Trip of a lifetime

Columbia

lthom — Sun, 1 Feb 2015 13:06:00 GMT

Well, this wasnt even on the original itinerary, not that has stopped us before. Everyone we meet says we have to go Columbia, its so beautiful and has changed so much so we decided to work it into the schedule. We flew through Bogota, just spent one night there, and hopped a bus to Medellin. Again I wasnt able to find a workaway so we wont be spending much time here. The country here is so different from what weve seen so far. Were heading into jungle territory now and its so lush and beautiful. The bus trip is actually enjoyable just because there is so much to see now. Medellin is a revelation. Its lush and modern and traditional at the same time. There are still the favelas all up the hillsides but they are flourishing now due to the government investing in them with infrastucture, cable cars for access, librairies, and much more. They have a world class metro system and they are still expanding on it with yet another line with a cable car running up into the neighbourhoods on the mountainside. We took arguably the best city walking tour weve done. The guide, Hernán, was awesome, he grew up here, is university educated and knows so much about the people and the city. He didnt dwell on the cartels but did talk some about the history and where they are today. They still have a long ways to go but man what a difference in such a short period of time, Medellin particularly. Some cities and areas are still unsafe, the problem hasnt gone away, but the people are so positive, theyre smiling and friendly and they clearly love their city and their country. We also went to Guatape for a couple days. We didnt end up doing much, just a boat tour of the lake which was really nice. The lake is man made, 5 rivers and a town flooded for a damn by General Electric. There is 1 house that survived and its now a museum which you can stop at on the boat tour. It was really interesting, even in Spanish. There are pictures of the town being flooded as it stood, the people werent even aware it was going to happen. What devestation. There is a monument where the church stood and a replica church built on the stopes on the side of the lake. Pablo Escobars lake retreat is also on the tour, this is where he was killed, the house and buildings were burned out and left to rot. The second day it rained and we ended up heading back to Medellin early.

The plan was to fly to Panama but losing my credit cards has proven to be a huge challenge. I spent days trying to get it sorted out and in the end had to use my sisters credit card, which was promptly frozen as we didnt think to inform them I was using it. Weve ended up staying a little longer that planned but finally Ive been succussful in booking the flight and we are on our way to Panama. For all my planning with debit cards and credit cards and copies of everything Im still left in a mess. Thank God we have Joshs debit card, at least we can get money. But without Kelly at home to help I would have been really screwed. People ask me for advice and I just dont know what to tell them. All you can do is be vigilant but shit still happens.

Ecuador

lthom — Sun, 1 Feb 2015 12:50:00 GMT

This will be a short one. Unfortunately the budget isnt going to allow us to go to the Galapagos. I just had to turn my head and not think about just how close I am. I think it would be a great trip for Kelly and I to do together, start saving Kel. We didnt allow a lot of time for Ecuador as I have not been successful in finding a workaway there. We stopped for half a day and a night in Guayaquil as I had been told it wasnt worth spending time in. Actually I quite liked the bit of the city we saw and wish we had time to stay longer. Josh wants to see Quito so Ive allowed a few days for that. Regardless of what Ive read Im really not impressed. Yes they have worked hard at restoring the old colonial buildings, which is really nice to see. So many cities in SA have allowed the old buildings to decay. Other than that though I dont see the attraction. Its a strange location for a city, in a valley between several volcanoes. The streets are all over the place and as a result so are the buses. It was quite hard to navigate our way around. We did take a taxi up the virgin Mary statue and Josh met a fellow Canadian, Vikram, from Montreal. He now lives in Edmonton. We went for a coffee and chatted for a while. Oddly enough we were on a bus a couple days later, and saw him walking down the street in this very large city. What are the odds. We were able to share some of our experiences with him as he is traveling the opposite direction from us. Unfortunately the highlight, or maybe I should say the lowlight, of the trip was my getting pickpocketed on the bus. You know you read all the warnings, the scams, to be carefull on the very busy buses. But still it happens. And I got scammed good. A young woman with a small baby. Ive even read about this scam but I just didnt clue in. As soon as the doors closed I realized what had happened but it was too late. All my cards, some money and my new cel phone. I was so pissed at her but as time wore on I was more mad at myself for being so stupid and careless. Oh well, I guess if thats the worst that happens I can live with it.

After just 3 days we hopped a flight to Bogota for the next leg in the journey.

Peru Hop

lthom — Sun, 1 Feb 2015 11:17:00 GMT

So we took Peru Hop from Cusco to Lima and we didnt get off to a great start. The first bus was pretty crappy, bad smell from the bathroom and the seats reclined about 10 degrees if that. Fortunately there werent many of us so we were each able to get 2 seats and kind of stretch out. Not a lot of sleep that night. We arrived in Puno early and they had arranged a full day tour of the floating islands for us for $20. It was so cool. What a concept, islands made out of reeds that whole communities actually live on. There are dozens of islands with one being the capital so to speak which has a restaurant and some services on it. The one we visited was very small with only a few houses. They did a demonstration for us and explained how they harvest the reeds from the lake and form the islands, then anchor them to the bottom of the lake. I cant even imagine living there, so bizarre. The men fish and the women make handicrafts to sell to the tourists. Tourism apparently is their main industry. The boats take turns visiting the islands so no one island gets all the benefit. Our guide was from the islands and knew the history well. We also stopped at a larger island on the lake which is essentially a mountain. We docked at one of the ports and hiked to the top where the town is. There are 3 ports around the island and the locals hike up and down regularly. I cant imagine how strong their leg muscles must be. We had lunch at a local restaurant, the usual fried fish, white rice and salad. Boring and too expensive but you dont really have a choice unless you bring your own food. We took some pics and hiked back down to the boat. It was a pretty good tour and the floating islands are definitely worth the trip. Back on the bus for another night trip to Arequipa but this time we get an actual Peru Hop bus. Its a little better, seats recline a bit more, cleaner and not so smelly. For me though, another night without sleep. They drive like maniacs here, no matter what Peru Hop says. The top heavy buses sway side to side with every curve and they love to pass, regardless of oncoming traffic. Weve hooked up with a girl from Scotland, Charlotte, and we hung out together all the way to Paracas.

