Ali Baba

Last year when I was travelling people had told that me that Colombia was fantastic and it really was no word of a lie.......and thats why Ive been so poor keeping the blog up to date. And here I am with only 2 weeks left and struggling to fit it all in.... After Bogota I went to a place called Villa de Leyva. After a long winding mountain route I arrived to a very pretty colonial town...a place where a lot of Bogotanios go on the weekend or for holidays.....and when you get there you know why. It is nestled in the mountains and is a world away from the hustle of the city....the ground is a rich brown, the streets are cobbled, the walls are white -washed with ornate shutters and beautiful fuscia and orange ... read more

It´s very strange starting my blog again. I feel like a bit of a con when I´m only away for 5 weeks so I´m not really a long-haul traveller anymore. I was waiting to be inspired before I started it & it just so happens that I´m not fit for sight-seeing at the moment too after a very large almuerzo (a 2-3 course meal at the middle of the day...a lot of carbs too) so now is as good a time as any to start!! I arrived in Bogota on the Saturday of the May bank -holiday weekend. It´s a massive sprawling capital city. For me it´s always exciting the first day or two in a city but that´s usually enough. I must have picked the shabbiest taxi to ferry me into the city...it was more ... read more

I've been putting off doing my very final blog because it marks the end of my travels & even though I'm home a month now, I haven't accepted that this is it. I finished out the last week of my trip in Buenos Aires after spending a few days at the magnificent Iguazu waterfalls....las cascadas. I never expected to feel so sad about going home....for so much of the trip I missed home but it's very easy to slip into the rhythm of life in South America......maybe it's the life of Riley that was so easy to enjoy....no work, only play....complete self-fulfillment is yours to have!! Complete freedom....free from responsibility & life's worries. What you do between the times you eat & sleep is completely up to you.....where you eat & sleep essentially are the only ... read more

It was finally nice to touch-down after 3 days of traveling. I can´t say I was a happy bunny though.....having come from Ecuador´s sunny smile to arrive in Argentina´s winter I started to feel climate-related depression....& I think it reminded me of the days to come (& look forward to!?) at home!! I´ve been so lucky on my travels because I´ve had sunshine for most of the journey.....so finishing off my last 2 weeks in winter was a tough come-back to reality. I stayed in a hostel in Iguazu that comes highly recommended by lots of travelers. It´s a massive place about 5km outside Puerto Iguazu. It once was a casino but now it has been converted & has all the amenities that you might need.......with a big pool, restaurant, internet & laundry so there is ... read more

Fresh off the beach with a tan to go I thought that I´d tell you about Monatñita before the memories slip away with the last grains of sand!! I arrived in Ecuador to a big busy city in the south called Guayquil. It´s not somewhere you go to look at the architecture or marvel at anything in particular....just a pass-through to get you to the next place. I was sitting in a salad bar the day I arrived & a lady came up to me to tell me to be very careful & watch out......apparently it´s a dangerous enough city with a lot of crime.....like everywhere else all the security men are seen donning pistols....but in saying that I had no problems apart from the excessive attention that was bestowed upon me by men of all ... read more

Mancora, Peru. Beach. The first beach I´d seen since Australia really.....first beach that had all the neccessary factors for a proper beach experience. I´d forgotton how much I love the beach & was sorry that I didn´t get there earlier. Trekking is so over-rated!! Mancora is a small town where you´ll hear the blow of the passing buses at regular intervals as they steam through on the main Panamerican highway. The sun was shining with not too many tourists littering the beach & with handfuls of people jumping, flipping & spinning as they kite-surfed their way out to sea. It was a nice introduction to the beach lifestyle again....with my hostel just across the road from the beach so that getting dressed was simply throwing on a bikini. Lining the streets are loads of restaurants....some of ... read more

Huaraz is a city nestled in the Andes mountains from where a lot of travellers set out on various types of treks, from 3 to 10 days or more....depending on time & adventure! For me this was to be my last trek......the Santa Cruz trek over 4 days...although in retrospect I probably would have done it in 3 days because it isn't very hard...there is only one pass to cross & after that it is a walk in the park!! What I have found in Peru more than any other country is that the people are much more opportunistic & will always try to make a few extra nuevos soles out of your custom.....in other words they are always trying to rip you off which at times, isn't a nice feeling. I met one such man ... read more

There isn´t a whole lot to say about Lima from my experience I´m afraid.....not because it has nothing to offer but I was still on a go-slow after the trekking in Cusco & couldn´t bring myself to traipse around in search of the billion museums that are dotted about the city. After listening to the woes of other travellers I decided to fly there as apposed to the 25 or so hours it can take by bus.....the long bus-trips I can handle but living on my nerves for that length of time isn´t fun......all this finger-printing & smiling for photos before heading off on a roadtrip doesn´t inspire confidence in the least. However a local man did tell me that the reason wasn´t so much to do with road- traffic- accidents but rather to help prevent ... read more

After just a night in Puño I was on the early morning bus to Arequipa. Arequipa is a big city in the southern parts of Peru & is famous for the Colca Canyon that is located relatively nearby. It is one of the biggest canyons to be found in South America & apparently makes a great trek. But after day in Arequipa I realised that my uncharacteristic lack of appetite was indicative of dark days to come. I suppose I should know by now that a bout of the worms is always followed by a gastrointesinal infection.....thought I was getting quicker at reading the signs.....so for those of you of the same disposition as me.....you know what to expect in the future. So I didn´t get up to much in Arequipa except lie in bed & ... read more