Mexicó, Mexicó…what can we say...you were unreal!

We arrived in San Cristóbal de las Casas ready to camp just outside the town…despite the bitter cold. Unable to find it we hopped in a cab with instructions to the cab driver. We were driving for about 20 minutes when we both looked at each other, thinking, nope…this isn’t going to happen…too far! So we gave instructions to make our way back to the centre. We walked around the city for about an hour or more checking out different hostels and guesthouses which were all far too minging for our end of year tolerance levels. Eventually we decided to splash out and found a beautiful guesthouse on the side of a hill looking over the city. We quickly checked in, made ourselves presentable and headed out for some of the fantastic Mexican food I love so much. We found a curry house and settled on that! Mmmmmmmm!! Washed down by 90p Coronas, we left smiling. San Cristóbal is a beautiful colonial town so you could happily stroll around for days on end, sipping wine on the street people watching and enjoying the bustle of all the markets. Chiapas is the poorest state in Mexicó so you do get a lot of hassle but with such a stunning city you barely notice. At the time we thought we were on time pressure as we had planned just a couple of weeks in Mexicó as we wanted to head down to Tikal in Guatemala before flying home…this plan began to change quickly as we fell deeply in love with our favourite country of the year. We hopped on a bus a couple of days later to Palenque for another Mayan ruin ready to camp in the jungle for a few days. We arrived by nightfall, so had to set up camp in the dark. But as we can pretty much set up our tent with our eyes closed at this stage it wasn’t a problem. We enjoyed some live music in the on-site restaurant that night and were looking forward to the sights around us the following day. We weren’t disappointed. The sights and sounds were fantastic. Exotic birds everywhere, howler monkeys chatting to each other nonstop and a glorious pool in which to escape the heat of the day. We had to move our tent the next morning as we quickly realised we had parked among a load of camper vans…so moved to the actual campsite under a massive canopy of leaves to keep the tent cool in the morning. Our plan was to stay for 2 days but, as I’ve mentioned a lot before, this changed and we settled in for 6 days…lazing by the pool all day, sipping Coronas as the sun went down and enjoying the wildlife around us. It was a glorious and memorable week. But, once again, with too much to see and not enough time we moved on to Mérida to prepare for Carnaval. We were initially undecided as to where we would be for the festival but once we arrived in the city we decided this is where we’d stay. So we booked up our hostel (which was without a doubt the best hostel we’d stayed in this whole year) for a week and a half and, once again, spent the days lazing in the pool and the evenings strolling around the town and enjoying cooking for ourselves once again...we also managed to fit in a day at Chichen Itza (which we found a little disappointing)! It was great to see the city get ready for Carnaval and by the time the first day celebrations were upon us we were ready to part-ay!! The parades were mesmerizing…the costumes, the energy…unreal! The main street in Mérida was full of Sol & Corona beer stands, food stalls (all Mexican…yummmmmmmy) and people partying their asses off. Tacky music could be heard wherever you went…it was unforgettable! Exhausted and hungover we made a quick decision to go to the Caribbean with a friend of ours. Once again, it wasn’t planned but we couldn’t resist a few days on the beach before home time. Trying to avoid Cancún like the plague (of course!), we quickly hopped on a boat to Isla Mujeres just off the coast the minute we arrived there. We checked into a hostel on the beach and set out to find a restaurant recommended to us with 10p wings (spicy, sticky and Jamaican jerk flavoured) and 60p Coronas…it was everything we dreamt it could be and more! We ended the evening with cuba libre’s in the beach bar back at the hostel. The next day we set out to explore the beach…what a sight! There was no tearing us away from that. We spent a relaxing day chilling out and rested ourselves in preparation for our 4 year anniversary the following day. After seeing that the main mode of transport on the island was golf carts, we couldn’t resist and booked one for the day to see the rest of the island. We were bubbly with the prospect of our first time in a golf cart the next day and quickly picked it up to whizz around the island. Our first stop was to visit a turtle sanctuary which was pretty awesome…I was just loving it!! Then off to take the coastal route to come back around to the main town…that took all of about 35 minutes so we decided to take another trip around and found a secluded beach where we plonked ourselves, listening to music and sipping freezing cold cans of Sol. We finished the day back at our favourite restaurant with 3 bowls of chicken wings, potato salad (for me of course) and endless bottles of Corona followed by fun in the sand at the hostel beach bar. Perfect! The next day it was time to face reality and make our way back to Guatemala City to catch our flight 3 days later. It took 22 hours to get back to San Cristóbal then another day to get back to Guatemala City but we got back there without much hassle. We spent the last evening of the year at our favourite bar of the year, Café No Sé, spending the last of our Quetzals and enjoying the fantastic live music.
And then it was home time. Scary or what?! It was time to say goodbye to Latin America and absolutely nothing could have prepared us for it. But all good things come to an end I guess and what a good thing it was. A year of treasured memories and unforgettable experiences with my lovely…sur’ how bad!? And to think 6 months before we left he wouldn’t even agree to join me! Mi amor, te quiero con todo mi corazón and I will never forget the year you’ve given me. Latin America…until we meet again, hasta pronto! It was: "and I quote 'Lovely Stuff'...not my words Michael, the words of Shakin' Stevens"...Alan Partridge, 2003.
(pic 1: enjoying the camper's life in Palenque; pic 2: enjoying our oversized cups of Sol at Carnaval in Mérida; pic 3: enjoying the sunset on Isla Mujeres)

Glorious Guatemala

Antigua….definitely the best city we’ve been to in the whole of Central America. Gorgeous little town surrounded by volcanoes with blue cloudless skies and comfortable temperatures. This town, we decided, we could live in forever. Whilst there are numerous activities available, we got lazy and chose instead to frequent all the numerous bars and restaurants, stroll around the markets and visit the many stunning churches around every corner. As has happened many a time 2 days turned into 4 days and 4 turned into 6. But we had to pull ourselves away sometime and, so, we booked our shuttle to Panajachal on Lago Atitlán. Panajachal is the most touristy town around Lago Atitlán but there is a certain charm to it as well…I think this is because of the stunning views of the lake from almost everywhere in the town. We checked into a hotel fast, as Mitch was dying of “man-flu” and took it easy the next day…once again, indulging in food and the like. We decided to take a stroll to a nearby town the following day so took off to follow the path around the lake. We were greeted with stunning views and friendly locals along the way. Santa Catarina (the next town) was quite pleasant with school children in their traditional dress screaming in the playgrounds nearby playing soccer and basketball (which was definitely a sight). We took a rest by the lake to horse into our packed lunch and then made our way back to Panajachal to celebrate Valentine’s Day. It was a special evening where we spoilt ourselves with some Malaysian cuisine followed by some live music and the obligatory rum & cokes in a nearby bar. Lovely stuff! With difficulty, we moved on the next day to Quetzaltenango (yes, it’s a mouthful…but, luckily, it can be shortened to Xela, pronounced 'Shela') which was supposed to be another pleasant town in the mountains. We were a bit disappointed with it to be honest so we only stayed a couple of nights before booking our shuttle to Mexicó…excited, or what!!??
(pic 1: Mitch in one of the many beautiful churches of Antigua; pic 2: a view of Lago Atitlán)

Hmmm…Honduras, not so sure!

