Chile/Peru/France - Santiago to France

Merry Christmas, Joyeux Noël or Feliz Navidad!!

Our whirlwind, 2 month circumnavigation of South America has reached its conclusion! 

The final part of our adventure included a couple of days in both Santiago and Lima, before embarking on the long flight back to France where we spent a night in Nice before returning to Aurelie’s parents in Mazan just in time for Christmas.

We arrived into Santiago, the capital city of Chile after a 733km overnight bus ride from Pucon. We were immediately impressed by Santiago. Given it is a city of over 5 million people, it was extremely clean and the variety of architecture, colour and tradition gave it very much a European flavour. The only downside was the cold blast that swept across Chile upon our arrival in Santiago. The temperature literally dropped from a comfortable 29 degrees one day, to a wet and cold 11 or 12 degrees the following day. We were advised that they hadn’t seen anything like this in Chile in over 25 years…lucky us!!!

Saint Lucia square in the heart of Santiago

All around South American we were consistently advised that the best wine in South America comes from Chile. We therefore took the opportunity to visit Concha y Toro, a vineyard which produces Chile’s most globally recognised wine, Casillero del diablo. We also paid a visit to the ‘red devil’s cellar’ to learn about the legend that is - Casillero del diablo. 

Shane searching for the devil in the Casillero del Diablo

It was a great day where we couldn't help but leaving without a couple of carefully chosen souvenirs, not before sampling them first of course!

Soaking up the beauty of the vineyards of Concha y Toro

Last but not least was a flight back to Lima, Peru, where our South American adventure started 2 months earlier. After exploring Lima's historic centre when we were first in Lima,

this time we decided to stay in Miraflores, an area which epitomises the modernisation and development of Lima. It is situated along the coast, with high rise apartments and construction occurring on seemingly every street and around every corner. Fortunately, some significant cultural sites such as the Huaca Pucllana, an ancient pyramid immersed right in the heart of Miraflores, have been retained. 

The ancient ruins of Huaca Pucllana - Lima's version of the pyramids

After a day at the beach, and a superb Peruvian cusine that included Cerviche, it was time to pick up our backpacks for the final time in South America and head back to France.

Due to flight delays as a result of the hectic Christmas period, our stay in Nice was short, but it certainly put on a show and welcomed us back to France in fine style! Nice is a beautiful city and we will certainly spend more time there once the European summer arrives next year!

Spectacular greeting upon our arrival in Nice...welcome home!!

After not really feeling the Christmas spirit in South America, things quickly changed as soon as we arrived at Aurelie’s parents. We hadn’t spent a Christmas in France for six years, and we were both looking forward to it!

Christmas decorations lit up the house, the warmth of the fire, the emotion of being surrounded by family and the joy that the festive season brings provided a stark and welcoming contrast to the isolation of South America. Aurelie’s mother had even gone to the effort of creating her own Christmas nativity scene!!

Le crèche de Noël - Our very own Christmas nativity scene

The much anticipated Christmas dinner certainly did not disappoint! French Champagne (not sparkling wine!) flowed freely, and the combination of french delicacies included in each of the five courses was something to behold.

The magic of Christmas in France...and these were only the appetizers!! 

After two months on the road, it’s great to remove the packs from our backs and settle into a comfortable bed without the thought that we will be packing up in a couple of days and on the move again! 

For the next couple of weeks we will remain in the South of France, exploring the local area, enjoying the local delicacies and catching up with family until we depart on the 13th January where 3 ½ months in Africa awaits.

Aussie touch added to the French Xmas cuisine...more 'Rum' next time s'il vous plait!!

Wishing you a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!!!

Bring on 2013......!!!      

Argentina/Chile - Buenos Aires to Patagonia

The last 10 days have been full of exhilarating exploration of the great outdoors culminating in an 'epic' climb of the beast that was - Volcan Villarrica! It is here where our outdoor adventures got serious!!!

We left Argentina’s capital city, and headed 1,600km West to the Northern part of Patagonia. Our time was primarily spent in three villages - Bariloche and San Martin de los Andes in Argentina and Pucon in Chile. 

Bariloche was our first stop, a small Patagonian town located at the bottom of the Andes and spread along Lake Nahuel Huapi. The area offered vivid scenery reminiscent of the Alps region, snow-capped mountains overlooking turquoise lakes and surrounded by emerald forests. One of the nearby villages was even established by Swiss travellers who seemed to have introduced the locals to the ‘fondue‘, a typical Swiss (and French) dish.

