After two wonderfully peaceful days in Jardin, we made our way to Medellín where our friend Erwin had kindly arranged for us to stay with his friend as we had been concerned about where we would stay during the really religious days of Semana Santa. This turned out to be an amazing surprise indeed. Not only did Carmello pick us up from the bus station he also took us to his favourite area for dinner so that we could catch a glimpse of Medellín’s famous nightlife (a rare thing for us indeed as we are often reverse vampires who melt in the dark). We had no idea that Carmello and Erwin had arranged for Erwin to come across from Bogota to show us around for the time he was off work during Semena Santa. On our first day, we walked into the centre from the apartment in the hills and did a bit of shopping and then slowly climbed the hill back to the apartment knowing that we didn’t really want to explore too much before Erwin arrived. Taking advantage of a free apartment we caught up on some blogging and had an easy day. The next morning Erwin arrived with his friends and almost immediately we were bundled up into the car (lets not forget Bogota is an 8 hour drive which he had done through the night) to head to Guatapé. Guatapé is a man-made lake about 2 hours outside of Medellín (on a good day). We weren’t going on a good day though and due to Semana Santa this trip took us the better part of 3 1/2hrs. After a delicious lunch we made the trek up the 740 steps to the top of El Peñon de Guatapé (15,000 COP/$6.80 AUD/5.10 USD) where you get the most incredible views of the region. Exhausted we decided Dani would brave the Colombian roads and drive back to allow the 3 who had travelled through the night to sleep in the back. The next morning it was decided that we would walk through the centre of Medellín and check out both Botero’s sculpture work and the cable car that takes you up what was once Medellín’s most dangerous suburbs. Botero very much believed in his art being accessible to the public so you do not have to pay to visit his sculptures they are just dotted around a square in the middle of the city and are definitely worth a look! The cable car is part of the metro system so it only costs the price of a metro ticket (4,600 COP/$2.10 AUD/1.60 USD) and is also quite a cool experience. Overall, we had a great time in Medellín, we know there was a lot more to do there that we didn't do but it bring Semana Santa our options became severly limited! After we bid farewell to our friends we took a few extra relaxation days in Medellín before taking the night bus to Cartagena. We had looked at both the bus and plane options because believe it or not in Colombian buses are as expensive as the cheap flights provided by Viva Colombia. We decided in the end to take the bus because this would save us on accommodation but did book a flight to Bogota from Cartagena as this would save us 24 hours on the bus, not either of our ideas of a good time! Knowing that the bus station in Cartagena is actually about an hours bus journey from the old city upon our arrival, we set out in search of the promised bus. It turns out that this is super easy to find as there is a small waiting room outside the station that will let you know when the bus arrives. Hungry and tired we jumped off the bus to a street full of hot and delicious snacks. Stocking up we set off into the heat (and boy was it hot!) The first place we found for a reasonable price was on the main street of Getsemani (this is a suburb about 10 minutes away from the walled city which is slightly more run down but still pretty and much cheaper) called Hotel Cartegena Real Inn. This place was ok but the showers were aweful and the room was hot as well as noisy. We decided it would do for the night and that we would search for somewhere better for the rest of our time there. Now, Cartagena has great name worldwide for it's beautiful architecture. This is somewhat true and it really is colourful and very pretty but we did find that it lacked some of the charm of other places we had visited in Colombia. It sort of had that ruined by tourists vibe. There were some amazing experiences we had there like our fantastic walking tour with Edgar who showed us a true passion for Colombia and the need to share the changes it has undergone with people around the world. On said walking tour, we met a really nice couple and shared travel stories over a drink that evening. Having found (what turned out to be a brothel, haha Riv strikes again) a slightly better guesthouse we moved around the corner the next day and set about finding what we had been looking for over half the continent. A cooking class! We signed up for Duran Duran’s cooking class (for more about the cooking class check out our Foodie Friday post about cooking classes around the world) and made a special request to learn how to make Colombian street food. Duran Duran could not have been more helpful in accommodating our special request and on the morning of the cooking class he picked us up from the guesthouse. Already in the car were another lovely gay couple from the States. We got on really well with the guys and we had a wonderful day cooking, drinking and eating. We ended up meeting them for a drink the next evening and had a wonderful time watching the sunset and meeting some of their friends at a roof top bar that overlooks the clock tower. Having spent a