Tag: adventure

Subways and semla in Stockholm…

by Gary Patrick Brown, posted in Europe, Sweden

For those of you who followed my adventures in South America, you will know that I booked a surprise trip to Stockholm for my partner, Ken, upon my return in February 2018, to say thank you for supporting my decision to take four months off work while I worked through my mini-midlife crisis. I stepped off the plane in Amsterdam – wearing shorts to the bemusement of the cabin crew – to be greeted by a smiling Ken, who had just read my latest blog and was therefore aware of the surprise trip. If you’re wondering why Stockholm, you can read about it in this post.

It seems we have a knack for surprises in our relationship as, unbeknownst to me, Ken had gone to the UK to pick up the cats the previous week and they were at the door to greet me when I got home. Having been away for so long, it was a special homecoming. However, Ken took it one step further, as I discovered when going to the bedroom to change clothes only to be greeted by my best friend, Leah, who he’d picked up in the UK on the way back to the Netherlands. I was somewhat overwhelmed to be honest, and the endorphin rush was intense, like after a good workout. Or so I’m told. Perhaps I should go to a gym if it really does feel this good afterwards.

Unfortunately, our flight to Stockholm was booked for the following morning, so we said tot ziens to Leah and the cats, with promises to take her to her favourite restaurant on our return to the land of orange, evidenced above!

Ken and I haven’t really been on holiday in the 18 months we’ve been together, save for a few day trips in the Netherlands, so the upcoming 24/7 would be a new experience. We treated ourselves to some bubbles in the lounge despite the early hour and soon found ourselves on the Arlanda Express – how bloody much?!?!?!!! – whizzing our way to the city centre. I had booked a cute AirBnB apartment that didn’t disappoint. Despite it’s small square footage, it was designed perfectly and was very gezellig. Not that we spent that much time there. No, we came for the subway stations and unfortunately they require being outside. Well, underground, but you know what I mean.

As we had three days in the city, we took it easy on day one, exploring the narrow streets of Gamla Stan (the old town), and it wasn’t long before I persuaded Ken to partake in a spot of fika at Chokoladkoppen, a cute cafe on the main square. Thankfully they were still serving semla buns (they’re only available at certain times of the year, and you can read more about the tradition here) and it didn’t take me long to demolish one. Given that eating out in Stockholm is so expensive it requires remortgaging one’s dwelling, we took advantage of the fully stocked kitchen and had dinner at the apartment that evening.

The next day was bright and sunny, but perishingly cold, so we decided to save being underground for the following day when the weather was due to be overcast, and instead took a boat around the archipelago. The guide was very engaging and informative, and Ken was very happy being on a boat, despite spending most of his adulthood on one having first worked in the Merchant Navy before pursuing a career as a marine engineer! It may, however, have been the hearty soup and dubious looking shot glass of liquor that put a smile on his face. By the time we returned to the dock, the temperature had turned even more baltic so we made a pit stop at H&M to buy some gloves for Ken and an extra jumper for me. I then managed to persuade him to allow me to push the boat out – it didn’t take much to twist his arm to be honest – and eat at an amazing looking restaurant we passed by the evening before.

Unfortunately, I couldn’t put it off anymore, it was time to do what we came to Stockholm to do, namely tour the subway to view the art installations. Unlike Ken I’m not a transport geek, nor do I know anything about art beyond imitating Patsy Stone (‘yeah, but is it art?’), however seeing Ken’s growing excitement – wait, that sounds rude – gave me a fuzzy feeling inside, and after all, I brought him here to make him happy. Mission accomplished it seemed.

I don’t often ride the metro in Amsterdam, but I know that if I lived in Stockholm – not that I’m willing to sell a kidney to do so – I’d look forward to getting on the tunnelbana every day. Words I never uttered during the 12 years I rode the Tube in London! Perhaps Ken’s enthusiasm was catching. The T-bana stations are truly incredible, as you can see from the photos below. I’m heading back to Stockholm this weekend for a tournament with Amsterdam Netball Club and I’m already looking forward to introducing them to these magnificent structures.

