Last Stop, Quito
Quito is the turn-around point for us, in this particular South American adventure. From here it’s back to Santiago (Chile), then back to Easter Island, then Tahiti and then home (via Auckland) to Australia. Quito, […]
South America
Galapagos – The Enchanted Isles
The Galápagos Islands are most famous for the role they played in Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution. I was quite surprised to learn that he was only ashore here for less than a month. He […]
In Search of Sarayaku
We decided to have just one more jungle adventure before leaving the Amazon. JH had his heart set on finding Sarayaku (Sarayacu), an indigenous community somewhere in the Amazon in Ecuador. We were inspired by […]
Adventures in the Amazon
We flew into Iquitos because it’s the only way to get there. Flying over the Andes was pretty awesome. Iquitos is the entry to the Peruvian Amazon, a city not connected by road to the […]
Lake Titicaca and the Sacred Inca Valley
Lake Titicaca is as magical as it sounds, perched up high in the Andes like a beautiful calm freshwater inland sea. It was sacred to the Incas as the birthplace of the world. It’s pretty […]
Coroico in the Clouds
The old road from La Paz to Coroico used to be THE actual worst road in the world, also known as the ‘death road’. It’s still used for cycling thrill seekers, although a number of […]
The Extraordinary City of La Paz
For the first few days after flying into La Paz we felt a bit wonky. Being almost 4km up in the air is a strange sensation. Walking around feels a bit like being on a […]
To Tarija and Beyond
The express service from Villamontes to Tarija wasn’t really as bad as we’d heard it might be. It was very uncomfortably squashy though, in a 6x seater van with six adults, four medium sized children […]
Misfits, Missionaries and Herbal Tea
Paraguay is a fascinating country. Compared to other places in South America there’s not a lot to see in terms of amazing or famous sites – scenery or architecture – but there are some hidden […]
Carnaval in Encarnacion
I’d always thought that Carnaval was something that only happened in Rio de Janeiro but it seems it’s celebrated all across South America. I’m not sure if Carnaval celebrations predate the colonial invasions but with […]
Adventurous Hermit 