catgoggles

Initial Thoughts And Observations On Australia

2007-07-18T09:20:00.000Z

Australia is the 6th largest country in the world, the largest island and the only continent that is also a country. It has a population of 21m of which 1.5% are indiginous.

It has the worlds 10 most poisonous snakes.

The people here are lovely.

The Northern Territories is not a state. Although it has no representatives in Parliament the people still vote.

All bars and hotels seem to be called just hotels.

Pokies? They are everywhere. Why Why Why ? !!

Meat Raffles - what is that all about...?

The country is run by a war-mongering racist w*nker.

No-one knows why New South Wales is called New South Wales.

There was no such thing as Aussie citizenship until 1949, up until then everyone was British subjects.

Until the 1960s Aboriginal mothers did not have legal rights to their children.

At Shark Bay there are living rocks that are 3bn years old and were the precursor for all living beings.

In May 1993, The Japanese cult Aum Shinrikyo ( those of the sarin gas attacks ) exploded a small nuclear device in Western Australia and nobody noticed, such is the size and remoteness of most of the country.

The TV here is awful.

Melbourne May 2007

2007-05-28T08:08:00.000Z

Having left the Americas behind us we now found ourselves in the land of Oz which will be our home for the foreseeable future. Wanting to ease our way in slowly we paid a visit to our newly married friends Emma and Marcus currently living in Seddon in the Melbourne burbs. It's great to see them after so long!

Melbourne is a great city and what it lacks in beaches and weather it more than makes up for in it's relaxed vibe and continental style culture.

Whilst there we hired a car and drove the Ocean Road along the south coast of Victoria. We stayed at the BIMBI campsite in Otway National Park and saw our first wild Koalas! The next day we continued along the coast and visited the 12 Apostles, a series of 12 rock stacks formed from collapsed arches. We stayed in a caravan park in Woollanbool for the night which had a welcome Jacuzzi spa. In the morning we drove back across Melbourne to the Yarra Valley where we went wine tasting.

Back in Melbourne we managed to get ourselves thrown out of the Workshop bar for moving a table. We also found the bowling alley Strike and had a very drunken game one night.

After 10 days of exploring Melbourne and the surrounding area we said goodbye and got a flight up to the Gold Coast to stay with Mels parents and wait for our things to arrive from the UK.

Melbourne photos here.

The Big Trip: Los Angeles - A Crazy Place

2007-05-17T06:52:00.000Z

From one crazy place to another.

After a long journey from Buenos Aires including a stop off at Mexico City we finally landed in the smoggy and sprawling city that is Los Angeles.

We were heading straight for Hollywood, the lions den of US culture, and the exact opposite of everything we've come to know and love over the past eight months. An exhorbitant taxi ride saw us pull up at our amazingly located hostel right on Hollywood Boulevard in the middle of all the action.

After settling in, we decide to walk down the boulevard to take in the Hollywood atmosphere. We were not disappointed. The street was full of crazy people, either trying to sell you stuff, doing those silly human statue impressions or dressed up as Yoda or Shrek. And this was during the day! When the sun went down it got a lot more bizarre when the real crazies came out of the woodwork shambling up the boulevard and talking to themselves which a lot of people seem to do here. We escaped into the Mann theatre which was showing 28 Weeks Later, a film about a bunch of virus infected human zombies.

The following day we decided to head over to Universal Studios. However, apart from the tour of the film lots which was interesting it was basically a theme park with some good rides/experiences. All in all though it wasn't really worth the entry fee.

We awoke early the next morning and took the long journey across town to Venice Beach which wasn't half as tacky as I'd expected it to be. We had sushi by the beach and then I got a tattoo.

Back on Hollywood Boulevard we were about to check out some bars when we ran into a guy we'd met the night before called Eddie. Eddie is homeless and wheelchair bound and seems to spend his entire day cruising up and down the boulevard. We ended up hanging out with (sometimes pushing) him and he took us on a mini tour of the local area whilst giving us his fascinating and very sad life story.

On our last day I thought it would be a great idea to go celebrity spotting so off we went to Beverly Hills in the hope we might bump into Brangelina or George. However, there were none to be found. In fact, Beverly Hills was strangely quiet and the shops more like designer facades. We took lunch in an Italian corner cafe where I was sure we would see some but still no luck. We still had one card up our sleeves though, the Beverly Hills Hotel, the place to celeb spot and just a short walk away through mansion lined backstreets. On arrival we found our way to the cocktail lounge, ordered two overpriced Mojitos and waited...

If there were any celebs here they were certainly keeping a low profile and after about an hour of feeling totally out of place we finally gave up and returned back to the hotel. We just had time to spend a couple of hours around the pool at the Roosevelt Hotel before it was time to head off to the airport and onwards to the Land of Oz!

Farewell America!

Pics here.

Stuff
The best budget place to stay in LA by a long way is the Orange Drive Manor Hostel just next door to the Kodak Theatre on Hollwood Bld at just GBP36 a night for a double.
Beauty Bar - a cool hangout and god cocktails
Must do - see a film at the Chinese Mann Theatre - it's where they first showed Star Wars you know.
Must do - take a stroll down Venice beach
Must do - relax around the pool at the Roosevelt Hotel

The Big Trip: Argentina Part 2: Four Go Mad in Buenos Aires

2007-05-11T02:18:00.000Z

And so onto the final chapter of our Latin American journey, Buenos Aires. It was here that we were to meet up with our mates Si and Damo and take possession of an apartment in the centre of town for a few days.

Mel and I had a couple of days to kill before the others arrived so we got ourselves a cheap hotel and attempted to get a flavour of the city.

Buenos Aires is a huge sprawling city of 13m inhabitants that is more European in feel than South American. I liken it to a fusion of Barcelona and New York. It boasts everything a traveller could ask for from a city, grand avenues, a vibrant cafe culture, bustling cobbled streets, great shopping, fantastic restaurants and a truly 24hr nightlife. Seriously, the people here think nothing of eating out at say, 11pm, before hitting the bars and clubs. This is what we decided to do for my birthday. After a few drinks locally we decided to head down to a recommended steak restaurant called La Brigada in the area known as San Telmo. We noticed a little smile from the waiter as we ordered but thought nothing of it until the steaks arrived to audible gasps from those around us, they were the biggest steaks we'd ever seen! Check em out here! We did manage to get through them but our plans to go out clubbing were knocked on the head as we realized we were too full and bloated to do anything apart from head back to the hotel.

The next day I went to the airport to pick Damo up and after he had settled in to his hostel we wasted no time in checking out some of the local bars, we even found a hilarious Goth bar full of moody teenage drinkers.

The folowing morning Simon arrived and we all went off to check out the apartment we had rented. It was fantastic and would provide us the perfect base for the rest of our time in BA. We just had time to dump our stuff before it was time to experience one of BAs other passions, football! We had organised tickets through Damo's hostel to see the local side Boca Juniors, former club of Maradona, take on Racing, another BA club. We had great seats and the atmosphere was awesome even before the game had started. The legendary Boca band provided a heartbeat of drums and horns throughout the entire 90 minutes not even pausing for the goals. It turned out to be a classic game 2-2 with 3 penalties! See the pics here.

The next day we tried unsuccessfully to find a decent city tour with which to orient ourselves and take in some of the sights but we did manage to find an excellent restaurant with great food and Flamenco performances.

Another one of the must do's in BA is the cemetary in the area of Recoleta. It houses some fantastic mausoleums including that of Eva Peron and appears to be a favoured spot for cats as well.

Damo left a couple of days later to catch up with girlfriend in Chile whilst we decided to take a boat across to Uruguay for the day. This was really just to say we'd been to Uruguay as the port town of Colonia was really only worth 2hrs and the rest was spent sheltering from the pouring rain.

Back in BA, we visited the excellent MALBA, the modern art galley before heading into the trendy Palermo district for Thai lunch. Later on we went to another funky restuarant called Patagonia del Sur only to find it was $200 a head so instead we returned to our favourite La Brigada for more delicious steak before hitting the bars. After many rounds of the local Red Bull equivalent and Vodka we found ourselves wandering the streets of San Telmo at 8.30 the next morning until we eventually found a cafe for breakfast and a much needed break. We rested for the remainder of the day.

Our time in BA and South America was almost at an end but there was just time to spend a couple of days visiting probably the most spectacular attraction that Argentina has to offer, the waterfalls at Iguazu. These are the most impressive falls I have ever seen and extremely photogenic from almost every angle. You cannot visit Argentina without coming here.

Check out the photos here.

Eventually we had to leave this wonderful place and soon we were on a flight back to BA for our last night in South America. We celebrated in style with steak and wine at a great local restaurant La Cabrera. The next morning we said farewell to Simon and packed our bags for the last time before heading for the airport.

Looking back, we have had more amazing experiences than we could possibly have imagined. It seems like a lifetime ago that we were learning the Spanish language beside the lake in Guatemala not knowing what was ahead of us. We've gone back in time to the Mayan civilisation at Tikal, gone in search of the Jaguar in Costa Rica, dived with hammerheads and played with sealions in the incomparable Galapagos and climbed mountains in Ecuador. In Peru we trekked the worlds deepest canyon of Colca, found the condor at the sacred site of Macchu Pichu and journeyed with the Shaman in the Amazonian jungle. We cycled the worlds most dangerous road in Bolivia and then spent the most magical three weeks walking Roy the puma and monkeys at Inti Wari Yassi animal refuge. And to finish we savoured the fine wines and steaks that the world has to offer in Argentina not to mention the incredible waterfalls of Iguazu.

But we have also been robbed twice and in the case of Mel received stitches twice due to hole that shouldn't have been there and a spider monkey that definitely was.

Most of all we've met some lovely friends (and animals) who we shall never forget.

And so, after almost eight months in this extraordinary part of the world, we are finally on our way to Australia, the land of sunshine and koalas!

Just one short stop in Los Angeles to go...

Adios y cuidarte mis amigos !

Stuff:
La Brigada, San Telmo - best steaks in BA!
La Cabrera - also amazing steaks and wine
Millhouse Hostel - a great centrally located hostel
Our apartment 1180 Avenide de Mayo

The Big Trip: Argentina Part 1: Mendoza and Patagonia

2007-04-25T06:18:00.000Z

After leaving Bolivia, we take the bus from the border to the Chilean town of San Pedro de Atacama. This place, it has to be said, sucks and is only here as a tourist trap for those entering and leaving the country. It is a false town full of pricey hotels and boutique handicraft shops and American tourists who believe they are having an 'authentic' experience. We got the first bus we could out of there and over the border into Argentina.

After a couple of days in the pleasant and quite agreeable town of Salta we jumped aboard another overnight bus which took us south to Mendoza, the wine capital of Argentina and a place I'd been looking forward to for months. Mendoza is a great place to relax and sample the delights of the fantastic wine and the famous lomo (Argentinian beef), and that's exactly what we did for the next few days.

One of the most fun things we did in Mendoza was the Bikes and Wines tour which is exactly what it says on the tin. We hired some bikes and were given a map describing a route that took in several vineyards in the Maipu valley. At each stop we were offered a tour around the vineyard followed by tastings of their favourite vintages. After the first vineyard we skipped the tours and went straight to the tastings. We tasted many fantastic wines especially the Malbec, the full-bodied red for which the region is famed for and yet somehow managed to return the bikes on time.

A friend and fellow wine enthusiast of ours Tracy, who we picked up on the way over from Chile, decided that it would be a great idea to go paragliding. So the next day, nursing rather sore heads, we headed for the hills where after a short briefing we strapped ourselves to an instructor and jumped off the hillside. It was a great feeling to be soaring above such beautiful landscape although at 15 minutes the flight was over too quickly for me. Still, it cleared the head.

A few more days enjoying the local cuisine and we were off to Bariloche in the northern part of Patagonia. Bariloche is an unbelievably picturesque village set in the foothills of the Andes and is very reminiscent of a Swiss alpine ski resort being also famed for it's chocolate and a nice line in St Bernards. In fact, amongst other outdoor activities, this place is an extremely popular skiing destination but we were here to clear our heads in the clean crisp mountain air before heading over to Buenos Aires.

After a couple of days walking in the mountains we were finally ready for the final chapter of our trip...

Stuff:
Currency - Peso, 3 to a dollar
Best Restaurant for Steak: Don Tristan in Mendoza

Some more books I've read in the past few weeks...

On The Way Down by Nick Hornby - A funny and poignant story of four strangers who meet on top of a building on New Years Eve intent on committing suicide.

Bel Canto by Ann Patchett - Appallingly bad written book on the theme of Stockholm Syndrome, the relationships built up between a bunch of hostages and their captors. It's mind-numbingly soporific but somehow still managed to win an Orange award.

Paperweight by Stepehen Fry - A collection of his articles, transcripts and plays written for various publications and radio. Very funny and worth a read.

Angels and Demons by Dan Brown - NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO and NO again !!!

Emergency Sex by Kenneth Cain, Heidi Postlewait and Andrew Thompson - A beautifully written book about the experiences of three UN workers in various war-torn parts of the world in the early 1990s. Rewarding and inspirational stuff.

100 Years Of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez - Or 100 years of boredom. Look, this is one of the most beautifully written books you will ever read charting the birth, rise and fall of a fictional town Macondo over a hundred years. But it is difficult to read in that almost all of the characters share the same name and the central theme of the cyclical nature of reality means that it feels repetative and rambling at times, there's even one sentence that spans two pages! Wierd and wonderful magic realism.

Popcorn by Ben Elton - In this book, Elton is inspired by Tarantino and Natural Born Killers to discuss the question of whether life imitates art or vice-versa whilst also satirising the modern day blame culture. Excellent book for the beach.

The Big Trip: Bolivia Part 3: Uyuni and Beyond

2007-04-09T07:15:00.000Z

After a long, bumpy but incredibly scenic journey from Potosi we finally arrived in Uyuni, the starting point for a three day tour across the Salar de Uyuni towards the Chilean border.

Uyuni is a dull and depressing town so after booking our tour and having bought supplies we wasted no time in visiting the local drinking establishments for a couple of swift ones before bed.

The trip didn't start well. Not only do we leave late but the driver, guide and cook promised for the trip all turn out to be the same person who as it soon transpires cannot drive, guide or cook.