glorious few days in Cartagena it was time to head to our last stop in South America...Bogotá (Our flight to Bogotá was leaving early in the morning so we grabbed a cab to the airport and checked in. It turned out we could have slept a little longer that morning because all flights to Bogota were delayed (this had been a constant problem since we arrived in the Americas). We sent a quick message to our friend Erwin to say we were going to be late and eventually boarded the plane. Erwin met us at the airport and took us back to his apartment. We were so fortunate having Erwin to welcome us to Bogota and we had an amazing time just hanging out with him and his friends. We had one day where Erwin was going to be working so we decided this was when we would do the Bogota walking tour. This turned out to be a great decision because our guide Laura was absolutely fantastic and would go down as one of the best walking tours we had ever done. True to form on all Colombian walking tours she was more interested in showing us how Colombia had developed and how its reputation is no longer deserved than the money she earned from the tour. If you were only going to do one walking tour in Colombia this one would have to be it. We left with a new love for Colombia’s capital city and still very much in love with the country. On the day Erwin was not working he took us to the Salt Cathedral (50,000 COP/$21.17 AUD/16.74 USD) in a town about an hour away from Bogotá. It’s in an active salt mine and has the most incredible acoustics that on a Sunday can be truly appreciated when the choir is singing for Sunday services. If you have had the fortune of visiting the salt mines in Poland this is very different and is a modern church but still worth the visit. It was with heavy hearts that we bid farewell to Erwin and Colombia early the next morning. We were flying back to the UK to do some travelling around Europe before the summer wedding season that will see us attending 3 sets of friends weddings but, Colombia, we are not done with you! We have left a piece of our hearts with you forever and that crush has turned in to a full on love affair. It’s not goodbye it is see you soon. Budget Time $$$Budgeting in Colombia was an interesting task. While it was by no means the most expensive of our South American destinations, it certainly did not fit into the cheap category either. What made it different from almost every other country we had visited before was the fact that there was not one particular part of travelling around that was significantly more expensive or cheaper than another. What I mean by this is that often you find if transport around a country is a major expense then accommodation or food or entertainment is really cheap, so over the course of a couple of weeks it balances out. In Colombia, I noticed that everything is pretty middle of the road. Nothing feels like it is extortionately pricey but nothing is surprisingly cheap either. It is pretty much a country of value for money. In some ways during our trip we were incredibly lucky because having Erwin meant we escaped the possibility of unfeasibly high accommodation costs during a public holiday and the expense of transport to some of Colombia's highlight tourist spots!! Over the course of our three week stay in Colombia we managed to just squeeze in under our $70AUD/day budget which did include an internal flight, a cooking course and a chocolate making course but we would absolutely not have been able to have done this had it not been for the seven nights of free accommodation arranged for us by Erwin. Overall, it seems fair to say that Colombia is not a cheap destination in South America but it is also not an expensive one and if there was one country in the whole of the region that we visited that I would have been more than happy to blow the budget in then this would be it! From a savvy budgeter’s point of view a few things to really bare in mind are that: 1) Unlike most other countries internal flights are often as cheap if not cheaper than buses and given the size of the country and much more preferable alternative 2) Widespread international tourism is still a relatively new thing in Colombia so if you are willing to look and willing to ask you can often find yourself a good deal - they are very lovely and accommodating people, but don't take them for a ride! 3) Colombian produce is Colombia is often more expensive than it is outside of the country as the majority of it is exported, so if you are looking for authentic Colombian gifts for you or your family it might actually be more worth while to seek out locally made handicrafts than your expected coffee and chocolate idea! Budget Breakdown in AUD: Transport: $402.81 Entertainment: $327.10 Food: $251.29 Accomodation: $224.07 Souvenirs: $138.21 Drinks: $76.90 Miscellaneous: $20.56 Total: $1440.94 This is a daily budget of $32.75 per person per day. LGBT: Colombia is a very religious country however they take a very liberal view of their religious beliefs. We were welcomed everywhere we went and the gay men we met had nothing negative to say about being gay in Colombia. Our marriage was valid in Colombia and gay couples have the right to adopt here. Colombians are warm, accepting and open minded for the most part. As for trans rights there is legal recognition of changing your gender identity on legal paperwork and there is no need for psychiatric or physical examination to do so. There is also protection from discrimination and all LGBT people are allowed to join the military.
