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Latin America

February - August 2017
A 189-day adventure by Elly Read more
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  • Elly BlakeLatin America
    Day 111

    Lima

    May 24, 2017 in Peru ⋅ ☁️ 18 °C

    I don't know why everyone slates Lima so much and tells you not to spend any time there. I had loads of fun and even ended up extending my stay.

    The first night we arrived Meri, Charlie and I met up with Lucy and Andy for some food before their flight to Colombia. We went to a fairly decent Italian place and I of course had some pizza. Even though it was quick its always nice to see Andy and Lucy (if you're reading this - hey guys 🤗).

    The next day Meri and I did the free walking tour in downtown Lima. There was a good group of us and I even bumped into one of the guys I met in Uyuni on the salt flats tour. The tour took you to the main places in downtown like the cathedral and presidential palace which was good to see. After we went to the China town and had some chifa - Chinese food. In the evening we drank in the hostel and ended up going out to a reggaeton club which was pretty funny. I was trying to practice my terribly pronounced Spanish which seems to get better when I'm drunk.

    The next day we were fairly hungover but walked to Parque Reducto in Miraflores which had a really cute artisan/ eco fair. We made lunch and then set upon the great task of deciding where to eat for dinner. After not knowing whether to go to Huaraz or Mancora I finally decided to go to Huaraz instead and booked my bus and hostel.

    I had to wait until 9.30pm for my night bus, so the next day Meri, Charlie and I went to look around Barranco which is supposedly the 'bohemian' neighbourhood of Lima. It wasn't very bohemian, not like San Telmo in BA anyway, but it was very nice. There was lots of cool street art there though and the buildings are very pretty. As this was the last day before we were all going our separate ways, we went for coffee and lunch. After Charlie left, Meri and I went to the Mate musuem which is dedicated to a famous Peruvian photographer who has taken photos of Princess Diana and Kate Moss. I really liked the museum.

    After we came back to Miraflores to look for chocolate and coffee for Meri to take back to Finland as souvenirs for her family. Not long after she left for the airport and I was on my own waiting for my night bus. When they had both left I was pretty sad because I had a really good time travelling with them and we all got on so well.

    Overall I've been pleasantly surprised by Lima. It's not the prettiest of places but there is more to do here than people make out.    Read more

  • Elly BlakeLatin America
    Day 111

    Huaraz

    May 24, 2017 in Peru ⋅ ☀️ 15 °C

    I'd been planning on coming to Huaraz ever since my first few weeks of Brazil, when I was shown photos of it by a girl I met.

    Huaraz is situated around the Cordillera Blanca mountain range, and is near the highest mountain in Peru. The city itself doesn't have much to do, but there is lots of trekking, outdoors activities and places of natural beauty nearby.

    The first day I got here I decided to do absolutely nothing except catch up on sleep and spend the day watching Netflix and also on FaceTime with people from home. It was really relaxing.

    The day after my friends from Lima arrived at the same hostel. I had signed up to do the rock climbing and they also signed up too. In the afternoon we got picked up by the instructor and taken to the rock climbing spot. This was a terrifying/ good/ never want to repeat experience. We thought we would be taken to a climbing wall but he just took us to this massive cliff edge and tied the ropes around the tree and we had to abseil down it and then climb back up.

    It was really hard because there in some places was literally nothing to hang onto. The first one was tough, and the second one although harder was less scary because we knew what to expect. Although I'm glad I did it I don't think I'll be taking up rock climbing as a hobby anytime soon.

    The place to go here is Laguna 69 in Huascaran National Park. An amazing, bluer than blue lagoon which is 4,600 metres above sea level. The next day I got up at 5am in order to go and do my final trek in South America! The trek was supposed to take six hours but we managed to do it in four. At first you have to climb up to the Laguna which takes about 2.15 hours. This wasn't too difficult but the altitude made it a lot worse.

    Once we got to the Laguna we took some photos and then ate lunch but it was freezing up there and started hailing so we didn't stick around for as long as we could have. The way down was around another 2 hours and then we lay on the grass and slept until the rest of the group came down.