Overlooking Lake Moreno just outside Bariloche

Upon our arrival in Bariloche, we embarked on a 5 hour trek (which we completed in 2 1/2 hrs) to the summit of ‘Cerro Lopez' - just over 1,800m in altitude. After grabbing a coffee and taking in the incredible view at the local refuge based at the top, we descended then followed this up with another 20km / 5 hr trek to Lago Negro...solid day at the office!

Half way up Cerro Lopez - another challenging mountain trek

We awoke feeling the effects of the previous day's trekking so we decided to take a slightly faster approach for the next day's explorations. We hired mountain bikes to enable us to explore the sites and attractions around Lake Moreno. The wind decided to join us for the undulating 30km circuit which made things  a little more challenging. Aurelie was painfully trying to stay on Shane’s wheels to get some assistance. As a true gentleman, Shane kept pushing the pace!

Bariloche also turned out to be a chocolate heaven.with ‘chocolaterias’ at every corner. Hand-made chocolates and other ‘dulces’ proved irresistible with Aurelie finally persuading Shane to a visit.

Pre-Christmas chocolate indulgence is under way

After a couple of days in Bariloche, and the freezing cold wind off the mountains getting stronger by the day making things quite uncomfortable, we were pretty keen to keep moving up North for hopefully some sort of improvement in the weather.

We made it to San Martin, another small town 3 hours north of Bariloche that was very similar both aesthetically and temperature wise to Bariloche, however a lot quieter. There was hardly a tourist to be seen, in fact, even the local buses were’t running so our explorations were all on foot. We did however manage to catch the local ferry across the lake to assist in exploring the surroundings and the national parks. We also noticed that the local speciality was the trout caught from the lake that the town based itself on and we were not going to miss this!

With only 10 days or so left of our South American tour, we crossed border into Chile and settled in Pucon, a small but buzzing little village that is the home of outdoor adventure. It was also here where the bar was raised and our outdoor activities reached a whole new level! We were here with one objective in mind, to summit Volcan Villarrica, one of Chile's and the world's most active volcanos. It literally backs onto the town of Pucon and stands tall and proud at over 2800m.

First glimpse of the intimidating Volcano - Volcan Villarica

The weather for the first couple of days in Pucon was quite cloudy, so summiting the Volcano was not possible. So we spent our time trekking and cycling our way around the lakes, mountains, waterfalls and impressive local attractions. Day 3 arrived and we finally got the green light that the weather was on the improve and that we would get the chance to attempt to summit this beast!

The first hour or so of our climb was on volcanic gravel, making it a bit technical. At some point, we passed the remains of an old cable car structure which was destroyed in the eruption of 1971. As we were getting closer to the top, we reached the snow, which was rather unusual given it is the middle of summer. By that stage, we were above the clouds and could enjoy the breathtaking aerial view of Pucon and the surrounding lakes.
 

Shane feeling on top of the world as we rose above the clouds

As we ascended beyond the 2000m mark, the wind increased within a matter of moments and we were literally being slapped and pushed by the biting and feisty, 60 km/h gusts of wind. The guide announced, welcome to Volcan Villarrica...these were some real mountain conditions!

We had a group of 6 in our touring party, but it was reduced to 4 when a couple of Brazilians from our group who we titled 'soft & softer', decided it was getting a little too cold and a bit too dangerous for them, so they pulled the pin and decided that continuing toward the summit was not for them!

As conditions got even worse, the guide continue to encourage us optimistically that reaching the summit was possible but emphasized the importance of our ice-picks as the surface turned from thick snow to what would better be described as ice. The track in this section also began to get even steeper. At this stage, Aurelie wished she had joined 'soft & softer' and gone back down to!

 Disregarding the testing conditions and pushing hard toward the summit

Unfortunately (or fortunately), at approx 400m from the summit, we hit a patch where the winds increased even more, the cloud set in and we were getting pelted by hail coming down sideways, forcing the guide to come to the conclusion that it was too dangerous to go any further as the conditions and icy surface made it simply too dangerous to continue our quest.

Just when we thought our adventure was over, it was there when it actually reached its climax! In our packs were some tiny plastic luge type objects to assist us in sliding our way down. After a brief demonstration on how to control these things using the ice pick as a hand-brake, Shane decided to lead the way. Because the snow was too powdery for the ice pick to get any traction and slow him down and the downhill section too steep, he increased speed to a point until losing control and tumbling down the snow for some 8 - 10m in an impressive ‘Tom Cruise’ like manner. Fortunately he finally managed to get a grip of the snow with his ice pick as the rocky part of the mountains got uncomfortably close!

