Temptation Island

If you thought New Zealand was liberal then think again!!!!

Julie and I arrived in Amsterdam late at night after catching a cheap 40 minute flight across the English Channel. A train and then tram ride later and we were in our hotel room. The temperature was about -4 degrees outside so we spent the first night catching up on sleep.

The morning bought sun but it was still extremely cold. We set out on foot to explore the huge amount of tourist destinations. First was the Van Gough Museum. Although we managed to get in and out in under 30 minutes it was worth every penny of the steep 10 Euro entrance fee. Next was the Heineken Musuem. I have always liked Heineken whether it is brewed and bottled in Auckland or in its origin Holland. Unfortunately I was devastated as it was closed for renovations. The only way to get over this disaster was to run to the nearest watering hole for a sample. When you ask for a pint in Amsterdam they give you a glass everytime, the cheeky scammers, but being a cost saving kiwi I made sure I got the big boy glass...

The next museum on our tourist map was the famous sex museum. It was cheap to get into but extremely entertaining and educational, however it is not somewhere I would suggest going if you don't have an open mind. Some of the things we saw on historical photos in the museum were pretty full on!!! Julie thought she would try one of the moves out on the street...

It was getting dark and we hadn't yet been to a coffee shop for a look. As I am sure you already know Holland is extremely liberal regarding sex and drugs. The coffee shops are the places you can buy over the counter marajuana of all differnet types. Like a typical resturant there is a menu. Be careful what cake you order though as you may be in for a big surprise. That goes for anything with mushrooms in it as well.

We left the coffee shop and headed for the other vice Amsterdam is famous for "The Red Light District", an eye opener to say the least. It was all I had ever imagined and more. We walked around small cobblestone streets doing some window shopping along with all the other interested people, including people with young families of all things, but mostly with loud groups of guys on stag dos. I usually hate any kind of shopping but this wasn't to bad at all. The consumer goods on offer came in all shapes and sizes from the larger than life Ford F250 to the smaller more stream line Porshe 911 turbo. All you had to do to find the porshe was to follow the crowds of English louts.

Amsterdam is bike mad. The next day we were going to find out first hand just how bike mad it was when we embarked on a bike tour to the country. We met up with Richard and Annete who we had met on the Inca Trail. We mounted up and made our way to a windmill, cheese factory and wooden shoe factory. Amsterdam has millions of bikes. None of them are very nice due to the high theft rate but they are all used. An average road in the center has two walking lanes, two bike lanes, two car lanes and a tram line through the middle. All this traffic also travels in the wrong direction. I fell of my bike once and almost went over the handle bars twice!!!!

That night after a hilarious comedy show at Boom Chicago, Annette and Richard drove to us to their house in Puttershoek which is a small town in the countryside. Holland is built on a huge swamp and in order to manage the water there are canals and dykes everywhere. Today the water is managed with pumps and dykes but in the past it was windmills. We saw lots of windmills and lots of water. Even the castle we visited called Loevestein was completely unaccesible when water levels were high. Also luckily for us the Dutch are are very friendly nation and we were treated to a personal tour of a working windmill in Woudrichem and even had homemade bread made from some of the flour produced at the windmill the next day.

After an eventful day of windmill visiting, castle perusing and keeping out of the cold as much as possible, a wonderful traditional dutch meal was prepared for us that evening. We had Hutspot (carrots, onions and meatballs) and Boerenkool (green vegetables with sausage), good winter food! I have to say though that the baked treats were definitely a favourite of Julie's, if ever she stepped away from my side I would find her hunting down stroop waffels (caramel waffle biscuits) for purchase and consumption at an alarming rate...mind you I wasn't too unhappy when she suggested getting some of the plentiful street treats of frits and mayo (chips with mayonnaise...or chips with satay sauce, or any sauce you can think of!!)

We had one day left and decided to spend it in Rotterdam. Unlike Amsterdam it is reasonably modern as it was flatened in the second world war. Although it was a nice city (with interesting architecture such as below)...I have to say I enjoyed Amsterdam more!

In the Neighbourhood and the Isle of Sh...White

Well we always said we would try our best to make the most of our time here in London and get out and about and see things. Considering we live on the doorstep of Tower Bridge and the Tower of London we thought it would be rude not to visit these places. Well at £16 each to get into the Tower of London we decided it was pretty enough from the outside for now and have put it on our "to do list" for when we are feeling flush with cash...

