London - First Impressions (the long overdue post)

Firstly a big apology to those avid followers who have been awaiting an update for what has been far to long...

For Kim London wasn't entirely new having been here to visit her brother previously, but for me it was and within a few days I had experienced many of the joys of London life - including believe it or not a heatwave!

Unfortunately there's always a catch and in this case it was being surrounded by several sweaty armpits in the tube, including the occasional one in your face which is not an experience one wants to repeat to often (although I've now learnt this still happens in the cold of winter, well autumn).

Things have been pretty low key since we arrived and we haven't even managed to get outside the bounds of London yet although we will be heading to Prague over New Year.

That said we have been keeping fairly busy, we spent the first month living with Kim's brother in Angel looking for work before moving onto a short term flat in Bow with two other couples (Brazilian and Polish) which was interesting but only ever short term as we had to be gone before the flatmate whose room we were filling returned from holiday.

After much back and forward and alot of frustration we managed to move into a place on the Isle of Dogs - not far from the financial area at Canary Wharf and a short walk from the home of Greenwich Mean Time - the prime meridian via a foot tunnel that goes under the Thames.

For those who don't already know we moved in with Nicola and Ryan, a couple we knew from home through friends and have a two bedroom, two bathroom apartment which is fairly new. The location gives each of us a commute of about 40 minutes each way, and leaves us on the other side of town from all the Antipodeans living in the South West which has resulted in a couple of long journeys on the tube already.

Highlights of our time so far have been a visit from Kim's parents shortly after we arrived and the chance to join Kim's mum for an important birthday, a night out at the Phantom of the Opera, and a Big Bus Tour. Last week we went to Wembley Stadium to see the Barbarians play the Wallabies the result while the result wasn't what we hoped for and it was particularly cold (-2C) it was alot of fun. I went to a pub catchup with a number of old colleagues from BDO in Auckland and of course we have been checking out the pubs when we get a chance - definitely a great place to be to watch the AB's smash England, dressed proudly in an All Blacks Jersey.

Hopefully everyone is well at home, things are well with us, both of us are working hard and have managed to avoid the credit crunch so far.

Kim is currently in India commissioning a factory, but will be back for Christmas and then we are off to Prague. I will be busy throughout January & February dealing with the year end at work but we plan to get away for a Ski holiday sometime in March.

That's about the lot for now - as is customary I've added a few photos, check out the link on this page. The picture here isn't great but that's me with the FA Cup!

Take Care & be sure to drop us a line,

Dave & Kim

Rio de Janeiro

Rio was the final stop on what has been an amazing trip.

The flight there from Lima involved a minor detour to Santiago in Chile where we first started our trip and a quick stopover in Sao Paulo - three countries in one day!

Based on many recommendations we stayed in Ipanema which is definitely one of the nicest places one could ever want to go, and very wealthy compared to most of the other places we had visited in South America.

The plan was not to do much sightseeing and just get some time relaxing on the beach before we returned the reality of work (or more accurately job hunting).

We spent the first few days lying on the beach at Ipanema where we were treated to a display of every possible body shape in speedos and thongs or bikinis that looked like they had been shrunk in a drier! We saw several rich men accompanied by silicon ladies also - after all this is where all the posers in Rio hang out...

For those that have never been there the beach is covered in men selling food and drinks and stalls where you can hire chairs so it certainly is easy to stay all day eating, drinking, sightseeing and occasionally swimming to cool down...
The locals have some strange habits, including sitting as close to the water as possible facing back to the city (because the sun comes from that way), Men standing at the waters edge just staring out to sea (often moving their arms to prevent tan lines...), playing football and just generally acting like posers! Needless to say we were never pushed for entertainment.

While we were there we managed to head out to a nightclub in Lapa, although to be honest it was the wrong night of the week so ended up being a disappointment.

Next up we made a bit of a mistake in that I (Dave) was particularly keen to move to Copacabana to check out the famous beach and vibe so we changed hostels. Sadly, given it is just around the corner from Ipanema we would have been better to just walk here during the day as the hostel in Ipanema was the best we had been to in all of the trip (for those interested - The Mango Tree www.mangotreehostel.com) and the restaurants nearby were amazing.

Regardless we managed a couple of afternoons at the beach there and joined a day trip that took us to Pedra Bonita, Christ the Redeemer, Santa Teresa and Lapa. Unfortunately the day was a bit hazy so the views were not perfect but still extremely spectacular. Christ the Redeemer was truly spectacular, although we were disappointed to learn parts of it had been made in Italy.

Final stop was the secret Lapa steps where Snoop Dogg shot his famous video for Beautiful which has been created by a Chilean artist by the name of Selaron - undoubtedly of the most unique places you could visit and a very unique man. The mosaic stairwell that he started in 1990 is funded by selling paintings of pregnant women. Unbelievably the stairwell continues to change and includes tiles representing countries from all over the world - if you send him one he will even add it to the wall, take a picture and send it back to you!!!

So that's Rio really, hopefully somewhere we can return to in the near future!

Sadly that's it from South America - although I can report that we are in London and are progressing with the job hunt and managing to catch up with a few friends as well.

We will be keeping the blog going as we travel around Europe, so keep checking back every now and again and keep in contact via email. We appreciate all the the great comments people have made on the blog and thanks for taking the time to read and look at our pictures.

Take Care,

David & Kim

Huaraz & The Cordillera Blanca

When we got back from the jungle we were a little ahead of our initial plan so we had to find something to fill the time before our flight from Lima to Rio.

We spent a day in Cusco relaxing and and pondering - given the reports we have had from other people we certainly didn´t want to spend to much time in Lima so we debated Sand Boarding in Ica and getting a scenic flight over the famous Nazca lines or a trip to Huaraz for a four day hike around the Santa Cruz route in the Cordillera Blanca.

I was feeling fairly weary after all the previous trekking so wasn´t so keen but Kim was definitely favouring the trek option. We meet up with Ant and Lisa who we had been travelling with in Bolivia and they had been recommended a tour operator for the Santa Cruz trek by someone else they had meet which pretty much swung it so we booked a flight to Lima the following morning hoping to catch a bus to Huaraz the same day.