Next in line was a young Canadian guy. Unfortunately he had learnt little from Shane's escapades and also lost control. He however panicked, dropped his ice pick, gathered more speend and slid at least a couple of hundred metres across a combination of rocks and snow, only to be stopped by some well placed rocks that he managed to get a hold of. Another 20 metres and he would have free fallen off the rocky face and been in a whole lot of trouble! Luckily he was wearing his helmet and escaped with a blood nose, a sore head and some bumps and bruises. There was no way Aurelie was taking the same path and a sympathetic guide came to her rescue and led her and the other remaining trekker down to the base to safety.
With the eventful Volcano trek behind us, a couple more days were spent in Pucon, relaxing, recovering and exploring the surrounds.

Los Ojos del Caburgua - the eyes of the river

Next and final stop in South America is Santiago where a visit to the Chilean vinyards awaits. The Chilean wine is 'supposedly' the best and well renowned wine in South America.

Exciting times!!

Christmas and the end of our South American adventure is now only days away!

Brazil - Rio to Buenos Aires

Everything is great in Brazil...

...well, almost  everything!!!

The last week has included spicing it up in Rio de Janeiro, exploring the beautiful Brazilian island of Ilha Grande and a flight down to Buenos Aires for a taste of Argentinian culture.

We departed Iguazu Falls for the long ride (1,600kms!) into Rio. Upon arriving, we needed some comfort after the marathon bus ride so we booked into a plush hotel right in the middle of Copacobana, in preparation for a big weekend in Rio. Our lethargy upon arrival at the hotel obviously showed as they promptly upgraded us to the 'Presidential' suite which was bigger than our house! It included separate lounge area, kitchen, surround sound stereo system, spa and even a private in room sauna...backpacking eh, tough times! Welcome to Rio!!

Feeling the spirit of Christo Redentor

We spent our time exploring the touristy sites, Christo Redentor being the highlight, riding bikes along the beaches, navigating Lake Rodrigo de Freitas, drinking out of coconuts on Copacobana beach and tasting some of the most toxic (super strong!) Capirinhas that we could get our hands on! They destroyed us these things!

The only thing that we missed was dancing up a storm at a big local Brazilian samba party, although not through lack of trying! Ah well, what better reason to return to Rio for the 2014 World Cup or the 2016 Olympics!

Next stop was Ilha Grande. A small island 150km south of Rio. After a weekend in a big city, this was the ideal place for a couple of days of R&R (rest and relaxation)!

Praia Mangues - One of Ilha Grande´s many beautiful beaches 

After a night of sampling a couple of the local cocktails, the concept of R&R quickly wore off when we realised that there were walking trails to gorgeous secluded beaches, which included 'Jennifer' Lopes Mendes, ranked no.1 in the list of Brazil's most beautiful beaches. The day of trekking totalled at least 30km but all very much worthwhile given some of the places that we discovered. After all the trekking, we re-energised with a a gourmet local grilled seafood BBQ dish (Charrasco fruitas del mar) and a quiet bevy or two!

Great location Ilha Grande, we would have spent a couple of weeks there if we had the time and would head back there in a flash!

Unfortunately, time on this occasion was our only enemy, so we quickly departed Ilha Grande for a flight to Buenos Aires, Argentina´s capital.

When most people talk about Buenos Aires, they talk about it being the Paris of South America and being known for it´s European culture and architecture. In all honesty, Buenos Aires was really about two things...steaks and tango!

We were a little fortunate that we checked into a place right in the heart of San Telmo, which is widely renowned as the home of tango. It is also the home of La Brigada which is also widely regarded as the best Parilla (Argentinian BBQ) restaurant in Buenos Aires, famous for it´s incredible steaks...perfect!

Local tango club Lunatics Milonga - plenty of character and very few touristicos! 

We first headed into a quaint little local tango bar for some tango lessons, worked up an appetite then checked into La Brigada at about 10pm (which is early for Argentina) for a meal that absolutely blew us away. They cut the steaks with a spoon they were that tender, and the portions were certainly not small! 

Definitely vying for the best steaks we´ve had the pleasure of eating!

