The Full Montezuma

i've read swahili for the broken hearted and absolutely fell in love with peter moore and his fantastic stories. after living in australia for a while, i appreciate all his slang and aussie references. definitely a great read!

I've read several of Peter Moore's books and have enjoyed them all. Having traveled only a little bit in the areas he covers in this book I enjoyed his insights quite a bit, I also like the perspective of traveling with the GND, it helped make it more real instead of just a series of destinations and tourist details. I also really appreciate how the whole trip is on a buget, it makes everything you read seem within reach instead of some impossible adventure that could only happen the year before college or the year after retirement.

I discovered Peter Moore's books in a famous bookstore (Munro's) in Victoria, British Columbia. The bright colors of the volumes and kookie pictures on the covers made me want to collect all of them then and there. Space, however, dictated that I select just one. That's how I found "The Full Montezuma." I obviously enjoyed it because I've now tracked down two more of his books (they're not as yet available in the States - a fate partially rectified with "Vroom With A View" hitting our market this spring) on a subsequent trip to Canada, " The Wrong Way Home" and "Swahili For the Broken Hearted." "The Full Montezuma" is a traveler's tale of roughing it through Central America with a girl Moore started a relationship with just before his departure from Sydney. Referred to as the "GND" (Girl Next Door) throughout the text (we never get to know her name), the story gives a good insight not only into what it's like to suffer through horrible roads on Latin American public buses, but getting to know a lover under some very trying conditions. I think most readers would cringe right off the bat, knowing that nurturing a new relationship in these circumstances is a recipe for disaster. Moore refers to himself as a cross between Paul Theroux and Bill Bryson. I can see that but would describe his style more as a poor man's version of the Theroux-Bryson mix. I say this not only because his budget obviously dictates doing everything on a very thin shoestring but, also, considering the references he relies on to describe things. Whereas Theroux might, in his elitist way, name-drop the likes of V.S. Naipal and Graham Greene, Peter conjures examples from the TV cartoon "The Simpsons," and other programs such as "M.A.S.H.", "Seinfeld" and "The Addams Family." Obviously references to American pop culture aren't for everyone but for every person who wearies of being made to feel guilty because they haven't read the classics, I find this refreshing. This is a bloke I can relate to when I want an easy read while on the road myself. In "The Full Montezuma," Moore and the GND wander through Mexico, Guatemala, Belize, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Jamaica and Cuba. They did the trip right after Hurricane Mitch, a fact that made some of their plans a bit tenuous, giving the folks back home cause for concern. I particularly enjoyed learning what they found in Nicaragua (a country that was too dangerous to visit until recently), Jamaica and Cuba. The fact that Cuba is (ridiculously) a destination that Americans are banned from going to made Moore's experiences even more entertaining. I've long had the feeling that Jamaica should be avoided (except by those going to fenced-in resorts) and "The Full Montezuma" confirms what I've read. Moore's laid-back writing style makes for a quick and easy read but leaves one hankering for more. He admittedly shoots for some lame humor, a fact that the GND didn't always appreciate, but it makes the guy even