The following morning we were delayed 4 hours while the airport at Cusco was closed but managed to get to Lima around midday, we booked a night bus to Huaraz and then spent the afternoon exploring Miraflores, particularly the Lacomar mall which is build into the side of a cliff overlooking the ocean... before catching the bus to Huaraz. From Huaraz we spent the morning looking for a tour company before settling on the same company we were recommended for the following day.

The following day we started the trek with a small group of six tourists, two guides, four donkeys and a donkey driver. Over the four days we covered 63km, starting at 3,200masl, reaching a maximum of 4,750masl and finally finishing at 2,900masl.

Along the way we saw Artesonraju, a mountain supposedly used as the basis for the Paramount pictures logo you see in the movies and Alpamyo which is also supposedly "the most beautiful mountain in the world" due to its perfect triangular shape. Weather or not this is actually the truth is debatable but the fact that the Cordillera Blanca has 50 peaks higher than 5,500m and covers an area 21 by 180 kilometres, means this part of the Andes is the second highest mountain range in the world behind the Himalayas and home to some extremely spectacular scenery.

The trek was physically harder than the Inca Trail because of the altitude, but also far more scenic and in our opinion the new highlight of the trip to date. For anyone who likes hiking this trek is definitely a must do, and for anyone coming to South America even if they hate hiking this should be on the list of places to go...

So that ends our adventures in Peru - after spending today taking in central Lima we catch a flight to Rio tonight for the final week before heading to London.

Make sure you check out the pictures from this one....

Until next time (from London), Take Care

Dave & Kim

The Jungle - Manu Biosphere Reserve, Peru

Along with the Machu Picchu trek, our trip to the jungle was the only other organised activity for the trip, a compromise given just how far we are from lower parts of the Amazon.

Anyway, we learned a valuable lesson - if you book in advance you don´t always get the best price... especially here in Peru where once you hand over the money you will never see it again...

After returning from Machu Picchu we spent a day relaxing and organising ourselves in Cusco before heading off on the tour.

Manu Biosphere is a UNESCO World Heritage site and covers 18,811 km² which is divided into three areas, which are progressively harder to access (access to the deepest forest is limited to TV crews and researchers) - We only went into the outer area known as the Manu Cultural Zone.

After an early start we spent most of the day driving including the jungle road that rivaled the worlds most dangerous road at points... (we definitely would have felt safer on bikes than the bus, especially as we pulled to the edge for giant Volvo trucks to pass on the inside). We spent the last hour walking down the road and saw some Brown Capuchin Monkeys (like the one Ross had in Friends and the ones in Pirates of The Carribean) and Peru's national bird, the Cock of the Rock before arriving at our lodge for the evening. The lodge was fairly rustic and we spent the evening wondering what was under the floorboards only to find out in the morning there was a fairly large mouse nesting in the bedside drawers...

Day Two and we drove further stopping at a Coca plantation and getting a lesson in how to manufacture cocaine!!! Afterwards we rafted down a Grade 2 stretch of river for an hour and then meet up with the bus and boarded a boat for a further 20 minutes downstream where we found our second lodge. We spent the rest of the day relaxing (until we were awoken by a lady in our group as a monkey found its way into the lodge and climbed across the wall dividing our rooms...) and taking a walk around the jungle in the evening where we saw more monkeys, several birds, some serious ants, termites nests, wild pigs and some fairly decent spiders...

Day three we started early and headed downstream to a clay lick where Parrots and Macaws come to feed every morning. We watched patiently from the other side of the river for about an hour but unfortunately the birds didn´t land on the clay lick as they sensed a predator nearby. Next up was a series of five flying foxes through the canopy of the jungle reaching a maximum height of 70m which proved to much for Kims fear of heights and finally we walked around a lake which used to be part of the river where we saw some more birds....

The final day was the return journey we started with a hour long boat journey back upstream which included pushing the boat through two sets of rapids before hoping on the bus back up the road for a 10 hour return journey... we were blessed with another South American Travel moment as there was a protest in Cusco the following day so the roads were being closed. We found an alternative route only to find that a truck was dumping piles of dirt on the road for the grader that was three hours away to flatten... Fortunately this wasn´t going to stop us and we all got out of the van, leveled the thirteen piles slightly and then watched the driver drive over them in what was a very impressive display of driving bordering on insane...(videos soon)

Anyway we survived, and are booked for another four day trek from Huaraz tomorrow...

Until next time take care,

Dave & Kim

Photos from the Death Road

Hello All,

I just had an email from the people at Gravuty Assisted Mountain Biking with a link to all the pictures from my ride down the Worlds Most Dangerous Road.

If you follow the link to Shutterfly above and enter the password - photos - you can browse and even buy copies...

(I´ve never done this before but think the title of this post might be the link...)

Dave

The Inca Trail & Machu Picchu

We arrived in Cusco two days in advance of the Inca Trail, and spent those exploring parts of the city, resting and getting supplies for the Inca Trail. While the city is definitely beautiful it is very touristic which starts to get on your wick after a while. There are constantly people offering paintings, tourist information and massages on the street...

Regardless of the mayhem the real reason for or visit was to walk the Inca Trail which we booked way back in January to ensure we got one of the 500 spaces available on the track daily.

I could go on for hours about the trail and post all of the 350 photos we took over the four days but without making the trip yourselves it is hard to appreciate the beauty of this trip - we both agree this has to be the best thing we have done on the trip so far.

Basically, the trail covers 43km over three days, finally arriving at Machu Picchu early in the morning on the 4th day. The plan being this:

Day One: Covering only 12km and gaining 500m in altitude passing one set of ruins at Patallacta this considered the easy day. The scenery is a preview of the things to come, and the walking is RELATIVELY easy...

Day Two is the hardest day of the trek covering 12km and climbing some 1200m to the highest point "Dead Woman's Pass" at 4200masl before descending 800m to the campsite for the night - definitely a challenge, especially the last push to the top of the pass, but highly rewarding.

Day Three is the longest day at 15km and passes several ruins sites where the guides give great explanations of the purpose and history of the sites. This day is dubbed "the unforgettable day" because of the Inca sites and scenery.

Finally on Day Four you start at 4am for the final walk to Machu Picchu, which is probably the most demanding day of all as everyone is tired but really pushing hard to get to the ruins first for that special photo.

