20/05/2011– It was a totally spur of the moment type booking thanks to Ryanair once again offering ridiculously low fares. So Hannah and I purchased return flights to Rijeka in Croatia for only £20 each, bargain! Our airport parking was more expensive. We took a couple of days off work and were on our way for a long weekend in Croatia. Our flight arrived in the tiny airport on the island Krk, in northern Croatia, once we passed through immigration (a guy at a small desk) we picked up our hire car. It was going to be a stunning costal drive as we headed towards a city called Zadar, a 3 hour long drive. We stopped once to get some lunch but besides that spent the entire time driving, it wasn’t until late afternoon we finally ... read more

Today was going to be a day I would remember for the rest of my life, it was one of those, once in a lifetime experiences that fuels my love for travelling. Today we were visiting one of the new Seven Wonders of the World, Machu Picchu. I jumped out of bed to the sound of my alarm, thrilled about the day ahead. Hannah and I got ready and packed our bags once again to meet the rest of the group downstairs for breakfast. I was so excited about today I wasn’t hungry at all, I just wanted to get going to spend as much time as possible in Machu Picchu. We walked through the streets of Aguas Calientes to the bus stop where we had to split up to get the bus to the entrance ... read more

I had a really bad night’s sleep overnight. My headache lasted all through the night, I felt quite dizzy and woke up more times than I can remember. My phone battery was dead so Hannah and I were woken by one of the crew offering us tea/coffee and of course cocoa tea which both myself and Hannah were grateful for. We got ourselves ready for what was going to be the toughest trek day of all, and I really wasn’t keen on walking today. My legs were sore from the last two days, I had hardly any sleep and my headache was getting worse as we went higher. We all ate pancakes for breakfast and filled our hydration packs before getting our gear ready as went left the campsite just after 6AM. Unluckily for us, the ... read more

My alarm went off at 2AM this morning so I forced myself out of bed and into the shower. My head was pounding, I was suffering from the high altitude, I took a few pain killers and hoped for the best. Hannah and I got all our gear ready then headed downstairs to the foyer to meet the rest of the group, we were the first to arrive. I filled my hydration pack as we waited while one-by-one people emerged. Soon enough we loaded two buses and jumped aboard towards the Andean highlands. The first stint in the bus took some time which gave us all the chance to catch up on some sleep. Though as the bus went further and further into the Andean highlands the roads became more and more dangerous. We stopped for ... read more

Each year Charity Challenge run an event for Tesco staff to support Tesco’s charity of the year. This year the charity was CLIC Sargent and this year’s challenge was a trek to Machu Picchu high in the Andes Ranges in Peru, South America. Both myself and Hannah signed up 9 months before the challenge started and we were committed to raising £3000 each. When April eventually came and thanks to friends, family, work colleagues and Tesco we had both reached our target. We had all the necessary hiking gear and our bags were packed, we were ready for Charity Challenge: Machu Picchu. 15/04/2011 – Hannah and I, along with two colleagues, Debbie and Sophie drive to Heathrow mid-afternoon to meet the group and catch our first flight with Iberia at 18:50 to Madrid. Since Charity Challenge ... read more