HUVUDSTA

RÅDHUSET

RISSNE

SOLNA

STADION

T-CENTRALEN

TEKNISKA högskolan

TENSTA

THORILDSPLAN

UNIVERSITEIT

U.G.L.Y not when one’s in Uruguay….

by Gary Patrick Brown, posted in Colonia del Sacramento, Uruguay

….and if you don’t know the above title reference then you may be reading the wrong blog. But stay awhile anyway.

Despite loving Buenos Aires, a visit to a new country was too much for me to resist and so it was that I found myself waking up at 0600 to board a boat to Uruguay. Unfortunately, I had only been in bed for two hours thanks to a rocking night out dancing in BA, so I was rather grateful for the uninteresting crossing, scenery-wise, as it meant I could get another ninety minutes of kip. Four of my trip buddies accompanied me to the beautiful little town of Colonia del Sacramento. As I only had one free day, I opted to give the capital, Montevideo, a miss as the seven hour return journey wouldn’t have left much time for exploring.

The boat was modern and thankfully air conditioned as the temperature was already in the high twenties, even at that early hour. After disembarking, the five of us spent twenty minutes at the ATM discussing how much local currency to withdraw. Unbeknownst to us, you can use both USD and Argentinean pesos in most businesses in the town. Having taken out €50 for the day’s expenses, I was even more annoyed when we discovered that if we paid using a debit card, the tax would be deducted, almost 25%!! I later made one of my best life decisions when I decided to save my cash for a few glasses of nice wine at lunchtime and instead, used my card to buy some much needed shorts as those I’d bought with me were all looking rather worn after four months on the road. I ended up purchasing three new pairs as I couldn’t decide between flamingos, pineapples or floral prints. Welcome to gay culture in 2018.

After a delicious breakfast at a tiny cafe run out of someone’s house – the toilet was rather bizarrely a room in the garden – we spent the rest of the morning strolling around the old town. Its cobbled, tree-lined streets reminded me somewhat of Rye in Sussex in the UK. The temperature was steadily creeping up to 36°C and I started to struggle, not surprising given that I don’t really wear a jacket (or footwear other than flip flops or Toms) until it’s below 10°C back home as I get hot very easily. Thankfully, the old town is pretty small and we’d managed to see most of it by this time. I was glad to see everyone else was feeling the same way, so my suggestion to revisit the fancy beachside hotel-cum-restaurant-cum-bar-cum-garden that we passed earlier, having oohed and aahed through the wrought iron gate, was met with great enthusiasm. The ladies treated themselves to dessert and drinks while I splurged on a few glasses of a delectable Sauvignon Blanc. It was lovely to spend my last day with these four women as they’d really enhanced my enjoyment of the trip since they joined in Santiago (except for Sandrine who’s been entertaining slash annoying me since Lima). The hours were filled with lots of giggles and satisfying sighs.

By mid-afternoon I was pleasantly sloshed and although there was serious consideration in staying overnight, I had to get back to BA to pick up my laundry before closing time at the lavanderia. Rock n roll I know. There was also the small matter of getting up at 0430 the next day to catch my flight to Iguazu Falls.

Blown away in Patagonia…

by Gary Patrick Brown, posted in Chile, Patagonia, South America

We re-entered Chile for the last time, where the process would’ve gone much quicker had there not been the cutest little kitty in the arrival hall who was just begging to be tickled.

After a quick stop in Puerto Natales to pick up supplies and our guides, Maria-José and Alejandro, we drove into the Torres del Paine National Park for what would become one of the highlights of my entire trip: the 4-day ‘W-Walk’, a nomenclature which doesn’t require further explanation I assume. The first night’s campsite, on the shore of Lake Pehoe, took my breath away. It was flanked by the snow-capped Los Cuernos mountains, while the resident armadillo, Marcel, who chilled out with us, added a certain gezelligheid (apologies to non-Dutch speakers) to the whole scene.

