http://www.travelblog.org/Bloggers/linzcrowe/ Travel adventures in journals and photos from linzcrowe en-us Thu, 17 Dec 2009 02:01:01 +0000 Thu, 17 Dec 2009 02:01:01 +0000 Apologies for the smudges on the photos My camera has got a whole lot of gunk now inside the lens that I need a repairer to remove so it made a bit of a mess of a lot of my photos Tim Version Cruised the N.S.W. and a small part of the Queensland coast in a chubby van just checkin it all out. Surfed a little chilled a lot and scoped out where I wanna live next and thoroughly enjoyed http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/Australia/New-South-Wales/blog-437631.html Tim Version Got stuck in Mendoza trying to cross by bus to Santiago for 3 days and ended up flying. Witnessed fresh falling beautiful snow blanket the town in white.The yeh I got stuck in Mendoza but at least I got to see the snow versionLeaving Buenos Aires I was pretty confident over getting over the pass between Mendoza and Santiago as the pass seemed clear from all the website I could th http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Chile/Santiago-Region/Santiago/blog-439292.html Tim Version Lounged dined and drunk a little too much in the massive city of Buenos Aires. Saw the rich side in Puerto Madero the poor side in La Boca the famous side in Recoletta and a protestrally with guys masked and armed with stickspoles looking like they meant business. A quick apology with the photos. The first 86 are out of order due to apparent database errors when I uploa http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Argentina/Buenos-Aires/Buenos-Aires/blog-438225.html Tim Version Checked out Cordoba over a couple of days on foot and its a real mixture of a place both good and badThe slightly mystified version... the town its quite a mixture and not as I thought it would beI'd been told it was a University town which generally appeals to me. Unfortunately I was arriving at a very quiet time of year so I knew it wouldn't be as lively and have that real Uni http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Argentina/Cordoba/Cordoba/blog-438192.html Tim Version Loved the bus journey over the Andes. Had an awesome and unique wine and spirits tour on quad bikes.The slightly inebriated versionMendoza my entry to Argentina famous for it's food and wine. Not something at the start of my trip that I would have been excited about but by now when I'm up for a bit of the easy life it sounded perfectThe bus ride from Santiago to Mendoza cross http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Argentina/Mendoza/Mendoza/blog-438140.html Tim Version Saw the endless white salt plains odd little rock rabbits islands that aren't surrounded by water and all sorts of wonders. Froze so f'ing badly that it made me feel sickThe I'm a pussy when it comes to the cold versionThe bus from La Paz to Uyuni god damn its cold Below 0 cold. Ice on the windows cold. There were some tiny little heating pipes in the bus but they did nothi http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Bolivia/Potosi-Department/Salar-de-Uyuni/blog-437819.html Tim Version San Pedro is a nice little place with a good dose of sunlight during the day a warm change Santiago is amazing The layout of the city the public spaces its so clean and safe its incredible Not so lively in winter but Id love to check it out in summer...The version loving being in a clean safe country where everything worksArriving in San Pedro was brilliant. The sun was http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Chile/Santiago-Region/Santiago/blog-417267.html Tim Version Made it to La Paz met an ex well kinda ex con American in jail in Bolivia briefly. Rode the death road The world039s most dangerous road survived and freakin loved itThe version running with dual suspension disc brakes and enough safety gear to survive anythingThe bus from Puno was pretty good although funny that it was 100 tourists. The lake was much more beautiful http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Bolivia/La-Paz-Department/La-Paz/blog-417262.html Tim Version Checked out the centre of Lima a little more carefully this time. Not a place for me really just another capital.The notrobbedthistime versionLima I keep passing through it but never stopping but this time I039m here to travel. Arriving this time it was unfortunately around midnight so I organised with a Hostel to pick me up and for the first time ever I was greeted by http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Peru/Lima/Lima/Lima/blog-410848.html Tim Version Made the now very long ridiculus trek to Puno. Saw the Floating Islands and other sights of Puno but unfortunately got stuck 3 more days by more blockades...The Why are these protests and blockades following me versionPuno it039s taken a bit of a mission to get here but I finally arrived. Instead of the direct 6 hour bus ride from Cusco due to the strikes I