When Teresita Rosita had decided to go to Mexico she had thought things would be dangerous, scary, outrageous.
And yes, the food was often a tad dubious and made her stomach feel like a washing machine stuck on tumble dry. The roads were full of crazy people who didn't know what an indicator was, and if they did, they obviously preferred the spontaneity of changing lanes at the last minute without so much as a glance over their shoulder. And there was the slight risk that she was slowly dying from the amounts of carbon dioxide/monoxide/other noxious fumes that hung over D.F on a daily basis. And sure there had been some earthquakes going on, though Teresita Rosita always seemed to miss out on actually feeling them.
Yes there were some things in Mexico that were exciting and maybe a little bit life threatening... but it wasn't enough for Teresita Rosita. If she was goijg to have an adventure she may as well make it as extreme an adventure as possible. It was time to go a little bit crazy - crazier than crowded buses, crazier than political rallies, crazier than 3 day long concerts - it was time for some extreme sports!
Luckily Mexican Mel was just as crazy as Teresita Rosita, if not more so. So off they set on a road trip to Jalcomulco, Veracruz, home of white water rafting, enormous flying foxes (not the fauna variety) and a gazillion tiny mosquitoes (yes, the fauna variety). And even the road trip didn't disappoint Teresita Rosita with its share of dangers. There were potholes the size of tyres, bone jarring speed bumps that appeared out of nowhere, and a half built concrete highway with rocks for traffic cones, mysteriously missing sections that resulted in giant holes with severe right angle edges that required some serious maneuvering, and yes, of course no sign of where or when any of these obstacles would next appear.
But the girls made it in one piece, and settled into their lovely cabaña up on the cliff, with the river rushing past far below and the local wildlife curled up in their beds keeping them warm at night.
The first day saw Teresita Rosita and Mel easing themselves gently into their life threating escapades. A walk through the jungle with only the risk of falling mangoes, attacks from wild ferocious cows and donkeys and death by the gentle nibbling of little fish as they relaxed in pristine waterholes fed by warm waterfalls. It was a tough start to the trip.
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It was during the second day of the trip that Teresita Rosita (finally) feared for her life. Now being the beginning of Spring in Mexico, it hadn't really rained that much so the river was quite low, the rapids only level 2-3. So the girls opted to go in the smaller raft with some guides in training, make things a bit more exciting.
And at the beginning of the downstream journey Teresita Rosita was glad they made this decision. They chose the wildest routes possible - getting stuck on rocks, surfing amongst the white water and generally being a little bit crazy. But then they arrived at "the white witch" - a tight corner of the river where the entire force of the water smashed against a sheer cliff - fun....
Now, as Teresita Rosita got older, her sense of mortality was getting greater and greater, and so, while she enjoyed the adrenalin rush of getting herself into life threatening situations, she also had at the back of her mind the thought that maybe this would be her last adrenalin rush ever.
So down the rapid they went. And SMASH!!! Yep, right into the wall. The raft flipped up on one side, and over the edge went Mexican Mel. With the sudden loss of weight on one side the raft tipped to the other side and Teresita Rosita found herself flung into the tumultuous water. She was instantly caught in the whirl of the water, spun head over heels into the rock, the paddle ripped out of her hands and the air knocked out of her lungs.
They tell you to relax if you're ever thrown overboard while white water rafting. Ha! Like you can relax when you believe you are going to die trapped under the crush of freezing water! And so Teresita Rosita freaked out! She struggled, she farewelled her loved ones and prepared for her watery death.
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And then just as suddenly as she had gone under, her head popped up and she gasped delicious gulps of air, grabbed her floating paddle and drifted to the edge of the river.
Hmmm that wasn't so bad after all. Like she was going to die, she was only under the water a few seconds. Gee whiz! what kind of wimp thinks they're drowning as soon as they're under water. Ahhh, it's so easy to be brave when you're still alive. And so Teresita Rosita decided she better keep doing crazy things, though maybe not involving quite as much water this time.
It was time to take to the sky. Attached to a wire 180 metres in the air, hurtling across a cañon 150 wide... why not? Teresita Rosita was obviously invincible after her earlier brush with death.
But you know what? Even after the near drowning, the risk of falling to certain death, and a drive through pounding rain with lighting bolts a little close for comfort on twisting turning roads, the thing that got to Teresita Rosita most of all was...
The damn mosquitoes!
After the first night, Teresita Rosita and Mexican Mel found themselves covered in a maze of red spots, that, as day progressed, got itchier, and itchier, and itchier, until there was nothing else to do but scratch them. And ahhhhhhhhh what sweet relief.... for a moment. And then the itchiness came back even worse than before. And that was only the first day. On the second day, Teresita Rosita had accumulated bites on her arms, her legs, her feet, her hands and so many on her face that she looked like she had some sort of highly contagious disease or the worst case of acne known to humankind.
Maybe this whole living life on the edge thing wasn't everything people said it was...
It was time for some anti-itch cream, a hot shower, and a note in her diary to buy some of the deadliest, most potent bug spray she could get her hands on.
