A few photos taken by our awesome guides on the Canyoning trip We did mid hike. After 7 hours beasting it through the gorge, there is no wonder that we found the Abel Tasman Great Walk harder than we thought! Great fun. If you look closely in the jumping photo you can see the moment I cut my nose open before even getting to the canyon by not holding my helmet down! I was pretty blasé initially but got a bit nervous after I didn't let go of the rope in our first abseil. It created quite a funny photo and I like to think it was due to reflex survival instinct which then sent me flying back against the wall. Still the rest went fine without any injury and Becks, myself and James loved the ... read more

Taking some time off from the difficult life sprawled on Rio´s beaches to update this bad boy. From pretty, tranquil, rabid-dog infested Colonia, we headed to Montevideo, the spectacular capital of Uruguay. My travelling style of go now, plan later, although offers spontaniety, excitement and flexibility can spectaculary go wrong at times. This began to look like one of those times as the direct bus from Montevideo to Iguassu Falls was something of a convenient transportation fantasy dreamt up in my head and it looked like the whole Uruguay expedition was turning into a complete farce, the logical and universally preferred option of a direct luxury bus service from BA to Iguassu having been foregone for numerous local, national and international buses that we hoped could be linked together to get us there. In the meantime, ... read more

From Wellington, the vibrant capital of culture and wind I headed on up to a quaint little place called Turangi, where I met Liv, a mate from the Oz travel days, and where we proceeded to wait for 3 days in vain for the weather to clear/ move out of the guaranteed suicide category, on The Tongariro Crossing. It is meant to be "The best day walk on the planet" but as experienced guides were even refusing to go due to the blizzards and avalanches, it was probably best we didn't chance it. Instead we entertained ourselves with Jenga, a highly competitive game of Pictionary with some Germans, lecturing the new (as of 3 days) hostel owners on "how to run a backpackers" (honestly our advice is like gold dust) and highlighting my hair Nordic Blonde. ... read more

So a rapid fire update. I spent a Saturday night in Sydney, which is as eventful as can be when you are in bed by 10:30pm thanks to Goon (boxed wine) and the ridiculous invention of 1 hour free drinks... mistakenly interpreted by me and Dane (Canadian mate I know from Tubing in Laos, who happened to be in Sydney for the same time as me) as meaning 1 hour all you can drink. Anyway, you can see why these blogs have grown rather thin in recent months, as the culture and history of India is much more interesting to read than the escapades of a night out. The next day, our last days in Syndey we ambled about the botanic gardens, posed with a couple on their wedding day, decided the Opera House was slightly ... read more

It lies there, motionless. An incredible creature, strangely beautiful. Even with its wings lying limp against the tarmac, its power in those knife-sharp talons and perfectly crafted beak seemed to demand respect. Seeing such a spectacular eagle this close made you almost feel lucky. A privilege to be face to face with the king of the skies. Hours before it would have been soaring high over the Australian outback, over land dotted by scrub and bushes, termite mounds and spinifex, Cattle and Kangaroos. It would have looked so graceful in its elegant descent back to earth, where the flesh of a dead Emu awaited the fate sealed by the Eagle’s beak and talons. A beak now dripping deep red blood attached to an awkwardly angled feathered head. Talons now sticking up uselessly into the big ... read more