home is that in the Rocky Mountain District of McDonalds they only give you one hash brown for $1.00 not two. Sterling is disappointed in this newest trend but on the flip side, Liquor is available every convenience store, drugstore, gas station, etc. Too bad neither of us drink Not just beer and wine either, but hard liquor. We also both weigh less in the Rockies which is good for me, not so for skinny son Sterling.

We played some scrabble and enjoyed another Chinese Buffet last night in Vernal Utah which is the border town coming out of Colorado. The entire area is full of large fiberglass dinosaur which I totally loved. I wish I could have one in Wolfeboro. They are so totally playful to say nothing about this being the foothills of the Dinosaur National , Park. They have a city ordinance which eliminates sleeping in WalMart parking lots in Vernal. We pushed on because of the cold. Our little gas heater is having trouble keeping us warm when it falls below 35 at night. One more good reason to move on.

Leaving Vernal this morning, about 10 miles out was a great little shop that I totally loved! I’ve been in this business for 26+ years and I don’t find many shops that really excite me much anymore, but Gypsy Mama was totally cool. Loved the bright colors, the creativity of the women who owned this shop, loved the funkster junk, and even loved the ultra-rich Carmel-corn she sold at $4.00 per bag. This was the first shop I’ve been in that motivated me enough to take the check book out. I bought 4 things to bring home to my shop and would have bought FAR more if I wasn’t heading south and west. I’m sure there will be other buying opportunities.

We’re about 90 miles from Salt Lake City and the scenery is beautiful. Gonna rest my fingers so my eyes can soak in the snow capped mountain peaks and the amber waves of grain.

November 12-14 Colorado

We’ve had a number of banner days. We hit the jackpot with an invitation to a friends house in Frisco Colorado.  We didn’t know much about it other then it was a place with electricity, showers, laundry and a reason to perch for a couple of days.

We landed in Denver and as is drawn by a Musical God the first street we went down had a fabulous brightly colored mural dedicated to the Grateful Dead of which we had just listened to for the past several days.  It was remarkable!  Sterling went right to town taking a video which we’ll post as soon on FB, You-tube and our blog and website.

Our first day in Denver was one of exploration just checking out the general area, the layout of the city, the architecture, walking down the 16th Street Mall which is a tony, shopping district. 
We walked and walked into the sunset and then drove out about 10 miles to our favorite WalMart and McDonalds.  This one had several patroling security guards in cars which was unsettling but we were safe, did some wi-fi work and heading back in to the Denver Art Museum.

When we arrived it was 11:30 and a Gospel Band was playing very loudly right outside the Capital Building and there we found the biggest free food giveaway either of us had ever seen.  There were probably 250 volunteers and an incredible line of thousands waiting for hours to get a free turkey supper.  It was mind blowing.

We went across the street to the Denver Art Museum where I had been 30 years ago when I took a similar trip with Auntie Sue.  Sterling and I spent 5 hours there pouring over the exhibits both in their permenant collection and in their current exhibits.  I was a bit disappointed with the Modern section as I feel Modern is coming on so strong and their representation was more modest then I like to see in a museum.  I started to take one picture per floor of the most incredible thing I saw.  We started at the seventh floor and worked our way down.  By the time we got to the Indian section I found myself taking picture of almost every exhibit.  They were all my favorites.  The color and the beadwork and the paint and the decorations just excite me so, I love them.

When we came out the food line was still going although the band had switched.  We went and grabbed the RV from the parking lot and went over to the Occupy Denver site which was just around the corner.  We figured that many of the people in the food line were displaced from the Occupy Denver group - it was all such an odd blur of humanity from the very higest of art to the most primitve human needs.  Such a stark contrast this country of ours.

We left Denver and headed west about 75 miles to our friends house.  Johnny May and Lisa Buenorosa have a new home in Frisco, Colorado.  I’ve known Johnny for 27 years and he’s now 36 so it was great to see the man he has become and meet his new mate.  We arrived late Saturday night and pretty much moved in on them until Monday morning. They didn’t tell us  Lisa and Johnny were the ultimate host and hostess, feeding us, allowing us to use all their facilities, entertaining us by bringing us out to a small Victorian Village called Leadville and just all around indulging us by showing us all sorts of cool houses, antique shops, a saloon, an American made polartec clothing company and the best part showing us the best Rocky Mountain Scenery in the middle of a snow-storm.  Oh what fun it was but that white stuff was enough to move us on.