So, our first stop was the salt flats themselves, the largest in the world, a stunning white sea of salt stretching as far as they eye can see. The edge of the sea is peppered with rows of salt pyramids recently 'farmed' from the flats by itinerant workers. After tarping the bottom of the Toyota to protect it from the salt we made our way across the lake for about 4 hours to a beautiful cactus adorned island complete with a shoreline still visible from a time before the sea dried up. We took lunch here then drove for another few hours to San Juan, a small ramshackle town on the far shore of the lake where we spent a cold night in a dormitory.

The next day, after another late start, we travel through some stunning landscapes stopping at bizarre rock formations and a flamingo lake. Our driver seemed to resent his guiding duties and would only speak when spoken to, thus we found it easier to resort to our guidebooks to tell us what we were looking at. We finally rocked up at another camp for the evening where after more decidingly dodgy food we drank rum in a vain attempt to warm ourselves up from the cold desert air.

The best of the tour was definitely saved for the last day. An early start saw us drive to some spectacular geysers and steam vents. Then whilst lunch was being prepared we took the opportunity to bath in thermal springs before heading off to our last detsination before the border, the Laguna Verde, a beautiful lake tinged green by algae and dominated by a perfect coned volcano.

At the border with Chile , a dusty outpost in the middle of the desert with one small building and a pointless road barrier, we said goodbye to the others and also to Bolivia which has to be one of the most varied and fascinating countries in the world, and certainly my favourite so far.

Click here for all the Uyuni photos.

Click here for all Bolivia photos.

Stuff:

Excusion $75 from Uyuni with Oasis Tours who I would not recommend. A four day tour takes you back across the side of the salt flats to Uyuni visiting a train graveyard amongst other things.

The Big Trip: Bolivia Part 2: Animals and Dynamite

2007-04-04T20:57:00.000Z

Another awesome chapter to our trip was working at the Inti Wara Yassi animal refuge in Villa Tunari to the east of La Paz.

After an overnight bus ride from La Paz to Cochabamba and then an interesting journey to Villa Tunari involving the negotiation of a landslide by JCB and motorcycle, we finally arrived at the refuge.

We were met by a bunch of friendly volunteers who seemed over happy to see us. It transpired that they were running short of volunteers and we were the first to turn up in 3 days. We were then given a brief tour around the refuge before being assigned our roles. Having only committed for two weeks we thought it would be unlikely to be working with the monkeys or big cats (they normally require 4 weeks for this) but I was gobsmacked to be asked to work with Roy an energetic Puma who's reputation seems to precede him. Roy is one of 6 pumas at the refuge who for differing reasons can never be released. Mel was a little less fortunate however when she was assigned to help look after the birds including 4 pairs of noisy macaws. She was even less happy to find whilst her working day was 7.30 to 6, mine would be 9 to 4.30 (those working with cats have a shorter day).

After finding some accomodation and some cheap second hand clothes we turned up the next morning for our first days work. I was to be helping Harold, a French volunteer, give Roy his two walks through the jungle. I was taken up to Roys cage where I got my first sight of him. I cannot say that I wasn't a little bit nervous and my heart was pounding when he let him out of his cage and he came straight up to me to eat some grass from my hands (to aid digestion apparently). Luckily Roy was tethered to a runner, a taut rope strung between his cage and a tree, such that he could only reach a certain distance either side.

My first few days with Roy would be just following him and Harold. There must always be two people with each cat as accidents can and have happened. Harold detached Roy from his runner and onto his lead which was fastened around the waist and off we went. It was such a strange feeling to be in such close proximity to a Puma and I was quite scared. Coupled with this, the terrain was quite treacherous with many steep climbs and descents and plenty of roots to twist your ankles on. So, most of my time was spent just trying to keep up and not fall over.

I was told that Roy would always have a go at new volunteers so I was very careful to stay right behind Harold. Also accompanying us was a French documentary maker called Julien who was in the process of producing a documntary about the park and thought he might get some good footage of Roy and a new volunteer.

Within the first 15 mins I was to see what Roy could be like as he sprung on me from within some bushes and quickly had his jaws around my knees. My adrenaline was pumping and his teeth and claws hurt quite a bit leaving some nice tears in my trousers. Harold managed to pull him off but not before the whole incident was captured on video!

After a few more heart stopping moments with Roy including an awesome full flight leap at Julien we finally made it back to base where, after Roy was safely on his runner, I could finally calm down and try to work out what just happened.

The second walk of the day was shorter but no less unnerving with another attack on myself where he tried to taste my other knee.

When we descended at the end of the day my trousers were ripped to shreds and I was wondering if I could do this for two weeks. It seemed everyone knew about Roy and asked me how I felt being Roys new toy.

Mel, who doesn't really like birds, hadn't enjoyed her day cleaning and feeding the macaws whse incessant screeching was already driving her crazy. She convinced her to stay at it for t more days then ask if a transfer would be possible.

After another day in which I stroked Roy for the first time there followed a two day break whilst he was sedated so he could have his collar changed. This was much easier said than done involving three volunteers to manouvre him onto place before the vet could insert the needle to put him under and change the collar. Whilst we waited for Roy to recover I went to visit Mel in the monkey park, where she had been transferred, to find her caring for an ill baby cappuccino monkey called Colita and surrounded by a group of local children from a nearby orphanage. The monkeys are amazing, each having a distinct personality and place within the monkey hierarchy. The group dynamics constantly shift with the arrival or departure of members of the group and it is endlessly fascinating to watch them adopt and change roles. They are not all friendly though and there are frequent intermonkey attacks and attacks on volunteers if they happen to try to intervene especially if it involves the larger jeffes or alpha males. In fact, volunteers requiring stitches to quite deep bites is not an uncommon occurence.

So, the following day would be my first day taking the lead myself which I was very nervous about. I tentatively attached the lead to him and led him off up into the jungle. Every now and then he would take off into a sprint with me in tow trying desperately not to be pulled along the forest floor. Remarkarbly, for my first time on the lead, there were no attacks on either of the walks although his speed was testing me especially along the slippery river beds.

The next day it all went pairshaped when Harold was bitten hard by Roy on the afternoons walk. Although I wasn't to know this at the time this bite was to put Harold out of action for the next two weeks. This meant that after just two days leading him I was about to become Roy Walker (geddit?) number 1 with a new English volunteer Toni to assist me part time until Harold recoveed. This meant having to do everything myself; releasing him from the cage, cleaning the cage, walking him, feeding him and then coaxing him back into the cage at the end of the day (no easy task). I wasn't at all comfortable walking Roy without Harold, who knew and could avert most of Roys attacks, and the thought of two inexperienced Englishman walking a fully grown Puma around a jungle was as scary to us as it was funny to everyone else. I mean, what could possibly go wrong?

As it happened, Roy was a model Puma, and in the next 4 days only attacked once and even then it was easily thwarted. I was now much more confident with the job and really enjoying it. I also felt that was gaining the trust of him and getting to know his personality.

A new volunteer Aaron would be taking over from Toni so we celebrated his survival with a few too many drinks and my first ever karaoke turn at the local disco. Well, it was St.Patricks Day!

For the next ten days I trained and then cowalked Roy with Aaron, a death metal fanatic from Perth. When we were not walking Roy, Aaron would subject him to Slayer and Metallica riffs on his guitar which I think Roy appreciated.

Our evenings were spent at local restaurants and marathon sessions of Uno, an uberaddictive cardgame that became very animated especially after a few drinks and with Aussies playing too.

In this time, Mel had got promoted to work with the spider monkeys but not before she sustained a nasty bite from a cappuccino that turned resulting in the need for stitches, the second time this trip!

It was with much sadness that after three weeks (we decided to stay one more) we had to say farewell to all our good friends at the refuge, both animal and human and make our way south to Cochabamba for a well deserved couple of days of luxury in a hotel (hot water, comfy beds!)

We moved on to Potosi on an overnight bus and arrived early morning and in time to check into a hostel and take a tour of the famous local silver and tin mines. Potosi, at 4000m, is a town built around the rich mineral resources of the local mountain Cerra Rico (Rich Mountain). After getting kitted out in overalls and headlamps and having bought coca leaves and dynamite for the miners, our guide took us down several levels of the mines to see the miners at work. It was incredibly claustrophic and the air was filled with dust making it hard to breath. It is impossible to believe that the miners work in these conditions, sometimes up to 24hrs a day, with no food (just chewing the coca) and barely any breaks. The average life expectancy of the miners is only 45 but the money is very good and for most there are no other job opportunites. The youngest worker is just 8yrs old. We watched a miner making a hole, in which to plant dynamite, that would take him 4hrs to chisel out using manual tools. It was painful to watch. The miners are self-employed but most work in co-operatives and share the profits equally. Electric tools eg drills, wagons are just starting to be introduced by the more wealthy of the co-operatives but still most of the work is manual and soul-destroyingly mundane.

On a lighter note, we did get to blow up a few sticks of dynamite afterwards which was great fun. See the video here.

Pics here

We are stuck in Potosi now whilst national roadblocks are in place blocking our route to Uyuni and the salt flats. Hopefully we can get out soon...

Stuff:
Inti Wara Yassi - minimum 2wk commitment required, $90 donation plus extra $30 to stay in a local B&B if you chose not to take up their very basic accomodation.
Hostel Villa Tunari B&B very good and clean, B35 per night
Aranjuez Hotel, Cochabamba $50 per double
Restaurant, Cochabamba: Bufalos, magnificent steak, all u can eat, carved off a skewer at your table
Koala Den, Potosi B90 for double
Koala Tours for mine tour B80

The Big Trip: Bolivia Part 1 - Copocabana and La Paz

2007-03-05T17:33:00.000Z

The last few days have seen us travel eastwards from Copocabana on Lake Titikaka to La Paz, the 'administrative' capital of Bolivia. This region is part of the altiplano, or high plains, of Bolivia although they are anything but flat.

Copocabana is a lovely chilled place on the side of the lake where, as a friend once correctly described, everybody walks very slowly. Yes, there are hippies selling trinkets and playing bongos on the street but don't let that put you off. It's a great place to hang out which is exactly what we did for the next three days along with an Italian friend Angela who we met on the way from Puno.

We had heard about a lovely island called Isla de Sol, the supposed origin of the Inka creation myth, where the sunsets where awesome and the donkeys plentiful. So, the next morning, we caught a painfully slow (could have swum it faster) ferry out to the island where we were provided with a guided tour in Spanish of some of the Inka ruins. Why is it that on all these tours the guides always point out things which if you can stretch your imagination you can just about make out the outline of a puma, or elephant or whatever? Why do people insist on doing this? It reminds me of those annoying Americans who travel thousands of miles across their country to see the virgin Mary in a piece of toast.

After a beautiful 3hr walk across the island, where we did indeed stumble upon many donkeys, we found a place to shack up for the night and a gorgeous restaurant serving great food to accompany the stunning sunset.

Pics of Isla de Sol here.

We returned by boat to Copa the following morning where we decided to stay another night before moving on to La Paz. We spent the afternoon climbing Cerro Calvario following the stations of the cross before descending for lunch. A swim in the lake was a necessity so we hired a pedalo from which I swam for a very cold but pleasant five minutes.

The next afternoon we left for La Paz. It was a culture shock to be back in a big city and La Paz is very diferent form other cities in South America. It has an Asian feel to it that reminded me of Bangkok; it is extremely busy, over populated and very polluted. We got a taxi to the area around Santa Cruz where, after failing to get into the hostel we wanted we settled for the one next door where we shared a dorm with a rather bemused looking Japanese student. A short exploration of the market and we found some lovely llama foetuses and comedy stuffed ocelots.

The following day was spent sightseeing. First, we visited the unexpectedly interesting Coca Museum which provided fascinating information on the national plant from spritual, historical, social and political perspectives. A wander around the beautiful Museo de Arte Contemporaneo saw me almost buy an expensive oil painting but back out at the last minute after Mel said she didn't like it. Finally, we took a bus out to the weird rock formations of Valle de la Luna.

You cannot visit La Paz without mountain biking down the 'Worlds Most Dangerous Road' towards Coroico, so called because of the number fatalities incurred from falling off the road down 1000m sheer drops!

After ensuring that we had booked up with a good company with top quality bikes (absolutely necessary) we began our ride at the La Cumbre (summit) at 4700m in atrocious weather and descended on a tarmac road until the entrance to the jungle and the infamous narrow dirt road. The weather was so bad we couldn't see the spectacular views across the valley but hurtling down the track past cascading waterfalls and rock overhangs was so exhilerating that it was easy to forget just how dangerous this road is. But, we had constant reminders in the form of memorials to less fortunate riders at the side of the road not to mention the occasional bus wreckage.

As we dropped the 2000m to Yolosa the conditions got hotter although no less wet and after a couple of enjoyable river crossings we finally made it to the bottom where we enjoyed a beer and got the team photo before a buffet lunch and shower at a nearby hotel.

A fantastic day out! (Pics here)

After a much need lie in we decided to see if we could visit someone in South Americas most infamous prison San Pedro. This is no ordinary prison. The 1000 inmates live in various degrees of comfort depending on their resourcefulness to get the money needed to survive. It is a full on microcosm of a capitalist society with many living in wretched condition whilst some with all the conveniences of five star hotels.

We wanted to see if we could get in to speak to someone and perhaps take a tour of the prison. Normally, we would need a name of a specific 'friend' or 'relative' on the inside with whom to request an 'interview', but unfortunately we couldn't get this information so we decided to wing it. Through the main gates we could see into the courtyard where some of the inmates were hanging out. One in particular, a wired looking redhaired man in his early twenties, got our attention and soon I had a note passed to me by the guards with a name 'Ernesto Solla' and number to call. From a callbox, we dialled the number, and Ernesto answered. He told us he was Spanish and gave us a wish list in return for a promise of admission; a packet of cigarettes, biscuits, Coke and B70($9). We bought these items and passed them to him via the guards. Another note told us to wait for 10minutes. But the situation started to worsen at this point. In a change of demands he now wanted B70 for each person! After some deliberating the girls decided it wasn't worth it but myself and Itamar (an Israeli friend who was with us) desperately wanted to gain access so agreed to pay another B70 to let both of us in. We knew it was a risk and sure enough we recieved another note askingus to come back at 2.30pm.

