I decide it better I get a cheap flight further down Mexico into a town called San Cristóbal which is close to a well known place called Tuxtla Gutierrez, right near Chiapas. The flight is incredibly cheap and very short as well from Mexico City. I didn’t fancy a long bus drive there as it would eat up my time while in San Cristóbal being as im only based here for a few days anyways before the trip further down into Guatemala for the eventual volcanic San Pedro La Laguna experience!

Hostel Iguana was where I wanted to stay but it was fully booked so I stayed elsewhere on my first night. There was nothing wrong with Hostel Rossco it just seemingly lacked a bit of character to what I am expecting at Hostel Iguana tomorrow. Remember I was basing this same information from my trusty Irish lads back in Mexico City and this itinerary they have drawn out for me better be worth it. Onward to San Cristóbal!

I had got myself a private double this time round as I was still getting over the dreaded six bed bunk bed layout from my previous hostel visit. There was only so much noise I could take from somebody continuing to open and zip up their suitcase at three o’clock in the morning! I needed to get myself some plans put together of what to do here and the guy who runs the hostel Paul Turtles (quality name!) gave me some fun things to try out during my stay and a trustworthy route of how to complete my trip whilst travelling through into Guatemala in time to get over to Quito Ecuador (for Galapagos) directly from Mexico Cancun.

So the first morning involved an early start of a transit pick up and being taken to ‘Kagoa Del Sumidero Laguna Canyon’ which is also based close to Chiapas. I had wanted to go to see the lagoon soon as I had heard about it, particularly because it gave me the chance to get up close and personal with some seriously big saltwater crocodiles! Yes they as far as I know are the closest thing we have in this day and age to dinosaurs so I was never going to pass up an opportunity of my own Jurassic Park experience! This time it’s for real and not the Universal Studios gimmicks!

Once arriving it was important to set off in the right order. I am going to be in the sunshine constantly for a good four hours plus so high factor cream is in need of applying me thinks! I didn’t need the bathroom before hand although it would of been a wise thing to do as there is no toilets on the speedboat unless I wanted to join the crocs for a swim! Life jackets on and it’s time for the tour of the .iGrijalva River’. Sounding like a God Dam Indiana Jones movie this I think!

It’s a fairly large amount of people on a twenty man boat and much to my disappointment it was all going to be spoken in Spanish via our tourguide. We got off to a flyer and saw our first croc within minutes. We got a little bit closer then some people wanted to get but you had to as these guys seemingly seemed to like to pose for selfies also too you know lol! It’s almost as if they don’t even look like they are real with how they just lay there with their mouth wide open lapping up the sunshine! Probably eyeing up each of us for dinner though!

There was an Israeli guy who was based sat infront of me who kept running his hand in the water as boat started to pick up speed again. Always one isn’t there!? It seemed he decided it best he do this throughout the tour and obviously because we are going fast the unfortunate person stuck behind him (being me) was getting soaker from it. Cue the controversy! Surely he must know what he is doing here!? I decided it best I leave it for now and hopefully he will realise soon enough that’s he’s becoming a nuisance not just for me but for everybody else near him also.

After another half hour or so goes by and the lagoon is starting to open out more we pull over to the side and see the rather unfortunate site of pollution build up within the water. This is a sad site to see and with it being wet season also a lot of the waste is thrown into the Grijalva, particularly solids build up within the water flow. Plastic bottles are everywhere :(! The canyon in itself is quite narrow which doesn’t help the problem and it’s something the country as a whole needs to keep on top of. With me being all green and that! Sort it out Mexico!

We then travel on further up the river and I am astounded to see sculpted into the walls surrounding us, a face! This is weird. Take a look for yourselves below, the gods are obviously watching! Can you see it!?

These walls are at least a staggering 2,500 feet high! As we went on we all witnessed a heron and pelican fighting it out over something one of them caught in the water. Non stop entertainment on the Grijalva! More crocs also one particularly in the water eyeing us all up. “Hey Mr.Croc have you ever tried Israeli before?!” Yes Yossi Benayoun sitting in front of me is at it again and now I am wet, yet again! Get my phones wet my friend you better sing yourself a prayer all the way back to Jerusalem as it will be man overboard if this continues! Not sure whether this would be classified as attempted murder in a country like Mexico :). Crocs are looking hungry! Go blame Mr. Croc for all I care!