Tower Bridge is also a stunner and we love being able to walk 5 mins out our door and be walking across it admiring its beauty (might I add it isnt such a beautiful thing walking across it when a cold winter wind is blowing...I thought a Wellington southerly was bad!!)

Amongst the things that are right in our face and outside our door to do, we have ventured a little further in search of scenery and some of the English countryside we have heard of (and to try and prove it isnt a myth that it exists...). So off we toddled one weekend up North of London after Chris' boss recommended a lovely walk along a "river". River was a bit of an overstatement, it was actually a canal but was quite pretty with canal boats all along it and your token swans and ducks.

Seeing as the things closest to London weren't up to our spoiled NZ standards we thought we would try and find a beach to rate instead. We looked on the map and saw that there was an Island off the South Coast of England that didnt take too long to get to on a bus and that we could do on a Sunday - The Isle of White. Apparently this place is popular for family beach holidays in the summer with lots of caravan parks and plenty of opportunities for kiddies to make sand castles, there was even a zoo - now this time our hopes were high!

First impressions...well the first shop that greeted us when we walked off the ferry wharf was "The Codfather" and their motto was "we will batter anything". After a few moments contemplating how far they would honour this motto, especially when a fat tasty looking duck waddled by, we headed to the beach. Fortunately for us we had a glorious sunny day so we decided to bus to one side of the island and walk back along the beach as the waterfront wasnt the nicest with slimy seaweed everywhere.

Apart from the fact we felt like we had been transported back to an 80's beach holiday camp with the outdated looking beach shops, piers, novelty rides and ice cream parlours, it was quite a nice way to spend a Sunday...see look how excited we are!

So all in all it was a lovely day out, although we dont think we will be revisiting it in the summer to make castles and spend time comtemplating what to batter, although staying in one of these beach side boatsheds was a tempting thought...

London Baby Yeah!

Well, it has been awhile since we set foot on English soil and it has been an interesting and frustrating month!

Lets start with the good stuff though, one of the many reasons we came to London - Tina and Ollys wedding. What a perfect day it was, not only was the weather stunning, so was the venue and the bride and groom. Both of them glowed and it was a fun action packed wedding, complete with a dance off between the groom and best man - very VERY funny.

Since the excitement of the big event of the year we have been putting our heads down trying to find work and a place to live, desperate to get some pounds under our belts (well pounds in our bank accounts and not on our waistlines to be exact).

After a long SLOW process both Chris and I finally found work after 3 weeks of solid hunting, Chris as a Horticultural Manager at Enfield Council and me as a Project Officer for the London Cycleways Project based in Camden. We actually haven't started working yet, but this Monday is the day...it will be hard after 3 months of sleep ins and doing what we want.

We thought that finding a job was the hard bit all over and done with, who would have guessed that finding a flat would be even more time consuming and loaded with annoyances. I guess we were always going to be hard to please as we needed to ensure that we could both commute relatively easy to our jobs (and we work in completely different areas), wanted a friendly flat that came with a lounge - yes most places rent out the lounge room here to make more money! 2 weeks rolled by and we were becoming a tad desperate. Fortunately yesterday we found a place right in the heart of Tower Gate (for those of you who know were the Tower Bridge, Tower of London and London Bridge are we are right in the midst of it). No lounge, but a fabulous kitchen, dining and private outdoor area made up for that...plus the luxury of having a MASSIVE room with couch, TV, DVD, Internet all to ourselves made it all perfect for our current needs.

Thrown into the mix of job hunting, flat hunting, wedding bits and bobs and trying not to spend NZ dollars we have manged to get out and about just a little to see some of the sights. We had a day walking around Big Ben, Houses of Parliament, Westminster Abbey, St Pauls Cathedral, the London Eye, Buckingham Palace and other assorted touristy spots. London does have some wonderful attractions, all of which I am sure could me more enjoyable if we could afford to go inside! We have plenty of time though so the top ones can get added to the "to do" list.

We were lucky enough to be in London at the same time as the Notting Hill Carnival and London put on a stunning weekend weather wise so it would have been rude not to go for a look. It was HEAVING with people, like I am talking 2 million...not a place to go if you hate crowds and strangers sweaty backs nudging into you. All that aside it was a great spectacle and a lot of fun.

