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South and Central America
  • Sheila Scott

South and Central America

Un’avventura di 202 giorni di Sheila Leggi altro
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  • Sheila ScottSouth and Central AmericaViaggiatore

    Palenque

    10 marzo 2023, Messico ⋅ ☀️ 32 °C

    A flying visit through Palenque. I did this on a one day organised tour. I was with Maddie and Maya for the day.

    Accommodation: Casa Janaab Palenque. Fine for one night. It was so clean the rooms smelled far too strongly of cleaning products. The aircon sounded like a plane taking off.

    I left San Cristobal at 4am. We got to our first stop at around 9am. It was a bumpy, sleepless drive. Mexico really loves a speed bump. Stop number one was to Agua Azul Waterfall. They were extremely pretty. At the top of the cascades are pools where we could swim. It was a very welcome morning dip. Thankfully I was there at the right time of year to see the pools in their lovely blue colour.
    Stop two was to Misol-Ha waterfall. It's one single cascade which is 35m tall. It has a path that allows you to walk behind the waterfall. Again, it was another very welcome swimming spot.
    Stop three. The main attraction of Palenque are the Maya city ruins. They date back to 226 BC and perished in the 8th century. Since then the ruins have been overgrown by jungle. Today only 10 percent have been uncovered. On our visit we were told we only saw about 2 percent of this.    Leggi altro

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  • Sheila ScottSouth and Central AmericaViaggiatore

    Flores

    11 marzo 2023, Guatemala ⋅ ☀️ 35 °C

    I've left Mexico and arrived in Guatemala. I had a 5:30am pick up to bring me to the border. It's possibly the best border crossing I'll ever have. We crossed via boat, someone carried my bag and there was no waiting around. I met two German friends, Jonas and Leo. It was a long day of travelling on dust roads. It was a local bus where locals got on and off with their chickens and machetes. I arrived in Flores at 4pm, tired and filthy.
    Accommodation: Green Monkey Hostel. It was very cheap and very basic. I met an old Mayo man called Tommy who had me quizzed on everyone I knew in Louisburg.

    I had one full day in Flores. I could have done with more time here but I'm staying true to my whistle stop tour plan. The main thing to do here is to go to Tikal. I felt tired so I decided to skip this. I didn't want to spent another Day on transport. My one day here was lovely and chilled. It's extremely hot here so I spent the day swimming in the lake and sunbathing on the dock. I caught up with my German pals and had drinks with a few English guys for sunset. I had incredible street food for dinner, all for €2. We ate while we watched some locals play in a basketball tournament. It was really fun and they were blaring the old school classics.

    I felt a little sad the day I was travelling to Guatemala. I was sad to say goodbye to Mexico but more importantly, I was missing Lucy's weddings.    Leggi altro

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  • Sheila ScottSouth and Central AmericaViaggiatore

    Semuc Champey

    13 marzo 2023, Guatemala ⋅ 🌧 27 °C

    I didn't realise I would be rocking up to a slice of paradise and I didn't realise just how much I needed it. If you're looking for a jungle oasis, Semuc Champey is the place!
    Accommodation: Greengo's Hostel. I absolutely loved this place. It's gorgeous, so well run and I didn't want to leave. It's slap bang in the middle of the jungle so I felt completely detached from the world. They only have power in the morning and evening giving us a welcome digital detox.
    It took a full 12 hours to get here from Flores. The hostel shuttle picked us up from the nearby town. We had a very long one hour drive in the back of a converted lorry to finally arrive at the hostel. It was along bumpy dirt roads but it turned out to be a great bonding experience for all of us and we had a close knit group for the next two days.
    -Day one: Having recovered from the journey, we had breakfast and then chilled by the pool for the morning. It was nothing short of glorious. For the afternoon the hostel took us tubing down the river. It was the perfect mix of chill and thrill as we went from lazy river vibes to rapids. The only stress was trying to keep the river water from getting into our beer cans. Once we had finished our route, we had a one hour hike back to the hostel.
    The evening was spent swimming in the pool and playing beer pong tournament.
    -Day two: We went to check out the main showstopper of the area which are the Semuc Champey natural pools. They're a gorgeous turquoise blue and easily the best swimming spot I've ever been to.
    For the rest of the day we chilled but the pool and played pool!
    -Day three: time to check out and leave. It was a 6am departure, back on the old Greengo's lorry. It didn't quite make it up the hill this time. It came off the narrow tracks and got stuck in the mud. It was a morning with a huge amount of drama as we had every local come to help get the show back on the road. Literally!    Leggi altro

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  • Sheila ScottSouth and Central AmericaViaggiatore
    1