In our group we had 14 trekkers (mostly american), 20 porters (including the 2 cooks) and 2 guides, which made for an interesting group, and much entertainment along the way.

The company we used (Peru Treks) is well respected and prides itself on the ethical treatment of its porters (and given what we observed this is definitely the case) and extremely knowledgeable guides. We were lucky to get three days of great weather before a spot of rain overnight on the last night and some cloud as we passed over the "Sun Gate" on the final morning where we would have got our first glimpse of Machu Pichu.

Once we arrived in Machu Picchu the cloud lifted and after our group tour of the ruins we were fortunate to be two of the 400 persons allowed to climb to the top of Wayna Picchu which is the extremely steep mountain that overlooks Machu Picchu (the one that appears in all the postcard photos and definitely recommended for the view, but not for those who find heights intimidating).

Finally, we spent the afternoon in Aguas Calientes Town (Literal Translation: Water Hot Town) enjoying Pizza and Beer before the train and bus rides back to Cusco.

Overall it was an amazing experience, and one we will not forget anytime soon...

Take Care,

Dave and Kim

Arequipa & The Colca Canyon

We left Copacabana on the first bus in the morning headed for Arequipa Peru, a trip that would involve two bus journeys. The first journey took us through the border to Peru where we stopped to complete the formalities and change our cash from Bolivianos to Peruvian Soles before pressing on the bus depot in Puno, on the edge of Lake Titicaca for the next bus to Arequipa.

We had been told the next bus to Arequipa would take 6-7 hours and be equipped with a Baño (toilet), unfortunately the toilet part was a lie and the bus ride was fairly bumpy for the first hour or two, otherwise it was nice and uneventful - except for seeing another bus that had rolled on its side about 2 hours from Arequipa.

Arequipa is an amazing city and from the Plaza de Armas you can see three nearby volcanoes (Chachani 6075m, Pichu Pichu 5571m and El Misti 5822m). Many of the buildings in the town are made from a white volcanic rock called sillar which earned the town its name of "The White City". Arequipa is also seen as one of the most "intelligent" cities in Peru as it has a high percentage of people of Spanish descent going back to when they colonised the country.

We spent the first full day looking around the town including Museo Santuary which is home to "Juanita, The Ice Princess" a girl who was sacrificed by the Incas over 500 years ago on the summit of a nearby volcano and rediscovered in 1995. We also visited Monasterio Santa Catalina - a Spanish monastery founded in 1580, which occupies a whole block and has been restored for tourists, with the exception of a small area that now houses 23 nuns. We checked out the inside of the Cathedral also, however it fell short of some of the others we have seen on the journey so far.

Day Two was supposed to be the start of our 3 day trek into the nearby Colca Canyon which at 3191m is the second deepest canyon in the world (by 161m to a neighbouring canyon!) but it was time for Dave to feel the effects of South American belly, so we had to postpone a day and wait things out...

The next day things were looking positive and we set off to the canyon - Day One we bussed to Cabanaconde then walked 3 hours down to the village of San Juan de Chuccho in the canyon where we spent the night dining on alpaca meat. Day Two and we walked along the bottom of the canyon for two hours to the Oasis, which is home to a pretty little village with many swimming pools where we relaxed, had a swim and lunch. Later in the afternoon we walked out of the Canyon for Cabanaconde - gaining 1200m in 3 hours to reach an altitude of 3200masl. The walk was gruelling and the heat before the sun disappeared was intense - Kim was suffering and so was I carrying both our bags (the only other way out was on the back of a mule which on this terrain would have been terrifying).

We spent the night in Copanaconde and arose early for the trip back to Arequipa. Along the way we stopped at Cruz del Condor to see the Condors flying up close (Condors are one of the biggest flying birds in the world and have wingspans from 2.7 to 3.1 meters and can weigh up to 15kg) before continuing to Chivay where we spent the rest of the morning relaxing in the hot springs and had lunch before catching a bus back to Arequipa.

Finally, we spent a day relaxing in Arequipa while we waited for an overnight bus to Cusco, we even managed to see a movie, check out the mall and treat ourselves to some KFC...

We are currently in Cusco and leave on the Inca Trail tomorrow then we have another day in town before we head into the Amazon Jungle for 4 days - should be a blast.

Hasta Luego,

Dave and Kim

Lake Titicaca - Copacabana & Isla del Sol

Copacabana and Isla del Sol were the last stops in our tour of Bolivia, and possibly the most beautiful - a great sendoff from a country that has given us both so much.

The bus trip was fairly scenic and at one point we had to hop off the bus while it was taken across the a lake by barge as we followed in a motorboat. Otherwise the journey was pleasantly uneventful - which made a nice change after our previous buses.

Once in Copacabana we looked for a Hostel and settled on one with a great view overlooking Lake Titicaca, before spending the afternoon looking around town and capturing some pictures of the sunset.

The following day and we splashed out with some retail therapy, buying some things for ourselves and some gifts for family. We even ventured out onto the lake on a peddle boat for some pictures looking back on the town, but generally just spent the day relaxing in what must be the most touristy place we encountered in all of Bolivia.

Day Three and our trip to Isla del Sol (Island of the Sun, and birthplace of the sun in Inca mythology) began - first up was a 17km walk to Yampupata on the shore of Lake Titicaca (Yampupata being the closest settlement to the Island) to catch a boat to the island (Tip: generally people just catch a boat direct from Copacabana direct - but the views on this walk make the extra effort well worthwhile if you have the time).

The walk was interesting and along the way we saw the Virgin in a Cave, several trout farms and some interesting villages, although we have to admit we didn't actually walk the whole way because we bumped into a man along the way who offered to take us to the island himself (saving about an hours walk). The man (Hilario Paye) is well known to travellers features in the Lonely Planet and quickly presented us a collection of postcards (including a few NZ ones) from many travellers he has ferried to the island previously, although he no longer has the reed boat mentioned in the guidebook.

The boat we boarded was not much more than a tin dinghy with no oars or life jackets and a single 25hp engine... needless to say it was definitely good there was little wind.

Once on the southern end of the island we climbed the Inca Staircase to the village of Yumani which when combined with an altitude in excess of 4000masl proved testing...(for those that know Kim well, you can read between the lines here!)

