GayleandDave

We needed a couple of days recovery after our motorcycle adventure, and Baños is the place to relax! We had a lovely weekend wandering around town, eating the rediculously sugary cane sweets (the type that threaten to stick your teeth together forever!), and generally trying to get the feeling back in our bums after the motorbiking. After that, we headed to the capital, Quito, for a couple of days. It seems to be just another big city, although the old town has been nicely renovated with lots of colonial splendour. The heavens kept opening up so we found a spa in town and spent an afternoon swimming, steaming, sauning and bubbling, which was a lovely treat. We also got chatting with a man from Quito, who despite speaking no English, chatted with us for over an ... read more

So we left country number 9 (Bolivia) for Peru, as always were a little nervous about the border crossing (would we have to pay a 'fine' for anything, would we be allowed to cross at all?). It turned out to be another easy (and free!) crossing, followed by a minibus to Puno. Once in Puno, we changed to a comfy double decker bus to continue our journey to Cusco - the starting point for trips to Machu Picchu. As we neared Cusco, the bus pulled over and we began to smell smoke inside the bus, so we all piled off onto the side of the road. There didn't seem to be much hope of a replacement bus as it was 9pm and we were so close to Cusco, so everyone took their bags and started to ... read more

And so to Bolivia - a big change from the places we'd been prior to this in South America. The poverty level was evident from the moment we crossed the border, however we were still greeted at each small street stall with a smile and a friendly run down of their wares (and without the high pressure sales techniques we'd experienced in South East Asia). We had heard a few horror stories about the buses in Bolivia, and were a little anxious when we saw the state of the first bus we had to take to get to Tupiza... however it made it the 6 hours along very bumpy dirt roads in tact (as did we!). We immediately loved Tupiza, it's relaxed and friendly and set in a lovely area. There are lovely little food stalls ... read more

Sorry it´s been a while since our last blog - since New Zealand we have travelled a fair few miles! We flew from New Zealand after what was an amazing experience touring one of the most amazing and beautiful countries ever! After a long eleven hour flight, we landed in Santiago, Chile confusingly about four hours before we left New Zealand! We were both a little worried about arriving in South America as to whether we would be bombarded by taxi touts and agents trying to sell us things, but we were pleasantly surprised. Very relaxed and friendly people greeted us and directed us to the bus. We spent a couple of nights in Santiago trying to get used to the time difference and stay awake. We had a wander around the town and found it ... read more

We've got our own wheels - and our own home again (even if it is rented!). As with most visitors to New Zealand, we decided the best way to see the country (well, the South Island at least) was to hire a campervan. Some may say we're mad to do it in the middle of winter, however we got one with its own gas heater that has done an admirable job of keeping us toasty overnight (even in below zero temperatures). It also has a shower and toilet inside so no midnight dashes in freezing temperatures to go for a pee! Being self contained also means 'freedom camping' - basically spotting a beautiful place and pulling up to spend the night right there! We arrived in Christchurch from Australia and promptly spent a couple of hours ... read more