A few hours later and on our return the guards had suddenly become much more hostile and aggressive, not even letting us get anywhere near the gates. We could still see Ernesto in the courtyard but it was hopeless. The obvious story was that the guards were all in on the scam and were all taking their cut but we had good fun trying even though we were $20 worse off!

This morning, we bid farewell to Angela, packed and checked out of the hotel and spent the rest of the day present buying for everyone back home.

Tonight we are off to volunteer at an animal refuge in Villa Tunari called Inti Wara Yassi for two weeks where if we're lucky we might get to work with monkeys or even big cats!

Stuff:
Currency Bolivianos B8 to $1
Hotel Colonial, Copocabana B60 per double
Hostel Inti Kala, Isla de Sol B25
Restaurant Las Velas, Isla de Sol
Copacanaba to La Pax - 3hrs by bus
Hotel Cactus B25 per double, very nice and great location
Restaurant/Bar Sol y Luna, great bar and good steaks

Barro Biking Death Road Tour $43 each

Facts:
National Drink: Singani, which with Sprite becomes a Chuflay
La Paz is not the capital of Bolivia. It is in fact Sucre!

The Big Trip: Peru Part 2 - On the Trail of the Inkas

2007-02-25T14:32:00.000Z

The last two weeks have been an amazing and intense experience which is going to be hard to put into words but I'll try anyhow...

After a long and sleepless night on the bus from Arequipa we arrived early in Cusco. Cusco is a beautiful town of cobbled streets and perfect Inca stonework on the eastern side of the Sacred Valley at 3310m. It is the base for exploring the surrounding sites including Machu Picchu and, although very touristy, it's a great place to stay and chill for a few days.

We began our tour of the Sacred Valley with a visit to Moray, three colosseums used by the Incas as a kind of crop nursery or laboratory, before visiting the impressive salt pans that are still in use after thousands of years. Following a scenic walk down to Urubamba for lunch we drove back to Cusco along the valley where the views were spectacular.

The next morning we began a two day excursion down the Sacred Valley towards Machu Picchu (we decided against walking the Inca Trail due to time commitments but also due to the fact that it's closed in February for maintenance, something we really should have found out beforehand). We visited two superb Inca forts at Pisac and Ollatanytambo and then took an early evening train to Aguas Calientes, a quaint village at the base of Machu Picchu itself. Although, we arrived in the dark, we could sense that this area was special but nothing could compare to the sense of awe we felt when the following morning, after an hours steep climb through the jungle we first witnessed Machu Picchu at sunrise. Everyone knows the classic view of the site from photos but what takes your breath away is the awesome backdrop of jungle peaks with the fast flowing Urubamba river snaking it's way through the valley floor not to mention the snowcapped Andes in the far distance. It all feels quite mystical. The ruins themselves are amazing and the stone carving has to be seen to be believed. We spent the whole day around the site including a very interesting guided tour and a short but tough climb up Huaynu Picchu (the large saw toothed mountain that is shown towering over the ruins in all the photos). We also trekked up to the Sun Gate, the entrance to the valley, where we saw condors and met up with some alpacas. We finished off this amazing day by a trip to the thermal baths in Aguas Calientes where we soothed our sore feet and drank wine. Pics of the day here.

The following morning we returned early by train to Cusco where we relaxed whilst we planned our next step. Mel had decided she would like to spend her birthday in the jungle so as her prezzie I booked us a few days in EcoAmazonia, an ecolodge in the Amazonian rainforest. On the day of her birthday we flew to Maldenado deep in the jungle and from there took a canoe 1.5hrs down river to the lodge where we were welcomed by the manager and a pair of very loud macaws. The lodge itself is beautiful and the wooden cabins are spacious and each named after a different animal (we were in Otorongo which is a type of cat). What with it being rainy season we pretty much had the whole place to ourselves including use of their pool.

After settling in, we were taken to Monkey Island by canoe where we fed bananas to an assortment of cappucino, squirrel and spider monkeys. In the evening we celebrated Mels birthday with a big cake!

The next morning was the Lost Lake tour, a beautiful walk/canoe through the jungle including our first tarantula!

One of the main reasons for coming to the jungle in Peru was our interest in medicinal healing plants, the most powerful in it's effects being Ayuhuasca, a vine found only in certain parts of the jungle and a plant used for thousands of years by the indigenous people of Peru for it's healing and cleansing energies that manifest themselves as visions. It requires the drinkers (one drinks athe distilled juice of the vine) to be accompanied on their journey by an experienced shaman. We had decided to drink Ayuhuasca for one, maybe two nights (depending on the outcome of the first) so after lunch we met up with our shaman Edinson who discussed with us what we wanted to get out of the experience. We had been told to expect something powerful so were both a little nervous as to whether we would have a good experience or not, but the chat with Edinson assured us that we would be fine.

So, after sunset, we made our way into the jungle to the log cabin that would be our location. We sat down on mattresses, and with only a single candle for light, Edinson gave us the drink. It tasted absolutely disgusting and I had to wash the bitter taste away with water. So, we both sat there and waited. We were to await for the first signs of any effects then close our eyes, the whole experience lasting up to 4 hours. When after an hour had passed with no effects Edinson gave us more to drink, as equally disgusting as the last. Another hour and I started to feel the effects. They were mainly visual (but with eyes closed) and auditory. I began to see patterns of colours and shapes and every smallest sound had such clarity. Accompanying this was a feeling of wellbeing and connectedness to everything around me and a sensation that everything was just energy; the static buzz of the insects around providing the perfect soundtrack. During this time, Edinson would be chanting or whistling, keeping us aware of his presence as a guide.

The effects lasted for a few hours although there were no real visions or revelations as such. Another effect of the Ayuhuasca is that it cleanses your body. This means vomiting and diarrhea which both of us experienced during the journey.

The effects wore off leaving us feeling a little drunk and we made our way back to our cabin. The next morning we decided to drink again as both of us did not really feel that we had got as much out of it as we could.

So, we found ourselves back at the cabin the next evening with Edinson and repeated the ritual. This time it was an awesome experience. For a few hours I felt completely at one and as one with everything. It was so much cleaner than the night before as this time the analytical part of my brain was not interfering with the process allowing the feelings and visions to flow freely without hindrance. I was experiencing ideas and visions being produced in front of me as visions as though they were on a conveyor belt. With each one that presented to me I could discard it or chose to spend more time thinking about it. It was extremely impressive and was akin to an advanced kind of therapy that enabled one to focus on ideas and issues in a totally objective way uncluttered by fears and prejudices. There was no vomiting this time and when we returned after a few hours I felt, unlike the night before, infused with energy and positivity. We finished off our experience with a swim in the Gamitome river in the morning.

All in all, I would recommend Ayuhuasca to everyone but the mind 'set' and environmental 'setting' are very important as is a prior intention or intentions before embarking on the journey.
We left the lodge and returned to Cusco the next day for a relaxing massage before our next meeting with a different medicinal plant called San Pedro.

This was a completely different experience, much milder but earthier and less confrontontational in it's effects. We were taken by our hippy guide Miguel to a beautiful house, owned by our hostel, and next to some fantastic pre-Inca ruins called The Temple Of The Moon. Here, we were given a bitter liquid distilled from the San Pedro cactus. We sat outside on the patio in the heat of the sun and waited. After about an hour we began to feel quite silly and a little bit high. At 4hrs was when the real effects began when everything started to feel fluffy and take on an extra significance. The plants, trees and clouds expecially seemed to throb and alomost burst at their seems with their isness, like a cosmic showing off. Surfaces appeared to take on an extra dimension such as they gave the impression of being alive but at the same time highly structured and complex. One could spend an hour staring in awe at the same small area of rock or grass as they offered the same amount of information as the whole. Miguel took us to explore the ancient ruins nearby and we spent what seemed like an eternity wandering amongst them and soaking up the vibes that they emitted. It was a very spiritual place and one that I'd love to go back to some day.

As the sun disappeared behind the horizon, we made our way down into town and back to our hostel. We were still feeling the strong effects of the cactus and it was quite difficult to talk to the people there when we were still in a different place visually but as the evening wore on the effects slowly wore off until we were able to sleep.

We left Cusco reluctantly a couple of mornings later and headed towards Bolivia and Lake Titikaka. Our last stop in Peru was Puno (dirty place) and an excursion to the floating islands of Uros. These islands are built solely from the reeds of the lake. Each island is made from a layer of reeds 2.5m thick with half above and half below the waterline. It's hard to believe that the people of Uros have actually lived in this way for hundreds of years. It remains to be seen whether the influx of tourism (it can seem a bit zooish) will be a help or hindrance to the communities that dwell here.

After a scenic bus journey we now find ourselves on the Bolivian half of Titikaka in the very laid back village of Copocabana.

I have been looking forward to Bolivia for the whole trip. Something tells me this will be the most fascinating country so far. Let's hope it lives up to my expectations...

Stuff:
Casa de la Gringa 2, S40
Casa de la Gringa $26 per room but great vibe
EcoAmazonia lodge $230/4 days
Cusco to Puno - 5.5 hrs by bus
Puno to Copocabana 3hrs by bus

Films:
Little Miss Sunshine - quaint and amusing road movie, good sunday night viewing

The Big Trip : Peru Part 1 - The Path Of The Condor

2007-02-10T22:49:00.000Z

We ended up spending three days in Lima which for me was three days too many. Although it has it's fair share of cultural attractions it's a pretty shitty city and quite uninspiring in it's architecture. Modern, congested and polluted it's not a place I would encourage anyone to visit.

Memorable sights included the Iglasias San Francisco with it's amazing tilework, panelled ceiling and library, and the Cathedral With No Name. Also interesting was the Spanish Inquisition museum with a fun recreation of gruesome tortures at the end of the tour and the Museo National de Anthropologica, Arquelogica y Historia with a good political and social history section amongst a lot of Inca pots. Worth a miss is the Museo Arquelogico Rafael Larco Herrera with more pots (yawn) and a disappointingly unerotic erotic section of cermaic artifacts.

However, on a slightly less cultural note, we did manage to enjoy a riotous day out at the annual Pisco (the national drink) celebrations where we managed to demolish a very nice bottle of the national tipple before I got hopelessly lost in the backstreets only finding my way home hours later.

So, the following day we head 3hrs south to Paracas, bypassing the depressingly ugly town of Pisco, where we holed ourselves up in a quiet little hotel on the coast. The next morning we took a tour out to the Ballesta Islands which are home to a giant sealion colony and many blue boobies.

Our next stop was a beautiful oasis in the desert further down the coast called Huacachina where in the afternoon we enojyed some dune buggying and sandboarding. We also took time to visit some nearby vineyards in Ica where we sampled the not so fantastic wines that Peru have to offer.

An overnight bus journey saw us further down the coast in Arequipa, a pretty town and a base for excursions to the deepest canyon in the world Colca Canyon. It was here that I had my first, and last, Cuy or Guinea Pig. We decided on a two day bus tour of the canyon and the next morning, we were picked up from our hotel and driven towards Chivay, a small town on the edge of the canyon. On the way we found some alpacas and stopped at a couple of villages to watch some traditional dancing. After a night in Chivay, where we also enjoyed the local thermal baths, we continued on into the canyon which is spectacular. Because it's so deep and we were so high we found ourselves between two layers of clouds which proved an awesome sight. To top off an amazing day, on our return to Arequipa, we even managed to view some condors soaring on the thermals nearby.

Tonight we head for Cusco on the trail of the Incas...

Stuff:

Currency: 3.19 Nuevo Sols to $1
National Drink: Pisco Sour, made from distilled grapes, similar to Grappa
National Dish: Cuy otherwise known as Guinea Pig
Zarcillo Hotel, Paracas
Films:
Rocky 6 - don't waste your time on this depressing vanity project, not even a decent montage
The Prestige - interesting film about two competing magicians

The Big Trip: Ecuador Part 2 - Cotopaxi and The Bag Snatchers

2007-01-31T23:10:00.000Z

After flying high since our Galapagos experience we have now been brought down to to earth with a painful bump.

Having spent a couple of chilled days sightseeing the old town of Quito we made the decision to escape Quito and head south on an excursion to bike ride down the volcano Cotopaxi. On the day of the trip we packed our bags and awaited the bus outside the agency at 7.30am. The bus duly arrived we met with what we thought were the guides for the day. They helped us on with our bags, including Mels daypack, but alarm bells were ringing in my head as one of them was acting very suspiciously and wouldn't seem to speak any English. It transpired that he had been misdirecting us whilst his accomplice got away from the bus with Mels bag stuffed under his shirt. The clever part of it was that no-one really saw him or could describe him and he had disappeared around a corner before we knew we had lost it. Mel was angry both at the thieves and herself for letting them take her bag that included, amongst other things, her passport.

We had to abort the trip and spent the day at various police stations getting reports filed. The next morning we visited the Canadian embassy (as there's no Australian embassy in Ecuador) and were informed about a 5 day pass that, when activated, would get us over the border to the nearest Aussie embassy in Lima to get an emergency passport. We had to postpone the bike ride until the following week as the tour agency would not refund our money so that left us with an extra week to spend in Quito.

The following day we took a ski lift called the Teleferico 4100m up the side of Rucu Pichinchu, one of a few 4500+ mountains overlooking the city. As we arrived early morning we attempted to climb the remainder 600m of the mountain and after a tough scramble at altitude up a 200m scree we finally made the summit 3hrs later. On the way down we met these nuns.

After this acclimatisation climb I made a decision to attempt one of the most beautiful peaks in South America, the 5900m volcano of Cotopaxi. Early next morning I was picked up by Patricio, my guide for the climb. We drove 3hrs (picking up another climber Jason on the way) to the carpark perched on the slopes of the mountain at 4500m and began a slow ascent to the Cotopaxi refuge at 4800m. I could feel the altitude with every muscle in my body and the weather was unhelpful, we could not see the summit from here or the approach. This was not a god sign.