And yes, the food was often a tad dubious and made her stomach feel like a washing machine stuck on tumble dry. The roads were full of crazy people who didn't know what an indicator was, and if they did, they obviously preferred the spontaneity of changing lanes at the last minute without so much as a glance over their shoulder. And there was the slight risk that she was slowly dying from the amounts of carbon dioxide/monoxide/other noxious fumes that hung over D.F on a daily basis. And sure there had been some earthquakes going on, though Teresita Rosita always seemed to miss out on actually feeling them.
Yes there were some things in Mexico that were exciting and maybe a little bit life threatening... but it wasn't enough for Teresita Rosita. If she was goijg to have an adventure she may as well make it as extreme an adventure as possible. It was time to go a little bit crazy - crazier than crowded buses, crazier than political rallies, crazier than 3 day long concerts - it was time for some extreme sports!
Luckily Mexican Mel was just as crazy as Teresita Rosita, if not more so. So off they set on a road trip to Jalcomulco, Veracruz, home of white water rafting, enormous flying foxes (not the fauna variety) and a gazillion tiny mosquitoes (yes, the fauna variety). And even the road trip didn't disappoint Teresita Rosita with its share of dangers. There were potholes the size of tyres, bone jarring speed bumps that appeared out of nowhere, and a half built concrete highway with rocks for traffic cones, mysteriously missing sections that resulted in giant holes with severe right angle edges that required some serious maneuvering, and yes, of course no sign of where or when any of these obstacles would next appear.
But the girls made it in one piece, and settled into their lovely cabaña up on the cliff, with the river rushing past far below and the local wildlife curled up in their beds keeping them warm at night.
The first day saw Teresita Rosita and Mel easing themselves gently into their life threating escapades. A walk through the jungle with only the risk of falling mangoes, attacks from wild ferocious cows and donkeys and death by the gentle nibbling of little fish as they relaxed in pristine waterholes fed by warm waterfalls. It was a tough start to the trip.
It was during the second day of the trip that Teresita Rosita (finally) feared for her life. Now being the beginning of Spring in Mexico, it hadn't really rained that much so the river was quite low, the rapids only level 2-3. So the girls opted to go in the smaller raft with some guides in training, make things a bit more exciting.
And at the beginning of the downstream journey Teresita Rosita was glad they made this decision. They chose the wildest routes possible - getting stuck on rocks, surfing amongst the white water and generally being a little bit crazy. But then they arrived at "the white witch" - a tight corner of the river where the entire force of the water smashed against a sheer cliff - fun....
Now, as Teresita Rosita got older, her sense of mortality was getting greater and greater, and so, while she enjoyed the adrenalin rush of getting herself into life threatening situations, she also had at the back of her mind the thought that maybe this would be her last adrenalin rush ever.
So down the rapid they went. And SMASH!!! Yep, right into the wall. The raft flipped up on one side, and over the edge went Mexican Mel. With the sudden loss of weight on one side the raft tipped to the other side and Teresita Rosita found herself flung into the tumultuous water. She was instantly caught in the whirl of the water, spun head over heels into the rock, the paddle ripped out of her hands and the air knocked out of her lungs.
They tell you to relax if you're ever thrown overboard while white water rafting. Ha! Like you can relax when you believe you are going to die trapped under the crush of freezing water! And so Teresita Rosita freaked out! She struggled, she farewelled her loved ones and prepared for her watery death.
And then just as suddenly as she had gone under, her head popped up and she gasped delicious gulps of air, grabbed her floating paddle and drifted to the edge of the river.
Hmmm that wasn't so bad after all. Like she was going to die, she was only under the water a few seconds. Gee whiz! what kind of wimp thinks they're drowning as soon as they're under water. Ahhh, it's so easy to be brave when you're still alive. And so Teresita Rosita decided she better keep doing crazy things, though maybe not involving quite as much water this time.
It was time to take to the sky. Attached to a wire 180 metres in the air, hurtling across a cañon 150 wide... why not? Teresita Rosita was obviously invincible after her earlier brush with death.
But you know what? Even after the near drowning, the risk of falling to certain death, and a drive through pounding rain with lighting bolts a little close for comfort on twisting turning roads, the thing that got to Teresita Rosita most of all was...
The damn mosquitoes!
After the first night, Teresita Rosita and Mexican Mel found themselves covered in a maze of red spots, that, as day progressed, got itchier, and itchier, and itchier, until there was nothing else to do but scratch them. And ahhhhhhhhh what sweet relief.... for a moment. And then the itchiness came back even worse than before. And that was only the first day. On the second day, Teresita Rosita had accumulated bites on her arms, her legs, her feet, her hands and so many on her face that she looked like she had some sort of highly contagious disease or the worst case of acne known to humankind.
Maybe this whole living life on the edge thing wasn't everything people said it was...
It was time for some anti-itch cream, a hot shower, and a note in her diary to buy some of the deadliest, most potent bug spray she could get her hands on.
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