We hadn’t planned to spend much time in Honduras…we hadn’t heard great reports but we had heard great reports about Mexico so wanted to keep some weeks at the end of our trip to explore southern Mexico. But after spending so much time inland in Nicaragua we decided we needed some more beach time on the Caribbean again. So we unwillingly spent a horrendous night in Tegucigalpa (the capital)…in a mouldy room and being abused by cab drivers who kept shouting at us “do you know where you are? You’re in Tegucigalpa!! What kind of address is that?” We quickly realised that not one cab driver in Honduras knows anything about the town or city they’re in. We quickly packed our bags the next day and hopped on a bus to Tela on the Caribbean coast. After mouldy and cockroach infested rooms of the last few weeks we decided to treat ourselves to a lovely sea view hotel room. My oh my was it worth it…clean rooms, soap and toilet paper in the bathroom, and (what all travellers dream of) TOWELS!! We were in heaven. We washed up and quickly dug in to a feast of lobster and prawns washed down by a few Port Royal beers. The next day we checked out the beaches which still held the scars of the many hurricanes to visit years before. It was quite obvious we were getting closer to Mexico when it was tortillas and refried beans for breakfast. But it was a relaxing few days and we were happy to be back by the sea. We spent an interesting day visiting the second largest botanical garden in the world followed by an evening of my first Superbowl. That was fun! The next day it was time to move on to visit our first Maya Ruins in the town of Copán Ruinas. Because of bus times in most of Central America (buses seem to stop running between towns at about 4pm), we missed the last bus to Copán…to save time we decided to go to the nearest town so we could move on quickly the next day. The town is called La Entrada and I quote from the Lonely Planet “something must have gone wrong for you to be stuck in La Entrada”. Yup, that’s all I’ll say about that. We arrived safely to the lovely town of Copán the following morning. The town is quite small, only a half an hour from the Guatemalan border and very clean and pretty. The first thing we noticed about it was that it was missing all the grotesque ‘Coca-Cola’ and ‘Pepsi’ advertising that you see on every single restaurant and bar in the rest of Honduras. We were quite pleased. We spent the afternoon visiting a butterfly sanctuary which wasn’t as boring as you’d think and then off to explore the town. The following morning we set off to the ruins which were also much more exciting than we’d expected. A lot bigger than we thought as well and we came out thinking the Mayans are pretty damn cool. After a viewing of “The King’s Speech” (put on by our hostel) it was early to bed for our 6am shuttle to Antigua, Guatemala the next morning.
(pic1: view from our hotel in Tela; pic2: at Copan ruins)

Central America...Part I

It didn’t take long to get to Panama City…we forgot how short the distances in Central America would be compared to South America. We settled in pretty quickly and booked a one way ticket out of Panama to San José in Costa Rica for the next evening. We arrived at the border about 2 hours too early so sat in a queue until the immigration offices opened…fun! After another “speedy” passport check on the other side we were back on the bus within 6 hours on our way to the capital. We weren’t expecting this delay so we had to spend an expensive night in San José but were out of there early the next morning to make our way to Rivas in south west Nicaragua. The border crossing was a little less painful and we quickly arrived to the bustling lake side town of Rivas. Not sure where we were going to go from there, we met some friendly “deutschers” who told us of a beautiful beach side town Las Salinas about an hour away. So we hopped in a cab with them and went to check it out for ourselves. We arrived just after sunset so it was pretty dark dragging our feet through the sand to get to our hotel but were greeted with a friendly Nicaraguan smile, a lovely sea view room and cold beers. What else could you ask for? I spent 3 lovely days lying on the beach enjoying the sun while Mitch did his 2009 taxes!! I refused to get involved. From there we went straight to Lake Nicaragua (the largest in Central America) where we got a boat to the island of Ometepe which is dominated by 2 active volcanoes which you can choose to hike up. After a day of exploring the island on a little moped (going about 10 mph!) we chose to hike up Volcán Concepción. It was a pleasant hike up through jungle to be greeted by fantastic views of the lake on the top (and freezing temperatures). All in all, it was a pleasant stay on Lake Nicaragua. We quickly made our way to Granada, a city we’d heard so many fabulous things about. We found a little “posada” to rest our heads and quickly went out to explore the city. Granada is a beautiful colonial town on the shores of Lake Nicaragua but, unfortunately, is bustling with tourists who are being constantly harassed by street vendors and beggars (and I mean every 5-10 seconds!). But we kept bumping into these nutters (see pic) everywhere we went which was quite entertaining. We stayed around for a few days before departing for Matagalpa in the mountains for a cooler climate. We had started to feel guilty about our lack of activities of late so decided to rent some bikes to see the surrounding countryside. The easy-medium level route was much more difficult than expected with a full 45 minute start on a 45 degree slope gravel track. Our bodies are not in good enough shape to handle that kind of biking so we hiked it up instead until we got to a more reasonable flat. The locals did seem to find it amusing…seeing 2 gringos on bikes…I know, pretty exciting stuff…as they relentlessly stared at us for the duration. All in all it was a pleasant journey with some beautiful sights. The next and final stop in Nicaragua would be Estelí. Another pleasant little Nicaraguan town with some good food, cheap accommodations, curious locals and a freezing cold waterfall! Next stop…HONDURAS!
(pic 1: on the beach at Las Sallinas; pic 2: Mitch on top of Volcan Concepcion; pic 3: "these nutters")