After reaching the refuge an hour later we were shown a bunk where after a basic dinner at 6pm we tried to sleep until midnight when the climb would begin. The midnight start is necessary as the glacier becomes too dangerous after daybreak when it starts thawing. After a few cold hours of broken sleep at 4800m we kitted up and started traversing slowly up the glacier, the three of us tethered together using idepicks and crampons. Although I was feeling warm and comfortable the ascent was long, laborious and extremely exhausting. The weather was closing in and as we gained altitude the going got tougher and tougher with frequent breaks required. We were progressing at a mindnumbling slow pace with stops almost every twenty steps and it was only getting more painful. The cold winds were biting now and the visibility reduced to just a few feet in all directions. The conditions must have been bad because at 5600m we met another group of climbers returning having decided to turn back. We pushed on to the top of the glacier and could see why. The icy winds were joined by sheet snow that had covered the path with a foot of soft powder which the icepicks just sank into. Above the glacier and up ahead the path steepened sharply through a narrow gulley between two large crevices. It was just too dangerous to continue and although I was disappointed not to have made it to the summit I was glad to be turning back as I was exhausted and freezing cold. After a couple of photos we made our descent back to the refuge where after an short rest was driven back to meet Mel at the Hacienda Papa Gaya, hostel just off the Panamerican highway an hour south of Quito.

This place was exactly what my body and mind required, a beautiful farm retreat in a stunning location with apddock ful of horses and llamas and a bunch of rabbits and dogs and puppies. I took a shower, chilled and went early to bed for one of the best nights sleep of this trip so far!

The next day we caught a local bus to the nearby town of Machachi for their annual running of the bulls fiesta. There were some really good runners but mostly it was spotty adolescants being stupid. No bulls are harmed in this event. In fact, the worst casualty of the day was a nasty goring to the groin for a drunken fool who thought he could outrun a bull.

After a tranquil evening playing chess and drinking wine we headed out the next morning for our Cotopaxi bike ride that had been postponed form the week before due to the theft. The first part of the day was a scenic train ride where we all crammed on to the top of an old locomotive for a short but sweet jaunt through the countryside and local communities. We were then all picked up by our guide and driven towards Cotopaxi where we were afforded specactular views of the mountain on the approach road, so different from a few days earlier. Up at the carpark, where we began our ride, it was still very cold though and it was hard to squeeze the breaks as we hurtled down the switchbacks. 45 minutes later and we at the bottom where we were taken back up to the refuge to view the glacier at close hand. The sky cleared to show us perfect views of the summit with beautiful wisps of cloud pasing by overhead. As the glacier started to creak we decided to head back to the bus to begin our journey back to the hacienda. Pictures of the day here.

The next morning we headed back to Quito to catch a 36hr bus ride to Lima where we arrived today at 2pm. It was much less painful than we expected as the scenery of the Peruvian coast is fantastic with the sea to one side and desert. Also, our travelling companions kept us entertained all the way and we made some good friends.

So, we are now in a hostel in the Miraflores area of Lima where we shall be staying for a few days in order to collect Mels emergency passport. It wasn't our intended plan but shit happens!

Another country, another adventure...

Stuff:

Cotopaxi climb $160, 2 days

Papa Gaya $6 for dorm

Eurobackpackers, Lima $17 per night

The Big Trip: The Galapagos

2007-01-20T00:16:00.000Z

Wow!

And wow again!

It is almost impossible to describe the wonder that is the Galapagos Islands. We have just spent nearly two weeks in paradise amongst some of the most the most amazing animals in the world both above and below sea level. We have laughed at boobies, dived with hammerheads, played with sealions and frolicked with penguins all amidst the most amazing and varied landscapes I have ever set eyes on.

Day 1 - Welcome and first tour
On touchdown we were met by our guide Jorge and taken by bus to Baltra Harbour. There we were met by a welcoming committee before being transferred to our home for the next 8 days, the cruiser Guantanamera. Following a short briefing and after being shown to our cabin we had a small lunch and met our fellow passengers. There was 15 of us in all including an Aussie, some Germans, some Americans and a Swiss couple but most were young which was a relief as the nightmare was to have been stuck with a bunch of German OAPs. Whilst we ate the Guantanamera sailed to our first destination Las Bachas on the North Coast of Santa Cruz island. By this point we had all been forced to endure an 18 mix CD of the song 'Guantanamera' in all languages and styles which would for the remainder of the cruise be the theme and call-sign to other vessels for the passengers and crew alike.

After a 'wet landing' (jump off into water as opposed to 'dry' landing where you use a jetty) we started a small walking tour along the beach. The Galapagos immediately lived up to it's reputation. In the space of one hour we saw marine iguanas sunning themselves on the rocks, beautiful red crabs and pink flamingoes in a lagoon not to mention a turtle orgy (sorry...no pics)! It was evident that our guide Jorge was a comedian and also a little obsessed with the mating rituals of the various animals he was talking about including a graphic description of the turtle's mating habits which he elegently put as a 'turtle gang-bang'. His pièce de résistance was his take on the wooing and mating rituals of the Blue Boobies (to be seen on a later island in large numbers) complete with perfectly mimicked sounds and actions.

After the tour, we had some free time to go for our first swim but it didn't last long as no sooner had I jumped in I got stung by a bluebottle jellyfish - very painful but luckily not long lasting. This put me off for some time but I was soon back in and enjoying some supersized parrotfish and crystal clear snorkelling!

We returned to the boat where we recieved our nightly briefing for the next days tours and activities before the buffet-style dinner (the food was great for the whole cruise). We were then invited to a 'welcome party' on the top deck where we were introduced to the 6 crew members and a bucket of caipirinha (a Brasilian cocktail) which Mel and I looked after. By the end of the evening it's fair to say we had broken the ice with everyone.

Day 2 - Santa Cruz & Santa Fe Islands and also first dive...
We awoke at 5.30am for our first dive out on Gordon Rocks, one of the supposed best sites in the Galapagos. We kitted up and took the dinghy out to the rocks. There was quite a swell and current so Jorge (also the divemaster) was very keen to get down as quickly as possible. However, I couldn't descend due to too little weight. Jorge gave me a spare weight to get down but it was still not enough. By this time he and Mel and the other two divers had descended leaving me struggling on the surface! I looked to the dinghy for assistance but there was no further weight. I couldn't believe it! My first dive in the Galapagos on one of the best sites was going to be spent on the surface whilst Mel and the others were down below playing with hammerheads or whatever. I remained livid and cursing up above for about 20mins before having the idea of removing my wetsuit to make me less bouyant. After this I did just manage to get down but I was so angry that I was sucking a lot of air and was quite stressed. I found the others and signalled to Mel and Jorge that I was really unhappy about being left stranded by them and then tried to enjoy the remainder of the dive which turned out to be 20mins more. We did see some nice Parrot and Picasso Triggerfish and a Galapagos Shark but I was too late. I had missed a lone hammerhead idle by and the fact that Mel saw it and I missed it made things doubly as worse for me. After a rushed and narked (first time, very weird) ascent we clamboured back into the dinghy where I proceeded to give Jorge a dressing down on what it means to be a dive master. Not that he listened. Anyway, I was even more determined to encounter the hammerhead now!

It was then back to the boat for breakfast before our next walking tour on Santa Cruz island. Each walking tour would take place on a different island with sometimes two tours on the same island in one day. A typical day would consist of two walking tours with some time allowed for snorkelling or relaxing on the beach. After a wet or dry landing we would follow a strictly marked path around the island that we were not allowed to stray from at risk of upsetting the animal habitats. The walks tended to be very easy and quite short with none lasting more than about 1hr 30mins each and we were requiresd to stay in a group. Although in any other part of the world this would have seemed to restricting and an experience I would have found frustrating it was more than made up for by the abundance of wildlife, that seemed completely unbothered by human proximity and, I'm sure of it, had been somehow encouraged to display their classic behaviour just as we came upon them! Sealions would pose for the cameras, the blue footed boobies began their intricate courtship rituals, the Frigate birds inflated their chests and the iguanas fought, and all it seemed, right on cue.

In an attempt to avoid getting too boring or repetitive with detail I am just going to decsribe the highlights of each day followed by a list of the flora/fauna observed on each of the island locations. The list is for our benefit more than anything such that we can remember what we saw and did.

Santa Cruz Island
Sealions, Land Iguanas
Fantastic snorkelling in bay where we saw a Diamond Stingray, a 20 strong group of Eagle Rays, Black Turtle, surgeon fish and a lovely play with the sealions where I tried to keep up with them underwater.

Santa Fe Island
A small island SE of Santa Cruz characterized by an amazing Mars-like landscape dotted with numerous cacti. Highlights of the walk included observing a newly born sealion pup and proud mother.

Also Spotted: Land Iguanas, Sealions, Galapagos Hawk, Galapagos Dove, Pelicans, Swallow Tailed Gulls, Frigate Birds, Red Billed Tropic Bird, Yellow Tailed Mullets

Day 3 - Dive in Gardner Bay, Española Island (Punta Suarez)
After some snorkelling from the boat we took our second dive and I saw a HAMMERHEAD albeit some distance away but it was still a hammerhead all the same. I was so happy after the shambles of the day before although we did emerge well into our reserve supply (but who cares about small safety precautions like air supply when you're diving in the Galapagos?). In the afternoon, a dry landing at Punto Suarez for an excursion of which the Blue Footed Boobies were the star of the show once again!

Also spotted:
On the dive - 3 turtles, eagle rays, sting rays
On the walk - Sealions (once again), albatross, Nasco Boobies (all 3 species of boobies are found on the islands), Galapagos hawks

Day 4 - Floreana Island
We had a good dive and two interesting tours today but the highlight was snorkelling at Devils Crown just off the island. It was abundant with life including giant colourful starfish, whitetip reef sharks and masses of fish. Also, there were some nice currents and swim-throughs too. In the afternoon we went ashore and took a short walk to the famous Floreana post box. Here you can post unstamped cards and letters and the idea is that a visitor to the island from near the address you have provided takes the card and personally delivers it in that country. This tour was also marked by a visit to a really cool lava tube which two of us swam to the end and a football match between the crews of the various boats in which I unsuccesfully played a part for 5mins before being substituted.

Back on board we set our course for the Santa Cruz port of Puerto Ayora where many of the 5day passengers would be spending their last night. We began our farewell celebrations in a local bar (Cafe Limon) and stayed their until we were kicked out at around 1am before returning to the boat to play cards until 4am. It was going to be a hard morning...

Day 5 - Change of passengers and Lonesome George

We spent the morning at Charles Darwin Station where we met Lonesome George, the famous Giant Tortoise and, the suspected last member of his particular species. Efforts have been made to pair him up with a female from a closely related subspecies but he just doesn't seem to want to get it on with the ladies. Well he is about 80 years old.

After saying our farewells to the others we returned to the boat to await the new passengers. Our worst nightmares were confirmed when a bunch of German OAPs turned up in the dinghy. Our new guide Harry seemed nice though. We spent the rest of the afternoon visiting the giant land tortoises and trying to make the Germans laugh.

Day 6 - Islands of Rabida and Bartoleme

A visit to 2 islands, a dive and some snorkelling. The walk in Bartoleme was the highlight with the classic view from the top. I had great fun playing with a sealion whilst snorkelling.

Also spotted: Penguins, turtle, barracuda, Galapgos Hawk

Day 7 - Genovesa Island

We dived here in then hope of seeing hammerheads.

The highlight of the walking tours were the red footed boobies which unlike their blue footed counterparts nest in the trees.

Also spotted:

Day 8 - Last tour on North Seymour

After the final tour on North Seymour (more boobies and sealions!) we headed off back to the boat and sailed to Puerto Ayora where we said an emotional farewell to the crew.
In the afternoon we took a high powered launch 3hrs to the island of Isabella where it kindly started to pour down on arrival. After finding a bed for the night we chilled out reading. It was nice not to be sleeping on a boat for once.

The following day we took a horseriding tour out to Volcan Sierra Negra, the largest caldera in the world with a 9km diameter. After driving to the volcano by 4x4 we met our horses and began a shaky ascent to the crater rim. The horses didn't seem to happy as the going was very soft but we made it to the top where we had spectacular views of Isabella and walked across lava fields to the site of previous eruptions. In the afternoon we visited a fantastic colony of giant marine iguanas and went snorkelling in a nearby lagoon with sealions and penguins.

The next day saw us diving around Tortuga Island where the first dive was the best dive I have ever had. After dropping in, we moved towards what looked like a large black rock which turned out to be the large and very dense schoal of black fish. It was possible to swim into the mass, stop breathing and be in total darkness, it was an awesome feeling. Later on into the dive we saw turtles and various rays but on our decompression stop we looked below to see a group of five hammerheads circling around a few metres below!

Our final day in Isabella and the Galapagos was spent in the blistering sun on a 16k walk to a local mirador and one last hour of snorkelling to say a proper farewell to one of the most memorable trips ever.

After a stomach turning journey back to Puerto Ayora in the pouring rain we got a taxi and bus to the airport and back to Quito where we are now shacked up in a hostel deciding on our next move...

Books
The Bush Dyslexicon, Mark Crispin Miller

From Publishers Weekly
Miller, a New York University professor of media studies, has fashioned a devastating compendium of President George W. Bush's grammatical gaffes, syntactical shipwrecks, mind-boggling malapropisms and simply dumb comments. Page after page (after page) of quotations, suggests Miller, reveal that Bush is a man who, while not stupid, is prodigiously illiterate and woefully uneducated. Further, and compounding the problem, Bush could not care less about these shortcomings. How then, Miller asks, and this is his larger concern, did someone in Miller's opinion so obviously unqualified to be president convince so many voters that he was? Miller's answer is, in a word, television: Bush succeeded on TV not despite his "utter superficiality," but because his superficiality blended seamlessly with the vacuous culture of the tube. It was not simply that Bush's handlers were able to manipulate his image, attempting to construct out of his ignorance an anti-intellectual "good ole boy" persona, but that news professionals in the medium were all too willing to go along with this ploy. They went along because the pundits of TV have become, according to Miller, increasingly right-wing, thus natural Bush allies, but also because they no longer care to talk about substance, preferring instead discussion of "likability" and other attributes of pure image. While Miller is sometimes vague in his arguments, he has produced a sharp-edged polemic questioning the wisdom of how we elect our leaders. As President Bush has said, "It's not the way America is all about."

Primary Colors, Joe Klein aka Anonymous - A brilliantly written fictional account of a presidential primary campaign (obviously Clintons). Read first chapter here.

