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Seeing that you can also spend a couple days hanging out in Cuzco and trying to hook up with some
Australian backpacking-type chick it might all add up to an okay time for you.
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I understand that in the early 1900s, a group of Australians were dissatisfied with the then-newly federated Australia. They wanted to establish their own socialist utopia, and migrated as a group to some place in Peru.
I've heard that there is now an enclave somewhere where there is a group of socialists who's descendants still, to this day, speak with strong Australian accents.
On the main topic, some friends of mine who formed a boy band (Maximum Forte - you may have heard of them) travelled to South America on their "Helping the Kids" world tour. They had a great time, however, they had some serious disagreements:
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Apparently, the band is yet to recover from their very public dispute over the title of the top 10 single that has since become known as Sauna? You Know I
Wan-na!
The track was penned by controversial bad boy Aln Laing II, and was originally going to be released under the title Sauna – You Know I Warned Ya!
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Photos are online at
http://community.webshots.com/user/MaximumForte and here are some of their reports from their trip - feel free to take from it what you will:
12 Nov, 2005
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Hola amigos
te quiero muchisimo
Dont say this to Mexican taxi drivers as JuJu found out it is not the Mexican equivelant of ´Cheers´.
Thanks Richie.
The travels have begun. Come join us on the frickin best World Tour ever!
The Highlights
Fiji-Richie got seduced by a local man, who took him out the back of some shop and drugged him with the local poison Kava. Then had to buy his merchandise. Anyone need a crappy coconut ring¿ JuJu became a mormon to avoid the poison.
USA - maximum Forte couldnt hold the fans back. Sporting new personalised Maximum forte hoodies they were getting alot of attention at the local gay bar. With the waitor challenging Meg for her no. 1 fan status. We did not accept his offer to go out the back and meet the real Maximum Forte. However we talked about how good Savage Garden were for a few hours.
Mexico City- >First train ride on the Metro, some 12 year old went for a cheap feel of Richie´´s arse and accidently caught his wallet at the time. Due to his mongoose like skills he pulled her groping hand off his wallet with some super fast maximum forte dance moves.She wept.
Enjoy,
Maximum Forte
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12 Dec, 2005
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Greetings friends, hope you've been worrying about me, you have every right to be, I see a lot of contempt for us in their little eyes, we're so ridiculously conspicuous, colorful clothing, jules with his blonde hair, me with a head above the crowd. Some guy rode by on a bicycle yesterday and yelled out to julian "hey gringo, go back to your country and get out of mine", what's hilarious is that he probably only learnt english so that he could insult us.
Yesterday we visited the largest cathedral in latin america and saw diego rivera's massive wall covering paintings. Julian and I went to bed last night thinking we would visit the pyramids at teotihocan which has the third largest pyramid in the world, just out of town. we went to bed at 12 and jules woke me up at 6 30 and started talking about the day we were going to have. I said its too early to wake up so we better just have an hour more sleep. we awoke and had breakfast, confirmed our plans for the day then got ready to leave. On our way out we told one of the hostlel workers we were going to the pyramids and if we could borrow their guide book. He looked at us like we were nuts and said they would be closed then pointed to the skylight. It was 5.30pm, we slept the whole day, he then proceeded to tell us how drugs are bad. So tonight we went shopping for a watch.
Over the next two weeks we'll be heading down to Guatemala City, there's a fair bit to do along the way, namely palenque, san critobal and puebla, then four fantastic cities in Guatemala before departing for Belize. We are becoming more competent at spanish, buying tickets, cervesas, minor chit chat etc. On my second train ride on the metro, a little go tried to steal my wallet, i caught her hand and she was off, but her father looked rather proud of her. So now that I'm a statistic I feel safer, but we just look so ridiculously conspicuous as you can see from our photos. Several young mexican muchachas came up to us yesterday and wanted our names and to take photos, their older boyfriend did not look too impressed.
