Well, where to begin. How about with the sound of the ocean, crashing waves into the beach of Sayulita as I sit in a lawn chair looking at stars. I must admit it feels kind of weird to be typing in a computer, surrounded by so much natural beauty. I think it would be more suited to write a letter on a palm leave and put it in a bottle of Corona for someone to find. But the times have sure changed haven't they. I was talking to an older fellow and he was reminiscing of the last time he did this trip and had to take a bag of mail to the Swiss Embassy to get in touch with his relatives. NOw we turn on Skype and can have a video chat, imagine that. Anyways, I believe we left you in San Carlos...

We left San Carlos in the early morning, said goodbye to the lovely man who ran the place. But before doing so rolled him a couple drum tobacco smokes (he loved them). It was here that I truly wished that my spanish was better because I'm sure that he had some incredible stories to tell and we weren't communicating much past simple pleasantries. Which is okay, but I would have liked a little more I think. Wow the waves are sounding pretty massive, I can't see past the computer screen glow. Anyways, we left our little campground by the beach, the place was called Mr. Moro's I think -I'll get back to you on that one- and headed down the road to Mazatlan. The drives are a little more difficult than we had anticipated, it's really hot. Dora really feels the heat being air cooled and all, so we've had to take it a bit easier than we'd like. Not to mention the girls in a pool of their own sweat in the backseat after a while. So after a few military and agricultural checkpoints and a tidy sum in toll roads we made it to Mazatlan. I guess this was our first real touristy destination and you could tell. Lots of Americans have bought property here and the beachfront is starting to be lined with retirement condo's. The R.V. park we stayed at was really nice and after getting unpacked we all had a dip in the pool to cool off. Freja finally got over her fear of swimming and was zipping along in her little floating tire thing. We ate some noodles around the computer, Skyping family and generally enjoying ourselves. It was another early morning and we got up, packed up the van again and headed further south. The heat was almost unbearable at times, but we managed. The coastal drive was nothing short of gorgeous and took us through some very rural areas, tobacco plantations, palm trees and lots of old men in Sombrero's sitting in the sunshine smoking cigarettes. We passed the tropic of cancer just north of Mazatlan and you can definitely see and smell the difference.

It's amazing to see such a simpler way of life as we drive through these areas. Little noys herding cattle on horseback, Dad's with their kids on motorbikes, roadside stands selling all sorts of fruit, jams and hot sauce. It's truly inspiring to see. You forget about most of the rest of the world that lives like this from the desk at your computer. A lot of the villages we've passed through probably don't even have internet access. It's so easy to forget. Anyways, we landed in Sayulita in the early evening, found our campground and went into the office to register.

The man who runs the show here is very kind and gentle. He saw the Saskatchewan license plates and immediately regalled us with a story of his time in Saskatchewan in the 1950's, how he slept in the old train station in Dundurn while visiting a friends parents. He is originally from Germany but lived in Canada for 10 years, before settling in Mexico City. I would highly recomennd a visit here if you ever find yourself in Sayulita. Upon our arrival and seeing our home for the night we immediately decided to stay for two. It's a well needed break from driving for Dora and the girls. Our campsite is right on the beach and for $20 a night, we couldn't argue not to.

So today we walked through town, Freja and Eir are a hit and everywhere we go people stop us on the street to speak to them. It's amazing to watch how they react to another language and how open they are to people picking them up and playing. Freja is quick to show off her recently found treasures, whether they be stones, shells or sticks, and her audience is always receptive and exhuberant. We spent some time in the water, I finally got Freja over her fear of the ocean and she giggled away as the waves would come crashing into us. Eir was having a ball sitting on the beach getting gently swept away into the water. We think our little stone was probably enjoying the sand getting washed into her outh more though. Shona and I are not really wanting to leave this little paradise as we've finally had a chance to relax. I got a lot of sun today and am being tender with my back as I sit in this chair, joined by SHona whos going through the days photos.

SO we're off tomorrow with hopes of making it to Playa Azul, a small fishing village about 600km south of here. Then we're off to Aculpoco and then through Chiapas to the border of Guatemala. So I'm off to play some guitar and perhaps take an evening stroll through the town and find other musicians to jam with, I hear drums in the distance through the hypnotic sounds of the beautifully warm ocean. I hope you are all well and happy wherever you are. Buenos Noche.