The Empire State - Big Ben

Taking my mind back to the last time I recorded in this blog seems a long time ago. Quite a lot has happened since then. Some very exciting, others not so thrilling and maybe the reason my thoughts have been elsewhere, not recording the events as they unfold on this adventure.

I went to the MET, saw the Seinfeld restaurant, took in views of the city from the observation deck of the empire state building, found a good coffee (colombe on broadway), had a sloppy Joe, ate the best pancakes in New York (Clinton St Baking Company), had a slice at a famous pizza joint (Joe's Pizza) at 4:30am, went to possibly the most exclusive nightclub in the Meat Packing District and partyed alongside the prince of Saudi Arabia and got a terrible haircut performed by an ancient Russian lady who had been in Melbourne for the '56 olympics.

I still was sad to leave as there were many other things I would have liked to do but I'm sure Ill be back.

Friday evening came along and it was time to head back over the river to Jersey for a flight over the pond to London. There was a direct bus from Time's square to the airport which I had caught when I arrived in New York in the opposite direction with no hassles so with no a worry in the world 3 hours before my flight I wandered down to the port authority station with a big touristy smile to wait for the bus... and wait for the bus... and meet a very attractive German girl who had a solid american accent.. and wait for the bus... getting a little worried now that it was 2 hours before my flight and I was still in Midtown Manhattan when I needed to be somewhere in close proximity to Newark airport. I had to keep a brave face however, if not for my sake then for the sake of Ruth (the german girl) who was hitting lifetime high anxiety levels as her flight was at the same time as mine. The bus finally came but was stuck in some serious Friday night New York traffic. With the tension building inside the bus I had to be Ruth's rock, in the back of my mind I was picturing a nice clean place to stay for ocktoberfest and some fun hang out time in Germany.

I was doing magnificently, suprisingly well infact until Ruth informed me that she was not alone on her travels and had left a man-friend in Costa Rica. With no-one's rock to be, the new york traffic only condensing around and the temperature approaching a scorching... (actually the bus had air con) I was starting to fall apart.

With me beggining to crumble and her boyfriend in Costa Rica, Ruth was clearly on the brink of a panic attack, another girl from Denmark who we started chatting to wasnt making matters any better, chatting away as her flight left another hour after ours. It was up to me to hold things together once more. I was able to calm both of us down, practically tackling Ruth from getting off the bus when it stopped at the first (the wrong) terminal and with a "take those fingernails out of your mouth Ruth, 'She'll be right' (not that I have ever said that before discovering the awesome power of the Australian accent) we were off the bus, checked in and saying our goodbyes at the gate lounge.

The flight over was "well rough" as it was a 5 hour flight that took place whilst 12 hours of time (New York to London time) elapsed on my watch. I was off the plane, onto the heathrow express, out to Hammersmith and into the car with Michelle who picked me up from the tube station.

A quick shower and I was out and about in London Town on the Big Bus Company open top bus. This was my kind of sightseeing. Trafalger Square = done, Picadilly Circus = done, Big Ben, Tower Bridge, London Eye = done, done and done. All in an afternoon's work. Brilliant.

The next day I was off to Lord's in the morning to see all of one and a half hours of test match cricket, over into the Notting Hill Carnival for some Jerk Chicken and a few spectacular displays of West Indian music and dance and back home for another lovely home cooked dinner.

This morning I was up a little earlier and with a cooked breakfast in the belly shot down to Hammersmith tube station for a day at the Natural History Museum (One of the things I missed in New York). On the way to the tube station I felt a sting on my right hand. I looked down and there I saw the number one enemy of the Englishman in the summer, the european wasp having a good crack at my middle finger. I shook him off and waited to see if I was one of those people who were alergic to wasp stings. Having always I assumed I was and therefore having a slight phobia of wasps and bees I was getting a little worried. Anyway, on I walked and with nothing but a bit of throbbing and itching I was on my way to South Kensington station on the tube.

London to be continued....

The museum was great. Felt like a little kid again running around looking at dinosaurs and blue whales. Playing memory and sensory games etc etc.