Sailing through the San Blas islands

A bad start to our return to Cartagena as there was absolutely no rooms available in the entire city so we had to settle for an overpriced room in some random family’s house which smelt of dog poop and wee. Then there was a 2 day delay with the boat as our captain, Gwen, attempted to gather the 9 passengers on board and get our passports stamped. On the evening of the third day we had exited Cartagena harbour and, set sail towards the San Blas islands (all 375 of them). As we slipped off to bed we were rocked to sleep by the calm seas only to be woken 4 hours later with our French captain shouting “merde” over and over again as he jumped from the helm of the boat to reel in the sails and then suddenly a loud crash as one of our passengers, Pedro, lands in the kitchen as he’s thrown off his bed! Well, it was a fun two days ahead of us with lots of vomiting (although the Irish & the British stomachs stuck it out!), zero food and very little sleep. But there are no words to describe the beauty of what appeared before us on the morning of the third day. After a broken GPS system (because of a ginormous wave that covered us and the electric equipment) we breathed a sigh of relief to arrive in the correct location. We quickly put on our bathing suits and dived into the clearest seas we’ve ever laid eyes on. While our captain fished for crab and lobster we took our snorkels to the shore and explored the island…which took all of about 8 minutes! We arrived back on deck with rumbling bellies only to be greeted by a feast of fresh seafood and a passion fruit filled with rum and sugar. Mmmmmmm…dee-lish! The next day was spent exploring a nearby ship wreck and lazing on the beach, drinking fresh coconut milk and nibbling on papaya. That evening we feasted on fresh lobster bought from the Kuna indigenous community who govern the San Blas islands (they managed to keep them from the Spanish and the Panamanians all this time). They would visit us every evening selling seafood and artesania while we moved from island to island. Once again we dined fantastically and spent the evening delving into the rum once more…there was a lot to get through! The following morning we moved on to another island surrounded by fantastic corals. We all grabbed a snorkel each and made our way around the island to explore. It was our last evening staying stationary by the islands so we made the most of it. We moved on to another island the next morning for some more snorkelling and spear fishing (for the boys) and then set sail that evening for Panama. It would take another day and a half to get to Portobelo. ..and a rocky one it would be! We spent the rest of the journey horizontal until we arrived to the lovely little port town of Portobelo, Panama. After an unforgettable week it was time to shower up and make our way to Panama City!
(pic 1: first day arriving on San Blas islands; pic 2:Mitch gets his snorkel on!)

Christmas in the Caribbean

Snow…bloody hell! Mama and brother Mitcheson arrived one day late due to the snow at Paris airport so we spent Christmas all alone in our big beachside apartment. Deciding to make the most of the day we indulged in a scrumptious fresh fish Christmas lunch for our festive feast. Late Christmas day with a full squadron of Mitchesons we headed back to the apartment to get the real celebrations going. The apartment didn’t disappoint and was by far the best (and most comfortable) accommodation we experienced in South America. Santa managed to find his way to Colombia with some fantastic gifts and, more importantly, Cadbury’s chocolate. After some traditional Christmas games and a midnight feast it was time to get some rest for a busy 2 weeks ahead. The next few days were spent exploring the old town of Cartagena and getting some beach time in. Then it was time to show our guests what a typical Colombian bus ride is like…it didn’t disappoint!! 6 – 8 hours torturous hours later we arrived at Santa Marta and enjoyed some HUGE steaks and beers on the beach. But we didn’t stop for long and quickly made our way back to Taganga. We were looking forward to a fun filled day in the beautiful Tayrona Park (where we’d already been earlier in the year)…things can change quickly in South America! What was a pleasant 45 minute boat ride 2 months earlier turned into a hellish 3 hour boat journey over 2 metre waves. Conditions in the park weren’t much better and we quickly made our way back to the mainland disappointed and thanking God we survived. We quickly all about it as it was time for some New Year celebrations. We headed to the fantastic Pachamama restaurant and enjoyed a “muy rico” buffet washed down my many many cocktails. Then it was off to the beach for midnight. After some confusion of the exact timing of midnight we indulged in a sing song and a bit of dancing and thoroughly enjoyed the celebrations around us. After another couple of days of beach time we headed to the tiny town of Palomino further along the coast. For a couple of days we lounged (and slept) in hammocks and entertained ourselves with the many games brought along from London...because of the rain that seemed to appear out of nowhere. Then it was back to Taganga to soak up some sun in the remaining few days we had together and indulge in the “complementary” cocktails (i.e. from mum and brother!). After a tearful goodbye, it was back to Cartagena for me and Sharon (for the third time) to hop on our boat to sail through the Caribbean to Panama.
(pic 1: Sharon & I having lunch on Christmas Day; pic 2: everyone enjoying some evening cocktails)

The next 75 days in Colombia (Part II)

Of course the 7 hour bus (as usual in Colombia) turned into an 11 hour bus ride and we collapsed into our dorm beds that evening. I took massive advantage of a nearly empty hostel with cable TV, free coffee and a roaring fire for the first day…fantastic when the rain is hopping off the ground outside. After my fill of Friends, Seinfeld and the Office we went to explore the city with visits to museums and galleries and massive supermarkets (which are a luxury in South America) to make delicious meals. Bogotá was much more fantastic than we’d heard and went down as one of our favourites of South American cities. After a few days we flew from Bogotá back to Cali to begin our 2 weeks of volunteering in the mountains outside. We got pretty clear instructions on how to get to the goat farm we’d be volunteering…get on a bus to Buenaventura and get out at the 28th Kilometre then ask someone where the Finca las Cabritas (Goat Farm) is…hmmmmm?! Anyway, after a lot of queuing in the bus station (apparently the ticket people were on strike) and getting taxis here and there we were on a bus towards Buenaventura (and were nearly thrown off with people roaring “no gringos, no gringos, no hay espacio!”)…space or not I was getting on that bus! And we were off!! I explained to the ticket girl that we needed to get off at Kilometre 28…at which point she explained to me that, yes, we were on the bus towards Buenaventura but it was not the direct route – that route was closed. Super! So after 8 hours of standing on a bus we arrived at Buenaventura (the second rainiest place on the planet receiving 8 metres of rain annually). I won’t go through it but that journey was nothing compared to the bus back to kilometre 28 the next day. Eventually we arrived at the farm and settled into our little cabin nicely. We had the weekend to chill out and got our instructions that Monday morning for our farming jobs for the next 2 weeks. We quickly relaxed into the stunning surroundings and feasted on fresh fruit and veg (which was badly needed) and managed to buy the local shop out of all their beer pretty fast. Unfortunately we couldn’t stay for longer than 2 weeks as the 60 days on our visa was coming to an end and we had to get an extension back in Cali. So back to civilization it was…first things first…mega large popcorn and coke and 2 tickets to see Harry Potter! Bliss!! After a few panics we sorted out our visa extension – which meant we had to hang around Cali to wait for them for another week and a half. But we that also gave us a chance to visit the other farm in the valley (owned by the couple we were volunteering for) in a little town called Jamundi which was good fun…I also got to feed a baby goat so I was delighted! But soon enough it was time to move on again so we packed our bags and hopped on a flight back up to the Caribbean coast for Christmas week to await Mitch’s mom and brother’s arrival. Exciting stuff…!!
(pic 1: Mitch & I with 1 day old goats; pic 2: Feeding a baby goat in the farm in Jamundi)

The next 75 days in Colombia (Part I)