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The country we left a little piece of us behind inWhere do I even begin with this country? Despite warnings about the reputed travel phenomenon of the Colombian claw of needing to stay longer than planned or rerouting your travel plans to return neither Dani or I felt we would find much of interest to us here. Boy were we wrong! We fell for this country and we fell hard. Within 2 days of arriving in this wondrous place we were like giddy school girls with their first crush, when they've just been told that someone told so and so that somebody had heard that they like you too. Or for you gay girls out there, that moment when you get the definitive answer that that girl you had your eye on, but weren't sure which way she swings, plays on the same team. Big beaming grins were plastered on our faces as soon as we woke up and I (who had been suffering from some serious travel fatigue) felt the heaviness seeping out as we basked in the glow of our new crush that seemed pretty keen on us too. I grew up next door to a Colombian family and vividly remember hearing Ruth's laugh from across the street. Her warmth would grasp you from the moment you spoke to her and her smile just made you feel safe. This is the reason I had always wanted to come but due to it's reputation and other Colombian friends/students Dani and I had, it wasn't high on our priority list. It turns out Colombia had everything I had been looking for in South America. The warmth, the music, the colour, the food, the energy and above all else a feeling of comfort and safety we were not expecting. We crossed the border with some confusion over where to get our exit stamps from Ecuador. It turns out that the car drops you off near Colombian immigration so you have to head back over to Ecuador and stamp out. To avoid any confusion the entry and exit lines for Ecuador are in fact the same so just stand in the queue and wait your turn. We then headed over to Colombia and we're stamped in with no hassle. A glorious sight beheld us on the other side...a woman with our favourite type of polystyrene box filled to capacity with freshly made local snacks, right there as we opened the door into our next country. Now if you have read our Ecuador post you may already know that we had pushed through to the border straight from the airport in Quito. This had meant that we hadn't eaten anything substantial by this stage since breakfast the day before. This woman stared at us in amazement as we basically asked for one of everything she had. This was a great start to our Colombian culinary journey. Following this acquistion and very speedy consumption, with a bit of negotiation we hopped into a taxi (6,000 COP/$2.70 AUD/2.05 USD) and headed for the bus station to get to Popayan. The bus station had many friendly service providers who had buses leaving within an hour of our arrival. We went with the company that was leaving first for 30,000 COP ($13.60 AUD/10.25 USD). The scenery between the border and Popayan is incredible. Beautiful green rolling hills, dotted with plantations and the prettiest little farmhouses. There are also waterfalls that cascade down by the side of the road. We were in total awe...no one had mentioned how stunning Colombia was. We arrived at the station and weren't in the mood for finding our way into the city to find a guesthouse so after a couple of attempts at finding reasonably priced accommodation we stumbled across a sweet family run place which looked ok above a mechanics shop. As soon as we were connected to Wi-Fi Dani booked us on a walking tour of the city for the next day and then we headed out for some food. Even around the bus station there were culinary delights on every corner. Dani settled for a pastille, which are large parcels off meat, rice and beans wrapped with banana leaf. I opted for a couple of arepa con queso, which are a staple in Colombia and come with almost every meal. The city of Popayan is a gorgeous example of a colonial city and it is completely white. It dazzled in the sun as we wandered through its cobbled streets sampling every snack we came across (I'd like to say it was because we hadn't eaten by this stage properly for 2 days but it hey lezbehonest we probably would have done it anyway) our greatest discovery was on our walking tour when we were taken to a place to have Salpicón Payanés this is a common drink all over Colombia but this place does it slightly differently to the street stalls blending mora berries (South American blackberries) with lulo (for those kiwis out there it tastes surprisingly like feijoa) and orange with ice. It's delicious and perfect for a hot day. Now there was some debate as to whether we continued on to our next destination after only 2 nights but we found out that our friend Jen we'd met in Ecuador would be in Salento the next day, so our decision was made. We could catch a minivan to Almania and then a bus to Salento…easy. Salento is awash with colourful traditional houses amidst the low lying coffee plantations of the Colombian Andes. This was my dream. As I was a barista in a past life I have a huge passion for not just making and drinking coffee but also for the details around harvesting and roasting coffee. It turned out