Arequipa is a great city. Clean, beautiful colonial architecture, cathedrals of course and really safe. Im regretting not doing more shopping in Cusco though, I was told you can get the same stuff in Arequipa but cheaper. So not true. Do your shopping in Cusco. We took a walking tour of the city, the guide was great and we learned a lot. Some walking tours are better than others but this one is definitely worth it. And of course you cant go to Arequipa without seeing Colca Canyon. After much research we opted for a full day tour, which leaves at 3:30 am, oh god. A very long day and not really the views I expected. We did see Condors though and managed to get some pics. None of us really felt up to trekking but it would be worth it if you can do it. You can take donkeys back up from the bottom of the canyon. We stopped at a hotsprings, really just a complex of pools fed by the springs, but it was nice to get in the water none the less. We really enjoyed our time in Arequipa, its a nice city to spend a few days in or more if you have the opportunity. The bus picked us up at 6am Saturday morning and of course Charlotte and Josh decided to go our for a ¨¨few¨¨ drinks the night before. They rolled in around 3 am and got maybe 2 hours sleep. Charlotte is younger and I think more accustomed to it so shes not in bad shape the next morning but Josh on the other hand is wiped out. Im not envying him the bus ride. Turns out hes sick about 4 times in the bus bathroom, a real no no, no solids allowed!. Our next stop is Nazca and Josh and I are spending the night so he can do the flight over the Nazca lines in the morning. Good thing its not this afternoon. We walked a little in the city, not a place you really want to spend any time, and went to the little planetarium. Its in this tiny little building on the parking lot of a hotel, the host spoke English, and it was really informative about the area and the history of the lines. The next morning Josh took off for the airport and took his flight. He wasnt feeling so well but at least he got to do it and got some pics. It was on his must do list. We then hopped in a collectivo and raced for Huacachina to meet up with rest of our group and the bus. And I mean raced. The taxi drivers are even worse than the bus drivers. No rules, no speed limits, just get there as fast as you can.

Huacachina is a funny little town. A tiny ¨lake¨, in the middle of a tiny town surrounded by sand dunes. You can take a dune buggy up for a hair raising ride and then sandboard down the dunes. Josh and I opted out so we just hung out around the pool at the hostel. Thats right, a hostel with a pool, how cool is that. And we were allowed to use all the facilities without even staying there. Once everyone got back from sandboarding we hopped the bus and headed to Paracas. We planned to spend 3 nights there but only ended up staying 2. The hostel was great but it was a bit too much of party hostel for us. Pretty nice though, pool, bar, right on the beach. We went kayaking once and did the boat tour to the Ballestas Islands, known as the poor mans galapagos. Saw lots of sea lions, birds and few pengiuns, finally my pengiuns. Only from a distance though. We also did a Peru Hop tour to a pisco vineyard for a tasting and Not a whole lot else to do so we decided to part ways with Charlotte and head to Lima.

Lima was not my favorite city the last time we were here, I wasnt really looking forward to it. But wow, has it ever changed. The growth is amazing, shopping, gas stations, apartments. What a difference. I actually really enjoyed it. Peru has implemented traffic control all over the country and its interesting to see the drivers trying to adapt to it. They have a long ways to go! Its obvious though the country is doing better economically, at least in the cities, I suspect the rural areas arent seeing the benefits though. We met up with the people we stayed with in Huancayo last trip, Nilton and Eli. They had been away in Cusco and were traveling through Lima on their way home so we just caught them at the airport for a half hour or so. They were so excited that we made the effort to meet up with them. It was great to see them, they had the kids and Eva, Elis mom with them as well. We also went for lunch with Maryanne who was our Spanish teacher last trip in Huanchaco. Josh is in touch with her on facebook and it was really great to catch up with her as well. All in all not enough time, we could have spent a few more days for sure. Lima was the end of our Peru Hop adventure. I would definitely recommend it even with the crappy bus. The guides are incredibly helpful, they booked hostels at every stop for anyone that needed them, gave us advice and just made sure we had everything we needed. And it was nice to have some consistency while traveling for a while instead of having to spend so much time planning.

I feel blessed that we got to see more of this country we love so much. Its till my favorite of all the countries weve visted.

New Years in Cusco

lthom — Mon, 5 Jan 2015 08:23:00 GMT

We arrived to our hostel in the dark and just rolled into bed. We awoke to discover that not only is there no indoor communal space but all the rooms open onto an outside courtyard. Fine in the summer, which it was last time we were in Cusco, but not so great in the wet, cold winter. Not to mention we are a lot further from the plaza than the website led me to believe. We toyed with the idea of moving but given it's 1 day before New Year's Eve it's unlikely we'll find anything decent at this point so we're staying put. Although any time spent here is pretty much spent under the many layers of blankets in bed. They do have a great roof deck with a view of most of the city though.

We spent the first day doing some exploring and seeing what's changed in Cusco in the past 7 years. Not much in the historical centre it seems although coming in on the bus we noticed a lot of changes. New buildings, shops, a huge hipermercado, better traffice control, any traffic control for that matter. The highways have lines on the road! Not that the drivers pay any attention but I'm sure they'll get there eventually. Progress has come to Peru but as a result, like Bolivia, it's no longer the cheap country it was to travel in 7 years ago. Good for them though, I sure hope the people are seeing the benefits.

We connected up with Maria and Meshud who are here too and went to their hostel for dinner. They sure picked a great neighbourhood, it's not that far from us but what a difference. I wasn't thrilled about walking around there at night but it was good see them. On the way there we walked past San Pedro market and the surrounding streets and it was mayhem. Vendors everywhere selling paraphalnelia for New Years. Everything in bright yellow from hats, scarves, streamers, noise makers & clothing to underwear, which is a tradition on New Years. You're supposed to wear it inside out and change it at midnight. The street was full of vendors selling whole chickens, pigs and other unidentified animals.

