Author: admin

  • 42. Another day, another country

    Saturday, 2 February 2019 Puno, Peru Like trying to sleep in a warzone last night with all the fireworks going off until the early hours. Flipping noisy. 7hr bus journey from La Paz to Puno. Try to avoid buses as I generally can’t fit. You may recall my 12hr bus journey from the North Cape… Read more

  • 41. Anything to declare?

    Friday, 1 February 2019 La Paz, Bolivia Arrive at Uyuni airport to see, what must be most of the staff, playing football on the airport apron. Proper goalposts and all. For those that haven’t been to Uyuni airport, it’s tiny. It’s a few strides long. Everything is manually done. Including security. No X-ray scanner here.… Read more

  • 40. You must, you absolutely must

    Thursday, 31 January 2019 Uyuni, Bolivia The only reason I’m here at the Uyuni salt flat is due to a chance conversation with my client’s CEO on my last day in their office. Whilst explaining my route, he asked if I was going to the Uyuni salt flat, as he had been a few years… Read more

  • 39. Don’t get off the aircraft

    Wednesday, 30 January 2019 Uyuni, Bolivia   Flights today were originally scheduled to fly Asuncion to Santa Cruz and then Santa Cruz direct to Uyuni. That changed a few days ago when Amaszonas changed the schedule and added a third flight such that routing is now Santa Crus to La Paz, with a 45min connection… Read more

  • 38. At the police station

    Tuesday, 29 January 2019 Asuncion, Paraguay   Drive through some basic living to arrive in the old historical centre of Asuncion. It’s clear that Paraguay is perhaps not as advanced as Uruguay, Argentina and Brasil. Whilst researching this trip, there was nothing really to entice me out into the countryside. A Jesuit mission a few… Read more

  • 37. The drugs are working

    Monday, 28 January 2019 Asuncion, Paraguay   0500hrs alarm call. Shuttle bus to airport. Not as busy as a UK airport at this time. And no beer swilling tourists going to Benidorm. Quite refined by comparison. Can see there’s a lot of bags being confiscated on the earlier flight to Sao Paulo and being checked… Read more

  • 36. Don’t like goodbyes

    Sunday, 27 January 2019 Belo Horizonte, Brasil   Pleasant morning perusing the local market which sells anything and everything. You’ll recall from yesterday’s blog that Minas Gerais is known for its cheese. Plenty of cheese stalls here. Great atmosphere and lots of people milling about. Stop off at Praca do Papa. A high point in… Read more

  • 35. A toast to Manoel

    Saturday, 26 January 2019 Belo Horizonte, Brasil   Miss Brasil and I were meant to be going to Inhotim today, one of South America’s largest outdoor contemporary arts centres and gardens but, and you may have seen this in the media at home, a large dam collapsed nearby yesterday, killing approximately 360 people, which has… Read more

  • 34. Love Actually

    Friday, 25 January 2019 Belo Horizonte, Brasil Before you start reading today’s blog, just have a look on Google Maps and find the Uruguayan capital, Montevideo, and a city in Brasil called Belo Horizonte. Go on. Just have a look at the distance. A little spur off the route for two days. To see Miss… Read more

  • 33. To buy cannabis

    Thursday, 24 January 2019 Montevideo, Uruguay   There’s a reason why you don’t hear people say, “Ooh, we had a lovely weekend in Montevideo.” It’s not a major tourist destination for a reason. Won’t be rushing back. In the older part of town, the main square, Plaza Independicia, has a lone statue of Jose Artigas,… Read more