Hi all, we are now in Argentina at the Iguazu Falls. Here is an update on our travels from the last few days.
23rd September - 24th September
We spent the rest of the day relaxing on Isla Do Mel. The weather wasn´t very nice so we did some internet updates and took a walk around the island to the light house. Our bus to Foz do Iguacu was at 10:30pm from Curitiba so we left the island at 3pm to allow time for boats and buses. First problem occured when we realised we were on the wrong boat! It took us to another town but it wasn´t a major issue as we were able to catch a bus to Curitiba from there. That is what we love about travelling when the unexpected happens and you end up on a mini adventure.
We finally arrived back in Curitiba at about 8pm. After a freshen up and some dinner we boarded our overnight bus. 12pm and the second problem occured - the bus broke down!! The next 2 hours were spent changing from bus to bus. Neither Sara or I had a clue what was happening - it was hilarious. We developed great system whereby Sara jumped on the bus to claim our seats while I loaded our packs, this way we always sat together and had seats.
Finally arrived in Foz do Iguacu (Brazil side) at 9am. We found a comfortable hotel near the bus station and headed out for our first sight of the falls. The falls are split on the border between Argentina and Brazil and are in a UNESCO national park. We visited the Brazilian side first as this is regarded as inferiour to the Argentine side. A local bus took us into the national park where we then walked through trails in the forest to various viewpoints. The falls are outstanding and far better than Victoria or Niagra combined!! There is not just one fall but hundreds spread out over a distance of about 2km, spectacular. There are also walkways right over the falls so everyone is guaranteed a soaking.
25th September - 26th September - Welcome to Argentina!
Our next stop today was Puerto Do Iguazu (Argentine side). We left the hotel early (for us!!) and took the bus to the border crossing into Argentina. No hassels at the border and another stamp for the passport. Sara and I both warmed to Puerto Do Iguazu. It is a friendly town with great restaurants and shops. We checked into our hotel, booked our bus tickets to Buenos Aires and headed out to see the falls from the Argentine side. The bus took us into the national park where we transferred onto a small train that winds its way through the jungle to the falls. We took the walkway to "The Devil´s Throat" that allowed us right to the edge of one of the many falls, really incredible. We stayed at the falls until sunset and then took the train and bus back to the hotel. Our entance tickets to the park allowed us half price access for the following day. We spent the evening in town at a great restaurant where we ate 3 courses with fantastic Argentine wine all for 20pounds!!
The next day we headed back into the park and booked onto the "Grand Adventure". This is a tour where you drive through the jungle in a truck before transferring to a high powered speed boat. The boat takes you upstream to the foot of the falls over the rapids. This was great fun and everyone was soaked. The boat then goes right under the falls to soak people even further. We were drenched!! The view from the foot of the falls was amazing and you really feel the power of the water.
The weather was warm and sunny so we soon dried off as we explored the falls from the Argentine side. We had a late lunch in the park and then headed back into town to clean up and sample another great Argentine meal. Our next stop is Buenos Aires on a 20 hour bus journey, we are praying that this bus doesn´t break down too.
Next update will be from Buenos Aires so stay tuned for stories of Tango, huge Steaks and Cafe culture.
Tuesday, September 28, 2004
Thursday, September 23, 2004
Adventures in Rio De Janiero
Sorry for the delay in updating since my arrival in South America. Here is a brief review of my travels over that past week.
15th September - 17th September
Arrived in Rio after a long 14 hour plane trip. We had to go via Sao Paulo so that was a bit of a pain. After getting through arrivals I only had 30 mins to wait until Sara's plane arrived from the USA. She had to come via Miami but no sign of any hurricanes thankfully. For those of you not in the know Sara and I met on my last trip in Africa and she just couldn't resist following me to Brazil!!
