When we woke up this morning, we had a small unpleasant surprise: Patrick noticed that the left front tire was more flat than the others. Yesterday we asked the gas station if they could pump up all tires to the normal pressure but it seems that one of the valves was not closed properly causing the tire to lose air all day and night. At least we didn’t puncture it but it did give us a different start of the day than what we planned for. 🙂 Luckily we had Justin in the car so we could fix the problem.

We then headed into town to find a local ‘volcanizador’ where we could have Rodrigo all fixed up again. With all tires back on full pressure we started our jungle drive to the ‘Cascadas de Agua Azul’ near Palenque. Along the way we also learnt that you shouldn’t ask directions from a group of male adults hanging beside the road (they will most likely be drunk and you won’t understand a word they’re saying) and that you have to watch out for the vicious little girls trying to sell you stuff from the road (they might jump in front of your car if they have to and will not move unless you drive into them or honk very loudly).

Arriving at the Agua Azul we were completely bamboozled by the entrance rates. We each got two tickets and had to pay more than what was marked on the board but as there was a police officer on the spot confirming the rates offered to us, we didn’t dare to discuss any further. It still seemed strange though but supposedly that’s what happens if you don’t speak enough Spanish. At least the waterfalls were quite impressive to make it worth the trouble although they weren’t very ‘azul’ today.The raining season must have turned the river to a more natural colour.

  

We also discovered banana trees and found out that they grow with this weird flower hanging in the middle.

After seeing the falls and feeling all hot and sweaty from the tropical climate outside, we headed further south to campground ‘Maya Bell’. We heard a lot of good stories about this place but we have to say that we are not overwhelmed with awesomeness. The people are friendly to help you but the toilets don’t look very clean, there is dirt all over the floor and there are no toilet seats, and the pool is starting to get rusty. It has definitely seen better times.

So after this crazy day we will get into our tent for a tropical night and try to catch some sleep. Hopefully there will be no surprises tomorrow morning. 🙂

Pump up the jam, pump it up

While your feet are stomping

And the jam is pumping

Look ahead the crowd is jumping

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Ue_JnWDBUU