From the village we headed south to check out the old Inca ruins at Piko Kaina before returning to the village for a beer and the sunset. Nighttime on the island was spectacular as the day trip tourists departed and the island plunged into silence (except the occasional donkey).

In the morning we set off for for the northern end of the island which is home to the Chincana Inca Ruins which is the site of the sacred rock where the Inca creation legend began, these ruins were more spectacular than those of the previous day and capped off a picturesque walk along the ridge line. After the ruins we visited the Rock of the Puma before heading to Cha'llapampa which is the islands major northern village for a boat back to Copacabana.

This time we caught a larger boat back to the mainland, which although beautiful was fairly slow (the boat was about 45 feet long, had about 40 passengers and was powered by a 75hp engine, with the driver steering from the back...) arriving back on the island around 3pm (a two hour trip).

We joined a couple from Tasmania for dinner that evening and and booked a bus to Arequipa in Peru for the following day.

Overall one of the best stops on the trip so far - hopefully some of the photos can capture the magic...

Finally, for those interested I have some stats comparing Lake Titicaca and Lake Taupo - just because its the easiest way we could think to understand the sheer size of the place.

Lake Titicaca:

Max. length 190 km (118 mi)
Max. width 80 km (50 mi)
Surface area 8,372 km² (3,232 sq mi)
Average depth 107 m (351 ft)
Max. depth 284 m (932 ft)
Water volume 893 km³ (214 cu mi)
Shore length1 1,125 km (699 mi)
Surface elevation 3,812 m (12,507 ft)

Lake Taupo

Max. length 46 km
Max. width 33 km
Surface area 616 km²
Average depth 110 m
Max. depth 186 m
Water volume 59 km³
Shore length 193 km
Surface elevation ~356 m

May the adventures continue in Peru.

Take Care,

Dave & Kim

La Paz & The Death Raod

Having arrived in La Paz and found a hostel we set out to find food and to have a look around the city.

We followed the suggested walking tour in our trusty guidebook, which turned out to be a bit less interesting than these tours have been in the past, regardless we took in the Witches Market (read Bolivian textile market for Gringos), the San Fransisco Cathedral (which dates back to the 1500's), the black market and the Presidential Palace.

We went to one of the better restaurants in the city (Vienna) that evening and enjoyed a great meal with mains costing 40-45 Bolivianos ($1USD = 7.3USD) - less than a McDonald's Combo!

The following day (Saturday) we booked in for a mountain bike descent of the Worlds Most Dangerous Road for the following Monday. We also checked out Parque Mirador (lookout) Laikota which turned out to be a giant children's playground with amazing views of the city which is set in a valley (La Paz is one of the only cities in the world where the wealthy live in the lower parts of the city).

Sunday rolled around and Kim arose to find she had been stricken by one of Bolivia's famous bugs, needless to say her day was spent between the bed and the bathroom...feeling sorry for her I left to tour the cathedral (which Kim wasn't interested in anyway) only to find out it was closed so returned for a day reading, getting Kim food and updating the blog...

Monday and the mystery illness still lurking, Kim agreed to stay home while I set off for the ride down the worlds most dangerous road. (The available information is conflicting but generally the consensus is that on average 100-250 people died on the road annually before the new road opened, generally because of vehicles slipping over the side and often because the drivers were drunk...)

Some of you may have seen the documentary in NZ recently where a reporter from the BBC joined the New Zealand Owned Company Gravity Assisted Mountain Biking for a descent of the road. Gravity are the pioneers of the ride, and from what I observed on the day the only operators you should use on this route if you ever attempt it...

The day was long, starting at 7am and ending at around 9.30pm. Unfortunately the day was also wet once we got off the initial tarmac section and onto the worlds most dangerous road itself. When combined with the recently graded road the wet made for slippery conditions, poor visibility and photos that are much less likely to scare your mother...(bummer!). My camera remained in the bus, so the photos you see are taken by the guides (in a few days I will have a link to a website with more pictures and video for you).

Overall it was a great experience and is thoroughly recommended (even for nervous cyclists as they let you go at your own pace).

Honestly, I only felt like I was going over the side a couple of times, otherwise it was just plain good fun...

Kim's sickness put an end to our plans to spend a couple of days hiking around Coroico, so the following day we boarded a bus to Copacabana, Lake Titicaca which is our last stop (and possibly the most in impressive) in Bolivia before we head to Peru.

I can report Kim is well now, and we are travelling alone again after farewelling Ant and Lisa at the bottom of the worlds most dangerous road.

Take Care,

Dave & Kim

Photo Update

Hi Again,

Just a quick note to let you know we are having a bit more luck with the internet here in La Paz. While we are still having some issues with uploading some of the photos we have added three albums and have been through all the existing albums adding captions so you can get a better feel for the pictures. Just click on the link to more of our photos on the right below the slideshows.

Also you can comment on any of the posts by clicking on the add comments button at the bottom of the posts.

Dave & Kim

Sucre & Surrounds

Blockades beat and it was time to afford ourselves some relaxation before we tried anything strenuous again.

On arriving in Sucre we were fortunate to meet an Irish chap (also called David) we had previously meet who recommended a hostel on the closest side of town that allowed us to put down our bags and relax.

While the hostel was very average we decided enough was enough and we would find something better the following day (by Bolivian standards this place was still OK - the showers were hot, but the rooms were cold and noisy). We went to one of the best bars/restaurants in Bolivia so far (Joyride Cafe) and settled into a great meal and some local beers, before retiring for an early night.

Day two, we set about finding a new hostel and backing up our photos to DVD before we headed to Cafe Mirador which is on the hill overlooking Sucre for lunch in the sunshine - really a magic venue and a great relaxing day. Before long a large group of us found ourselves at another Gringo hangout in town (Locots) for dinner, and later in a few of the local pubs.

No surprises for guessing then that the following day saw a late start before we began with a cooked breakfast, then headed to Salon de te las Delicias for late lunch with Ant and Lisa. This place is one of the finest establishments in Sucre and we certainly looked out of place in our travelling attire. The food here is delicious and varied - while we didn´t opt for anything large Ant quickly finished the meat trio (Chicken, Tail and Tongue) which he assured us was delicious. We finished off the day with Pizza and retired feeling like stuffed animals.