    Antigua

    16 marzo 2023, Guatemala ⋅ ⛅ 23 °C

    Antigua is a lovely little colonial town in the south of Guatemala that was once the capital. I arrived here after a 13 hour journey from Semuc.
    Accommodation: Adra Hostel. Very pretty hostel with great facilities, very boring atmosphere.
    My days here consisted of street food, wandering the town and watching the six nations final in the local Irish pub.
    The main big activity here is the Acatenango Volcano hike. It's an overnight hike and by far the hardest thing I have ever done. The weather was absolutely horrific. We had rain and hail so strong it made Ireland seem tropical. Getting to see Fuego, the neighbouring volcano, erupt did make it worth the effort.    Leggi altro

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  • Sheila ScottSouth and Central AmericaViaggiatore

    Lake Atitlan

    20 marzo 2023, Guatemala ⋅ 🌧 20 °C

    Lake Atitlan is a huge crater lake surrounded by volcanos.

    Accommodation:
    -Free Cerveza. It stays true to its name and does give free beer every night for two hours before family dinner.
    -Corazon de San Pedro. Very basic but did the job.

    My first four nights were spent in Free Cerveza which is in Santa Cruz. Unfortunately I was sick the entire time I was here. The volcano hike had me absolutely floored and it took a lot longer to recover than I thought it would. On the plus side, it was a very lovely place to be unwell. I spent my days lying by the lake and swimming when I could. I got to meet Ellie again, who I had met in Semuc Champey. I had dinner in the evenings with the hostel which was always three courses and cost only £7.50. The hostel is a glamping spot and I spent my four nights sleeping in a teepee tent. The only down side to this was that I was unable to sleep during the day as the tents got so hot.

    Unable to extend my stay in the hostel I moved to the area of San Pedro. I booked the only hostel that was available. It was basic but all I needed. I spent the majority of my time here sleeping but finally beginning to feel myself again, one full week after the volcano.

    Recommendations:
    I can't say a lot about here unfortunately
    Book Free Cerveza. It's the most popular hostel on the lake so book well in advance.
    Sababa restaurant in San Pedro. I literally went for breakfast lunch and dinner    Leggi altro

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  • Sheila ScottSouth and Central AmericaViaggiatore

    Lima

    29 marzo 2023, Perù ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C

    No one should look to me for a logical travel route. Literally no one! But the nice thing about being solo is that I can do what I want. I've made the last minute decision to come back to my original travel route so that I can meet my friend Tara. I'm definitely feeling like I need to hop on a holiday buzz and see a familiar face.

    The journey to get here has to have been my longest yet. I left San Pedro at 4am on the 27th. My flight wasn't until 6pm and I arrived at Guatemala City airport shortly after 10am. This was due to political protests happening in the city that day and I was advised to avoid traffic. I did see Mel Gibson in the airport though which was exciting. I had two connecting flights to get to Lima. It was all going fine until I had a 5 hour layover in Bogota. Being as tired as I was, they displayed the flight number next to the gate number, leading me to get confused between the numbers 49 and 47. Unfortunately I missed my flight as I realised a minute too late. To cushion the blow, three other English girls also made the same mistake. Thankfully we didn't have to pay for a new flight, we were put on one 12 hours later. We spent the day in the airport lounge eating and drinking wine. It was the best £22 I've ever spent! I eventually got to my hostel in Lima at 2am on the 29th!

    Accommodation: Kokopelli. It's under the Viajero group and it's pretty nice. It's in an old fancy building and does a great free breakfast.

    -Day one: Tired and laying low. I slept in and missed breakfast. I went to a lovely cafe down the road and got a great coffee and a bowl of overnight oats. Being travelling now for so long it's really nice to get some basic, slightly healthy food. I went to the beach for the afternoon. It was full of seaweed and people trying to sell me stuff. In the evening I got sushi for dinner.
    -Day two. I did the free historical walking tour. The heat was unbearable. It was cloudy and unbelievably humid which made me feel extremely tired and not very well. I got back to the hostel and went for ceviche for a late lunch/early dinner.

    Recommendations:
    Barranco is a lovely area to stay. It's quite artsy and has good food options.
    Pan Sal Aire - great cafe
    Free historical walking tour

    *Use BCP ATM - no fees*    Leggi altro

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  • Sheila ScottSouth and Central AmericaViaggiatore

    Cusco

    31 marzo 2023, Perù ⋅ ☁️ 16 °C

    I flew from Lima to Cusco where I was able to link up with Tara in the airport. Cusco was once the capital of the Inca Empire. It is 3400m above sea level so the altitude was a bit of a struggle.

