It took us four hours to cross the border from Bolivia into Brazil – one hour for an exit stamp and three to get into Brazil. The Puerto Quijarro-Corumba crossing is not one of the fastest or most well-used! A couple of kids from Sao Paolo adopted me for a while to practice their English….
Tag: South America
Falling in love with travel again
This isn’t the post I planned to write this morning – I have a whole list of things to share from my recent trip and I will get to them! But I am missing being on the road like crazy today, so here goes. You may have noticed a slight change in the focus of…
Bolivia to Brazil – trip highlights in photos
I’ve just returned from a great trip which took me from Bolivia to Brazil, through stunning landscapes and surprising cities. While I gather my thoughts, here are a few of the best pictures from my trip. Above – with ‘sticker Pope’ in Santa Cruz, Bolivia. We were there during the papal visit, along with an…
From Argentina to Sri Lanka: five World Heritage sites you shouldn’t miss
I’m not really a country-counter. I’d rather return to somewhere I love and discover more than add somewhere new just for the sake of it. But when someone tweeted a link to a list of World Heritage sites recently, I have to admit taking a look. Surprisingly I’ve visited over forty, yet only written about…
Destination guide to Itacaré for South America Backpacker
The World Cup is just around the corner and interest in Brazil is higher than ever. Which is a perfect opportunity to give a little love to one of my favourite places in Brazil, Itacaré . I’ve written a destination guide to Itacaré for South America Backpacker, a great new site from the people behind…
In search of ‘El Pibe’ in Santa Marta
“Could you drive us past the statue of Valderrama?” “Ah, El Pibe!’ smiled the taxi driver. “Si, claro!” You can’t go far in South America without finding a statue. On a hill, in a plaza, at the border – statues. Santa Marta was the last resting place of Simon Bolivar, liberator of much of the…
There’s nothing ‘brave’ about visiting Colombia
“Colombia? Wow, you’re brave!” Just one of the reactions I’ve had since I came back. Several others have joked that at least I didn’t get kidnapped. But there’s nothing brave about visiting Colombia. Sure, a lot of people still associate it with the FARC. There are still areas not recommended for travel due to residual…
An old favourite, now in living colour (Canaima and Angel Falls)
Way back in the mists of time (ok, 2007) when I started this travel blog, it was more of a travel diary, notes copied from my trusty Moleskine. Although we travelled with an SLR, it wasn’t digital. So for some reason, the photos from my first trip to South America remained in an elusive Flickr…