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traveled in 10 countries Read more East Grinstead, United Kingdom
  • TravelerSouth America 2023
    Day 28

    Ipanema

    November 7, 2023 in Brazil ⋅ ☀️ 24 °C

    Rio is a fascinating city, a real party city. It is divided into a number of neighbourhoods Copacabana, Ipanema, Leblon, Flamenco, Botafago to name but a few. It is not the cleanest city we have ever visited for it is not unusual to see cockroaches scurrying across the pavement. Early evening the locals put out their bags of rubbish to be collected overnight but this attracts the poorer people to scavenge through them, a sad sight. Contrary to the city the beaches are very clean. There is no plastic, no seaweed so it is a pleasure to walk along the beach or go in the water. Also you see people with large plastic bags collecting tin cans in order to keep the beach tidy.
    Yesterday Monday, we went on a two hour boat trip with our boat man, Thiago. He was a great guy and took us all round the bay and inlets. It was too rough to go too far into the open sea. It really is a huge sprawling city.
    For lunch we went to Ipanema which is the next neighbourhood along from Copacabana. We went to the Garota de Ipanema bar where the song Girl from Ipanema was written. The background to the song is that two friends Tom Jobim and Vinicius de Moraes were admiring a 17 year old girl everyday as she went to the beach at Ipanema and they sat in this bar and wrote the song.
    In the evening we returned to Ipanema for dinner at a restaurant we had read good reviews about, PICI and it was excellent.
    So later today we fly home after a truly memorable four weeks where we have seen so much and done so much. South America sometimes gets a bad press - it’s dangerous, it’s corrupt, it’s dirty. We found it to be welcoming, dramatic, lovely people and inexpensive.    Read more

  • TravelerSouth America 2023
    Day 26

    Rio de Janeiro

    November 5, 2023 in Brazil ⋅ ⛅ 22 °C

    Rio is a wonderful city, so full of life and vibrancy. Being on the coast gives it a big advantage and as well as Copacabana there are many other glorious sandy beaches.
    After a leisurely breakfast Rayol collected us and our first stop today is Christo Redentor, Christ the Redeemer, sitting proudly up high overlooking the city. There are three ways of seeing him up close. You can hike, you can drive halfway and then a minibus or take the train - we took the train. When we were here ten years ago it was busy but it was even busier than we remember. The views though are marvellous looking across the city on a day like today, clear and sunny. The statue is really impressive and stands about thirty metres high.
    We left here to see another famous Rio landmark, Sugarloaf Mountain. To reach the summit involves taking two cable car rides but it is certainly worthwhile. At the top there are not only excellent viewpoints but also a number of shops and cafes. We were lucky today for recently there have been days when it has been too windy for the cable car to operate.
    From here we moved on to see another well known Rio landmark. Some years ago a Chilean named Selaron moved to Rio and saw some steep steps close to his home. He felt they needed livening up so started to cover them with bright tiles. Soon other people started to give him other tiles and before long people from around the world were sending him tiles. It was a remarkable sight, but so very busy with tourists.
    Returned to our hotel for lunch then afterwards for a swim on Copacabana. The beach was packed despite its enormous size and the waves were crashing in. You cannot swim due to the ferocity of the waves, you can barely stand up. Quite exhilarating but a little dangerous if you are not careful.
    Late afternoon we took a walk out towards the next beach along and did people watching. Guess it’s a lot busier tonight being Sunday. Fun to watch the people though, most men seem to wear football shirts whilst the girls as little as possible!!    Read more

  • TravelerSouth America 2023
    Day 26

    Football in South America

    November 5, 2023 in Brazil ⋅ ⛅ 23 °C

    Early start Saturday morning to catch 9 am flight to Rio. It took about 40 minutes to reach smart new terminal which only opened in April this year. Our flight was on time but at the boarding gate we were joined by scores of travelling Boca Juniors fans.
    Today is the Libertadores final. The biggest club match in South America - their equivalent of the Champions League Final. The match is between Boca Juniors of Buenos Aires and Fluminense of Rio and is being played at the iconic Maracana stadium. There was a lot of chanting both before and on the flight from the Boca fans - a sea of blue and yellow, the colours of Boca Juniors.
    On arrival in Rio we were met by our guide, Rayol, an excitable gentleman who took us to our hotel on Copacabana beach. The weather today has been a bit overcast but still very warm.
    Copacabana is a huge, huge beach and we walked along the promenade behind the beach which was very busy with competing football supporters. The beach is marvellous with the waves crashing in and many hundreds either sunbathing or swimming.
    In the evening for the match we ventured out to a bar near our hotel which was crowded with supporters from both clubs. We were sitting with 2 men from BA who had tickets for match but the police refused them entry. They were not happy.
    We enjoyed watching the match with them, though they quickly left at the end as Boca lost. It was a good evening for us as neutrals to see the emotional South Americans reacting to football. A typical South American match, two sendings off, VAR controversy and plenty of play acting! Not a very high standard of football though.    Read more