    Accommodation: Kokopelli. Great hostel and it was really nice to be in a private room that felt more like a hotel.

    -Day One: We checked into the hostel and then went to a travel agent to book some tours and get ourselves organised for Machu Picchu. We met the self proclaimed "Alex the great", the travel agent. In our case he turned out to be not so great. He was an American Peruvian with a larger than life personality that promised us everything under the sun. To add to the mix, during our time in the agency, I became extremely unwell with altitude sickness. Alex was shouting how once he had it so bad he thought he thought he was going to die. Not the best thing to hear. My head was suddenly pounding, my blood pressure had dropped and I was freezing cold to the point they were worried I was hypothermic. The owner of the agency ran off to the pharmacy to get me some magic pill which thankfully kicked in around 30 minutes later. If it hadn't taken effect when it did, they would have been sending me to the local hospital. It was cocoa tea for the rest of the evening.
    -Day two: Thankfully I felt mostly myself again, with milder effects of altitude sickness. We went on the free walking tour of the area and browsed through the craft markets.
    -Day three: We went on a tour to rainbow mountain. However, Alex the Great forgot to book us onto the tour. It was meant to be a 4am pick up from our hostel. After a long wait and trying to contact the agency, a car eventually came to collect us at 6am and brought us to the closer set of Rainbow mountains called Palccoyo. After a stressful start to the day, we had a great time. We met some little Alpacas that stole the show.
    -Day four: We went to explore the Sacred Valley on a quad bike tour and went to salt mines.

    Recommendations:
    Book as much as you can yourself.
    Try traditional Peruvian chicken.
    Free walking tour    Leggi altro

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  • Sheila ScottSouth and Central AmericaViaggiatore

    Rainbow Mountain

    2 aprile 2023, Perù ⋅ ☁️ 10 °C

    A little footprint to mark the highest altitude point of my trip.

    As mentioned under my Cusco footprint, this was to Palccoyo, the lesser known rainbow mountain in the area. The benefits of going to this one is that it's a shorter hiking time and there are far fewer people. Our group more or less has the walking circuit and view points to ourselves.

    Sadly it is due to global warming that we can now see the colours of the mountains. They had always been covered in snow until the year 2012.    Leggi altro

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  • Sheila ScottSouth and Central AmericaViaggiatore

    Machu Picchu

    4 aprile 2023, Perù ⋅ 🌧 16 °C

    The long anticipated, Machu Picchu. We opted not to do a trek to get there. Instead we got a bus to get there and the train back.
    The bus took hours and we had to walk the last section. This took around 2.5 hours alongside the railway track.
    Getting there was not without its stresses. Alex the Great, again messed up. He booked our entry tickets for 13:00 and our train back was at 14:30. He promised that the guide would be able to get us in early, but not for sunrise which was the time he had originally promised us. On arrival to the town of Aguas Calientes, we found our guide who told us we could get in for 11am, the following morning. It was all dreadfully organised and took the shine off the situation. In the end we had two hours to explore Machu Picchu. Although we didn't have a huge amount of time, the guide who took us around was really good and made the experience very enjoyable. The weather was on our side and we had gorgeous blue skies. Due to it not being high season, the crowds also weren't too bad.

    On a plus, because Alex had forgotten to book our trip on time, he had to book us onto the first class train carriage for our return journey. It was a lot more enjoyable than the previous bus journey.

    Recommendations:
    Book as much as you can yourself.    Leggi altro

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  • Sheila ScottSouth and Central AmericaViaggiatore

    Arequipa

    6 aprile 2023, Perù ⋅ ☁️ 21 °C

    We arrived to Arequipa on an overnight bus from Cusco. It's a beautiful colonial city that is known as the white city. This is due to the white stone of the buildings but the name originally came due to the large number of white Europeans settling and developing the city. It is surrounded by four volcanos. During the Inca time, they saw the volcanos as their god's and made several sacrifices to them. This sadly included children. It generally happened every four years, in the hopes of keeping the Gods happy and stopping the volcanos from erupting.

    Accommodation:
    Arequipay Hostel. Pretty basic but overall nice. Has some nice outdoor areas.
    Selina Arequipa. Very pretty decor. A classic Selina. Booked it because it has a pool but we didn't end up using it.
    -Day 1: Checked into our hostel and went to Eco Brunch for breakfast. In the afternoon we did the free walking tour. It gets very cold here in the evenings so we had to rush back to the hostel for more layers before heading out for dinner.

    -Day 2: We checked out of our hostel and moved to the Selina. Being good Friday we found that most businesses and restaurants were closed. This resulted in a lot of walking. We settled for lunch in Las Gringas where we had a pizza. The base was made of purple corn. In the evening we went to Waya rooftop bar where we could watch the sunset and look out over the square. There was a huge procession through the city, carrying Jesus in a coffin.

