Last time I was in touch I was heading off on my tod to Iguassu Falls on the border of Argentina, Paraguay and Brazil. I flew into the Brazilian side, stayed on the Argentinean side, and yoyo’d between the two for a couple of days confusing the officers at the border controls! The Falls themselves are worth a photo from the Brazilian side and a good day of scampering about through the various levels of the Falls on the Argentinean side. They really were stunning and it was a tropical paradise with humming birds, swarms of butterflies, monkeys and tourists!
After a few days it was back to Brazil and to Salvador to hook up with the girls. It was great to meet up with old friends and do a bit of holidaying with them for a couple of weeks. Salvador’s Pelourhino district was architecturally beautiful with its lovely Spanish buildings and little cobbled streets – sites of South America I was growing to love.
Watching someone’s wallet getting nicked though wasn’t such a good experience and a reminder of the poverty of Brazil and the easy pickings they can get from unwary tourists. After a night there we spent over a week on a paradise island called Morro de Sao Paulo. It had no transport at all and the taxis were local lads with wheelbarrows taking us through the narrow sandy street to our accommodation. Great food and good to be by the sea again. The island was quiet, with beautiful beaches and blue sea and the only wildlife seemed to be the locals – strange compared to all the marine wildlife I’d seen in the Galapagos. After a chilled time it was back to city life and Rio – great beaches, a surprisingly beautiful city with good restaurants and people watching, though not as busy as I’d pictured it to be. A big thank you to the girls for letting me join them and putting up with my pauper’s budget and my paranoia about safety – I owe you a drink or two for your patience!
A transport saga was had by all as we headed to the airport and nearly missed our flights. However, in laid-back South America checking into an international flight half an hour before take off thankfully didn’t appear to be an issue! So they trooped back to London and I headed off on my multi-stop-off journey to Sydney starting with Santiago for one night, then a couple of days on Easter Island. A strange place, extremely remote. The famous headed statues (Moais) didn’t disappoint – they stare down at you towering into the blue sky. They are not as mysterious as I’d imagined and the construction of them pretty much crippled the island of any resources it had as they cut down all the trees to use as rollers ruining the land and any wildlife/food that it produced. What I hadn’t been prepared for was to see such a stunning island – rugged, volcanic rock and endless blue sea.
Took a horse for the day to see it properly. Piti, my guide, was much taken with me, I think due to the fact that I was a tourist who actually could ride a horse (the fact that I couldn’t speak Spanish, an issue with most people, didn’t seem to matter!). So I got a good tour of the island including riding into the surf on a beautiful pink beach, narrowly missing a snake bite (horse noticed it and bolted), eating wild guava from the trees, and being honoured guest at Piti’s family BBQ on another beach. Fish fresh from the sea that morning, slabs of tender meat, beers, an inquisitive and interesting group of people and great hosts. I felt quite privileged. I pretty much galloped my way out of Easter Island having spent too long at the BBQ, I needed to be at the other end of the island by 7pm for my flight later that evening. So I left behind a sad-faced Piti who thought I’d be much better off staying on the island with him rather than joining my husband in Sydney (well I had to tell him something to prevent his advances!).
It was sad to leave South America after nearly 3 months, I enjoyed it there and it was good to me. I had brief stop off at Tahiti next which I didn’t like – a rich person's paradise, no character. I again had a transport nightmare and nearly missed the ferry back to the main island to catch my flight. A desperate plea to the ladies in the deluxe Sheraton (which I fortunately stumbled upon) saved the day. So after 20 flights and 8 countries I finally got to Australia and friends and family. I had a lovely week in Sydney catching up with them all and seeing the familiar sites of the lovely beaches, the Harbour and good bars and restaurants. Then it was off to my Aunt’s in Adelaide which as many of you know is like a second home to me. I was thoroughly spoiled for 2 weeks and have to say struggled to get back into travel mode afterwards. Went to theatre, cinema, concerts and visited old friends. Had a fantastic w/e wine tasting in the beautiful Clare Valley with its autumn colours looking stunning – golden leaved vines. Loved my long beach walks in the mornings and the dolphins really put on some great entertainment this time with an almost daily display as they leapt in the air chasing fish and playing in the sea. Thanks Sue for a wonderful fortnight.
So back on the road again. Next stop Australia’s ‘top end’, the north. I didn’t think much of Darwin, too flat and characterless and was glad to be heading out in my 4WD Campervan to see some of the outback up there. Sounds deluxe? Nope! Great for 4WD’ing but small to sleep in, cook in, live in. For those of you who aren’t familiar with dirt roads it’s a little like driving on marbles, or over a corrugated iron roof – not much control, a bit slidey, but quite good fun. There’s barely another car on the road and your focus is on avoiding ruts, rocks and roos rather than other drivers. Tackled the area often called Australia’s ‘last frontier’, though I think it’s called that to entice the tourists as it’s not as remote as I’d imagined. It’s a trip I’ve always wanted to do travelling over 2000km from Darwin to Broome through the Kimberley range (though having done it I still think South Australia has the best to offer). Saw some beautiful spots such as the Bungle Bungles, 360 million year old rock formations that look like giant beehives. Empty remote gorges, eerily silent except the birds and the beating of my heart in anticipation of crocodiles! There are 2 types – those that eat you and those that don’t! The freshwater ones don’t and I was assured that the gorge I canoed in was only inhabited by that type. I must confess to becoming a bit of a twitcher – birds here are so much more colourful than at home though I have a lot to learn. I still think the common parrots here are great to watch, and what I thought to be a rare specimen due to it’s incredible rainbow colouring turned out to be the very common Rainbow Bee-Eater which I consequently saw everywhere! A highlight for me was the Boab Tree – full of character lining the rivers and roads. It’s a tree that can reach well over 2000 years old and is shaped like something out of a children’s storybook – Google it and you’ll see what I mean. The Aborigines say that it was punished by god for being too vain so he turned it upside down with its roots growing skywards.
The final outback stop-off was on a beautiful homestead where they are trying to restore the land with natural trees and grasses, as well as promote local Aboriginal artists and teach locals how to ride horses. So I decided to treat myself to an early morning ride but my 5 year old mare decided it was too early for her and she succeeded in bucking me off. Nothing was hurt except my pride – my Easter Island admirer would not have been impressed!
After a few days in boring Broome (a beautiful beach but nothing else to offer) it was time to move on again. Now half way through my trip I have just arrived in Exmouth for some big fish activity on the Ningaloo Reef here which apparently puts the Great Barrier Reef to shame. We shall see….
Farewell South America
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