After a pretty horrendous stopover in sub-zero New york, which allowed us just enough time to get our yellow Fever Vaccinations for Brazil, we soon found ourselves in Mexico at a town called Puerto Escondido.
Puerto Escondido, which translates to "Hidden Port", is a small fishing town on the south coast of Mexico, the reason why we came here is because it is also the home of the Mexican Pipeline, one of the worlds best beach breaks. I have wanted to surf this place for a long time, and when plans were being made for this trip and I realised there was a window of a few weeks to go there, my mind was pretty made up.
Our days were spent waking up with the sun, surfing for 3hours, having breakfast and then relaxing in our casa or at the beach for 5 hours before going back into the surf for the afternoon glass off just before sunset. Usually cocktails and a beachside dinner would follow before retiring at around 9pm.
That was pretty much it for 18 days.
Every session would bring at least 3 or 4 broken surf boards to the shore and with some of the bigger days that number would easily triple. I even broke my bodyboard on one of the average sized days, something that could almost be seen as almost impossible. Proving just how heavy Playa Zicatela could be!
Ears: Oregon Bike Trails (aka Cayucas)
The Zicatela Lifeguards, these guys had it pretty cruisy, except for the American tourists. They loved getting my broken board off me too.
Watched the Volleyball Crew most afternoons, sometime it was hilarious.
Typical view in the afternoon.
The old Corona "from where you'd rather be" advert.
Chihuahua's were everywhere.
Hannah hated Mexico
The house on the hill was our neighbour, this beach literally being a stones throw away.
Looking the other way
Probably our favourite restaurant, not sure why.
The local kids were ridiculously good in the fun sized stuff, couldn't find them anywhere when it got big though!
Wide
Zicatela Beach
There's a reason this place is called Mexi Pipe
Me
And again
Me on a small day but a lot of fun!
And Again
Hannah loved these alien dogs - they were on the beach everyday. Now all she does is look up photos of them on the internet.
Our Casa for the 18 days. We had it all to ourselves which was pretty lucky.
There was a German Shepherd that lived on this balcony (like a guard dog), each morning we would walk past it on the way to the beach, sometimes he would be asleep with his paws over the edge. He didn't like being touched on those paws, much to my amusement.
After leaving the boat, the plan is to take the long way home. A trip though Europe, then to Mexico, all through South America and back to Central America. Then on to Brazil for the FIFA World Cup in June and July, before finally jumping on board Cowabunga in Tahiti to sail her back to Australia, arriving in November.
The first part of the trip however is Europe. We decided to delay our departure to Mexico in order to have a bit more of a look around Europe, considering we were already there it wasn't too hard a decision. After sending a few boxes home before we left the boat, we didn't really have too much gear considering we were coming home after almost 4 years away. However two bodyboards, a few laptops and a bag full of camera gear still made it quite an effort to go anywhere, and as a result we though the best way to get around Europe was by train. This was made better by the fact that the fares are mostly cheaper than airfares (especially when you get hit with the extortionist baggage fees from some "cheap" airlines), the transit times were in my mind better once you take into account getting to the airport, check in, flight, collecting bags, getting from the airport to the hotel:
6hours Antibes to Paris
6hours Paris to Munich
6hours Munich to Venice
2hours Venice to Milan
Plus the fact that generally it was some really nice scenery, and a chance to catch up on photo edits.
We had 5 days in Paris, which were spent getting pretty cultured, the Louvre, Musee Pompidou, Moulin Rouge, Montmartre, Eiffel Tower, Versailles, as well as all the other Parisian experiences one generally has.
Next up was Munich, a stop I was particularly looking forward to to catch up with my mate Scott and his girlfriend Ramona. The last time I saw them was 3 years ago, just before I joined the boat! After a few days in Munich and getting acquainted with the Bavarian way, we soon found ourselves in Brixentale Austria with some friends for a weekend of skiing.
After that is was onwards to Venice, but only for a few nights before heading to our final stop in Milan.
Ears: Sporto Kantes
Leaving the boat.
Early morning Paris
Street Art
Musee Pompidou - the inside out building, its actually a pretty cool contemporary art museum inside.
Aitwork like this!
The Bastille Markets
This lock epidemic is now out of control
Had a picnic here
From the Arc d'Triomphe
Louvre at night
Yep saw the Mona Lisa, again.
Venus de Milo (see the below photo for how good a shot this actually is)
What every room inside the Louvre looks like (actually what every room inside any famous place looks like in France).
According to Tom Hanks, the Holy Grail is here.
Gates of Versailles
Versailles was home to the French Royals (think Louis and Marie Antoinette) until the French Revolution took them down.
This is the backyard for Versailles
The Guards house.
View from Montmarte
Streets of Montmarte
If anyone ever mentions Munich, people always talk of Octoberfest, however it is also home of many other amazing things, such as this clock. The Glockenspiel.
