TimTam

Well after saying our very sad goodbyes to Ernie, we went to catch the Ferry from Wellington to Picton in the South Island. The ferry trip wasn't very rough (apparently it can be! Am rather glad it was calm). Picton is in a great place - I wish we had had the time to explore the Abel Tasman National Park in the area - it looks lovely - all inlets, clear blue water, beaches etc... but we just had a few hours in Picton before our bus. Picton is rather small!!! Eventually the time came to catch our bus! Through the Marlborough wine region - another place we must come back to for a few vineyard tours I think!!!! Sadly this time, we didn't have time for any wine tours - but we were able to ... read more

Hello from Melbourne... read more

RIO!!!! So, it was off to Rio, on a relatively short 22-hour bus ride, which would complete our entirely-overland journey from Quito. We arrived and went straight to our Hostel, the 'Mellow Yellow' where we were very soon roped into going on the hostel's organised tour to the football at the famous Maracana Stadium. The match was a rather low-key affair with the giant stadium barely a fraction full. But the fans were entertaining and the match had a thrilling end. Botafogo 2 - 1 Sao Caetano. Our hostel was right near Copacabana beach and seeing as there was some sunshine, we decided to make the most of it at every opportunity! A lovely relaxing few days! We also felt the need to sample the Capirinihas (most likely spelt wrong) which are quite nice, if a ... read more

El Calafate Well... we survived the 40 hours on the bus... and here we are in El Calafate, Patagonia... no sign of the Dread Pirate Roberts... but it´s a lovely place to retire... a bit windy but beautiful! El Calafate is this small town next to Lago Argentino - a stunning expanse of turquoise... it´s the largest lake in Argentina. Our hostel is on the hill with gorgeous views... I think I could keep using the words stunning and gorgeous a lot... so I´ll stop here. This is a Geographers HEAVEN!!!!! For those that don´t know me... I studied it at Uni and I loved Glaciology (that does make me sound a little sad... but hey... I love it!) So first things first, we set off on a quest to see some glaciers. Actually we went ... read more

Sucre Well we finally left La Paz and headed to Sucre. We got the overnight bus which was freezing!!!! Sucre couldn´t be more different from La Paz. Where La Paz is a big city with wide roads and crazy traffic... Sucre is small (for a city), colonial (all the buildings are white with red tiled roofs), the traffic is crazy but it´s all one lane!! Sucre is nestled amongst the hills - its only about 2800m above sea level so its warmer than La Paz. Almost every day the sky is completely blue (although we have had 1 crazy thunder storm). The markets are great here. There is the Central Market and the Mercardo Campesino. In the central market there are more tourists and they hike the prices for us! The Campesino is the best... it´s ... read more