TravelBlog » Ibu

Ibu - Vicki Ogg

So many years ago (when I was 14) I became strongly drawn to visit Spain, Latin America and in particular - Machu Picchu, the Lost City of the Incas.
In my middle years, I spent 3 years studying the Spanish Language and tackling the dreaded 'SER' and 'ESTAR'! - just in case I should 'live the dream' one day.
They say 'patience is a virtue' and it surely must be.Here am I in my golden years, setting off with 'me, myself and I' on a 6 months odyssey to follow my dreams. At this point my feelings are a mix of excitement and angst, having never done anything remotely similiar in my life. Countdown: 8 1/2 weeks and still so much to do!!

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Joined on: April 16th 2006
Last Login: July 12th 2008

Blog Entries: 21
Photos: 0

TB Code: [blogger=15454]
Status: BLOGGER

Blogs & Travel Journals

by Ibu, order by Date newest first.

By Ibu
May 20th 2007

FROM QUITO TO PARADISE ....

Oceania » Australia

STILL IN QUITO TRYING TO WITHDRAW ALL THE MONEY ..... I haven't made it to the Galapagos Islands yet, but I'm hanging in there. The banks in Quito are very South American in their attitude. Although I'm supposed to be able to draw up to $5,000 daily from my account, there is a daily withdrawal limit which the banks here have placed on the type of Visa card that I have, which is $200 per day. I only found this out after walking from one bank branch to another over a period of days. The ATM's aren't very well maintained here [View Full Entry]

By Ibu
May 5th 2007

CUZCO WRAPS UP AND THE GALAPAGOS BECKONS .....

Oceania » Australia

I have finally realised the second of my lifelong dreams (walking the Machu Picchu Trail) and when I think back over my 3 months here in Cuzco I realise that, for me, it has been a big learning curve. The experience has shown me just how fortunate we are to live in a country like Australia. Seeing a darker side of life, which is the reality for so many of the local people, makes me very thankful I live in a country like Australia. When I left home, I thought I would probably be the oldest person in the Hostels and [View Full Entry]

By Ibu
April 25th 2007

BLOOD, SWEAT AND GREY HAIR ON THE MACHU PICCHU TRAIL ...

Oceania » Australia

I've just completed another of my life-long ambitions - to walk the Camino del Inca, the ancient stone paved road up through the Andes mountains to the Lost City of the Incas and it feels so good to have finally achieved this dream! ... on Wednesday, we left Casa Azul at 6.30am, weighed down with assorted duffle bags, tents, sleeping bags, mattresses, backpacks and daypacks and walked down the many stairs to where our transort awaited us. On the way out of Cusco we stopped to pick up Andrea, the other member of our private trek, and then collect our two [View Full Entry]

By Ibu
April 14th 2007

WOOLY LLAMAS, BLACK RATS AND A BAD HAIR DAY ....

Oceania » Australia

My Bed and Breakfast (La Casa Azul or, The Blue House) in San Blas is a really good place to stay. San Blas is the Artists quarter and set up high in Cusco. The family members are all involved in the running of this 'home-away-from-home. I couldn’t have asked for a better place to stay, because the family is all very welcoming and friendly especially Mamacita, the matriach of the family. Last week, I had a persistent cough (very common up here at altitude), and she seemed worried about it. Next morning, she bought me some herbs from a plant that [View Full Entry]

By Ibu
March 28th 2007

CUSCO DAYS - AND THE NIGHTS WHICH FOLLOW THEM ...

Oceania » Australia

Finally, my spoken spanish is slowly improving - with the help of my daily 2 hour lessons and copious homework. Although I often suffer from brain fatigue and smoke curling out of my ears, it’s really enjoyable and both my grammar and conversational teachers are very good. Our lessons are often on the rooftop patio overlooking the stunning view of Cusco below and the Andes Mountains surrounding us. I chose this school over all the others because of their ethics. It was founded by a successful Dutch businessman who decided that he wanted to do something meaningful with his life. After [View Full Entry]

By Ibu
March 1st 2007

LIVING THE HIGH LIFE ..... OVER 3,700 METRES OF IT!

