TravelStream™ news feed for member ktsmith on TravelPod's free travel blogs service http://www.travelpod.com/syndication/rss/ktsmith en-us Copyright ©2009 TravelPod.com Wed, 28 Mar 2007 14:43:51 -0400 http://www.travelpod.com http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ktsmith/rtw_2005-06/1160083500/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ktsmith/rtw_2005-06/1160083500/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ktsmith/rtw_2005-06/1160083500/tpod.html Wed, 28 Mar 2007 14:43:51 -0400 Katie's 39,000-mile adventure

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Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

This is being written from a computer in cold, dark England, so all this seems such a long time ago now!

So I crossed the border into Brazil from Puerto Iguazu, not as straightforward as I'd hoped, as the public buses that take you over the border don't actually wait for you to clear immigration before they take off again, so I had to stand in the baking hot sun for an hour waiting for the next one. The next one came and got impounded by Brazilian immigration because it was full of smuggled beer. They hadn't even bothered to hide it that well, it was just in cans underneath the seats, how rubbish! Finally I got there, stayed in a lovely hostel that was like a resort and left the visit to the Brazilian side of the Iguazu Falls til the following day. I was pretty impressed - both sides of the falls are definitely worth seeing as they both give different perspectives. The Argentinian side allows for getting right up close, but the Brazilian side gives an awesome overall perspective and some fantastic views of the Gargantua del Diablo. Tip though, if you are going at this time of year, go in the afternoon as the weather is much better then. My photos are grey.

Prize for the most boring bus journey ever goes to the one from Foz to Rio, I was the only person on the bus (I'm not kidding) and there was nothing to see on the way, up until the last 2 hours or so when we got nearer the city and the area became quite mountainous. For nearly 22 hours I slept because there was sod all else to do. But when I got to Rio it was worth it, as I had a brilliant few days. I stayed in a hostel in Ipanema, expensive but the safest area in the city and only a block from the incredible, met a great group of people and had such fun. Whilst I was there I took a trip up to the Cristo Redentor statue, something I had dreamed about seeing since I can remember, so was so excited when the weather cleared after a few days and I thought that I would get the amazing view so famous from there. Instead I saw.... cloud. The statue was in the only cloud over the city, and Jesus wasn't visible at all. Looking down was like looking out across the Arctic - pure white. Very disappointing. I could have gone back a couple of days later, but its a bit of an effort and quite expensive to get up there, so I guess I have an excuse to go back to Rio one day.

I spent the rest of my time shopping in Copacabana, getting a Brazilian wax (when in Brazil and all that, but christ, it was undignified and it bloody hurt!!!!), and on the last night of my trip went to watch Flamengo and Fluminense, two local teams, play a league match at the Maracana, the legendary football stadium. The level of football was somewhat dubious - Brazilians play great individually but the team play was dire - but the atmosphere was amazing, better than Boca I think. Flags were waved, songs were sung constantly and they all had a cool samba beat, flares were lit, and best of all, all the men took their shirts off and waved them round their heads. Now girls, I can assure you that this was worth the entrance fee alone, Brazilian men are HOT. After the match, me and my friends drank caipirinhas til 2am, and I got all drunk and emotional about coming home. My last morning was spent on Ipanema Beach, enjoying the last sun I will see til who knows when.

Rio was a fantastic place to end a fantastic trip. Its not as scary as people make it out to be, provided you stick to the main areas and are sensible about your valuables. Even riding the bus wasn't the den of thieves I had been promised, I felt perfectly safe, and I am definitely coming back here one day.

I was really excited about coming back. Its been an amazing, incredible year, but its also been really tiring, and I was ready to go home and see my family and friends again. The flight was fine, long though and I was impatient to get back. When the plane took 20 minutes to descend through cloud I knew I was back in England, but actually cried when I touched down at Gatwick, and the rain was the most beautiful thing I'd ever seen! I cried even more when I found out that the bloody airline hadn't actually put my bags on the flight from Lisbon (TAP Air Portugal are shocking when it comes to luggage handling) and it was going to take them 2 days to actually get them back! Typical, I fly all the way round the world, take the most primitive buses in the backwaters of nowhere and manage to keep hold of everything, I come back to England and my bags don't make it. Still, I was home, my best friend gave me a big hug and an even bigger Stella, and nothing else mattered.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ktsmith/rtw_2005-06/1159490520/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ktsmith/rtw_2005-06/1159490520/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ktsmith/rtw_2005-06/1159490520/tpod.html Wed, 28 Mar 2007 14:26:09 -0400 Katie's 39,000-mile adventure

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Puerto de Iguazu, Argentina

So, I'll start with Lima. It wasn't as bad as I expected it to be, probably because I stayed in Miraflores, which is the posh bit. There is a McDs and a Starbucks there, big fancy department stores, and a beautiful beachfront and a pier (Cannon and Ball and Bobby Davro have just finished summer seaons there). I spent my time mooching round the shops, buying tons of knock-off DVDs in the market (v cheap), and walking along the seafront at sunset. Very romantic for the hundreds of couples that were out snogging in every available space, but not the place to be if you are even remotely sensitive about being single. There is even a big statue of a couple snogging in a park called Parque de Amor, there is no way of getting away from it.

