Four months travelling Latin America - here we go! Read more City of Edinburgh, United Kingdom
  • Day 11

    The end, part 2

    December 23, 2023 in Panama ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C

    So, in case you're wondering, here are our top ten favourite places:
    1. Mexico City, Mexico 🇲🇽
    2. Cafayete, Argentina 🇦🇷
    3. Antigua, Guatemala 🇬🇹
    4. Bacalar, Mexico 🇲🇽
    5. Arequipa, Peru 🇵🇪
    6. Cartagena, Colombia 🇨🇴
    7. Oaxaca, Mexico 🇲🇽
    8. La Paz, Bolivia 🇧🇴
    9. Boquete, Panama 🇵🇦
    10. Ometepe Island, Nicaragua 🇳🇮

    And our top fifteen favourite things we did:
    1. Uyuni salt flats tour through Bolivia
    2. Eating tacos in Mexico City
    3. Oaxaca Day of the Dead festival in Mexico
    4. Dune buggying in Huacachina, Peru
    5. Vineyard tour and drinking cheap wine in Cafayete, Argentina
    6. Surfing in Puerto Escondido, Mexico and El Cuco, El Salvador
    7. Football tour in Medellin, Colombia
    8. Stand up paddle boarding sunrise tour in Bacalar, Mexico
    9. Rainbow Mountain and Red Valley hike in Peru
    10. Star and planet gazing in San Pedro de Atacama, Chile
    11. Coffee tours in Salento, Colombia and Boquete, Panama
    12. Riding the cable cars in La Paz, Bolivia
    13. Mountain biking in Salento, Colombia (exclusively Adam)
    14. Swimming with dolphins in Puerto Escondido, Mexico
    15. Exploring a thermal rock spa in Copán, Honduras
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  • Day 11

    The end, part 1

    December 23, 2023 in Panama ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C

    Boy oh boy, what a bloody trip. We dreamt and talked incessantly about going for years, and now we're at the end of it which is hard to believe. And we can honestly say we've had the most incredible experience of our lives travelling through these thirteen countries together. We've learnt loads about the history and culture of where we've been, eaten all the local street food we could get our mitts on, drastically improved our Spanish, challenged ourselves with adrenalin activities, made some fab friends, survived a million extremely early morning wake-ups, and have opened our eyes to different ways of life where families are grafting so hard to make ends meet. We're coming back with an appreciation for what we have at home, for each other, for all the stories we've created, with motivation to keep making the most of life, and a lifetime supply of tourist magnets.

    And we didn't get mugged! Yipeee! Apart from being threatened to be battered with baseball bats and sent to hospital in Mexico over a broken surfboard (in fairness we did slightly aggravate the situation woops), we haven't had one negative experience travelling through countries which are often talked about as being dangerous. In fact, the people in Latin America have been SO friendly, so kind, and so welcoming, even though we look like the biggest gringos going.

    Sadly though, it cant go on forever, and as hard as it might be to believe, backpacking is tiring and we're running out of energy now we're both at the ripe old age of 30. So thank you for following along as we hurtled through the contintent, for virtually keeping us company, and for calling out Adam's awful haircuts.

    Go to part 2 of the video for our favourite places and things we did (sorry, Find Penguins only gives me short videos)!
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  • Day 10

    Panama City, day one with Adam

    December 22, 2023 in Panama ⋅ ⛅ 27 °C

    📍Panama City, Panama

    One day, and one day only in Panama City. Well, it is for Adam who flies home for Christmas tomorrow morning, but I'm a lucky duck with another 10 days lined up to explore with my family. So far, it seems like a city of contrasts - massive modern skyscrapers, colourful colonial style buildings in the old quarter, lots of wealth, and some dodgy areas - which make it really interesting to walk around.

    This city marks the final point on our 4ish month adventure together and MY GOD what a trip it's been. What's that I hear you cry?! A round up post with a list of our fave places? Okay dokay, coming right up.
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  • Day 10

    Boquete

    December 22, 2023 in Panama ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C

    📍Boquete, Panama

    We'd actually put Boquete pretty high on our top places list for this trip, which we weren't expecting. There's something about it that felt kind of homely... maybe the constant drizzle, coupled with serene green backdrops and the kind locals. But whatever it was, we really liked this small adventure town. They've gone all out for Christmas with decorations everywhere, festive music pumping out of every shop, and loads of people walking about in Santa hats, which we found quite funny in the hot weather.