The following morning, those of us who were doing the W Walk set out early doors in order to catch the catamaran which would take us to the start of the hike, and our next campsite, in the shadow of the Paine Grande peak. On certain sections of the hike we were able to drop some of our bag contents to lighten the load, however, having learned my lesson on my Machu Picchu trek that you really need very little, I packed a very small daypack containing sleeping bag and mat, a couple of changes of clothes and a small toiletries bag. I probably carried 5kg in total, as opposed to some of my fellow trekkers who huffed and puffed with 12kg. The first day’s hike was 22km in length; 11km along Lake Grey to the Grey Glacier and back again, taking around eight hours in total. Over the next couple of days, we continued with linear hikes, sometimes having to double back on ourselves but not really minding given the spectacular scenery afforded to us in the French and Ascensio Valleys.

The third day was particularly hot at 22°C, and it was somewhat comforting to see even our guides struggling in the unusually warm summer weather. Atter lunch we rested by a lagoon and took an illegal dip in the glacial waters.

Seeing the relief and joy on our faces, one of the guides jumped in with us, telling us it was the first time he’d ever done something like this. The cool waters were exhilarating and it was a much appreciated break from the walking.

On the final day, the hike went to the three peaks which give the park its name, however due to adverse weather, they were obscured and I therefore decided to stay at the campsite and indulge in some of the best coffee I’d had on this trip and catch up with my blog.

I have been completely blown away by the beauty in Chilean Patagonia (hence the rather brief blog post as I believe the pictures speak for themselves) and I can’t wait to explore more of the region on the Argentinean side.

And when I say blown away, I mean it both metaphorically and literally. The wind here is like no other I’ve ever experienced, at one point actually knocking me off my feet. Lord knows how perishing it is in winter, but I’d love to return and find out one day.

Lounging in the Lake District…

by Gary Patrick Brown, posted in Argentina, Lake District, South America

The high from the previous night’s meal in Santiago didn’t last long on account of even more diarrhoea coupled with an eleven hour day on the truck. I also said goodbye to Riley, a young and interesting Australian who had been my tentmate/roommate while Ian stayed with his lady friend who has also now left us.  I’ll miss Riley for many reasons, the main one being that not only did he not judge me for eating five ice creams each day, he actively encouraged such behaviour by paying for them! Thankfully the drive to the Lake District distracted both Ian and I from our tummy troubles as we were yet again treated to some spectacular scenery. Our first stop was the quaint town of Pucon, which sits on Lake Villarica. Its cute streets are well maintained with roses used to separate lanes on the roads and the low-lying wooden buildings give it an alpine feel. In fact I was reminded of a place called Idyllwild in California, which has a very similar look and feel, and was the scene of a very happy holiday. The town is very small so I decided to go for a walk by myself rather than do the guided tour. While I’ve met some fantastic people on this trip, I do crave some alone time, so while Ian made friends with his bed I strolled around for a few hours, enjoying some time at the lakeside beach. You could walk around the whole town in around 30 minutes, but as I stopped to play with the numerous street dogs, I took rather longer. The town is very geared toward tourists and there are a lot of adventure sports on offer, including scaling an active volcano. Unfortunately, never knowing when one will need toilet facilities and not wishing for a repeat of rainbow mountain, I shunned such excursions and enjoyed a couple of blissfully lazy days. I stumbled upon a great cafe which I visited on multiple occasions, despite it being 30% more expensive than Amsterdam!! Oh no, I’m complaining about the cost of things; perhaps I am becoming more Dutch than I realised.

The next town on our trip was Bariloche, on the Argentinean side of the Lake District, which we reached via the incredibly scenic Ruta de los Siete Lagos (Seven Lakes Route). As you can see from the pictures, it does what it says on the tin. Bariloche sits on the shore of the Nahuel Huapi lake and is flanked by the Andes, creating a truly picture postcard setting.  Similarly to Pucon, it is set up for lots of adventure sports however, arriving on Christmas Day, meant that most people took it easy.

