See, you never know!

La Posada, the hostel we are staying at in Mancora. I must get myself a hammock!

The fish we caught (not big but I don{t think they have size regulations over here)

A la calle, la Panamericana...

y en la playa....

The track to the thermal pools. Very rough!


Right, I have more photos. These will definitely be the last because I leave Mancora tonight. Actually there could be some randoms when I get to Stgo. I have a few days there.

Yesterday was didn{t go to plan but turned out to be cool anyway. We thought we{d go the thermal pools about 10km north of Mancora (why we would decide to do such a thing in 30 degree weather is beyond me but anyway) so we got in a mototaxi and headed in that direction.

We turned off the Panamerican onto a dirt road not far out of town and things got interesting. There has been so much rain here recently that the road was just thick mud and puddles. The little motos are pretty hardy but definitely not 4 wheel drive things. So we splashed and bobbed and rocked our way through some really bad parts, every so often getting out and pushing the thing when it couldn{t get any further. I thought we were going to tip over a number of times but we managed to stay upright.

About 10 mins into our exciting adventure (we really had no idea how far the road would go) we came across a man who signalled to us that we couldn{t go any further in the moto because the road was too bad so we all got out and deliberated about what to do.

An old man, Augustine, came passed and confirmed that the road was too bad to go by moto but it was walkable. 40 mins there and 40 back. In searing heat and mud. We talked to Augustine and the moto driver and his young son (I assume) for a while and then the moto driver said there was a "kind of zoo" in the house we were standing in front of. So we wandered in and met this slightly eccentric German woman, Heidi, who had a collection of parrots and makaws. Huge birds! And a squirrel as well. She had been at sea for 5 years with her husband (not sure what happened to him) and "could never go back to Germany". I didn{t ask why. It sounded a bit ominous. I like to think it is becuase she has fallen in love with her way of life in this tiny corner of Peru.

She also had some horses. The Old One and The Black One. The Black One was a 3 yr old stallion and he literally was jet black. So beautiful.. The Old One was crazy apparently but she rode them both (English style which is very uncommon in these parts!).

We headed back home and went for a swim and ate chocolate brownie sundaes in the sun. Later that night Marty and I went on a date. Just the two of us. It was really nice. Really good food and a really nice bottle of wine and he told me all the mischevious things he got up to as a child. I never realised! Maybe I shouldn{t have said that!

The boys are off at the beach but it is insanely hot today. 100% humidity and almost unbearable. I think I will have to jump in the sea but there{s been so much rain that the sea is brown and not particularly appealing! But I have to cool down somehow.

Anyway, I will see you all soon,

K x