Facts
Flight $400 return from Quito to Baltra
Galapagos Park Tax $100
Volcano tour and snorkelling booked through Hotel San Vicente - can't remember the price
Hotel San Vicente $20pn with bathroom and breakfast
Otavalo Huasi inn Quito - good but a bit noisy at weekends $15pn for double

The Big Trip: Ecuador Part 1 - The Middle Of The World

2007-01-06T22:29:00.000Z

From the very forgettable Panama City we flew to Quito, the capital of Ecuador, a beautiful city nestled in the highlands in a corridor of snowcapped volcanoes. We headed straight for La Mariscal (New Town) or Gringoland as the locals refer to it and have found a cosy little hostel away from the hustle and bustle . From here, we have spent the last few days exploring and researching our Galapagos trip.

The first thing I noticed about Quito is that it is far more modern city than I imagined. The transport system is cheap, quick and well-managed and it is very clean. It also has a healthy mixture of the old and new combining the Old Town traditional culture of street markets and musicians alongside swanky bars, hotels and high-end out-of-town shopping malls. This is so refreshing after the polluted, claustrophic and sanitised Panama City. However, like any Latin American city it is not without problems and crime is high, especially opportunistic thefts, pickpocketing and sophisticated scams. A consequence of this is that in some areas, the more touristic areas, it almost feels like there are more security guards than people with at least two on every street corner and one in every store.

Knowing that we are to return to Quito after the Islands we have concentrated on finding the right cruise and left exploring the sights until after. After a day spent in agencies we eventually found an 8 day cruise (you can also take a 4 or 5 day cruise) at a fair price which visits the islands we wanted to see and that caters for divers. We will then visit the island of Isabella for 3 days which we've been told is one of the most beautiful and not an island on many cruise itineraries. The cruiser is a 16 passenger vessel named the Guantanamera which, departing in two days, left us just enough time to do some last minute shopping and to visit the equator.

The equator is 1.5hrs north of the city by bus and marked by an interesting museum and ethnic tour highlighting the customs and costumes of the various ethnic groups in Ecuador. And you get to take the obligatory photo of yourself straddling the equator of course!

Bored of the gringo nightlife we also took the opportunity to go and see the latest Bond movie which we both enjoyed. Even though it is overlong (2.5hrs?), with more plot holes than a sieve, lazy direction and yawn inducing romantic scenes we both felt that Daniel Craig is the best Bond since Connery (maybe better, only time will tell). Which was surprising as up until now I've found him dull in almost every roll he's played. So, 7/10 for the film but 9/10 for the Bond.

Anyway, as I write this now, we are tomorrow flying to the place of Darwin's finches, Lonesome George and plenty of Boobies!

Facts
Cerviche (a seafood dish) is an Ecuadorian speciality although it seems that every South American country claims theirs is better.
Panama Hats are made in Ecuador

Books
The True History of the Kelly Gang, Peter Carey - A fantastic novel told in the form of a journal as though penned by Kelly himself charting the life of the famous Aussie outlaw
Even Cowgirls Get The Blues, Tom Robbins - I think I have just found one of my favourite authors. About the life of Sissy Hankshaw, a girl blessed/cursed with oversized thumbs, this book is wide ranging in it's themes and full of hilarious observations and metaphors.

Films
Casino Royale - see above

The Big Trip: Panama - Crimbo and NYE

2007-01-01T02:58:00.000Z

Happy New Year everyone!

Or should I say

Feliz Año Neuvo todo!

It's been an interesting couple of weeks although I don't think we made the best of Panama. It didn't help that the weather was not kind to us but on the whole I was disappointed with our experience here and especially with Panama City which didn't meet expectations.

It began with a stop in David the second city of the country and nothing to write home about. It's a dirty and depressing city and the only purpose it serves is as a stop-off before hitting the highlands of Boquete or the islands of Bocas del Toro. It was a culture shock too having just come from the jungle too the hectic pace of a city. The first thing we noticed was how rude everyone seemed to be. We hoped this was a city thing and characteristic of Panamanians in general! We spent one night here and got out as quickly as we could heading for Boquete in the highlands.

Boquete is a beautiful town in the Chiriqui region overlooked by Volcan Baru the highest volcano in Panama. The clean air and crisp climate were a welcome relief from the sweaty humidity of David. We checked into a lovely hotel called Pension Marilos and then went to check out the town. We booked some white water rafting for the following day and a trip to some thermal springs that afternoon with an eccentric 65yr old Feliciano who was one of those older people who just never stop and seem to have an endless supply of energy. He drove us in his 4X4 to the springs and joined us as we alternated between the increasingly hot pools and the cool waters of the Chiriqui Viejo river.

The next day we went white water rafting. This is something I've wanted to do for years and it didn't disappoint! Five hours on the Grade IV Chiriqui Viejo river with over 90 rapids, most of us fell out more than once, Mel was the only one who managed to hold on and stay in the boat. Luckily the boat never completely capsized but we came close to it more than once. Our guide Ivan was a nutter and it seemed to me that he was trying to enter the rapids such that we would be thrown out! It was a brilliant day that I will never forget and a fantastic introduction to rafting. Some pics here.

Rather than go all the way back to Boquete we had arranged to be dropped off at La Concepcion so that we could begin the Los Quetzales walk the next morning from the other side of the volcano and return to Boquete in the afternoon where we had left our packs. We stayed at a fantastic lodge called Los Quetzales and had the whole dorm to ourselves.
We awoke early and took a taxi to the start of the walk and began a steep walk to the top of the ridge where we had stunning views of the valley all the way to the pacific. We trekked all day through dense rainforest stopping once for lunch but we never did find that elusive Quetzal!

We left Boquete early in the morning for Bocas Del Toras where we were to spend Crimbo. Bocas is an archipeligo of islands on the NW of Panama with a distinct Carib vibe. Bocas itself is the main town on the island of Colon where we stayed but there are many other islands that are more chilled out hosting some very expensive ecolodges. Unfortunately, as soon as we arrived, the weather caught up with us and it started to rain heavily. According to the captain of the boat which took us to Bocas the weather had been fine for the precedding two weeks without one drop of rain! Our hotel was Los Delphines just off the waterfront and was our first taste of luxury this trip. That night we drank rum at the local bar and ended up in a club (Hundido).

24 Dec - Xmas Eve
We awoke to a heavy rainstorm. Luckily, we went on a diving trip to a couple of local divesites (my Crimbo prezzy from Mel) called Hospital Point and Crawl Cay. We were also dropped off at Red Frog Beach where surprisingly enough there were some red frogs. By this time the weather had improved enough for me to hone my body surfing skills (no film unfortunately!). We got back just in time for it to start raining and this time it didn't stop all evening. So, we had no choice but to retreat to a bar (Mundo Taitu) for the rest of the evening before heading back to the hotel for a very good nights sleep.

25 Dec - Xmas Day
Of course it was raining today but that didn't stop us from enjoying a champagne breakfast! After making some calls to parents and friends we found a good place (Hotel El Limbo) for Crimbo lunch where I had steak and Mel had lobster. We spent the rest of the day wholed up in the bars talking with locals and other travellers. As Xmas Days go it was fairly quiet and it was fair to say that I missed my friends and family today.

26 Dec
We had to vacate the hotel today as we only had it for three nights so we spent the morning looking for another one eventually finding Casa Max on the main street. Later in the afternoon we made our way by taxi to Playa Del Drago where we chilled on the beach before rerturning back to Bocas.

Panama City
After a dull day updating the blog and avoiding the weather we left Bocas by plane for the city of Panama. After finding out that the hotel we had chosen was a brothel we took the taxi drivers advice and agreed to be taken to Hotel Montreal, a far better proposition near the old town.
Our first impression of the city was of heavy pollution and humidity so we made our way to the old town to escape from it all.

The next day after visiting the embassy to pick up my credit cards that had stolen in Guatemala we took a bus out to the Panama Canal and Miraflores locks which was absolutely awesome. Read here for a history of the canal, it's too much to go into right now but there's some good pics here.

30 Dec
We checked into La Estancia B&B in the Cerra Ancon area on the western part of the city. It is a smart B&B perched on the side of a hill and is in an area that used to belong to the Americans before they handed back control of the canal in 1999. Although we liked the monkeys and sloth outside the balcony window the place was full of English and Americans and a bit stuffy for us. That evening we ate at a local restaurant with the owners and their very drunk daughter.

31 Dec - NYE
We spent most of the day looking for somewhere where I could get my hair cut and eventually found a hairdressers in a shopping mall the other side of town. After stocking up on supplies from a supermarket we made our way back to begin our NYE festivities. We decided it would be a good idea to aim for an ex-pat pub in town where we thought we might obtain some info on what was going on town later. However, on arrival we found it was closed and the city pretty deserted! At 9pm on NYE! After walking around for about an hour we eventually found a place to eat. After more fruitless searching for a party we eventually decided to hit the casino and it was here that we saw the new year in. What was even more bizarre was that as the clock struck midnight no-one apart from Mel and I flinched, they just continued gambling at the tables!

So, there we have it, NYE a complete washout. We returned to bed about 1am tired and drunk. We found out the next day that everyone spends NYE at home with their parents and only come out to party at around 3am by which time we were tucked up in bed!

1 Jan 2007
I woke up fully clothed this morning with a hangover, had breakfast with the monkeys and drank some more wine. We went for a short walk this afternoon and saw a baby sloth.

Tomorrow we leave Panama for Quito in Equador and the beginning of stage two of our big trip, South America !!!

Facts
Currency: US dollar
Hotel Iris (David) - nice hotel in centre only $10/night
David to Boquete 1hr by bus
Pension Marilos $15 per room
Los Quetzales Lodge dorm $13 per night
Los Delphines Bocas $60 per night for double room en suite
Casa Max $35 per night en suite
Hotel Montreal $30 for double with pool
La Estancia $49 per night for double
Panama Hats are made in Ecuador

The Big Trip: Costa Rica - The Jungle

2006-12-19T01:06:00.000Z

Wow!

Not sure how to write this up because it cannot convey the intensity of the past 7 days.

Corcovado national park is a mindblowing place and so far removed from the 'other' Costa Rica full of gringos and established tours.

It is situated in the south of Costa Rica on the Osa Peninsula and consists of 50,000 hectares of protected rainforest including 800 species of birds and, 139 mammals and 116 amphibians.

We finally arrived at Rio Drake Lodge in the late afternoon after our long journey from Palmar Norte. The lodge is in a fantastic location, isolated at the end of a long quiet beach. Currently, a work in progress, it is owned by a very friendly guy called Edu. We set up our tent in a covered area close to the beach and then walked the 20mins to the nearest shop for some beers and dinner. On our return we were introduced by Carol to Ballardo, her friend and self-proclaimed 'JungleMan' (or JaguarMan, he kept switching between the two). Ballardo grew up in the park and is an expert on jaguars having spent a few years working in Corcovado and San Francisco on conservation projects. He agreed to be our guide in the jungle for the time we would spend there and promised to show us the real 'jungle' rather than the well trodden trails found around the ranger stations.

The following day we walked 3km along the beach with Carol and Tabitha to Drake Bay, a small village north of the park. We also had our first pipa, the sweet clear liquid of the unripe green coconut. We needed money and having misread the book that told us there was an ATM there (the nearest bank was actually one day away in Puerto Jiminez!) we searched for somewhere to cash travellers cheques. However, this proved fruitless and thus we found ourselves stuck in Corcovado with no money with which to live on or pay Edu or Ballado. In the evening, we discussed our plans for our time in the jungle with Ballardo and arranged to set off early next morning and finish in Jiminez on the eastern side of the park so that we could eventually get money for payment.

Ballardo awoke us the next morning at 6.30am so that we would have time to prepare and also to avoid the high tides of the various rivers that crossed the beach on our way down the coast. We took with us just our tent, rainjacket and sunscreen. First we walked for 1hr to Drake to get supplies that consisted of bread rolls, biscuits and plenty of water.

We then, after a short walk along the beach, entered the jungle for our first days trekking. We were heading towards a place called Rincon which was where we would set up tent for the night. We passed quite a number of locals on the way through the jungle and Ballardo seemed to know them all emitting a sort of jungle-yodal to each one to catch their attention. We saw many animals on the way including scarlet mccaws, white-faced monkeys and toucans and at one point had to cross a crocodile-infested creek by boat. We continued through the jungle following the coastline, sometimes walking along beautiful deserted beaches before re-entering the jungle.

A few hours later, we finally made it to Rincon and pitched our tent on the beach just as the skies opened and the rain started to fall. This was when Ballardo discovered that he has left his tent poles behind. We thought this wouldn't be a problem though as being Jungleman he would be able to fashion a bivouac from palm leaves in no time at all. Minutes later however, he has returned to inform us that he is going to stay with jungle friends at their place a small walk from where we are camped. We started to wonder if he really was the jungle man!

Anyway, Ballardo invited us over to meet his friends Rafa and his wife Lidietta who he hadn't seen for a few months and they gave us a hot meal and then asked us whether we would like to stay with them. We refused politely as we wanted to stay on the beach in our tent. It became apparent as the night wore on that to refuse their offers of hospitality would appear to them as an insult so the next time they offered we accepted. As though an important multi-million dollar contract had just been agreed on, there was much shaking of hands and smiling faces.

Rafa and Lidietta are charming people and couldn't do enough to make us feel comfortable. We learned from Ballardo that Rafa had fought in Vietnam against the Americans and had helped train the Viet Cong on behalf of the Nicuraguan government (he was born in Nicuragua). Suffice to say, he doesn't have much time for the Americans.

Later on that evening we walked along the beach with Rafa and his wife to a local bar called Poor Mans Paradise where we shared a few beers. On the way, Rafa and Ballardo caught crabs which later became a delicious soup.

Rafa and Lidietta spoke no English but we got by as best we could with Ballardo as our intermediatery but it was not always clear what was being said or agreed on between him and Rafa. Having no money, we were wary of accepting too much from them but Ballardo assured us that it was all taken care of even though we were not sure what that meant.

After a few more beers back at their home we were shown to our room as though we were royalty and slept well sheltered from the torrential downpour outside.

The next morning, after Lidietta made us breakfast we packed away our unused tent and entered the jungle once more. It was beautiful trekking, sometimes quite tough, but extremely rewarding as we saw a rare white falcon, more macaws, monkeys, toucans and pesotes. It got to the point where we were getting blase about the wildlife, it was so abundant.

