MatevzH

As I travelled last year through one of the most difficult and dangerous roads (Leh-Manali, India) I said to myself... I gotta see the "supposedly" THE most dangerous road in the world - in Bolivia, between La Paz and Coroico - officially called Yungas road. If India the road was special due to its lenghth (over 500km) and the fact that it goes over 5 high mountain passes this one is something completely different. Road starts in La Paz Bolivia, and goes from altiplano to the Bolivian lowlands. From the highest point (around 4700m of altitude at La Cumbre pass) to Coroico it is around 70km and around 3500m of altitude... and part of it its unpaved. The road is legendary for its extreme danger and eventually the Inter-American Development Bank christened it as the "world's ... read more

What to do in San Pedro de Atacama during the night? Party? Nah... everything closes early... Sleep? Not really... See the stars? Of course... Atacama desert is famous also becasue of its weather (what else hehe). They only have a few rainy or cloudy days and nights in the year. Usually, from march do early december its completely clear... Also, there is little light pollution. Therefore, this desert is famous for its star gazing, and when you drive from La Serena north, you can see a plenthora of observatories on the hills... And apparently, near San Pedro they are building the biggest "collection" of observatories on the world on the altittude around 4800m above sea level. Its called ESO Alma, and its still in construction. Anyway. I wanted to see the stars, and you could come ... read more

Back on the road. After 18 months of work and around 23 hours of bumping around on airplanes and airports, I have finally arrived. I was on time in Zurich. Enough time to browse for a book (yep, forgot one at home), but unpleasantly surprised. Very bad collection of english book in the international terminal. But anyway, i didn't need a book on a Swiss flight. It was a nice flight, and I thought I was going to Brasil, as majority of passangers were speaking brasilian portuguese, which is so pleasant to the ear. And above all, flying over Andes and looking over snow covered Aconcagua was a real treat (hint: when flying over Andes towards Santiago, sit on the right side of plane, i was just plain lucky). First contact with Santiago was... similar to ... read more

Last day in Delhi was nice. I rented myself a car for a few hours (ok, a taxi, to drive me to posh district where the embassies are) - 350Rs, however, my lunch in this posh safe-haven can be expensive... but hey, still cheap... Flight towards Jordan was in early hours, so no partying and big farewelling from Delhi. Don't know why the flight has to leave so early, but i got to get up at 2:30 am. As Delhi was still sleaping, the airport was like a huge ant town, bustling with activity... First impression of Jordan... VERY HOT and this is different heat to the one in India, as it is also very dry. Maybe thats why, its easier to survive here with the heat of 40C+. As the flight to Europe is only ... read more

It was an early morning... 3:30am and waking up with strong tea ...and time for... one of the most exciting roads in the world... The Leh-Manali Highway is a highway in India connecting Leh and Manali. It crosses some of the highest mountain passes in the world, including , , and Tanglang La (5,325 m), Lachulung La (5,059 m - actually this is a double pass, a few km down road you have to go over another, albeit a bit lower pass), Baralacha La (4,892 m) and Rohtang La (3,978 m) and is open only between June and mid-September when snow is cleared from the road. First two passes are the highest and not the most problematic, as there is very little snowfall in Ladakh. Problematic are the last two passes, nearest to Manali, where weather ... read more