Last year I started getting really into my Brazilian music (the only lasting thing I have to thank my useless but sexy Brazilian ex-boyfriend for) - from traditional samba and bossa nova songs from peeps like Cartola, capoeira accompaniments from the many capoeira soundtracks you can buy, to the 'classics' like Os Mutantes and Sergo Mendes, to contemporary stuff like Bebel Gilberto and Jair Oliviera, and then into baile funk. It doesn't need to be said again that Brazil is an absolute endless goldmine of musical genius, but really, you could spend all your time and all your money on journeying [View Full Entry]

---

---

Had my first round of vaccinations today, Yellow Fever and Typhoid. I have two sore arms and an appointment for more of the same next week. In all it will cost about £100 to get my full vaccination armour, but it's better than dying from being beitten by a rabid Bolivian dog. Still, cash is now constantly at the forefront of my mind whereas it historically is at the back. I hate money. I mean I write about money every day as a financial journalist, and I find it quite exciting when we're talking millions and billions. But dealing with my [View Full Entry]

---

---

I paid the balance on my round the world ticket this morning. It's done! All that remains now is to find the cash to pay for my insurance and my placement in Bolivia - maybe I should pawn off all the clothes I don't wear including those Cacharel dresses - and get the bank to agree to give me a loan to cover me until I've worked for a bit in Oz and saved for the South American adventures. Easy.... It's now about 10 weeks until I leave my job writing for a financial magazine in London, about 5 weeks until [View Full Entry]

---

---