The lap of luxury! After all your backpacking, how great to enjoy a first-class bus and time in up-scale Cancun. The beach looks gorgeous, and what a contrast this is to the wild, wonderful madness of D.F.--good luck!
Gorgeous beach and ruins! Glad the beach is still warm and beautiful! When I was there a million years ago, there was no Tulum town, just thatched roof palapas and little stands selling fish tacos on the beach. I'd just swim off the beach and out to the reefs for snorkeling. Hearing your reports of a crowded ruins and an ugly town, now I'm afraid to return. Still, it looks lovely!
Holy smoking volcano! Thanks for the warning--I think I'll avoid the bike trip, but interesting to see how fast you can lose your acclimatization to heights! Your photos and adventures from the market at Chichicastanango and the nature preserve were great! Have fun in yummy Antigua!
Excellent adventure! How fantastic that you were in Oaxaca for the Day of the Dead--great planning! The costumes, sand paintings and cemetery visits sound wonderful! So glad you got to try the wonderful Oaxacan tamales and mole--famous all over Mexico. As usual, your tours and cooking classes seemed great. I didn't visit the Hierve de Agua when I was there, so I'll be sure to visit next time. Glad Gary's foot is better!
Love these patterns! I thought you'd bought this to take home--wish, wish! Hope you get to try the yummy Oaxacan tamales sold on street corners at about 8:30 at night by little indigenous women with huge pots. Best wishes for Gary's foot!
From gorgeous to incredible! Wow--Antigua and San Cristobal--such exotic, gorgeous towns! And the food in Guatemala has become more Mexican since I was there--mole and chilis rellenos (I can hardly wait!)! Brilliant to do a street food tour! So sorry about Gary's foot--how lucky that it's better and that you had insurance--scary stuff. When I was there, I'd come from a couple of months in the hot jungle, and up in nippy Antigua, got either bronchitis or pneumonia. The pharmacy sold me penicillin and a syringe, and a hostel friend shot me up. Not so smart, but it worked. Hope the rest of your journey continues in good health and good food!
The bird woman of Honduras How great that you visited Copan, and ignored that "murder capital..." nonsense. Your hostel owner was so right--we tourists are rarely targeted in places like that, and besides, you then got to visit Copan without all the tourists. Macaw Mountain looks fantastic--thanks for the tips (cheese factory and German food--yum)!
In the Jungle Hi guys. I have been following your blogs on your South American Journey and now into Central America and I've been enjoying them very much, Thanks for sharing. I was wondering which tour guide/company you used in Rurrenabaque, Bolivia on you multi day trip. My wife and I are heading there in March/April next year and hope to visit that part.
Dave (and Theresa)
Pampas Tour Company Hi, I'm glad you have been enjoying my blog. We booked our tour the day before we headed off. The company we used was Indigena (not sure of the correct spelling). They were a bit more expensive than some of the others but we had a good guide. We were told we would have a private room when we booked but ended up in a dorm with the rest of our group. If you have any other questions let me know.
Happy Birthday! A birthday horse ride with a drink in a tree house sound like a memorable way to celebrate! The Monteverde Park sounds fab--love those elevated walkways.
What a big boat! When I get to the canal, I'm hoping to make some money taking much smaller yachts (like yours from Cartagena to Panama) through the boring (if you're on the boat) through the locks. How bizarre to be in a little sailing boat behind something this size! Boquete's cooler temperature and waterfall walk (and American food) sound tempting, so thanks for the tip, I'll definitely check it out. Good luck in supposedly gorgeous, expensive C.R.
A snow angel, stingrays and starfish You two and Sancho all look pretty adorable enjoying your time on the islands. You were so wise to go outside on the deck when you weren't feeling so well--that always helps me. What a contrast--the beautiful islands and then all that rubbish! Your sail sounds like a wonderful way to leave South America!
Thanks for the warning! I really want blue sky photos of that gorgeous city, so I'll try to avoid the rainy season. Maybe there will be an El Nino this year, and Peru and California that need so much rain will finally get some. Have a great sail!
I loved Palomino Hey there- Been following your blog a bit, and it seems eerily similar to mine about a year ago. I especially loved Palomino- so peaceful, quiet and calm. I did the river tubing as well, exactly as you did with mopeds and tubes. Great fun. I ended up staying in Palomino well longer than I'd planned and did not regret it. Safe travels! Kari
Palomino Paradise Tara and Kari,
Thanks for reading and for your comments, when I started writing my blog I didn't expect many people to follow it (except for family and friends back home). We easily could have stayed in Palomino longer, it was just so relaxing but we needed to get to Cartagena and keep moving. Thanks again for reading!
Caribbean holiday Palomino, the Tiki Huts, the pool and tubing sound like a perfect Caribbean holiday. You're the second blogger this week that has made me not want to bother with the expensive Tayrona Park, and staying at nearby Taganga sounded awful. Good thing you cut your losses on Taganga and Tayrona and just enjoyed your Tiki resort. Good to know when to let go!
Medellin or Guatape? Medellin sounds pretty interesting with lots of great spots to visit, but Guatape, its tiles and El Penon seem like heavenly retreats from the big city. I could even imagine staying there instead and visiting Medellin.
I think the area around Guatape would be fantastic for exploring on a bike but unfortunately we didn't get the chance. We did see a few places to stay in Guatape when we were there and there were also lots of choices for eating.
Flying high Awesome adventures--the paragliding view is excellent! How great that you got to do some wild flying, rappelling and caving as well as visiting a cultural break to a couple of cute, colonial towns. I wonder if that Camino Real was from the Incas since they were in Colombia or if it was from the Spanish.
Another great stop! What a fun town--I love the colors on the main street and the little bridges on the cloud forest walk, and how brilliant the organic coffee farmer was in his companion planting. I'm so excited that you'll be in Mexico (maybe even Oaxaca) for Day of the Dead--what a photo op!
Great stop! Great to hear the trip (which I also hope to take if I ever leave Arequipa) was easy and you found cheap lodging. That bridge and church look amazing--a worthwhile visit. Lucky you two in Solento--I've heard it's lovely.
Funky leg, far from home Glad Gary's leg is better--what a champ to do Cotopaxi and the Quilotoa Loop (which I'm dying to do) on a bad leg. Hope he's all better and Columbia is a great adventure!
Cool tree ladder! Mindo sounds so lovely--a great place to stay for awhile, I imagine. How wise to follow the trail that others were not taking! Also The Beehive in Sucre looks like a lovely place to stay/volunteer. Once again, thanks for the tips!
Another one for the bucket list! Who would've thought that a tortoise could have such colourful AND voluptuous lips! Haha! Love this photo! Sounds like you had a great trip. South America definitely on my bucket list and Galapagos just landed there as well! Looking forward to some more blogs... Happy travels guys!
We are a married couple from Auckland, New Zealand and have spent the last 5 years living in London. The time has come to head home with a little exploring on the way. ... full info
taracloud
Tara Cloud
The lap of luxury!
After all your backpacking, how great to enjoy a first-class bus and time in up-scale Cancun. The beach looks gorgeous, and what a contrast this is to the wild, wonderful madness of D.F.--good luck!