My last day on London saw attempt to see the changing of the guards which didnt take place on that particular day, go for a killer workout at crossfit central london and get my revenge on those bloody trafalger square pigeons that terrorised me out of my mind when I was but 3 years old. Was a scared of them some 18 years later? No siree... I came out from under my metaphorical pram and was now the terroriser as apposed to the terrorisee. Photos above.

Workouts at crossfit central London

5RFT
5 power clean at 70kg
20 double unders

4:35

Practise:
HSPU
Pistol
Butterfly

Last day:

All the following for time:
200m 20lb MB OH carry
3 Rounds with 2 min rest btwn rounds
32 situps abmat unanchored
32 pushups hands off ground
32 pullups
32 box jumps 24 inch
200m 20lb MB OH carry

Total time: 25:15 (I think)

The Centre Of The World

After being in New York for a good few days now it really feels like it is the city centre of the world. There are people from all different nationalities, socio-economic brackets, religions etc and despite having their own little districts are all knitted together with relatively no trouble. This is a true city. This is definitely my favourite city so far and I can't see how it will lose top spot. Underground there is the incredibly efficient and easy to use subway system, you then pop up into one of the many buzzing neighbourhoods with eateries, shops and bars run by people from all walks of life for people from all walks of life. Then there is the traffic. With time perceived in a totally different way to the way it is in Australia cars are rushing around but people are rushing in front of cars with a "Screw you, Im wawkin' 'ere" attitude. With patience being a challenge of mine I feel at home in a city like this. Above all this hustle and bustle is a breathtaking skyline. Walking down some streets is like walking in between massive cliffs (especially on wall st, downtown) with walls of steel concrete and glass surrounding you. All this, surrounded by water with little islands like liberty and coney? Its like a fairytale. You can't walk for very long without running into a statue, shop or restaurant you have seen in a movie or on TV. I haven't even left and yet can't wait to be back.

Back to the tales.

We (Adam, Brooke and I) didn't end up going to Coney island as the people we were going out with didn't land at JFK until about 8 that night which would give us less than the required time to fully enjoy it. Instead we had a few drinks at brooke's apartment before heading for a walk down into the "Meat Packing District". We walked down some typical New York streets, past a sex shop of Sex and the City fame and past Carrie's house itself. Ive never seen an episode but it was exciting nonetheless. A guy named Mike from South Dakota and I started with "Geez I love this city" and after a few ales it became a bit of a laugh. I laugh this city, I love this bar, I love this beer, I love etc etc... We went to a little bar called the Brass Monkey. Reminded me of the Beastie Boys song however I have no idea if it was their inspiration. After a solid few sherbets I got Brooke to take us to Joe's pizza, a famous new york pizzeria (box ticked). She rang ahead and even though they were closed got them to give us a feed. Im starting to get the feeling she has a little bit of pull around here. Now, you can put all sorts of gourmet toppings on a pizza in an attempt to make it delicious, goats cheese, truffles, smoked salmon etc. But executive chefs in fancy restaurants around the world... "Fuggettaboutit". Dough. Tomato sauce. Cheese. Done. The best, simplest, most delicious pizza I've ever had. I refuse to put it down to the beer I was seriously in heaven.

In a cab. Into bed. 4 hours sleep. Up for sightseeing with an Aussie girl called Tamara. Rough.

Coffee. Eggs. Turkey. Fruit Salad. Ready to go...

We headed down to Ground Zero. Had a look at the memorial. I was astounded that 400 first responders were killed in the attacks and that the youngest killed was only 2 and a half years old. Despite women and children also being killed in the American retaliation it is easier to empathize with the American response. It allowed me to understand the anger with which marines went into Iraq as described in a book I'm reading called "One Bullet Away" by Marine Officer Nathaniel Fick.

From there we shot down to Battery Park (Tick) and took the free ferry across to Staten Island to see the statue of Liberty. Despite being (as everyone says) smaller than expected (which for me meant it was the size I expected it to be) it was magnificent to see such an iconic statue with my own eyes and reasonably close without having to pay for a ferry to the actual island.

