shuriken22

After our time spent there, we were all more than ready to leave Venezuela and head for the much anticipated Colombia. Having already changed as much currency on the black market upon entry to Venezuela, we had already increased our spending power there (getting nearly double the "official" rate), however we were duly shafted upon leaving, emphasized by their substantial hike (300%!!!) in departure tax for exiting the country. Furthermore, with the current bleak state of the Mighty Dollar, no-one would accept them for love nor money, posing some probs to those who had only enough currency for the supposed exit fee. Thankfully Billy, Jude and myself had enough currency to feed an army so were able to sort the others out, although trying to explain to our Japanese contingent, Takuya that the exchange would NOT ... read more

Heading on down to the docks in Belem, we spent an appreciable amount of time hanging around amidst the constant smell of bananas, (although not as long as the guys who had gone down in the morning to try, with no avail, to save us all hammock spaces) before eventually boarding the ship that would be our home for the next 5-6 days. Already bustling, the rush was to find good hammock locations as there is precious little available room. As things were, we managed to group all of ours together at the end of the area, although in a somewhat cosy manner. Staying up top on the ferry, we set into a few beers and I had my leftover Pizza Hut pizza (well we needed to bring food for the first night - what else ... read more

Our last morning in Paraty was an early start, after which we were divided into 3 separate groups to head into Rio (our trusty truck Jack was in need of some TLC so was sadly unable to transport us), split between another Tucan truck and 2 Budget Trucks. Enjoying a pub quiz along the way, several hours later we hit the outskirts of Brazil´s biggest city, signalling the end of the road for many of our crew. Upon arrival in the city, Jo and I hit the streets to get a feel for the place, stopping off at a comida por kilo vegetarian buffet along the way for a speedy lunch. The city had a palpable feel of excitement in the air, with everyone gearing up for the biggest party in the world, shops beginning to ... read more

Often referred to as the Paris of the South, BA does bear a striking resemblance to its European counterpart, even sporting a massive obelisk in the middle of its main thoroughfare, the massive 22-lane Avenida 9 de Julio, supposedly the widest avenue in the world (not a good place to jaywalk!). Surrounded by suitably drab and decrepit suburbs, the city centre is very clean and tidy, feeling most un-South American, and seems to ooze elegance, sophistication and intelligence. Argentinians are exceptionally good looking normally, and being the capital, it draws the cream of the crop, so it is nigh on impossible to find an ugly person there, however while the women are always fashionaly attired, a suspicious number of the men still parade mullets with pride. Crawling through heavy traffic, the tension in the air was ... read more

Thankfully at a reasonable hour we emerged the next day, passports at the ready (best border control yet - table tennis table to keep us amused while we waited) to head for our next destination, Bariloche in the Argentinian lake district. A very hot and long yet stunningly beautiful drive day took us past all 7 lakes, reminiscent of Canada in parts, before finally setting up camp some way from the town centre. Famous for its chocolate and skiing potential in the winter months, Bariloche is very Swiss with its steep sloping rooves, hearty food and general high level of cleanliness. Out of snowy season, the weather was relatively sunny with a distinct lack of white anywhere to be seen. Wandering around town Matt and I happened across a highly teutonic themed restaurant where we had ... read more