Pay it Forward...

so im officially in Mexico now! I arrived in the Evening on Monday at about 7pm and took a taxi to a hostel in the centre of Cancun (for 16 dollars... apparently there is a bus for like 3) the hostel cost 8 dollars a night and there were 2 German girls sharing a room with me. It was their last night, so we went out to the hostel bar for a drink, but I was exhausted from the travel and so, spent the rest of the night at the hostel. In the morning, I changed some money and started walking around the downtown area practicing my very limited spanish on people, when I met a man from Nashville Tennesee. He was about 50 years old and had just spent the night in the bus station because a taxi had just driven away with his bags. He had only a few pesos left and asked if I could lend him 8 dollars for a hostel so he wouldnt have to sleep in the bus terminal again. We started talking and he was very appreciative and said it was a very humbling experience for him. I gave him 20 dollars so he could get some food and a hostel at least before he could get to the consulate in the morning as there was no Embasy in Cancun. We went into the bus station to ask about the cost of a ticket to the embassy 4 hours away and it was only about 40 dollars, so I gave him 60. It was very nice to be able to help someone out after so many people had helped me in Australia. One time in Particular, when I had lost my debit card and had no access to a bank for a few days, I got a ride out of town with a man who gave me 50 dollars for food and a hostel and drove me right into the city. It was like he had given me 100 times that, so when I met Roy Allen smith (that was his name) I was quite happy to be able to pass that money on. He asked if he could repay me, but I said that he should keep it and maybe one day he will be able to help somebody else out in the same way. It´s amazing what such a small amount of monery can mean to somebody in a time of need.

Almost there...

I'm sitting in the Edmonton Airport waiting area counting down the minutest till I can get checked in go through security, so I thought I would take the opportunity to make a short blog post. Since the time of my last post, I hitchhiked north to Grande Prairie and spent a few days visiting my sister, brother in law, and niece, before heading back south a bit to Edmonton with a friend of my sisters for a quick visit with my Grandma and my last chance for homemade bread and cinnamon buns before I left. I had arranged to have two pairs of shoes and a sleeping bag sent to me in Sherwood Park where my Grandma lives, but due to bad timing and Murphy's law, that didn't happen and so I had no choice but to make a trip to MEC in the city on the way to the Airport. I was talking in pounds and inches and I asked if they took American money (they don't) so I'm pretty sure they thought I was American. I think my first purchase after I get passed security will have to be a massive Canadian flag patch. I'll let u know how the flight and whatnot goes in a bit, but it's nearly 4am so I should really be heading down to security soon instead of doing this.

On the road again... with George the trucker

So I'm officially on the road again! I started hitching from the pull out just past Rilkoffs around 4 on Saturday and within half an hour a mother and son from Kaslo had picked me up. They took me as far as Rock Creek and dropped me off At the bridge before the turnoff for Beaverdell. I was a little unsure about how many people would be traveling along that route but I decided to give it a try and before I could even get my thumb out, a rich 50 year old trucker named Adrian that Owned 3 ranches and several hotels, but was hauling manure for somebody else that night picked me up and drove me right to UBC where I stayed with my friend Becki for two nights. I was considering staying a third so I could sit in on one of her classes, but after checking the weather forecast, we decided my best bet was to leave today.

I started hitching this mor ing from the Same place I had started from last time, and had some amazing luck. I was barely even at the spot before an Indian man stopped and offered me a ride to Vernon. I had a good spot and Vernon was only 30 minutes down the road so I declined the ride and stuck my thumb out. The first car to pass stopped and an older looking lady offered me a another ride to Vernon. I declined again and stuck my thumb out a third time. A couple of cars passed without stopping and I was getting a little cold just standing there so I Put my sign down to put my jacket on and the second I did so, a man that looked like Arnold shwartsanager (how the hell do u spell that???) stopped and offered me ANOTHER ride to version. This time I accepted and be drove me to just before Vernon.

From there, I started hitching again and in less than 10 minutes, man going THE OTHER DIRECTION stopped. His name was George and I rode with him all the way back to Kelowna to pick up his truck and trailer. He was going through to Calgary, but I got off in Lake Louise where I am now. Along the way we talked about all kinds of things and he told me stories about how he met his wives and about the the grand adventures he's had on the road. He bought me lunch and latter, even a lottery ticket. I didn't win anything, but I kept the ticket anyways. He talked about his love for the outdoors and especially for horse back riding so I told him about the Pacific Crest Trail. he seemed really excited about it. When it was finally time for me to go, he gave me his email address and I promised to send him regular pictures of my travels. I love hitchhiking :)