After shooting straight back to Manhattan we went for a walk down wall st which was really what I imagined New York to be like. Walls of building lining the streets, suits rushing by, the stock exchange etc. I found a really nice looking chocolate shop by the name of "La Maison Du Chocolate". Wow, easily the best chocolate I've ever had. I had a passionfruit granach and a orange and lemon zest granach. 2 tiny bit sizes only cost me just under 4 dollars but you could easily drop some serious cash there. I think Ill be visiting the London/Paris branches.

Next was lunch in Chinatown. By this stage I was starving and had a generous roast duck entree with a beef and broccoli main on rice. just over ten bucks and a really good sized feed. We then strolled through little Italy which was somewhere that I could picture my Nan and Pop settling into from a spaghetti and some veal scallopini. Some awesome little restaurants, pizzeria's and cafes. I stopped in at sal's pizza joint for a slice. I think I saw it on Entourage one time. Anyway it was delicious but I think Joe has Sal covered by a small margin.

Really hitting the hangover/fatigue wall now we stopped for a double espresso at colombe coffee which seemed with a cool little coffee place. Nice coffee, my second nice coffee of the day (I forgot to mention my first one was a single origin Ethiopian bean which I think was brewed pour over style) and the caffeine was enough to a) get me excited about walking through Greenwich Village and b) give me the energy to get to the subway and back to the hostel.

What a day. Back to the hostel. Nuts. Berries. Snooze hard.

Woke up for a workout before dinner. It was awful. Gym packed half with people who had no clue and half with freakin' narcissist bodybuilders. Workout below..

Warmup:
500 m Row
Squat Bottom Hold
Sampson Stretch

Strength:
Deadlifts with yet another american gripless barbell. Still no excuses for my poor effort of:
2 x 5 Deadlifts @ 142kg

Metcon:
AMRAP 10
10 Power Cleans @ 61kg
10 toes to bar
10 burpees

3 very lethargic, nauseating rounds.

Building:
Tabata Row

Good to do something. But Morale was rock bottom. Looking forward to a crossfit gym workout at metropolis tomorrow.

Then got a deli buffet feed which I mistakenly thought was 5.99 all you can eat but with 5.99 per pound so I got stitched 10 bucks for some really shitty food. Chicken and Vege but I seriously hate to think how long it was "brewing" under lights.

Early one tonight. Up early tomorrow. I think a really nice breakfast somewhere cool and then off to central park. The MET and across to CrossFit Metropolis for a workout.

Happy days.

I'm Wawkin' 'ere!

New York, New York. What a magical town in which to stay. After the first two nights in a cool 6 bedroom apartment in Brooklyn it was off and into the big smoke to my hostel right near times square. The weather has been average since I've arrived but the energy anything but. I went for a stroll to get some lunch at wholefoods shortly after checking in and found myself on a little walking adventure up broadway. I dont think I was anywhere special but just sitting down watching the city function and taking it all in was good enough for me.

Slight disappointment in the new york sports club being closed but back to the hostel for a shower and I was off to dinosaur bbq in harlem for dinner. Notorious for massive servings of meat it was always going to be a winner with Adam and I but the extent to which we would be loving life exceeded our expectations. I went for the recommended Tres Hombres. Which was a plate full of pulled pork, texas brisket and a fair helping of bbq pork ribs. The sides consisted of an absolutely phenomenal mash sweet potato with cinnamon and pecan (pe-carn) nuts. Adam however went for the EXTREME sampler which was half a chicken half a rack of ribs and texas brisket. He demolished it pretty well, I was impressed. We then headed back downtown to chelsea for a famous massive frozen margarita suggested by our Canadian New Yorker companion Brooke. Funnily enough it was also at a bbq place. It was big and hard to finish especially with the extra shot they put in the top that I though was a fat straw as it came in a long plastic tube. How embarrassment.

This morning I got up and went to New York Sports Club which is the official gym of the FDNY which was pretty cool. Had a good little cobweb blowerouterererer...

Workout 1:

Strength:
3 x Max reps 83kg Bench Press - 10 Strict chins in between sets.

Result - 9 (pushed up to the lower rack on the tenth), 7, 5.
Better than my max in LA for the first set. Who'da thunk it.

Work Capacity:
AMRAP 20

5 Push Jerk 61kg
10 Pullups
15 Squats

Result - 9 Rounds + 5 Push Jerks
First two rounds unbroken butterfly felt amazing then the grip went to shite not helped by the slippery rubber chin ups handles.