New Years Eve day dawned and of course I've been up half the night on the toilet. I've been looking so forward to having dinner in Cusco, there are some great restaurants that serve something other than the usual South American fair and I'm not going to miss this dinner damn it so I popped an antibiotic and hoped things would settle down. We found a restaurant that would let us order off the menu if we reserved for 7pm which was fine with us. Most of the set menus were leaning more towards Peruvian food which I guess if you're only there for a short vacation is probably what you want but I've had my fill of South American food and getting sick from it so it's not what I was looking for. Dinner was as awesome as we'd hoped it would be with just enough of a Peruvian feel to satisfy. So it's now raining and we have 3 hours to kill till midnight. Neither of us is exactly a partier so rather than hitting the bars we decided to head back to our hostel with the intention of returning to the plaza before midnight to join in the madness. We get back and crawl into our respective beds as there is nowhere else to go. The evening wears on and it is becoming more and more evident that's it's unlikely we're going to make it back down. I'm feeling disappointed and slightly ashamed somehow, after all this is why we're here right? Sometime before midnight we hear fireworks and I say we should go out. Josh looks out the window and says I should video this. Video what?? I say. He says there is fireworks going off all over the city. What?? We throw on our coats and head outside. The hostel owner and her family and friends are on the roof deck and they start throwing confetti on our heads, hugging us and wishing us happy new year. I look at my watch and it's exactly midnight. I look out and there is fireworks going off from literally every corner of the city that we can see. I've seen some good fireworks shows but this was something else. Big fireworks too, not the piddly ones like we set off in our backyards at home. The show went on for over 30 minutes and I've never seen anything like it. Maybe we should have made the effort to go the plaza but look what we would have missed. For me it was a great New Years Eve.

From Cusco we're doing the Peru Hop tour which leaves at 10 pm Sunday night. We figure we need somewher to hang out till then so on Saturday we decide to change hostels. We managed to find the place we stayed last trip and we even got the same room. It's a cool place with good living space, no heat unfortunately but at least it's a place to go till the bus comes. There is a choco museo that does workshops so Saturday afternoon we spent 2 hours learning how process cocoa beans and make chocolate. We even got to make our own chocolates and take them home. It was a lot of fun and I would defintely recommend it. It was $30 each but we made Organic chocolates that would cost $20-25 just to buy at home.

Sunday we headed to Pisaq to go to the market. Vendors come in from the countryside to sell their wares along with the regular market. There are tons of textiles, figures, artwork etc, you name it along with the produce and other food. It's a cool little town but very touristy and not worth the trip. The prices are consideraly higher than Cusco for the same stuff. The scenery along the way was worth the drive though and it got us out of the city for a bit.

Tonight we get the Peru Hop bus and head to Puno, Arequipa, Nazca, Huacachina, Paracas and finally to Lima where we hope to meet up with some friends.

Cochabamba con´t

lthom — Mon, 29 Dec 2014 10:28:00 GMT

Well our month in Cochabamba is coming to an end. We didn´t see all the sights we would have liked to, we never made it to Torotoro for instance, but it´s been a great month just the same. We´ve met so many people and gained some really good experience running a hostel. Especially since Lhotse left for La Paz and was gone over 2 weeks. We were pretty much in charge. True to form I of course took control although I don´t think anyone minded. No one else wanted the responsibility. With my very limited Spanish and her non existent English Favi and I managed to muddle through. She workes every morning cleaning, changing beds and making breakfast. Between hand signals and smoke signals we were able to make ourselves understood most of the time.

Josh has been sick a few times as have I although he got it really bad once. Maria got sick around the same time and collapsed on the floor. I tried to convince her to go to the hospital and I figured she was dehydrated but of course she refused to go. I told her it was either that or she had to dring the nasty rehydration salts. She managed to get a couple litres down throughout the night and by the following evening was looking much better. If also happened to be our busiest week yet. Of course Meshud was away in Torotoro through all this so needless to say I was more than a little stressed.

Miski Wasi is a really comfortable hostel and a lot of guests that have come through ended up staying much longer than they planned. Business has steadily increased while we have been here and it´s been very rewarding hearing the feedback and being part of the growth of the hostel. Cochabamba, although a large city, is also very comfortable and approachable. We´ve done a lot of wandering and exploring and have always felt safe.

We had just 2 guests with us for Christmas Eve dinner but it was a really nice evening. We managed to find some Christmas music and Josh cooked a wonderful meal as usual. Christmas day and couple of the hostel partners brough some traditional food to share with us for dinner and Josh got a bit of break from cooking.

Today Leon took us hiking in Colomi. It´s on the edge of the cloud forest and is a really beautiful area. There is a lot of development in the area of the town but once you get beyond that the roads are dirt and there is no power. The houses are much more basic and spread out. It´s a very rich agricultural area. They grown many kinds of potatoes and horse beans among other produce, which is distributed throughout Bolivia. We hiked through the countryside and then along a river. After forging the river a couple times over wet slippery rocks and more than a few wet feet we arrived at the top of a waterfall. The landscape changes so quickly from relatively dry to lush and green. It´s rainy season so the weather was misty with light rain but not enough to stop us. It was really beautiful and mostly unspoiled country, aside from a few plastic water bottles of course.

Lhotse returned from La Paz yesterday so we´ve handed the reigns back over to her and as sad as we are to leave we´re ready for our next adventure. In typical Bolivia fashion the bus I booked to take us from La Paz to Cusco has decided at the last minute not to go. We're heading for La Paz tonight as I don't know now what will be involved in getting to Cusco and I want to make sure we're there for New Years. For some reason the driver would not put our bags in the cargo hold so I ended up with mine at my feet all night, Josh managed to stash his at the back of the aisle. After a not so great sleep we arrived in La Paz and after 2 hours in the bus station we hopped on a supposedly direct bus to Cusco. Here's hoping.

Actually the bus trip was fine. 2 hours at the border but that's to be expected and some flooding and awful roads through Juliaca we arrived in Cusco 4 hours late.

Thank you to all of you in Cochabamba who made us feel so welcome and, we´ll miss you.

If you´re ever in Cochabamba the hostel to stay at is definitely Miski Wasi. Tell them Laurie & Josh say hi!

Cochabamba

lthom — Fri, 5 Dec 2014 08:28:00 GMT

We arrived at our workaway, MiskiWasi hostel, hoping for a shower, food and then sleep. We got 2 out of 3. The current workawayer had decided to leave early and he was on his way that day. Next thing we know we're being given a crash course on reception and then I was on shift for a couple hours and Josh was scheduled for the evening shift. We had 6 people check in that night and we were hopping. We learned in a hurry. The other workawayer is also leaving so 2 new ones showed up Friday night as well. There are several partners in the business but Lhotse is the primary one that lives at the hostel. Everyone here is really nice and Spanish is almost not necessary and most of the guests are European or Australian and all speak English. Most speak Spanish as well and I'm envious. The hostel is very new so things are still being organized. After a couple days Lhotse decided that we only need 3 of us for reception so Josh is going to do some construction and repairs as well as helping to design a new sign and a map of the surrounding area.