    -Day 3: We went to the Mummy museum. It was excellent. We were able to see the mummy of Junaita, an Incan girl sacrificed to the Gods over 500 years ago. She was buried at the top of one of the volcanos. Her body was discovered due to an eruption in the 80s. Since then they have found three more children's bodies in the area. Juanita was only 12 to 14 years old when she was sacrificed. Only the mostly healthy and prestigious children were chosen to be sacrificed. It is thought that women used to scar their children's faces in the hopes they would not be selected. To date 20 bodies have been found on volcanos in south America but they expect there are hundreds still buried.

    Recommendations:
    -Do the free walking tour. I did Free Tour Downtown Arequipa.
    -Ecobrunch for breakfast
    -Kao restaurant for dinner. It's Peruvian Asian fusion.
    -Kaya rooftop bar. Good place to watch the sunset
    -La Nueva Palomino. Typical Peruvian food. It's very good and very popular so expect to wait for a table. It closes at 5pm so it's ideal for lunch/early dinner.
    -Las Gringas. It's a pizzeria and has a chocolate shop. It was really good.
    -Mummy museum    Leggi altro

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  • Sheila ScottSouth and Central AmericaViaggiatore

    Colca Valley

    9 aprile 2023, Perù ⋅ ☁️ 9 °C

    Our Easter Sunday trip to Colca Canyon.

    Colca Valley is located 3 hours outside Arequipa. It is the third deepest valley in the world. The first being in China, second Nepal and The Grand Canyon comes in fourth. The area is a pre-inca settlement and the local people still speak Quechua as their first language. The valley is filled with stepped terraces used for growing crops. The top of the valley is at altitude, prohibiting the growth of many species. Quinoa is the main crop grown at the top, whereas the bottom of the valley is much more fertile.

    We set off on an organised tour at 3am. We opted for the one day tour as opposed to the two (or three) day hiking tour. The first stop was to the town of Chivay where we had breakfast. We were taken to a few viewpoints throughout the day and saw plenty of Alpacas, Lamas and Vincuñas.

    One particular viewpoint is famous for spotting the Andean Condors in the area. The Condor is the second largest bird in the world, has a wing span of 3m and can weigh up to 60kg. They can also live up to the age of 75. The most common area to find Condors is in Patagonia.

    The day trip started early but had us back to Arequipa for 16:30. We had a little while to chill at the hostel before we got onto another night bus to take us to Ica.    Leggi altro

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  • Sheila ScottSouth and Central AmericaViaggiatore

    Huacachina

    10 aprile 2023, Perù ⋅ ⛅ 32 °C

    We arrived on a night bus from Arequipa. Huacachina is a little desert oasis. The surrounding sand dunes are enormous and it's a popular location for sandboarding. We spent a total of two nights here.

    Accommodation: Rochabus hotel. It was basic and had a pool. I don't know why we didn't stay at Bananas hostel. Book Bananas.

    -Day one: We arrived at the hostel, went out for breakfast and chilled for the afternoon. In the evening we did the sunset sand buggy tour which included sandboarding. We had dinner at Banana hostel where we met Hugo and Katie, who we met on our Colca Canyon tour. We spent the evening playing Monopoly Deal together.
    -Day two: We had a much needed lazy morning by the pool before we went to Tacama vineyard. Tacama is the oldest vineyard in South America and produces Pisco as well as wine. We had a tour of the vineyard which was followed by a tasting and lunch. The setting is beautiful and the main building was once a convent.

    Recommendations:
    Visit Tacama vineyard. It was a 30 minute taxi ride from Huacachina
    Wild Rover for partying
    Banana Hostel has good food and a nice atmosphere
    Sand boarding and buggy tour on the dunes    Leggi altro

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  • Sheila ScottSouth and Central AmericaViaggiatore

    Paracas

    12 aprile 2023, Perù ⋅ ☀️ 28 °C

    Paracas is a little seaside town, 4 hours south of Lima. To get here, it was an easy 2 hour bus journey from Ica.

    Accommodation: Kokopelli. The most popular hostel in the area. It was nice but a little void of atmosphere due to the lack of tourists.