that Plantation House (one of the guesthouses set on a coffee plantation) had a tour that contained a talk about growing coffee, the history of coffee in Colombia, a tasting and a roasting demonstration. I learnt so much about coffee here and it has given me the desire to roast my own on return to New Zealand. The owner has a fabulous idea he is trying to get off the ground, which is leasing plants that they grow so that the yield is yours. I can tell you after sampling their coffee I will be the first to sign up when he gets it off the ground. One surprising fact we did learn is that Colombians don’t really drink real coffee. All the amazing Colombian beans we get overseas are there finest quality while Colombians are left with the low-grade beans. This is why they’ve developed Tinto which is more like a weak coffee scented sugar drink that is available country wide. Salento is also a great base for Valle de Corcora which is a valley set with wax palms (the tallest palms in the world) where you can walk through farmland and up in to the forest to a “hummingbird sanctuary” I say this because it is more like a café that puts food out to attract the birds than a sanctuary but it’s well worth the climb for the close up experience and the hot chocolate and cheese (see Foodie Friday for it’s full description) that comes with the entry (5,000 COP/$2.25 AUD/1.70 USD). After a good catch up with Jen and a few days of drinking some fabulous coffee it was time to manoeuvre our way to Jardin. It is a tiny village in the mountains about 3 hours south of Medellín. This proved to be slightly more complicated than we had imagined. Even with Jen (who speaks fluent Spanish) we still weren’t any clearer on how to get there after asking the man at the Salento bus station. We did know we needed to get to Pereira first before continuing on our journey this stage one is only about an hour and was very easy. We arrived there and had it confirmed that we were heading the right way and that we had enough time to grab a good breakfast. We caused a bit of a stir at the bus station when the stern policeman approached Dani to examine her bag. I can’t say that given Colombia’s reputation we weren’t a little nervous but this feeling swiftly drifted away when he broke into a great big smile and simply questioned why we did not yet have a Colombia patch! Full and ready for the next, inevitably more complicated stage, we made our way to the next mini van and off we set for Bolombolo. After yet another spectacular drive we were ushered off said minivan into a dusty car park. Slightly nervous now as we had no way of knowing where our final bus was going to stop and realizing quickly that everyone around us was drunk because it was the first day of Semana Santa (Easter Holy Week) we followed a local woman who had been instructed by a fellow passenger on the last bus where we were going. Finally we found the bus station, which was about 500m up the road and enquired about a ticket. The man looked slightly confused but then nodded and showed us the waiting area. This is when it really started to look bad. There were 4 of us waiting and several buses had chugged past filled to the brim with people off to spend the holidays with family. A bus finally pulled up and after being forcefully shoved to it’s driver we were told that there was only room for 2 people. Desperation setting in as it was starting to get concerningly late we begged him to allow us travel like locals and sit in the aisle as the other 2 passengers were travelling alone (we have noticed in many countries in South America unlike Asia, bus drivers are more reluctant to let gringos sit in obscure places to fill in space). We settled into the last leg of the journey and were starting to relax into the idea that we may arrive just before the rain started in and the sun set. It turned out we relaxed a little too soon, as our bus was pulled over by the military for a random search. We were taken off the bus to be searched on the side of the road. Soldiers (complete with guns and sniffer dogs) took turns to go through belongings and pat people down. Again, like earlier in the day this should have been a slightly scary experience however the soldier leading the search had one of the warmest smiles I’ve ever seen. Having decided we were all clean and that the sniffer dogs hadn’t found anything left on board he wished everyone a happy holy week and we were on our way. We arrived in Jardin as the sun was setting having been on the road since 7.30 that morning and were again surprised by the willingness for people to help us. Dani asked a woman in broken Spanish where we could find the guesthouses and suddenly she was on the phone to her friend to get a good recommendation. Unfortunately for us we didn’t really understand her instructions so we just headed in the direction she pointed in and found a little guesthouse just off the main square. It wasn’t great (this is a bit of an understatement) but it had a room with a private bathroom and the second one even had a plug socket (that he wanted to charge us extra for). The beds were like sleeping on concrete blocks but it was warm and we were done for the day.