Stamina:
3 x max situps in a minute with 1 minute rest.

Result - 35, 35, 35.

Today is Adam's last day here in NYC so we are doing a Wholefoods, film and crossfit workout combo before heading over to Coney island with Brooke and a bunch of other people for a night out.

Workout 2:

5 x 5 Snatch

43, 51, 51, 51, 51kg sets of 5.

Things to do in NYC list.

Battery Park.
Central Park.
The MET.
The Museum of Natural History.
Moma (maybe)
Top of one of the tall buildings.
Eat at one of the famous pizza joints and eat at as many great spots as possible.
Find a good coffee.

That's about it for now.

The Last Little While

The Mexican adventure finished with two very different locations. The jungle of Palenque and the white sandy beaches of can cun. In Palenque the hostel was a beautiful little resort looking place set in amongst the "jungle" with a restaurant/bar up on the second level surrounded by trees and various other greenery. The weather was like Escondido hot and stick but with passing showers was a little more bearable. The food at the hostel was amazing and didnt break budget. For what we they were serving you would be paying 3 or 4 times as much in a classy australian restaurant.

After an early night it was off to see some spectacular ruins and two different waterfalls where we could swim. The ruins were awesome. Very different from those in Mexico City as they were set deep(ish) in the jungle and were closer to something seen in Indiana Jones. So close in fact that we had a little bit of an Indiana Jones moment.. Exploring one set of ruins we entered the ancient building through a little passage way that lead to a pitch black room. With no touch immediately available I thought it would be cool to just take flash photos and get flashes of what lay beyond the darkness as we slowly crept into the dark room. Flash... some pretty tomb-like looking piles of stones in a small room.. Flash.. more of the same.. Flash... okay, I think we had seen it all now. Then Brad finally found his touch and with Dave and I deep within the "chamber" by now he said "Oh shit, look up there on the wall!" to we responded with a "ha ha good on...BATTTSSS!!!! and we bolted out of the little room dodging swooping bats overhead.

We entered each of the following ruins with a little more care but found a few more bat dwellings.

The waterfalls were pretty cool one of them complete with a lifeguard and the other with a swinging rope into the river. It was a fun day. When we got back we went down to the bus station to book the overnight to can cun only to find that they had one seat on three different buses as opposed to the preferred and obviously more convenient three seats on the one bus. So we all bought tickets for different buses and hoped that they all ended up in a similar place. I had the first leaving one so rushed back to get another great meal from the hostel before returning the the bus stop to get on the bus. The heavy rain had caused delays and to cut a long story short I left 45 minutes after the other two who's buses were schedules for 30 and 60 minutes after mine. After another interesting overnight trip we all ended up in the same place and found a hotel to spend the night in can cun.

The next day we were able to check into the Hyatt with pretty spectacular views of the beach and was in great proximity to the main strip.

Hotel gym workout

3 x Max Dead Hang Pullup

17, 10, 8

20 min Amrap

10 50# Hang Squat Clean Thruster

20 Situps

30 Double Unders

Result - 6 Rounds

20 OHS @ weighted bar

20 Squat Snatch @ weighted bar

That night we went out to a beach party connected to one of the clubs and it was a pretty big night with $40 entry once you were in it was open bar so I was feeling pretty average in the morning.

The boys were off that afternoon and without getting all "Paul" (English guy who was with us for a day or two and told us he loved how it was "just easy" to hang out with us) about it we said our farewells but it was definitely sad to see them off.

That night I had a good night of recovery, watched a few movies and chilled out. The following day I took it very easy. Buffet brunch, Beach, Pool, Workout*, Beach Volleyball.

*

Building:

3 x Max Pushups in 1 minute - 41, 31, 27

Work Capacity:

5 Rounds

4 HSPU

6 Dead Hang Pullup

8 DB Swings 50#

10 Burpees

11:19

Sprints:

10 x 50m Sand Sprint

7 Sprints + 3 shuttles as hamstring seized up a little on the 7th sprint. Sign of conditioning starting to regress.

That night it was out again on the can cun strip with a couple of girls from Sydney that I had met at the hotel. It was another cover charge (which I bargined for this time) and open bar job but nowhere near as big or late. Which I was thankful for because of my flight out to New York the next day.

