Different countries, different attitudes

We've been following a new blog...a couple who are on a two year trip through Central and South America in their Class C motorhome.

http://drivingthepanamerican.blogspot.com/

I wanted to comment on their recent post where they asked a park ranger at a National Park in Nicaragua if they could park overnight, and of course they were allowed to.

"...another ranger points out a beautiful grassy area for us to park. We have amazing views over the valley and can see Lake Managua and Lake Nicaragua from our vantage point. As the rangers begin to leave, three armed military vigilantes arrive, they will be the guards for the night. Pretty soon, we have the park to ourselves and we feel completely safe. It is so peaceful."

Canada and the U.S. have some pretty stringent attitudes about parking. In Mexico, and obviously Central America, there are some rules about where you can or cannot park on busy streets in cities, but otherwise you can park just about anywhere and nobody will bother you. I don't understand why we get so upset up here about where you can or can't park. So long as you're not bothering someone, who cares? In Mexico, we always ask if we can park where ever, and only once we were turned down. Usually we get a funny look that says "why would you even ask...?"

It's the same thing with dogs. The city of Ottawa (the capital of Canada) has the most ridiculous rules about where you can or can't walk your dog. It is not a very dog friendly city. The people in the blog above are traveling with their dog Winston.

"We are going to try to find a hotel for the night but if not, we will come back. Everyone assures us Winston will not be a problem. In fact, whenever we asked if he was allowed, in the restaurants, on the ferry or as it turned out, in a hotel, we were looked at quizzically as though they didn't understand our worries. The dog is fine. No problemo."

In Mexico, we've had the same experience with Whiskey. We had her in the bar with us, on the beach with us, took her on the city bus in Merida, and took her on the boat with us to go whale watching. Nobody seems to care...and everbody looks at her and smiles.

Whiskey and friends on Bonanza Beach at Xpu-ha

Whiskey and Ruth on the whale watching boat. "Can Whiskey come?"

 "Of course, why wouldn't she be able to come?"