Twisted Travels

A far cry from the 3 " of total snowfall Aaron can expect back in Mobile, AL.

Twisted Throttle receives many letters from customers every month. These notes describe the rider's travels, and to praise various products for their fit, finish, and durability. This is one of those.
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Hey gang! If you want to keep track of MotoAdventureGal's exploits through South America, browse on over to MotoAdventureGal.com! We'll be keeping an eye on her ourselves to make sure she's having a Twisted time.

Aurora
Thursday, December 31st, 2009

December 11, 2009
Oaxaca

I haven’t talked about Aurora yet. The easiest way to describe her is that she sparkles. From the inside, she just emanates this light that draws you in and lets you know you are in the presence of someone really awesome. I want to be her when I grow up. Seriously, Aurora is the type of lady I have always wanted to be — always happy, always pleasant, upbeat, with a wonderful sense of humor and old-school grace that comes from a combination of good manners and just plain grace. Plus she’s just flat-out gorgeous.
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Way to go Mefo
Wednesday, December 30th, 2009

MEFO Tires

Remember I said the road changed when I entered the state of Oaxaca? Gone was the smooth pavement of the northern provinces. The asphault in Oaxaca contains a mixture of rough gravel
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Chicken Soup for the Gringa
Tuesday, December 29th, 2009

December 9, 2009
Acatlán – Oaxaca, Mexico
no stats recorded

I awoke to an ant infestation. Ants *everywhere*. And I had no food in my room. Yet I had ants in my helmet, jacket, Trax bag liner (that I use as my luggage carrying it in and out of the hotels every night). Little tiny ants, not fire ants, but little tiny ones that were red and scarcely larger than a poppy seed. I’d thrown my gear down on the other bed (which I often do when I move into a hotel room), and for some reason the ants really really liked that bed, and my stuff in particular. What particularly horrified me was the fact that my helmet was c-r-a-w-l-i-n-g with them.
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I Brake for Iguana
Monday, December 28th, 2009

December 8, 2009
Ixtapan – Acatlán (Mexico)

Moving Time= 7:16
Stopped Time=2:38
200 miles

I wanted to try to get all the way to Oaxaca today…I had some friends-of-friends there, and they were expecting me to arrive today. It would be a big push, and unfortunately I got a late start because my stomach was really upset last night…I was up a lot of the night. Gas? Not sure. Felt like gas.
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Reserva Monarca (Monarch Butterfly Preserve)
Sunday, December 27th, 2009

December 7, 2009

Reserva Monarca

Well, my bike was NOT happy climbing the last 1000 feet up into Angangueo, so this morning I sucked it up, and did my first on-my-own chain adjustment. After double, triple, quintuple checking, I thought I had it right, and left this still-sleepy (and really freaking cold!) town at 9000 feet elevation.
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Strawberry Heaven
Saturday, December 26th, 2009

December 6, 2009
Guanajuato – Angangueo
Moving Time= 6:06
Stopped Time= 1:56
219 miles

Leaving Guanajuato was easier than I expected: I took the tunnel in front of the hotel / shopping arcade / bus station place where I stayed last night, and road right out of the city on Route 110. The same route 110 to Leon. The same Route 110 also marked to go to Irapuato. All different directions. Funny how that works in Mexico.
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Christmas Eve
Friday, December 25th, 2009

San Pedro La Laguna, Guatemala

The contrast here is making me very sad–I am so very privileged to have the time, leisure, and money to travel and sample the world, and the people that are around me here in Guatemala are all struggling. In this moment I feel I want, no I need, to be doing something greater with my life than I am now, and I just feel so small. The language school I am attending is a cooperative–that means guaranteed better wages to the instructors, and the school gives back to the community in the form of helping local poor families, and also with a commitment to built houses for 7 of the poorest families in town. Yesterday we walked with our instructors to give out Christmas baskets to the needy–filled with a bunch of staples and a few just goodies. I guess it’s good to travel the world and see different ways of living and see different points of view, but yesterday I just find it so damned heartbreaking.
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