So I left there at 10pm Monday night, finally arriving in my next destination of Puerto Iguazu at 12.30am on Thursday morning. It was a looooooooong journey, I did not have a bed for 64 hours. I had to fly from Lima to La Paz, wait 4 hours there, get another flight to Santa Cruz, wait another 2 hours, then fly to Cordoba, in Argentina. Via f***ing Chile. Honestly. Still, thats what you get for going cheap. When I got to Cordoba I had 4 hours to kill before a bus to Iguazu, so I went straight to the nearest restaurant and indulged in a filet mignon, a large bottle of red and a bowl of ice-cream the size of my head. I was so glad to be back in Argentina, I was practically skipping through the streets of Cordoba. Everything seemed like luxury compared to Peru. The bus journey north was so long too, 24 hours, but it wasn't too bad, watched a couple of films, slept a lot, looked out of the window at the "scenery" (flat grassland as far as the eye could see, occasionally dotted by the odd cow).

But was it worth it? A resounding 'absolutely'. Iguazu Falls are stunning. I've seen a ton of waterfalls on this trip, but quite frankly this makes them all look a bit rubbish. Its not just one fall, but a series of many, all different heights and strengths, and in the middle of a beautiful humid jungle setting. I spent 5 hours today wandering about, looking at them all, walking the trails, taking photos, getting completely soaked from the spray, and just loving being there. Tomorrow I am going to see them from the Brazilian side, apparently its a totally different perspective - Argentina has the close up and Brazil has the overview. I can't wait. There's not a lot else I can say on them really, I´ll just let the photos tell the story.

So, a week today I will be on the plane on the way home for good. For all of you who have asked me what I am looking forward to, here´s the (undefinitive) list (in no particular order): my friends and family, having lots of hugs, getting dressed up in heels and make up to go out, having my own bed and bathroom, looking at all my photos, seeing what stuff I've sent home, Stella Artois, Cadburys, cereal and cold milk, Corrie, sitting with my sister talking rubbish and eating biscuits, putting new music on my ipod, seeing people again I have met whilst travelling, my friend's hen night and wedding, Westlife at Butlins, The Killers in Manchester, George Michael, D, chicken jalfrezi, going to watch Villa... Many more. But that doesn't mean I will be happy on that flight home!!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ktsmith/rtw_2005-06/1159110480/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ktsmith/rtw_2005-06/1159110480/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ktsmith/rtw_2005-06/1159110480/tpod.html Wed, 28 Mar 2007 14:06:14 -0400 Katie's 39,000-mile adventure

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Pisco, Peru

I've been feeling really fed up these last few days, for one reason or another (as you may have been able to tell from my last blog too!). To be honest I've not enjoyed being in Peru that much - I got totally ripped off in Nasca I found out, its really touristy everywhere, I feel constantly unsafe and I think in my mind I just want to go home now. Bolivia and Argentina were definitely better experiences. But there have been a couple of big highlights these last few days to bring me out of my gloom.

Huacachina is an "oasis" in the middle of the Peruvian desert, about two hours north of Nasca. Its literally a tiny resort built around a lagoon in the middle of sand dunes, and used as a chill out place for backpackers. For two days I mainly lazed around the pool in the sun, but I did take a dune buggy trip out on the dunes and did some sandboarding, which was great fun. The buggy trip is mental, like a really rickety rollercoaster whizzing up and down the dunes, then the drivers take you to the top of the dunes and you slide down on a snowboard type thing, standing up (if you're brave) or on your stomach (if you are like me). The dunes get increasingly higher and steeper, and by the end I was sliding down practically vertical ones that seemed to go on for hours. Sand gets in absolutely every crevice imaginable, but its brilliant. And the best thing is that you don't have to walk back up as the buggy comes down to take you back up again!

I could have stayed a while longer just doing nothing (I'm trying to avoid spending any time in Lima), but guilt kicked in, and I was looking forward to getting out to the Islas Ballestas anyway. Firstly though that meant a half day in Pisco, which I think is the arse end of Peru. I have ventured from my hotel to the travel agent to the internet cafe and back again, carrying nothing on me at all, not looking anyone in the eye either - its that bad here. But all the tours to the Islas go from here, so didn't have a great deal of choice. It has been worth it though, yesterday was probably my favourite day in Peru so far. The boat took me out to the Islas, within a minute of being on the water I had spotted dolphins, and saw loads more on the 20 minute ride out. The Islas themselves are incredible - I have never seen so many birds in my life. There are mainly boobies (stop sniggering), cormorants and other gulls, but also tiny little penguins which are so cute, and every inch of land and sky seemed to be filled with birds of some sort. Of course that also means lots of poo (and a disgusting fishy smelling poo at that, it was so grim), but the guano (as it is called) is a precious commodity, collected once a year and sold to the US and Europe as fertilizer. But its important to wear a hat and not look up too much for fear of coming in close proximity with it...

I also got to see sea-lions, so blummin many of them at that, they were basking on the rocks, or swimming and playing in the sea, and there were also cave-fulls of them (I cannot possibly describe the stink in these caves...) One beach, known as Maternity Beach, had about 500 sealions on it (I´m not exaggerating) - apparently this is where all the mating, birthing and rearing goes on, and its ruled by about 10 huge bull lions who were fighting the others for supremacy. I felt like I was in the middle of a David Attenborough documentary, it was so unbelievable to witness from so close.

