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These 'Side Bars' came out of the original travelogue text. Because they deal with subjects about which there are
frequent questions, I have put them here on their own page.
frequent questions, I have put them here on their own page.
Dumping Holding Tanks in Central America
Before this trip started Colleen’s and my biggest concern had been how to get our holding tanks emptied when
there weren’t many RV parks. It has turned out to be mostly a non-problem. We have dumped the gray water
alongside roads into the weeds about 4 times. We only need to dump the black water tank every 3-4 weeks and
have mostly found RV parks during that time period. Other than that we have dumped at a hotel, a car wash, and
two roadside ‘jungle dumps’ when there was no RV park coming up. We have purposely used no chemicals in the
black water tank as we had been advised by long-time fulltimers and do not put toilet paper in it either. Our black
water capacity is 40 gallons and is more than sufficient.
As for the two times in seven months that we have done jungle dumps, we have found places that are along
deserted roads, not near any water, with lots of vegetation to disguise the solids and absorb the liquids. Recently
we were very surprised to see a caravan of several RVs coming toward us heading south on the Pan American
Highway. It was kind of exciting and when we saw that one of the vehicles had pulled off on a curve on the wrong
side of the highway where there was no shoulder we assumed that someone was having mechanical troubles and
stopped in our lane to create a roadblock to protect the vehicle. Colleen got out to get our hazard triangles to put
even farther behind us to give vehicles coming around the corner more warning as I walked up to talk to the driver
who was just getting back in his vehicle. He was obviously in a hurry and not inclined to talk as I asked if he were
having trouble. He hedged a bit and then admitted that he was with Trek America headed to Argentina and doing
a ‘jungle dump’. I think that would be a good example of where and how not to do a ‘jungle dump’.
Before this trip started Colleen’s and my biggest concern had been how to get our holding tanks emptied when
there weren’t many RV parks. It has turned out to be mostly a non-problem. We have dumped the gray water
alongside roads into the weeds about 4 times. We only need to dump the black water tank every 3-4 weeks and
have mostly found RV parks during that time period. Other than that we have dumped at a hotel, a car wash, and
two roadside ‘jungle dumps’ when there was no RV park coming up. We have purposely used no chemicals in the
black water tank as we had been advised by long-time fulltimers and do not put toilet paper in it either. Our black
water capacity is 40 gallons and is more than sufficient.
As for the two times in seven months that we have done jungle dumps, we have found places that are along
deserted roads, not near any water, with lots of vegetation to disguise the solids and absorb the liquids. Recently
we were very surprised to see a caravan of several RVs coming toward us heading south on the Pan American
Highway. It was kind of exciting and when we saw that one of the vehicles had pulled off on a curve on the wrong
side of the highway where there was no shoulder we assumed that someone was having mechanical troubles and
stopped in our lane to create a roadblock to protect the vehicle. Colleen got out to get our hazard triangles to put
even farther behind us to give vehicles coming around the corner more warning as I walked up to talk to the driver
who was just getting back in his vehicle. He was obviously in a hurry and not inclined to talk as I asked if he were
having trouble. He hedged a bit and then admitted that he was with Trek America headed to Argentina and doing
a ‘jungle dump’. I think that would be a good example of where and how not to do a ‘jungle dump’.
Copyright - All Rights Reserved
2005
2005
Border Crossings
When we returned from the trip to Panama we had made 12 border crossings and they all have some similarities.
As you arrive at the crossing there are usually dozens of 18 wheelers parked randomly along the sides of the
road that make for a tight squeeze as you negotiate a parking place for yourself. You are generally approached
by one or more young men - sometimes they are boys - who want to assist you with the process. Even if you tell
them that you don't need any help, they will tag along and it does make the task easier to have them help with
finding where to go. You might as well accept their assistance and tip them later. If you prefer, and if your
language skills are up to the task, negotiate a price up front...it should be the equivalent of $2-$3 if the process
doesn't take too much time...more if it is longer and there is a lot of running around. If you do use them, do not
give them your original documents...you go with them and you carry the documents.
There are always four steps to the process. The first step is at the aduana to check the vehicle out of the country
you are leaving. They collect the papers you received when you crossed into the country and somehow log that
you left. Some countries have computerized systems and some have lengthy handwritten logging that they have
to do.
The next step is to check yourselves out at the immigration post. Sometimes the immigration office is in or near
the aduana office and sometimes it is not. This is where the 'helper' can come in handy especially if you don't
speak Spanish. These offices are sometimes hard to find and sometimes are not an office at all; they may consist
of someone sitting or standing in a special place. Your passport is stamped with the exit stamp and you have now
officially left the country. Sometimes there is an exit tax to pay as you leave. Make sure to get your passport
stamped as it can cause you problems later if you don't.
The third step is to check the vehicle in at the aduana of the country you are crossing into. Sometimes the next
country's aduana is near the offices of the previous two steps, but more than likely you now have to drive your
vehicle from a 100 meters to a couple of kilometers to again find a place to park. If you have hired a 'helper' he
either rides with you, runs ahead, or rides his bicycle to wave you to a parking place. If you don't have a helper,
you drive until you are stopped by an official of some sort.