Christmas Day was weird. After a disappointingly quick Skype (thanks to crappy WiFi) with my partner who was working on a job in Dubai, we set off on a ten hour drive that included an international border crossing, but one which was made bearable by the two adorable Labradors ambling around the waiting area. Upon arrival at our hostel, we were treated to Christmas dinner, which meant a traditional Argentinean ‘asado’: barbecued meats. The meal and the heat meant it didn’t feel very Christmassy to me, but the bottle of local Malbec and the easy-on-the-eye chefs helped us enjoy the festivities.

The next day Ian and I decided to go on a short hike up to a nearby waterfall but twenty minutes in he felt ill and so we turned back. Unfortunately, Ian’s stomach was getting worse so we took him to a local clinic for some tests. Over the next couple of days things didn’t improve and he had to leave the tour in Perito Moreno to see another doctor. I’ve been really impressed with the healthcare in South America and was so again, although the 90 second ambulance ride to our hotel seemed somewhat excessive. Ian had gone with me to  the hospital when I had my accident in La Paz so it was an easy decision to stay behind with him and one of the tour leaders, Lars, while he sorted out his repatriation with his insurance company. New Year’s Eve was rather low-key however; Ian slept while I had two cans of beer before turning the lights off a couple of hours before midnight. Lars and I took a 12-hour overnight bus to catch up with our truck and we were treated to another incredible sunset. It’s just a shame that a) the bus played a ten-year old movie at full volume until 0130 and b) that I couldn’t drown it out with music because my iPod fell down the gap between the seats becoming irretrievably wedged. It was lovely to see the group again, but I will miss Ian terribly; he’s been on the trip with me since the very first day in Quito and quickly became a good friend. Both he and Riley live in Melbourne so I guess I’ll have to head there at some point!

Chasing condors in Chivay….

by Gary Patrick Brown, posted in Chivay, Peru, South America

We had our shortest truck journey so far on this trip (five hours), to reach the town of Chivay. I actually quite enjoy the long journeys on the truck; there’s time for reading, chatting, sleeping, contemplating and gazing in wonderment at our constant companion, the Andes. I’m not sure I’ll feel the same way after nearly four months on the road, but ‘vamos a ver’. 

We arrived in town on the same day that the Peruvian national football team were attempting to qualify for the World Cup for the first time in 32 years. I wouldn’t usually watch a Peru vs. New Zealand football match, but national fervour had been evident everywhere we had been in the past week. Everywhere except Chivay it seemed. I thought it would be a fun experience to see the game in a bar with locals, but they were nowhere to be seen. Instead I settled for pizza and an early night as we were up at 0500 the next morning.

The reason for the early start, and indeed the reason we were in Chivay, was to visit the incredible Colca Canyon and it’s famous Andean condors. Colca is the world’s second deepest canyon, and is almost 3,400m at its deepest point. And for all you geography buffs, no, the Grand Canyon isn’t the deepest canyon in the world. Colca is twice as deep as the Grand Canyon, but the world’s deepest canyon is, in fact, the nearby Cotahuasi. Anyway, that’s enough geography for one day. We stopped at some truly breathtakingly scenery, before trekking to the best viewpoint for condors spotting. Our guide was very knowledgeable and sensed that the giant birds would in fact come to us and lo and behold, within five minutes of hiking, we saw  shadows being cast on the foliage by the giant wings of a condor. A collective gasp went up when it glided directly above us, using the early morning thermals to get lift.

We continued hiking to the designated viewing platforms, but it wasn’t necessary given the show the birds were putting on for us throughout the walk. As it was a sunny day, and as we were technically not on a major road, we could ride on the roof seats for the journey home. We were treated to an incredible five-condor flyby while marvelling at the landscape from the unobstructed rooftop view.

