Some of you have wondered where i disappeared to, it's has been soooooooooooo long since my last post..... Well i am currently back in Kuala Lumpur.... although i spent approx two months travelling through Peru, Bolivia and Chile i will not be posting this part of my trip.... Frankly when i flew back i no longer felt like blogging. It is difficult to get motivated once you return, especially since all the responsibilities of being back hit you at once LOL. So instead of blabbering on about the many wonderful places i visited and the people i met on the way [View Full Entry]

---

---

Okay people, from here on out, I am going to split my blog posts into smaller chunks (for faster processing) focusing on specific towns, locations or activities. So this one is pretty short and sweet with my entrance into Lima (the capital of Peru). Now I didn’t really go straight to Peru... actually I visited a number of other towns in Ecuador on the way, including Latacunga, Ambato and Rio Bamba which are really quite pretty, with colonial architecture and churches etc etc . In fact I spent 4-5 days heading south, with a plan to climb Cotopaxi (5997m which is [View Full Entry]

---

---

I am not really where to start…..writing about my experiences in the Galapagos. The beginning would probably be a good idea but starting to write by saying "in the beginning" is far too ominous, so will just jump right in I guess. There are a few different ways to see the Galapagos Islands, however cruises are the most common and in the end most effective (you see more). Access to many of the islands is totally regulated and requires a licensed guide etc etc (which is probably a good thing as people wandering everywhere would make a terrible mess I am [View Full Entry]

---

---

Flying into Quito City is quite an experience, its a bit like a city in the clouds. Rather than descending into the clouds and then landing, the plane ducked up out of the clouds (approach was less than 10,000 ft or 3000m) where you are met by mountains (up to 5000m ) and the city at 2800M. The landing is like in reverse. In terms of stats, Quito (2 million) is the Capital of Ecuador and is the second largest city after Guayaquil (2.2 million) Quito Town Arriving in Quito, I jumped in a taxi and headed for Mariscal (the "gringo [View Full Entry]

---

---

I know, I know, this is really really late in coming out (blame the publisher!).... But here it is (better late than never I say). Tikal Okay, so to get to Tikal, (one of the largest Mayan sites) I used a small town called Flores as a base.... this was a pretty small town (about 200km from the GC/Belize border) and arriving with only about $20 USD hoping for a bank was a bad call (it was Sunday and they were all closed or broken) BUGGER! So, I used my trusty supply of travellers cheques (backup cash basically) and managed to [View Full Entry]

---

---

The First Border crossing - Mexico / Belize After an overnight bus to Chetumal (on the Mexico border) arriving at 6am, i made the mistake of sleeping through (until the doors of the bus opened and people started piling out). Mental note, set alarm for at 1 hour before ETA. Why? Well staggering off a bus 1/2 asleep, battling various people to get your luggage and then finding a ticket office for your next leg across the border (most buses do not do though crossings, unless you are with one of those boring organised tours) with only part of your [View Full Entry]

---

---

The Yucatan is HOT and comprises mostly marsh lands and jungle. Campeche is on the Gulf Coast which from an oceanic perspective is also as flat as a pancake (no waves). Two nights in Campeche / Edzna Ruins I stopped in the town of Campeche, as it shortened the bus trip and provided a base to see the Edzna ruins and also study some more local history. Campeche was an offensive / defensive outpost built and used by the Spanich. A sizeable militiary force was setup here complete with canons. The walls of the various fortresses are 2 to 3 metres [View Full Entry]

---

---

San Cristobal De Las Casas This is an affluent settlement, about 12 hours by bus from Pochutle (near Mazunte). I took an overnighter and arrived at about 8am. This town has the typical Zocalo layout (town centre) with lots of shops and so on and plenty of tourists (too many for my liking). I managed to take a look a the local live music scene which was a mix of Samba and Rock and Roll, an interesting combination. There were a number of salsa clubs (which are in just about every larger town) however these dont get going until after [View Full Entry]

---

---

It´s so long to Mexico City and off into central Mexico, Oxaca State.... Mexico City to Pueblo Took a collectivo (VAN for 10 people) from Mexico City to Oxaca, via Pueblo. Mexico City to Oxaca (pronounced wohaka) is about 7 hours or 500 KM. This is where I met two Brits and a New Zealander (photos attached). On the way, we did a short stop (2 hours) in Pueblo (pop 1.3 million, elevation 2162m) which is a very Spanish city. I mean they didn’t want independence from Spain when the rest of the country broke away.... even today they are a [View Full Entry]

---

---

Okay, what can i say about Mexico city...... WOW! Totally not what i expected!! Vital Statistics Population: 19 Million ++ Elevation: 2280 M Land Area: Huge Polictical Demonstrations Firstly, i was staying in the city central historical district and on my first day there, the good people of Mexico City decided to hold demonstrations due to the problems with the recent election! GREAT! There were people and police everywhere (not sure how many turned up but you can imagine with a pop of nearly 20 million it doesnt take much commitment to get a few 100K of pe [View Full Entry]

---

---