J.M. Porup

Lonely Planet Colombia (2009)

Danger. Not! Street smarts, you'll be fine. Cerveza michelada and aguardiente, ay, no, con guayabo. Tayrona and Salento, hot Cali salsa and chill Bogota nights. Lago Calima -- and the Pacific Coast! Guachalito, ay, wow! Papaya and lulo, tart maracuyá. Orchids and hummingbirds, butterflies, too. País paísa and its rosebuds. The Bermuda Triangle: men go in, they don't come out. Verdict: Go!

Lonely Planet Venezuela (2007)

Colombia's evil twin. Rude people. Scary dictator. Fatty food. Currency controls. Secret police. Merida's nice. Was it worth the hassle? Corrupt crony/phony socialism run amok. Roraima the highlight, I hear. Angel Falls not worth the trip. Verdict: Don't Go.

Lonely Planet Dominican Republic & Haiti (2008)

Beaches. Beaches? Beaches! Plus lots of whores. The most racist island on the planet. All-inclusive resorts with crap food, and drunk package tourists who never leave the bar. Highlight: the Southwest. No tourists. Yay! And spectacular. Show some respect: learn Spanish before you go. Verdict: don't bother if you're a backpacker. But if you want to get drunk and fuck underage whores, by all means: Go.

Lonely Planet South American On A Shoestring (2007)

Avoid this dreary compendium. A victim of its own success. Talk about banana pancake trail. Only minus the banana pancakes. I recommend the Footprint Handbook, although their maps aren't as good. I fact-checked the Venezuela chapter in exchange for a couple weeks pay and an author credit.

Lonely Planet Caribbean Islands (2008)

LP re-purposed my Dominican Republic text and condensed it. No pay, but an author credit. Yay(?)