I guess reality is now upon us as we are about to enter the workforce again...it will be heads down for a bit while we replenish our bank accounts and get on our feet again. Luckily the rugby world cup is about to start so if we are at home saving we will have some quality sports to watch - go the All Blacks!!! We are very fortunate people as we have had super friends here in London that put us up, fed us, bought us drinks and made us feel loved...thank you Carissa and Steve and Tina and Olly, you are fab friends and we will pay you back somehow soon!

Until the next exciting instalment (well it will probably be boring and about work and sport to be honest...) Love to you all!

Brazil...last stop

Hard to believe we are nearing the end of our South America trip...where did 2 months go? We had seen so many wonderful countries, each one different to the next and had high expectations that we would go out in style in Brazil. This was all true apart from the weather...who could have predicted we would encounter rain, thunder and lightening and chilly days? This was not going to damper our sprits (sorry couldnt resist the pun) and we were keen to spend the last 5 days of our trip seeing and doing as much as we could.

After 2 flights we arrived in Sao Paulo tired and determined not to spend anytime in Brazil's largest city so we headed immediately to the coast to look for the beach. We decided on a place called Paraty and what a gorgeous coastal town it was...shame about the tropical downpour on our first night, ah well we needed a shower anyway! To help cure any colds we decided to warm up with the local drink Caparini which our hotel host kindly offered to make us and another English couple staying in the same place from the ingredients we bought from the local market. Well it warmed up Chris and our new English friend who decided it was a great idea to have midnight swims! Well, this leisurely swim turned into back flip competitions and rowdy splashing...no surprises we got told off by the owner as some of the guests complained about the noise - OOPS!

The next morning the sun peeked through enough for us to jump on yet another bus to one of the surfing beaches about 40 mins away called Trinidade. What a place, as soon as we arrived we wished we had a week up our sleeves to set up camp. Gorgeous sand, sufficient surf, rustic restaurants along the beachfront...perfection. We had to settle for just a day trip, it was very hard to get back on that bus but Rio de Janeiro was waiting!

We drove into Rio with the expectation of glorious hot sunshine and barely clothed posers lining the beach. We couldnt believe that it was overcast, a bit rainy and not exactly tropical - gutted! However we missioned down to Ipanema beach despite the weather and even though there werent any bikini bums on show there was some hard out posers working out on the beach front so we got a little laugh out of that.

Much to our horror Brazil (especially Rio) was quite expensive so we had to be choosy about what sightseeing we chose. Of course the only real option was to visit the statue of Christ on the Hill as it is the most famous landmark in Rio. You catch a cable car up the hill and fight through the crowds to get a photo of the famous man, arms stretched mimicking the statue. After a bit of tourist rage we got a suitable photo and got out of there asap!

Chris managed to get a couple of hours surfing in at Ipanema beach, however I suspect he just wanted to make definitely sure he wasnt missing out on any bikini clad women and used surfing as an excuse to get back down there!

Part of Rio's culture is the nightlife and we had been told about a street party that happens in an area of Rio every Friday night. Fortunately for us we were there on that night so we hooked up with about 5 others from the hostel and caught a VERY bumpy bus into the night. We had no idea where to get off or where this place was, but on approach the location became apparent! Hundreds of people lined the streets where it is NOT illegal to sell drinks on the street so people would be wandering around with chilly bins from home selling everything from beer to tequila shots (well what they claimed were tequila shots). It was a very interesting place just to wander around and listen to many car boot parties (ie people pulling up in their cars, opening the boot and cranking out their choice of loud music!). Most places smelt like a big urinal and it was a little sad to see young kids out late trying to see lollies to make money (or distract you and nick off with your wallet) but it was a fantastic night and well worth the visit.

It was a good way to finish our South American adventures and it was quite sad to be on-route to the airport getting ready to fly to London. Partly because there was just so much more to see in South America and we only scratched the surface and also because we knew that when we got to London we would have to be organised and start looking for work!

Fortunately we arrived to friendly faces here and have been very lucky to have a great place to stay while we set ourselves up (thank you Carissa and Steve!). It all isnt doom and gloom in London either, the weather has been great (better than Rio) and we have a fantastic wedding to look forward too as well!