I’ll be posting lots of photos and video shorts over the next couple of days.  Keep on watching as we work our way to Salt Lake City this week.  Staying in Steamboat Springs tonite, November 14, 2011.  For now we continue to search for Peace!  Dragonfly Cathy and Son Sterling. 

Blogger: Classic Antiques ~ Americana ~ Obsessive Folk Art - Publish Status

November 9 and10, 2011 - Iowa / Illinois / Colorado

Well we’re finally out of the cornfields tonite. Now we’re seeing cattle and big, huge, mega ranches. Much of our destinations are chosen by the RV campsites we can find. We’ve found 3 State Parks, last night was a paid RV Park and we’ve also stayed at 3 or 4 WalMarts. Guess lots of people don’t know that WalMarts allow RV’s to set up in their parking lots. It creates an extra layer of security apparently that works well for them and is good for the public.

Last night was the Holiday RV Park and we loved it. Showers, laundry, wi-fi, vintage metal swings and lawn tables painted in bright colors all made for 2 happy campers. Back on the road this morning, $35.00 lighter we stopped to get gas at Sinclair. Sterling didn’t realize Sinclair Oil and Sinclair Lane in South Wolfeboro, NH were one in the same at one time. He liked the dinosaur.

So after we got yet another tank of gas, we were sucked in to the Gift Shop disguised as a free museum. But surprisingly it was a lot of bang for our buck. I loved the giant Buffalo Bill Cody statue and the story at his feet. Again, the LeClaire Iowa connection rears it’s head. Apparently, he is the king out here. Everyone wants to lay claim to him, and this town of North Platte, Nebraska was no different claiming it as his “home town”. LeClaire was his birthplace, and I suspect there will be shrines to him in Denver too as the place he peed or died or something.

Anyway, back to the free Buffalo Bill Cody Museum. Son Sterling and I enjoyed looking at the honest to goodness antique artifacts and fortunately for me they weren’t for sale because they truly were impressive. All sorts of taxidermy, cowboy chaps, Indian dress, 1950‘s kitch Buffalo Bill BB guns, and so much more. The real deal which was nice after all those crappy antique malls we’ve had to endure.

The most amazing part here was the hand carved and painted miniature circus made by Ernie and Virginia Palmquist. Made up of a whopping 20,000 hand carved pieces, all painstakingly hand painted this miniature reproduction circus of the Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show is simply astounding. It took more then 12 years for this couple to make it and then they toured throughout the US in the 1960‘s and 1970‘s finally making Fort Cody it’s permanent home. Check out the picture montage we put together on YouTube - it was very cool and a nice start to our day.

More gas, more miles today. Seems like we’re filling up often but we only have a 15 gallon tank and a short fuse for sitting too long so it’s ok. Between changing time zones and day-light savings we both are fighting to be the passenger so we can catch some extra zzzz’s. I won today. Sterling drove after we had a little mishap. Not sure if I hit a orange cone or if my holding tank nozzle got caught on something or what but BANG, the holding tank was gone and at 60 miles per hour it cleaned out quite nicely and we got to see a orange cone in flight.

Sterl got me out of the rolling hills of Iowa and the flat flat flat lands of Nebraska and right on into Colorado this afternoon. He found another Sterling on the map, this one in Colorado so our afternoon was spent in this town which was fun. Our first stop was a really terrific Antique Shop by the name of Eastmans. It was an old warehouse with tons of space all on one level. It was huge and filled with good quality Victorian era and newer antiques. Loads of Oak, glass, an extraordinary number of small decorative items. The dealer definitely loved the period from the 1860‘s through the 1920‘s and had a wicked extensive inventory all clean, priced and for the most part pretty reasonable prices. I pointed out 3 or 4 things I would have bought, if I was in a buying mode but am starting to wonder if it might be worth it to be a picker out here where people don’t know me. Might be a good competitive edge. It’s refreshing to be myself and enjoy Son Sterling.