From the islands I went on to Paracas National Park, which is mainly desert on the coast, but an incredible landscape. It only gets 2mm of rain a year, so is dry as you like, but next to the wild and beautiful blue ocean. I saw flamingos, cool rock formations, got to walk on a huge wide beach for about an hour picking shells, and had an amazing seafood lunch freshly caught that morning. Unfortunately then I had to come back to Pisco and hide by the hotel pool for the afternoon but it had been worth it. Oh for more days like this.

So now I am off to Lima for 24 hours (have heard so many horror stories about robberies there I am dreading it), before a 36-hour journey by 3 planes and 2 buses to get back to Argentina (yay!) and Iguazu Falls. Definitely on the home stretch now, only two more entries to go!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ktsmith/rtw_2005-06/1158700800/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ktsmith/rtw_2005-06/1158700800/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ktsmith/rtw_2005-06/1158700800/tpod.html Tue, 20 Mar 2007 12:29:52 -0400 Katie's 39,000-mile adventure

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Nasca, Peru

A tiring few days, mentally and physically. I spent one more day in Cusco before heading off to Arequipa on the night bus. Its a really lovely city too - big square with a lovely cathedral, cobbled streets, and surrounded by snow capped mountains. But I was there mainly as a base to get out to the Colca Cañon, the world's deepest canyon, not far away. I went on an organised 3 day trip with 2 British girls that I had met on the bus, and a few other people, and it was hard work but very beautiful. The first day involved walking 6km to the canyon floor, down steep gravelly paths. Unfortunately at the top I developed vertigo (it started at Pisac, think its the altitude) so spent the 3 hours it took to get down feeling sick and shaky and fearing I was going to drop to my death. Hence I relied on the (cute) guide to help me down all the way. (Any excuse eh, I know what you're thinking!) The deepest part of the canyon takes 9 hours to hike down to, thank goodness I hadn't gone on that trip! We spent that night in a really lovely little hostel in a local village and then on day 2 did some serious walking. Firstly we walked mainly flat to another village, then down to an "oasis" where we had the chance to swim in a pool and do a bit of sunbathing before the 6km hike back to the top of the canyon to where we started from. It was bloody knackering, probably the most physically demanding thing I have done in a long time. In our group were 2 professional rowers so they practically ran up, the rest of us took it slowly-ish. I was going at a pace of a snail on tranquilizers, so was able to enjoy the view as I went, but it wasn't a pleasant walk. As we reached the top it was getting dark, and I was terrified of being on the narrow mountain path in the pitch black so that was the only thing that could keep my legs moving. We kept being passed by villagers and their mules who do that trip daily to barter their produce for supplies, it was humbling. Anyway, I made it up there in just over 2.5 hours, not bad, mind you I was just glad to make it at all. That night as I lay in bed my legs kept twitching as if they were still walking.

The final day of the trip was mostly spent on the bus (phew!) to get back to Arequipa, but we did stop at Cruz del Condor, one of the best places to spot condors apparently. But we saw nada. The viewpoint has only been open about 6 months, and its thought that the use of dynamite during the building process and the disturbance of the nesting sites means that the condors have been scared away. So where there used to be up to 50 spotted a day, there are now very few.

I didn't get much chance to rest back in Arequipa, I'm so short on time now that my days are long and the nights are spent on buses trying to get to the next place so I'm very very tired and more than a bit grumpy. I arrived here in Nasca at 4 this morning, slept for 2 hours and then took a plane trip over the Nasca Lines. The Lines are a phenomenon that no-one really knows much about - the documentary that I watched this morning seemed to suggest they were pointers to water sources in a desert region where it is so scarce, but there aren't really any explanations for the animals that can only be appreciated from the air, carved at a time when flight wasn't possible. One guy thinks its aliens, but then someone always thinks that. It was an ok flight, made me feel really sick as it hits the desert air pockets constantly, and I thought the shapes would be bigger than they actually were so my photos are crap, but still, I´ve seen them. And now I'm going to bed.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ktsmith/rtw_2005-06/1158101640/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ktsmith/rtw_2005-06/1158101640/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ktsmith/rtw_2005-06/1158101640/tpod.html Tue, 20 Mar 2007 11:48:05 -0400 Katie's 39,000-mile adventure

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Cuzco, Peru

Another day, another border crossing, easy as pie from Bolivia into Peru, although very breathless with 3 bags and a high altitude. I had wanted to go to Copacabana on the shores of Lake Titicaca, but locals protesting over the control of a church in the town had blocked off the road and lake route from La Paz, so it was a 6 hour journey to Puno on the north shores instead. As soon as we arrived, Eva and I set off on a boat trip out to the Floating (Uros) Islands on Lake Titicaca, which was looking exceptionally beautiful and blue in the afternoon sun. The islands were pretty interesting - they are made of layers of reeds taken from the lake, anchored to the bed with yet more reeds so they don't float to Bolivia or anything. The locals live in reed huts, make stuff to sell to tourists out of reeds, go around in reed boats and even eat them (quite tasty they are too - the reeds that is, not the locals). Had the afternoon out there, saw an awesome sunset over the lake and surrounding mountains, and then headed out in Puno for the evening. This is where I got hit by the car - the streets in Puno are really narrow, barely wide enough for a car, and at 6.30 in the evening the pavements were rammed with young people (I don't know where they had all come from!) so I had to walk in the road. So a car came up the hill, hit the back of one of my legs and kept on going. It hurt, a lot. Didn't stop me limping to the pub for a "medicinal" cubre libre though, and I just had bruises. I've learned my lesson since, no matter how crowded the pavement is, I don't walk in the road any more.

