ToryonTour

10 weeks ago I left magical little Antigua bound for Honduras. I joined a tour that was four weeks, leaving from Antigua Guatemala and travelling down through the Central American isthmus to Panama City. In hindsight, four weeks was far too short. We covered so much ground in such a short space of time that I took a cursory glance at the landscape and architecture but didn’t have enough time to absorb the culture. Following closely on the heels of culture-rich Antigua, I felt a little disappointed that I wasn’t getting the same culture hit. However, that said, we did visit some incredible places… Our first stop after Antigua was Copan in Honduras. It is a compact little town surrounded by steep hills, the highlight being the Mayan ruins on the edge of town. On Christmas ... read more

I’m not sure where the last eight weeks have gone? After leaving Buenos Aires and South America behind, I last wrote to you from my little beachside cabaña in Tulum, Mexico where I had a few days doing nothing but walking along the beach, swimming, reading, eating and trying out different cocktails. It was the perfect way to recover following the physically demanding, and cold(!), past 10 weeks in South America. After Tulum I had another five days in Playa del Carmen, doing pretty much the same thing, only with many more people and louder music… After 10 days of much needed rest in Mexico, I was ready to head to Antigua Guatemala where I was going to stay for six weeks in an attempt to improve my Spanish. I first came to Antigua on New ... read more

Today I write to you from my little cabaña, beachside at Tulum on the Mayan Riviera in Mexico...one of my favourite beaches in the world and a great place for some much needed R&R... My 10 week sojourn in South America has come to an end. Four countries; ~14000km; ~160 hours on buses (many of those very hairy indeed); 150kms (if not more) trekked; one near-death experience (well, two if you count the explosives the striking miners threw at our bus in Bolivia...); hundreds of harrowing switchbacks survived during Andes crossings; several fingers and toes nearly lost to frostbite (I do have a tendency to exaggerate sometimes...); one (nearly) lost bag right at the very beginning of my time on this vast continent; and perhaps most importantly, many wonderful new friends made :-). I have been ... read more

Day 1 in Bolivia was an eye-opener and also quite entertaining in a strange sort of way. We crossed the border from Peru into Bolivia on foot, passing through about five different offices with different stamps in the process. On the Bolivian side I put my hand out to receive my passport and the cheeky guard pulled it back about four times before handing it over with a big grin. Not what I had expected from Bolivian border patrol! We hopped back on our bus to drive the 8 kilometres into Copacabana on the Bolivian side of Lake Titicaca. This drive should have taken about 10 minutes but we were warned there was some roadworks going on which could lead to a couple of delays... The first small incident involved our bus driving into a low ... read more

So I last left you in New York where I was tidying up a few bits and pieces before heading off to Miami for a couple of days. On Saturdays in August in New York, Park Avenue is closed off to traffic so the people can take back the streets and walk, cycle, rollerblade, whatever they choose to do, down Park Avenue and a few other city streets which are closed off between 9am-1pm. A lovely initiative unless the hotel you are staying in is on Park Avenue. This wonderful initiative caught me out all three Saturdays I was in New York as they were the days I was heading in or out of the city, limiting my ability to get a cab without walking a few blocks with my increasingly heavy pack and sundry bags. ... read more

Hi Family and Friends! I hope you are all well. I thought I'd start a travel blog to keep everyone up to date with what I've been up to on my year off from the rat race. Its been about two months since I left Sydney and I've been on the go at a fairly rapid pace since then (I need a holiday!). Here is a quick summary of the past nine weeks... First stop was London for three weeks where Caroline, James, Max and Tilly put me up at their place in Fulham. It was a nice way to ease myself into my travels. There was lots of catching up with old friends, flatmates, workmates and travel buddies, and of course lots of time spent with Caro, James and the littlies which was lovely (thanks ... read more