The other workawayers are Maria and Mashud from Germany and they're awesome. They're really young but we get along great. Marie from France is also here, she worked for a few days until we came and yesterday she left for a couple days to go touring and is coming back tomorrow. And Marta from Germany arrived yesterday and will hopefully stay through the weekend. They are very young but they are all quite mature, it's not a party place, we just chat and play games. We started a weekly dinner on the weekends and Josh is planning it and cooking of course. Last weekend we had Mexican and this weekend is Vietnemese. Sometimes ingredients are a bit hard to find but he's managing. The place is set up really well for socializing, there is a big dining room table and living room with couches and an old tv. There's a chinese Sega or something hooked up to it and the guys, and Maria, have been enjoying it. It feels like a community and working here means you tend to be more sociable. We're really liking it and it's giving me the opportunity to learn about running a hostel. I did a bit of work on the accounting system today. I've been gathering ideas as we go and making notes for when I open mine at home.

Cochabamba is nice city, it's quite large and there's lots of traffic and people on the streets but it doesn't feel like the other big cities. And it feels very safe. You always have to be carefull of course but I don't feel uncomfortable walking on my own. Of course we are now back in a more indigenous community, much like Peru. The other big cities we've been to so far are more cosmopolitan. In Uruguay and Argentina the indigenous populations were wiped out so everyone is originally from Spain, Italy or Portugal. It's a huge cultural difference. We do our shopping at the market, and get snacks from street vendors and little shops. Although you really have to be careful. I ended up sick a couple days after we got here but fortunately I brought antibiotics so it cleared up in a couple days. Maria was also sick and Josh had a touch of it. They filter the water at the hostel but I don't think it's enough to remove the bacteria so I've started treating all our water with my Steri Pen. I'm really glad now I brought it. Up to now I've been buying bottled water but it's get's expensive after a while and because the water is filtered it tastes fine. So far I'm okay but I won't be eating any fresh vegetables from the street vendors anymore, just in case. I've been able to get berries here so I'm back to my smoothies for breakfast, man I've missed them! It looks like we will be staying for Christmas and hopefully Maria and Meshud will still be here too. We've decided to go to Cusco for New Years and it turns out they are going to be there as well. There is a big celebration in the main square so it should be a lot of fun. Then we take a tour bus that takes 6 days to get to Lima. It's a hop on hop off so if we want to stay longer somewhere we can.

We haven't had a lot of opportunity to explore the city yet as I've been working afternoons. Josh went to a hot springs pool with a few people the other day and he's done some walking around. Hopefully I will be able to get a couple shifts off so we can go see some of the surrounding sites. There are a couple very impressive national parks like Toro Toro and some interesting towns. Once my days are free we will do more exploring of the musueums and churches and stuff. There is even a temple here and quite a large mormon community so Josh is able to go to church.

It's strange to find this big city way up in the Andes. It's about 2500 meteres elevation which means it's high enough to have very few mosquitos but low enough not to cause elevation sickness. We should be able to avoid taking the malaria meds for awhile longer. Peru is low to no risk pretty much everywerhere except the jungle and we aren't going there now till we reach Ecuador. The temperatures really vary from day to day so some days are hot and a bit humid and others are cooler and sometimes rainy or very dry.

Well.... more to come in the weeks ahead.

Uyuni Salt Flats

lthom — Fri, 5 Dec 2014 07:31:00 GMT

San Pedro on the Chile, Bolivia border. In the middle of the desert there is this quaint little adobe town. Very quaint. Tons of tourists of course as that is all that's here, the tours to the salt flats as well as a few other day outings. We arrived a bit late and the hostel owner was not very gracious, not sure how we were supposed make the bus be on time but whatever. Maybe he should have given us directions to the hostel so we weren't walking the streets at 11pm looking for it. La Cas EcoExplor was pretty basic, nice hammocks outside and a bit of a kitchen but no breakfast provided, only 1 bathroom for each gender and really no services. The owner was patronizing and treats his guest like kids. It was quite irritating, and the place was really expensive. I wouldn't recommend it.

We really only had a day to explore and get our tour set up. While wandering the next day we met a couple from Australia that were also looking for the same tour leaving the next day. They had checked out a couple places and were leaning towards Lithium Tours. I had read about Cordillera so we decided to team up and we went to both places to check them out. Both tours were the same, the difference being Cordillera has 20 years of experience and Lithium is a new company. However the have been in the industry for 10 years. The guy sounded really sincere and they addressed all the safety concerns. They gave a brief idea of what to expect for food and we decided to give them chance. It was a great decision. The only downside is our driver didn't speak any English but one of the girls spoke fluently so she did a bit of translating for us. All in all it was an awesome tour. One of the girls was Vegan and they catered to her totally. She always had plenty to eat and we enjoyed all the veggies we got because of it. The driver, "Chino" was awesome, he was so careful and always drove at a reasonable speed so we never felt at risk. You hear horror stories about drivers being drunk, driving recklessly, falling asleep at the wheel etc. This was a family company and they obviously are trying to make a name and I think they excelled.

The first day we drove up to 5000 feet and saw lots of open desert, sevaral lagoons with flamingoes and vicunas (similar to llama´s). Very other worldly. Unfortunately the elevation change was was just too fast for me. I got quite ill, migraine, dizzy, naseous and numb feet and hands. That was the scariest part. We desended slightly for the first night, I went to bed as soon as we got to the hostel and only got up for dinner. The place was very basic, we had electricity for only a couple hours in the evening and of course everyone scrambled to charge their phones! It was literaly in the middle of no where, but oddly there were a couple shops and we were able to stock up on water, twix and milky way bars, go figure!

The second day was spent driving through more desert, rock gullies that were like dry riverbeds, up higher again to see a semi active volcano, more lagoons and flamingos, wild rabbits that were almost tame and and "Island" in the middle of the desert covered with cactus, which you don't see anywhere else as it's just too dry to suport much life. Very surreal. The 2nd night was spent in the salt hotel which I personaly would not reccommend to anyone but hey when in Rome. The entire structure is made of salt, including the pedestals the mattresses are on. The floors, walls, furniture, everything! Only the bathroom was tiles, fortunately. Since we had no shower in the morning we were all anxious to get cleaned up. They turned on the generator and we had to wait for the water to heat up. Then we each had 5 minutes to shower. Fortunately, and oddly, we were the only group there for the night. Several vehicles pulled in but promptly left again. We figured they could see our dagger stares and didn't want to compete for the shower.