Checked into the hotel on the famous Copacabana beach, the weather was great so we went for a drink to soak up the Brazilian atmosphere. Check out the photo below of Copacabana by night:
First stop on the tourist trail was to take the cable car to Sugar Loaf mountain. Day 2 and the weather was still great so we spent the morning relaxing on Copacabana and then took a trip to Christ the Redeemer statue that overlooks the whole of Rio. The views were fantastic, really starting to get into the brazilian way of life now.
Day 3 and we booked our bus tickets for the next stage on the trip to Curitiba. We also booked tickets to go to the Maracana football stadium to see Vasco play Botafoga. The weather wasn´t too good so the rest of the day we relaxed and went to an Irish bar late into the night.
18th September - Robbed!!
Weather was still not to good so we decided to take a trip on a tram to Santa Theresa, an old part of Rio. We took the metro to the tram station and were just walking to get the tram when DISASTER. Five guys attacked us both, it was very scary. Sara was hit with a bottle and I had 3 guys ripping my belongings from me. All in all we lost everything. Backpack, watch, cameras, wallet, jewellery, etc. We didn't fight back but just ran away, we knew we were very lucky not to be seriously injured. The rest of the day was spent recovering from the whole ordeal. We had to go to the police station and make all the relevant phone calls.
On our return to the hotel we had the most amazing luck. Someone had disturbed the robbers when they were going through our stuff and had managed to recover some of our items. We couldn't believe how lucky we were, Sara recovered her passport and I had my wallet and credit cards returned. I cannot express how happy this made us feel, without these things our trip through Brazil and Argentina would have been much worse.
The rest of the day was spent recovering and collecting our thoughts. It was a scary experience but neither of us were phased and we wanted to continue the trip. I guess it was better that something like this happened at the start rather than the end. I know we are much more cautious and wary now.
19th September - Football
The weather was much better today and we were feeling better after the ordeal from the day before. We packed our bags and left for the football match at the Maracana. It wasn't a huge crowd but it was great to experience a Brazilian football match. The game was exiting with Vasco coming back from 2 goals down to level 2-2. I enjoyed explaining the finer points of soccer to the American girl - I think she is a convert now.
Our next stop was to the city of Curitiba south of Rio. We had booked an overnight bus and were a bit unsure what the quality of the transport would be. We did not have to worry, the bus was great with huge reclining seats, films etc.
20th September - 21st September - Curitiba
This is a great city with a strong Spanish\European feel. It reminded us a lot of Barcelona. We spent the next 2 days replacing some of our items that were stolen (sunglasses for Sara and a 50p watch for me) and touring the sites. We also went to see the film "Super Size Me" in which a guy eats only McDonalds for one month. Very funny and worrying at the same time - highly recommended. It was also fun to go to a cinema in Brazil with the locals. Weather was hot and sunny and it was nice to just relax with a beer in the cafes.
22nd September
Our next stop was to the coastal town of Paranagua and then onto the island of Ilha do Mel. We took a three hour train ride from Curitiba which winds its way through the jungle. The views were amazing as the train track is cut into the side of a gorge with waterfalls all around. The train stopped at Morrettes where we took a local bus to Paranagua. Our boat to the island of Isla Do Mel was at 3pm so we stopped in Paranagua for a couple of hours. We enjoyed a beer on the quayside in this great cafe where the locals were playing guitar and singing, very Brazilian!! Here are some of the locals:
The island of Isla Do Mel has no roads and just contains a collection of guesthouses and bars on the beach - very cool. It is out of season at the moment so the island is very quiet (Sara calls it romantic, women huh!!!!). We are heading back to the mainland tomorrow and onto our next stop of the Iguacu Falls. Stay tuned for more details.
15th September - 17th September
Arrived in Rio after a long 14 hour plane trip. We had to go via Sao Paulo so that was a bit of a pain. After getting through arrivals I only had 30 mins to wait until Sara's plane arrived from the USA. She had to come via Miami but no sign of any hurricanes thankfully. For those of you not in the know Sara and I met on my last trip in Africa and she just couldn't resist following me to Brazil!!