Up early due aforementioned beds we thought we’d start with a breakfast in the main square. We found a little spot that did an excellent breakfast complete with hot chocolate and cheese before making our way around the little town. Jardin is tiny but it is beautiful. It is the most colourful place we came across in Colombia and the square lined with old timers chatting and sipping on tinto was great. It also has a wonderful walk up to the cable car which is more like a closed basket on a wire rope that swings you over the ravine back to the city (I’m not going to lie my heart was beating more than a little fast as I climbed in) but gives you a great view of the town as you whistle down. Jardin was definitely my favourite stop. The Galapagos IslandsThe plane started flying over the little islands and our stomachs started to bubble with excitement. We were finally arriving in the Galapagos after months of talking about it. The red volcanic rock was an incredible contrast to the dark blue water below and the occasional green of a cactus cut through the rock. We bumped down onto the tarmac and we were there. This was the world of Darwin (Dani’s idol) and wildlife so close and so tame you could touch it. We went through the nerve-racking process of the sniffer dog selecting my bag to be checked (although I knew I didn’t have anything, years of watching Border Control with my mother has made me unbelievably anxious) and we were then shuffled on to the bus to take us to the mainland. The airport shuttle takes you to the “ferry port” which in reality is a concrete block and you pay the boatman $1 USD ($1.30 AUD) to take you to the bus stop a 2 minute journey across the water. You then board the bus to take you on the hour long journey into town for $2 USD ($2.60 AUD). This ride is equally as beautiful as you travel through Santa Cruz’s highlands with an interesting mix of mango and banana plantations and cactus dotted volcanic landscape. When we jumped off the bus in the midst of many guesthouses we thought to ourselves “we’ve got this it can’t be as expensive as everyone says it is”…well we were right and wrong. It doesn’t cost as much as you may think and can definitely be done on a budget but gone are the days of $15 USD ($20.30 AUD) rooms. After much searching and finding that $30 USD ($40.60 AUD) was the cheapest we could find we decided to check out one last place. Hotel España looked out of our price range but I decided to give it a go anyway. I’m so glad we did because despite the original quote of $45 USD ($61 AUD) when I started to walk away the receptionist called me back and asked me what my budget was. I let him know that $30 USD was as high as we could go and for some reason he decided we could have one of their high-end rooms for $30 USD ($40.60 AUD). This came with aircon, a private bathroom and lots of space. We were off to a good start. Heading out to find some food, we were greeted by swooping frigate birds and a gorgeous sunset across the water. Being on a budget in the Galapagos is difficult. There are definitely gringo prices wherever you go including market food stalls so we thought that to keep costs down we would stick to self-catering. This meant we could keep our daily food costs down to a small sum of around $8 USD ($10.85 AUD). Our hotel had a single hob to cook on as well as a fridge, making this decision absolutely possible, however, on our first night we discovered that despite our best efforts to speed up the process cooking anything faintly tasty took the better part of 2 hours! Good thing we weren’t in a hurry for anything. Our first full day definitely had to include some wildlife spotting, so we took off for Tortuga Bay. Tortuga Bay is just one of the many free activities that are available on the Galapagos Islands. This is an easy walk through more volcanic landscapes where friendly birds pop down onto branches next to you and little lava lizards scurry through the rocks. You arrive at a beautiful white sand beach, which you walk along to get to the mangroves and there they are…marine iguanas everywhere, quietly sunning themselves in the sand. Every so often they sneeze a saltwater spray and then go back to resting. The ground is littered with them and the 2 meters you are supposed to be away from the animals at all times becomes literally impossible. Through the mangroves you also find a nice sheltered swimming beach. This was an awesome start to our wildlife adventures. The afternoon was spent trying to organise a tour for the next day and sorting out the ferry to get to either Floreana or Isabela. We found a tour to Pinzon Island for the next morning for $95 USD per person ($128.70 AUD). Up early and excited we wolfed down the food we’d prepared the night before and head off to our tour agent. We were met by our guide and walked down to the water where some lazy sea lions contentedly slept on the dockside benches. Once we had checked in, we jumped into the taxi boat that was waiting to connect us to our excursion boat and finally we set sail. As we cruised to our first destination we were treated to an abundance of sea turtles swimming past us or simply just floating on the water in the mid morning sun. Every so often one would pop it’s head up to say hello, but this appeared to be done in mild annoyance at being disturbed rather than any real interest in our presence. This became a bit of an unusual adjustment we had to make during our time on the islands. In the vast majority of cases, wildlife on the islands is neither afraid of nor really interested in you. If you don’t bother them, they don’t really even seem to notice you are