The following day we drove to a small Quechua village called Raqchi, where we were treated to a homestay with a local family. I was a little anxious given that my Spanish is virtually non-existent, but I needn’t have worried; Papa Peo and Mama Concepçion were full of warmth that required no words, and one of our Peruvian guides was staying with us and helped translate where needed. Listening to Mama and Papa tell their story, I was filled with happiness as their eyes sparkled reminiscing about how they met and fell in love. It also gave me an appreciation for everything I have in my life, although it did make me miss my partner, Ken, and home.

Any homesickness was quickly dispelled when Papa signalled for us to change into one of his ponchos, and we headed to one of the other houses for a traditional ceremony to honour Pachamama, a goddess revered by the indigenous people of the Andes. Pachamama is the earth mother, and is toasted before festivities by spilling a small amount of beer before drinking. The indigenous community believe that we should give back to the earth before taking, and only taking what is appropriate. It made me think that I, and perhaps many of us, could do better at this. Once the solemn ceremony had been performed,  the music started up, which in turn meant the dancing commenced around the fire. It turned into quite a raucous affair and everyone went to bed in high spirits. 

The homestay was probably the one part of the trip that I was most anxious about, but my fears were completely unfounded. It turned out to be the most educational and thought-provoking; not so much in what we were taught in historical terms, but with regards to the local folks’ ethos for life, something I hope to apply to some degree upon my return home. 

Acquired tastes in Arequipa…

by Gary Patrick Brown, posted in Arequipa, Peru, South America

Arequipa is the second largest city in Peru and is known as the ‘White City’ on account of it being built with ‘silla’ or white volcanic rock. It sits on the Peruvian altiplano at 3,500m above sea level and is truly beautiful. Its main square is a breathtaking sight, especially in the evening when complementary lighting shows it at its best.

After a relatively relaxing drive, we checked into our hostel and headed out for dinner to a restaurant that had been recommended to one of the group. It had an amazing view overlooking the square and the ponchos we were handed upon entering soon had us feeling cosy. This feeling started to dissipate, however, when two of us decided to share a meal of guinea pig and alpaca. It probably didn’t help that we were sat next to a committed vegetarian.  Sorry, not sorry. The guinea pig was served whole and the appearance didn’t really help make it appealing and to be honest, I wouldn’t order it again. If you like eating the skin of a roasted chicken, then you’d like the skin of these rodents, but there was little else to get excited about. The alpaca steak on the other hand was delicious and much needed to be honest.

The following day was free so a few of us decided to go to a museum to see the ‘Ice Maiden’ Juanita, said to be one of the best preserved mummies in the world. The young teenage girl was sacrificed as an offering to the Inca gods sometime in the 1400s and discovered in 1995 on Mount Ampato. Imagine stumbling across that on a hike!!

As has been common during my trip, it was a sunny day so a few of us decided to have a couple of afternoon drinks at a pub close to hostel. I don’t know if it  was the copious amounts of coca beer or the euphoria from besting everyone at darts, but I somehow found myself stumbling home at 0130. Definitely not part of the plan! Having forgotten about dinner completely, needless to say I woke up with my first South American hangover; it wasn’t pleasant. Thankfully, my roommate, Ian, is a diamond and when I eventually rolled out of bed at 1000, I saw that he’d collected my laundry from down the road. Like I said, he’s a diamond. Luckily our drive didn’t start until 1200 so I had time to down a Starbucks and some unsatisfying Turkish sandwiches. Arequipa was a bit of a blur but I’d love to come back, even just to correct all of my food choices!

The sights – and smells – of Islas Ballestas…

by Gary Patrick Brown, posted in Islas Ballestas, Peru, South America

Our departure from Lima was at 0500, something which didn’t seem to faze the new passengers too much. In fact, I felt a little sorry for them as their growing excitement having boarded the truck for the first time was not met with the same enthusiasm by us ‘oldies’ who promptly fell asleep due to the ungodly hour. The early departure was required to avoid the heavy traffic in Lima which seems to have peak times of 0000 – 2400. Peruvian drivers also appear to have no concept of lanes despite the clear road markings. Thankfully the journey out of Lima was much nicer than the one we undertook to enter the city. After a short time we stopped at paradise, which in this instance was a petrol station that served delicious coffee, had clean working toilets with plenty of loo roll, and a nice view of the mountains to boot. We felt it necessary to warn the newbies to not get used to such luxuries.