At this point it needs to be said that although we were trekking in the jungle we were not actually inside the Corcovado protected area. The park at 50,000 hectares forms only part of the wider jungle which doesn't for some reason enjoy protected status even though it is still dense jungle. We walked to San Pedrillo rangers station on the edge of the park and against Ballardos advice (that there would be less wildlife becasue of the tourists) decided to pay $8 each to enter the park. We spent a couple of hours inside the park and although we enjoyed some cool trekking including some river crossings we only saw one agouti, a very expensive one at that.

Late afternoon, we made our way back to Rincon. The last part of the trek was at dusk including an exciting but quite scary scramble up a steep bank whilst thousands of bats screamed overhead. One hit Mel on the head which she didn't like very much.

Back at Rincon it was obvious we were going to be staying another night with Rafa and Lidietta.
In fact, they had pulled out all the stops that day and had assembled a large welcoming committee including a family friend Alex and Ballardos so called 'second father'. We got fed again on chicken that Lidietta had killed that afternoon and kept topped up on the local firewater Cacique, a kind of rum.
By this point, it was getting rather embarrassing for us as we had no money with which to tip them but they kept showering us with gifts including Ballardos crocodile necklace, a wallet (needed one of those), two necklaces for Mel and some lucky jungle beans. They seemed to have adopted us into the family and showed genuine heartfelt emotions promising that this would always be our home should we come back to the area. It was all quite fluffy and overwhelming.

See pics here of the end of trek party!

We went to bed exhausted and drunk.

In the morning and following a swim with we waited on the beach for a boat to take us back to Drake so that we could pick up our backpacks. We then took a taxi and headed towards Jiminez. Rafa and Lidietta came with us and invited us to stay the night with their daughters family in La Palmar, it would then be an easy matter of getting the bus to Jiminez the next morning to find a bank...

Again, we were fussed over like were royalty and more food and Cacique was forced on us. Rafa gave Mel his army hat as used in Vietnam and then proceeded to show off his scars where he was shot!

Rafa organised a taxi for us in the morning after a Cacique 'hair of the dog' and we all headed to Jiminez together to find a bank such that we could pay Ballardo and Rafa and Lidietta. I don't know why Rafa and Lidietta needed to accompany us but it soon became apparent that Ballardo had been promising them tips for all the meals, lodging and transport etc and that this had totalled quite a large sum.

Just our luck the bank was closed and the ATM didn't work. We were beginning to panic now and Rafa and Ballardo were starting to look nervous. We had one last chance to get cash and that was to get the ferry across the bay to Golfito (30min) to find the ATM there. Mel agreed to go with Ballardo whilst I stayed behind with Rafa getting drunk in a bar. It was a tense afternoon, especially as Rafa kept buying me beers that I was obliged to repay him for.

Eventually, Mel and Ballardo reappeared with the money and there was much celebration all round including another round of beers. There then followed an awkward moment whilst we paid Rafa/Lidietta, I don't think they felt they were properly compensated and Rafa's mood turned dark. It was embarrassing for us as had we known that everything had a cost attached we might have made different decisions. And they kept reiterating all along that all their hospitality was free and from the kindness of their hearts.

We all stayed in Jiminez for the night and went out to a local restaurant with the others which was tense as Rafa and Lidietta had obviously had a fight over the money amongst other things, which got worse when they found out they were to pay for their half of dinner.

So, we returned back to the hotel a little upset that our wonderful experience had been tarnished at the finishing post but I think it will blow over and that we will all remain good friends for life!

After an emotional goodbye to Ballardo we left Jiminez the next day for Golfito and onwards to Panama for Xmas and NYE!

In summary, I think that before our journey we had a romanticised notion about what it would be like. I think we felt that we would be camping in the middle of the jungle living off berries and catching our dinner etc but in fact what we got was a more authentic experience of the jungle and the people who live in the jungle.

For a complete set of our Costa Rica photos click here.

Facts
Rio Drake Lodge: $6 per peron per night camping

The Big Trip: Costa Rica - Panic a snake!

2006-12-11T00:43:00.000Z

OK. So what to say about Costa Rica. It is by far the most developed country we have been so far and there is a large US influence of course, the worst part being you bump into a lot of Americans but if you can ignore that half and just concentrate on the wildlife then it has so much to offer with probably the most diverse ecosystems in Central America. If you´re into birds then this is the place to come but suffice to say there is stilll no sign of that damned elusive Quetzal!

We began our Costa Rican experience in Liberia. This is a fairly non-descript town but which provides a good base from where to visit the Rincon de la Viejo national park. On our arrival in Liberia, we found the Liberia Hotel which was run by very friendly people providing good advice. However, we then found out that not only was the park closed on Mondays (the next day) but that the country was inconsiderate enough to be holding national elections with the bizarre and wholly inexplicable side-effect of a ban on alcohol sales for two whole days, can you believe that! So, the next day we decided to spend on the Nicoye Peninsula. We began at Playa del Coco which was an awful place and so quickly moved on to Playa Hermosa which was nicer but very US in flavour with condominiums a plenty. Still, we had an enjoyable day on the beach and got some snorkelling in.

The next day we went to Rincon. It was fantastic walking culminating in a lovely waterfall and even a hummingbird and nest spot by yours truly! See our pictures here.

6 Dec
We got an early bus towards Monteverde having made the decision not to go to Fortuna and Volcano Aranel (having already been to Volcan Pacaya). We arrived early evening at St Elena (St Elena and Monteverde are both small villages separated by 5kms and both have cloud rainforest reserves) and found accomodation at Cabinas Del Pueblos . St Elena is a pretty albeit quite touristic village and reminds me of an alpine skiing village but with rainforest instead of snow!

We decide to spend the first of our two days here at St Elena cloud rainforest which is spectacular (pics here) although the day, of course, doesn´t pass of without incident. Towards of the end of our walk through the forest, and just after I say to Mel that it's a pity we havn't seen a snake, I go and step on one. I didn't spot it until I walked over it but Mel did. Unfortunately the snake now separated us and I was in a dead-end path with no where to go. The snake was not going to move and was on the defensive, it's head reared up and giving me the snake-eyes!
We deliberated about what we should do whilst the snake remained motionless staring me out. Nothing phased it and it didn't flinch even after we threw sticks at it, nor did it budge when a Dorito came it's way. We decided that the best course of action was for Mel to run back to the lodge and get the wardens. So off she went and half an hour later the cavalry arrived with a long pointed stick and removed the offending article. We were then able to return safely to base to ponder over what went wrong. Pics here.

The next morning was the zipwiring tour! Zipwiring, for those of you unaware, is when you slide down a series of taut wires attached by a harness to a small flywheel, and you literally zip from point to point. In Montervede and St Elena the tours take you over and through the rainforest canopy. Our company EXTREMO! had only been operating for two weeks and had the highest (100m) and the longest (750m) wire around. For about an hour and a half we zipped around the canopies like monkeys on speed sometimes not being able to see anything around us but mist. The tour finished with a 30m rappell followed by a stomach-churning tarzan swing (there is movie footage of us doing this, to be added later I hope). As there were only three of on the tour we were allowed to do the swing again but it didn't make it any less scary.

In the evening we cooked spag bol which was nice as you don't often get the chance to cook for yourself when travelling around.

9 Dec and 10 Dec - yesterday
We move on from the rainforests to the coast and Quepos which turns out to be an absolute dump and an evil place, it's only saving grace is that it's cheap to stay there (we stayed at the Wide Mouthed Frog) and it's near the national park of Manuel Antonio. We spent the following day at the park which is small but perfectly formed with the abundant wildlife more than compensating for the tourists. In the space of five minutes we saw white-faced monkeys being cheeky, a pesote (similar to a raccoon) enjoying a coconut, a sloth with baby not doing much and iguanas topping up their tans on the rocks.

Interesting fact about sloths. Sloths are not what you'd call killing machines but they do exhibit aggressive tendencies occasionally. On the rare occasions when they do fight, the spectacle apparently resembles t'ai chi recorded in slow motion.

So, after a gorgeous day out in the park we pack our bags and head off towards Uvita which is halfway to Corcovado National Park, our most eagerly anticipated part of Costa Rica. However, we missed our stop for the Toucan hostel and had to change our plans and stay in Uvita village instead. But, when we went to collect our backpacks from the luggage compartment I discovered to my shock that somewhere along the way from Quepos someone had taken my backpack thinking it was theirs (in the dark they must have looked the same). So, I am left holding a knackered old backpack containing pots and pans and a machete. At this point I am in shock trying to come to terms with all that has probably been lost, the tent, clothes, chargers, toothbrush etc and wondering what the hell we are going to do. Luckily, my daypack contains everything of real importance like all mour documents, iPod, camera etc.

We decide to stay in Uvita for the night (at an overpriced and bland room costing $30, haggled down from $50!) with the intention of catching the same bus going back to Quepos at 5am the next morning in the hope that the other person was as eager to get back their belongings and would perhaps intercept us on the way through.

11 Dec
After the worst nights sleep yet, we awoke this morning and caught the 5am back towards Quepos. I am in a foul mood and Mel is very patient to the extreme. As luck would have it, about an hour up the road Mel, the star, spotted my pack at the side of the road along with an anxious looking local. I jumped off the bus feeling a huge sense of relief and also disbelief that we had been reunited. I exchanged bags and hugs with the man, it was a moment.

Back in Quepos, we awaited the bus going back south and it was here we met a French Canadian woman called Carol and her daughter Tabitha going the same way and also planning on staying in Corcovado at a lodge just outside Drake Bay on the northern side. Since we had no real plans for doing Corcovado yet we have decided to go with them to the lodge and have got as far as Palmar Norte, a shitehole in the middle of nowhere, where we are staying at a Chinese restaurant.

I lost another wallet today with $20 in it. I should stop doing this.

Tomorrow, we head for the Corcovado and the unknown.

Adios!

Facts
Currency is the Colon with 535 Colons to $1
Liberia Hotel - $7 per night for dorm
Cabinas Del Pueblos $10 per room with shared kitchen and lounge
Wide Mouthed Frog $9 per night with pool

The Big Trip: Nicuragua - Manholes and Leatherbacks

2006-12-03T23:37:00.000Z

Buenos Noches!

Phew...the last two weeks seem to have flown by.

Nicuragua is an extraordinarily friendly country and I only wish we could have spent more time there, it has so much to offer, although it could do something about all the holes in the streets...
It has some amazing volcanoes and crater lakes, beautiful sunsets, fantastic surfing (if that's your thing) and stunning wildlife. Also, the rum is to die for, especially a brand called Flor De Cana. Bottles sell for around $5 and they are extremely drinkable. There is a 4yr, a 5yr, a 7yr, 12yr and apparently a 20yr. I intend to try them all and report back.

So, we finally managed to leave the island of Utila and after spending one night in Tegucigalpa, the decididly dodgy capital of Honduras, we finally arrived in Granada. After a couple of unsuccessfull attempts to find accommodation we are eventually offered a room in a house affilated with a youth hostel called Hospidaje La Libertad ($15/rm inc breakfast and free internet), a really cool collection of rooms around a courtyard with a fountain. We spent the rest of the evening just wandering around people watching and eating pizza. Granada is a very picturesque colonial town nestled on the western side of Lago Nicuragua which is so large it seems more of a sea than a lake. It reminds me very much of Antigua in it's layout and color scheme.

The next day we arose late and spent the day just doing our admin. Every now and again you need to stop somewhere and spend time on the boring stuff like laundry, writing emails, buying bits and pieces from the shops etc. It's amazing how quickly a day passes without actually seeming to have done anything. One of the great things about being away for so long is that when you want to, you can just decide to do nothing for the day and just sit around being lazy. This doesn´t happen (with me anyhow) when you only have two weeks somewhere. I'm always up at the crack of dawn planning the day to get the most out of the trip which means you get a lot done but at the same time is not really relaxing. It's refreshing not having to think like that although Mel will testify that this behaviour still rears it's ugly head every now and again, and probably more often than that!

Anyhow, after mooching around all day we decide to go and catch happy hour at The Bearded Monkey. We had just left the apartment to head out for the evening when I heard Mel cry out behind me. I turned around in alarm, my adrenaline already rushing through my veins to see Mel chest high in a manhole(womanhole?) in the road. I rushed over and pulled her out (surprisingly easy on adrenaline!) and sat her down on the curb. I really expected her to have broken her leg or some ribs but luckily she came away with only some bruising and a nasty cut on her stomach that we decided required stitches. After enquiring at the hostel we managed to find a local pharmacy/surgery that was open and within half an hour a doctor had arrived and stitched her up good and proper. And all this cost only $10 and she was seen to quicker than she would have been in the UK! So far, I am impressed with the Latin American health service.
By the way, the reason why there are so many holes in the road in Nicuragua is that thieves steal all the covers for the scrap metal value.

The following day, not wanting to be deterred by her injury, we hired bikes and cycled up to a local butterfly farm and spent the afternoon chatting with the owners about butterflies. They recommended a local comidor for dinner and it was here that we discovered the delights of the Nicuraguan rum Flor de Caña after accidentally ordering a bottle of it...

When we both came around, we realized it was morning and that we had arranged to spend the day at a lakeside lodge called the Monkey Hut, part of the Bearded Monkey hostel. It's set in a beautiful location on the edge of a crate lake and we nursed our heads kayaking and swimming although Mel didn't because she wasn't allowed to what with her stitches and that.

We vowed to leave Granada the next day and headed to the Isle of Ometepe. This is an island consisting of two volcanoes in the centre of Lago Nicuragua. At this point we were travelling with our German friend Marcus who we first met in Guatemala, then in Utila and then found again in Granada. I knew we would probably bump into people again and again as there is a north south 'trail' which a lot of travellers follow but it still surprises you when you turn up in some seemingly remote part of a different country and meet someone you know. Also, it becomes a bit of a joke saying when after each emotional goodbye you just bump into the same individual a few days/weeks later. But you never know so you go through the motions anyway. Actually, one of the upsetting parts of this travelling lark is that you make quite intense friendships with people over a short period of time and then wave goodbye knowing that you probably won't see them again.

So, we found a really cute hospidaje in Altagracia called Hotel Ortiz($5pppn) run by a very friendly fellow who called himself Mario. He helped us by informing us of the various excursions speaking Spanish very slowly.