Hopefully this will be our last post for awhile as we will be too busy working and earning pounds for our next trip away! Thanks for following our South American adventures and hopefully we have inspired some of you to add it to your travel wishlist.

Bonita - Ecuador

We last left our blog in Peru just about to cross the border into Ecuador. The border crossing is meant to be one of the most feared in all of South America (we only found this out after crossing with no problems and in only about 30 minutes). After crossing the border we were greeted with Bananas, more banana palms than you could imagine. I now know were all Bonita bananas are grown!!! I feel so complete. My trip has been worth while after all.

We had about a week and were planning on going to Baños but after the sun and surf of North Peru we decided to go to Mantañita, a small village that exists due to surfing. Again the waves were too small to even take a 9 foot mal out but you can´t control the weather. The town had a great vibe. All the houses are made from bambo, the street are filled with boardshorts, mini skirts and jandels. Your nose is filled with the smell of dozons of restuarants serving either bbq meats on a coal grill or a huge choice of sea foods. Julie particulaly took a liking to the garlic prawns and at 4 USD a plate I can see why.

Due to the lack of good surf we decided to venture further North to another small village called Puerto Lopez. The attraction of this small fishing village is its proximity to Isla de la Plata which is like the poor mans Galapagos Islands. About $900 US cheaper to be exact!!!!!! It was an awesome experience. On the way you are spoiled with a choreographed hump back whale performance. These whales are the same as those in Kiakoura but instead of feeding they are mating. This along with their need to lose weight in the warm water means they put on a good show by getting fully air bound only tens of metres from the boat. Next was the island and the famous blue footed boobies. Of couse the boobies were my personal favourite!!!!! Other wildlife included Albatros, masked boobies etc. Before we deperted the island we were treated to some world class snorkling around the islands calmer waters seeing parrot fish and other colourful fish.

The only catch about changing our plans and sticking to the coast was the extended travel time to get back on track. A 5am start followed by three different buses and 14 hours of travel. At one stage our entire luggage was lost. We departed the bus, opened the luggage compartments and they were empty. About 20 minutes later after some abusive exchanges and dirty looks they arrived unscathed on a completely different bus? We will never know what happened but we have our bags so dont care.

Back on track after 14 hours we arrived in Baños which is famous for its backdrop which consists of a live volcano which errupted in 2005. It was definitaly still allive with the sky filled with smoke at all times.

Baños was another tourist destination on the gringo trail and therefore catered well. Our first tour was a tour of the water falls. On the way we decided to go bungy jumping Ecuadorian style. This means throwing youself of a bridge with a full body harness. Just before you hit the ground you swing under the bridge to the other side. Julie was ok to begin with but when push came to shove nothing happened for some time. Her legs for good reason were not going to let her jump. It took about 5 long minutes and finally she threw herself off. First words ¨that was the most terifying thing I have ever done¨. Great to hear when you are harnesed up next in line. Of couse I had to jump without hesitation as Julie had already done it and if I bailed I would be a girl. Thats what was running through my head but it didn´t happen that way. I hesitated three times before jumping and like Julie would rate it as one of the most terrifying and exciting moments of my life.

I had always planned on eating a guinea pig while on my South American trip. As yet I havent and this is why...

The next couple of days were spent in Quito which is a World Unesco Heritage site for its amazing architecture and inca/colonial style buildings. There is also a cable car which takes you to an altitude of 4200m which made for stunning views over the city. I am writing this from the Quito airport. We are now on our way to Bogata, Columbia (but only for an hour) and then on to Sao Paulo Brazil.

Sand, Surf and Chocolate Cake

Happy 25th Birthday Chris! He may have been coming off a week of sickness but that was not going to stop him eating a chocolate brownie with ice cream for breakfast on the morning of his quarter century milestone. I have to say that since arriving in Peru we have discovered that they make a mighty fine chocolate cake, so the tradition of following most meals with cake is becoming a daily occurance...hmmm expanding waistline you say?

We had aimed to be in a relaxing hotter place for the birthday celebrations and made it to Huacachina (just out of Ica in Peru) for the occasion. This place is mainly popular for its massive sand dunes and sandboarding, but also because it is an oasis in the middle of the desert and a very nice place to catch your breath for a few days.


