SSA - Joe Shevlin

Recently retired Headteacher of a London school, about to embark on a three month travel tour of South America. No rigid itinery. 'Will start in Belem, Brazil - after a brief visit to Miami and Kissimmee (Florida) to visit Kathryn (my daughter) - and journey south from there. 'Hope to visit as many countries as possible and as a climax end with a trip down the Amazon.
Simple philosophy: if I like a place I'll stay a while, if I don't I'll move on. Though I hope to see many of the popular sights, I aim to go off the beaten track frequently and see the real culture of the countries. It's as much a mission as a holiday; not a 3,4 or 5 star tourist trail but a (senior) backpacker's adventure into the unknown - the native cultures of the indigenous peoples.

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Joined on: August 27th 2007
Last Login: November 3rd 2008

Blog Entries: 60
Photos: 297

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Blogs & Travel Journals

by SSA, order by Date newest first.

By SSA
December 21st 2007

Home Sweet Home

Europe » United Kingdom » England » Hampshire » Basingstoke

21st December Tuesday's flight back with Virgin Atlantic from Miami to Heathrow was sheer luxury in comparison with some of the domestic flights in S. America. Their in-flight entertainment system is second to none. Arriving at 10:30 on Wednesday morning I expected dull grey skies over London, but was greeted with a clear crisp blue wintery sky instead. I found Miami cold after Belem, but the London air was much colder - confirmed as I saw my breath over the hoar-frost. My fleece jacket was no match for it. However the thoughts of warmer memories cheered me up, and kept me [View Full Entry]

By SSA
December 18th 2007

Belem to Miami

North America » United States » Florida » Miami

Belem's Old Station
The old railway station in Belem has been converted into a massive restaurant, a local brewery and tourist information offices. The restaurant is particularly good and serves a wide variety of typical... [more]

Tuesday 18th December After Lucio's surprise visit on Sunday morning I took a bus to the main shopping centre in Belem. However 'missed the stop to get off and had a free tour around the city back to the correct stop. With all the weekend Christmas shoppers it was very crowded there and was glad to away after an hour. I had booked a boat trip up the river and into the jungle for the afternoon. The guide picked me up from the hotel plus two others for the trip. The other passengers were from Soa Paolo but working for a [View Full Entry]

By SSA
December 16th 2007

Lima at a Glance, Sao Paulo, & on to Belem

South America » Brazil » Pará » Belém

Entrance Hall of Hostel in Lima
A beautiful spacious old building with many large paintings, busts and statues.

Sunday 16th December: It´s been a whistle stop flight journey over the last few days in my efforts to get back to Belem. As I couldn´t get a flight from Cuzco into Brazil, I went first to Lima (Peru´s international Airport). However the only flights into Brazil from there went to the south of the country. This Meant I had to fly down to Sao Paulo first before I could get a domestic flight north to Belem. I stayed in Lima overnight and had an evening tour of the city- very pretty. Plaza Mayor, the main square, was only a couple [View Full Entry]

By SSA
December 14th 2007

Machu Picchu and on to Lima

South America » Peru » Lima » Lima » Lima

VIew Fom Bedroom Window
Looking out onto the village secondary school with the mountains in the background.

Thursday 13th December: On Tuesday evening I went out for a bite to eat in Aguas Calientes and found that the village was saturated with restaurants all vieing for business. After looking at a few menus I chose a place which could have easily seated 80 plus but there were only two other couples in there. All the other restaurants also have few people in them, probably because it´s the low season. Incidentally, I gave a miss to the stuffed guinea pig on the menu (apparently a delicacy out here) - otherwise the food was good. I made an early start [View Full Entry]

By SSA
December 12th 2007

Into Peru

South America » Peru » Cusco » Aguas Calientes

The Charango
One of the Peruvian coach musicians showing off his Charango - a small ten stringed instrument which sounds like a banjo.