The following day we set about preparing for the trek we planned for the following two days, and took in the local textile museum. At the museum we watched two ladies weaving and checked out the evolution of Bolivian weaving along with the differing designs of the respective regions. While Ant did most of the organising for us Kim buried herself in a book (again) and I spent one and a half hours in the bank trying to convert $500USD to Bolivianos... Again food was a central part of the day with El Germain coming highly recommended for lunch if you are ever in Sucre, before a serious carbo loading session at Joyride.

(Side Note: At Joyride they serve a Bolivian meal known as Pique de la Macho - French Fries covered in bits of steak, chorizo sausage, hot peppers and gravy - enough to satisfy even the largest hunger and absolutely delicious. This dish should be on every Bolivian travellers itinerary).

Having had enough food we set out on our trek to the weaving country around Sucre.

First up was a hour long bus ride to Chataquila which was interesting - standing (with a roof less than 6 foot high), gravel roads and surrounded by men chewing coca leaves with breath that could strip paint a mile away!

Once at Chataquila we found the entrance to an old Inca Road for a walk downhill towards Chaunaca. The road was well preserved in places and it is definitely amazing to think that anyone would want to arrange rocks of this size on the side of a hill (mountain) this steep manually all those years ago.

From the bottom of the Inca road we followed a track firstly through farmland and then along the side of a river to Socabamba (despite there being a school there the town appeared to be deserted) before crossing the river on a wire bridge. After crossing the river the going got tough as we headed uphill past some locals farms and over the ¨Ledge of Death¨. At the ¨Ledge of Death¨ the trail was almost non existent (45 degree slope, covered in loose metal and falling away steeply to a loooong way below). When Kim froze with me right behind in the middle we coined the term ¨Ledge of Death¨ and at the same time I realised the track was only as wide as our shoes! One of the locals coming the other way wearing Bridgestones (my name for the local footwear - sandals made from what looks like old tyres) noticed the panic as we crossed and proceeded to run across (looking back at us at the same time) smiling.

After nearly six hours walking we arrived at Maragua for what was one of the most spectacular sunrises one will ever see. Here we stayed in some Cabanas which have been set up by the community to house trekkers like ourselves with all funds going back to the local community - it was a beautiful rock and straw hut with hot water, flushing loos and great food (provided by a local girl who appeared all of about 15 years old).

Day two and after breakfast we arranged a guide to show us the way to Patolo. Unfortunately Maragua only has a small store so we had to settle for biscuits for lunch and water from the tap with iodine solution for the 5 hour trek which had us debating if we should go on or turn back to the bus at Chaunaca (2-3 hours away). Fortunately we decided to carry on and set out to Patolo. Along the way we encountered local farmers taking their livestock to the market (including one lady walking three cows in the middle of nowhere) and took in some fossilised dinosaur prints. The days walking was relatively easy compared to the previous day at five hours, although the guide certainly made us feel like we were hauling boulders.

On arriving in Patolo we had the guide show us to the cabanas (same as in Maragua) only to find the man from Sucre had not told them we were coming. The day was saved by a thirteen year old boy who noticed us and told us about the hostel his parents owned. The hostel turned out to be perhaps the coldest and most uncomfortable night we have ever experienced, although the family were very welcoming as they continued to operate the takeaway restaurant, shop and hostel that all shared the same premises.

Finally we took a three hour bus back to Sucre (again standing, but this time with sufficient headroom and less bad breath) over a road that was both spectacular and hair raising at the same time.

After another night in Sucre, and some serious food we boarded a flight to La Paz (population 1.5 million), as roadblocks around Potosi are still causing trouble for transport by road (although in hindsight we both enjoyed the 45 minute flight more than we would have a 16 hour bus ride).

Our next stop is Coroico, which we will reach by descending the worlds most dangerous road on mountain bike...

Good to hear the All Blacks beat England last night.

Until Next Time,

Dave & Kim

Bolivia Part II - Potosi & The Bus!

Hello All,

As promised we continue on from where we left off after arriving in Uyuni, Bolivia.

The plan was to stay only one night before moving on to Potosi. After leaving our driver at the bus station we immediately booked tickets out for the following day.

We spent the afternoon relaxing and glad to be out of the jeep which although great become uncomfortable sometime on day two of four! In the evening we caught up with a few people we had met during the 4WD tour for dinner at a place called Minuteman Pizza, home of possibly the best Pizza in South America (American owned of course) which Luke (Kim's Brother) had informed us was well worth the visit, and is a nice little place of warmth in this otherwise cold part of the world.

The following day we took the bus to Potosi. No more than one minute after boarding one of the English guys travelling in a tour group on the same bus discovered his bag had been taken from the overhead compartment! We soon locked our bags to the seats and relaxed as what seems like millions of locals boarded the bus filling the isle. The bus bumped its way to the outskirts of Potosi before we encountered a roadblock (truck drivers dissatisfied with road taxes, who would have guessed) with the driver stopping & proceeding to throw all the bags off the roof! We were fortunate to be able to walk around the trucks and catch local transport into town with a crew of Aussies we had been dining with the night before travelling on the bus behind us.

Once in Potosi we found a hostel (The Koala Den - ironic given we we with a group of Aussies), but because of the blockades between Potosi and Sucre the hostel was short on beds with some people having been stuck there for the last few days. Kim and I opted for a dorm which got interesting that night when the danish lad in the bunk below me decided to return at 4am with one of the local ladies - nothing more need be said here except that no one in the dorm slept for the rest of the night despite our constant abuse.

Day one and we visited the infamous Potosi Silver Mines (although they now mine various other minerals) , which was an interesting experience. The mines themselves are very dangerous and the chemicals in the air (including arsenic and asbestos) mean that many of the miners only live to the ripe old age of 40 before dying of respitory infections. I tried some of the miners treats (Chewing Coca Leaves and Drinking 96% Alcohol), and at the end managed to hold a live piece of dynamite for a photo, although Kim wasn't so keen (actually she hated the whole experience!).