Just stayed in Puno the one night because there isn't a lot else happening apart from the lake, then took the beautiful drive across the altiplano to Cuzco, centre of the Inca civilisation in Peru, and probably one of the most beautiful cities in the world. In my opinion. Its buildings have a lot of Inca foundations, with Spanish colonial style walls, roofs and balconies, the streets are narrow and cobbled and lined with cute shops, and its circled by beautiful mountains. Plus for the 5 days I was there, the sun shone constantly, there is a real international flavour to the city because of all the tourists, and the nightlife is kicking and cheap (free drink promotions in all bars, you can get hammered, like I did, for less than 3 quid!). I quite liked it there, as you can tell. Its nowhere near as cheap as Bolivia, but by European standards its bargainous.

In Cuzco's surrounding area, there are some excellent examples of Inca ruins, and I'm not even including Machu Picchu in that statement (more on that later), so I spent 3 days touring those. The ones in the immediate area I toured on horseback which was ok, I felt really bad cos the guide who took me round didn't have a horse so I felt like Lady Muck parading up the steep hills on my steed whilst he panted breathlessly behind me, so I couldn't really relax and enjoy it that much. But the ruins - Puka Pukara, Tambo Machay, Temple de la Luna and Sacsayhuaman (pronounced Sexy Woman, sort of) - were fabulous, and set in the most amazing mountain scenery. Horseback is definitely the best way to see it. When I put my pics up I will explain about each ruin a bit more there.

Sunday is market day in Pisac, a neighbouring town about an hour's bus ride from Cuzco, and there are also some great Inca ruins there too. So I compromised between shopping and sightseeing, and didn't take much money with me so I wouldn't spend all day in the market (which is ace). The ruins are about 5km out of the town, up on a huge hill, with incredible views down to the Sacred Valley below. I got there about midday, just as all the tour groups were leaving for their lunch, and had a wonderful hour just sitting in the silence, enjoying the sunshine and taking it all in. Then I did the great walk down the side of the mountain through the valley and back into town - its also possible to do the walk up, I suspect though its not so great :-)

I was debating for a few days whether I was actually going to come to Machu Picchu. I'd heard mixed reports about it, that it was horribly touristy and expensive, and not worth the trip, and others said it was the best thing they had seen in South America, and how could I possibly come to Peru and consider not going to MaPi. The cost didn't help, there is no cheap way to get here, so I didn't know what to do. Then I thought I actually might kick myself if I left Peru without making my own mind up so researched the cheapest way to get here, and arrived by a combination of bus and combi to Ollataytambo and then a train to Aguas Calientes. (Eva has found an even cheaper way, she is doing a 9 hour overnight bus trip, followed by a 5 hour walk to get here, same to return, to save a few dollars - I've been travelling too long to want the hardship of that route!) Had a night in Aguas Calientes last night, and today got up at 5am, to be at Machu Picchu on the first bus at 5.30am. And my verdict?

Well, at first, it did nothing for me at all. When I arrived it was incredibly foggy, impossible to see much at all, and couldn't see what the fuss was about. It was just a "bunch of rocks" as I wrote in my diary as my first impression. I could appreciate the amazing feat of construction that it is, considering its high in the mountains in the middle of nowhere, and the actual construction and engineering is way advanced for its time. But it just didn't grab me in a way that made me go 'Wow!'. But....Then the sun came out about 8am, I found a seat on a wall with absolutely no-one around me, looking way down into the valley and around at the mountains, still with a little mist on the top, and finally got it. In fact, it moved me so much that I spent an hour sat there crying, and for the rest of the day I had to keep finding quiet spots to sit and have a weep (not easy after about 10am when the tour groups arrive, there were millions of people there!!) I'm not sure exactly what it was that affected me so much, apart from the obvious utter beauty of the place - to be really personal for a minute, I just got a huge sense of achievement there, not because I had done anything particularly special to get there exactly (the Inca Trail sounded horrendous and I'm glad I didn't do it!), but because of all the things I have done on this trip previously to get to this point, with just 3 weeks to go. Ok, people do these kind of trips all the time, people younger and older than me, and they may do more daring things or with more hardship or whatever, but this is MY achievement. I have done so much, felt so much fear and conquered it, and I just felt really bloody proud of myself to have got this far. Maybe it signalled a final landmark for me and thats why all this came on now (although who knows what I'm going to be like at the Cristo Redentor in Rio, extra large box of tissues in the bag that day I think...). Or maybe I'm overtired or just a soppy old fool and I hope you're not sat there cringing in embarrassment at me! But that was my Machu Picchu experience, it wasn't about the buildings or the history or anything for me, as impressive as they are and there's no point in me describing them as the photos will do that. What will stand out for me is how it made me feel, and I'm glad I came, despite the tears!