So I've been an extremely lazy girl the last 2 months and haven't updated our blog...so I'm going to try and condense our last 2 and a half months in Colombia into two entries...deep breaths everyone! After saying goodbye to Kim we swiftly got on a bus to Manangue (about 6 hours south of Cartagena...once again - see map!) where we needed to change for a boat and then a taxi (through extreme flooding) to get to our destination Mompóx (pronounced Mompos). It was like jumping into Huckleberry Finn world with baking heat, rocking chairs in every doorway and intense humidity. It didn't take long to see the entire town so we moved on after a couple of nights (and after being followed around the town by the only tourist guide trying to get us to buy a tour). It was more of a struggle to get out of there than it was to get in and we found out when we returned to Manangue that we'd have to pay an arm and a leg to get to our next destination Medellin...we considered our options and eventually hopped in a car with a friendly Colombian who brought us to the nearest big city, Sincillo, where we would be able to catch a bus the next day. Unfortunately we had to stay in the hotel of horrors next to the bus station...shtinky! We arrived in Medellin pretty hassle free in time for Halloween and boy was the city pumping! Before all the madness began we decided to get some sight-seeing done and visited Botero's art gallery which had me in fits of giggles (...he is truly obsessed with fat things) and then on to the cable car to take in the views the city. After some lame attempts at costumes and very sore heads we left Medellin to relax in the sleepy little colonial town of Santa Fe de Antioquia (a couple of hours outside) for a few days. We quickly bunked down in a gorgeous guesthouse on the main plaza in Santa Fe. There’s not much to the town – about 5 blocks by 5 blocks so it doesn’t take long to get around. We quickly got familiar with the town and enjoyed the laid back vibe and what was supposed to be a 2 night stay quickly turned into 5 nights. We spent a fantastic evening with the owner of our hotel and her friends (one of whom was a famous Colombian painter of about 80 and decided to draw me that evening) where Mitch got to practice his newly (fantastic) found Spanish skills. We reluctantly parted ways and hopped back on another long bus down to the coffee region to the town of Salento. We checked into our hostel which was actually built on a coffee plantation and the owner owns a coffee farm just down the road. We arrived late at night so were stunned to wake up to the beautiful sights all around the next morning. We quickly got the feeling that what was supposed to be a quick few days would turn in to longer…and so it did. We took a fantastic tour of the owners coffee farm the next day where we got to taste some delicious freshly ground coffee and found out some great coffee facts. In fact we enjoyed the farm so much that we decided to spend a night there and volunteer to pick coffee cherries the next morning…and got a free lunch out of it as well! We could only relax for so long until we had to haul our asses on another trek through the cocora valley to the valley of the wax palms about an hour from Salento. After the Lost City we thought we could conquer anything else that was thrown at us…apparently heat has a lot to do with taking away achy muscles! As it was rainy season in Colombia it didn’t take long for the rain to arrive around midday and last all day long. So we got up early and started trekking around 8am. It actually wasn’t as bad as everyone made out…until the rain came! Then we were sliding all over the place. But we made it to the top ok and turned around to see the fantastic sights of the wax palms only to be greeted by cloud, cloud and more cloud! Oh well! We made our way back down and managed to get some good glimpses as the clouds began to fade away. Roasting hot coffee was very welcome back at the farm that afternoon and it was with heavy hearts we said goodbye to Salento and hopped on a bus to Bogotá…

Charming Cartagena

After trekking a few hours in the midday heat we arrived at our bright and cheery hostel equipped with a pool and sun loungers...perfect. We decided to check out the old town first as we'd heard how beautiful it was...it didn't disappoint. Cartagena is actually a UNESCO World Heritage Site so not many things have been done to the city itself keeping it's charm and beauty. It's quite easy to get lost in the city but a pleasure to as well. You could stroll around the beautiful colonial streets for hours and not get bored. We spent the first evening in Cartagena Colombia-style with a bottle of rum, a bottle of coke and planted ourselves on the edge of the main plaza, Plaza Domingo, people watching and chatting to some locals, once or twice having to take shelter from the pounding Caribbean rain. We spent the next few days taking refuge from the midday heat in our hostel pool and spending the evenings taking in the delights of the city. We'd read and heard some interesting things about the Volcán de Totuma so Kim and I decided one morning to venture out there to see what it was all about. The Volcán de Totuma is a mud volcano located an hour outside of Cartagena - it's a natural phenomenon of "hot mud" from under the lagoon "spraying" out the top. We were looking forward to relaxing for a while in the warm mud, maybe getting a massage and a facial. We arrived in a bus with another 20 people and took a look at this volcano and just burst out laughing. It looked like an oversized ant hill. We reluctantly stripped down to our bikinis and head up the side of the volcano to the mud baths. At first sight we were terrified at what awaited us...the bath was about 4m by 4m and was completely full with just 15 people in it...as they were all lying down on their backs while they got "massages" from these random Colombians. At this point there was no turning back so I closed my eyes and dunked into the extremely weird feeling mud and tried to relax while screaming to the men trying to massage me "don't touch me, don't touch me", while Kim wet herself laughing from outside the mud pit! After our 5 minute mud fest we were guided into the nearby "lagoon" i.e. a swamp, to wash off. At this point the trauma reached it's peak when the women proceeded to whip our bikinis off to wash them out...once again, we were thrown into a fit of giggles when a poor misfortunate boy next to us couldn't speak Spanish and just held onto his pants for dear life! Altogether though it was a funny experience...and one to remember. Unable to think of the prospect of leaving my sister once again (twice in one year is too much!) we kept ourselves busy for the next few days...lounging in the pool in the heat of the day, taking in the fabulous beauty of the city and topping the evenings off with oodles of rum and beer. But of course the inevitable day arrived upon us and we said our teary goodbyes until 2011 and Mitch and I packed up our rucksacks once more to head south for further Colombia exploring!
(Pic 1: Kim & I traumatised in the mud pit; Pic 2: Cartagena)