The process of checking the vehicle in to a country involves much filling out of papers by the officials. You have to
present titles to the vehicles, a driver's license and the passport of the driver. If the vehicle is not titled in the
name of the drivers (ours isn't as it is owned by an LLC and we are the officers of the LLC) then you have to
provide other papers to show how the ownership works. It is probably better if all the letters and other proof are in
English as they won't get bogged down in the details and they just ask how the ownership works and take copies
of those documents too. This step can be the most expensive as there are temporary vehicle importation fees and
liability insurance to be purchased which is either mandatory or you can sometimes convince them that you have
already spent a bundle on insurance and they will accept it. There is almost always an inspection to compare the
VIN on your vehicle with the VIN on your paperwork and each of these steps takes time and requires the finding of
the person whose job that is.
The fourth step is to get yourself into the country. Here you have to fill out a piece of paper with some personal
information and turn it in with your passport to get entered into the country. Then the officials either log the
information by hand or enter it into a computer - Guatemala had a computerized scanner to scan the passport.
Your passport is stamped and you are now in a new country. After each step make sure you have gotten all your
paperwork, passports and licenses back from the officials and don't give any original papers to your 'helper' to
carry anywhere.
At some point during the process you will be approached by the moneychangers who are wandering about the
border area looking to exchange the currency of the two bordering countries. They buy and sell the two
currencies making a small amount on each transaction. It is very difficult to exchange currency from other
countries after you have left the border area so you are well-advised to take advantage of the opportunity. Each
of the moneychangers is trying to maximize the profit on the exchange so you will get different prices by shopping
around. If you happen to know what the current official rate of exchange is you have more leverage with your
bargaining.
The whole process can take anywhere from 1 1/2 to 4 hours to complete. One of the things that can hang you up
is lunch breaks where just as you get to the next step the one person who can do whatever is required has just
left for lunch and doesn't have anyone else to do the job. You then just wait. Another potential glitch is computers
which are down or not having the right number of copies of your passport or title or driver's license to turn in at
the next step. You never know how many copies of what that you are going to need and there is always a copy
place you have to find to get the copies and hope that the machine isn't broken or out of paper. We have a copy
machine with us that really expedites things. As you are crossing, if there are two of you, one can stand in the
next line and the other can be the runner to get whatever is needed next and shop for the best money exchange
rate from the moneychangers. When you are finished, tip your helper and then present various pieces of paper
to various officials as you move out of the border area. Sometimes there will be a control point a few kilometers
down the road where you have to present all your papers again so don't put them too far away too soon.
Generally we have had the best luck crossing the borders early in the day and not on weekends. Weekend
crossing sometimes involves extra fees. If you cross too late in the day, you may finish getting out of the country
before the border closes but not get checked in to the next one in time. Then you get to spend the night between
the borders - this did not happen to us. All this takes some strategizing when you plan the timing of when and
where you stay the night before crossing the border. Border towns are not generally very delightful places and
staying in or near them is usually noisy. Border crossing takes patience and getting upset or impatient doesn't
help. I did once refuse to pay a $12 liability insurance fee and got away with it, but mostly you just follow the steps
and move through the process. Bribing officials is not necessary and I would recommend you not even try as you
are likely to offend them and cause further complications. If you have all your papers in order before leaving the
US you will not have any problems.
One law that can cause difficulty is if you are one person traveling with an RV and a toad. The thought is that you
are probably hauling the toad from the US to sell on the black market in whatever country you are trying to enter
and you may be hassled, prevented from entering or only given a transit visa that is good for enough days to get
you through the country to the next country and won't allow for time to sightsee. If you have a transit visa only and
are stopped by the police at a checkpoint after the expiration of the transit visa you will have further difficulties. In
Central America checkpoints where you are asked to present your papers are common.
Sometimes there are 'helpers' that are running a scam where they tell you that if you pay them an extra fee they
will get you around an inspection. Fear tactics are employed throughout Central America to try to get you to do
something that involves giving someone money to prevent some unknown disaster. You can pay or you can take
your chances. One of these journals I will write more about the fear tactics employed everywhere and not just with
tourists.
When we returned from the trip to Panama we had made 12 border crossings and they all have some similarities.
As you arrive at the crossing there are usually dozens of 18 wheelers parked randomly along the sides of the
road that make for a tight squeeze as you negotiate a parking place for yourself. You are generally approached
by one or more young men - sometimes they are boys - who want to assist you with the process. Even if you tell
them that you don't need any help, they will tag along and it does make the task easier to have them help with
finding where to go. You might as well accept their assistance and tip them later. If you prefer, and if your
language skills are up to the task, negotiate a price up front...it should be the equivalent of $2-$3 if the process
doesn't take too much time...more if it is longer and there is a lot of running around. If you do use them, do not
give them your original documents...you go with them and you carry the documents.
There are always four steps to the process. The first step is at the aduana to check the vehicle out of the country
you are leaving. They collect the papers you received when you crossed into the country and somehow log that
you left. Some countries have computerized systems and some have lengthy handwritten logging that they have
to do.