If I could give one tip though, go early, it may be foggy at 5.30am but there is hardly anyone there, and the peace for the 3 hours or so before most people start to arrive is well worth putting up with a bit of fog! It does clear, honestly!

Right, this sad old eejit is off for a drink and an early night before another stupid o'clock start for the train/bus/combi back to Cuzco.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ktsmith/rtw_2005-06/1157478000/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ktsmith/rtw_2005-06/1157478000/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ktsmith/rtw_2005-06/1157478000/tpod.html Tue, 20 Mar 2007 10:45:11 -0400 Katie's 39,000-mile adventure

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La Paz, Bolivia

So, La Paz. Highest capital city in the world, and quite frankly a bit of a hole. Its built into a huge valley in the middle of the mountains, and is quite breathtaking (literally, at that altitude) to look at from above, but being in the middle of it isn't pleasant. But then a girl I am now travelling with, Eva, thinks its great, so different strokes and all that. I was there for two days initially, during which time I went to the Coca Museum (very interesting, all about the traditional use of the coca leaf by indigenous people, and its current usage for cocaine production), and to the Witches Market (fabulous shopping, where you can buy anything from a rug to a llama foetus. Nice.)

I was glad to get out of the city though, too polluted, and then someone tried to rob me which put the final nail in La Paz´s coffin on my account. It was a cliched situation though - I was in a crowded market, it was getting dark, I was tired and not watching what was happening behind me, when a lady came up and whispered to me something about my bag. When I looked it was wide open. Fortunately it was only the front pocket which I don't keep anything valuable in (that one is locked) so all they would have got is an old tissue and some cough sweets, but nevertheless it put the heebeejeebees up me and I couldn't wait to get out.

But in order to get out, and go north to the Amazon Basin in Rurrenabaque, I had to take a trip on the World`s Most Dangerous Road as its the only way to get there. I had heard bad things about the road, but god, it was horrendous - a single lane dirt track that winds its way down through the mountains, with a drop of who knows how many metres down into the valleys. Just my luck I got a seat by the window on the ´drop´ side, at one point all I could see out of the bus was the valley floor below. When another vehicle came up the other way, we had to reverse to a wider section, and at one point the back wheel of the bus skidded in the dirt and was hanging in mid air. I don't pray often but I was praying to every God that I knew of. This journey through hell went on for 18 hours. If you could bear to look out of the window the scenery was actually very beautiful - if you ignored the numerous crosses and remnants of cars and buses that had fallen off the edge of the cliff...

But the journey was worth it, the Basin trip was excellent. 8 of us went with a guide for 3 days and 2 nights - first by jeep, then on a 4 hour longboat trip deep into the pampas to basic riverside accommodation. On the way we saw so many animals and birds - alligators, capybaras (weird big rat type things), turtles, toucans, eagles, birds of paradise, flamingos, pink dolphins (ugly mutant looking things), monkeys, etc etc, and we could see many of them from our accommodation too. On my first morning I ate my breakfast whilst watching an alligator stalk a bird (then give up) whilst a woodpecker bashed the heck out of a tree next to me. Fab. During the three days we went out on a night safari to spot alligators (lots of red eyes glinting in the torchlight), walked in the boiling heat of the pampas to spot anacondas (saw three, luckily only small ones as they can swallow a human whole apparently...), swam in the river, and went fishing for piranhas. That was good fun - I managed to catch one but it got away again, Eva got two and we had them for tea that night. Well, for an appetiser, they were tiny. It was really a great trip, I've not been that close to so many animals before, and although the alligators look scary they were pretty harmless - although I failed to remember that when one swam next to the boat and flicked its tail, making me scream to high heaven with fright! You will be able to see from my photos one of them actually let tourists pat its head...

Had a free day in Rurrenabaque (the least exciting place in the world after that place I got stuck in Argentina) and then caught a flight back to La Paz, could not face the Death Road again. The flight was "interesting" though, just a 14 seater plane, flying over the Andes back to La Paz and being tossed around in the wind like a kite for 45 minutes. The airline thoughtfully provided sick bags.

So quite an eventful time. The next installment sees me get hit by a car in Puno...
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ktsmith/rtw_2005-06/1156789320/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ktsmith/rtw_2005-06/1156789320/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ktsmith/rtw_2005-06/1156789320/tpod.html Sun, 12 Nov 2006 13:40:56 -0500 Katie's 39,000-mile adventure

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Sucre, Bolivia

I travelled up to Potosi from Uyuni with Mark, the Aussie guy from my salt flats trip, and Mike, an English guy we met on the bus. This was the first bus journey I had taken where my luggage got put on the roof, I know that I shouldn´t have been amazed when we arrived in Potosi and I actually got my bag back, but I was.