    We spent two nights here in total which I feel was enough. It wasn't a stand out destination and you missed the mass of fellow tourists. Tourism hasn't quite picked back up to what it normally is. We met Hugo and Katie again, and resumed our games of Monopoly Deal. Tara and I hired some scooters for a day and drove around the national park which is a desert by the sea. You can also visit islands off the coast which are known as the "poor mans Galapagos". It's great for spotting wildlife such as sea lions. I had myself booked and paid onto the tour but unfortunately I woke up during the night with a serious case of travellers belly. I wisely gave the trip a miss.    Leggi altro

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  • Sheila ScottSouth and Central AmericaViaggiatore

    Lima, take two

    14 aprile 2023, Perù ⋅ ☁️ 28 °C

    I've come full circle on my Peru stint and I've arrived back in Lima. Tara's sister in law is from Lima and her parents have kindly hosted us for the weekend. My time with Jorge and Raquel (and their dog Feeko) has definitely been a trip highlight. I learned that the Peruvian mammy ways are very similar to that of an Irish mammy. I was pandered to, had my laundry washed, dried and folded and I was completely overfed.
    Our first evening back in Lima we were taken for some typical Peruvian roast chicken. It was absolutely delicious. For some reason though I was still feeling unwell and became quite faint when we were leaving. Naturally, I was mortified to be causing such a fuss.
    Day two, Jorge was our tour guide wearing his favourite Irish hat. We spent the day wandering around Barranco, where I stayed during my initial visit to Lima. It was nice to see it through a locals perspective. We had an amazing lunch at Isolina. We watched the sunset in the area of Miraflores. Tara and I headed out that evening in search of drinks and a dance. We went to an Irish bar and then later couldn't find anything other than reggaeton.
    Day three, my last with Tara! Jorge took us to the main square in the historical centre. When we arrived back to the apartment Raquel had prepared us the most delicious meal. We had a typical Peruvian fish soup and a seafood dish with rice. We drove Tara to the airport for our big goodbyes and I stayed one more night before my flight the next morning.

    Recommendations:
    Go to Isolina in Barranco for food. The best Pisco sour you'll ever have.    Leggi altro

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  • Sheila ScottSouth and Central AmericaViaggiatore

    Cartagena

    17 aprile 2023, Colombia ⋅ ⛅ 30 °C

    I'm in Colombia! My very vague new plan is to start here in Cartagena, do a few stops up here in the north and then work my way down in a little loop to Bogota.

    Accommodation: Viajero. I don't have too much to say about this other than it's just another Viajero.

    I've spent five nights here in total which was definitely enough. I didn't quite embrace all there is to do here as I felt I needed a rest. I did the walking tour of the Getsemani area which was great for gathering recommendations and seeing the colourful streets. It's a beautiful town that has been covered in street art and colourful decorations. As a city it is very touristy but it was still enjoyable. The only real downside is how insanely hot it is. It's right on the Carribbean coast and you can do trips to the nearby islands. I opted not to do this as I was in chill mode. I met a new friend called Kim from Australia. We had a great time exploring the city, finding some healthy salads and trying to sample a little of the night life. I also met Pearl from the US who I enjoyed a few G&Ts with and shared some funny travel stories.
    I've met a few English friends, Chris and Stanley, who I'm heading to Minca with.

    Recommendations
    El Bololó - really nice healthy bowls with good veggie options
    Gokéla - great salads
    5 Islands tour - meant to be great but I opted against it.    Leggi altro

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  • Sheila ScottSouth and Central AmericaViaggiatore

    Finca Carpe Diem

    22 aprile 2023, Colombia ⋅ ☁️ 27 °C

    I met Chris and Stanley in my hostel in Cartagena and together we travelled to an eco lodge just outside of Minca. We thought we were actually going to Minca but instead ended up in Finca. I absolutely loved my stay here and met such a fun group of people. The main standouts were of course Chris and Stanley, and Evie and Ben. The hostel was great so we spent most of our time here. We didn't do a whole lot of exploring but did a few short hikes and a tour of a cacao farm. I ended up extending my stay so I spent a total of five nights here. I morphed into the place so well it felt more like five weeks.Leggi altro

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  • Sheila ScottSouth and Central AmericaViaggiatore

    Buritaca

    27 aprile 2023, Colombia ⋅ 🌧 28 °C

    I moved onto Buritaca with all my pals from Carpe Diem.
    Accommodation: Buritaca House. Great Aircon.
    The main reason we came here was to go to a party that was being held at El Rio hostel. It was labelled as a festival and word had spread that it was going to be the biggest party of the year. It was like every Gringo in North Colombia had descended on the area. The party didn't disappoint. It was also really fun to bump into people I had met in Cartagena again.Leggi altro

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  • Sheila ScottSouth and Central AmericaViaggiatore

    Tayrona National Park

    29 aprile 2023, Colombia

    I spent three days in this area to see the Park and also to check out a very popular hostel

    Accommodation: The Journey Hostel. It's in an unbelievable location but didn't quite live up to all the hype on the fun front.