  • TravelerSouth America 2023
    Day 23

    Buenos Aires

    November 2, 2023 in Argentina ⋅ 🌧 15 °C

    We were collected promptly at 7am yesterday morning for our flight north from El Calafate to Buenos Aires. It was a lovely drive out to the airport and the signs were that the weather was set fair, for here at least. Small, but modern airport and we set off on time for the three hour flight.
    Shortly after take off the cloud cover thickened and we saw nothing until close to BA where the rain was torrential. This will be a first for us on this trip. We were met at the airport by the local guide Julieta who remarkably had been our guide ten years ago on our previous visit to BA. Our hotel is in the Palermo district of the city and took about twenty minutes to get there through the pouring rain!
    Very comfortable hotel with only about twenty rooms. First of all we had to find our waterproof clothes and go out to lunch. The rest of the afternoon was spent in the hotel for the rain never stopped.
    In the evening we had booked a dinner and tango evening which was excellent. We were driven to the other side of the city for dinner at 9:15 followed by a tango show at 10:30. Dinner was good, massive steaks as is so often the case in Argentina. The show chronicled the evolution of tango through the ages. There was a four piece band, piano, double bass, accordion and violin. We had seats on the front row so had an excellent view of the dancing and singing. The dancing was really good, dare I say it, better than Strictly!. The show finished shortly before midnight and we were met outside to return to our hotel.
    We woke up this morning and were thankful that the rain had stopped. It was overcast but dry and about 16c.
    We set off from the hotel to walk into the city centre. BA is a fascinating city. The architecture, boulevards and trees are not unlike Paris. It is a very busy and vibrant city. After about an hour’s walk we arrived in 9 Julio Avenue which is reputedly the widest boulevard in the world. In its centre there is a large obelisk and at the far end a skyscraper with a huge image of Eva Peron on it. Allegedly, last December, in celebration of Argentina winning the World Cup there were 5 million people in this boulevard.
    From here we continued to walk down to Plaza de Mayo where the Pink Palace (Casa Rosada) home to the President is, together with the Cathedral, whose past Cardinal is the current Pope Francis.
    Our guide had recommended a good coffee house called Ideal and it certainly was. It is reminiscent of Betty’s tearooms in Yorkshire. We had an excellent lunch here - empanadas and cake.
    We then got a taxi back to Palermo and our hotel. It started to drizzle a bit so we stayed inside for a while until it cleared. We then went out again to explore Palermo which is very upmarket with boutiques, shops and restaurants.
    BA like other South American cities does have its share of poverty and we have seen a number of instances around the city which is sad and quite upsetting.
    We have another early start tomorrow as we leave BA to fly to Rio and Copacana Beach. Caipirinhas here we come.    Read more

  • TravelerSouth America 2023
    Day 22

    Glacier Perito Moreno

    November 1, 2023 in Argentina ⋅ ⛅ 10 °C

    El Calafate is a pleasant, small town on the banks of Lake Argentino and has grown a lot in recent years due to its relative close proximity to the glacier., Perito Moreno.
    This afternoon, Tuesday, we had a good walk around the town and the lake in beautiful sunshine and it is a lot warmer than Puerto Natales was. We continue to be so lucky with the weather.
    Currency in Argentina is already proving to be a challenge. In recent years they have experienced raging inflation and before we left UK we were unable to secure any Argentinian pesos and advised to take US dollars. Some fellow travellers told us of a place (not a bank) where we could change dollars into pesos. This turned out to be a small office above a restaurant, all very cloak and dagger. We received 675,000 pesos to 90 dollars; it’s like Monopoly money. We are though finding it difficult relating pesos to dollars to pounds!
    Had a very good meal last night. Having had a lot of meat in recent days settled on salmon.
    We were collected this morning at 9am for our tour to the glacier. There were about a dozen of us. The hour long drive was excellent driving by the lake with snow capped mountains in the distance. The Andes continue to be a real highlight.
    We arrived at the glacier and what a sight it is. Spectacular doesn’t do it justice, neither do photos. We spent a couple of hours admiring it from different levels . From time to time you hear what sounds like thunder as pieces break off and crash into the water.
    In the afternoon we took a one hour boat trip to get even closer to the glacier. The trip took us past some small icebergs which demonstrate how cold the water obviously is. This glacier is one of about ten in Patagonia and is the one that is most accessible. Truly amazing.    Read more