Potosi has the honour of being the highest city in the world, at 4070m. Unfortunately for me its all set on hills, so I was like a 90 year old who smokes 100 a day instead. Its strange how the altitude affects concentration aswell, I was even more slow witted than usual. As well as being the highest, the city used to be among the richest, due to the abundance of silver in the surrounding mountains, then production waned and the city turned into what it is now, pretty poor and run down, with only vague echoes of what it was. The mines are still operating, but now mainly for zinc and tin, and tours are available to go down them. I had heard nothing but bad things about the conditions inside the mine, for both miners and tourists (nothing is glamourised for the gringos here), but thought what the hell, I would go anyway, mainly out of curiousity. I didn´t tell anyone at home that I was doing it, so here goes with the full horror of it. You can all worry after the fact!

First stop on the tour was to get kitted up in the "safety" gear - boots, overalls, and a hat with a dodgy lamp. Then we stopped at the market to buy presents for the miners - food, soft drinks, the 97% proof alcohol that they like (I´m not kidding, its meths), and some coca leaves. Oh and of course the dynamite. Yes, I had a stick of dynamite, a fuse and a bag of ammonia nitrate in my bag. No one light a match for goodness sake. When we got to the mines, the miner showed us how to blow it up, and did a couple of test explosions, which of course the boys in the group loved but just made me feel sick at the thought of them being used underground whilst we were down there. Just inside the entrance to the mine was a really interesting museum explaining the history and methods of mining, and our guide (an ex-miner himself, he had to give up the job after 3 years due to an accident. I didn´t ask what happened...) told us about life from the miners perspective. Basically its hell - the conditions inside the mine are so bad that the miners contract silicosis (a lung disease), and have to work to receive a pension until their lungs are reduced to 25% capacity by the disease, then they leave and can expect to be dead within 10 years. They work 8 hours a day, 6 days a week, and only earn what they can make selling their haul from the mine, usually less than US$100 a month. Which is well paid by Bolivian standards, but not nearly enough to compensate for the conditions. Which we then got to experience first hand and I can´t tell you how horrible it was down there. The air was stale, thick with choking dust, and the roof was low and the tunnels were narrow so that to get down to the second level we were crawling on our hands and knees over sharp rocks and down rickety ladders. At the next level it was worse, it was boiling hot, and we watched the miners work in their groups of four, pushing or pulling trolleys full of rocks along these narrow rat runs, sweating and pale with exhaustion. Explosions were going off left right and centre, the beams holding the ceiling up were rotting, and although I found it all fascinating, I hated every single minute of being down there, I was terrified. We were in the mine for about two hours in total, climbing back up through the narrow passages was exhausting and I have never ever been so glad to see the sunlight. I have every sympathy and respect for those poor men who have to take that job because there is nothing else for them. After just two hours we were all coughing up crap from our lungs, god knows whats in some of those men´s lungs right now.

I left Potosi that night with Mark and Mike, I think we had all been quite shocked by what we had seen and experienced, and wanted to get out of the whole town as soon as possible. So we got a shared taxi to Sucre, the former capital of Bolivia 162km to the northeast. Sucre is a really gorgeous city, lots of colonial architecture and churches, warm weather (I wore shorts yesterday for the first time in South America), and a cracking nightlife. The boys and I got a really nice hotel room, and this is going to sound gross but I had a shower for the first time in nearly a week. It was bliss, I was thinking that my hair might start turning to dreadlocks soon. Here I´ve had a couple of really good nights out - just to let you know how cheap Bolivia is, the 3 of us had a two course meal each, about 5 jugs of beer, cocktails and shots, a taxi to a club, club entry and drinks, and a taxi home, and we calculated that we´d spent US$40 (about 22 quid). Between us!! I´ve also walked around a lot, done a bit of shopping (its really good here for handicrafts, silver and bootleg DVDs), and been to the completely brilliant Indigenous Art Museum, which showcases local textiles, music and dance. And I´ve watched a lot of telly too, which is a luxury I love having occasionally! And tonight I have a 14 hour bus ride to La Paz. But quite frankly I think I can handle anything now. Whenever I want to moan from now on, I just need to think how much worse things would be if I was a Bolivian miner.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ktsmith/rtw_2005-06/1156440480/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ktsmith/rtw_2005-06/1156440480/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ktsmith/rtw_2005-06/1156440480/tpod.html Sun, 10 Sep 2006 21:27:57 -0400 Katie's 39,000-mile adventure

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Uyuni, Bolivia

So I crossed the border into country number 18 (Bolivia) on a ridiculously cold day at 6am, after a long bus ride from Salta. The border crossing was smooth, its about a ten minute walk to 'la frontera' from the bus station in La Quiaca, Argentina, then I had to queue up with the locals to get the exit stamp in my passport. Then I walked into Bolivia, queued again to get the entrance stamp, and got straight on the bus I wanted. None of the hassle I had been warned about.

Tupiza is about 2 hours north of Villazon (Bolivian border), and the bus ride is incredibly picturesque. Which is a good thing as there is absolutely no chance of sleeping on it, the "road" is really just a bunch of rocks packed together not too tightly and the bus has no suspension. Bring a cushion. Still, it prepared my bottom well for the 7 hours of horse riding I did in Tupiza the following day. This is Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid territory (they had their final shoot out just up the road from Tupiza) and the landscape is straight out of a western, so seeing it all from a horse is the only way to do it. It was a great day, just me and my Bolivian guide (I had to talk Spanish ALL day!) and our horses, who were very well behaved and took us through canyons, past towering cacti, through rivers and tiny villages in the middle of nowhere. Tupiza is a nice little town, very dusty and not much happening but the locals are friendly, and I had a great room in a hotel with a swimming pool for next to nothing.