The next step is to check yourselves out at the immigration post. Sometimes the immigration office is in or near
the aduana office and sometimes it is not. This is where the 'helper' can come in handy especially if you don't
speak Spanish. These offices are sometimes hard to find and sometimes are not an office at all; they may consist
of someone sitting or standing in a special place. Your passport is stamped with the exit stamp and you have now
officially left the country. Sometimes there is an exit tax to pay as you leave. Make sure to get your passport
stamped as it can cause you problems later if you don't.
The third step is to check the vehicle in at the aduana of the country you are crossing into. Sometimes the next
country's aduana is near the offices of the previous two steps, but more than likely you now have to drive your
vehicle from a 100 meters to a couple of kilometers to again find a place to park. If you have hired a 'helper' he
either rides with you, runs ahead, or rides his bicycle to wave you to a parking place. If you don't have a helper,
you drive until you are stopped by an official of some sort.
The process of checking the vehicle in to a country involves much filling out of papers by the officials. You have to
present titles to the vehicles, a driver's license and the passport of the driver. If the vehicle is not titled in the
name of the drivers (ours isn't as it is owned by an LLC and we are the officers of the LLC) then you have to
provide other papers to show how the ownership works. It is probably better if all the letters and other proof are in
English as they won't get bogged down in the details and they just ask how the ownership works and take copies
of those documents too. This step can be the most expensive as there are temporary vehicle importation fees and
liability insurance to be purchased which is either mandatory or you can sometimes convince them that you have
already spent a bundle on insurance and they will accept it. There is almost always an inspection to compare the
VIN on your vehicle with the VIN on your paperwork and each of these steps takes time and requires the finding of
the person whose job that is.
The fourth step is to get yourself into the country. Here you have to fill out a piece of paper with some personal
information and turn it in with your passport to get entered into the country. Then the officials either log the
information by hand or enter it into a computer - Guatemala had a computerized scanner to scan the passport.
Your passport is stamped and you are now in a new country. After each step make sure you have gotten all your
paperwork, passports and licenses back from the officials and don't give any original papers to your 'helper' to
carry anywhere.
At some point during the process you will be approached by the moneychangers who are wandering about the
border area looking to exchange the currency of the two bordering countries. They buy and sell the two
currencies making a small amount on each transaction. It is very difficult to exchange currency from other
countries after you have left the border area so you are well-advised to take advantage of the opportunity. Each
of the moneychangers is trying to maximize the profit on the exchange so you will get different prices by shopping
around. If you happen to know what the current official rate of exchange is you have more leverage with your
bargaining.
The whole process can take anywhere from 1 1/2 to 4 hours to complete. One of the things that can hang you up
is lunch breaks where just as you get to the next step the one person who can do whatever is required has just
left for lunch and doesn't have anyone else to do the job. You then just wait. Another potential glitch is computers
which are down or not having the right number of copies of your passport or title or driver's license to turn in at
the next step. You never know how many copies of what that you are going to need and there is always a copy
place you have to find to get the copies and hope that the machine isn't broken or out of paper. We have a copy
machine with us that really expedites things. As you are crossing, if there are two of you, one can stand in the
next line and the other can be the runner to get whatever is needed next and shop for the best money exchange
rate from the moneychangers. When you are finished, tip your helper and then present various pieces of paper
to various officials as you move out of the border area. Sometimes there will be a control point a few kilometers
down the road where you have to present all your papers again so don't put them too far away too soon.
Generally we have had the best luck crossing the borders early in the day and not on weekends. Weekend
crossing sometimes involves extra fees. If you cross too late in the day, you may finish getting out of the country
before the border closes but not get checked in to the next one in time. Then you get to spend the night between
the borders - this did not happen to us. All this takes some strategizing when you plan the timing of when and
where you stay the night before crossing the border. Border towns are not generally very delightful places and
staying in or near them is usually noisy. Border crossing takes patience and getting upset or impatient doesn't
help. I did once refuse to pay a $12 liability insurance fee and got away with it, but mostly you just follow the steps
and move through the process. Bribing officials is not necessary and I would recommend you not even try as you
are likely to offend them and cause further complications. If you have all your papers in order before leaving the
US you will not have any problems.
One law that can cause difficulty is if you are one person traveling with an RV and a toad. The thought is that you
are probably hauling the toad from the US to sell on the black market in whatever country you are trying to enter
and you may be hassled, prevented from entering or only given a transit visa that is good for enough days to get
you through the country to the next country and won't allow for time to sightsee. If you have a transit visa only and
are stopped by the police at a checkpoint after the expiration of the transit visa you will have further difficulties. In
Central America checkpoints where you are asked to present your papers are common.
Sometimes there are 'helpers' that are running a scam where they tell you that if you pay them an extra fee they
will get you around an inspection. Fear tactics are employed throughout Central America to try to get you to do
something that involves giving someone money to prevent some unknown disaster. You can pay or you can take
your chances. One of these journals I will write more about the fear tactics employed everywhere and not just with
tourists.
Side Bars
Around the World with Kathe and Colleen