By 1030, we had reached Paracas from where we took a speedboat out to the Ballestas Islands for a spot of bird watching. The excursion should really be entitled ‘bird smelling’ for the odour emanating from the impressive rock formations was, well, impressive. Of sorts. This guano was historically exported as fertiliser and if you are so inclined, there’s a great article here with details of the history and process.

It was great to see tiny penguins next to huge pelicans, and we were also treated to some snoozing sea lions. My favourite part was on the return journey when we watched cormorants divebombing the fish below, one after another.

The Ballestas Islands are often referred to as the ‘poor man’s Galapagos’ which seems rather harsh given the rich abundance of wildlife on show. This biodiversity is the result of two merging currents in the Pacific Ocean: the warm waters of El Niño and the cooler waters of the Humboldt (named after the Prussian naturalist Alexander von Hi Humboldt who also has a penguin named after him), which create the perfect environment for plankton and phytoplankton.

And here endeth today’s lessons. This stuff had better turn up on Pointless at some point or I’ll be fuming!

A not-so-promising start in Peru…

by Gary Patrick Brown, posted in Peru, Punta Sal, South America

We left Cuenca bright and early (and with moustaches in aid of Movember) at 0700 to start the long drive south to Punta Sal in Peru, allowing us time to cross the border and reach our accommodation in good time for dinner which was being laid on for us. Having fallen in love with Ecuador, I was excited to enter a new country. My enthusiasm was slightly dampened when I saw that the relatively short queue at immigration was moving slower than a sloth. Thankfully, the line to exit Ecuador is next to the one to enter Peru and the process was painless. Neither immigration officer spoke to me, but I didn’t take it personally and was just thankful to be back on the truck within an hour.

Almost immediately upon entering Peru, it was evident that we were in a different country. Unfortunately, it wasn’t for the right reasons. There was rubbish EVERYWHERE you looked. You might say it was a blot on the landscape, but there wasn’t much landscape to speak of, just flat, scorched earth with barely a sign of life. It was quite the comedown after the incredible topography of Ecuador. After an hour’s drive, we stopped in the small town of Tumbes to eat lunch and to draw out/ exchange money. The phrase ‘if at first you don’t succeed, try, try again’ may well have been coined by the first person trying to get cash from a South American ATM. Despite the machines proudly bearing stickers showing they accepted all manner of Visa, Maestro, and Cirrus cards, the reality is somewhat different. However, after the 7th attempt, I had some nuevos sols in my pocket and could at least buy some lunch for me and Charlotte (who hadn’t been so lucky at the cashpoint). Lunch in this case was a very unsatisfying brown roll with three (yes, I counted) slithers of avocado and no butter. However, considering it cost the equivalent of €0.30, I suppose I shouldn’t complain.

Shortly after lunch, we sighted the Pacific Ocean, but the usual excitement with which the sea is usually greeted wasn’t on show as the landscape remained barren and strewn with detritus. There began some murmurings of apprehension about our upcoming stay, and I think a lot of people started to scale back their expectations. We needn’t have worried though. Almost out of nowhere, our campsite appeared and there was a visible group exhalation once we had spotted the pristine beach. We pitched our tents on the sand and cracked open some beers while marvelling at the incredible sunset that played out before us. I love sleeping by the sea and the soothing sounds of the waves soon had me in dreamland. I was disturbed at 0330 by my tentmate, Astrid, waking me up to look at the full moon and its reflection dancing on the waves. I might’ve been annoyed on any other occasion, but it was a pretty incredible scene and we chatted about how lucky we were to be on this adventure.