In the morning we took the local bus to Agua de Ojo, a natural spring on the side of one of the volcanoes, it was very pretty. We then walked down to Playa Santa Domingo where we had lunch and it started to rain...very hard. When the last bus back failed to materialize, we waited over an hour in the rain watching the monkeys, we decided to try to walk the 7kms back in the dark. Luckily, after about 30mins we were picked up by some lads in a 4x4 and soon realized that walking back was a stupid idea.

29th Nov
We leave the hotel and Marcus (for definitely the last time) and catch a ride to Chaco Verde on the southern tip of the western volcano. Chaco Verde is a small national park and a place to chill and watch monkeys and that's exactly what we did as well as imbibing more of Nicuraguas lovely rum. We left the island the next day to head towards San Juan Del Sur just in time to miss the sunset. San Juan del Sur is a small surfers paradise on the south western point of Nicuragua and apparently blessed with fantastic sunsets! We stayed in the Hospidaje Casa 28 ($5pp, horrible beds).

The next day we headed for La Flor, a turtle conservation refuge some way south of San Juan. We had heard of an expensive hotel there that the guide book said we could also camp at but when we arrived they wouldn't accept us and were asking for $80 a night for one of their cabinas! So we had one other option, to try to get to the rangers station on the beach and stay there. We hitched down there and managed to avoid paying the $27 charge for camping on the beach by agreeing to set up tent next to the station on hard ground. We cooked potatoes for dinner that we had brough from the expensive hotel. Then went to the beach armed with our torches to find turtles. We bumped into the park wardens who let us wander around with them. It was a good idea as no sooner as we had started they found us a newly hatched nest of baby turtles making their way towards the sea and freedom (I say freedom loosely as only one in a hundred of the babies will actually survive the various dangers inherent in the journey).
Minutes later and we strike the jackpot! Large tracks lead us up the beach to a line of palms where underneath a large female leatherback is digging her nest so that she may lay her eggs.
It's an incredible sight and we stay there for about an hour whilst she lays her eggs, the rangers allowing us photos providing they are taken from behind! We leave before she returns to the sea but the next day we return to find a set of tracks leading back to the ocean.

After returning to San Juan Del Sur for one night we headed for the border at Peñas Blancas which we crossed with minimal fuss before finishing our journey at Liberia, our first stop in Costa Rica!

Facts:
Currency: Cordoba 18 to one dollar
Best rum: Flor De Caña 7rs

The Big Trip: Honduras - Pills, Thrills and Bellyaches

2006-11-21T22:19:00.000Z

Well, Utila has been a game of two halves.

Utila is the smallest and the flattest of the three major Bay Islands and is closest to the Honduran mainland. Utila is a different world to mainland Honduras because of the British influence on the Bay Islands for 300 years. The island is mostly uninhabited except for the small fishing village of East Harbor, now home to many dive companies. Historically Utila was largely a fishing and agrarian community but it's prmary source of income is now diving tourism.

It's very different here to Guatemala, a distinct Carribean vibe and more affluent. The food here is good, plenty of rice and beans and good quality chicken, fish and steak! A special mention goes to RJs opposite the dive centre which had great snapper and wahoo.

The language here of the locals is weird though. I can recognise all the words as being English but I still can't work out what anyone's talking about, it's like the words are all in a fifferent order. Also, the music here is terrible and has almost driven me mad. It's called Reggaeton and is a hybrid of dancehall and ragga. In a word, it's shit and has no discernible merit whatsoever. I'll be happy to leave it behind.

So, we arrived by ferry about 10 days ago to absolute perfect Carribean sunshine and headed for the dive company Altons that had been recommended to us by a couple of friends we met in the Spanish school. We decided to take accommodation with the school as it was very cheap ($4pp or free if doing a course) and situated right beside the jetty. Mel enrolled to do her PADI advanced course following a refresher dive the next day whilst I signed up for a package of fun dives.

The next few days saw some fantastic diving especially in Turtle Harbour on the north side of the island. Notable sightings included

hawsbill turtles

barracuda

porcupine fish

lobsters

a nice octopus on a night dive (also cool bioluminescence)

juvenile spotted drum fish

However, the weather didn't hold out and for the last few days we have witnessed the belated beginning of the rainy season in Utila. The atmosphere is completely different to the preceeding few days. The rain has been falling hard, the visibility has deteriorated and the mood of everyone here dampened. It hasn't helped that the same time as the weather worsened so did my health. This was due to taking antibiotics on an empty stomach following a mild fever resulting in it burning a hole in my stomach lining making every mouthfull feel like swallowing scolding water doubling up in pain. So I have been out of action for the last few days feeling very unsociable because I can't eat or drink and we have been going stir crazy in our little prison cell sized room with only our books to keep us company. It really has been quite dull and I am only now starting to feel a little better.

The last couple of days we have been trying to leave the island but the weather is so bad that the ferries have been unable to leave. Thus we have resorted to booking a flight out of here to the mainland tomorrow morning.

I shall be quite happy to leave after the last few days although overall our experience of Utila has been great, having each got in about 15 quality dives!

Tomorrow begins the long journey south to Nicuragua...

Books read:

Pillars Of The Earth by Ken Follett: Thought I'd hate it but it was a great providing much insight into daily life in the middle ages in England

Marinou Stork Nightmares by Irvine Welsh: nasty book full of grim characters that I probably should of read when I was 17

The Big Trip: The Ruins Of Tikal

2006-11-10T22:47:00.000Z

Since the last update we have reluctantly left the beautiful Guatemala behind us for Honduras and are now about to embark on the second phase of our trip. Tomorrow we catch a ferry to Utila, one of the Bay Islands of Honduras where we will be hoping to notch up a few dives!

But that's all in the future. Let's catch up on the past few days shall we?

We stayed at El Retiro in Lanquin for a couple of days which, as mentioned before, is a beautiful ecolodge, in the central region of Guatemala. Incidentally, they also have a fantastic iPod service so I am now packing a mean collection of tunes.

The highlight of any trip to this region is the day excursion to the Ka'anba caves and the Semuc Champey national park. The cave expedition ranks up there with Volcan Pacaya as another excursion paying scant regard to health and safety regulations. On arrival we were kitted up with a single candle and then told to follow the guide into the caves. Having rained a lot in recent days we expected it to be wet but we didn't realise was that for most part we would be neck deep in cold water and swimming upstream in an underground river. It felt like proper Indiana Jones stuff as we all swam slowly through the cave system holding our candles above us or at some points in our mouths. The best was to come though as the guide to each of us in turn behind a surging underground waterfall. There was a sense of elation in everyone's faces as we exited the caves in a torrent of water.

In the afternoon, we moved on to the national park of Semuc Champey. This is a paradise of pools and waterfalls set amidst a lush valley with some fantastic walking trails. We spent a few hours here enjoying the clear turqoise waters of the stepped baths. The pools are actually a limestone bridge over the river Cahbon (don't ask me how they were formed) and upstream you can see the water being channeled under the bridge, as it thuders through it is a spectular sight. You wouldn't want to fall in here.

Our second day at Lanquin was a little more sedate with some nice tubing down the river (link to follow hopefully) and then in the afternoon a trip to the local batcaves of Lanquin which was very cool as you could sit at the entrance of the caves at dusk and experience the bats emerging in their thousands.

The following morning we arose early to make the long journey to Tikal national park which contains the spectacular Mayan ruins and is set deep in the jungle of northern Guatemala. The best way to see Tikal is to enter the park after 3pm (Q50 to enter), this then allows you free entry for the entirety of the next day. You are then able to experience the awesome sunset and sunrise in this mystical place.

We were too tired to go straight to the park after our travelling so we decided to spend the night at El Remate on the northwestern shore of Lago Peten Itza. We found a cute hotel called La Casa de Dona Tonita (Q60pp) and spent the evening swimming in the warm waters of the lake.

The next afternoon we caught a local bus to the park entrance. We had decide to camp here at the Jaguar Inn as not only was it the cheapest option amongst many expensive cabañas but it would allow us to be right at the park entrance for the sunrise tour.

It's difficult to describe how wondeful Tikal is. Although thousands of years old it feels very alive and you can easily imagine what it must have been like back then. See this wiki for further information. We watched the sunset from the top of the Temple Del Mundo and after asking one of the guides were permitted to stay in the park until after closing allowing us to experience the ruins by moonlight, it was magical.

The next morning we were up at 4.30 for the sunrise tour (Q100). Our group was led by the guide to Temple IV where we all climbed to the top to wait for the sun. We were greeted by an awe-inpiring view of the jungle with swirls of mist hanging above the canopy. As the sun edged it's way over the horizon the howler monkeys started to speak to each other, it was an unearthly sound and quite eery. It was the most mystical ting I have ever experienced...man! Incidentally fact fans, this exact view was used as the backgound to the rebel base in Star Wars!

Photos of Tikal here.

After a few more hours exploring the ruins and watching the monkeys we left Tikal and travelled east towards the border and the second country of our trip, Honduras. We stayed in Rio Dulce near the border for a couple of nights at a hostel called The Backpackers. Rio Dulce is a beautiful river and a very popular stopoff for those yachting around the Caribbean. Not owning a yacht, we spent an afternoon on a walking tour around a local reservation and chilling in a nearby ecolodge.

The next day (yesterday) was another long day travelling across the border into Honduras and up to the north coast to the rather non-descript town of La Ceiba. Tomorrow we will take the ferry over to Utila for a few days diving - I can already feel the Carribean vibe taking over!!

I shall miss Guatemala a great deal especially my time at the school and with the family. It is a beautiful country of beautiful people and one day I will return. Although next time I shall be more careful of my things.

The Big Trip: The Drunken Horse Race of Todos Santos

2006-11-03T17:57:00.000Z

Finally managed to post this update from an ecolodge in Central Guatemala. We are now staying at the beautiful El Retiro lodge in a village called Lanquin in the Verapaces region where we are chilling out for a couple of days before heading northwards to our final destination of Tikal.

We left San Pedro last Sunday after completing our third week of lessons at the school. It was quite hard saying goodbye to those we had spent so much time with, especially our teachers and family. On Saturday, we had our last meal of pizza as prepared by our US friend Caitlin and then on Sunday headed by boat to Panajachel where we would head towards Todos Santos for the annual drunken horse race and Day Of The Dead celebrations. Joining us for the ride was Joel, an Aussie with an eye for sarcasm and a fiercely competitive card player.

We made such good time that we managed to reach Todos in the evening and we arrived to a surreal scene. The small highlands village was shrouded in fog and in the small central square there were two antiquated ferris wheels along with some fairground stalls that looked like they could have been pulled from the Victorian era. It was like something out of a Stephen King novel and if an evil clown had turned up he wouldn't have been out of place. Coupled with this, all the people here where the same traditional costume/uniform so the square was filled with groups of men and boys all wearing the traditional red stripey trousers, white shirt and straw boaters who all turned to watch us as we walked across the square to try out the rustier and most dangerous looking of the two wheels.

Sticking to backpacking principles we found the cheapest place in town, a barn at Casa Mendoza (Q30 each) where we spent a freezing night, vowing to find a hotel the next morning.

Monday:
The next morning the cold mist had dissipated leaving behind it a beautiful springlike day.
We spent some of the morning trying to find alternative accommodation, eventually settling on Hotel Mam, where the three of us found a room to share that was warmer and had a shower.

After lunch we checked out the local Spanish school for learning or volunteering opportunities as there was still over two days until the actual race, but had no luck what with the fiesta and all.

Mel and I explored the village in the afternoon, a very small but pretty village nestled in the valley at 2500 metres up. We walked a loop around the village passing a slaughterhouse on the way just as the butchers were pulling the entrails from a cow's carcass. The crazed smiles of the butchers and the pack of snarling dogs waiting by the entrance just added to the feeling that this place wasn't quite right...

The bizareness continued into the evening where we attended a crowning ceremony at the local vilage hall. It was a kind of beauty pageant in which the local girls took turns solemnly parading themselves down the hall with a strange shuffle like dance before being crowned on the stage. We stayed for what seemed like an eternity whilst these expressionless girls walked past all the while being filmed by their proud parents and accompanied by an hilarious 3 piece marimba band (The marimba, by the way, is the national instrument of Guatemala, is similar to a large xylophone and normally played by 3 people).

It got a bit boring so we went back to the hotel to play more cards and have a beer in the hope that when we returned events would have livened up a bit. But no, now it was speech time and every girl took her turn on the mike thanking everyone first in Mam, the local Mayan language, then in Spanish. We left after the first one had finished having congratualted ourselves on experiencing some of the local culture. At least the food was top notch!

Tuesday:
The next day was spent just chilling and waiting for the race although we did go on an interesting tour of the local pueblos. Later that night we stayed up drinking the local firewater quetzalteca and playing cards.

Wednesday - Race Day Nov 1:
Every year on this day the Todos Santians hold a spectacular all day drunken horse race (the riders, not the horses) that starts at 8 in the morning and continues all the way through to 5 stopping for 2hrs at lunch so the riders can refuel with more beer. This tradition started hundreds of years ago following the invasion of the Spanish Conquistadors who introduced horses to Guatemala that were stronger and had more stamina than the indiginous animals used at the time. The Mayans resented the Spanish mastery of their horses and consulted their Shamans if they could use the horses too. The Shamans said that the nature of the Mayans was not in harmony with the nature of the horse but if they could show that they could master the animal then this would show that they too possessed similar strength to that of the invaders. Out of this arose the ritual of the race whereby the potential riders would drink copious quantities of beer before being introduced to a horse they had never ridden before in order to prove their mastery and manhood. The riders ride in teams and spent the whole of the preceeding night at the captains house drinking beer and singing as it could be their last night alive (20 riders have died in the past few decades). The race and accompanying fiesta are so important to the locals that they will spend their entire years savings on the one day which may include the hiring of the horse, and all the drink and lavish food.

We watched the race unfold during the day as the riders got more drunk and we witnessed quite a few falls, some hilarious and some that looked wince-inducingly painful.

See the pics here.