    The bus back took ages because of road works but the evening was just spent eating dinner and socialising. Now I'm going back to Lima to catch my flight to Bogota! 🇨🇴 I've really enjoyed my time in Peru - three weeks has gone so fast because there's so much to do - but now I feel I'm ready to move on to the next leg of my journey.    Read more

  • Elly BlakeLatin America
    Day 115

    San Andres

    May 28, 2017 in Colombia ⋅ ☁️ 30 °C

    San Andres is a beautiful little Colombian island in the Caribbean, off the coast of Nicaragua. It was so perfect and I had the best person to share it with (Josh, obviously). Think - white sands, clear waters

    When we arrived, we got picked up and taken to our cabana. We were staying in a posada run by a lovely lady named Gloria. It's so homely and has lots of wildlife around - hummingbirds, chicks, etc. As it was the evening when we arrived we went out for some dinner and a few drinks.

    The next day the sun was shining and we got up to make breakfast. After that we walked around the town looking for somewhere to do my laundry (but I has forgotten it was Sunday and everywhere was closed) and we had a coffee and went to the beach in the main town Sprat Bight. The sea is clear blue - the bluest I've probably ever seen - and so warm. We laid on the beach and had some beers. Josh got a bit burnt and had to cover up.

    Everyone drives round the island in beach or golf buggys so the next day we went to the car rental to rent one for the day. This was so fun because we were able to drive round and explore the whole island. It's only about 10-15km long so it's not huge and you could probably drive round it in less than an hour.

    We spent the whole day driving round and stopping off at places on the way. We stopped off at Morgan's Cave which is where Captain Morgan's rum originates from. Although it was a bit touristy, the cave itself was actually really cool. I never knew that Captain Morgan was an English pirate who came to San Andres to hide his treasure!

    After we continued to drive and stopped off at a few beaches on the way to Rocky Cay. Rocky Cay is a beautiful beach with white sands and clear blue seas. We spent the rest of the day there, and then eventually drove the buggy back to the town to give it back to the rental. This was made more difficult by the fact that half of the roads in the central were closed and the one-way system made it confusing.

    On our last day, as Johnny Cay was closed, we decided to go back to Rocky Cay. We got the bus and then had some lunch - the most amazing (and huge) fresh red snapper fish with so much meat on it. We went and chilled on the beach until it started to torrential rain. We thought the rain would pass quickly but we had to wait for two hours and then get the bus back to the town. After we dried off we made some dinner and had some drinks before getting an early night for our flight the next day.

    It's been so nice being in paradise. The people here are so friendly as well. It's felt more like a holiday than travelling with Josh. Everything is so easy and tranquilo here.    Read more

  • Elly BlakeLatin America
    Day 119

    Cartagena

    June 1, 2017 in Colombia ⋅ ⛅ 30 °C

    Stepping off the plane in Cartagena was like stepping into a sauna. It was 32 degrees but it felt like 40. So hot and humid.

    The first day we explored Cartagena in the walled city. The buildings are very beautiful, with quaint little cobbled streets and lots of nice bars and restaurants. We also got our stuff ready for Casa en el Agua the next day.

    We arrived at the port at 9am and got a two hour boat over to the San Bernardo Islands. The sea was choppy but it calmed into crystal clear waters when we got to Casa en el Agua. Being there was amazing, it looked even better than it had in the photos and there was such a friendly and relaxed atmosphere.

    The Casa is also near to Isolete which is the most densely populated island on earth with over 1,000 inhabitants.

    We spent the day just sunbathing and in the sea, chatting with other people but it was incredible to be in such a beautiful setting. In the night we had dinner and played cards. When we slept there was a big storm and it woke us all up because the house is made of wood and you can hear everything.

    The next day we were meant to leave at midday but we had to leave earlier because the boats from Cartagena were not coming due to the sea being too rough. Instead we got the boat to Rincón, a small little fisherman's village about two and a half hours south of Cartagena, and then had to get the bus back from the mainland. I didn't mind it so much because you got to see what the region around Cartagena was like, although I was pretty gutted to be leaving paradise so soon.

    When we got back to Cartagena we walked round the walled city again and then in the evening met Andy and Lucy for some drinks! It was so nice having Josh meet them and we had a good night.