As I said in the last post Potosi is the highest city in the world at 4060masl, so on the second day we set out on a walk, above the city to check out some ancient man made lakes built to supply the town and its refineries water. At this altitude even walking down the street is difficult let alone a walk into the mountains, so we we lucky to be accompanied by Ant and Lisa (a couple of Aussies, essentially doing the opposite to us ie. returning from the UK to Oz) which certainly helped with motivation.

Finally on day three we set out to bus to Sucre for some releif from the altitude and in desperate need of good food after several bad experiences in Potosi.

Unfortunately for us, and despite our efforts to investigate the status of the blockades this supposed three hour journey was to become a nightmare. We encountered our first (of 13) blockade 15km from Surcre which spelt near three hours of walking and riding on the back of a truck with all our gear before finally reaching a place to stay, all up a near 6 hour journey containing some extremely steep hills...

I'm pleased to say we have made it and the roads are improving as we get closer to La Paz along with the food. We are still travelling with Ant and Lisa and are planning a 3 day walk in the country over the next few days before moving onto La Paz, home of the worlds most dangerous road - and looks like I may have twisted Kim's arm to join me riding it on mountain bike!

So until we reach La Paz - Take Care,

Dave & Kim

PS. Still no photos sorry, hopefully in La Paz we can get some up.

Bolivia Part I - Tupiza and Uyuni

Following on from Salta we boarded a bus for La Quiaca which is the on the border of Argentina and Bolivia. Again the bus was an overnight one leaving at midnight and arriving at seven in the morning. Unfortunately for us there were no Cama buses on this route so we had to ride a Semi-Cama (for those not in the know the impressive Argentine long haul bus system has various levels of comfort - Cama VIP, Cama and Semi Cama representing first, business and economy class in airline terms.

The bus was uneventful but the temperatures quickly hit freezing and we were left feeling the cold having packed our warm clothes in our packs. Once at the boarder and rugged up we walked across the boarder into Villazon, Bolivia stopping at the respective countries boarder controls. Here we meet some other tourists from England and Israel who were also headed to Tupiza. We set off looking for a cambio (money exchange) to get some Bolivianos for the bus. While we were consulting the lonely planet a bus came flying around the corner, screeched to a halt and a man came running out yelling Tupiza, Tupiza. Luckily our new found Israeli friend had been to Bolivia earlier and lent us Bolivianos for our fares. We clambered the bus for the two hour trip, which stopped a few more times eventually being stuffed full with locals sitting and standing in the isle. While we were expecting chickens aboard the stench of the old ladies on the bus was the worst part of the trip, followed closely by the fact the bus was like riding a jackhammer for two hours.

Once in Tupiza we set out on a three hour horse ride, which took in some scenery and provided much pain. The following day we walked to the top of La Cruz, a mountain overlooking the town itself for some great pictures and a view of La Elephante (a rocky mountain that really looks like an elephant, see the pictures). Finally we spent a day waiting for our 4 day jeep tour to Uyuni which involved much frustration as we spent nearly three hours uploading photos due to a very slow internet connection.

For those that are interested Tupiza is at 3000m above sea level, and the three days spent there was good acclimatisation for the places to come. It is also the town where Butch Cassidy was caught and arrested - the house used as a hideout is a tourist attraction today although we didn´t get there.

Finally after much negotiation we boarded a four day jeep tour to Uyuni, which was lucky as we only managed to find three people (including ourselves) as it is the low season for tourism (in most cases people take the tours from Uyuni and return to the point they start spending only 3 days and two nights, which also added to the difficulty finding people). Over the course of the next four days we took in hours upon hours of amazing landscapes, coloured lagoons, bumpy dirt roads and offroading. The first two nights were spent in very basic accommodation with no showers, and no hot water at 4200and 5000masl respectively which were ridiculously cold, so much so that when we departed for the second day at 5.30am the jeeps temperature gauge showed more than -10°C as the inside temperature with it taking over two hours for the magical 0°C to come up.

The third night we were desperate for a hot shower so opted to stay in a Salt Hotel on the edge of the Salar de Uyuni at a cost of $10USD p/p instead of the free accommodation similar to that of the previous evenings. Interestingly the Salt Hotels are no longer allowed on the Salar because of contamination problems and truly are made out of salt bricks taken from the Salar itself. The salt provides some form of insulation and the Hotel was reasonably warm despite the outside conditions.

Finally, on the fourth day we arose early to see the sunrise on the Salar which was spectacular. We then visited one of the Salars Islands (a rocky mountain covered in Cacti in the middle of the Salar) before heading to Uyuni where we visited the Cemetario de Tren (Train Cemetery) before being dropped off in town.

I will report on Uyuni next time, but the tour was simply amazing with the sheer scale and beauty of the countryside a real eyeopener to someone from a little country like NZ (at one point the Salar Stretches 350km across) and is a must do for all visitors to this part of the world. The food was amazing and was cooked in very basic conditions by Maribel (20) the wife of or driver David (26) who were very accommodating of our Spanglish.

We are currently in Potosi, which is the highest city in the world at 4060masl and you can expect another update once we reach our next destination (which will be interesting as protesters are currently blockading many of the countries major routes...)

Ciao,

Dave & Kim

Northern Argentina - Corrientes & Salta

The contrasting experiences of Northern Argentina in the last week or so have seen us both reach the highs and lows of the trip to date.

Corrientes, was only ever intended to be a brief stopover en route to Salta, that turned out to be a travellers lesson in how to fill in time in a town where there truly is nothing of any interest to see or do. From misreading of the map that resulted in an hour walking to find a hostel in a stinking heat to the hotel room that was a shoebox (Kim could span her arms from one wall to the other), it was a disaster. The temperatures were unbearable and everyone went on siesta in the middle of the day making it impossible to find the cold drinks we were hoping for...

We arrived in Salta after another long bus journey a bit downbeat and hoping for an fast improvement in our fortunes - how lucky we were, Salta is definitely a thriving and attractive place to be.

We quickly meet a group of like minded tourists at our hostel from as far and wide as England, Egypt and the USA, and joined tours though the hostel to Cafyete, San Antonio (following the route of the train to the clouds we had hoped to enjoy (now closed due to political issues) and finally Cachi.

Each of the journeys meant an early start but the scenery was varied and spectacular, changing frequently along the way. The mix of nationalities on the tours made for many interesting moments. (All the tours were organised through our Hostel - Hostelling Internationals Backpackers Home, which is extremly good if you are in the area).