Well, as predicted, we promptly hired sand boards and stood at the bottom of the massive dunes and took a breath before trudging our way up towards the top. Oh the leg burn...after 10 minutes of recovery at the top we took the plunge and started trying out our skills at sandboarding. Both of us not being top snowboarders it was a comical first few rides and just as we were getting the hang of it dehydration got the better of us and we headed back to have a bit of pool time before going out again in the afternoon.

As soon as we arrived in Huacachina it was impossible to avoid the numerous dune buggies that loudly scream around the streets begging you to take their tours. We fell victim to the pressure and booked one for 4pm. Thinking we were just being taken out for a couple of hours into the abyiss of massive dunes, being taught to sandboard and taking the lazy option of being dropped at the top of hills instead of back up our hopes weren´t high. Within 3 minutes of the tour we realised that this was not going to be a Sunday drive in the dunes, but instead the rollercoaster of terror. These guys are lunatics...there is no pre-saftey talks or warnings that if you have a heart problem that these tours probably arent for you! For the young at heart though, absolutely exhilirating and terrifying at the same time. You put your life into the hands of these cowboys and pray you make it back in once piece! The sandboarding was boring in comparison! The icing on the cake was the final trip back and we were following another dune buggy and taking the same path. We watched in disbelief as the buggy before us got airborne about 2 metres over the top of the hill and disappeared down the other side...I dont think I was the only one that needed a change of underwear that day. Fortunately we made it safely back and are here to tell the story.

We needed to leave the next day as the adrenaline was too much so off to Huancacho we went...this was more of a beach stop with surf and a chilled out atmosphere. The beach is lined with fishing boats made of reeds that are shaped like sea kayaks, but we werent keen to tackle the surf in one of them with one of the local fisherman so just watched them head out into the waves from the safety of the shore.

It was a wonderful place. Chris got to go surfing, I got to lay in a hammock reading books and the sun was shining...bliss. Around Huancacho is a pre-Inca city called Chan Chan which we visited so we could experience something other than Inca ruins. It was a fascinating place and in its time (1400 BC) it was the biggest city in the world. Only some of it is able to be viewed as it has not all been excavated due to lack of money, but what we did view was well worth it. Unfortunately most of the treasures of the lost city were stolen when the Spanish invaded so the museum attached didnt have much to show in the way of gold or artefacts.

We spent 3 nights sifting around at Huancacho and have now based ourselves in Mancora up the very North of Peru, our last Peruvian stop before crossing the boarder into Ecuador. This place is a beach paradise, but unfortuantely the surf is not cranking so we are forced to laze on the beach, roam through the shops and swelter in the heat...what a shame. For a change of pace we might visit the hot pools about 15kms out of town to try and wash some of this sand off! We are both loving the relaxed vibe of the latter part of our trip as the first 6 weeks was so full on, here´s hoping Ecuador is as chilled...

Doing the Inca Trail is one of the must do things in South America. We had booked the trip four months early as only 2000 people are permitted on the track at any one time. The three days prior to begining the walk I unfortunately came down with a bed ridden illness. This meant no eating or moving for three days. Not the best preparation for a strenuous walk climbing to 4200 metres above sea level!

We decided not to hire extra porters but to carry our gear instead. My tramping pack was 16kgs while Julie´s day pack was 7kgs. The porters are allowed to carry 20kg, not in packs I might add, more like tarps and string with only jandles and straw on there feet. Their loads look akward and uncomfortable and many times we sat there staring in disbelief at what they were carrying, like gas bottles for instance, that can´t be good for your back! Here is an example of the insanity of their loads...

The start of the walk was pretty flat following the Urubabmba river for about ten kms. I felt good and Julie being in full health felt even better only struggling to adjust to the slow pace of our 5 foot guide. After a realaxing lunch in the sun we started the hardest part of the four day trek. I began the 700m climb with a bullet proof attitude!!!! I am from New Zealand where trekking is in my blood. It was going to be a breeze compared to other walks I have done carrying more weight in colder weather for twice as far.

Mmmmmmm well!!!!! I lasted about ten minutes until I was using my walking stick as a paddle to try and raft up the mountain. My lungs were burning, my muscles screaming and my head pounding from altitude. My male ego had to face facts, I could not go on this way. Julie kindly offered to swap bags and lighten my load. With a bag almost the same size as Julie now on her back she set of at a blistering pace summiting the mountain still ten minutes faster than me and an hour and a half faster than the last group members. Without Julie I would have taken days to get to the top (thanks Julie)!!!!!!!!! I began to get my appetite and strength back and on the third and fouth day and was able to once again carry my pack.