We have covered quite a lot in this short time, particularly on thursday the 8th of December where we left our hostel in the morning to take a cruise to a beautiful fijian island where we did some amazing snorkelling. It's a whole other world and so far detached from the environment I'm used to, where these amazingly beautiful fish are swimming around your hands and nibbling at your fingers, the only comparable experience on land would be that with flies. Then we came back, picked up our stuff from the hostel, missed the free shuttle because i was waiting for my banana split, and caught the 11 hour flight to LA where at the airport Julian asked for a seat with extra leg room and she said there was only one left and she'd already given it to me, behind in the line, heh heh heh. So that was a most comfortable flight, and we arrived in LA to be greeted by my friend Katie whom i travelled around new zealand with. The first thing in LA we decided to visit was a massive op shop we spotted on the way to hollywood where we did all the tourist crap. She then took us out for a massive burger and texan margarita before dropping us off at the airport where I we lined up at the TACA airlines queue, and were directed outside to where the real line started. I've never seen so many hispanics, even now in mexico, the line was massive, a good 200m walk down the road to the end. We arrived in El Salvador on the friday morning (that was one huuuuuuge thursday), now two nights without a bed and with hardly any sleep, so when we finally made it to mexico city and took the 1hour cab ride from the airport, we were greeted at our hostel by "Hola, you're from australia, my god you guys look bad."
We're getting along really well with the other travelers, sharing bottles of tequila seals most friendships, so very much looking forward to the rest of our journey. Food is so cheap here, today we two filling tacos and a drink for under $2, and you can get a bottle of tequila for under 10.
Anyway, keep in touch,
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21 Dec, 2005
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Let's big it up for M to the Onash, and a special big up to Royal McLeod whose day of birth set off riots in Mexico, causing bus delays and intercity chaos, making it impossible for us to contact him for his birthday!!!! Hope it was massive buddy, we spent a good portion of yesterday talking about what a true champion you are and then.....[censored], his birthday, found some mariachis to sing you a birthday song but had no recording device, but this is what they sang:
Conocido Campbell, Campbell Reglas el Mundo, Wooo Ooooh Ohhhhhhhhhhhhh, Campbell es muy Caliente!!!
Well gang, we just arrived in Guatemala, had an interesting welcoming, definitely one to remember on first impressions. After getting kicked off the bus on the side of some highway, middle of nowhere, we stood there wondering what the [censored] to do, when another shonky bus comes hurtling around the corner with a guy flailing out the door shouting "Xela!?'. It takes off as i am getting on through the back door and just manage not to taste the pavement. On the bus, our first introduction to Guatemalan culture, i get elbowed in the face for trying to bribe the ticket collector with US dollars. Followed almost instantaneously by JuJu testing his Spanish and sparking up a conversation with the elderly gentleman next to him, who reciprocates by grabbing his hand, flopping out, winking at him, then proceeded to wee on our backpacks..... gracias senior.
We were rather stoked to get to our 3 dollar a night bed at our hostel, and when i say hostel, i mean garage, and when i say bed, i mean cot, and when i say i haven't had a hot shower since mexico city, i mean two weeks ago, and when I say our clothes are getting a tad scum-pickens, i mean we haven't done any washing yet (juju only brought 3 pairs of unmentionables). Aside from these initial laughs, Guatemala is absolutely fantastic. Another non-urinating guy I met on the bus offered to drive us to our garage and take us to the volcanic hot springs tomorrow, we may have to thank him in true guatemalan custom by weeing on his hat.
We have sent you all group emails, but we've found a lot of them have been going to junk mail. We seem to consistently be in a delirious state of laughter, like yesterday when we spent all day on a small tourist bus going to see some ruins, we thought no one else understood english, but on the return trip we found they were just shy, and would have had a 12 hour earful about the hilarious emails we are going to send steve brax, or B-Rax, in da house...... (of) Represent...(atives).
Stay in touch guys, I'm pointing to you campbell, straw, libby, maie maie and mell, whom we haven't heard from yet
Maximum Forte
PS, had an unbelievable night out in San Cristobal, where Richie tasted 4 of mexico's finest and juju tasted australia (but claiming post purchase dissonance after wasting it on an australian). The girls love us here, especially in the bars where the only language is grinding... heh heh
PS2 (copyright sony), gremlet, loved the fanmail, we're working on a larger crisis that will overcome our rift, stay strong...
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