The entire group opted to spend the next day relaxing at the beach, unsurprising given the 11 hour journey undertaken the day before. I managed to catch up on a bit of reading but managed to persuade Ian to grab a beer at lunchtime which pretty much set the tone for the rest of the day. We chatted for a few hours before someone spotted a sea lion in the surf. I ran out to look at the magnificent creature but the site of his distended stomach and infected eyes was anything but magnificent. The mood turned somewhat sombre, especially when we discovered he was the first of three to wash up that day, along with two turtles. Despite being initially excited at the prospect of a swim, I declined to dive in on this occasion. Following a delicious beach barbecue, Astrid and I elected to pack up the tent that evening given that our departure time the following morning was at 0400. Yes, you read that correctly. Astrid managed to bag herself a bed in a cabin, while I chose to sleep in a hammock under the stars. It was incredible, unlike the wake up call at 0345.

Since then, we have travelled through some pretty cool terrain to Huanchaco and Huarez which is where I am now. At one point, the endless rice fields made me think I was back in Asia. Unfortunately, for the past few days I’ve been in bed with a dodgy tummy, so I’ve had to forgo more rock climbing and a nine hour hike to the incredible Laguna 69, so there’s not much to report. I think the culprit for my illness is the chicharrones I had during a truck picnic. I’m not too mad though as: a) they were delicious and b) I’ve lost some much needed weight. We start the drive to Lima tomorrow and I’m hoping that the rest of my time in Peru is a bit more adventurous than lying in a bunk bed with intermittent sprints to the toilet.

Cuando en Cuenca…

by Gary Patrick Brown, posted in Cuenca, Ecuador, South America

In my previous post, I said that the journey by road was the best I’d ever experienced. I lied, forgive me. The journey from Chugchilán to Cuenca has usurped the number one position on that particular chart, and I have a feeling it might be something that happens regularly over the next few months.  The journey took 11 hours on the truck, but it really didn’t feel like it at all. I was so transfixed by the journey that I forgot to take many photos.

The journey took us past the dormant volcano Chimborazo, the highest mountain in Ecuador. The summit of Mount Everest is the highest point on the Earth above sea level, while the summit of Chimborazo is the farthest place on the surface of the Earth from its exact center, due to the fact that the Earth is not a perfect sphere but instead bulges out at its equator. Chimborazo is only one degree south of the equator, while Everest is 28 degrees north. Chimborazo’s summit is therefore 2.1 kilometers farther from the Earth’s center than Everest. And here endeth today’s geography lesson.

We drove along the Quilotoa Loop and I was constantly amazed by the little towns which seemed to be plonked at random on the mountainside. At one point, we saw a village which was completely engulfed in clouds, something I’d never seen before. It was very cool.

After eleven hours we arrived in Cuenca, Ecuador’s third largest city and from my limited foray in the country, its most beautiful. The colonial buildings made me feel like I was in Madrid at times and it is by far the cleanest city I’ve visited in Ecuador. We stayed in a nice hotel in the city centre and I was glad to be put in a room with Ian and Matt, the two guys I’ve bonded with the most so far. The next day I took a sightseeing bus around the city, having not been inspired by Matt’s suggestion of a run along the river (he doesn’t know me very well obviously). It was a great way to see most of the city as we only had one full day in Cuenca which, surprisingly, is home to the Panama hat. The name originated from the fact the hats were first sent to Panama before sailing for  destinations around the globe and, therefore, acquiring a name that reflected their point of international sale rather than their place of fabrication. Gosh, I’m full of facts today. It’s almost as if I listened to the bus guide.

Here’s another one for you: the city of Cuenca has 52 churches so you can observe Sunday worship in a different church every week for a year, if you are so inclined. I’m not. There’s no denying the beauty and imposing nature of the buildings though and they fit in effortlessly with the surrounding architecture.