It was so dry you can't even imagine. My nose was so stuffed up and I still had the migraine. I didn't sleep more than an hour that night. Whoever though a salt hotel in the driest desert on earth was a good idea had rocks in their head.

The third day we arose at 4:30am and raced to the salt flats to see the sun rise. Not sure it was worth it but I wasn't sleeping anyway so it didn't really matter to me. I think some of the others might have voted to sleep instead if given the chance. Again the place is just otherworldly. It goes on for miles with no end, except the distant mountains. Our driver diligently drove around and about until he found an area with water. When it rains, which it does very seldom, the water lays on the salt and takes weeks to absorb. Fortunately mother nature had cooperated and it had rained a couple weeks before so there were still some areas covered in water. It looks like glass and from a distance you can't tell it's only and inch deep. A good photographer can make it look like you're walking on water, of course I'm not a good photographer so my photos don't look like that.

The last stop was a very strange train cemetary. At one time Bolivia was a very well off nation because of mining, particularly silver. When silver prices started to fall the industry fell apart. All the trains are just sitting rusting in the desert.

All in all it was a very interesting experience. Not one I'm anxious to repeat but I'm glad we did it. Lithium was great. All our meals were good, the driver went out of his way to make sure we were happy. It is up to them to bring the food and prepare lunches so on some tours you literaly get hot dogs. The 2 dinners were also very good with soup, entree and fruit for desert. Even our vegan was happy!

We landed in Uyuni mid day and headed for an internet cafe so we catch up on all that we'd missed in the past 2 1/2 days. How we ever lived without internet I'll never know. I wasn't able to get money, yet again, from the bank machines in San Pedro so they let me pay a deposit and the balance when we arrived in Uyuni. Of course none of the bank machines wanted to cooperate. I finally was able to get money using another bank card but only in 500 B withdrawls so I ended up paying about $50 in service charges. I have yet to figure out the best way to deal with money traveling over here. My credit card has not foreign transaction fees so when I can I pay that way but unfortunately it's not always an option. Anyway I got the money, paid for the tour and it was all good. We went to the street where the buses are and found what we hoped was a decent company to take us on the next let of the journey. We traveled with our friends for the first stretch and then they headed to La Paz. The ride was an adventure for sure. A 7 hour bone rattling journey on what felt like a dry riverbed. We were sitting over the wheels so we got to feel every bump and pothole. I thought for sure something on the bus was going to break. It was shocking how may people actually slept through it. We arrived in Oruro at 2:45 am and figured we would be sitting on the street for hours until we could get a bus to Cochabamba but no, there they were just waiting for us. One guy spotted us a weary tourists and promptly grabbed Josh's arm and started steering him towards a big fancy bus. At that point I didn't really care, I still had a migraine and all I really wanted was sleep. About 3 hours later we arrived in Cochabamba, strapped on our packs and headed off down the street to find the hostel where we would hopefully be working for the next several weeks.

Taltal

lthom — Sat, 15 Nov 2014 12:03:00 GMT

26 hours after leaving Santiago we arrive in Taltal. The evening bus driver was going way over the speed limit and driving rather erratically so I didn't get a lot of sleep. We arrived in Antofagasta at about 5am, an hour and a half late. I managed to get a Wifi signal to check my email as I was waiting to hear from the school about where to go when we arrived. Unfortunately he didn't answer my question so once again we're winging it. Our 2nd bus was 2 hours late and I thought it was supposed to 2 hours. After 3 we were getting worried. Are you seeing a theme here? I finally saw a sign for Taltal and we came around a corner and the bus stopped above a very small town. All we could really see was a bunch of tin roofs. I told Josh this was it and we got off the bus. Fortunately the driver knew where we were going and he told us no, this not Taltal. Thank heavens, I wondered what I'd gotten us into! We continued on for another 1/2 hour and then pulled into a nice little town. Its located in the Atacama desert region which is the driest desert on earth, so I wasn't sure what to expect. Its actually on the ocean and it's like an oasis. The town square is beautiful and green with trees, grass and flowers. It's so strange because the backdrop is dry rocky hills with no vegetation.

We got off the bus and were just heading into the Internet next door when I heard my name. Thank God Hector was there to greet us. What a relief. I haven't bothered to get a Sim card for my phone and for the most part it hasn't been an issue but there's a couple times I could have used it. I have WiCall but the only time I've used it is to call my credit card company, unfortunately it's useless without a connection.

We've settled into our hostel, which is so new its still under construction drywall dust and all. I thought I left all that at home, you just never know what you're going to get. Its nice enough though and we're the only ones here.

We toured the town and then headed to the school to start work. There are several classes for students from age 5 to mature adults. The first couple days were difficult but we're getting to know the students and them us so its getting easier and more enjoyable. The guy that runs the school has done a lot of travelling and has lived in other countries. Plus he's a teacher so he has lesson plans and ways of explaining things that make it easier for us. He provides us with 1 meal a day which this week has been lunch. He cooks and provides meals to a few professionals and students in town so he cooks for us too. Its been great, home cooking. He's a vegetarian so the food is pretty healthy too, although he does cook meat for his clients. Starting Sunday he will just provide food for breakfast and we'll be on our own. It turns out Taltal is the most expensive city in Chile so eating out is out of the question. Here I thought I would save some money here. Fat chance, 2 loads of laundry cost me $40!

We work mostly late afternoon and evenings so our days are pretty much free. It's pretty laid back here which is nice after all the hustle and bustle of the city but there's not a lot to do. Hector has a lot of connections in town with the more well to do as their kids are in his school. There are a number of small copper mines here so there are a number of well off people but the rest are pretty poor. He would like to get more of the poorer kids in his school but right now its mostly more well to do. There is class of younger adults that are all university trained and work as architects, engineers, even the town prosecutor. They are all really nice and their English is really good. They had a basketball game last night and Josh played. He scored the first basket but by halfway through he was wiped out. I don't know the last time he got that much of a workout!

Through his connections we get the use of kayaks so were going tomorrow and next week we take a boat trip to penguin island. Finally I get to see my penguins! They have pelicans here which I've never seen either and some other interesting birds.

We plan to stay here another a week and then head to San Pedro. A girl we met in Mendoza told us about the salt flats in Bolivia and apparently it's a must see so that's next up. 3 days in a jeep travelling through the driest place on earth. Should be interesting.