    I went to Tayrona with Ben, Evie and Amy and also with two Irish girls, Sinead and Yvonne. It was a two hour walk into the park and along the beaches to reach the most popular spot, San Juan. It was incredibly hot and we were drenched in sweat. I chose to spend the night in the park and sleep in a hammock at San Juan beach. I wouldn't say this was essential. I think overall I would have preferred to have walked back out and gone back to the hostel. None the less, it was a cool experience and it was nice to have a swim in the morning before hiking back out. I saw some creepy crawlies on the way out and some howler monkeys.
    I spent one more night back at the Journey before making my exit to head to Palomino.

    Entry to the park was around £12. You do need to bring a little cash with you to pay for a bus to take you a little further in and also to pay for a tax at the gate. Have a picture of your passport handy as they want it for entry.    Leggi altro

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  • Sheila ScottSouth and Central AmericaViaggiatore

    Palomino

    2 maggio 2023, Colombia ⋅ ⛅ 30 °C

    Palomino was a little beach town. It was more undeveloped than what I was expecting but this did add to the charm.
    Accommodation: Dreamer hostel. This hostel had been hyped up by previous backpackers and seemed to be the most popular place. It was quite a let down and had an awful lot of annoying people staying there. I'd recommend staying at Tiki Hut.

    I spent three nights here in total which was definitely enough. It was nice to lounge around in the sun, take in a sunset at the beach and go tubing down a river. I spent my stay here with Evie and Ben. They had booked Tiki Hut which was across the road from my hostel. I spent the majority of my time at the hostel. We got to meet Chris and Stan again during our first night here. I also overlapped with Jess, Emily and Tiger for my first afternoon and it was great to get a catch up.

    Recommends:
    Tubing was relaxing but not overly thrilling.
    Great Lebanese restaurant
    Stay at Tiki Hut.    Leggi altro

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  • Sheila ScottSouth and Central AmericaViaggiatore

    Taganga

    5 maggio 2023, Colombia ⋅ ⛅ 31 °C

    I thought it was time to delve back into diving and properly check out the Caribbean sea. I decided to do a short one night stop to the small fishing town of Taganga.

    Accommodation: Divanga Hostel. It's run by a lovely french woman called Lucy. They also run the diving school so booking everything was very easy. It's a little gem.

    I had a great surprise on arrival as my friend Kim had also just checked in. Kim and I met in Cartagena and saw each other again at the party at El Rio. We were trying to link up again to do a jungle stay but it didn't quite work out with my Palomino dates. It was really great to have her here in Taganga and I instantly regretted only booking one night.
    We went out for dinner to a very popular restaurant called Pachamama. It was one the best meals I've had in a really long time. I had cod in a saffron sauce with a chorizo crumb!
    The following morning I booked a fun dive which consisted of two dives for £45. I hadn't done any diving since I was in Australia five years ago so I was a little nervous. My instructor was great and ran through all the basics with me again. I saw gorgeous stretches of reef and even a tiger fish. Typically I got sea sick while on the boat so I really didn't enjoy the time between the dives. It was very rocky and windy and I had to almost throw myself overboard with sea sickness. To my horror, several people had to go into the sea to wash puke off them. When I apologised profusely, they reassured me that it was actually from some other poor girl at the far end of the boat.
    Once back on shore I met Kim again for a post dive lemonade and had a goats cheese salad lunch at Pachamama. I left Taganga in the afternoon to head to my night bus in Santa Marta to take me to Medellin. I met Evie and Ben again at the bus station to do our next travel leg together.    Leggi altro

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  • Sheila ScottSouth and Central AmericaViaggiatore

    Medellin

    7 maggio 2023, Colombia ⋅ 🌧 29 °C

    Arrived to Medellin with Evie and Ben on an overnight bus. I'm getting very used to sleeping well on buses so the 16hours passed easily. Medellin is a really great city and I ended up spending 10 days here.

    Accommodation:
    Viajero hostel. It's a pretty nice one. Very busy rooftop bar.
    Two other Airbnbs that I shared with Evie and Ben. Both were basic but cheap and around the corner from the Viajero

    The nice thing about doing my route through Colombia is that I'm going the same way and same pace as most people I meet. I've been able to meet up with a lot of my original gang from Carpe Diem in Minca.
    My days here are all a bit of a jumble between partying, days chilling and taking in some sights. We started off our Medellin stay with a local football match. The atmosphere wasn't as good as what we had been promised but it was still good to see.
    I ended up doing Communa 13 twice. Once with Amy when I did the walking tour and again with Evie, Ben and Chandler. Comuna 13 was once one of the most dangerous areas in the world. It wasn't until 2011 that it became safe to visit. Because of the street art and performers it's now the most touristic place in Medellin.
    I did the free walking tour and had an excellent guide. He touched on the Pablo Escobar era and mentioned how the people of Medellin really don't like to speak about him. Referring to him as Voldemort, he mentioned how some of his classmates parents were killed in random attacks and car bombings and he was always terrified as a child the same would happen to his.
    I did a day trip to the town of Guatape. It's a very pretty town and climbed up to the top of a massive rock to take in the view.