Celebrations in Taganga & some beach time in Tayrona Park

After a gruelling 5 days trying to make it up to the Lost City some celebrating and relaxing on the beach was in order. Once we reached our hostel in Santa Marta we grabbed our bags and we all squeezed into a taxi to Taganga...unfortunate for those who didn't do the Lost City trek...quote from Aoife "guys, I'm sorry, but you absolutely stink!" (as she gagged out the taxi window!). So we quickly checked into hostels, showered, put on our glad rags and hit the town. The Lonely Planet describes Taganga as "a relaxing fishing village where you will be lured by sun and sand"...this it is not! But it was a nice little town to chill for a few days. After a fantastic slap up meal we managed to sniff out the dodgiest bar/club in town where you could only order rum by the bottle and shake your booty to salsa all night long. Being the only gringos in there we stuck out like sore thumbs but, as with all Colombians, they welcomed us with open arms (literally...as I was swung around the dance floor by a big Colombian dude teaching me some salsa moves!). Anyway, we did some good celebrating. We woke the next morning with sore heads to explore the town and quickly booked a boat to Tayrona National Park, a boat ride away, to search for these white sandy Caribbean beaches I heard so much about. It certainly didn't disappoint, We arrived in the early hours of the morning and grabbed some hammocks looking over the beach and lay our bums on the soft sand under some palm trees to do absolutely nothing for the next 2 days. It was a great couple of days and with burnt bums, legs and patchy tummies we said goodbye to Tayrona Park...for a few weeks anyway! So we jumped on a boat again to head back to Taganga for one more night...not before having another yummy slap up meal and dubious rounds of happy hour Maracuja Mojitos for the road. Our next stop would be Cartagena and we couldn't wait to see the beautiful city we heard so many amazing things about...we were hoping the Lonely Planet wasn't lying to us this time!!
(pic 1: Kim & Mitch having a swim on Playa Grande; pic 2: Kim & I in our hammock cabin)

First steps in the Carribean Sea & Ciudad Perdida

After a very pleasant flight into Santa Marta (broken in Bogota with some yummy Barry's tea and many Cadbury's chocolate bars courtosy of my amazing sis!) we got our manky, sweaty selves checked into a hostel and dived into the pool with some cold beers. The heat of the Carribean hit us hard! We celebrated our first proper night together with some yummy Mexican food, numerous rounds of beers, shots of whiskey (?) and some interesting games of pool. It was an interesting first night! The next morning we rose bright and early to see the most we could of Santa Marta and book our trip to Ciudad Perdida (the Lost City). Unfortunately the heat prevented us from such crazy enthusiasm and it took us an entire day just to book the Ciudad Perdida. Luckily we found a reputable company for a good price so we booked it for the next morning. Unforunately the packing for the trip wasn't so easy. As it was rainy season we really had no idea how much we would need and as we had to carry all of our stuff we didn't want to weigh ourselves down...so we decided to be wet and smelly for 5 days and be dry in the evenings and one spare set of clothes if that all went to shit! And boy were we wet and smelly for 5 days...I don't think there's ever been a time where I've been so repulsed by my own odour. But we started the trip with open minds and massive enthusiasm. As we had already done Machu Picchu a month or so before we weren't expecting the same wow factor...but the journey itself was AMAZING. We had an extremely interesting journey getting to where we would start the hike...the bumpiest ride on earth! The first day would be the latest we would set off of all the 5 days and we soon found out why. One hour in the heavens opened and it didn't stop all day and all night. We were drenched and felt a little foolish for beginning the trip by tip toe-ing our way over rivers. Everything we were wearing was soaked to the bone...and even though we had covers on our backpacks, my sleeping bag got soaked through and Kim's book too...which she had balancing under her cover between her back and her backpack! Not good! But we felt like new people once we'd changed into dry clothes and out of our shoes...which were now just portable pools (and would stay that way for the next 4 days). We were very lucky the next couple of days...the rain didn't hit until about 12pm when we had already landed to the next camp so all we had to bear were wet feet and trousers (from wading through thigh high rivers) and damp tshirts (from the inability to dry with the humidity mixed with litres of sweat...imagine that smell!). Day 2 was a pretty tough steep climb but our surroundings were amazing. And we made in record time to our third camp so we made a group decision to keep on going to Ciudad Perdida that day (which otherwise we would have done the next morning) so that we could spread our energy over the next 2 days. We climbed the 1,200 steps to the Lost City and it was an amazing sight that greeted us. We were pretty much the only people there (apart from the soldiers that protected it) which was awesome and the city is pretty much untouched. It was incredible. We took our time strolling around and we were cursed that the rain didn't hit until we made our way back to the camp. We spent the evening playing cards and celebrating with a few beers before we collapsed ready to take on the next 2 days hike back (which consisted of the first 3 days we already did). We powered through...stopping in the evenings to launch ourselves into rivers to cool off and then running for cover when the rain hit to change into our dry gear and pull out the cards again. What was most amazing on this trip was meeting the descendants of the Tayrona people along the way. It was certainly something that has stood out for me, not only on the trek but the year so far. The Cogi people are still very much present in the mountains around the Lost City and their culture is still very strong. It was fascinating to see them go about their daily lives as we passed by. Once we reached the town where we started once more we were very tired but happy people. It was an amazing 5 days with an amazing group and amazing guides! One of the best experiences so far for sure. So we all packed ourselves into a van to head back to Santa Marta, grab our rucksacks and head to Taganga where we were going to chill out for the next few days. But first things first...showers!!!
(pic 1: Kim & I bunking down our first night; pic 2: Trekking across one of the many rivers along the way; pic 3: Mitch & I on another of the many rivers)

The long way round to Colombia

Unfortunately we didn't leave ourselves a lot of time to enjoy Quito. We hadn't heard great reviews about the city but what we saw of it we really liked. We hadn't anticipated how awkward it would be to get to Colombia so we had to spend a whole day running between bus stations to get a route in place...of course my sister was arriving the next day so I was hopping with excitement! After we had our tearful hello we pretty much collected our bags straight away and hopped on a bus to the border (unfortunately our plan of getting a bus direct to Cali didn't work out). Once we got our stamp out of Ecuador we strolled across the border to Colombia where we got our entry stamp and then hopped in a cab to the nearest town (you don't want to be hanging around dark border crossings in Colombia for long). From there we tried to get a bus to Cali but as we'd heard it wasn't a good idea to take that road at night and the people selling us the tickets were also not too keen on it, we just hopped on a bus to Pasto ready to get an early bus the next morning. After a very bumpy, cramped and sweaty 8 hour bus journey the next morning we arrived in sunny Cali. We checked into the cutest little hostel on one of Cali's many beautiful Colonial streets and set off to explore and unwind. Cali is a beautiful city with the most beautiful café's and restaurants...so we didn't waste our time gulping down a few coffees and beers! We spent a lovely evening and morning in Cali before we had to catch our flight up north to Santa Marta on the Carribean...super exciting stuff!!
(pic: Kim and I entering Colombia!)