Well we got to go kayaking which was nice. A couple students came with us. The water was a bit wavy but nothing like what Kelly I have experienced on Sheridan Lake or on the river in Ladner. Still no penguins, the trip was cancelled due to weather. The navy are the ones that take you out and they get to decide if it's too rough. It didn't seem bad at all so I suspect they just couldn't be bothered. Oh well. Apparently there are pengiuns in Ecuador so there's still hope.

The 2nd week was good, if very quiet. The school was on strike and the kids were busy preparing for a telethon so we didn't have many students but it was a good experience anyway. I'm learning more about English grammer which I'm sadly lacking knowledge in. The pre-teen girls wanted to work only with me so that was kind of cool. Unfortunately I left my cap with the lifejacket when we went kayaking and Hector was not able to get the key in time so it got left behind. I'm really upset, it's an expensive hat with UPF protection and really lightweight. No chance of replacing here I'm afraid. And now we're heading to the desert, wihout a hat, perfect! Oh well, I will survive. Off to no mans land.

Santiago

lthom — Sat, 15 Nov 2014 10:42:00 GMT

Another bus trip but this one by day. About 7 hours, and some scenery along the way. Its funny but most people weve met so far that have come through Chile first have told us Santiago is worth spending much time in. Not much to see etc. Well compared to other cities we were both really impressed with Santiago. Its much cleaner, more modern and progressive, more American I suppose which isn't necessarily a good thing but overall just a much more pleasant city to spend time in. The subway system is great so we we're able to navigate around quite well. We're in a really hostel, great service but you pay for it. Chile is not cheap.

One of the girls working at the hostel suffers from gastritis so we chatted a bit about it. She was a really sweet girl, she lived in Sweden for a year, and their cure is a glass of blubber and a glass of pure yogurt a day. She said after about 2 months she was almost cured. I don't know, the cure sounds almost worse than the ailment! Apparently she likes blubber though so she didn't mind it.

Josh is trying very hard to be patient with me being sick but his compassion is quite short lived so we're getting on each nerves a bit. He is cooking for me though so I can't complain. We tried to catch a couple walking tours but we were either late or the guide didn't show up so we've just been wandering on our own. We found the market area and there is all kinds of produce and goodies I can't eat. So much is grown here. We've been surprised to find strawberries in Uruguay and Argentina and cherries in Argentina and here in Chile. Nice treats we didn't expect to get. Fortunately the water has been clean in the cities we've been in, with the exception of Cuba of course, so we're able to eat the fresh produce without problems. We're missing the ice cream from Uruguay and Argentina though. It's without a doubt the best I've ever had. Its just as well, I can't eat it anyway. We climbed San Cristóbal hill and took in the views. Josh walked to the LDS temple which happened to be in our neighbourhood for once so we didn't have to trek across the city. And the meeting house is in the same location so he was able to attend services on Sunday as well. He also found online a large Germán grocery chain that is all over Chile. We've been searching for Tums and Pepto Bismal but neither are available in Chile. Apparently Jumbo carries them along with, sometimes, A&W rootbeer and Dr. Pepper. On Sunday while Josh went to church I set out on my own for the first time, to the bus station to book a bus. We have found a workaway for teaching English in a small town called Taltal. I was hoping to head south first to northern patagonia to see my penguins but all the workaways are booked for the high season. With my miserable Spanish it took me almost 2 hours to get it figured out but I succeeded, I was pretty proud of myself. Its going to be our longest bus trip yet and we can't leave till Monday so we have time to go to Jumbo!

No luck with the tums or Pepto Bismal, but I don't really need it now anyway. They carry Phillips which is like tums so I just got those. Josh got his pop though, of course. He usually gets what he wants.

Sadly we said goodbye to Santiago and headed for the desert

Mendoza

lthom — Sat, 15 Nov 2014 02:38:00 GMT

We arrived back in rainy Buenos Aires, it has been raining for a week now, and spent the night at the same hostel. Monday was spent at the bus station booking a bus to Mendoza for that night and then braving Florida street once again to change the last of my US dollars. We headed out at 8:30 PM for Mendoza. The buses in South America are amazing. There basically 4 classes. Regular, semi-cama, cama, and cama suite. The seats recline to varying degrees to the point of laying flat with a foot rest that comes up flat so you essentially have a bed. Cama suite is usually a separate section of the bus that is closed off with a door and you get some degree of service with a blanket and pillow and some food. CATA, the company we went with for this trip, offers amazing service. We had a hot dinner with wine or pop, coffee, tea or champagne after and breakfast. The trip was about 14 hours but its amazing how fast it goes, especially when you travel overnight.

Mendoza is really just a stopover for us as I didn't want to do the whole 20 hour trip in one go, although in retrospect it would have been okay. It was just as well though. Unfortunately I've developed the same gastric problem we had in Peru. It looks like it may be caused by a parasite. We didn't recognize it at first so it got quite bad. It hurt all the time and eating was excruciating. I did some research on gastritis and ulcers and figured out what to take. Fortunately its fairly easy to get medications here, you don't need a prescription so we went to the pharmacy and got what I needed. We also managed to get Tums when we were in El Calafate. We knew from past experience that I needed to eat a no fat, no acid diet. The first few days were brutal, it would take me 1/2 an hour to eat a bit of soup and I would just give up. We were only in Mendoza for a couple days so when we left again my diet was reduced to buns. Its taken a couple weeks but its getting better. I still have to be careful what I eat but hopefully not for too much longer.

Mendoza is a nice city, a relief from the bigger cities. We didn't do a whole lot, walked around a bit and went to the aquarium. There is a tortoise there that washed up on shore about 20 years ago. He was in waters that were too cold for him and couldn't survive so he was sent to the aquarium in Mendoza. He's been there ever since in a small tank. It's really sad to see. They have a write up on the wall, in English, explaining how he was found and why he's still there but it still doesn't seem right. This is wine country and we could have done some winery tours but neither of us is into wine we passed on that. Its worth a stop if you're into wine though. Its really cheap to buy as well.

Next stop Santiago.