    Recommendations:
    Real City free walking tour centre and downtown.
    Go to a football match
    Modern art museum
    Comuna 13
    Guatape day trip
    Night life
    Take the cable cars up to the park - we did this too late in the day to do any hiking in the park. Also the cable car takes a lot longer than expected.
    Botanical gardens

    Food:
    Hijamia - exceptional brunch. I ate here nearly every day
    Criminal Taqueria - great Mexican
    Mercado del Rio - food court
    German street food - stays open late
    Olivia - good Italian

    Make sure to stay in the area of El Poblado

    *ATMs - Davivienda. No fees    Leggi altro

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  • Sheila ScottSouth and Central AmericaViaggiatore

    Salento

    17 maggio 2023, Colombia ⋅ ☁️ 22 °C

    Salento is a very pretty, colourful town of colonial style. Unlike similar towns I have seen on my trip, this one has not been spoilt by tourism. Locals are still very much the main occupants of the beautiful, traditional houses. It was really lovely to observe them milling about their days, some trotting through the town on horse back. The town is surrounded by large coffee estates and also neighbours the impressive Cocora Valley. The valley is home to the world's tallest palm trees. Some are as tall as 200 feet.

    Accommodation:
    -Coffee Tree Hostel. It was very pretty with two massive St. Bernards. I booked my initial two nights here and then came back for a further two nights.
    -Viajero. I moved here as I knew a lot of people who were staying here. It was nice but was let down by the weather. It had a beautiful garden that overlooked the hills. It poured the whole time I was there so we didn't get to use it to its potential.

    I ended up spending a week here. This was longer than necessary. Being at the end of my trip I wanted to relax in one place and not waste another day on public transport. The days are a bit of a blur between rain and thunder storms.

    I arrived after a full day travelling from Medellin. I had Chandler for the bus journey so at least I had some company. I met back up with Jess, Tiger and Emily. It came as a surprise to have them in my hostel and I loved being back with them. Chris and Stanley were also here for the first few days. We spent the first night back together out at a suboptimal Italian and then headed on to play Tejo. Tejo is a Colombian game where you throw rocks at gun powder propped up on a clay pit. Obviously the aim of the game is to get the most explosions. During the week many games of Tejo were had. When we got sick of that we moved onto playing pool and card games.

    I explored Colca Valley with Emily and Tiger. Unfortunately Jess was sick with the typical traveler infliction and also had to go on the hunt for her missing phone (surprisingly she found). We panic bought some sun cream but we nedent have worried as is soon started raining cats and dogs. Then came the thunder and lightning which had us blacked out in the hostel for the rest of the day.

    The most exciting outing was mountain biking which actually had more impressive views than the valley itself. It was pretty tough, a few people came off but no serious injuries. Poor Stan had it the worst and had to get back into the jeep half way through as the nerves were a little shot. Will came off his bike at one point and the bike went straight into a ten foot drop off the path. Will was our celebrity for the day as he plays for Harlequins.

    Our last hurrah with Chris and Stan was a night out in a local bar. Locals danced salsa and we met our biking guides who fed us plenty of shots. Salento isn't known for its roaring night life so we did pretty well to have a rager.

    Salento is a huge coffee region so it was high on my list to do a coffee tour. Evie and I did a roasting class in a local coffee shop. The owner was amazing at explaining everything and warned us to never buy a dark roast. We ground the coffee ourselves and tasted three different varieties.
    The following day I ventured to a farm. Unfortunately it poured so we couldn't go out to the fields. They also had a power cut for the first hour so we couldn't even drink coffee. It was a tad miserable.

    A very big and delightful surprise to was meet my friend Ellie again. I had met Ellie in Guatemala and I had been keeping up with her trip on insta. She had flow straight from Nicaragua. It was great to catch up and get to hang out for a few more days.

    Lots of final goodbyes were made. Some were more emotional than others. It was sad to see Evie and Ben go as I had been with them for a little over a month. However, I've promised to see them when I visit David in Liverpool.