After a very VERY chilly first night in the tent trying to recover from the day before we did wake to a beautiful view which boosted the spirits which is what we needed to reach the summit as our first spot in the morning, this was helped by one of the many mammoth breakfasts we were served, in fact all our meals were mammoth, you certainly dont go hungry. Fortunately the climb to the summit was nothing compared to the challenge the day before so we motored up it and celebrated with the classic high fives and summit photos...

The walk itself was amazing. We saw heaps of old indian/inca ruins and were given an insight into their culture, beliefs and way of life. On the final day we woke at 3.30am to be the first group to the sungates and into Machu Picchu. It meant a bit of night running but everybody in the group were keen to try and miss the crowds. Machu Picchu was all it claims to be and more. Coming from New Zealand it is both fascinating and amazing and a must do for anyone thinking of coming here. We decided that 4 days of solid walking wasnt enough so climbed the iconic backdrop mountain of Wynapicchu to get a different outlook of Machu Picchu and again it was well worth it. By 1pm droves of tourists (mostly American) had entered the park on a day trip pass so we said goodbye and returned to Cusco. Here is the view and I promise even though we look superimposed we were actually there!!!

After a short flight from Cusco to Lima we have said goodbye to altitude. Goodbye nose bleeds, racing heartbeat, dry cracked lips and piercing sun. We are not going to be in Lima long as it is another huge city. So big that you could be anywhere in the world and you wouldn´t know it - Burger King, KFC, Pizza Hutt, Casinos, smog, theft its all here, we even went to the movies! We are going to check the surf report and then head down to Ica (Huacachina) to do some sand boarding and celebrate my successful quarter century (a forwarding address for my presents will be sent at a later date!)

Goodbye Bolivia - Hello Peru!!!

After all the excitment of the jungle we thought we would spend a few days in La Paz recovering and reaclimatising ourselves back to altitude...but relaxing is not in our vocabulary so biking the 64km most dangerous road in Bolivia seemed a great thing to do. What a day, it was exhilirating and absolutely worth doing. The dangerous road is still open to traffic but there has just recently been a new road opened so not as many large trucks zip by you which is a relief! Most of it was downhill mountain biking and the majority is on a dirt road with many bumps and stones to negotiate...all part of the fun.

It was hard to leave La Paz as it was such an interesting city with tons to do. We couldnt leave without taking a local minibus up to the lookout so we could look back over the amazing city which is set in a huge basin, we have never seen anything like it. The photo doesnt do it justice but you get the idea.

After La Paz we headed up to Copacabana which is a gorgeous little town on the shores of Lake Titicaca. It was a perfect place to catch our breath (literally in altitude!). We went on a couple of walks, one around the outskirts of Copacabana and then the following day a trip to Isla Del Sol which looked like a greek island but the water was definitely not warm like the Medetteranian!! You can see the island from the mainland and we thought it would be a short boat ride there but honestly the engine on the boat didnt stagger past an idle and it took over 2 hours...it was like torture seeing the destination and crawling our way there no faster than a turtle stampeding through peanut butter. Well worth it of course, with ruins to see and photos with Alpacas to be taken...Chris was quite fond of spit roasting the little one for dinner. On our last morning in Copacabana we rented a motorbike so we could have a look around...was great fun but dont think the roads suit a cracked rib to be honest.

Copacabana was our last stop in Bolivia, we crossed the border in Peru and headed towards Puno so we could visit the floating reed islands. The islands are still on Lake Titicaca as the lake is HUGE but the port wasnt as picturesque as Copacana with green sludge greeting you. The floating islands themselves were fantastic, but VERY touristy unfortunately. Still worth the visit as it is amazing how they live on reeds compacted down so much that it is like being on land.

We are now in Cusco in a desperate attempt to relax for a few days before heading off on our 4 day Inca Trail trek. Chris is not feeling the best today so is recovering in bed, hopefully whatever he has disappears in time for the trek as he is supposed to be carrying our gear...hee hee. If he isnt good tomorrow I will have to visit a pharmacy as you can get ANYTHING here, it is just describing what you want which is the hardest part.

See you on the blog after the trek readers!!