After 2 days there I set off as part of a small group on a jeep tour of the Southwest area eventually making our way up to the Salar de Uyuni, something I had been looking forward to seeing for many years. In my group there was an American, a Canadian, a Frenchman, an Aussie and me, and we also had a Bolivian driver and a cook. All of us packed into a Toyota Landcruiser for 4 days. Good job we got on. It was such a brilliant tour - Day 1 was a lot of driving, we climbed higher into the mountains past the altiplano and to the 'altura' at around 4000m, staying the night at a basic hostel in a village; Day 2 we packed in loads of sights - an old silver mining village, volcanos, thermal springs and geysers, lakes, multi-coloured mountains - and at times the terrain was so desolate it felt like we had landed on the moon. We reached 5000m altitude this day, and unfortunately I suffered a bit with altitude sickness - tight chest, headache and nausea, and when I got out to walk anywhere I wheezed like I was an 80 year old on 60-a-day. Remedy was mate de coca (tea made with coca leaves), local medicine, and chewing on coca leaves (unbelievably disgusting). I would definitely have failed a drugs test should one have been required, but they did the job. At 5000m it was also quite cold as you can imagine - that night when I went to bed I wore a vest, two t-shirts, two fleeces, two pairs of socks, tights, pj bottoms and hat, scarf and gloves. And I had a sleeping bag and three blankets and was still cold. How they reproduce here is anyone´s guess cos its too damn cold to take any clothes off for sex!

Day 3 was a lot more driving, but we did stop at some beautiful lakes, one of which was full of bright pink and white flamingos. It was early in the morning when we got there, and completely serene. I could have stayed there for the rest of the trip. That night we stayed on the edge of the Salar de Uyuni in a village accommodation that had probably the world´s most remote football pitch. Some Bolivian kid of about 4 appeared with a ball and trounced us all. Then Day 4 we got the highlight, the Salar de Uyuni. Which is just as incredible as I thought it would be - a huge expanse of white that was a lake many many years ago, and is now just miles and miles of salt in amazing hexagonal formations. Watching the sun come up over it was another defining moment for me.

It was a great 4 days, the group got on really well, the food was really good and plentiful, and apart from the cold nights, we had great weather too. Plus of course the scenery was fantastic, I hadn´t quite realised there was so much to enjoy apart from the Salar. Going from Tupiza to Uyuni one way isnt the way that most people do these trips, and it did work out a bit more expensive that way, but I think we got to see a lot more and was definitely worth that extra few dollars.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ktsmith/rtw_2005-06/1156005300/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ktsmith/rtw_2005-06/1156005300/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ktsmith/rtw_2005-06/1156005300/tpod.html Sun, 10 Sep 2006 20:15:43 -0400 Katie's 39,000-mile adventure

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Salta, Argentina

Well, I was beginning to think that all the stories of how hard it was to travel in South America were made up. Its been a breeze for me - up until now. Travel has been horrible and I don´t feel like I´ve achieved a whole lot this week.

I left Mendoza feeling rubbish (and not just because of the hangover), I didn't want to go at all, could have stayed much longer. Wish I had done when I got on the bus to San Augustin Valle Fertil - it was cramped, hot and stopped at every 2 bit town on the way. Not that SAVF was a sprawling metropolis mind, although it did have a certain charm. The reason I had come here was to visit two national parks - Parque Ishigualasto and Parque Talampaya - and I did a day trip out to them both the next day. The journey there was undertaken in a tiny Renault 5 type car with 5 of us in, driven by SAVFs version of a boy racer (I'm sure he had blue lights underneath the car...). I didn't wear a seatbelt on the way there cos it was dirty but I sure as hell did on the way back. The parks were absolutely spectacular though, and well worth the crap drive out and back. Parque Ishigualasto is an important archaelogical site, that resembles the surface of the moon in parts - it is a valley created by a volcano then the wind and water eroded it away, underneath the volcano lava they found tons of dinosaur fossils, enough to put together whole ones (you can see them in the museum, they're cool). I don't know a whole lot about it, as the tour was in Spanish and my classes didn't stretch to geological terms, but anyway, it was still very beautiful out there and when I took just a few steps away from the tour group it felt like I was in the middle of nowhere.

Parque Talampaya was even more spectacular, its rock formations basically, but they are amazing, and bright red. The tour of the park is really interesting (but again in Spanish)and again its like being in the middle of nowhere. And there are cool petroglyphs on the rocks. From when I didn't catch, but a long time ago, lets just put it that way.

Back at the hostel, and the conversation with the guy behind the desk went something like this. I started by asking him in my best Spanish when the next bus out was.
"Miercoles" he replied. It took about ten seconds for my brain to work out what that meant. "Wednesday??" I said, confused. It was now Monday. "Si, Miercoles." Great. SAVF does not have a whole host of amusements for a whole day. "Ok, a que hora es el colectivo?" I asked. "Tres." Ok cool. "A la manana." Three in the morning?? Blimey. I was not a happy bunny, used to getting a bus when I wanted one. So I had to spend the day wandering round SAVF (that actually took about 7 minutes, then I went to a restaurant). The highlights were a pizza that I had, and being wolf whistled at by the local boys. Small mercies.

