8th August-11th August, NYC, USA After nearly 9 months of travelling, our final stop was New York!! I was so excited as so many films have been filmed here, and I wanted to reanact all the places Macaulay Culkin had visited in Home Alone 2 and also Hitch with Will Smith! Not keen on getting the old Greyhound again, we were told we could get a 'Chinese Bus'! So we headed to China Town where you can get a cheaper bus (20 dollars instead of 40) which would take about 4 hours or so. Other than the horrific toilet, it was [View Full Entry]

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4th Aug-7th Aug, Washington, USA. I was sad to leave the dugan lifestyle, their carefree, laidback lives suited me! We were making our way up the east coast of the states to Washington DC! I was really excited to do the tourist thing and go site seeing! Id almost convinced myself Id get to do the tour inside the white huse and meet Obama, but I wasnt on the waiting list! We took another Greyhound coach (oh the joy!) which would take about 6 hours from Raleigh, North Carolina to DC. This time I dont know what happened but we ended [View Full Entry]

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31st July- 3rd August, Raleigh, North Carolina We left Miami and headed to North Carolina on a 10 hour bus journey, where we were meeting up with a friend we had met in Buenos Aires in Argentina on the TEFL course. We got a Greyhound bus which is the only bus company that runs throughout the east coast. They are definitely NOT famous for their comfort or service! But as most Americans drive gas guzzlers or can afford to fly, there is no real demand for a high quality bus company. I was surprised getting on the bus at the lack [View Full Entry]

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29th-31st July, Miami, USA. We were flying out of Baranquilla in the north of Colombia, as it was cheaper than flying out of the capital. We'd arrived in the town the day before we were leaving, to make sure we werent late getting to the airport. What a mistake that was! It is an awful place! There is literally nothing there except for dirt, pollution and prostitutes. We had walked around looking for a cheap hostel, and made a mistake by walking into a place with a naked woman painted on the wall of the reception. We were approached by a [View Full Entry]

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24th July, Parque Tayrona, Colombia For breakfast that morning we were waiting for our chocolate bread even before thay were ready. After a few hours of dark clouds, the sun came out and we went to explore the other beaches. Tayrona is spectacular because the beaches are not artificial or dirty. You have to do many hikes through the jungle and under big rocks before you arrive at white sands, clear blue water and stunning views. We arrived at el cabo which is a popular beach for people wanting to camp. It is even more picturesque than arricefes. We saw a [View Full Entry]

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23rd July, Parque Tayrona, Colombia After a night of broken sleep, we woke up at 6am and thankfully had no bites! Getting to te communal showers was like an assault course. You had to balance yourself across pipes, over sewage with insects below.. All this while being attacked by mosquitos. We had heard about a local Panaderia (bakery) which was supposed to be delicious. We arrived just as he was taking the bread out of the oven. You could choose from cheese, arequipe (caramel) or chocolate!!!!!! The chocolate one was huge and unlike english donuts where you just get a tiny [View Full Entry]

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22nd July, Parque Tayrona, Colombia After 4 days in Santa Marta we were headin to Parque Tayrona. We woke up early to go to the supermarket and stock up on some supplies; cereal bars, peanuts and crackers! We then headed across town towards the market, which was like a carnival, to catch the bus to the park. The bus took about an hour and dropped us off next to a few old shops/shacks. At the entrance we paid the 31000 entrance fee then jumped in a locals jeep for 2000 which took us further into the park. We walked through the [View Full Entry]

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Santa Marta, Colombia, 18-21st July We left Cartagena for Santa Marta, north east along the coast. We arranged a pick up van with the hostel for 37,000 (about 10 pounds) each which would take about 4 hours. The drive is relatively straightforward and its direct, so no wasting time! When we arrived at Santa Marta, we drove past a screen showing 39 degrees!! It was boiling hot, the hottest temperature we had both experienced since we started travelling! We were dropped off on the main street Carrera 11, so much for door-to-door service, as we had been told by the hostel. [View Full Entry]

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15th July, Playa Blanca, Colombia I awoke around 6.30am, before any of the locals, and went to take a few pictures of Jake asleep in his hammock. I hated mine, as it was hot and sweaty and damp! I really needed the bathroom, but was not tempted to go in the shack around the back, as I didn’t like the insects around my feet, so went in the sea! When the local policeman walked past me, I had to pretend I was looking for shells! We’d previously planned to stay for a couple of nights, but I wasn’t sure I wanted [View Full Entry]

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14th July, Playa Blanca, Colombia As usual I slept through two alarms so I got up late. As a result we had only 45 minutes to get up and dressed and go and get provisions for our night on Playa Blanca. We made it in time though and found seats on the upper deck of the boat. Sat in front of us were two people we had met in Mendoza whilst we were doing our bicycle tour of the wineries. After debating whether or not it was them I shouted one of their names and it was actually them. The boat [View Full Entry]

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