Green Dreams: Travels in Central America

by Steve Benz

A canoe glides silently through the rainforest. Monkeys bark warnings from the overhanging boughs as a caiman slips into the stream. Such is the stuff that green dreams are made of but, as Stephen Benz reveals, the reality of ecotourism can be closer to a nightmare. On the Amazon, in Costa Rica, Honduras and on the Mayan trail from Guatemala to Mexico, Stephen describes his encounters with water, mud, insects and other wildlife - and not least with the ecotourists themselves. He witnesses simulated cultural festivals and discovers that his fellow travellers prefer pursuing their own green dreams to coming face-to-face with the local people and their world. With witty insights into the phenomenon of modern travel, Stephen discusses the paradox at the heart of cultural and 'green' tourism. His shrewd observations make provocative and absorbing reading.

Genres: Travel

280 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1998

Reviews

[Jim · Rating 4 out of 5]

Stephen Benz's Green Dreams is a book of the author's travel adventures in Peru, Central America, and Mexico. Publishes in 1998, it shows that even at that early date -- ecotourism notwithstanding -- American and European tourists are loving tropical Latin America to death. The general principle of ecotourism is that the local populations benefit ... but of course only the real estate developers really benefit ... and the jungle is getting trashed. Trees are being cut down to make grazing land for cows.

Even 20 years ago, the Peten jungle of Guatemala was beginning to disappear, except for some national parks and biosphere reserves where there is some enforcement of the law.

Green Dreams has chapters about Peru, Guatemala, Costa Rica, and the states of Chiapas and Yucatan in Mexico. Benz is an excellent writer. I liked his Guatemalan Dreams and find that Green Dreams is a worthy successor.

[Sandy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Before traveling to Mexico, I went to the library to look for a Yucatan Peninsula area guidebook. Came home with a guidebook plus this small paperback, great for my carryon-only travel. Green Dreams opens with a funny first chapter which immediately captivated me. The author Steve Benz takes us along with him from the Amazon to Honduras, Guatemala, Costa Rica, and finally to Mexico. He takes the road (and the bus) less traveled, that's for sure, and explores the rapid and potentially destructive changes -- via development (especially foreign investment) and even ecotourism -- coming to these Maya lands. His stories are detailed, descriptive (have your dictionary handy), educational, serious, thought-provoking, while also entertaining.

I sincerely recommend this book for anyone traveling to Central America or Mexico, even if just to Cancun or Playa del Carmen, and especially if you are going on an "ecotour" or "Mayan adventure." While reading Green Dreams, I realized how little I know about the indigenous people on whose turf I was enjoying my vacation. While still a lot to learn, I'm a little less ignorant now about the past and present struggles the Maya have for their lives, their rights, their dignity, and culture, and also about the land-use conflicts with environmental preservation and balance key in these beautiful but disappearing tropical ecosystems.

[Katie Scherrer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very honest exposure of the ethical dilemmas that accompany eco-travel. I saw similar problems in Southeast Asia. However, this book made me even more eager for my next planned adventure, Central America.

[Jono · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great if you happen to be travelling around Central America. The first half is more fun than the last.