  • TravelerSouth America 2023
    Day 21

    Last days in Chile

    October 31, 2023 in Chile ⋅ ☀️ 0 °C

    Our second day in Puerto Natales was a free day for us to explore the town and surrounding area. The weather first thing was overcast and the mountains that we had seen so clearly yesterday were nowhere.to be seen. After a leisurely breakfast we donned our coats, hats, gloves and scarves and stepped outside. To coin a phrase, “it’s chilly in Chile “!.
    Had a walk along the waterfront stopping for a hot chocolate and then into the town and realising there was more to Puerto Natales than we had originally thought. Many shops were geared up for the outdoor life but there were a number of hotels and restaurants. As we have seen in other parts of South America there are quite a lot of empty shops and bars , a result of the pandemic..
    As the morning went on the cloud lifted and the mountains reappeared so after lunch we walked the other way along the waterfront and the views across the water were glorious. Patagonia really is quite spectacular!
    Dinner for the last two evenings here have been at a parilla, a barbecue restaurant where inside the restaurant a whole lamb is being barbecued. The first night we had the lamb which was excellent, the best lamb we have tasted in a long time. We went again the following night and had ribeye steaks which were huge and again quite excellent.
    We were up early this morning, Tuesday to catch the 7am bus to El Calafate in Argentina about a five hour drive. The road between the Chilean checkpoint and the Argentinian one was a dirt track and this continued for a fair distance until we rejoined a proper road. There was very little traffic. The immediate scenery from the bus and side of the road was somewhat bland but in the distance on both sides were the snow capped mountains and there was a clear blue sky - magnificent!
    Arrived in El Calafate around midday where we were met and taken to our hotel. This is our eleventh hotel in three weeks, just two to go!    Read more

  • TravelerSouth America 2023
    Day 19

    Patagonia

    October 29, 2023 in Chile ⋅ 🌬 7 °C

    Well, what a contrast Santiago to Patagonia! Warm, noisy and busy to cold, quiet and at times desolate.
    Yesterday, Saturday, we were collected from our hotel in Santiago for our 11:30 flight down to Punta Arenas in the deep south of Chile, Patagonia. It was cloudy all the way so saw no land until our descent into the airport. The landscape was raw and barren. We were joined by two other couples also travelling with Audley and met by the local representative Francesca who gave us details for the next few days.
    First off we had to wait a couple of hours at the airport for a bus to take us to Puerto Natales where we are staying. This gave us an opportunity to grab something to eat. We then stood outside for a short while waiting for the bus. It was cold! Apparently just two days ago they had 125kph winds here.
    Anyhow the bus arrived OK and off we went. My word the landscape was bleak with the occasional tree virtually bent double. To cap it all before long it started to snow, with the snow coming in sideways! Very little traffic on the road and after nearly three hours travelling arrived at Puerto Natales and checked in to our hotel. The hotel is a bit quirky, quite modern and good fun. Had a couple of drinks and a good meal in the hotel restaurant before stepping outside for a breath of air. It was bitter so within ten minutes we were back inside for coffee and brandy.
    This morning we were to be collected between 7 and 7:30 for a day long tour of the Lakes and Mountains, Torres del Paine National Park and what a glorious day. We woke up to clear blue skies but obviously still cold so we were dressed appropriately with plenty of layers.
    Fabulous day with a number of stopping off points to either take photos or go for a walk into the countryside. We were so lucky to see the famous Cuernos (horns) and Torres (towers). They are often obscured by cloud and this did happen but then they would appear. We also saw various sheep and cattle plus condors and eagles. Now we are experienced condor watchers we can recognise them as they do not flap their wings, they just glide.
    The colour of the lakes with the snow capped mountains behind was magical and had a memorable stop seeing a waterfall. Photos cannot do justice to what we have seen today.
    We arrived back at our hotel about 5 and were amazed to see a load of people in the water kayaking and swimming. Madness.    Read more

  • TravelerSouth America 2023
    Day 17

    Santiago Day 2

    October 27, 2023 in Chile ⋅ ☁️ 17 °C

    We had a free day today with nothing planned nor organised for us. I had though, for the past 24 hours, been feeling a bit under the weather which apparently is not unusual after spending a lot of time at high altitude and then returning to sea level. We had a meal booked at a local restaurant last night but cancelled and just had a light snack.

