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Published: April 26th 2010
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The epic journey back to Rio de Janeiro began with an Aerosur flight from Cusco to La Paz with a connection to the major Bolivian city of Santa Cruz. Santa Cruz sits in the steamy, sticky region of Bolivia and is, both climatically and socially, very different to the rest of Bolivia. I was only here for a day but I was very surprised to see just how different the people here are to their highland kinsmen.
Santa Cruz lies in an affluent corridor of Bolivia and is where many of its wealthier residents live. The weather is hot and sticky as it sits just 400 metres above sea level in comparison with much of Bolivia that tops out mostly at over 3,500. I spent a night here, plastered by my own sweat against the grubby sheets of my horrible little room (only 3 quid though - you get what you pay for) that resembled a rundown prison cell.
Wandering the streets I was struck at the lack of costume and tradition that people sported. Other Bolivian city streets heralded funny hats, colourful skirts and copious amounts of coca chewers. Here people were young and trendy with many imported SUV´s screaming around the congested street corners. The population here was younger and livelier which was characterised by the energy, noise and vibrancy surrounding the streets at night.
I flew the next day from here to Sao Paulo, returning to the megalopolis for the second time. I welcomed back the big city vibe and the relentless energy of the place as I fought my way to a hotel room for the night. Yes, a hotel room!!! I had managed to find a cheap hotel room in a wonderfully luxurious 4-star hotel room for the night. So far I have travelled and slept in some incredibly grotty, hot and smelly places with usually 6 or more people for company (not in the same bed obviously). Having an enormous hotel room and bed with all the amenities provided was bliss.
I met up with a friend in the city that evening who introduced me to some new areas and foods of the city which was great fun before I caught the bus in the morning to Rio de Janeiro. The bus took almost 8 hours to grind its way into the city centre bus station. I caught a taxi to Copacabana and organised a hostel. It felt very odd to be back in Rio but I enjoyed the familiarity of its streets, customs and of course, the Acai. It is much cooler here now than in January and I spent a delightful afternoon ambling around its colourful streets bathed in the warm glow of the afternoon sun. It is difficult to believe 3 months have screamed past - it feels like just a few days ago I was here last.
After getting an early night I met up with some friends in Rio again to get a cultural fix on the place. I had checked off the touristy sights the last time I was here so it was with great interest that I headed to the central area to visit some exhibitions. The area I entered enjoyed grand, large buildings with high vaulted ceilings held up by intricate pillars. The exhibition halls were crisply painted and well kept as they showcased many differing types of art. I enjoyed sculptures and paintings from epic cubism to subtle surrealism that was all very splendid.
Afterwards I joined the Brazilians to watch Flamengo beat Caracas 3 - 2 in a bar in Copacabana and ensured that I made the most out of my final night travelling and my final night in Rio de Janeiro. I crept into the bed of my 10-bed dorm at 4am, thoroughly satisfied that I had done so.
The volcanic ash cloud cleared just in time for my flight back to London. Throngs of people queued up for stand-by tickets for the previous days cancelled flights as I made my way through security and stamped out of Brazil. I sat in the departure lounge of the airport and reflected on the dramatic loop I had embarked on, leading me back to the same place it all began. I thought about how my experiences had changed me and my outlook on this continent.
I had achieved a lot in a small space of time and on arriving home would have covered over 20,000 miles. I have partied in crazy cities, met some wonderfully colourful people, experienced the spray of thundering waterfalls, lazed on silky sand beaches, dived bejewelled coral reefs, trod ancient cobbled walkways, rafted down incredible rivers, sipped fabulous fine wines, kayaked on pristine lakes, marvelled at incredible mountains, gasped at glaciers as tall as skyscrapers, faced towering volcanoes and gigantic salt lakes, dodged spewing geysers at 5,000 metres, descended into hell and come back alive, swung through the Amazon on vines, swam with dolphins, stroked Alligators and tarantulas, hurtled down the World’s Most Dangerous Road, embarked on tough treks through mountainous scenery and past Inca ruins to glorious Machu Picchu and eaten a Guinea Pig and the World's Most Dangerous Vindaloo.
South America has been a fantastic place to travel. It lacks the infrastructure and costs of locations such as Asia but nowhere else I have visited blends rich, ancient cultural sites with awesome natural wonders as this place does. The history of the continent is that of lost civilisations and struggles with colonial powers but the future is bright. From the Western feel of countries such as Brazil and Argentina, to the distinctly Quechua peoples that populate Bolivia and Peru there is an electric feel to each of these countries. Despite bordering each other they are very different, fiercely proud and patriotic places that acknowledge their chequered histories but look forward in anticipation.
And so I leave enlightened and overjoyed to have experienced such a divine place. Travel satisfies our instinct to experience different, new things and to sustain the ongoing urge to pacify the adventurous spirit that lies in all of us. This is achieved by constantly assaulting the senses with an abundance of fresh things that keep boredom at bay, something which travel achieves every moment of every day.
One of my favourite travel quotes is by St Augustine who said "the world is a book and those who do not travel read only a page". I think I may have just finished chapter one.
Thanks for reading!
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John Simpson
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Amazing blog!
I just wanted to compliment you on your blog. I went to most of the spots you went to two years ago and it really took me back to hear your descriptions. When you talked about the meats it made my mouth water! I remember a little place called Pizza Colour in Puerto Iguazu, Argentina right next to the bus station that had the best steak I have ever had. I didn't really like the salt charred method that is so popular and this place served a more classic style steak but you had the choice of a wine sauce if you so chose and it was around $4! Would you say the falls were the most impressive thing you saw? Did you do the night walk over the falls? I was quite impressed by it. I never made it to Bolivia and your bike trip on the road of death was inspiring. I will have to try it! I'm glad you had a great journey. Do you have plans for another epic yet? Fellow wanderer, John