    The next day we chilled until it was time to get the us to Santa Marta. Overall, we had a short but sweet time in Cartagena. Visiting Casa en el Agua has got to be a definite highlight of my trip - it was honestly one of the nicest/ coolest/ serenest places I've ever stayed in my whole entire life.    Read more

  • Elly BlakeLatin America
    Day 121

    Santa Marta

    June 3, 2017 in Colombia ⋅ ☀️ 41 °C

    After having such a great time in San Andres and Cartagena, I really didn't think things could get better. I hadn't heard amazing things about Santa Marta - and quite mixed reviews of Tayrona, so I guess my expectations were pretty low.

    But boy were they exceeded!

    The town of Santa Marta is probably best to avoid, but the area and region around the city is just beautiful. We spent the first night in the dreamer hostel - which tbf is okay - just around the pool.

    The next day we'd heard about the tubing at El Rio hostel, and so got the bus to the little village of Buritaca which is on the way to Palomino. El Rio hostel is just amazing. Tucked away in the rainforest, it has its own little beach and river. The hostel is made of little huts and is so cool. We did the tubing which was really fun, apart from the barefoot hike to get far enough up the river. At times the river was really calm and I'd go really slowly, but at other times we would come into rapids and be thrown around.

    We spent the rest of the day just chilling and drinking gin and tonics by the bar. The hostel was really social and so we met a lot of nice people there.

    In the morning we got up and headed to Tayrona. I was pleasantly surprised by how much I liked Tayrona actually, as I had heard some people saying it wasn't that great. We walked to Cabo San Juan which has one of the nicest beaches, which you can swim at, in the park. We rented hammocks for the night because it was way too hot for a tent. We met a really nice Colombian guy called Julian and we explored the other beaches - la piscina and playa nudista (although it was empty and clothes were kept firmly on) - with him.

    There is lots of cool wildlife in the park. We saw wild monkeys in the trees, brightly coloured lizards and iguanas, snakes and even a cap aburra. In the night, if you go into the jungle just a tiny bit you can see hundreds of fireflies glowing which was pretty special.
    I fell asleep pretty early but Josh and Julian saw a Cayman on the beach at night.

    After what wasn't exactly the most comfortable sleep in the hammock, we woke up and had a nice morning cup of tea on the beach (cut me and I bleed English). We were leaving the park that day but decided to leave a different way so we could go to Pueblito which is the indigenous settlement in the park. The route to Pueblito was pretty hard because it was so humid and we had to climb up hill on rocks for about an hour and a half. When we got to Pueblito we saw the settlements which was cool and had lunch. Josh and I then set off to the road back to Santa Marta which took us probably another 2-3 hours. Pretty exhausted and sweaty from all the walking, we arrived back in Santa Marta and were so happy to have a shower!

    The next day we had to wait around because our flight to Medellin was rescheduled from 4pm to 9pm. After all that trekking we didn't really fancy a big day out so we spent the day by the pool at the dreamer. The highlight was probably throwing away our disgusting leftovers from dinner the night before and instead having our amazing McDonalds (I have not had one since the terrible one I had at Santiago airport) which was so filling - we had 1.5 meals each.

    All in all, we managed to fit a lot into Santa Marta and had a great time. Tayrona is so beautiful and El Rio was lots of fun! On to Medellin, the last leg of our trip because Josh heads back to England and I to Panama.    Read more

  • Elly BlakeLatin America
    Day 127

    Medellin

    June 9, 2017 in Colombia ⋅ 🌧 23 °C

    Medellin: the city of eternal spring. Warm weather all year round, the friendliest people I've ever met and lots of fun stuff to do.

    The first day we went to do a walking tour around the downtown area. This was really good because you got to hear a lot about the history of the city and also Colombia as a whole. After Josh and I went to Comuna 13 which used to be one of the most dangerous neighbourhoods in Medellin, but has undergone a period of renovation and now it is a place of culture and street art.

    In the evening we had a few drinks at our rooftop bar with a lovely Dutch couple and some others that we met.

    The next day we took a bus to Guatape, which is in the countryside about two hours away from Medellin. We walked up the piedra (rock) to see the viewpoint of all the lakes in the area. Unfortunately I heard that these were man-made, but that didn't detract to the beauty of it. We then went to the town which is so colourful and pretty. We had coffee and then ice cream. We also went on a zip line across the lake and then got the bus back into Medellin and saw Lucy and Andy for the last time in the evening before they go back to the UK 😢 sad they are going home because they have been my travel bezzies since Iguazu in month 1!