The draw in the Town of Sterling was a carver by the name of Bradford Rhea. They bill this town as the City of Living Trees and Sculptures. They have raised up their local son and embraced his work. The two sculptures we saw were the Skygazers which was located in a beautiful Town Park with a Veterans Memorial and a nice walking path with benchs and play areas. The Skygazers was a bronze of his original Tree Sculpture of 5 giraffes looking towards the heavens. It was beautiful so we sought out another of his works at the Welcome Center and found one called Metamorphosis which was also interesting, albeit a reproduction. Reading his marketing brochure and map the local prison prints for him, I found it wonderful that the Department of State commissioned a staff for President Clinton to present to Pope John Paul II in 1993. I wonder if that guarantees him a place in carvers heaven. It sure should.

We’re finding Colorado hospitable tonite. Cheap Chinese Buffet and free hook ups in a state park right at the road side in Fort Morgan. Everything is beautiful but it smells like, what else, manure. My allergies cleared up just in time for this evenings smells. Can you just imagine when we’re able to transfer smell over the internet?

The next few days we’ll be slowing down in Denver and then heading out into the Colorado mountains to see a friend and spend a few days while we wait for our new license plates.

Come antiquing with us at www.zigzagexpress.com for lots of photos and links to You Tube Videos.

Zig Zag Express visits Brass Armidillo Antique Mall in Omaha, NB

Well we started our day again at free Wi-fi at McDonalds and was waited on by a women who had just returned to work after an 11 week sabatus for a hip-replacement. She was 80 years old and still working. Was it choice or necesity?

We got on the road today about 11:00 after researching and ordering our replacement license plates from the NH State website.
.
We’re trying hard to put Route 80 through Iowa and Nebraska behind us. We have entered the land of giant wind turbines, tons of them dotting the countryside. Iowa seems to be quite proud of their energy stance, not only with windmills but also with ethanol and electric car docking stations. We stop every couple of hours to fill up the gas tank, get a bite to eat and entertain ourselves. Gas is running around $3.25 out here, occasionally lower for ethanol.

One such stop that sucked us in was an authentic Dutch Windmill in Elk Horn Iowa . The tour was $2.00 each and so worth it. Here’s a link if you want to check it out. http://www.danishwindmill.com/. I’m trying to concentrate on things that are undeveloped so much so I won’t go on about it.

We toddled on down Highway 80 towards Omaha and all of a sudden I remembered a conversation I had with Eric Moriarty when he was the head of the antiques department at eBay.
He mentioned that in the mid-west there is a retail chain of antique malls called the Brass Armidillo and for some reason it dawned on me we hadn’t stopped at any antique places yet so we veered off the higway and visited my first Brass Armidillo Shop.

There we found acres of people’s junk storage. There was very little that was homey, edgy, one of a kind, historical, important or really anything but it was “collectible”. Even that word is spelled differently out here. It is spelled collectable but that aside, it’s mass produced stuff people no longer want but can’t let go of, so they put it here in this second hand store. I’m beginning to see why people are so impressed to go antiquing in New England. It’s a look, a feeling, an atmosphere, history, nostalgia, just something different about New England.

Slept in a State Parks the last two nights. Thank you Iowa. We’re on our way through Nebraska today.

Google Maps

November 3, 2011 - New York

Our day started out once again at McDonald’s. They have free wi-fi, free re-fills, a clean bathroom and they’re warm. We still haven’t found a generator in this land of the Northeast which just had 3 million people out of electricity so we indulged in Breakfast out. Sitting beside Sterling this morning as he loaded video’s to You Tube, I noticed a picture on the wall which was an old menu board with 1970‘s prices. Since this trip is in many ways all about Nostalgia, I told Sterling about McDonald’s in our family.

I grew up in Melrose, MA in the 1960‘s. My family summered on Lake Winnipesaukee in Wolfeboro NH and on Friday nights we’d stop at the McDonalds near Pease AFB, in Newington, NH. My Dad would feed our family of 6 on $5.00 and get change. Cup of tea and 2 hash browns was $3.48. here in Kingston, NY this morning. Gas was $3.79 per gallon.

