As we continue our journey through four time zones and seven countries, we cross the border (frontera) from Mexico into Guatemala, near El Carmen. We're surrounded by chaos. At least a dozen pushing and shoving street hustlers encircle us, yelling simultaneously in Spanglish that they're the best ones to change our dollars to quetzels and help us get through inmigración, customs (aduana), and importación of the bikes.

Some motorcyclists from Europe pushed forward into a different world. The vacation through Costa Rica and Panama ended up with a lot of adventures and surprises.Note: This tour happened before the American operators of the Panama Canal and the US Army pulled out of Panama at the end of 1998. The canal now is under contract with a Chinese company. Please do your homework and research with diligence. Things may have changed a lot - politically, economically, socially and even environmentally.