The Mighty Amazon

After being at altitude and in the cold for so long what a welcome relief it was to touch down on the grass landing strip in Rurrenabaque and feel the tropical heat and be able to breathe easily. Rurrenabaque is a gorgeous little town nestled in the Amazon basin with a big touristy feel. There wasnt much time to relax as we had already booked our tours so we tried to make the most of the afternoon we had with a hike in the surrounding jungle.

It seems that my misfortune has not yet come to an end as not only has she cracked a rib through coughing when we tried to find the trail for our walk we came across some particularly unfriendly local dogs, one of which took a nip out of my ass. Well, that put an end to the walking idea but luckily it was a domestic dog and not a roaming ferril one. Feeling sorry for myself we fortunately found a local soccer game to watch instead although we sat and watched the opening match instead of the feature event!

Onto the good stuff, we started our Amazon adventure with a 3 day pampas tour. After enduring a 4 hour dusty rollercoaster 4wd ride with 2 flat tyres to the entrance of the National Park we were soon rewarded with more animals than you can shake a stick at (or point a camera at!) Aligators, monkeys, many birds, turtles, pink dolphins (yes pink...), capibarra, caimans and more than enough insects.

There was so much to see on the water, but there was more for us to find, on the second day we headed out on the hunt for anaconda. A 3 hour walk through the humidly hot pampas grasses wearing clothing that covered all of us to avoid being eaten alive by mosquitos and we had nearly given up hope. On the way back to the start our guide heard rustling and much to our delight was the beloved anaconda! No glory photos around the neck, guides are not supposed to disturb them anymore, but we were happy! That night we cruised out and went pirana fishing. Man those little freaks can eat a piece of meat off the end of your line in about 2 seconds! Chris raked in the 2 biggest and was salivating at the thought of scoffing them that night for dinner, which we did. Quite tasty little morsels, not much meat on the bones though.

Our final day was topped off very nicely with a swim in Amazon with the pink dolphins. We all waited paitently in the boat until our guide dived in as we were a bit tentative about aligators, piranas and other lurking creatures of the deep. We all survived though and the dolphins were shy until we left on the boat and they came to life jumping in front of us and escorting us off the premises.

After an excellent 3 days in the pampas we wondered if it could get any better. We had a nights turnaround to shower and freshen ourselves which ended up being a night out with the other tour members, well actually a night to destroy the English and Isreali at pool, and then it was off to the jungle for another 3 day stint.

A more relaxing and stunning boat trip of 3 hours and we were at our base camp. Very basic but comfortable. One of the first sights that greated us was an Isreali traveller with more mosquito bites on his legs showing than skin. We quickly dug out our long pants and drowned ourselves in deet.

The jungle tour was very relaxed, that afternoon we prepared for a 3 hour walk into the jungle, just as we thought about leaving the heavens opened and we were treated to a tropical downpour. Off we went anyway, it is all part of the experience right! We came across a baby turtle, deer, pigs GALORE (unfortunately we were unable to snaffle one up for dinner as they are protected), tarantula, giant snails, gorgeous butterflies and frogs. We were supposed to go again that night but it was too wet.

2nd day and we woke leisurely in the heat for another 3 course meal (all meals are ridiculously huge) and then set off into the jungle again. What a walk...not only did we see the beloved Tucan, Macaw, monkeys, parrots, some squirrel thing, hundreds of pigs, millions of ants and learn about the versatility of tree species in the Amazon (we are talking rubber trees, milk trees, blood trees, poisonous trees, healing trees) Chris actually had a tarantula on his head and here is the photo to prove it!

After such an action packed morning we welcomed the chance to go fishing for salmon in the afternoon. Our hopes were high but our catch was non existant. The camp guru (aptly named Mr Miagi) showed us all up by dragging in a monstrous salmon, he must know the good spots...and probably for 50 bolivianos would have shown us.

Last day in the jungle and we got to make necklaces and rings out of natural Amazon stuff, I loved it and surprisingly Chris seemed to as well. After all that stress we went tubing down the river before being picked up and taken back to civilisation.

It was sad to leave the Amazon, not only for the hot weather but for the amazing things we saw and experienced. We are back in La Paz now struggling for breath and wheezing like old men. Tomorrow we are mountain biking the worlds most dangerous road...the fun never seems to stop in Bolivia, there is so much to do.