Kingston, NY is a fairly large city which has grown up in the center of an otherwise rural area. This region of NY is known as the Catskills. It was the birthplace of FDR and where his Presidential Library is located. As you drive through Ulster County the countryside is dotted with beautiful, antique, stone homes built by the Dutch who settled the Hudson River Valley during the early to mid18th century.

Set among the bucolic countryside and stone houses we drove down a back country, tree lined, winding road not far from Woodtock New York coming upon Kat O’Sullivan’s house which is situated on 16 acres and sticks out like a bright red, sore thumb among her neighbors who live in their monochromatic stone houses. Kat’s house is exuberant, fresh, exciting and exudes all her creative passion which just can’t be held back. Like the bright gem encrusted star necklace she wears around her neck, she is a brightly shining star.

When you you pull in, the yard, her two, fully decorated, art car, school buses sit. The larger of the two she lived in during her Dead Head period and then when she was in college in Santa Cruz, studying Anthropology. The smaller of the two buses is a shorter version she parks right outside the front door to her house. Her front door is painted bright green with faux oversize grains which are almost Flinstone like. The ceiling is painted in a round rainbow design.

Kat O’Sullivan greeted us at the door with a warm welcome hug and invited us into her inner sanctum. It was such a privilege and a genuine treat going into her environment. The element of surprise just goes on and on. Every surface is covered with chachkas. Her front hall is decorated with framed bug and butterfly specimens. Her refrigerator pantry is plastered with Luis Miguel paintings of Jesus. Her kitchen counters are covered with $100 worth of pennies. The morning glories grow in through her kitchen window which overlooks a pond. Every corner is filled with stained glass and guest beds with brightly colored crazy quilts. Her personal space which is shared with her mate Mason is high energy but she is very calm. She smiles when she shares that Mason indulges her impulses to be creative. The wrought-iron head board turned upside down and painted bright red shines like a masthead on the front of her house.

She developed her aesthic sense while following the Grateful Dead in the early 1990‘s for the 5 years just before Jerry Garcia passed away. Someone had asked her to a concert when she was 14 and she was so turned on by what she saw she decided to triple up on her classes and graduated from high school at 15. The daughter of a Long Island lawyer, she is well heeled and quite articulate.

I found Kat to be wise and compassionate beyond her years. Her sense of community, morality and hard work is well developed. She is very thoughtful and understanding about Outsider Artists and does not consider herself to be one, explaining that Outsider Artists can’t control what they do and don’t care about the “outside machine". She admits to having bought into the system when she and Mason purchased their home 2 years ago and their hard work is very evident at every turn. She did go so far as to admit to being obsessive when she starts a project and that she can’t or won’t let it go until it’s finished.

But all of this aside the most amazing detail about Kat is the totally awesome folk art, sweater coats makes. The are wonderful creations of coats, mittens or scarves made from recycled sweaters. She makes between 30 and 40 coats each month and lists them for sale all at once on the website http://www.etsy.com Search Katwise to see all her new sweaters on November 7th.
Priced between $250 and $400, they sell out within 15 seconds after they’re listed. She also has her own website at http://www.katwise.com/ which is cool but doesn’t provide a place to buy.

I saw a quote someplace I really liked which fits Kat like a glove “I’m an artist, I’m hear to live out-loud!”

For more information on www.Katwise.com and don’t forget to watch the YouTube Video we’re posting.

iGoogle

iGoogle

Day two under our belts, but it wasn't too fun or too easy. We realized by 4:30 am we desperately needed a heater and a generator so we spent the better part of the day looking at Lowes, Home Depot, Sears, Auto Zone, Etc. Etc. Etc. for a new tire, and a generator. We also needed a camera cord to download all the fabulous photos we were taking. We also needed a Verizon store to stop the FIOS account for $60 a month. When I signed up two years ago it was needed but now there is WI-FI just about everywhere.