Buffet. Check out. Taxi to airport. New York.

Arrived at Newark airport New Jersey and caught a bus across to Grand Central where I caught a train to Brooklyn where I was staying. Little did I know Brooklyn is pretty large and being in Brooklyn doesn't necessarily mean your'e in walking distance to the apartment your'e staying at in Brooklyn. After a further 2 hours of playing around with the subway, feeling very out of place due to a certain aesthetic characteristic and turning down many the offer of marijuana I finally hopped in a cab and got to my destination. After not enough sleep the night before I was informed that we were heading out in Manhattan. Even in my half asleep state it was hard to notice the picturesque neighbourhoods and breath taking skyline of Manhattan. It was hard to believe that I was actually in a city I'd dreamt about going to for so long.

Today after a good long sleep we went down to a place called 5 points. Which is a big factory taking up nearly a whole block where the entire thing is a legal graffiti wall. Great idea and some nice pieces.

Looking forward to my week in New York. One more night in Brooklyn, then off to Times Square to a hostel and a couple of days of being a tourist and hopefully doing some good things for my body which is feeling pretty average after 20 days in Mexico.

Canyon Cruisin

After a night out at bar revolucione which was yet another anti climatic lonely planet hyped evening it was off to Tuxtla for a cruise in the canyon via speedboat. The drive down to the river from our little town in the mountains was filled with amazing views and some interesting mexican ways of the road. On a one way highway the courteous thing to do seems to be driving in what we would call the service lane in case someone wants to over take you. Interesting when you are speeding along on cliff edges weaving in and out whilst over taking buses and trucks.

When we arrived it was tourist galore with a sea of people in fluorescent orange life vests packing into speed boats for a cruise down the river between canyon like cliffs. The first few attractions were waterfalls and spider monkeys high up in the canopy. Then we came to a sudden halt as apprx 100m of the river had been blacked by logs, twigs, mud and various plastic bottles and other garbage. Just as I was thinking that these multi hundred meter high cliffs, waterfalls and rainforest like fauna were the closest to a true wilderness I had seen in Mexico yet we encounter this pollution. It took a good 5 or 10 minutes to push our way through the blockage and then it was off to the other side where we saw pelicans and an absolutely spectacular waterfall which we sped up to and floated through. It was a whole lot of fun just speeding around this beautiful place with near breathtaking views even without the little stop offs at waterfalls and to see wildlife.

On the way back as we made our second pass through the debris (natural and unnatural) we spotted a little green gecko and with little a due the boat driver proceeded to lean over, grab it by the tale and pull it into the boat. The crowd went wild and he was instantly surrounded by all the cameras on the boat. El boat drivo left the best till last as we then pulled up to a river bank spotted with groups of crocs. The little english girl behind us nearly wet herself but we comforted her by telling her they can only fly for about 10 metres so we should be alright at this distance. After which she abandoned her Sri Lankan heritage going a bright shade of white. Fun times. The next river bank was el pieco de resistancio with a big fat mama croc just chilling on the bank. The boat in front of us must have been a little close as she lifted her head off the muddy bank and gave them a good stare off. This reminded me of the boat trip in India where me and pop came within feet of a hissing, growling croc.

A fun day and with all in the boat satisfied we headed back to San Cristobal for a coffee and a stroll up to the church on the hill (not the best with names of places/things). From here we had a decent view of the city but a slightly obscured one due to lots of trees in the way. Met a cool dog up there who may have had rabies and flees but I didnt hold it against him and we had time for a photo together before it was back down to the town to purchase some vegies for dinner.

Workout wise the challenge and innovation continues. With the 5kg DBs the lady at the hostel gave me after breaking her 200 yr old ledge I did:

Tabata squat clean man makers 8 rounds

then 3 x 1 minute on 1 minute off squat clean man makers

about 10 per 60 seconds.

This arvo was:

Travellers Helen

3 Rounds for time of:

400m Run
21 x 24 to 30 inch box jumps on ledge
12 x Commando Pullups on tree (alternate grip on tree branch pulling up head on alternate sides of branch)

8:17

then

3 x 60 on 60 off of Toes to tree

Got 10 reps for all 3 minutes.

