Did you ever come up with a language school recommendation? We are still interested in the idea.

Hey, check this - we are leaving in ten days for Porto to Barcelona, over 75 days. We won't even try to learn much Portugese, but then there is Spain!

We were in our local supermarket buying supplies to make a poc chuc dinner, and we were naming each ingredient, like the cebolla, ajo, naranja, tomate, etc. When we came to pink grapefruit, I said toronja, because I remembered that from a fruit store in Tulum, but my phone claimed pomelo. Could this be a Mexico vs Spain difference?

We enjoyed your Yucatán adventures and it was great to spend a little time with you in Uaymitun! Looking forward to your next trip!

Doug & Elaine

Great photo! It reminds me of riding away from Ft. Thompson, South Dakota at 3am to avoid heat and headwinds. A tractor trailer drove by and couldn't believe what he was seeing.

That looks like the receipt I get at Rite Aid when I buy a tube of chapstick.

I loved watching Iohan Gueorguiev's ice and snow treks, but no arctic snow riding for me. Maybe as a youth (yout, as Joe Pesci said) I would have been more inclined, but no thanks.
Going to the Yucatan or Arizona like the Andersons sounds more palatable.

We truly expected to be brushed off with feeble excuses, and were indeed both surprised and delighted to actually be vindicated.

They even brought the great Geddy Lee in for the song.

That's amazing! I'm trying to imagine taking a legit complaint like this one to the TSA (the US equivalent) and getting a similar response.... Nope, wouldn't happen.

I would print and take CATSA’s email with you when you travel as well. Looking forward to seeing you on Monday.

Good final outcome.

I like the notion of having the relevant and applicable documents highlighted and packed with potentially problematic or contentious items.

There will always be uninformed or supercilious petty officials who insist on demonstrating their absolute power ove those with no alternative but to comply, but anything you can do preemptively to strengthen your hand while undermining theirs is a good starting tactic.

Let's hope the official in this case recognizes his error, or the futility of a pyrrhic victory. If his attitude persists and there are additional complaints, perhaps his superiors will have the evidence needed for meaningful corrective / disciplinary actions.

The credit for recording the thing goes to CATSA, who have cameras all over the security area. I think had I been filming they would have freaked, on the fear that I could capture weaknesses in their security setup.

Excellent … good to see. Part of our “packaging” is a printout from the airlines website inside the plastic bag holding the battery, with highlights.

Good to get a positive response. The next similar traveler will not have such problems. Good on you for recording and reporting! Without the recording, it would have been the old "he said, she said" argument to oblivion. When it is properly documented, they cannot ignore it without adverse consequences. In my Quality Assurance days, they always said "No documentation, it didn't happen."

Fixed a broken spot in the system!

Thanks Bill, we really appreciated your particiapation with the Yucatan birds and plants! By the way, Keith Adams has just completed a sojourn in Hawaii and spotted all sorts of birds. https://www.cycleblaze.com/journals/offseason2022/

The cardinals he found are really cool - they look like they belong in the Vatican.

This was the temperature on the road,with the ambient temperature above 30 and the reflected heat from the road surface it was quite brutal. This was the main reason for our 4 am wakeup, 5 am starts. To get off the roads before mid to late morning.