    The last day we went paragliding which was an amazing experience. I was a little bit nervous but it actually isn't scary at all. The wind just picks you up and you fly above the city of Medellin which was incredible. It can be a little bit wobbly when the wind knocks you but I'm so glad I did it. I'd definitely do it again in the future.

    After we cooked and then got ready for our last flight to Bogota, before Josh heads back home.    Read more

  • Elly BlakeLatin America
    Day 129

    Bogota

    June 11, 2017 in Colombia ⋅ ⛅ 20 °C

    We had 24 hours in Bogota before Josh flew back to the UK and I to Panama.

    We went to visit one of the best flea markets in Bogota but it wasn't that great. We tried to walk to the presidential palace but it started torrentially raining for the next few hours so we took cover in McDonalds and then decided to get the bus back to our hotel and finish watching Narcos.

    We went to the airport early for dinner and I nearly had a shock when they wouldn't let me on the flight without proof of how I was going to be leaving Panama. They made me book a reservation which was free in the end but still a bit stressful. We went through and Josh got some stuff from duty free and soon it was time to say goodbye 😭.

    I had an amazing two weeks and I was upset to be going separate ways. This also marks the end of my trip in South America. I've had 4.5 of the most wonderful months, travelling all the way to the bottom of the continent and back up again. Meeting some great people on the way and learning (a bit) of Spanish.    Read more

  • Elly BlakeLatin America
    Day 130

    Panama City

    June 12, 2017 in Panama ⋅ ⛅ 27 °C

    Welcome to Miami. Panama City is a mini metropolis with a beautiful skyline, casinos, banks, American food chains - the works.

    When I arrived I was waiting a few days before Izzy got there. Because I didn't want to do too much exploring without her, I decided to take a few days of Spanish lessons in Obarrio (the new town). This was cool as it was a good chance for me to consolidate what I've already learnt over the last few months and for me to learn a bit more basic Spanish to get by.

    The day before Iz was meant to arrive I moved hostels to Casco Viejo which is the old town of Panama. It's really pretty and the hostel itself that I moved to was very social. I met some people and we played cards and then went out to the fish market where you can get ceviche for as little as $2. We drank in the hostel that night and I ended up missing my last Spanish leason but I went to bed at 3am.

    The next day I didn't do much until it was time to go and get Izzy from the airport. It was so nice when she arrived, as I haven't seen her since before I left. We had loads to catch up on and lots of great stuff to look forward to.

    On our first day together we went to the Amador Causeway, which takes you quite far out to be able to look back on the city and see the skyline. We walked along the causeway and then got a taxi to Ancon Hill where you are able to see the canal. In the afternoon we went for coffee in Casco Viejo and then went to Albrook mall to get some stuff before we went to the San Blas Islands the next day.

    Although we had to get up at 5am, we didn't sleep very well because the hostel we were staying in had a bar underneath it and we could hear the bass from our room.    Read more

  • Elly BlakeLatin America
    Day 134

    San Blas Islands

    June 16, 2017, Caribbean Sea ⋅ ☀️ 30 °C

    The San Blas Islands, is an archipelago of over 365 islands located off the coast of Panama. The islands are owned by the indigenous Kuna people, who maintain autonomy over the islands.

    We spent 4 days sailing through them and it was heaven on earth. It’s just as good as any postcard – turquoise clear blue waters, white sand and an abundance of marine wildlife. This place is a little piece of paradise.

    We got there from Panama City and were picked up from our hostel at 5am in a 4×4. The drive took around 3 hours and went through the San Blas Hills which has beautiful views of the jungle but was like being on a rollercoaster and very bumpy.

    Once we arrived at the port, we were transferred onto a motorboat and taken to the islands. There is not a whole lot to do on the islands, and at first this was a bit jarring because we aren’t used to doing absolutely nothing. After a day or two though, we started to appreciate the beauty in the island’s simplicity and enjoy the little things.

    Every day was a mix of sunbathing, snorkelling and swimming, talking/ wondering about how the Kuna's live, and having barbecues on the beach with a beer or a rum.

    We stayed for four days and weather wise we were blessed with a little bit of everything. Two days of beautiful, carribean sun, followed by overcast skies and rain.

    It was without a doubt one of the highlights of my trip. I had such a good time with Izzy, and another guy we met Jethro. The San Blas ideas are literally heaven on earth - queue the Cher song.    Read more

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