http://www.travelblog.org/Bloggers/Convict/ Travel adventures in journals and photos from Convict en-us Thu, 31 Dec 2009 23:19:07 +0000 Thu, 31 Dec 2009 23:19:07 +0000 Another bus was required for our departure from Vietnam and entry to Cambodia. We arrived into Phnom Penh a feeling a little uneasy because of what we heard about tourist theft and because time was not necessarily on our side we knew that this country would be more of a flying visit compared to most of the others. After one night in Phnom Penh we got a bus to Siem Reap. The poverty of the country http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Cambodia/North/Angkor/blog-420296.html Our next stop on the south east Asian leg was Vietnam We arrived into the capital city Hanoi. Our experiences here were less than positive with the locals. It seemed that the term keeping your wits about you developed here and we tried to avoid being taken advantage of on more than one ocassion. We also found it slightly more challenging to get a taste for the local food than in some other cou http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Vietnam/blog-417767.html We flew into Bangkok from Singapore and this was our first real taste of South east Asia. We decided to go to the Khao San road because this is one of the cheapest and most popular places to eat and find accommodation. Khao San road is some people's worst nightmare but for us it was very interesting. You could walk up the street and be disgusted and entertained. There is always something new and s http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Thailand/blog-420344.html Having left Australia we spent two nights in Singapore and then moved into Thailand. After 10 ten days in the northern part blog to follow we made our way into Laos. Our first stop was the country's capital Vientiane. What first struck us was the French connection and as soon as we got off the bus there were people offering us baguettes. They were short of having a string of onions around the http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Laos/North/blog-409739.html Well here we are again. After a long recession we're back and full of the joys of SpringHaving spent a fantastic month making our way around New Zealand we jumped across the drink to see what their bigger neighbour and rival had to offer. It turns out there's quite a lot and at the end of our time here we see that we'd need considerably longer and a lot more cash to see it all. We arrived into http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/Australia/blog-399070.html Well it's been a while but here's another installment of our journey around the globeSince our last episode we have left the vibrant and seductive shores of Latin America traversed the Pacific Ocean and lost a day of our lives in the process thanks to the complex policies of crossing the international dateline. The 11th of February 2009 is a day that did not exist in our lives. We arrived into A http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/New-Zealand/blog-381521.html Having gotten a good sense of what Argentina had to offer from Buenos Aires we left the capital and headed a little north west bound for the city of Cordoba. We knew it was the home of the famous Ernesto 'Che Guevarra and a few other big Latino names so we figured itd be worth the trip if only for a few days to see what the place was about. When we arrived in the hostel we were asked Why Cord http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Argentina/Mendoza/Mendoza/blog-371287.html After crossing the border and saying goodbye to our friend Brazil we entered Argentina via the town of Puerto Iguau. This is the stopgo spot all tourists will spend at least one night in before seeing the national parks famous waterfalls. The falls border both Argentina and Brazil but from what we heard the Argentine side was the one to see if you could only see one side. We dont know whethe http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Argentina/Buenos-Aires/Buenos-Aires/blog-368773.html After we left Rio we took a hop skip and jump a few hours down the road to a town called Paraty. Upon arrival we realised that our time in Rio had taken its toll and our mental calendars were a bit sideways. We got the dates wrong and we werent actually booked into the hostel. With it being the busiest time of the year we were told that there was no room and they offered to allow us sleep on the http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Brazil/Santa-Catarina/Florian-polis/blog-368733.html Having flown to Sao Paolo from Santa Cruz in Bolivia we made our way to the infamous Rio de Janeiro by bus. On the bus we were given what we can only liken to a party bag containing sweets crackers and a little bottle reminiscent of the wee vessels of Cadet coke we would guzzle as nippers. We arrived in Rio on the 23rd December and this would be the longest we have stayed in one place since study http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Brazil/Rio-de-Janeiro/Rio-de-Janeiro/Copacabana/blog-366066.html Happy New Year to one and allOur next point of embarkation was Puno and it was from here that we would enter Bolivia and head straight for its captial La Paz. We got what we expected to be a harmless bus ride but we were a little off the mark. We were all told to get off the bus when we reached a narrow part of Lake Titicaca and like sheep we were herded to a little boat that had certainly see http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Bolivia/blog-363031.html We left for Puno on a tour bus and stopped at a number of small towns along the way. Andahuaylillas Rumicolca Pucara and Raqchi were Incan and preIncan towns famous for their architecture and historyWe arrived in Puno with a temporary travel companion called Peter a Dutch art historian living in Paris and very much a selfprofessed European. He was a nice lad and he set us up in another nice h http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Peru/Puno/Lake-Titicaca-/Uros-Island/blog-354797.html Having been set up for our onward voyage in Cusco we hopped on the Peru rail backpacker train for our next adventure the infamous Machu Picchu. It was yet another early start to Aguas Calientes the little town which was our drop point off for the ancient Incan site. Somewhat overpriced theres no avoiding this town for anyone who wants to experience Machu PicchuWe checked into our hostel and http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Peru/Cusco/Machu-Picchu/blog-354764.html We arrived in Cusco bright and early after another delicious night bus. The hostel turned out to be great and although it was a little bit of a walk outside the centre we had all our creature comforts which makes for a rather pleasant stay especially when youre looking to recharge your batteries as we were Cusco was the heart of the old Incan empire and this colonial citys foundations are the http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Peru/Cusco/Cusco/Cusco/blog-352827.html We arrived in yet another colonial town on our south bound journey through Peru this one being Arequipa. Having spent a long time on a bus we were delighted to find a hostel with a tv where we recharged our batteries for a few hours before heading out to explore the townThe following morning we headed off on a bus to the famous Colca Canyon. We had a guided tour of the region and stopped for our http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Peru/Arequipa/Arequipa/blog-351321.html After we crossed Ecaudor's border we stopped in a little town just inside Peru called Piura. The men left the women with the bags and went looking for accommodation around the town. After some exploring we finally found a decent spot but Neil and I are sure that the clerk thought we were bennies when the two of us went in and asked if they had a double room. He immediately smirked and said no. Aft http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Peru/Lima/blog-351276.html Riobamba was the starting point for our descent south into Peru. The town is famous for the spectacular train ride to Sibambe stopping in Alausi before making its way down to the world famous Nariz del Diablo or Devils NoseWe didnt do a whole lot in Riobamba except wait for a few hours for the train tickets to go on sale. We stayed here one night and set off early the following morningNeil an http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Ecuador/Centre/Riobamba/blog-349456.html After Cotopaxi the 6 of us went to a famous little town in Ecuador called Baos. This is Spanish for Baths and is so called because it has a number of public and private thermal baths. It is one of Ecuadors most popular tourist destinations for both Ecuadorians as well as genuine out of townersThe night we arrived we went for an initial inspection of what the town had to offer and then we hea http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Ecuador/Centre/Banos/blog-349446.html After a 2 hour journey in the back of a jeep we arrived at probably one of the nicest places weve been to so far. Our accommodation was officially called a hostel but as Vicki said it felt more like we were invited into this familys home for a few days. Called the Secret Garden Cotopaxi it is owned by an Aussie guy and his Ecuadorian wife. They also own the hostel we stayed in in Quito and the http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Ecuador/Centre/Cotopaxi/blog-348308.html We had not initially planned to go to Ecuador pretty much because we knew nothing about it but now that weve been there and done that were delighted we didWe flew into the countrys capital Quito from Honduras and were keen to begin experiencing what South America had to offer. Quitos setting is fantastic and we couldnt have picked a better hostel to view it from. We were situated in a hug http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Ecuador/North/Quito/blog-348293.html