South America Tour Wrap Up

---

My South America tour has finished and while I didn´t enjoy the tour conditions, I have some wonderful memories of some beautiful countries, cities, people and geography.

Highlights: the countryside of Ecuador; the coast of Peru; waking up to views of mountain glaciers during the Inca Trail; celebrating my 31st birthday on the Inca Trail; the city of La Paz, Bolivia; the steak in Salta, Argentina; the shopping in Asuncion, Paraguay; Foz do Iguaçu on the Argentinian side; do-it-yourself ice cream parlours in Paraty, Brazil; the energy of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; buying an authentic Carnaval Showgirl costume in Copacabana, Brazil.

The friends I met, especially my two room mates, made the trip enjoyable. They learnt early on about my addiction to all things Barbie and female Walt Disney characters and kindly pointed out all the merchandise their images were printed on. Latin America is crazy about Snow White and Cinderella especially!! I can´t tell you how many trinkets I bought with Snow White and Barbie on them. In fact, I slept on a Barbie pillow on the Inca Trail. High School Musical merchandise is getting big down here but I´ve managed to restrain myself from buying everything with Zac Efron on it. But I can´t promise that if I see something with Hairspray on it! The upside of my Walt Disney merchandise overload is that it has encouraged me to continue my ´Walt Disney...with a twist´ costume range and I have been working on sketches on the bus. One of the women on the tour wants me to make her a Tinkerbell outfit for Folsom this year!

The best meals: Ostrich steak in Arequipa, Peru; Cuy (guinea pig) in Puno, Bolivia; Beef steak in Salta, Argentina; ice cream with melted mashmellow and chocolate fudge in Paraty, Brazil.

Lowlights: catching a parasite in Cusco during the Inca Trail; the shitty standard of hotels and campsites on the tour; altitude and how it affects your insides; the freezing bloody cold.

Places I will revisit: Ecuador (and Galapagos Islands for diving); Bolivia; Argentina and Paraguay.

---