We washed it down with a bottle of Argentinian red wine to ensure that we were primed for some more tango. Unfortunately the tango at the club was well beyond our basic 1 step, 2 step that we had picked up earlier in our tango class, so we camped ourselves on the sidelines, with bevy in hand and soaked up the local atmosphere...great night out.

We leave Buenos Aires today on an overnight bus to Bariloche and some trekking in the Andes Mountain Range.

Another week of adventure ahead...can´t wait!!

Brazil - Santa Cruz to Iguazu

It appears Pachi Mama (Peruvian god of the earth and nature) is still shining on us:

Camped under a rainbow at one of many of Iguacu´s waterfalls

It´s been a big 9 days incorporating 2,426km of travel from La Paz to Iguazu Falls but we´ve entered Brazil and been fortunate enough to be greeted with some magic spots along the way!

We departed La Paz and made our last stop in Bolivia in Santa Cruz - a far cry from the other chaotic, crowded, and colourful big cities of Bolivia. Santa Cruz had very much a Brazilian feel, very relaxed, tropical climate that provided us with a great transition to our next destination - Brazil!

After another 12 hour overnight bus ride, we made it to the Bolivian/Brazilian border nice and early, where we finally stepped foot into Brazil. All we needed was to take a 20 minute bus ride to nearby town, Corumba. However we quickly realised 2 things:

1. We didn't have any Reals (Brazilian $) and there was no bank or cash machine to be seen
2. We couldn't understand a word of Portuguese! Our (Aurelie´s!) semi-fluency in Spanish certainly wasn't helping

Out of nowhere, a young Brazilian girl offered to purchase and pay for our bus tickets! First impressions are good impressions and this certainly didn´t do Brazil´s reputation any harm!

We arrived in Corumba trying to get our bearings when a dodgy looking character offered us all the information we were looking for, bus timetables, cheap hotels and places to go in the village. He even went onto the effort of walking us to the suggested hotel, which actually turned out to be an absolute hole! However, we had been told that Brazil was rather expensive for backpackers and this was no the time to be picky, so we decided to stay. Bad move. Between the 40 degree temperature, the rooms ínteresting´ odour, the relentless mosquitoes and a broken fan that looked like it could fall on our head at any moment, we were lucky to get a couple of hours' sleep that night between us. Corumba did not offer much and we waisted no time moving on to our next destination - Bonito.

Bonito was a hidden jewel in the far North West corner of Brazil. It provided the relaxed and idyillic feel we were looking for. We found a nice comfortable place to stay, rented a couple of bikes and cycled the 5 or 6km out to Bonito´s 'public pool' which turned out to be a natural lagoon/waterhole that immersed us into the middle of an abundance of the many and varied underwater life that this place has to offer...twas some ´public pool´ and the snorkelling here was magic.

 Aurelie taking a dip surrounded by some of the local underwater Amigos

The next day, we jumped back on the bikes and took on the 22km cycle to the Mato Grosso do Sol (Blue Lake Grotto), a World Heritage Listed  cave with calcium formation stalectites that encapsulates a vivid blue lake deep inside the cave. Astonishing place!

Mato Grosso do Sol - shimmering Blue Lake submerged at base of a cave in Bonito

After surviving the long ride back, on dusty, bumpy roads in the 30 odd degree heat, we spent another afternoon at the ´public pool´. By now we´ve developed a good flair for digging out the best deals and when it came time to finding a restaurant for dinner, we were fortunate enough that this occassion was no exception. We found a small local restaurant off the main street where we enjoyed a delicious Churrascaria Brazilian feast and drinks that cost about the same as a couple of coffees back home...brilliant!

It was then time to make our way down to the Iguazu falls which meant another long bus ride but it was certainly worth the trip. Iguazu Falls, in the Iguazu River is one of the world's largest waterfalls and it simply dwarfs Niagara Falls.

Chilling out in front of the Iguazu Falls (Brazilian side)

Surrounded by the subtropical rainforests and sitting on the border between Brazil and Argentina, the place definitely provided some ´wow factor´! We spent two days trekking around both the Brazilian and Argentinian side of the falls and even spotted raccoons, cheeky monkeys, a massive Iguana and a 2 1/2m solitary black snake (Shane spent at least 1/2 hr trying to get a decent photo, but all efforts were in vain!) slithering it´s way across our path.

Magic spot but it´s time to move on! Shane´s just brought a pair of the darkest possible tinted sunnies (not sure why!) as our next stop is Rio de Janeiro...exciting times!