I got the bus at stupid o'clock to La Rioja, arriving four hours later. Its a nice little town, with a gorgeous cathedral and square, really interesting museum about local village life (they use cows heads to make handbags, with the eyes left in and everything, nice). But thats it. Everything closes for siesta at 1 and doesn't open until 6. My bus out was at 8. Argh!! So there was nothing for it but to sit in a cafe. Argentine culture positively encourages nonstop eating and drinking. Luckily it improved my mood slightly.

Ha, only temporarily though, until I got on the bus to go to Salta, a long way north. I know this isn't a very PC thing to say, but the fattest lady EVER sat next to me and took up half of my seat as well as her own, to make matters worse she smelled like she'd bathed in garlic cheese. I was retching. As if my mood couldn't get worse, the films were put on really loudly until 1am, and they were loud, shooty ones that blared in my ears. And THEN, argh, the old crone (she must have been 100) sat behind me kept leaning forward, and every time she pulled herself up using the back of my chair, her hands went all over my face and hair so I kept jerking awake in terror that I was being attacked. It was such a horrible journey.

Salta is really nice though and I had a good couple of days there. Went to a couple of interesting museums of local artefacts and art, mooched round the shops, ate awesome food (naturally), looked in some churches (Salta has some amazing ones), and bliss of blisses, slept a lot. There is a lot to explore in the surrounding area - salt lakes, mountains, little interesting villages - and I would like to have spent more time here, especially after I discovered how good the nightlife was too, but now that time is moving on I felt like I should head out of Argentina and into Bolivia to do all the things still on my list.

I have had a fantastic 3 weeks here though, I have loved everywhere - the cities are gorgeous, and I love the big sunny plazas they have and the amazing churches. The weather is good, the wine and food are cracking, the people are so friendly, and the opportunities for outdoor life are plentiful. I think I've said all this before though, I think I should go and work for the Argentina Tourist Board, I can't say enough good things about it. Fave place so far and I want to come back as soon as possible.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ktsmith/rtw_2005-06/1155222780/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ktsmith/rtw_2005-06/1155222780/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ktsmith/rtw_2005-06/1155222780/tpod.html Sun, 10 Sep 2006 19:34:59 -0400 Katie's 39,000-mile adventure

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Mendoza, Argentina

This is how I spent my time in Cordoba: I arrived at 7am, went to bed for 5 hours, went to a cafe and did a bit of shopping with a girl in my dorm, started drinking beer at 6pm, went to a club until 7am, went to bed for 5 hours, went to a cafe, then slept until I got the bus out. So if you asked me what it was like I can tell you that there were a couple of really beautiful churches and a fantastic university building and, er, thats about all I know. The night out was excellent - the club was heaving with men, most of whom were creepy, and some cute little Argentine girls took pity on us being hassled so much and acted as our bodyguards. It was like being a celeb - they only let men near us if we said ok! I got a chance to practice my Spanish as hardly anyone spoke English, and weirdly the more drunk that I got, the more I could speak it until I was practically fluent by the morning!

So after that culturally enlightening couple of days (ahem), I moved onto Mendoza. Its gorgeous here - its a small city, with wide tree lined streets, and hurrah, its sunny and warm! Most of Argentina´s wine is produced here, and its good. I did a tour of a couple of bodegas (winerys) and tasted some lovely Malbec and Cabernet, and have officially been converted to red wine. Restaurants here are excellent, with huge wine cellars, and its so cheap that its rude not to partake of the gorgeous steaks with a bottle or two. I´m suffering a little as I write this as a result of overindulgence last night...

But the main reason I wanted to come to Mendoza was to get out of the city and into the mountains - the Andes to be exact. The air in the cities in Argentina isn´t the cleanest, it seems like everyone smokes, and I´ve had a cough since I arrived, so wanted to get out into the fresh air. So I did. I spent one day trekking through the lower mountains where its almost desert, very arid and dusty but very beautiful. But it was no ordinary trek, occasionally we would come up against a sheer drop in the rocks, so we had to abseil down them. As you do. The first couple of drops were only 10m and 8m, so quite manageable, but the last one was 45m. Bloody high. I nearly bottled it, I have to admit, it was completely terrifying lowering myself over a ledge holding onto a rope, I would much rather have tied a rope to my feet and jumped off head first, more comfortable with that! (Except I would have smashed into the rocks...) But I did it of course, and lowered myself 45m to the ground below. Phew.

The next day in the mountains was more sedate. I went right up into the Andes, where it had snowed really heavily in the last few days. Just had a mooch around, played in the snow, saw some Inca ruins and watched people ski. Its lovely up there, the mountains are stunning, obviously the trip stuck to the touristy areas, but in that weather it was hard to get really into the mountains. In the summer I bet its incredible.

I could hang around Mendoza for a while as there is tons to do, but I´m off again tonight to a national park. Argentines have it so good - beautiful country to enjoy during the day, and fantastic food and wine to while away the evenings. I am loving it here.
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