San Cristobal and a stomach of fire

The slight stomach issues that I thought we made short work of by my pepto bismol tablets returned with vengeance yesterday which resulted in a few 10 to 15 minute sessions on el porcelaino. Slept pretty well on the overnight bus from puerto to san cristobal a lovely little town in the middle of the mountains. But after a serve of eggs and some coffee it was back to el porcelaino for some further one on one time. The hostel we are staying at is a nice little place run in a family home by two really nice locals who have a cute little baby boy. So in return I proceeded to have a little workout in their courtyard and whilst down chin ups on a little ledge ontop of one of the pillars in the archway broke a massive chunk of the ledge off with bits of brick and concrete spilling all over the floor. I informed the owners who were really nice about it but told me that if papa finds out im in big trouble. To this moment I have successfully avoided papa and have organised to pay for repair tomorrow. The workout up to that point was.

100 Hands off floor pushups for time

5:10

Part of:

50 ledge pull ups for time with 20 sit ups every time I broke.

Ledge came down on the 29th rep. Got 12 in the first set then 3 sets of 5. Very awkward due to having to try and wrap legs around/avoid contact with pillar below.

Today we visited a coffee museum which as we are finding to be the case quite common was another lonely planet disappointment. The museum was pretty average and the coffee not too bad but no brother buba velvet. Highlight at this plate was the crepes with nutella sauce which provided great energy for me after not being able to hold much else in few the past 48 hrs. We then went for a stroll along a little street full of cafes and bars where I spotted a subway and my craving for some non mexican food led me to enjoy a 6 inch double meet chicken fillet subway with all the trimmings available. Stomach full and feeling much better (for now). We sat in a Mexican bar and watched the Mexico Spain soccer match with a couple of fanatic barkeeps. The pseudo cobbled/real cobbled streets of Oaxaca and San Cristobal remind me of scenes in movies ive seen set in Europe and are quite great fun to explore.

For now its time to cook dinner, have a shower and maybe head out to find a bar called revolution which has been highly recommended by fellow travellers. It was however also recommended by lonely planet so we await tonight with cautious anticipation.

Scooting around Puerto

The day after we went off to hire scooters to head down to the lagoon which was twenty minutes down the highway. After a little bit of shopping around we got scooters for twenty AUD each and were off down the highway. Travelling along nice winding highways with only few potholes was a hole lot of fun. We stopped off at a nice mexican place to get some bisteque ala mexicana. My spanish is definitely improving resulting in much better meals. When we got to la laguna we hired kayaks and went for a paddle. Stability was a major concern. We paddled out to a little island that was packed with birds of all sorts. It reminded me of a lake with birds I visited in India and I remembered how the birds came with snarling crocodiles so I was quick to get back on the kayak.

I then did some tabata kayak sprints which was a major mistake because soon after the winds picked up and there was a clear storm fast approaching. Struggling to keep the freaking thing straight frustration set in as the storm got closer and closer. When it hit us it was a godsend in disguise as the currents pushed us home. Soaking wet it was back on the scooters and back to puerto with my fuel gauge showing donuts. We made it back and with a little syphoning from the guy we hired the scooters from a few more hours of fun we to be had.

We headed off down some smaller streets along the beach and took the scooters on dirt roads and up hills made for trail bike but they performed suprisingly well. Stumbling across a hidden resort and getting kicked out by two mexican gardeners who spoke no ingles was a highlight. Sadly we had to return or little two strokes and head back to the hostel where I was able to do my first workout using my pack as a sandbag. Muchos fun. Si.

Today went to a really cool, very chilled out kind of beach which was much better for swimming and relaxing. I had another wave of slightly excruciating mexican belly so had a bit of a lie down went we returned before doing another backpack workout this time including scaling a nine to ten foot wall with twenty kilos on board. Very fun. But Im sure there is no skin left on my feet. The boys went to the Superche to get steak and three vege to cook for dinner and my stomach was in heaven. Loaded up on the beef brocolli beans and carrots then went out for a few quiet ones by the beach.