Patagonia

lthom — Sat, 15 Nov 2014 00:50:00 GMT

We landed in El Calafate Argentina in the morning and got a bus to our hostel. Its huge, probably 100 rooms. I've never seen a hostel so big. This is a big tourist place now so there are lots of accommodations. We decided to book some tours and take the rest of the day to explore the town. We only have four days and we want to make the most of it. We found a charming little place for lunch and had a bowl of soup to warm. Its really cold here today. Snowing a bit on and off, then sun, then snow... The town is very clean and very cute. Tons of shops, outfitters for trekking, souvenirs etc. We searched for wool socks for Josh to replace the ones he misplaced but things are pretty expensive so we just stuck to getting a magnet for me and a bookmark for Josh. He will just have to have cold feet!

The 2nd day we took a bus to Perito Morino glacier. You can do this one on your own however if you want to walk on the glacier you need to take a tour. We opted not to. There is a system of walkways and lookouts about 200yds across the water from the glacier so you can see it from almost all angles. Its pretty amazing, massive and there are pieces breaking off all the time. They crash to the lake and its sounds like thunder. Everyone scrambles with their cameras but of course by the time you hear it and figure out where its falling its too late so no action shots unfortunately. The denser the ice the bluer it is, it actually looks a lot like styrofoam. Just to add a little drama we almost missed the bus. Josh thought the driver said there were 2 pickup points and we ended up at the lower one. We waited and waited but no bus. I was panicking as usual. We found a tour bus and managed to explain the problem and he drove us up to the top where our bus was waiting. We were about 15 minutes late but the other passengers acted like it was hours. The guy behind us says "thanks for making us wait!" Because of course we did it on purpose. What can you do. After rushing back to our hostel we were picked up for our evening tour of a sheep estancia (ranch). They told us about the Yerba matte ritual and we got to try it. Its a little bitter for my taste but much like black tea. Also some really yummy fried bread, similar to bannock. There was an older gentleman from Quebec on the tour so we spent the evening with him. He lost his wife 4 months ago so he was alone. The did a lot of travelling together but she wasnt interested in South America so he figured it would be a good trip to do on his own as it wouldnt remind him so much of her. The tour was all in Spanish so between us we picked up bits and pieces but it was interesting still. After they served dinner, Parilla of course. I dont care much for lamb but I enjoyed it. I had been having some indigestion problems so eating was not as enjoyable as usual but it was still a nice meal. After was a gaucho show with dancing and singing. It was a very nice evening and Jean's company made it even more so.

The 3rd day we were picked up at the hostel in a 4x4 trekking vehicle at 7am for the 3.5 hour drive to Torres del Paine in Chile. The road is new and not yet paved so they use 4x4's. It was a little rough but not bad. The national park is massive with the twin towers, Torres, soaring above. There are salt water lakes that are 4 times more salty than the ocean. The lakes cant support life so only microorganisms can survive. Because there is nothing to eat them they continue to produce and they form white coral like formations that cover the shores. After a hike to a waterfall we headed back to the bus for the trip back.

Day 4 was the highlight for me. A boat tour to Upsala glacier including several other glaciers. The lakes are dotted with icebergs which the boat dodges to get us as close to the glacier as possible. We were no more than 150 yds away. Pretty amazing.

We realize though how spoiled we are living in British Columbia. So much of what we've seen so far this trip is much like home. The mountains, ocean, rocky beaches, even the vegetation is familiar. The glaciers though are something I've never seen and worth the trip.

Weve been incredibly lucking with the weather on this trip and Patagonia is no exception. Apparently it is usually cloudy and rainy in Torres del Paine but with the exception of the first day it has been sunny and warm with clear blue skies.

After racing to the airport we fly back to Buenas Airies and the adventure is over. I didn't get to see the end of the world or the penguins so I guess I'll just have to come back.

Buenos Aires

lthom — Thu, 30 Oct 2014 07:48:00 GMT

So we arrived on Friday and righ off I get screwed by a taxi driver. He took advantage of the fact that we just arrived from Uruguay where the exchange rate is a lot higher. I way overpaid. Then we get to the hostal and it's a dump. I have to pay for the night regardless so we decide to stay and find another place the next day. The place stinks, there is mould on the walls and ceiling and while we're sitting outside our room trying to get Wifi, because of course like everywhere else here it doesn't work in our room, we get a wiff of shit. We realize there is a floor drain outside our room which is tied to the sewer. All night we smell mould and shit. Not a great sleep. I'm up at 7am ready to leave. We loaded on our packs and headed out to find a better hostel. Fortunately there are lots and we found a really nice one. A bit more than I wanted to spend cause it has a privat bathroom but at this point we just want something clean and not stinky so we took it. The place is great, really nice breakfast and the first night here they had a barbeque. We met a few people including a couple from Australia/Turkey. He is emigrating to Australia and is waiting for his Visa so they planned to stay in South America. We've spent some time together and helped them out navitaing some things as neither of them speaks Spanish. They have had to same problem I have with finding ATM's that will take our cards. She ended up having to get Visa to Western Union her emergency money. On top of the ATM challenges we discovered, after we got here of course, that the economy is so bad, inflation is hovering around 25%, that there is an underground economy for US dollars. You can't get them here in Argentina so the vendors take them as payment in order to get them. As a result there is a different exchange rate if you exchange dollars rather than withdrawing from and ATM, where you just get the posted rate. It's rather expensive at that rate and I'm going through money like crazy. We debated on wether to just leave Argentina but we really want to see Patagonia and the Argentina side has more to offer than the Chile side. We finally decided to make the trek back to Uruguay to get US dollars so we can then exchange them on the black market. We took the ferry back to Colonia and spent the day there. It's a really cute little town, our friends have decided to go there for awhile instead of staying Argentina. After trying 4 ATMS I was beginning to think it was a wasted trip but we finally found one on another network and I managed to get $900. Better than nothing and at least it will get me through the rest of the Argentina trip with some to spare for future problems. I will never travel without US cash again. The ferry trip was an experience. It was a bit rough on the way over, we were both feeling a bit queezy. But the trip back was something else entirely. The boat was rocking from side to side and half the stuff on the shelves of the duty free shop ened up on the floor. I was panicking for the first half of the trip but then I realized most people were talking and laughing. A woman in from of my was sleeping. I finally convinced myself that this was obviously normal and I survived the rest of the trip. We've been here for 5 days and like the other cities we've been in it's wearing thin. We both expected more from Buenos Aires but really they're all much the same. Crumbling buildings and sidewalks, dirty streets, grafiti everywhere. Tons of cars and people. They all have a touristy neighbourhood or 2 but nothing really unique or charming. I feel like I'm spending all my time planning the trip, trying to figure out where we're going next, searching for workaways, busses, flights. It's getting old. We just want to find somewhere to settle at this point. Summer is coming which means high season. As a result every workaway we've contacted is booked up. We head to Patagonia at 3:30 am tomorrow for 4 days and return Sunday night. I have a room booked for 1 night and then.... I guess we'll wing it!