had to go fr http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Peru/Puno/Puno/blog-410862.html Tim Version Found my way to Aguas Calientes through Santa Maria Santa Teresa and some railway tracks walking. Saw Machu Picchu and Wayna Picchu and wow Location location location...The version with sore legs but one the best views you could have from the top of Wayna PicchuGetting to Machu Picchu. It can be done a multitude of ways from hikes that range from usually 2 to 7 days by train http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Peru/Cusco/Machu-Picchu/blog-410861.html Tim Version Saw Cusco in both its drab and colourful forms with its awesome Plaza de Armas and surrounding shops n stuff. Saw Ollyantambo and the sacred valley. Experienced Ayahuasca one hell of a tripThe ahhh too much to have a one liner here versionCusco as you enter the town by bus is the same as any other here with sprawling square concrete unfinished houses with the odd splash of c http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Peru/Cusco/Cusco/Cusco/blog-410857.html This shouldn039t have had to have been an entry but unfortunately it has become one.Trying to travel from Arequipa to Cusco should have been a simple overnight bus but as it turned out the country had something else in store for us The arguments between the idiginous people in the jungles of Peru had escalated unbeknown to me and now much of the country was setting up road blocks in support of http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Peru/Arequipa/blog-410855.html Tim Version Saw the Colca Canyon its surrounding snow capped mountains and river way down below and relaxed in the tranquil little town of Cabanaconde. Experienced altitude sickness but also got to see during the bus ride some of the most incredible altiplano scenerey that you could wish for.The altitude affected version feeling like an old fat man just trying to walk around the hostel huff http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Peru/Arequipa/Colca-Canyon/blog-410854.html Tim Version Hiked up admired the views from and then rode and crashed my way down Cerro Blanco on my trusty sandboard. Saw the Nazca Lines and heard their mysterious creation theories in a bumping hardturning little Cesna.The My god that was the biggest freakin sandboard run ever versionNazca deserty and dry and home of the famous Nazca Lines. To me more importantly it is home of Cer http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Peru/Ica/Nazca/blog-410851.html Tim Version Got some serious sandboarding done and man it039s awesome Had some good conversations with some locals and enjoyed the end of the line039ness of the place.The sandboarding down a bigass sand dune version with nothing but other dunes to board down in viewHuacachina has a reputation as a party place and dependng on where you stay it certainly lives up to that reputation. http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Peru/Ica/Huacachina/blog-410850.html Tim Version Saw a hell of a lot of birds penguins sea lions and other wildlife. Also saw just what an earthquake can do to a town with basically build buildings its incredible.The version dodging the dropping bird poopIslas Ballestas with the tag of The poor man039s Galapogos is a place I wasn039t sure if I wanted to see or not but I was really feeling the need to see the ocean a http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Peru/Ica/Ballestas-Islands/blog-410849.html Tim Version Enjoyed Merida for its laid back atmosphere with a slight political student lifestyle edge to it. Visited thermal hot springs saw some incredible graffiti learned more Spanish... and I think I experienced altitude sicknessThe version that is sitting back drinking a Solera Verde in a colder mountain climate trying desperately to understand Spanish conjugations againMerida is a http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Venezuela/Andean/Merida/blog-403963.html Tim Version Tried to leave Ciudad Bolivar quickly looks like a bit of a hole but plan didn039t work. Stayed the night and found it actually has a very small nice section Got to see the Orinoco river not so beautiful here but still I039ve seen it then had a mission of a time getting a bus to Merida.The ahhh so thats the Orinoco River OK seen that... versionWell I had a lot more http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Venezuela/Guayana/Ciudad-Bolivar/blog-402355.html Tim Version Flew in a small plane to Canaima boated both by motor and by lots of pushing power up to Angel Falls and got to see its unclouded face and marvel and just how damn big the drop is Saw a bunch of other local smaller waterfalls smashed by little toe saw another snake and loved it all.The dropping dropping dropping... where the hell is the bottom versionWith a contact give http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Venezuela/Guayana/Canaima-National-Park/blog-402354.html