    We only had a few days, but we managed to squeeze in a waterfall walk and then did a final tour together to try the world's most expensive coffee, the Geisha coffee. Coffee aficionado Adam was v into it, dipping his wee nose as far as possible into the cups to smell them despite wearing his beloved cap. Or maybe he was just hiding his new tramline haircut fresh from the day before 💀
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  • Day 8

    Bocas del Toro

    December 20, 2023 in Panama ⋅ 🌫 20 °C

    📍Bocas del Toro, Panama

    Bocas is a region in the North of Panama made up of various islands. We stayed on Isla Colón and had booked in four days at a remote hotel before we left home to celebrate Adam's birthday. Did we love it? Not really. I think after being on the go for over three months, we got bored quickly, and we picked a bad time of year to come as the waves and weather were wild. The town of Bocas isn't up to much, but the deserted beaches are definitely impressive, and the wildlife we had right on our doorstep rivalled Costa Rica. We went for walks, Adam touched a snake, we did some video calls and after our day out with a stray dog I had an existential crisis about coming home and found myself googling pet cats and dogs.... Am I an animal whisperer now?! Watch this space.

    Not long now before Adam heads home, and my beautiful family comes out to spend Christmas and New Year with me!
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  • Day 4

    Monteverde and La Fortuna

    December 12, 2023 in Costa Rica ⋅ 🌧 25 °C

    📍Monteverde and La Fortuna, Costa Rica

    From sloth hunting to zip lining to hanging bridges nature walks and free local river hot spots, Costa Rica offers absolutely loads for the hoards of Tommy Tourists here. There's wildlife galore: we spotted iguanas, hummingbirds, poisonous frogs, sloths, toucans, tarantulas, lizards, and lots of birdies... Some on the street and some in nature reserves. And for the pleasure, you pay through the nose for activities and excursions here. Definitely feels very different from the other four countries we've been with on our group tour, and after backpacking for months, it's been an expensive taster of what's on offer here.

    Our group trip is finishing today, which feels like a sad milestone as Adam only has 10 days left on our trip, which we can't bear to think about 😭 But what an incredible experience it's been making pals and travelling around together.

    Oh, and the Costa Rican phrase "Pura Vida" is literally used EVERYWHERE, which is quite funny. I'm talking getting off a bus and your driver says goodbye and pura vida in one breath, the zip-lining instructors push you off the ledge and say pura vida, and every souvenir imaginable has it plastered on the front.
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  • Day 3

    A little birthday shout-out!

    December 6, 2023 in Nicaragua ⋅ ☀️ 28 °C

    Interrupting the usual travel content today to say: happy 30th Ads! Delighted to no longer be older than you on paper, and even more delighted to be on this trip of a lifetime together 🧡 The sportiest of spices, you're always up for throwing yourself off cliffs into water, hiking up volcanos, sandboarding at breakneck speed, or mountain biking downhill in the Colombian rainy season, and I love you for it! You bring so much adventure, laughter, deep-voiced singing, and 5-star rated TripAdvisor recommendations into my life, I couldn't imagine it without you. Time for a Nicaraguan beer to celebrate 🪇Read more

  • Day 2

    El Cuco

    December 5, 2023 in Nicaragua ⋅ 🌙 26 °C

    📍El Cuco, El Salvador

    Quick beach pit stop on the group tour landed us on the Pacific Coast of El Salvador. More friendly locals, more stunning sunsets, and some dodgy surfing later meant we really enjoyed our visit here! Another pinch me moment walking around on a black sand beach in a country which feels relatively undiscovered by tourists. We're two lucky little beans to be here.Read more

  • Day 1

    León, Granada and Ometepe Island

    December 4, 2023 in Nicaragua ⋅ 🌬 30 °C

    📍Nicaragua - León, Granada, and Ometepe Island

    We've had a few whistle-stop days in Nicaragua, and a big milestone birthday smacked in the middle to keep us busy. It's a beautiful and varied country with politically-charged towns like León who have a proud but mixed history of revolutions and literary figures, touristy cities like Granada, and rustic/rural islands with jaw-dropping sunsets like Ometepe. Migration is a big topic here and sadly, from the locals we've spoken to, it seems like the country is on a bit of a knife-edge with many of them worried about the future generations and speaking out about the government. Amongst all that, we've had an amazing time exploring and seeing the country gear up for Christmas with mountains of piñatas.

    Adam took on a big hike today up an active volcano now that he's a strapping strong 30 year old (see pic two for said volcano), and the beauty of a group trip means I got to relax in the pool and read my book. Couple bliss.

    P.s. We spent $35 each to be driven up to take picture #4 of a volcano in Granada. Not our best work.
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  • Day 1

    Suchitoto

    December 4, 2023 in Nicaragua ⋅ 🌙 29 °C

    📍Suchitoto, El Salvador

    For the first time on our trip, I'm behind on the Instagram updates! It's been all-go, and I got hit with my first sickness after becoming a bit too comfortable at the local markets, which put me out of action for a day. Big mistake. However, before then, we had a great time exploring the little colonial town of Suchitoto with beautiful lake views. We also squeezed in a tour to Cinquera to learn all about the civil war here and hear from a guerrilla veteran. I love stories, so this was right up my street.

    Also featuring a pupusa making class (local filled corn flatbread things), prior to said sickness obviously, and El Salvador's hottest hot sauce. Yum!
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