Montevideo

lthom — Thu, 30 Oct 2014 06:44:00 GMT

Our second week in La Paloma was pretty uneventful. Josh spent most of it in bed so I was on my own. Walked the beach, did some cleaning and a lot of reading. We painted the kithcen the last couple days we were there and then hopped on a bus to Montevideo. I managed to get a decent hostel called El Viajero (the traveler). Pretty cool place, great staff that were really helpful. We spent a few days exploring the city, on foot of course. It's starting to wear thin. Montevideo is a nice city, the usual old crumbling brick etc. but obviously more economically well off. Pretty much everything is available. Certainly they have their share of homeless and no go neighbourhoods but the people are very friendly and try to be very helpful. Numerous time we were approached by people asking if we need help to get somewhere. The big thing in Uruguay and Argentina is Parilla, barbecue. There is a market that has several Parilla stands and since we seem to be following in Anthony Bordain's footsteps we had to go there. Like many things reality doesn't measure up to the urban myth. We got a platter of various kinds of barbequed meats. I ate the sausage, chicken and a bit of fatty beef. Josh tried the blood sausage along with all the bits and pieces of intestine etc. He wasn't taken with any of it but at least he can say he tried it! One day we took a very long walk to the beach but unfortunately there was nowhere to change. I couldn't stand the thought of wearing my bathing suit under my dress, I get hot enough as it is so I was stuck. I looked everywhere for a corner I could discretly change my clothes but no luck so I just stood in the ocean with my dress pulled up to my thighs to cool off. There are some beautiful old buildings but unfortunately they seem to be more inclined to knock them down and rebuild modern ones rather than restoring the old ones. As a result there is a real mix of old and new. We went to see the temple one day and it's in a really nice neighbourhood. We could have been in many neighbourhoods at home. Nice homes and Uruguyan's seem to take a lot of pride in their gardens. We haven't been able to secure a workaway yet so we're going to take the ferry across the river and spend a few days in Buenos Aires and hopefully find somewhere to go from there. This is starting to get expensive. Nothing is a cheap as I had hoped but what ever is. And the ATM's are proving to be a challenge. What a panicky feeling when you can't get money!! At least Josh is back to normal. I was getting sick of having to do the cooking! Next up Argentina and Patagonia.

Photos: La Paloma

lthom — Thu, 16 Oct 2014 08:46:00 GMT

Uruguay 1st week.

lthom — Sat, 11 Oct 2014 23:50:00 GMT

Another 24 hrs of traveling and we're finaly here. We grabbed a bus at the airport to take us to Tres Cruces bus station and waited a couple hours for a bus to La Paloma. There are 3 companies that do the route so we took the earliest one. By this time Josh is feeling pretty unwell, sore throat, really tired. Im thinking it's just a cold, no big deal. He always gets sick when we travel so nothing new. Finally we're on the bus and after 14 hrs we're both pretty exhausted so I doze off figuring I have around 2 hrs. We travelled through several towns but no La Paloma. we've been the bus for over 2 hrs and I'm getting a little panicky. Finally about 3 1/2 hrs in Josh sees a sign La Paloma 30 km. Im so relieved! Now we just have to find the hostel and we're home free. Sincewe dont have cell service and no address I have no idea how we're going to do that but one thing at a time. When we arrive we try to borrow a phone froma counter clerk but he looks at us like we're crazy and says use the pay phone. Well that would be great if we had a card for it! next we try a taxi driver but he doesnt have a phone. Fortunately his buddy does and they make a call for us. First they no have idea where we're going but finally he realizes where it is and gives directions. Im so tired at this point we throw our bags in the car and he takes us the 3 blocks!

Josh is feeling really sick by know so he goes straight to bed. That night he gets severe chills and pain all over his body. I was up every few hours giving him meds for the pain but there wasnt much else I could do. He gets worse with clogged sinuses and a bad cough and hes so tired he can hardly get up to pee. He was like that for 2 more days and I was getting pretty worried but he started to improve on Friday so hopefully weve seen the worst of it. He always manages to get some funky illness and scare the crap out of me.

This a cool little town but its early in the season so not much is open. Its probably bustling in the summer.

The hostel is okay, pretty grungy and needs lots of work but thats what workaways are for! Ive just been cleaning and getting rooms ready for new guests. Lots of people expected this weekend. Its very humid here so unfortunately everything rusts or goes mouldy, like the wood baseboards and linoleum on the shower stall walls. Sihiana, the owner is very friendly and speaks some English but she is not here much so were not getting as much work as I hoped. With Josh sick ive been pretty bored. So just to add some excitement we had a break-in. The TV was stolen along with my HDMI cable and multi adaptor for my tablet. That really sucks. I guess I also left my wallet out, just my small one but it had about $50 in it. Stupid! Ill be more carefull now. The owners laptop was also taken with all her business info. Cops were here but just like at home theres nothing they can do.

Not sure how long were going to stay. Once Josh is well we'll figure it out. We havent been to the beach yet either but it looks like its mostly for the surfers. Pics to come.

Photos: Havana

lthom — Sat, 11 Oct 2014 23:39:00 GMT

Cuba

lthom — Sat, 11 Oct 2014 01:31:00 GMT

Quite the adventure. The city is literally crumbling, so sad to see although they are slowly restoring buildings so one day it may be better but there is a very long way to go. We stayed in a Casa which was actually quite nice. We had the whole apartment to ourselves, which was actually a bit lonely truth be told. Did lots of walking and saw a lot of the city in 2 1/2 days. It was enough, as we were constantly harrassed by hustlers. Everybody is your friend until they realize you aren't willing to by them a drink. We got sucked in the first night, or rather Josh did, it cost me $40. 4 double mojitos and a crappy meal later. And then the guy has the nerve to try and get me to buy milk for his "daughter". Fat chance! He would have turned around and sold it. We got to the beach long enough to dip our toes in and then the bus back was over an hour late so that was it for the day. After negotiating the airport and finally finding our flight we we made it to Uruguay. On to the next adventure.