Tomorrow we are off into the mountain town of san cristobal so the adventures are sure to continue. Looking forward to relief from the constant sweating but will definitely miss puerto all the same.

Oaxaca - Puerto Escondido

The 5th of august started where I last left off with a workout and a nice breakfast in Oaxaca City. Happy birthday to Zoe by the way. We then ventured down to the market where you can get the traditional Oaxacan hot chocolate that comes in a big bowl with a bread roll for dipping. Unusual but pretty tasty. David fell for the old tourist trap of going to the first store to by some of the chocolate. For 60 Pesos he got a little 250g packet. We then walked 10 metres deeper into the market and saw a store selling massive bricks of the stuff for 60 pesos per kilo. Crucial error.

Our plan was to rent bikes and ride them to El Tule, basically a big tree 50m in circumference. But paying 20 dollars for bikes in Mexico seemed ridiculous so instead we opted for a 1 dollar taxi. The 1 dollar taxis were collective taxis so the ´´tax drive´´ drove around for 15 minutes trying to fit more people in the cab that already had 3 of us riding inside.

Eventually we arrive at El Tule and it was a little underwhelming. So we jumped in another taxi and scooted out to what we imagined would be a mezcal factory but was however pretty much a mezcal store out in the middle of mezcal farming country. It was there we met a man named P..... we called him Peter.

Peter start of by letting us taste the difference of mezcal with a worm and mezcal without a worm. After a little more chatting he decided we needed another taste. After he had a few tastes himself we were trying all sorts of mezcal. Flavoured mezcal, mezcal that was similar to port and some double aged double distilled premium quality stuff. After three hours of drinking we were absolutely starving and out of thin air appeared a lady on a motorcycle with a basket full of freshly cooked taco looking things. I had 4 for 4 dollars. Peter, relating back to am earlier conversation said ´´see, you put the good energy out into the universe and the universe comes back with what you need´´. I was happy for Peter to receive his little commision on my 1 dollar tortillas and we got back to the mezcal. After nearly the fourth hour, meeting peters(havnt found the apostrophe on this mexican keyboard) wife and little boy and listening to a few traditional seputec tunes played by the man himself on guitar, we were off back to El Tule by back of farmers truck and then to Oaxaca City via collective taxi with 5 passengers, two including me riding shotgun. All that for one bottle of the premium (17 dollar) mezcal but a great afternoon with one of the funniest and very philosophical mexican I have ever met. A few Peter philosophies or ideals were: making sure his children got education, doing good things so good things will come back to him and meeting the occaisional ´´mamasita´´ because as long as he comes home his wife doesnt mind.

That night we went out for a mexican feed which consisted of more corn tortillas with little meat, cheese and spices. When we got back to the hostel we decided to go to a bar that Peter had recommended and ensured that there would be nice mamasitas inside. Nice Margaritas and a live band was about the extent in which this bar excelled. but it was fun nonetheless and at 5am after a few too many cervezas it was back to the hostel by ride from mamasita to watch the Essendon Carlton game on the internet. I was alseep by quarter time.

3 hrs sleep and we were on the bus to Puerto Escondido. 6 hrs along mountain roads flying at 60-80kmh. Think the great ocean road and then some plus being 10 times higher on the top of mountains, add potholes, donkeys and roads inches from the edge and you have 4 pretty ordinary feeling hungover travellers. Then we ran into a protest blockade complete with the military and hundreds of machete weilding farmers. Out of the bus, a nervouse walk through the protest and we got to the other side where another little bus picked us up. A few more hours of cliffs and potholes and we arrived in Puerto Escondido.

Immediately we noticed the humidity and since Ive been here its been impossible to get completley dry. An early evening swim and then a meal on the beach and we were off to bed exhausted.

The next day I planned to wake up early and have a workout. Still feeling exhausted I had a sleep in, made some eggs for breaky and went down to the beach for a swim. The main beach was a very dangerous place to swim, with massive holes in the sand underfoot and a crazy chest deep undertow we headed for calmer waters and hired boogy boards. Even the calmer beach was similar to something we would get in Victoria and was a lot of fun to boogy board for an hour or so. Then it was time for a little workout.

