For a while now I have known that my anticipated return date of May 30 was unrealistic. Given my detours and whims, there was no way I was going to get to Panama by then! Time to toss “The Plan” out the window and listen to my heart. Even if back in January I had the intention for this to be a three month trip then come back to work doesn’t mean it must stay that way. I am so damn happy traveling. I still have the resources to continue and no commitments, so I am going to keep going.

Yesterday I made it official and changed my plane ticket to return in August, my latest possible date as I have tickets to Music@Menlo and will not miss it. My new exit is out of Cancun, Mexico. But isn’t that the wrong way? Not if I want to return to Belize and Mexico later in the summer. Over the next three months, I plan to dive in the Bay Islands, spend a month in Nicaragua, then perhaps keep going south to Costa Rica and fly back to Belize City or loop around through El Salvador and southern Guatemala. The way I get sucked into a detour, the possibilities are endless.

One thing is for sure: I will be back to SF just in time for closing weekend of M@M, Burning Man, and then (hopefully) a national parks/wine country road trip in September. I am getting very excited for these domestic legs of my adventures. Woot America!!

A geeky side note: It also bothered me that my original plan had me traveling for 97 days, just short of a 100-day travelversary. My new itinerary is 164 days in Central America, which Sim points out is a very nice round 10^2+8^2. If you count my intended US travels I will hit 200 days easily. And this I now consider a minimum. From 200, the year mark doesn’t look so far away… ask me again about my itinerary in five months. 😛