I figured out we are also now in deepest part of the river which was 260 metres deep. I was earwigging to a couple of Americans behind me who obviously knew their Spanish. Don’t sink now boat please! We then approached a few caves and got to see some statues that were built obviously some time ago and one I had seen a few times now called the ‘Guadalupe Virgin Mary’. Mexico is a very religious country and she is everywhere if you ever visit there!

After about an hour and a half we start to approach the end of the river and it’s cornered off by other locals on small boats selling food and drinks to which I only have plastic on me and don’t think in these territories it’s as advanced as chip and pin or touch. I will have to go hungry and if I’m honest only thing I need is the toilet right now! Bursting here! It’s another hour or so before we are back on land so it’s either I ask if I can do it overboard or cross my legs and hope for the best! The endless amounts of waterfalls as beautiful as they look really aren’t helping my cause.

On the way back we had another pelican circling our boat and flew at us so low we all had to duck. Maybe he was after the idiot in front of me I don’t know!? Their beaks are enormous and if you get pecked by one of them your going to know about it! I am once again splashed by Yossi and enough is now enough, I had reached my tether! I tap him on shoulder and point to where I have been soaked for the third and final time and he didn’t even acknowledge me to even say sorry. What an asshole! After getting off the boat I challenge him again and he reluctantly said he was sorry and I draw a line under it after that as it was hot enough weather wise and could feel the situation between us heating up. Complete utter twat though!

It was time to drive off to ‘Chiapa de Corzo’ on the minibus where I continued to be tested as the bus itself seemed to take others aboard and not who was on it originally. We had to wait for another bus. Once arriving there eventually we were given a strict 45 mins to walk round the town an to my amazement I am stopped in my tracks of about 250 odd Mexican Cowboys and horses doing some kind of march parade through the town. Random!

We then set back off to the hostel and take in the beautiful scenery and surroundings that is San Cristobal.

If your looking for cheap woolly bits and lush hoodie knitwear at ridiculously cheap prices then this is the place to be believe me. All of it is handmade and because it can get fairly cool at night here any knitwear purchased is a good purchase. I needed something ideally for the Inca Trail I had coming up and I found the perfect hoodie for all of about same price as a couple pounds and it meant I also got to blend in with the locals too!

After taking a wrong turn down one of the streets and see myself walking towards where the real die hard locals live I managed to find a nifty restaurant doing what looked like something different to Tacos and typical Mexican food. I fancied a change and had an all you can eat meat dish instead with some live entertainment played to myself as I was only one in there! Also got to watch some international basketball on TV and it was Canada playing Venezuela. I decided to root for the underdog and funnily enough Venezuela can actually play good basketball! They ended up winning in fact and celebrated emphatically. Was a proper close game to. Three pointers everywhere!

So that night I got more familiar with the peeps I was staying with and met a guy from the states who previously worked for Ralph Lauren called Justin. I also met a heap of Germans all here on a working visit but it looked like not much work was going to get done that night. It was a glorified German piss up! One drink led to another and before I knew it I was off my trolley! Germans are the heavyweight champs of boozing!

The next morning left me ever so slightly worse for wear and rather delicate to say the least. I had to pack fairly early on as I had booked transport to get to my next country across the border to Guatemala on wheels! An eleven hour duration on the road is sounding grim! It’s pouring down with rain too which leaves me to feel rather anxious as they drive like loons here. The quick trip to get few last bits before I get going and the excitement of a new country and new culture begins. Always makes me nervous. I also got to meet a Mayan warrior as well before I left, see below!

I had heard a mixed bag of reviews on Guatemala from a lot of people and how most tourists who visit aren’t safe there? I am just hoping that all of it is just to shit you up in general. The long trip to San Pedro and living on an island with two huge volcanoes has begun. This is what travelling is definitely all about!