Perhaps the most interesting moment was on the Tour to the Clouds which was the day before May Revolution in Argentina - one of the public holidays. This year the president was visiting Salta.

Much like George Dubya the president is not well liked so she was bringing in supporters from all over the country to support her. Protests against this meant that the petrol stations were not giving gas to anyone including our bus which desperately needed fuel...four petrol stations, much heated discussion (none of which we understood), and some aggressive fuel conservation (including rolling down hills) later we made it back to Salta and rolled into a petrol station that was serving customers.

Finally we spent a day exploring the town, enjoying a few of the local brews (and the best empanadas ever) before catching a bus to Bolivia at midnight.

Overall Argentina has been really great, and we hope to visit again.

Unfortunatly getting photos up is proving difficult, but we hope to update the albums soon!

Apologies if some of the photo files are a bit big - i´m doing my best to correct that - click one of the slideshows or the link to more photos to see all our albums.

Adios Argentina,

Dave & Kim

Iguazu Falls

After the bright lights of Buenos Aires we moved on to the quiet of Puerto Iguazu to visit the Iguazu Falls.

The 16 hour bus ride was better than a long haul flight except for the food which was below average.

The bus arrived midday so we spent an afternoon walking around town in serious sweat inducing conditions with the highlight for the day being the overlooking where the Iguazú river and the Paraná river meet, forming the natural borders of Paraguay, Argentina and Brazil.

An early start allowed us to take in all of the trails established to view the falls from the Argentina side of the river which was truly spectacular with high and low level trails allowing viewing from various points above and below the falls, including the top of Garganta del Diablo (The Devils Throat) - the largest of all the falls.

We managed to meet two frenchies in the hostel who each spoke French, Spanish and English, which was nice as we took a taxi across the boarder into Brazil the following day with one of them to view the falls from the other side, and visit the bird park opposite the entrance to the falls. Nic (Frenchie) had spent a year living in Australia before travelling NZ for a month so was able to amuse us with the customary "Hey Bro!", then he started talking rugby...(enough said).

The view on the Brazil side was less spectacular than being up close on the Argentine side but gave a more panoramic view of the falls as a whole, given how easy it is to cross the boarder it is a most do.

On our visit to the falls in Argentina we had followed a two hour nature walk in the hope of seeing some wildlife but unfortunately we didn´t see anything - the Brazilian Bird Park was the answer to this and we were able to see the toucan we had hoped to see along with many parrots including one we we able to hold for photos and some snakes (Anacondas and Boa Constrictors).

Next we move off the tourist trail a bit to Corrientes, Argentina as we head for Bolivia.

Until next time,

Dave & Kim

Steak Paradise!

With no real expectations other than a hope to find the greatest steak on the face of the earth we boarded an early morning flight to Buenos Aires, Argentina.

We arrived mid morning Sunday and were keen to check out a football match that day so we didn't miss out. Unfortunately we had arrived a week to late to see Boca Junior (Maradonnas old club) play River, which is one of the biggest rivalry's in the league. Instead we joined a tour to watch San Lorenzo vs Independiente at Estadio San Lorenzo. There are simply no words to describe the atmosphere with both sets of fans singing and playing music through the game and on afterwards even when it became clear the home team would lose!

Most of the time in BA was spent on foot checking out the local barrios (neighbourhoods), including the Microcentro, Recoletta (BA's Remuera and home to the grave of Eva Peron), San Telmo (crafts, antiques and restaurants), La Boca (the famous coloured houses, and home of the Boca Juniors Estadio) and Tigre on the outskirts of the city where we enjoyed an hour long river cruise.

We went to two very different steak restaurants. La Brigada in San Telmo should be on the list of attractions for any visitor to BA. For $50USD between us we sat down to what can only be considered the best steak ever, although it must be said we were jealous of the guy next to us with an eye fillet that was near 10cm thick!!!, just be aware though if you order steak all you get is steak - salad is extra. The next place was an all you can eat down on the waterfront and for $15USD each you got a drink (bottle of wine or jug of beer), unlimited meat, salad, papas fritas (fries) and a desert, while the steak wasn't up to the standard of the last place we certainly got our moneys worth.

Highlights were the football match, La Boca (although I don't recommend walking here because it didn't exactly feel safe), a cruise on the river in Tigre and a Tango Show we attended at Cafe Tortoni which is the oldest cafe in BA. The architecture in and around the city needs to be seen to be believed.

The city is beautiful and we would like to come back and go shopping here in the future and check out the San Telmo markets on a Sunday.

Knowing we need to carry our packs for the next two months with anything we buy along the way acts as a great deterrent in the shops and means more money for steak as we continue through Argentina...

Should you be looking for a hostel in BA, we highly recommend El Firulete which is on Maipu Ave but you will need earplugs as every bus in town uses this one way street...

Next Stop Iquazu Falls (after 16 hours on the bus),

That's it from carnivore heaven - take care,

Dave & Kim

Santiago - Chile

Hi All,

We arrived in Santiago, Chile after the 11 hour flight from NZ at about 1 in the afternoon Santiago Time.

Leaving behind family was hard but thankfully the flight passed quickly and we both managed to get some good sleep that left us ready to get out and explore on our arrival.

We had planned to take a shuttle to our hostel but on exiting the airport a nice english speaking man pointed us to a cab to the hostel for $15 (US), which was about the same as the shuttle would cost. We hoped in the cab and arrived safely only to have an arguement with the driver who told us the 15 really was 15 thousand pesos ($30 usd). Needless to say Kim was not happy!

We set out that afternooon from our hostel, Hostal Forestal to see some of the city but it wasn´t long before we began to feel the flight catching up on us. The next day we walked up Cerro San Cristobal where we checked out the view of Santiago and the monument before catching the funicular (a cable car) back down. The view was impressive but would have been more so had the winter smog that impacts Santiago not been present, we just managed to grab a glinpse of one peak in the Andes. More exploring followed by dinner and a few beers with some of the hostel crowd followed.

Next day we visited Viña Cusiño Macul - Chiles largest family owned winery.
The winery we visited is essentially a museum now and there is a larger site further out of the city as the rapidly expanding city surrounded the existing winery. The wines (red) were divine and we would certainly recommend this place if you are in Chile. Interestingly the family has a special room in the underground cellar that contains wines from every vintage going back as the founding of the winery in 1856 for their personal use!