10 rounds
10 Push ups
15 squats
50m Sprint

Untimed. Probably could have been a bit harder but was still good to blow a few cobwebs out. We then went for another poorish mexican meal which prompted a visit to the superche! to buy food to cook for ourselves. Before dinner we went for a walk along the cliff face where we could get a panoramic view of the beach and saw hundred of black crabs of all sizes. The path we walked would be taped off in a second in Australia because of safety regulations with rusted metal parts sticking out from the brittle concrete and waves crashing over the walkway.

We got back unscathed for dinner and now I find myself sipping some of the whiteman priced hot chocolate which is actually really delicious and thinking about another early night.

Getting a little sick of the sewage smell, corn and language barrier but doing alright. To be honest very much looking forward to some creature comforts of the hyatt in 9 days time. But still enjoying each moment. I have found whilst travelling that I have been living in the moment a lot more. The past often feels distant because of the miles travelled and the future is unknown so your only choice is to focus on the present, which I think is mentally very healthy.

Oaxaca City

Arrived in Oaxaca last night and straight away liked it a little more than Mexico City. The drive through the mountains with breathtaking views was a great precursor to the pretty little town called Oaxaca city.

Hunger had set in after the 6 hour bus ride so it was down to the main square to find a feed. I was able to order a chicken breast with guacamole which had the spirits lifted after a horror few days nutrition wise in Mexico City. The hostel here is really nice and I had a room to myself which helped provide for a great nights sleep.

This morning we got up before breakfast for a workout.

5 Rounds
7 HSPU
Lunge apprx 15-20m to ledge
12 Burpee Box Jump to 24-30 inch ledge
400m Run

23:50

then mucked around with some tree pullups and toes to bar.

Decided I need some goals for training abroad. First two goals =

20 HSPU (currently @ 14)
20 Strict Pullups (currently @ 13 tree pullups)

Back to the hostel for eggs, sausage, banana and a few glasses of milk breaky. Morale has lifted fitness wise.

The land of the feathered snake

Touched down in Mexico City and had flashbacks on places Id been like India and Thailand with poverty and corruption beyond anything we have back home. Arrived at the hostel which seemed pretty good. Didnt have to make my own bed for once which I have become pretty skilled at doing. Breakfast and Dinner are provided here but as I found out and as is consistant with the rest of this place: you cant get any good protein without a copious amount of largely corn based carbohydrates. Gyms are also few and far between so its not the best city on the CrossFit front.

The next day woke up and went to the teotihuacan pyramids which was cool. Our guide Allejandro (which was a laugh for us Gaga fans) had elaborate explainations e.g. there are 13 sculptures which represents the 13th day in the solar calender and if you add 26 to that and take away 4 then times the whole thing by 67 you get 365 days of the year, and that is how the feathered snake travelled from the north, the south, the east and west to the sacred grounds of the aztec people. Put on your best mexican accent and youll see it was a great laugh. Did a little workout on one of the smaller pyramids. Pictured.

5 Rounds
Max HSPU
Climb Stairs to top as pictured
20 Squats
then
3x 20 Pushups with 1 min rest.

total 31 HSPU

Good to have a workout at 2000plus metres of elevation and also in beautiful ancient surroundings.

Today was a walking tour of various Mexico City markets where we saw goats getting skinned, grasshoppers, mosquito eggs and a place where you could buy tiger steaks. Then back to the hostel after eating loads of corn tortillas in search for any kind of decent protein.

Had a little tabata workout in the hostel room using my gymboss time ipod app. Found a little ledge that I could kind of hang onto to do pullups then went onto pushups, squats and situps. Felt okay but with the crappy food, maybe elevation, alcohol consumption etc didnt feel at my best. Its going to be a tough little period fitness wise. Shower, some protein from KFC in the way of crispy strips then hostel dinner which was eggs vegies and a little rice (not too bad). Tonight we went to the wrestling which was a lot better than I had expected. Awesome acrobatics and theatre. The crowd were going nuts. Fews beers back at the hostel and I think Im just about ready for bed. Leaving for Oaxaca tomorrow. Rough plan now for Mexico. Oaxaca to puerto escondido to palenque to playa del carmen to cancun for the last three nights in the hyatt which should be a welcome taste of luxury.