From Mancora on to Ecuador

After a bit of a hiccup trying to get out of Trujillo we eventually arrived in Mancora - a small surf town on the northern coast of Peru. We set up camp again on the edge of town and made our way towards the beach. There's not much to Mancora but it's a nice place to balm out on the beach for a few days...which is exactly what we did. Lazing about by the pool in the campsite and balming out on the beach for hours on end watching the surfers (the waves were bigger than Huanchaco so we didn't attempt another surf) until the sun set. We took advantage of the cheap seafood again and stuffed our faces with ceviche and prawns to our heart's content. Sadly we could only stay for 2 days so booked a bus out of there pretty quickly. After packing up our tent and belongings we rocked up to the bus stop only to be told we didn't actually have a reservation (even though we'd paid for it) and would have to come back tomorrow. Lovely stuff! So we carted our asses back to the campsite and having no energy to pitch a tent again we checked into the room hopeful that we'd be able to leave the next evening. To be fair, there are worse places you could be stuck for a day! So we rocked up again the next day at 8.30pm to be told our bus wouldn't be arriving until 1am. Eventually we were on our way to Ecuador at 2am. We arrived in Guayaquil the next morning and quickly hopped on a bus to Montanita (another little surf town). We made it there pretty quick only to discover that our camera was stolen on the way. I was not impressed - a destroyed iPod and stolen camera all in the space of 2 days. Not a happy camper by any stretch of the imagination. But anwyay, we quickly checked into our hostel and tried to forget about it. Luckily we transfer all our photos onto the laptop regularly so we had only lost the last few days of photos. As we were in another small town it didn't take much time to stroll around and take in any sights. The next morning the weather was pretty rubbish so we didn't waste much time there. Unfortunately we had to go to another town an hour or so away to get a police report for our insurance company. After a bit of tooing and frowing between police stations, we finally got our report and were en route to Quito!

Sandboarding in Huacachina/Surfboarding in Huanchaco

After a tiring week in Cusco we moved westwards towards Huacachina for some sandboarding fun! Having skipped this activity many times in Chile already we were keen to get on the boards. Huacachina is an interesting little town set in the middle of a desert of sanddunes with an oasis in the middle. There are literally sand dunes as far as the eyes can see and tiny little town plonked in the middle of it. We were definitely glad we waited for Huacachina for sandboarding. So we didn't waste much time. After another long busride we were picked up that afternoon in our hostel by a sand buggy and brought on a rollercoaster ride up and down the sanddunes (and I mean rollercoaster)! Everyone we've spoken to about sandboarding here failed to mention that the buggy ride is absolutely terrifying...well, for wimps like us anyway. We stopped at various locations to take our boards out and board down the dunes...starting out with a little 'un and then moving on to monstrous mountains...at least that's how they looked from the top when you're lying on your board. It's quite difficult to stand up on your board (snowboarding skills don't seem to help much) so we spent most of the time lying on our fronts racing down the slopes. With smiles on our faces and sand literally EVERYWHERE we pulled out a cold beer and watched the sunset before another rollercoaster ride back to the town. There's not much else to do in Huacachina so we moved on quickly the next morning to make our way to the coast...our first time on the beach since Brazil we were very excited!! Our plan was to rough it with a local bus 6 hours to Lima and change buses there for an overnight bus straight to Trujillo...but unfortunately I fell ill again so we had to fork out for the "fancy" bus to Lima which arrived there a lot earlier than expected! So I lay out in the bus station in pain with Mitch stroking my head to put me to sleep while other passengers staring at us strangely. Anyway, we made it through the night and eventually found a place to stay in Trujillo and took off to explore. We quickly found out there is nothing to do in Trujillo and were glad we were moving on the next morning. A quick 15 minute ride the next morning and we arrived in Huanchaco - a little fishing/surfing village. We found an awesome little campsite looking onto the sea and bunked down for a few days...although we could have stayed for weeks. Huanchaco is definitely one our favourite places so far. Nothing spectacularly beautiful about the place it just had a buena onda (good vibe!). The next morning we grabbed boards and wetsuits and hit the beach...what a disaster that was! 2 very amateur surfers caught in very big waves...not cool! But we had fun anyway and it was certainly an experience. We spent the next couple of days filling our tummies with seafood and the most epic hamburgers we've ever had (from the cutest old lady in the world for 2 soles) and lounging around the beach until we reluctantly hopped on a bus to move northwards to warmer climates and more beaches!
(pic 1: Sharon & Mitch on the sanddunes; pic 2: us with our surfboards in Huanchaco)

Salkantay trek to Machu Picchu

We arrived in Cusco in the early hours of the morning and liked what we saw - not as impressive as Arequipa but still pretty cool. We checked into our hostel and began touring around the city to see what Machu Picchu trek we would do. We had it in our mind to do a jungle trek - which included hiking and biking but staying in hostels. As we wanted to get the true experience and camp all the way we settled on the Salkantay 5 day trek at a bargain price...we were happy. We met our group of 14 early the next morning and started our trek with our two guides - Miguel 1 and Miguel 2, and our two cooks - Vincente 1 and Vincente 2! Easy enough to remember. The first day was quite easy going...nothing too strenuous and got our muscles stretched out in preparation for day 2...which was slightly more strenuos (in the morning anyway). We rose early in the morning (woken at 6am with a hot cup of sweet coca tea) and began our trek up to the Salkantay glaciar (6271m high). Trekking uphill at 4,500m we quickly found it very hard to breathe and we were euphorious when we reached the top! After lunch we then trekked down into the jungle which was pretty awesome. It was quite an experience trekking next to a glaciar with wooly hats and jackets on all morning to stripping down to shorts and covering ourselves with mosquito repellant a few hours later. That night we camped down in one of the most beautiful surroundings - with little chicks running around our feet, horses neighing in the backround and the sound of gushing rivers below us. We savaged down whatever food was put in front of us, more coca tea and listened (painfully) for an hour to what Miguel 1 & 2 told us we'd be doing the next day. We had another trek through the jungle the next day (getting eaten alive by mosquitos) and finished off in the town of Santa Teresa. After lunch we were packed into a bus to go to the hot springs nearby. We weren't expecting much but boy were we smiling when we arrived. Hidden behind a rock quarry, and literally in the middle of nowhere next to a gushing river, it was a very strange sight. But we weren't complaining! We quickly dived into the roasting water to ease our aching muscles and were served by the side of the pool with ice cold beers at a very cheap price. We were very happy campers. 2 hours later we pulled ourselves out with hazy heads and dragged our asses back to camp for dinner. With pisco sours for 5 soles (£1) it seemed that tonight was the night to party...unfortunately not for me. Not long after arriving back I realised that it was my turn to have the funny tummy on this trek and spent the night bent over in pain in our tent (while Mitch partied the night away!) unable to eat. This carried on the next day but we powered through and with little energy made it to Aguas Calientes (where we found out there was a train strike so would have to hike back after Machu Picchu the next day). We all went out for dinner that evening...excited about the prospect of Machu Picchu the next day, the table was buzzing. Miguel 1 & 2 gave us another excruciating hour long chat about what we'd do the next day and just before we left to hit the hay after a very tiring day, Mitch & I were pulled aside to be told we weren't going to Machu Picchu...because our moronic company never transferred the money for our entry ticket! Well, anyone who knows me can only imagine the screams that errupted after this. Exhausted from 2 days of hiking with no food, I was LIVID. Mitch just stood there with his mouth open, unable to talk and visibly (I kid you not) shaking from head to toe with anger. Seeing as Miguel 1 & 2 were completely useless, Mitch took control of the situation, calmed me down, and found an internet cafe to get the number of our tour agency (yes, that would have been too organised for Miguel 1 & 2 to have!). He then called them, gave out a bit...handed the phone back to Miguel 2 when he couldn't understand what they were saying and an hour later, very stressed out, we were promised we would be going to Machu Picchu the following morning. Too tired to confirm this for sure we slumped back to our beds to get 4 hours of sleep before, we hoped, we would be trekking up to Machu Picchu. Fortunately (for Miguel 1 & 2...for they did not have to bear the full wrath of Sharon) we arrived up the 2 million steps to Machu Picchu at 6am the next morning and boy was it worth every aching muscle! It was the single most rewarding experience of our lives. There are no words to describe it. We suddenly got a burst of energy and after touring around the ruins for a few hours we practically ran up Wayna Picchu (the much steeper mountain towering over Machu Picchu) where another amazing sight greeted us on the top. If we wanted to catch the bus back to CUsco (as the trains were on strike) we would have had to leave pretty early that day to hike back so Mitch decided we were staying another night...we were going to enjoy it while we were here. So after we hiked down from Wayna Picchu, the whole group took a nap amongst the ruins and we lazed about the grounds until closing time - I think we spent 11 hours there altogether...the ticket people couldn't believe it! With smiling faces, we made the last trek down the mountain and made plans to meet everyone for dinner. We arrived back at the hotel to be greeted by a nice surprise - a friendly little man knocked on our door with train tickets for 9am the next day, an official apology from our tour company and an extra free night's stay in the hotel. We were gobsmacked! We couldn't believe it! So we celebrated that evening with a huge pizza, happy hour beers and a big lie in the next morning...until 8am!!
(pic 1: a very exhausted Sharon at the end of the day in Machu Picchu; pic 2: a very happy Mitch & Sharon with our entry stamps for Waynu Picchu)