Checked into the hotel on the famous Copacabana beach, the weather was great so we went for a drink to soak up the Brazilian atmosphere. Check out the photo below of Copacabana by night:
First stop on the tourist trail was to take the cable car to Sugar Loaf mountain. Day 2 and the weather was still great so we spent the morning relaxing on Copacabana and then took a trip to Christ the Redeemer statue that overlooks the whole of Rio. The views were fantastic, really starting to get into the brazilian way of life now.
Day 3 and we booked our bus tickets for the next stage on the trip to Curitiba. We also booked tickets to go to the Maracana football stadium to see Vasco play Botafoga. The weather wasn´t too good so the rest of the day we relaxed and went to an Irish bar late into the night.
18th September - Robbed!!
Weather was still not to good so we decided to take a trip on a tram to Santa Theresa, an old part of Rio. We took the metro to the tram station and were just walking to get the tram when DISASTER. Five guys attacked us both, it was very scary. Sara was hit with a bottle and I had 3 guys ripping my belongings from me. All in all we lost everything. Backpack, watch, cameras, wallet, jewellery, etc. We didn't fight back but just ran away, we knew we were very lucky not to be seriously injured. The rest of the day was spent recovering from the whole ordeal. We had to go to the police station and make all the relevant phone calls.
On our return to the hotel we had the most amazing luck. Someone had disturbed the robbers when they were going through our stuff and had managed to recover some of our items. We couldn't believe how lucky we were, Sara recovered her passport and I had my wallet and credit cards returned. I cannot express how happy this made us feel, without these things our trip through Brazil and Argentina would have been much worse.
The rest of the day was spent recovering and collecting our thoughts. It was a scary experience but neither of us were phased and we wanted to continue the trip. I guess it was better that something like this happened at the start rather than the end. I know we are much more cautious and wary now.
19th September - Football
The weather was much better today and we were feeling better after the ordeal from the day before. We packed our bags and left for the football match at the Maracana. It wasn't a huge crowd but it was great to experience a Brazilian football match. The game was exiting with Vasco coming back from 2 goals down to level 2-2. I enjoyed explaining the finer points of soccer to the American girl - I think she is a convert now.
Our next stop was to the city of Curitiba south of Rio. We had booked an overnight bus and were a bit unsure what the quality of the transport would be. We did not have to worry, the bus was great with huge reclining seats, films etc.
20th September - 21st September - Curitiba
This is a great city with a strong Spanish\European feel. It reminded us a lot of Barcelona. We spent the next 2 days replacing some of our items that were stolen (sunglasses for Sara and a 50p watch for me) and touring the sites. We also went to see the film "Super Size Me" in which a guy eats only McDonalds for one month. Very funny and worrying at the same time - highly recommended. It was also fun to go to a cinema in Brazil with the locals. Weather was hot and sunny and it was nice to just relax with a beer in the cafes.
22nd September
Our next stop was to the coastal town of Paranagua and then onto the island of Ilha do Mel. We took a three hour train ride from Curitiba which winds its way through the jungle. The views were amazing as the train track is cut into the side of a gorge with waterfalls all around. The train stopped at Morrettes where we took a local bus to Paranagua. Our boat to the island of Isla Do Mel was at 3pm so we stopped in Paranagua for a couple of hours. We enjoyed a beer on the quayside in this great cafe where the locals were playing guitar and singing, very Brazilian!! Here are some of the locals:
The island of Isla Do Mel has no roads and just contains a collection of guesthouses and bars on the beach - very cool. It is out of season at the moment so the island is very quiet (Sara calls it romantic, women huh!!!!). We are heading back to the mainland tomorrow and onto our next stop of the Iguacu Falls. Stay tuned for more details.
Sunday, September 05, 2004
Back in the U.K.
