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Published: November 11th 2012
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All the places we stayed in Central and South America all had many things in common. The ancient culture in Peru and Mexico is very similar. Rio de Janeiro did not have the same history but had the same feel as the other countries. One of the first things you notice is the presence of police, military and security personnel everywhere. These men and women are fully kitted out - truncheons, pistols and machine guns. It makes you feel secure and a little bit dubious about the place you are in all at the same time. But we didn't have any trouble anywhere and never felt unsafe in any of the countries. In saying that, aside from the machine guns, they were really no more armed than anywhere else we have been, it's just their presence was a lot more noticable. It appears so far only NZ does not allow their police to have guns on their person. The drivers in all areas are crazy and a taxi ride is more like a race car rally as they careen through the streets at high speed weaving around the other traffic.
Mexico We stayed at a lovely resort in the
Riviera Maya area in Mexico, approx 50 minutes from Cancun. This area is in the Yacutan Province which runs along the west coast beside the Caribbean. The resort was set on large grounds and they had a lot of greenery around the resort and had some local wildlife on site. During the days they had Macaws on perches, turtles in the water features and monkeys in the trees. These animals are endangered and the resort gives them a safe environment to flourish. The staff came round with a Toucan one day. This bird is very beautiful and almost looks fake. The beak is very large to the size of the bird and it is brightly coloured and very waxy looking. On other days they came around with monkeys and lizards etc. You could have your picture taken with them for a nominal fee.
We did two day tours while in Mexico. The first tour took us to Chichen Itza, one of the great Mayan ruins. The site is very large and includes a pyramid, training grounds for soldiers and a sports arena among other things. The guide here gave us a very interesting history of the Mayan people who
are still in Mexico today. They can be easily identified by their very short stature and lack of neck. From here we continued on to a buffet lunch with great Mexican food. We finished off the day with a visit to a cenote which is an underground river. This cenote was a pool where we enjoyed a refreshing swim. The water was cool, relatively clear and was filled with small catfish. Roots from ground level above hung down above the pool. The pool was very deep and you could jump from an area approx 15ft high into the water - this was good fun, although the first time your feet left the safety of solid ground and hit thin air you did wonder if you had made a good choice! This was one of the best tours we have done in a very long time.
The second tour we did took us into the Mexican jungle to do some adventure activities. We zip lined across the top of the jungle, rappalled down a rickety looking tower and snorkelled in underground caverns filled with stalagmites and stalagtites. We also got to see a nice big hairy tarantula run along the
ground by our feet before disappearing into the base of a tree, along with a snake lunching on a lizard. This was just the jungle going about its daily life - it's always great to see nature in action without it being put on for you. We then headed to Tulum, probably one of the most famous Mayan ruins. It is the only one set on the coast, right next to the Caribbean.
Rio de Janeiro This city is both beautiful and sad at the same time. The location of this city cannot be beat, gorgeous white sandy beaches on one side and lush green mountains behind. However there is a massive amount of poverty, alot of rubbish and a barely supressed feel of menace to the city. We were based in Copacabana and spent some time at the famous beach enjoying the sunshine and playing in the waves. The beach is full of vendors and you can hire chairs and umbrellas, buy sarongs, togs, food and beer. It was treat to hang out on the beach while enjoying a nice ice cold cerveza (beer) for NZ$2.50 each while people watching. During the weekend you can barely find
a spot to put your towel on the beach but during the weekdays it is fairly quiet. The people of Rio have no issues with their bodies and nearly every women on the beach was in a bikini regardless of her body shape or size. Thongs and skimpy bathing suits were the order of the day with men in either speedos or more commonly tight little shorts. The tourists were easy to spot as we brightened up the beach with our lily whiteness! We did one day tour while here to visit the famous Christ the Redeemer statue and catch the cable car up Sugar Loaf mountain. The drive to the statue was a winding journey up through city into the jungle. It is quite a long drive but you get a fabulous view of the city at the top along with getting up close and personal with Christ the Redeemer. The statue is 81 years old and is made of soap stone. It needs repairing every 3 years or so to keep it in good condition. It is a truly magnificent piece of work. From there we headed to Sugar Loaf mountain and caught the 2 sets of cable
cars up to the top of the first hill then across the water to Sugar Loaf. The top of Sugar Loaf is higher than you think and when you get there you can see the clouds rolling passed below and the hill on the other side of the cable car would come and go in the clouds. The only problem with the fantastic view points was the constant haze - mostly from pollution. We thoroughly enjoyed our stay here.
Peru We flew into Lima and spent two days here. This is a pretty clean city, they seem to take a lot of pride in its appearance. There are quite a few colonial style buildings, nice parks and the food is very good. As with Rio though there is a lot of haze about. On day 3 we flew to Cuzco for the main event of our stay in Peru - Machu Picchu. This was a very long day. We were collected from our hotel at 6.40am and didn't get back until after 9pm. We started the day on the train, a 3 hour journey which wound 110km through farmland and then into the Peruvian jungle. The scencery was
dramatic with flowing rivers and high mountains. At the end of the journey we arrived at the small township of Machu Picchu. This town runs on tourism and is much more expensive than anywhere else in Peru but is fun to wander through none the less. From here we caught a bus up a steep winding road to the ancient site. This ride was an adventure in itself. You climb steeply on switchback dirt roads that are mostly one way. There are the odd passing areas and the bus drivers are well practiced at negotiating each other when they meet on the road. At the top you enter into the site of the ruins and when you pass through the actual entry point of Machu Picchu the ruins open out in front of you with the mountains behind. It is unexpected and stunning. Our guide was very interesting. As with most of the ancient cultures in this area, the Spanish came and destroyed their heritage. Although the guide did tell us that it is not true that the Spanish destroyed the cultures as they were already in decline when the Spanish came. Machu Picchu survived because it was so deep
in the jungle they did not know of it and then the jungle overtook it. Machu Picchu is not special because it is a particularly important religous or royal site, but because it is so complete in terms of structure. I would highly recommend a trip to this site to anyone.
Kelly, good luck! Send us some pics of the newest addition when available please 😊
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Kelly
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Great update Jenny! Hope you also had a great birthday - will definitely keep you both posted x