Tuesday 11th December: On Sunday evening I tried some llama for my main dish; it´s a tender meat and tastes a little like venison - I like it. Monday morning was an early start to catch the 8:00am coach to Cuzco in Peru. I´m planning on spending a few days around Machu Picchu (renowned Inca site and one of the wonders of the world). The road was slightly better than the one from Uyuni. However it was a tedious and long trip. Nevertheless, there was some beautiful scenery on the way, particularly as we coasted close to Lake Titicaca. After the [View Full Entry]

By SSA
December 9th 2007

La Paz - a capital nestling in a valley

South America » Bolivia » La Paz Department » La Paz

Bolivian Traditional Costume
Though many of the younger people have changed over to european style dress, a lot of the older generation (particularly female) retain the traditional dress.

Sunday 9th December: I have a good room in this hostel with its own balcony overlooking the main thoroughfare of downtown La Paz. It is like a peaceful oasis here, it is so quiet. This is an exception as most other things here in Bolivia are basic. The streets outside are bustling with throngs of people and the cacophony of voices of the boys in the minibuses shouting out their destinations, mixed with the variety of different vehicle horns. Traffic seems relentlessly heavy, often looking like a crawling traffic jam. No notice is taken of any pedestrian crossings, they just blow [View Full Entry]

By SSA
December 8th 2007

Bolivian Culture Shock

South America » Bolivia » Potosí Department » Salar de Uyuni

Into the Desert in a Jeep
Three of us went in this 4X4 jeep for a day´s tour into the Solar Uyuni - the salt desert.

Saturday 8th Dec: (very early) Last Wednesday afternoon I had time to kill while waiting for the evening coach (the only one); I met up with a Swiss couple who were staying in the same hostel. They had started their trip in Alaska and had been travelling all the way south; however they had to skip the US because of immigration restrictions. They told me of their travels as we enjoyed the shade of the hostel courtyard lying in the hammocks out of the scorching sun. Leaving San Pedro at 7:00pm I got into Calama just before 9:00 - no coach [View Full Entry]

By SSA
December 5th 2007

San Pedro - into the Desert

South America » Chile » Antofagasta Region » San Pedro de Atacama

San Pedro - on of the Main Streets
This little village on the edge of the Atacama Destert has only dirt streets around a scenic paved central square. Everything in it is basic...but expensive!

Wednesday 5th December: Sunday afternoon was an interesting one; though I didn´t manage to get to the street markets on the other side of the city, I did get a boat trip around the bay. It was an old boat and there were about 40 people on board. As we left the harbour it was obvious that the engine was having problems and some of the passengers were making jokes and laughing about it. However the scene changed when smoke started billowing from the engine compartment. The smoke was getting in the eyes of some; they began moving away from the [View Full Entry]

By SSA
December 2nd 2007

Valparaiso - City of My Childhood Dreams

South America » Chile » Valparaíso Region » Valparaíso

The Fenicular
One of the fifteen feniculars going up the hills of Valparaiso. From the top there are superb views of the city and bay.

Sunday 2nd December: All of my coach journeys have been fairly routine and uneventful until my trip fro Santiago to Valparaiso on Friday evening. It started as we were about to depart and we were told that we must change to a different coach because of mechanical problems. We started on our journey and I was seated up at the front. The driver kept slowing down and looking in his mirror. About 80Km into the trip he pulled the coach over to the hard shoulder of the motorway; the conductor got out, went across both carriageways to a police station on [View Full Entry]

By SSA
November 30th 2007

Wonderful, Bustling Santiago

South America » Chile » Santiago Region » Santiago

Plaza de Armas
The main city centre plaza was a great tourist attraction, surrounded by may historic buildings.

Fri 30th Nov: 'Had a good coach journey on Wednesday night from Pucon and arrived spot on at 7:30 yesterday morning in Santiago. The hostel was only ten minutes from the centre of the city. I couldn't check in until after 9:30, so had breakfast, a shower and freshened up while I waited. As they didn't have a room available until later on in the day, I left my luggage there and walked to the centre of the city, found the tourist information centre, and visited some of the main sights: the Governor's Palace, Santiago City Cathedral and the National Museum. [View Full Entry]

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