Oceania » Australia

This comes to you from The Blue House, set high up in the San Blas area which is a really nice part of Cusco, with a stunning view over the city. I'll be here until the 5th April, when I fly to Quito, Ecuador. I’m not going anywhere else in Peru because I love it here. And with my daily morning Spanish Lessons and afternoon Volunteer work at the orphanage from 3 to 7pm (also 5 days per week) I am trying to work out how to also fit in the 4 day Machu Picchu walk and visit the various [View Full Entry]

By Ibu
February 19th 2007

HOW TO SEE BRAZIL WITHOUT REALLY SEEING IT ...

Oceania » Australia

IT IS POSSIBLE, especially if one travels from Madrid to Lima, Peru, via Sao Paulo Airport in Brazil and then straight onto the Lima connection! I arrived here in Cusco on Tuesday at 1pm and my companions since then have been a virulent cold and an altitude headache! The getting here was something else as well! I left the Hostel in Madrid at 7am in the morning (still dark and very cold at that time of the day). Found my way through the maze of the Madrid Underground System with two changes of trains, then took the Airport train connection, after [View Full Entry]

By Ibu
February 17th 2007

MADRID - A FAREWELL TO MY SPAIN ODYSSEY ...

Oceania » Australia

My small suitcase and I left the Hostel in Seville in the dark and walked the 20 minutes to the Bus Station to journey up to Madrid. The Spanish countryside in general is interesting and in a lot of places - very beautiful. It took us 6 hours to travel up to Madrid and was a comfortable trip. We were 1 1/2 hours out of Madrid when I saw 3 round white windmills with their green pointed caps and large wooden veins, sitting atop a hill. The veins on one of them was still turning slowly in the wind after all [View Full Entry]

By Ibu
February 12th 2007

A LOVELY DAY TO END MY TIME IN GRANADA ...

Oceania » Australia

I have so enjoyed being here and regret that tomorrow I will be travelling on to Seville, although I look forward to discovering more of Spain's wealth - her beautiful old cities. On my last afternoon here, some of us walked along the river which flows between old stone walls. Along the paths which follow the river at the foot of the walls we saw a flock of large geese, slowly treading the much-used pathway and many well-fed cats playing hide and seek amongst the bushes. We browsed in the old Artesan and handicraft shops, sat on the stone walls watching [View Full Entry]

By Ibu
February 10th 2007

THE ALHAMBRA - THE JEWEL IN THE GROWN OF GRANADA ...

Oceania » Australia

Walking around the Alhambra has truly been the highlight of my trip so far. Seen from afar, it's mellow red walls and simple, but imposing structure does not give any clue to the wealth of the various cultures who have inhabited it over the ages. Granada is surrounded by rolling mountain ranges and the Alhambra sits solidly high on the side of a very steep hill and meanders down the slopes - having been added on to by every occupier since it was first built centuries ago. It is a mix of religious cultures - Arabic, Jewish, Spanish and the Catholic [View Full Entry]

TravelBlog » Ibu

Ibu | Vicki Ogg | Travel Blog

Ibu - Vicki Ogg

Blogs & Travel Journals

FROM QUITO TO PARADISE ....

CUZCO WRAPS UP AND THE GALAPAGOS BECKONS .....

BLOOD, SWEAT AND GREY HAIR ON THE MACHU PICCHU TRAIL ...

WOOLY LLAMAS, BLACK RATS AND A BAD HAIR DAY ....

CUSCO DAYS - AND THE NIGHTS WHICH FOLLOW THEM ...

LIVING THE HIGH LIFE ..... OVER 3,700 METRES OF IT!

HOW TO SEE BRAZIL WITHOUT REALLY SEEING IT ...

MADRID - A FAREWELL TO MY SPAIN ODYSSEY ...

A LOVELY DAY TO END MY TIME IN GRANADA ...

THE ALHAMBRA - THE JEWEL IN THE GROWN OF GRANADA ...