    This morning,,Friday,,after a leisurely breakfast we walked from our hotel to a very large park, Parque Metropolitano which is set on a hill, in the middle of the city which had been recommended to us. Today is a public holiday in Chile so there were a number of families enjoying time together. There were a lot of serious cyclists and runners going up the hill. The weather has changed today and was quite chilly. The park though was fun. To give an impression of its size there is a cable car and a funicular railway which we went on. At the highest point there is a statue of San Cristobal which seems quite popular in South American cities. The views over the city were disappointing as it was quite misty as well as cold.
    We left the park and took the metro to the Barillo Italia that we visited briefly yesterday . The metro is quite extensive throughout the city but easy to use. The Italian area was quiet due to the public holiday but we had a very good pizza lunch. There were several artisan market stalls set up so interesting to wander around.
    Santiago is an interesting city, Tania our guide from yesterday was very protective towards us ensuring we did not carry a camera but use our phones for photos. Hold on to your phone and wallet in your pocket. Despite this we never really felt under threat but obviously crime must be rife.
    Tomorrow, Saturday, we are being collected at 9am for our flight south to Punta Natales and then a three hour coach journey to Puerto Arenas, where the temperature is likely to be only a few degrees above freezing. Packing for this trip has been challenging having to cater for these temperatures and the likely 30 degrees plus to come in Rio.    Read more

  • TravelerSouth America 2023
    Day 16

    Santiago

    October 26, 2023 in Chile ⋅ ☀️ 17 °C

    We were collected just after 6.00 am by Alejandro who drove us the 20 minute journey to Cusco airport. He was super efficient having printed off boarding cards and luggage labels. He helped us into the airport and checked in bags before leaving.

    The flight to Santiago was just over 3 hours and the landscape was quite extraordinary. A mix of barren, desolate and amazing over the Andes. We were warned that entry into Chile can be a bit daunting and to beware of taxi drivers but we got through immigration very quickly and were met by our driver Carolina and guide Tania. The drive to our hotel in central Santiago took about 30 minutes.

    We are staying at a small hotel named Le Reve in a quiet side street in the Providencia area of the city and it is quite delightful. Very French in style. You feel like you are staying in someone’s home. There is an attractive garden, honesty bar and snacks/tea/coffee available until midnight. We are staying here for 3 nights so this is a good opportunity to catch up on washing. The hotel prices for laundry are as usual exorbitant so we enquired of a local laundry. Albert, a young Venezuelan working at the hotel offered to walk us 3 blocks down the road to a laundry. This was a very shabby area but the man at laundry assured us that our big bag of socks, pants etc would be ready next day for just £7, and it was.

    Having had an early start this morning we had an early dinner and early to bed. There is a 2 hour time difference between Peru and Chile. We are now only 4 hours behind the UK.

    This morning, Thursday, Tania and Carolina met us in reception at 9.00am for a full day tour of Santiago. Our first impression of Chile yesterday were that it is a much wealthier country than Peru. There are many European cars which weren’t in evidence in Peru. The volume of traffic and driving style are still as bad. Tania was very keen to stress that street crime is rife in Santiago so be very careful.

    We did a lot of walking through markets, parks and various districts which are called Parillas and all have their own uniqueness. We also went on the metro which seems easy, just like London. Carolina would drop us off at various points and then Tania would call her to collect us.

    We visited the National Stadium which is hosting the Pan-American games for the first time in Chile. It is the same stadium that held the 1962 World Cup Final.

    We visited the Sky Tower which is the tallest building in South America at 62 storeys high or 980 feet. The views were incredible. It is amazing to see the snow capped Andes as the backdrop to the city.

    The past 50 years in Santiago and Chile have been challenging. In 1973 a military coup led by the airforce and General Pinochet seized power. There were tanks on the streets and over 2000 people were detained at the national stadium. Democracy was not restored until 1990. In 2010 an 8.5 earthquake hit the city.

    Overall Santiago is not a city we would rush back to. It is a capital city with a strong American influence.    Read more

  • TravelerSouth America 2023
    Day 13

    Farewell Peru, it’s been great….

    October 23, 2023 in Peru ⋅ ☁️ 21 °C

    Our hotel, Sanctuary Lodge, is extremely comfortable and is right next to the entrance to Machu Picchu the only hotel so close. To get to Machu Picchu you have to take a thirty minute bus ride up the steep, zig zag road from the town below where there are many hotels and restaurants. The hotel is not full, it has just 31 rooms and probably only around 10 are occupied. In the bar prior to dinner we met up with another English couple from Preston. They were travelling on from here to the Galápagos Islands on a Silverseas cruise.
    This morning we were up early to go again into Machu Picchu, this time without a guide. Whilst it is high up it is in fact lower than Lake Titicaca and Cusco and thankfully we are still coping well with the altitude.
    We are booked on the 1:37 train back to Ollantaytambo where our guide Alejandro is there to meet us and drive us back to Cusco, a ninety minute drive.
    This is our final night in Peru for we are on the 8:10 flight in the morning down to Santiago.
    We have been hugely impressed with Peru. The people and food are wonderful. The sights we have seen such as Lake Titicaca, Machu Picchu, condors, great cities such as Arequipa and Cusco have all been underpinned by the magnificent Andes which we look forward to seeing more of in Chile.    Read more

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