Beautiful, beautiful Arequipa

From Puno we went straight to Arequipa - one of our favourite cities so far in South America. A stunning city with a beautiful main square in front of a towering cathedral with a great vibe and amazing food! In fact, we loved it so much we stayed a week longer than we should have. With our new found bargaining talents we found a cheap hostel with a great view over the city and spent the week eating cheap Mexican food washed down with cold beers. We also visited the mummy 'Juanita - the ice princess' which was pretty fascinating - she was sacrificed by the Incas on the summit of Ampato (over 6000m) over 500 years ago. The Incas sacrificed young children in order to please the Gods when they thought they were angry - this one was for a volcanic erruption they thought would stop after the sacrifice. She was pretty amazing to see - immaculate and the offerings buried with her were like new as well...awesome! While we were in Arequipa we also visited the Monesterio Santa Catalina - a convent (I dont know why it's called monastary) occupying a whole block on the main street with massively high walls guarding it - it's like another city within a city. We decided to take a night tour of it which was an amazing experience. There are hundreds of tiny cells where the nuns would sleep with little kitchens off each one - because we were there at night every room was lit by lanterns and all the fires were burning. That was definitely an experience to remember. So after lazing around for a week we decided we needed to get off our arses and burn some calories so booked a 3 day hike to the Colca Canyon. We left at 3.30am the next day and a very bumpy four hour journey later we arrived at the Condor Mirador to watch the flight of the condors at 8am into the canyon. Unfortunately when I looked behind me to grab Mitch (who was sitting 3 rows behind) I was greeted by a very green faced man and a bag of puke! Not a good start. So I went in search of Gatorade while Mitch sat with his head between his legs (not impressed at all by the 3 metre wide condors flying above his head). An hour later we were back in the bus heading to the town of Cabanaconde to begin our trek. Unable to eat or keep down even a sip of water, Mitch looked like death warmed up. We really didn't know what to do. But being the little trooper that he his...Mitch powered on. And what a trooper he was! It was a pretty steep downward climb into the canyon with gritty paths that didn't give much in the way of support. But 4 pain-staking hours later Mitch collapsed into our little shack (where we were staying for the night) exhausted! 14 hours of sleep later he was like a different man and managed to wolf down a few pancakes to energise up for the next few hours of trekking. That next day we arrived into an oasis which was pretty awesome...we arrived around midday, sweaty and aching and jumping into the cool waters of the oasis was exactly what we needed! The next day was the strenuous task of hiking back up the canyon which actually turned out to be a lot better than we had anticipated. Phew!! All in all it was an exciting adventure and we were pretty chuffed with our achievement. We stayed one more night in Arequipa and then reluctantly booked our bus to Cusco...to start another trek!
(pic 1: me next to the bell tower in the big cathedral over Arequipa; pic 2: Mitch and I day 2 of the Colca Canyon trip)

Lake Titicaca

After leaving Rurre we ended up back in La Paz for a few hours before heading north to Copacabana - Our last stop in Boliva before heading to Peru. Copacabamba is situatated on Lake Titicaca - a rather large and high lake. From Copacabana we headed to Isla del Sol with our camping gear planning to rough it for a few days. The island itself was a dissapointment. Lots and lots of grey stones dont really do it for me. Several unexpected fees for staying on the island also did little to lift the mood. Nonetheless we enjoyed a night of camping, sharing a field with a rather sombre group of sheep. We felt a sense of accomplishment after creating a pretty decent fire without the compulsory fire lighters/fuel/hairdryer. The island suppossedly contains several inca ruins. These however proved elusive. The highlight of Copacabana was a short walk up the nearby hill. It was used many years ago by the incas for something - i cant remember what. From the sumit you get a fantastic view of the lake, which we enjoyed at sunset. Next stop - Puno (Peru). Puno was our first stop upon entering Peru. Its a smallish town that whilst not blessed with any kind of elegance or beauty does manage to feel warm and welcoming. We quickly oragnized a trip to the floating reed islands. Several people had alerted us the the extremly toursit nature of the islands so we ventured off without expectation. Personally the islands were very interesting. They were formed by an indigenous tribe who were fleeing from the incas. Originally they were boats but they grew in size until eventually they were tied down into the lake. On the islands We were treated to a peruvian chorus of 'Row, row, row your boat' (in english) and for dinner a traditional Peruvian dish called Cerviche, the latter of which was highly enjoyable. And so we started our journey into Peru...love Mitch.
(pic 1: sunset over Copacabana; pic 2: our campsite in Isla del Sol)

