Left Nelsons apartment at 8 am and his friend Mario took me TO Santa Anna and then I proceeded to the border alone.i have crossed all the borders doing the paperwork myself and it is not that difficult and the runners just drive me nuts anyway. Took just over an hour which was the fastest so far. I was missing some paperwork for Guatemala and the guy found the original in his large file from when I had come down, which was unbelievable. Drove another two hours and was in the traffic of Guatemala City which is horrendous, found the BMW dealer and then called Thomas who came and picked me up and went to his house.
Went to the German Club for supper and a bottle of vodka. I got hold of Cisco whom I had met in Chihuahua and he joined us and brought me three pairs of socks which I have never been so happy to receive cause my socks are walking around on their own.
As we were about to leave Cicero pulled out his flask and shot glasses for a few Tequilas. It never ends and now am going with him to his house on some lake three hours from here on Friday.
Was a great evening full of laughter as usual and lots of stories and the vodka didn't help.
I have to get to Cabo San Lucas on the 17th for Charmaine's arrival. Still have no maps or gps and maps are not easy to come by. Was looking at the State Department's website, which was a mistake, about Mexico and Guatemala and they make it out as if it is a war zone.
The trip was not only memorable for the amount of animals we saw but also for the people and accommodations at the two camps where we stayed. Our first guide, BK, was a wealth of information about the animals, landscape and down to the plants and what they were used for. Everyday out was a learning experience with him. All the people at the camps were gracious and the food was excellent.
Our second camp in the Okavanga was just as good as the first as far as the staff, accommodations, food and animals. After our experience at the first camp we amazed that the high quality remained the same. Our guide, G, made sure we were able to enjoy every experience including a rush through the bush to witness a cheetah and an ensuing hunt that he heard over his radio.
In both camps there were enough guides out that if they saw something the other guides were informed which helped in seeing as much as possible. It was also nice that the concessions were large enough that we did not have vehicles following each other throughout the day.
Normally there is always something in a trip of this length that we think could be improved upon but this is the rare case where we cannot think of anything. From the time we left the States to when we returned it was one of the most hassle free vacations we took.
Perhaps emphasizing the use of the laundry facilities at the camps would be useful because of the luggage restrictions would be the only thing I can think of as an improvement to future clients.
Kenneth Dropek
2 days ago
Mary was so pleasant and professional. She made sure all of our questions were answered.