I have now completed my Africa tour and am back in the U.K. Here is a brief resume since the last post - including some photos:
Sunday 22nd August - Wednesday 25th August
Left Livingstone and entered Namibia. We stayed our first night in Namibia at a Camp site next to the Zambezi which was really nice. There was a floating bar at the site so drinks were had late into the night. The next day we continued our drive through Namibia to a bush camp on the banks of the Okavango river. We arrived early and spent the afternoon with a local guide who took us to his local village. It was a wonderful insight into Namibian family life and meet his family - a real privilege. We had a long drive over rough roads the following day to Etosha national park. The air brake hose on the truck broke due to the stones and needed emergency surgery which set us back. We arrived at the camp at dusk and set up for the night. Started to feel unwell, I think a combination of the heat and a dodgy tummy.
Etosha is a wonderful park with numerous watering holes which attract hundreds of animals. We saw all the usual suspects (elephant, giraffe etc.). Etosha also contains a massive salt pan which is just a huge expanse of flat white land - vey interesting. We arrived at camp by lunch time. As I was still feeling ill I spent the rest of the day in the shade by the pool and retired to bed early.
Thursday 26th August
Woke up this morning feeling much better. We left Etosha today and started the drive south. The landscape has now changed dramatically from typical African Savanna to red rocky and dust landscapes. We arrived at a bush camp at lunchtime and had a relaxed afternoon in the bar. Later on we went to see some ancient rock carvings which were very interesting and had a great walk in the wilderness.
Friday 27th August
Left camp early and headed for the coastal town of Swakupmond. The landscape changed again and we are now in desert country with dunes. We are in Swakupmond for 2 nights staying in chalet accommodation. It is nice to sleep in a proper bed for a change! Swakupmond is a bit of a adventure town and a few of us have signed up for a tandem skydive and then quadbiking in the sand dunes tomorrow. Starting to worry about skydive but it should be an amazing experience!! Had a nice night in town and early to bed.
Saturday 28th August - Skydiving!! and Quadbiking!!
Wow - what a day. Had a light breakfast and psyched myself up for the jump. I was taken up to 10,000 feet and strapped to my jump master Derick. The door was then opened and I had to maneuver myself so that I was completely hanging outside the aircraft. After a quick pose for the video we jumped and went into free fall for 5,000 feet traveling at 200km\h. It was the most insane thing I have ever experienced in my entire life. There was so much noise from the wind until the chute opened and everything went quiet. We then had a slow descent back to the airfield. It was truly one of best things I have ever done:
After the jump a group of us went into the dunes for a 3 hour quadbiking session in the sand. This was great fun with fantastic views over the dunes and an amazing sunset:
Sunday 29th August - Tuesday 31st August
After leaving Swakupmond we headed further south to Sesriem and the oldest desert in the world. It was an early morning rise as we made our way to climb "Dead Vlei" said to be the largest sand dune in the world. It was a great climb and we were rewarded with views over the entire desert. On tuesday it was an early rise again as we went for a balloon ride over the dunes followed by the obligatory champagne breakfast - brilliant!!
Wednesday 1st September - Friday 3rd September
The final leg of the trip now back to Cape Town and feeling very sad, it has all gone so quickly. We stopped at Fish River Canyon in the south of Namibia before crossing the border back into South Africa. We had our last night under canvas in South Africa and said farewell to the tents for the last time. Next stop Cape Town and we were greeted with clear weather which allowed us to climb Table Mountain. It was a 2 hour climb to the top and we were rewarded with some of the most spectacular views over the city:
Our final night in Cape Town is one I will never forget, but as the saying goes "what happens on tour stays on tour". For those of you who were there you know what I am talking about. It was a very sad time leaving for the airport for many different reasons but above all I will remember the great group of people and the most amazing countries we visited. Thanks everyone.
I am back in the U.K. now for one week to get the washing done and prepare for South America. I am so excited about the next few months so stay tuned to the site and watch out for further updates.