    Recommendations:
    Do the mountain biking
    Cocora Valley
    Coffee farm
    Play lots of Tejo. There are two places you can do this. Las Amigos is my preferred place. They also have it downstairs in the pool hall
    Brunch de Salento - good food and great coffee. This is where I did the free coffee class.
    La Mafia - food truck with a very friendly owner
    Jesus Martin - good coffee    Leggi altro

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  • Sheila ScottSouth and Central AmericaViaggiatore

    Bogota

    24 maggio 2023, Colombia

    Bogota. Leaving the capital until last. Of course I'm very familiar with its airport since I accidentally spent nearly 24 hours there on route to Peru. But this time I'm back to see the city in all its glory.

    Accommodation:
    Viajero hostel because I'm now queen of the Viajeros. This one has a spa which is why I booked it and it's ridiculously fancy.

    Most people don't have great things to say about Bogota so I decided to limit my time here to one full day. I checked into the Viajero for two nights. My one full day was a pretty productive one with a mix of catch up, a tiny bit of culture and a lot of pampering.
    To my surprise, I had another unexpected overlap with Kim. She stayed in Bogota for longer than she planned so we met for lunch and caught up on what we had been up to for the last 2.5 weeks. It was really great to see her and as always, she had sourced out an amazing veggie cafe.
    On route back to my hostel I stumbled across Museo Botero which is home to Latin Americas most important international art collection. This has all been donated by Fernando Botero who is Colombias most prized artist. I had seen a lot of his sculpture work on the streets of Medellin so it was really enjoyable to see some of the same sculptures in miniature versions in the museum. Most of his work takes the same form of larger than life and exaggerated features. He has done his own take on some classics, including the Mona Lisa.
    I had an important 14:30 deadline to make back in the hostel spa. I was in "much need" of a facial and massage after a long six months of hard backpacking. I also rounded off the day with a pedicure for good measure.

    Recommendations:
    Quinoa and Amaranto - great veggie restaurant with one meal of the day rather than a menu.
    Museo Botero    Leggi altro

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  • Sheila ScottSouth and Central AmericaViaggiatore

    Quito

    26 maggio 2023, Ecuador ⋅ 🌧 18 °C

    Officially in Ecuador, the last country on my trip. I've linked back up with Joseph and Sarah for our Galapagos adventure. We have three nights here in total. Reports on Quito haven't been amazing but we were pleasantly surprised.

    Accommodation:
    Secret Garden Hostel. It has an incredible view from the rooftop bar. We're in a 16 bed dorm which comes with an animalistic snorer and an inadequate number of showers.

    -Day one: straight off my flight, I found the familiar faces ahead of me in the immigration queue. We had a few hours to kill before Lisa arrived from Ireland. Time passed quickly over a few espresso martinis while we caught up on the past 4 months since we had seen one another. Once all together we made our way to the hostel where I met Brian. The travelling world is becoming smaller and smaller. Brian was Kate's housemate and has been a sort of pen-pal during my trip for swapping tips and advice.

    -Day two: We went to a cafe called Atavico for breakfast and then on a free walking tour organised by our hostel. I do love a walking tour and this one lived up to my expectations. The most intriguing piece of information was to learn there are still indigenous communities living within the Amazon that have absolutely no interactions with the rest of the country or world. One of these communities has not been spotted for over 60 years. We met Clare, another dietitian to add to the collection who is also moving from London back to Dublin. Lunch was empanadas and the afternoon brought us to a local market. We headed back to the hostel for some happy hour drinks where I met Aiden who I had spent some time with in Colombia.

    -Day three: we had a slow (on my part hungover) morning. We had breakfast next door to the hostel which didn't leave us disappointed. We then went to a local food market which did leave us a little disappointed. It gave me prison dining hall vibes. The afternoon took us out to the Equator line. This was surprisingly very fun. This is the official centre of the world because it's the highest point along the equator line. It was crazy to see how magnetic poles affects your balance as you walk along the line. We also had a demonstration on how flowing water changes direction when it's brought to between the hemispheres.
    We went out to a fancier restaurant for dinner to get some typical Equatorian food. We had a random dog follow us the whole way there and even came and sat with us in the restaurant. Turns out it was the hostel's dog but it was still very random and slightly embarrassing. He left half way through our meal with a perplexed American family.

    Recommendations:
    -Do the free walking tour with the hostel
    -Los Jugos De La Sucre - great empanadas and fresh juices
    -Yumbos - chocolate tasting and chocolate shop
    -Atavico cafe - good breakfast and coffee
    -Convergencia - great breakfast next door to hostel.
    - Equator line. Got a taxi there and back which waited for us. Cost $40.    Leggi altro

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    Fine del viaggio
    11 giugno 2023