life @ 13

Well, I´m here, and, for the moment, I can actually tell you where here is. Playa del Carmen is in the northwest corner of the Yucatan, with the larger hotels in Cancun still visible.
Apologies for the mass email, although I know at least half of you have some vague interest in knowing that I´m still alive and kicking. Let´s make that alive and cycling.
Upon arriving in cancun i went directly to Isla Mujeres, off the coast near Cancun, and spent 5 warm, relaxing days. I´ve already met more people than I can count. The day after I arrived my interest in using bicycle instead of bus to get around was piqued by a couple of very enthuastic and friendly Norwegians who have spent the past 6 months and 7000km on their bicycles. So yesterday afternoon I bought a bicycle (new, cheap) and a few necessary supplies and cycled from Cancun to Playa, about 75 km. As crazy as it sounds the ride was a breeze (and helped by one coming out of the northeast). Tomorrow I will leave for Tulum about 60km to the south. Cycling is a well-accepted form of transportation in this area of the world, and motorists are alert and courteous.
My plans at this point are vague, although over the next several weeks I will travel from mexico to belize to guatemala, possibly spending several weeks in Antigua or San Pedro on Lago de Atitlan.
Being the new age traveller that I am, I set up a weblog which will be updated periodically at http://dlittle.blogspot.com . Since I´m not going to send another email like this, the blog is the line to my world for the time being.
I do not know when and where I will have internet access, so if you send me an email and I do not respond, you are required to assume that I am holed up in a remote village without access. Or I am simply having too good of a time to sit behind a sticky keyboard in a hot room on a very slow connection just to find that my only email is a cell phone bill (which, by the way, does not work).
So that´s that. I´m warm, safe, and happy to be on the road. Adventures are impossible to plan, but I think some of the ingredients are there for me. Keep in touch, I want to know how all of you are doing. Me, I´m going to make a large pot of spagetti, have a few beers, get some rest, and tomorrow cruise down to the next hostel.


David