I thought the women we were supposed to meet, Kat O'Sullivan of Katwise.com, lived in Woodstock, so we headed from Orange down to Woodstock, NY which was about 3 hours during which time Sterling passed out in the back of the RV because the heat finally came on. It was a beautiful, warm, sunny fall day and I enjoyed the boutiques, galleries, head shops, java stops and historical buildings. Great picture opportunities abound in Woodstock on a beautiful day.

Late in the afternoon we decided to skip Katwise and headed south to Kingston, NY which is a megatropolis in this area. Every store imagineable! It was actually kind of fun since we live in a rural area and don't get out often. I guess this will soon be the norm not the abnorm. Yeha!

For now I'm posting our photos on Facebook each day until I can figure out how to load them here. Keep tuned.

+Peace We lost our back plate today! :(

Dragonfly Cathy & Son Sterling

Facebook

Well our first day is behind us at last. We were so exited leaving Wolfeboro although we never made it until 2:00 so we didn't make it to our first stop until 5:30 but my friend Gary Moise of Orange Trading greeted us with a warm happy shop.

Orange Trading is located in a huge brick mill building right on the river in Orange, MA. It's a mill town with loads of brick buildings, men with long ponytails and Carharts and the liquor store opens at 5 am.

We forgot our space heater and we thought we had electricity from Gary but after he left we found out NOT! We froze! It was just 20 degrees and so we finally got up at 4:30 am and got on the road again.

We'll be posting lots of photos and a video of Gary Moise as soon as we can find some electricity again. The computer battery is only so good. Check with us again as we head to Woodstock, NY to see Katwise.com. who makes the most fabulous sweaters and is all about my passion - COLOR!

Although I'm no John Steinbeck and my Son Sterling isn't the French Poodle in "Charlie and Me" I can fully feel his sentiment "“We do not take a trip; a trip takes us” .

And so we're off for today.

Dragonfly Cathy & Son Sterling

iGoogle

iGoogle

Dragonfly Cathy & Son Sterling reporting from the Peace Mobil:

Spent the day happily packing the RV for our upcoming journey. Leaving November 1st with Son Sterling and starting out on an adventure.

We're looking for folk art environments, antique dealers, flea markets, shows, auctions, historical villages, museums, funky weird ecentrics, musicians and artists as well as geographic wonders all with a story to tell.

Anywhere we can go that trips our trigger along the route to Chicago, Mount Rushmore, Salt Lake City, Vegas, Slab City, right on down through Central America to Panama and home again to New Hampshire. 12,000 miles or 100 miles a day - depends on how things go.

We'll be keeping a Google Blog, Youtube videos, posting here, and keeping a travel website called ZigZagExpress.com

So the first day we're stopping to see my friend Gary Moise of Orange Trading Co. in Orange MA. The second day we will be stopping in Woodstock NY to see a fabulous new Facebook Friend www.katwise.com.

So come along with us on our journey. If you live along any of these trails and can give us a place to park the RV and plug into your Electric overnight please don't hesitate to invite us. We'll be enjoying our share of WalMart Campgrounds and RV Parks too but food, drink and entertainment are always welcome.

Also if you know of any "can't miss" places please let us know that too. Many of our stops will be the inspiration of Narrow Larry of Houston, TX.

And Emerson - keep your eye on the Panama Prize for Christmas. Get that passport in high gear sweetie!— with Emerson Sykes.

The new adventure - New Hampshire to Panama -

In search of antiques, pop-culture collectibles, folk art, flea markets, museums, geographic wonders, historical villages, fun people and whatever else trips our trigger.

This adventure is being taken by Dragonfly Cathy & My Gypsy Son Sterling Sykes. Over 4 or 5 months from November 1, 2011 through the February or March of 2012. We'll be posting lots of videos and content on our zigzag.com blog.

We begin our journey in Wolfeboro, New Hampshire which is known as the Oldest Summer Resort in America. From New Hampshire to Panama and back. That's right - a rain forest Christmas. :)

Come antiquing with us. Follow along as we seek out all sorts of weird, whacky and wonderful sites and people.  If you know of anyone you think might be a good candidate for a visit please let me know. We're always looking for a place to plug in the +Peace-mobile overnight.

Follow along on FB or our website www.zigzagexpress.com. See you on the road.