Hooray!

The Mama Bus is at their half-way point! We are currently in Oregon, visiting friends and family of the Wood Clan. So the day after we reached the coast we went to put our feet in the water. Many of the Wood’s family and a few friends came and it became a party!

The waves were crashing hard onto the sand when we arrived. The wind played a tune of victory in the branches of the trees as Jessy (4), Jillian (11) and I skipped down to the water. Shoes, hats and jackets went flying as all 11 kids and both mamas linked arms and ran, screaming and splashing through the surf of the great Pacific Ocean.

Groups split up, some to run races down the beach and then plunge headfirst into the sea. Others to carefully walk in the surf, searching for the sand dollars that littered the beach. Some went to squish the dead jellyfish. One got stung (I’m not going to mention names) which soon put a stop to that program. A few got wet and then rolled down the sandy beach to become sand monsters. The mama’s sat and talked near the waves.

After a few hours we loaded back into the bus, with salt on our skin, and sand everywhere. Sadly, the two families loaded into different buses, the Millers to head up into British Columbia to visit family, and the Woods to stay in Oregon with friends and family. We will be separated for a week and a half before continuing the Mama Bus adventure.

Happy Trails!

Belize

Beautiful, tropical, full of culture. Words can’t describe the excitement I felt when my Dad told me I could take a trip with four of my best friends to one of my favorite countries at only 14 years old. I started packing immediately, thrilled to experience this new adventure with a few of my favorite backpacking friends: Ruthie, Phil, David and Mel.

After a cramped collective ride and a border crossing which included a soaking ride across a crystal blue section of the Caribbean, my friends and I discussed our plans. After much debate we decided to first visit the waterfall filled Mountain Pine Ridge Forest and then find a beach (or three) to explore.

Barton Creek Outpost

The next day we set off, beginning our trip with another cramped, smelly chicken bus ride (so called because everything is allowed to come on the bus). Following a quick lunch, multiple questions on our ages, and a furiously haggled car ride, we found ourselves on the way to Barton Creek Outpost, a free place to camp that is completely “off the grid,” is a working WWOOFer site. Every morning they serve free hand squeezed orange juice, from their own trees. The Outpost is located deep in the jungle right next to a deep natural pool complete with underwater caves and rope swings.

It wasn’t until after we were already in the jungle that our driver informed us that he didn’t actually know how to get to the Outpost. “Ah well, live the adventure!” Ruthie cheerfully suggested, and as I had been there before the driver relied on my very vague instructions to get us there. We made it just as the sun started to go down.

After one marvelously sunny day and two rather wet, rainy nights we took our leave of the Outpost in a pickup truck in which we were four out of 17 people stuffed into the seats and back. Two buses later found us sitting in a diner on the Belizian coast town of Punta Gorda, deciding on our route. A beach was next on the menu, but which one? Tobacco Caye, of course!

Tobacco Caye

An idyllic island on a gorgeous reef. It’s cheap, there’s great snorkeling and diving and the people there are friendly and laid back. We spent all of our time there snorkeling with rays, sharks, turtles and a stunning variety of fish.

Sunbathing, eating coconuts and hanging with the locals in the evening to listen to my Belizian friends play on turtle shells are some of the other main entertainment. We girls took the opportunity to sit back and chill in a hammock; we certainly had time!

Sadly, all good things eventually come to an end and after a complete blast of a week we had to go our seperate ways. Some of us went back to the states while others decided to continue traveling. As for myself, I had family waiting to take me back to our temporary home on Lago de Atitlan, Guatemala.

On the way home I realized a few things I had learned from my awesome week:

• First of all, no matter what you do, always bring a tarp or you might be soaked.
• Second of all, I finally fully realized how much money can do for you, and why I needed to get a job (Thank you Teen Travel Talk!) so that I could continue traveling.
• I also began to appreciate the value of friendships with those older than myself and have begun cultivating more of them.

With all this in mind, let the adventure continue!

6. Kemah Boardwalk, TX

Situated near Galveston, Texas, is the Kemah Boardwalk, where the “Fun Never Stops!” It is the nearest entertainment park to the Houston area, and has lots of attractions. The rides range from the “Double-Decker Carousel” for kids to the “Inverter” and “Boardwalk Bullet” for more advanced riders. It is also has a variety of restaurants; one in particular is the “Aquarium: An Underwater Dining Adventure.” It’s unique in that it combines a visit to the aquarium with a visit to a restaurant. Its dining room includes a floor to ceiling tank full of a variety of fish to view while eating.

Inside “The Aquarium Restaurant”

7. Virginia Beach, VA

Virginia Beach is a well-known vacation spot…  and it can get quite crowded in the busy summer months. Luckily, with 35 miles of beach there is plenty of room for everyone. And it’s an awesome place where teens and parents can both have fun. After spending time on the beach, you can jog, bike, rollerblade, or pedal a beach buggy along the boardwalk. And, Atlantic Avenue between 17th & 25th Street is known as “Beach Street USA,” where summer music concerts are held through out the year for various audiences. Also, be sure to check out the 34-foot statue of Neptune at 31st street (it’s in the image below, if you can spot it!). And if it’s raining? Don’t worry — there are plenty of indoor activities worth looking into.

Part of the “100 Miles of Lights” throughout Virginia.

8. Mission Beach — Pacific Boardwalk, CA

Who wouldn’t want to go to the beach in California?? Well, at Mission Beach in San Diego you can go beyond that. Besides taking a dip in the blue waters, Pacific Boardwalk provides the closest thing in California to East Coast boardwalks like Coney Island. And Belmont Amusement Park is only a few miles away. However, I have heard that it can get busy on the weekends and that there aren’t many cheap eating places in the area, so you might want to pack a picnic.

The last three boardwalks can be found in Part 3.