The bus took me to a viewpoint above the city that afforded a great view of the sprawl which is not really felt at street level. You won’t be surprised to hear that the best part of the whole day was the glorious Alaskan Malamute that I spotted during a coffee break. He was so chilled and very affectionate so naturally I left the viewpoint and spent the next twenty minutes petting him. I wonder if I can persuade my boyfriend to get a malamute when I get home in February. LOOK AT HIM!!

I also managed to find a hoody to replace the one I lost, although I’m still on the hunt for a pair of flip-flops which appear to be ever more elusive the further I travel in this continent. Who’d a thunk it?

Today is my last day in Ecuador and it’s been a great introduction to South America. I definitely want to come back and explore other areas, including the Galapagos which I wasn’t able to fit in this trip. Likes? Definitely the variety of amazing landscapes, from the towering Andes in all different hues of green and brown, to the varied cities and villages, to the biodiversity of the jungle. The people are smiley and friendly and the food has been delicious. Dislikes? Well, overtaking on the roads is a potential Olympic sport, and there were too many close calls for my liking. The absence of toilet roll in most bathrooms is also something I’ll never get used to, no matter how many reminders I’m given.

Raising the heart rate in Baños…

by Gary Patrick Brown, posted in Baños, Ecuador, South America

Leaving the jungle behind was tough, but I soon cheered up when I started reading about the next stop: Baños. Driving through the Ecuadorian highlands, we arrived just outside in a village called Rio Verde near the Tungurahua volcano. The mountain views from the campsite are pretty special but they’re not the best thing about our accommodation for the next three nights. That honour goes to camp doggies Bambu and Rita who are both tickle monsters.

My new bestie, Astrid, and I decided to break the tour company rule of single sexed tent sharing for solo travellers and I’m so glad we did as she wakes me up with a cuppa every morning. I needed it too after discovering that my water bottle had leaked during the night leaving me with only one set of dry clothes.

Baños is an adventure junkie’s paradise so naturally on the first day I decided to treat myself to a 90 minute full body massage. The accompanying pan pipe music lost most of its soothing effect given that the front door to the salon was wide open meaning the soundtrack was punctuated with the sound of traffic and trucks reversing. The massage wasn’t entirely relaxing. After being instructed to turn onto my back, the massage therapist proceeded to blindfold me before wafting something under my nose. Anticipating that I was about to lose consciousness and be robbed, I started to get up before realising that it was in fact lavender oil and not rohypnol.

Feeling invigorated, I signed up to go rock climbing up one of the many cliffs in the canyon with three of the guys on my trip; they’re from the UK, Germany and Australia. Sebastian from Germany squirreled up the first course, something I can safely say wasn’t replicated by the rest of us. The start of the climb was really difficult as the footholds were really far apart and my little legs struggled. After four failed attempts, I had a rest and instead took over the support ropes for the others. Meda, our instructor, encouraged me to have one final attempt and somehow I made it to the summit. Abseiling down, I wore the biggest grin and felt such a sense of achievement. Ian, who has a fear of heights, decided to try again too after only previously making it halfway, and soon reached the top. It was great to see his elation at conquering a fear, and we’re all planning to go again when we reach Huarez in a couple of weeks.

On our second day in Baños, a few of us decided to try canyoning which is where you hike up a waterfall before abseiling down through the cascading water. We were in for a nasty surprise at the last waterfall however.

After such an exhilarating day, I decided to treat myself to coffee, cake and wifi. There’s a great cafe which enables you to buy food for homeless dogs, so I gave them enough for one week’s worth. It felt good to be able to help, even just a little. It’s Ken and mine’s one year anniversary today and he sent me pictures of himself reenacting our first date. Alone. It’s probably the first time since coming away that I’ve had pangs of homesickness. Thankfully lots of others in the group are in similar situations when wifi enables news from home, and they are happy to chat things through. The other climber, Matt, got engaged two weeks before he left on his six month adventure!!

Tomorrow we have a long drive day to Chugchilán via the spectacular highland scenery along the Quilotoa Loop, where we will embark upon one of the ‘most beautiful day treks in the whole of South America’.