Volunteering in Rurrenabaque (1st - 31st August)

20 hour bus ride later we arrived in hot, stuffy, humid Rurre...and boy were we delighted to be there. With cold beers in hand and swinging on hammocks, we threw off our trainers and hoody's and slipped on our flip flops! Oh the feeling of hot, sticky air on our skin...beautiful. Rurre is a cute little town - about 5 blocks by 5 blocks and no sight of cars...just motorbikes! Everyone in this town seems to have a motorbike and they'll fit as many people as possible on the back. I think the record we saw was 5 people and a 32 inch TV...priceless. It's funny the way Bolivia works...being the poorest country in South America, everyone still manages to buy a motorbike in a town you could walk around in aobut 20 minutes and where you have to get permission from the army to buy diesel. But I guess that's it's charm as well. Anyway, we had a day to enjoy the little town before we needed to head into the jUngle. We chose a tour with an "eco-tourism" company where they don't touch any of the animals and completely protect the area in which they tour. From staying in Rurre for so long we soon realised these type of companies are few and far between. We spent 3 glorious days in a protected area of the jungle called Serere. Serere is privately owned land that was about to be destroyed about 20 years ago before it was rescued by a woman called Rosa-Maria Ruiz. She was the driving force behind Madidi National Parque (which you will see from most maps of Bolivia and Peru) - she hiked and canoed through the entire region of the Tacana Indigenous communities for about 2 years educating the people on what would happen if they didn't get together to turn this region into a national park (already it was being severely exploited by loggers and hunters). She got the leader of each community to sign a treaty which was then brought to the government and Madidi Park was formed. Years later, she started protecting the area of Serere...where we visited. After 3 days trekking and canoing through the jungle and seeing many different mammals, reptiles and birds we decided to volunteer for the company and ended up staying in Rurre for a month. We spent some time in the office in Rurre promoting the project and trying to get tourists to visit Serere - there is no such thing as government funding here so this is the only way to get money into protecting the area. We also spent some time in Serere enjoying the complete peace and beauty of the area - with no electricity and sleeping in cabins with just mosquito nets for walls it was complete heaven. While we were there we set projects for ourselves as well - Mitch painted a murel of the Serere bird on the wall outside the office, dedicating it to Rosa Maria and we both re-designed the website for Madidi Travel (after seeing the website we decided this was a necesity!). We worked everyday for a month...quite happily...with 4 other volunteers...from 8am-8pm (shouting "beer o' clock every evening at 7pm when one of the boys would have to trek to the shop for cold beers) loving every minute of it! We were quite lucky to get an inside look into the indigenous communities around the region and also into Bolivian family life - the family who ran the office in Rurre lived above the office and very openly welcomed us into their family! But we had to move on at some stage and with heavy hearts we said goodbye to our adoptive family and Rosa María and moved started our trek into Peru!
(pic 1: Us with a spider monkey who lives in Serere - her mother was hunted so she was adopted by Rosa María...she literally jumped on top of me 30 seconds before this photo; pic 2: Mitch next to his finished murel; pic 3: Us with our adoptive family - Murilo, Pampi, Rosa María (with a baby spider monkey whose mother was also hunted), Guido, me and Mitch)

La Paz (27th - 30th August)

After an amazing 40 minute flight to La Paz...seeing Bolivia from the air is something spectacular, we arrived from El Alto into La Paz. The journey from El Alto into La Paz is something everyone visiting Bolivia needs to experience. The city literally looks like it is spilling onto itself from the valley it is built in. Unlike Sucre, La Paz definitely isn't a beautiful city but it certainly is an amazing one. This is what I love about South America. Every major city we've been to is so completely different to the next. After a few days of exploring the wonders of the city I booked a slot on a tour of Death Road...while Mitch booked a round of golf in the world's highest golf course. Death Road was pretty awesome...I think I was quite lucky because it was such a clear day (apparently it gets quite foggy!) but this also made it a lot more scary! The drops were way too clear to see for my liking...but definitely worth doing! Meanwhile Mitch had an awesome day golfing with his first caddie ever and hitting the green on all the Par 3's. But by about the 14th hole he was ready to collapse - the alltitude is great for hitting a good ball but not so good for trekking large distances! We both came home with smiles on our faces that evening. With an unreal craving for a curry since we've set foot on this continent we were more than delighted to find a "British/Indian Curryhouse" where we treated ourselves to some onion bhajis, naan bread, rogan josh, jalfrezi and some cold beers. It went down like a treat. After 4 glorious days in La Paz (and several weeks in high altitude) we crossed our fingers and hopped on another bus to hit the Bolivian jungle...looking forward to the heat!!
(pic 1: mitch playing golf; pic 2: sharon at the witch's market)

Trotting around Tupiza & Sunny Sucre

With no sign of electricity returning to Uyuni, we hopped on a jeep and made our way south to Tupiza...the setting for Butch Cassidy & the Sundance Kid...and boy was it! It truly was the backdrop for all the Western movies I painfully sat through as a child...it was breathtaking! We spent the first day wandering this little town, eating and drinking all around us. Enjoying just how cheap this country is! We didn't waste much time booking a day of horseback riding and spent a glorious day in the sunshine, trotting through canyons, past cacti and over streams (where I nearly fell off!). We had a blast. With sore bums, we enjoyed another few days in Tupiza...drinking ridiculously cheap fresh orange juice every morning and eating deep fried jalapenos stuffed with cheese (that blowed our heads off...yummmm!). Then we hopped on our first real Bolivian bus experience overnight to Sucre. And what an experience it was. 4 people to a seat, minus temperatures and squating for a pee with 20 other Bolivian women against a wall at 3am. Beautiful stuff and not one to be forgotten quickly! But it was worth it for beautiful beautiful Sucre. Sucre was like no other place in Bolivia we'd seen (or wouldn't be either). Beautiful plazas, amazing food and endless white washed buildings. Our first day there was spent biking, hiking and "boating" (or so we were told...plain and simply, it was a four foot dinghy!) in the hills and canyons around Sucre. Speeding down the worst roads we'd ever seen at ridiculous speeds...it definitely was preparation for death road! This was also our first experience of proper heat in many many months...we were happy! The rest of our days in Sucre were spent eating many many giant fruit salads, drinking many many cold beers, catching up with old friends and strolling around the beautiful streets. During this time we also decided to give ourselves one luxurious treat on our year of travelling. And that treat was a flight to La Paz...and what a treat it was! The best £40 we've ever spent.
(pic 1: Mitch on his horse in Tupiza; pic 2: Mitch & I having a rest on top of the steeple in a church in Sucre)