Thursday and Friday:
We left the morning after, nursing our sore heads and saying our godbyes to Joel, with the intention of getting as a far as we could towards Lanquin where we had heard there is a beautiful lodge by the river where we could relax a couple of days after the Todos madness. We took a microbus to Huehue then got another to Uspantan, a miserable place with an all year round light drizzle, where we had to spend the night in a dinghy hotel. The weather took a turn for the worse the following morning as we made an early start towards Coban. This involved a treachorous and highly stupid journey over the mountain pass where we were forced to stop for over 2hrs whilst the road was cleared of a boulder the size of a small car! I did feel quite nervous...

Well, we finally made it to the lodge in Lanquin in the afternoon which is as amazing as we were told.

Films we have seen update:
The Motorcycle Diaries - wonderful film about an epic journey around South America by Che Guevara and friend by motorbike
Crash - the best film I have seen in years. It is about racial tensions and stereotypes and follows the story of several LA residents over a 24hr period.

The Big Trip: Maximon and the Lost Keys

2006-10-22T18:00:00.000Z

Another week gone and the Spanish is really coming on well now. I have learnt the pretorit, imperfect and future tenses this week along with stacks of vocabulary. It's going so well in fact that we are going to spend another week here at the school.

Not much else to report on this week.

On Tuesday we went to see the Shawshank Redemption at one of the local cafes. However many times I see this film I never get bored of it, it's an absolute classic.

We were invited to a good birthday party at a bar called Jarachik on Wednesday. Jammed with band on the bongos for a while until it started to rain hard and we all had to move inside. Also, went to a fantastic chill out bar Zoola to watch the same musicians jam the next night.

Saturday was quite an eventful day.

We finally met Maximon today. Maximon is an wooden effigy representing a Mayan God. There are several of these located in various parts of Guatemala and they must be placated with gifts, most usually a cigar and rum! Read more about him here.

The most revered Maximon lives in Santiago Atitlan, a small market town just 20mins boat ride from San Pedro. We arrived late morning and were immediately accosted by a group of young chicos who all offered to take us to him for a small fee of Q5. After a brisk 5min walk we arrived at the current residence of Maximon and paid our Q10 to have our photo taken with him.

Later on, in the evening, Mel prepared a traditional Aussie BBQ for our family before we went out to the Buddha bar for drinks. A good night was had by all and we arrived back at our house at 1.30am, slightly inebriated, only to find we had left our keys inside our room! We tried to knock on the door and call out for Juan but with no success. It was then I had the drunken but brilliant idea of climbing onto the roof of the house so that I could access the property from the stairwell (they are currently adding a couple of floors to their place to accomodate more students so the stairwell is open to the elements). Melanie skillfully hoisted me up and somehow I managed to pull myself up onto the roof before tiptoeing down the stairs to let her in. It was then I discovered that we needed the keys to open the door from the inside. I turned to head towards our room to recover the keys to find the door locked (presumably by Juan after we left). So....I'm stuck in the reception area and Mel is waiting outside and everything has taken a turn for the worst, when Juan walks out loking slightly dazed and confused asking what's going on. The next few minutes we spent embarrasingly trying to explain, in Spanish, with the aid of our phrase books what had happened.

I think they are ok with everything now. I wrote them a letter this morning to apologise.

So, today there has been torrential rain from 1pm so I have pretty much been sitting here updating this blog and my photos. Later on we will head towards the Alegro where we hope to defend our pub quiz title.

The Big Trip: Kayaking and Chichicastenango

2006-10-16T23:54:00.000Z

"Romans They Go The House" ?

It's Monday morning and time to tell you about what we've been up to in the last few days.

Our classes are going well and by the end of this afternoon we will have completed our first week. Clarita seems quite happy with my progress so I am going to step up to 5hrs a day for the second week.

Have been learning all my present tense irregular verb conjugations in the last couple of days which has been pretty tough going but I´m sure I'll get the hang of them eventually.

We had quite an eventful weekend. Saturday we went on a kayaking expedition to San Marcos where we jumped off rocks and swam in the lake. It also saw the first appearance of the frisbee (thanks Damo). You can track the journey of the frisbee in this link if you like. Just add it to your bookmarks to follow it's trail across the Americas!!

We met up with the same crew later on at a bar called Alegra where we downed a couple of litres of Sol before heading off to Chillies for some live music. Messiness ensued and we ended up in a club called Freedom playing superb Drum&Bass. Somehow we ended up being the last people there and we stumbled around San Pedro looking to party further with the bands trombonist (tromboner?).

Needless to say next morning we felt pretty groggy but we had to be done at the lakeside to catch a 7.45 bus to Chichicastenango for it was market day! Although quite touristy now and no cheaper than anywhere else it is still worth a visit to this famous market as the hustle and bustle of the traders and the kaleidoscopic array of colours make for sensory overload, even better with a hangover!

But not only that, there is a Shaman idol up on the steep hill just outside the town that you must see if ever you're here. It or he is called Pasqual Abaj and many people make the trip here to send messages via the shaman or to pray for luck and prosperity to loved ones dead or alive. It's quite an intense feeling being there and although we didn't witness it, there is quite often sacrifices of live chickens and pigs etc.

Pics of Chichi and Pasqual here.

Last night we arranged to meet up with some of the people we went to Chichi with but the rain was so heavy that we couldn't get down there. So instead, we went back to the Alegra for a burger and a pub quiz which we won netting us two bottles of Sol. Nice. We'll be back there next to defend our title.

Tonight we are cooking omelettes for our family.

The Big Trip: San Pedro

2006-10-12T22:13:00.000Z

Adios mis amigos y bienvenida a San Pedro. Estoy escribiendo esta de un Internet cafe. Esta viernes en la manaña and todo is bueno! Estamos estudiando a la escuela de San Pedro y viviendo con una familia cerca del centro.

Esta espanol es facil.

Mirar.

Me llamo Estuardo y estoy bonito, guapo, inteligente, simpatico, generoso, amable y astuto.

No problema.

(corrections, especially from Cathal appreciated)

We have been here for two days now and have yet to learn the past tense so will write in good ol English for the remainder of this entry. I would have blogged earlier but we have had a power cut here which began when we arrived and has only just come back on.

We arrived by boat Tuesday lunchtime crossing the impossibly beautiful Lake Atitlan and were taken by a little man to the San Pedro school of Spanish where we enrolled for a fortnight of one to one Spanish lessons starting that afternoon. We are both taking 4hrs a day from one to five at a cost of $56, a bargain! Also, we have decided to stay with a local family to maximise our immersion in the langauge. Besides, it´s $50 for a weeks board with three meals a day except Sunday when they all go to church.

We were soon introduced to our 'mother' Rosalia who took us up through the winding cobbled streets of San Pedro to our home to be for the next two weeks. There we met her husband Juan and 15yr old son Abner. Also, there is a third student staying here Caitlin who's from Seattle and who already speaks pretty good Spanish. In a way it's a good thing that she's here as the family don't speak a single word of English.

The house is quite modest although I think for San Pedro Rosalia and Juan are quite well off. The house is currently being extended with two extra floors being added to take further students so when it's complete they will be earning a tidy income from us students. To put it into perspective, they get $50 a week, or Q375 per student which is about the same as the weekly income of one of the teachers at the school. So, when there's 5 or 6 students there at any one time...

The family are lovely. Juan is a teacher at a local school whilst Rosalia makes cakes to sell locally and they are fantastic cakes!

We had our first lunch or almuerza of rice and goat which was surprisingly good!. Rosalia loves to cook and the foood is always fresh and very tasty although I'm already getting tired of tortillas. Then it was off to school, a 10min walk away down the steep hill towards the lake.

The school is beautiful and set in the perfect surroundings of the lake and volcanoes with little straw huts dotted around the gardens where the teaching takes place. It is the perfect place to learn and with all our meals being prepared for us at home we have nothing to do but concentrate on learning the language.

My teacher is Clarita, a 21yr old girl who has just recently got married. She is a bonita chica as you can see! Melanies teacher is Letty who is very nice also.

Our first lesson went well. Clarita speaks little English but in 4hrs we covered introducing yourself, age, origin, numbers and some basic verbs. I even got some homework.

After school, we returned home for cena (dinner) with our family. There being a blackout we had to eat by candlelight. We tried to have a conversation with our hosts but it mainly consisted of listening to them, nodding our heads and saying si every now and again. After dinner we went to bed as this learning lark is quite exhausting! We have Rosalia and Juans bedroom for the duration of our stay whilst they are camping out in another room. It´s quite nice with two double beds but there are no windows so is a little dark.

Yesterday morning after breakfast and completing our homework we explored San Pedro.
It is a town of about 6000 and a lot of them are hippies! We were worried at first as the first non-local we came across was a poi wielding Israeli crusty but thankfully that's the only one we've seen. It's low season here and there is a nice balance between the local culture and the hippy bars and internet cafes that are dotted around the town. I imagine that in high season this place becomes a bit like Glastonbury but as it is now I like it. The activities on offer here range from kayaking on the lake, horse riding and volcano climbing to chilling in the bars watching movies or salsa!

The local population are mostly Tzutzuhil, a Mayan community, and do not speak Spanish amongst themselves. Tzutzuhil sounds like Klingon - lots of glottal stops.

In the afternoon, it was back to class where I learnt telling the time, days, months and some prepositions.

Last night after dinner we went out to a bar called Buddha where we played darts, drank beer and shot some pool, home away from home I suppose but the music was good and the beer cold.
I think we may be spending quite a lot of time here in the next couple of weeks.

Have got to sign off now as we need to be back for lunch before this afternoons class.

Adios

The Big Trip: The Great Chicken Bus Robbery

2006-10-10T21:34:00.000Z

OK

So, three days into out trip and I have been pickpocketed already.

We are now in Panajachel which is a beautiful village on the northern tip of Lake Atitlan. I would love to tell you what a wonderful time we've had here but between making extended frustrating calls to cancel all my cards and avoiding the monsoon which starts at 2pm and persists well into the evening we havn´t really had a chance to chill.

So, on Sunday morning after a fantastic breakfast we packed our backpacks and set off in high spirits to find a chicken bus to take us to Panajachel. Luckily we found one straight away, so we threw our packs onto the roof, climbed on board and just hoped that the packs would still be there when we got to the other end. To get nto Panajachel you need to change at a non-descript town called Chimultenango. It was here, as we had just started the second leg of our journey that, as I patted my trouser pocket, I realised that I had been robbed. I have no idea who did it or when but my guess is that it was within a minute of getting on the first bus.

Now, any normal security conscious person with multiple cards and quite a lot of cash on them would split it all up carrying only what they might actually require on the journey. But not me. I had it all in safely stored my wallet in my unbuttoned jeans pocket.

I am now shaking with adrenaline with the realisation that someone is going to have one hell of a party tonight on four cards and $300 of cash. Oh, the stupidity. Added to this, the heavens have opened and we are stuck in some goddam hole that I can´t remember the name of waiting for another bus to take us down to Panajachel. After using the local toilet which is reminiscent of the scene from Trainspotting we finally catch the bus and arrived in Pana at 4pm. The next few hours are spent trying to call all of my banks where I find that 12 fraudulant transactions have already been made on my credit cards including two purchases from shoes.com and three from
another footwear website, so I´m guessing it was a woman who robbed me.

The local tourist office are great to us and waste no time in getting a police report for me that I can send to the insurance company. They also recommend a pleasant local hotel called Matitia (Q62 per dbl room) which we hole up in for the night. It has a parrot.

Today, I have spent more time in internet cafes sorting everything out. The card companies have scratched the fraudulant transactions so that´s a relief. I just need to get together all I need for the insurance claim.

It has been raining even harder this afternoon so we have decided to stay for one more night. Tomorrow we will take the local boat or llancha across the lake to San Pedro where we will begin our Spanish lessons!!

The Big Trip: Antigua

2006-10-07T20:16:00.000Z

So, we have been in Guatemala for two days and already I have had one of the most amazing experiences of my life.

Antigua is a great starting point for Guatemala and is the perfect place to acclimatise for a couple of days or so. Click here for a brief history of the town.

We arrived yesterday morning from Guatemala City and found our way to our hostel Casa Amarillo (Yellow House), a lovely little place on the NW of Antigua (dbl room inc breakfast $14). We spent the remainder of the morning just chilling and wandering the streets finding a great Menu del Dia on the way (Casa de los Mixtas Q15. ATW, the exchange rate is Q14 to GBP1). In the afternoon we took a police guided tour up to the Cerre de la Cruz, a crucifix positioned high on a nearby hill overlooking the town and with spectacular views of the volcanos. Although quite touristy the area around Antigua is still quite dangerous with attacks by bandidos not uncommon.

Today has been amazing.

This morning we took a tour around the local Azotea coffee plantation and museum which also included a fascinating exhibition of Guatemalan and Mayan instruments.

We got a lift back into town with the owner of the plantation who described what it was like for the coffee producers in Guatemala. The coffee produced here is some of the finest in the world, however, the locals don't see much of it as the best beans are all exported, mainly to the US market. The Guatemalan coffee producers like so many producers around the region are seeing their modest profits squeezed as the large overseas buyers impose crippling regulations in their quest for consistent quality at low prices.

So, all you coffee drinkers out there, try to remember to buy FairTrade as when you´ve seen the working conditions up close you can really understand the pressures these people are facing every day.

So, we get back to town with just enough time to grab some supplies before embarking on our journey to Volcan Pacaya, an active volcano an hours drive south of Antigua. We are doing the night hike up the volcano as we were told that it has been very quite active recently with plenty of lava flow action to see. However, we were not prepared for what was to come.

After an almost two hour fairly strenuous hike up the side of the volcano with just our headtorches for light we clambered over a ridge, through a fence marked 'Strictly No Entry´to see an awesome sight of multiple lava flows on the side of the volcano about 200m away.

I thought this would be as close as we could get but with complete disregard to all health and safety regulations the shambolic tour leaders took us on a treachorous scramble over days old lava flows to within feet of one of the red hot flows. The heat was almost unbearable and the sound of the flow was like the loud crackling of exploding popcorn as the red hot magma crawled past us down the volcano side. Needless to say I had to get up real close to get those pictures but withdrew after the smell of buring rubber reminded me of how close I actually was.

I took up an egg to fry like you see in the documentaries but it broke in my pocket.

Got back to the hostel at half midnight. Tomorrow we are going to head towards Panajachel on Lake Atitlan by the local chicken bus.

What could possibly go wrong...