Tom Brosnan

Heading to the Lake From Arica, Chile, we joined up with a couple from our relaxed hostel and bartered a ride in an old V8 taxi to take us the 10kms to Tacna, Peru. There we had a few hours to walk around the central park-area of town before getting an overnight bus up to Puno. The small city sits on the edge of ‘Lago Titicaca’; one of the world’s highest navigable lakes, which splits the border between Bolivia and Peru. We parted ways with the others and joined up with a tour at the busy lake-port, which started with a slow boat ride towards the middle of the lake. The first stop was at the famous ‘floating islands’; made completely out of the lake’s reeds. Family groups have lived on these massive reed-pontoons for hundred ... read more

Buenos Aires We arrived in Buenos Aires feeling like middle-aged housewives of a morning, following our champagne and Valium-fuelled bus ride from Iguazu Falls. Jimmy, Dylan and I were staying at the renowned party hostel- ´The Milhouse´, in downtown B.A., which turned out to be a trap for all the young Pommie and Aussie backpackers who never seemed to leave the bar. We found that out on our first night, but luckily for us, a friend (Pablo) of a friend from back home was a local and keen to show us around. First things first though- we were in the land of cheap steak and wine and we had been hanging for weeks to try them. Dinner hours in Argentina range from 9-12, but we were too hungry to wait until then. Jimmy and I had ... read more

Crossing the border from Mexico to Guatemala, you can adjust your clocks by as little or as much as you like as you go from General Mexican Time to Guatemalan Mean Time. I was aboard a Mexican tourist shuttle that was to meet up with a similar service on the Guatemalan side. For almost 2 hours we waited at the border, sitting outside the ´immigration office´ in the blaring mid-day sun. Luckily our international crew had all the ingredients to keep us entertained. A Canadian girl had a guitar, a German couple had some snacks, and of course the 2 Aussie´s (Simon and Owen) had 2 bottles of tequila. So we said farewell to Mexico by sitting on the border, drinking tequila, eating and playing guitar. Entering Central America, many things remained the same as Mexico: ... read more

With our big road trip finished, it was time Shazza and I parted ways. During her smog test, I found out she was originally from California, so I really brought her home- the long way. It wasn't so easy to move on though, with most people not interested in her because she was high maintenance (manual gears), too old (1997) or had been around too much (197,000 miles). Even the internet dating sites I put her on (craigslist & auto trader) didn't help find her match. In the meantime, I hung out with Tara and her friends, taking to the 'So-Cal' lifestyle with ease. It has been the "most like home" place I've been to yet, with the warm climate, big surfing culture and even some Aussie pubs around (like the new 'Bondi' bar, that the ... read more

Florida, with a population almost the same as Australia's, is a unique U.S. southern state. Being a haven for retiring Yankees from the north and Cubans and Mexicans from the south, it doesn't feel like the rest of its confederate flag-flying neighbours. Even the southern-drawl seems to disappear down here, where the environment turns to flat marshland and over-developed beaches. Being a surfer, people always ask if I'm afraid of getting attacked by sharks. I often state the fact that you have a greater chance of being struck by lightning. Well in Florida they have both the world's highest rate of shark attacks and people getting struck by lightning! So as we made our way down to our first Florida stop, St Augustine, Shazza was keeping a watchful eye on the rain clouds forming above. The ... read more