Day three had us checking out the city, which was great followed by a night drinking pisco sours (Chille´s national drink) at the hostel before heading to a pub with some hostel folk.

The next day was essentially a quiet day in preparation for the early flights to BA which after three days of cold showers would make a welcome change.

Overall Santiago was friendly and a great place to start out on the adventure we have planned...

Next stop is Buenos Aires - until then take care,

David & Kim

Leaving Party

Getting close now...

Departure date is really starting to get close, only three weeks of work to go and three and a half weeks until our flight on the 7th of May.

Our visa applications are with the British High Commission and we hope they will be back in the next couple of weeks.

We are selling up most of our things before we leave which has been interesting, with Trademe again proving to be rather amusing. The last two sales have been memorable - the first was the bed, which was collected by a couple of South Africans who managed to fit the whole thing into a Civic Hatchback despite the large size of the headboard, even worse they had to take it the whole way to Waiuku! Next up was a set of bedroom drawers, a mother and her two daughters came to collect but had forgotten to check if they would fit into the car! Needless to say they had to sit in the driveway for half an hour while they called Daddy to come around with a bigger car...

Last night we had a leaving party at the flat for our friends. It was always going to be interesting with an open home today at midday, although we seem to have come through unscathed.

It was a different crowd with the usual suspects joined with some of the crew from Kim's work.

It was good to catch up with those who have now moved on from the bright lights of Auckland to the greener pastures of the Waikato and our friendly civil servant from Wellington, cheers guys!

Some of the guests I know are feeling worse for wear, particularly one who enjoyed sleeping on the floor after a few calls on the big white telephone.

There were the usual pranks pulled and at one stage I was very concerned for the wellbeing of our trusty Corolla.

As usual Martin got fixated on something later in the evening, only this time it wasn't pixie juice but rather beef & garlic sausages followed by a series of slurred text messages as his potent garlic breath distracted the dial a driver. Captain Porteous was looking stunning in purple.

It was inevitable that the airbed we are using would be deflated. The only question was who would be the one to pull the plug, and this time it seems Stretch may have been responsible. I'll no doubt run into him in the UK and I will get revenge.

Hopefully we can catch up with a few of you again before we leave so until next time take care,

Cheers

Dave & Kim

South Island Trip - Fi & Calebs Wedding

Last week we went on a trip around the South Island. Originally we were going for Fi & Caleb's wedding in Queenstown and the weekend before I was to ride the Le Race (100k from Christchurch to Akaroa).

It turned out that Le Race became Le Races as a lack of training had us take up Nick and Laura's offer of a night at the races at Addington - a big thanks to Ron (Laura's Dad) for the tickets.

We spent three days in Christchurch where we caught up with Nick & Laura, Chris (thanks for the cheap shoes dude), Nan and the Kings (Daves Family), we also managed to find a few things for the big trip to South America we had been struggling to find in Auckland, the end of year sales certainly appealed to the accountant in me!

On Sunday we picked up a rental car and started the trip south:

Sunday – after finally getting on the road we headed for Tekapo via Methven and the Rakaia George. We made a few stops but unfortunately had to miss the Brown & Blue Pubs this time... Once in Tekapo we checked out the church of the good shepard and took a few photos before setting up camp for the night. A fairly strong wind blowing down in the lake into the campground made for a cold night...

Monday – we woke early and got on the road to out next campsite at Glentanner on the road to Mt Cook. On the way we stopped at Lake Pukaki hoping to see Mt Cook but unfortunately the clouds weren't playing ball and we were left staring at blue lake and clouds, which was spectacular none the less (see picture). Next we took a detour to Twizel and managed to see a bit of the Maadi Cup at Lake Ruataniwha which was certainly impressive. Next stop was Glentanner to setup the tent before continuing on to Mt Cook Village where we checked out the Hermitage, The tasman glacier and a few other sights before the sun went down.

Tuesday – again we woke early and set off to our next destination Wanaka. Once there we found our campsite and setup before heading to Puzzleworld where we took on the maze and checked out the illusion rooms. Next stop was the local Speights Ale House where we had a drink or two while checking out an amazing sunset before retiring to camp.

Wednesday – we had a few sights to see so we made an early start. We planned to take in the Crown Range Road and Arrowtown before moving on to Glenorchy (at the top of Lake Wakatipu).
In Queenstown we checked out the Gondola and Luge. The day was nearing and end so we looked to cancel the Glenorchy campsite and find a place in Queenstown, fortunately the cost to cancel was more than the cost to stay at the campsite so we decided to carry on.
This 40 minute drive undoubtedly now ranks as my favorite NZ drive, and the lowering light along with flat calm lake made for some impressive photos. That night we went to the local pub which was very rustic and felt like taking a step back in time.

Thursday – Thursday was a very early start as we had to meet some of the wedding party in Queenstown and head to Milford Sound for an overnight cruise. After the trip to Gelnorchy the day prior we were not expecting to be that impressed, but how wrong we were, the drive (especially between Te Anau and Milford) was nothing short of spectacular.

The Cruise – overnight on the Milford Wanderer (www.realjourneys.co.nz) was excellent and is well recommended. We were privileged to get a nice day on the first night while some of us ventured around in kayaks before rain set in overnight which saw waterfalls seemingly coming out of everywhere you looked.

Friday – we made the return trip to Queenstown for the wedding, most notably we managed to devour on of the infamous Fergburgers for dinner that evening.

Saturday – was basically a day to check out the Queenstown, prepare for the wedding and to attend the respective Hens Party / Stag Do before the wedding on Sunday.

Sunday – Kim was off doing bridesmaid duties so for me it was just a chance to relax and take in some of the sights of Queenstown before heading to the wedding venue at Stoneridge overlooking Lake Hayes later in the day. The weather held off for a spectacular wedding and we certainly all had some fun at the reception.

Monday spelled the end of the adventures although not until our flight had been cancelled which ment a fair bit of waiting around, a small place to a pay for such a great adventure, once we get back from our OE we will be back to see more of this magic land...

Until next time,

Dave & Kim

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