Sunday 22nd August - Wednesday 25th August
Left Livingstone and entered Namibia. We stayed our first night in Namibia at a Camp site next to the Zambezi which was really nice. There was a floating bar at the site so drinks were had late into the night. The next day we continued our drive through Namibia to a bush camp on the banks of the Okavango river. We arrived early and spent the afternoon with a local guide who took us to his local village. It was a wonderful insight into Namibian family life and meet his family - a real privilege. We had a long drive over rough roads the following day to Etosha national park. The air brake hose on the truck broke due to the stones and needed emergency surgery which set us back. We arrived at the camp at dusk and set up for the night. Started to feel unwell, I think a combination of the heat and a dodgy tummy.
Etosha is a wonderful park with numerous watering holes which attract hundreds of animals. We saw all the usual suspects (elephant, giraffe etc.). Etosha also contains a massive salt pan which is just a huge expanse of flat white land - vey interesting. We arrived at camp by lunch time. As I was still feeling ill I spent the rest of the day in the shade by the pool and retired to bed early.
Thursday 26th August
Woke up this morning feeling much better. We left Etosha today and started the drive south. The landscape has now changed dramatically from typical African Savanna to red rocky and dust landscapes. We arrived at a bush camp at lunchtime and had a relaxed afternoon in the bar. Later on we went to see some ancient rock carvings which were very interesting and had a great walk in the wilderness.
Friday 27th August
Left camp early and headed for the coastal town of Swakupmond. The landscape changed again and we are now in desert country with dunes. We are in Swakupmond for 2 nights staying in chalet accommodation. It is nice to sleep in a proper bed for a change! Swakupmond is a bit of a adventure town and a few of us have signed up for a tandem skydive and then quadbiking in the sand dunes tomorrow. Starting to worry about skydive but it should be an amazing experience!! Had a nice night in town and early to bed.
Saturday 28th August - Skydiving!! and Quadbiking!!
Wow - what a day. Had a light breakfast and psyched myself up for the jump. I was taken up to 10,000 feet and strapped to my jump master Derick. The door was then opened and I had to maneuver myself so that I was completely hanging outside the aircraft. After a quick pose for the video we jumped and went into free fall for 5,000 feet traveling at 200km\h. It was the most insane thing I have ever experienced in my entire life. There was so much noise from the wind until the chute opened and everything went quiet. We then had a slow descent back to the airfield. It was truly one of best things I have ever done:
 |
| Tom and Alex get ready for the jump |
 |
| Practicing getting out |
 |
| Back to earth |
After the jump a group of us went into the dunes for a 3 hour quadbiking session in the sand. This was great fun with fantastic views over the dunes and an amazing sunset:
Sunday 29th August - Tuesday 31st August
After leaving Swakupmond we headed further south to Sesriem and the oldest desert in the world. It was an early morning rise as we made our way to climb "Dead Vlei" said to be the largest sand dune in the world. It was a great climb and we were rewarded with views over the entire desert. On tuesday it was an early rise again as we went for a balloon ride over the dunes followed by the obligatory champagne breakfast - brilliant!!
 |
| Climbing Dead Vlei |
 |
| Hot air balloon over the desert |
Wednesday 1st September - Friday 3rd September
The final leg of the trip now back to Cape Town and feeling very sad, it has all gone so quickly. We stopped at Fish River Canyon in the south of Namibia before crossing the border back into South Africa. We had our last night under canvas in South Africa and said farewell to the tents for the last time. Next stop Cape Town and we were greeted with clear weather which allowed us to climb Table Mountain. It was a 2 hour climb to the top and we were rewarded with some of the most spectacular views over the city:
Our final night in Cape Town is one I will never forget, but as the saying goes "what happens on tour stays on tour". For those of you who were there you know what I am talking about. It was a very sad time leaving for the airport for many different reasons but above all I will remember the great group of people and the most amazing countries we visited. Thanks everyone.
I am back in the U.K. now for one week to get the washing done and prepare for South America. I am so excited about the next few months so stay tuned to the site and watch out for further updates.
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