there! This is because evolution on the island has taught the local wildlife that humans do not represent a danger and other than the conventional food chain cycles, there are no natural predators. The result is that the wildlife and the people on the islands, all live a harmonious stress-free existence together. On the way to our first snorkel spot we pulled up along side an island covered in a sea lion colony with a few blue-footed boobies thrown in for good measure. Diving into the cool water was a breath of fresh air in the unbelievably hot equatorial sun. Immediately tropical fish surrounded us and it wasn’t long until we were pointed in the direction of some turtles swimming past. The next dive spot after lunch was equally as good. Up on a rock not so far away was a mother sea lion and her cub. In the water, two playful adult males, who wanted to dive with the strange creatures in their space, quickly joined us. Words can’t do this experience justice. These majestic animals diving and dipping elegantly around us almost willing us to twist and turn like them. It was magical! On the way back to the main island, as if we hadn’t already had our fair share of wildlife encounters for the day, we stopped one last time for a quick dip with some baby nurse sharks and marine iguanas. We were also treated to a visit from a baby sea lion, which Dani affectionately named Rodrigo. We were positively glowing with joy when we returned to Santa Cruz in the slowly setting sun, so it took a while to notice it wasn’t just glee we were radiating with, it was the most intense sunburn either of us has ever had! Turns out the sun on the equator comes with it’s own special variety of ouch!! We had done the right thing and reapplied our sunblock regularly but apparently this hadn’t been sufficient. After long cold showers we gingerly tucked ourselves into bed exhausted but truly enamoured with this wonderful paradise. Upon waking I felt a searing pain through my back and realised I wasn’t doing anything today. It hurt to move, it hurt to wear clothes, it just hurt. A lazy day it was going to be! We bravely faced putting on our bras and headed out to book our ferry for the next day. Just by the wharf was a place that had a 6am ferry to Isabela for only $25 USD ($33.80 AUD) – this was $5 cheaper than almost every other operator in town. We had decided against Floreana because the ferries left every second day and we just didn’t have enough time to do everything if we had to leave the day after we had planned to go. In the morning we were again treated to a stunning sunrise with sleepy sea lions barking their displeasure at being woken up by tourists. The ferry crossing is a bumpy 2 hour journey so if you get sea sick make sure you’ve loaded up on antinausea meds the night before. Riding into Isabela you start to truly understand why the Galapagos is considered a paradise. In contrast to the predominantly urban port of Santa Cruz which lacks a bit of charm, the port at Isabela is on the inside of natural lava barriers and set within mangroves. You bob past blue-footed boobies perched on rocks and yet again arrive in a port with friendly sea lions lolling about on the sand. Your bags are again checked and you pay your $10 USD ($13.50 AUD) per person entrance fee (we were livid having already forked our the $100 USD/135 AUD fee on arrival and the $20 USD/27 AUD fee at Quito airport – there were unquestionably times during our stay that the Galapagos that it did feel a little like a tourist money pit). We had done our research, which told us that the main town on Isabela was only a kilometre from the port so we ignored the hustle for us to get into a shared taxi and headed off down the main road into the sunshine. On the outskirts of town we decided to check out Hospedaje Sarita, which was a little guesthouse with 2 rooms in it. The room we were shown had a small kitchenette (but the proprietor did say that we were welcome to use her kitchen as well) and a private bathroom. It was also $30 USD ($40.60 AUD) so we took it. Sarita and her family were lovely and we would highly recommend staying here. It was only a short walk into town and there are a few supermarkets where we could pick up food for dinner. It was in Sarita’s kitchen that out of the few ingredients available on the island, I came up with Gringo Risotto, which became a staple on the Galapagos (check out Foodie Friday this week for the recipe). We had chosen the Tintareras tour as the one we were going to splash out on due to recommendations from a friend. After extensive checking, Dani found a company for $40 USD ($54 AUD) for a half-day tour so we booked in for our second day on the island. We had also been told we needed to check out Concha de Perla which happened to be a 5 minute walk from our hostel, back towards the port. This is another highly recommended free activity and actually became our favourite place on the Galapagos. You walk down the boardwalk through the mangroves and get to a platform often taken up with…you guessed it, sea lions. Underneath the platform is a lagoon filled with tropical fish, baby sea lions, marine iguanas and on our last visit we were even lucky enough to swim with penguins. Dani is a bit of a wuss (or if you’re in the know, very English) about getting into cold water and so would have to slowly inch her way in, step-by-step down the ladder each time she entered. On one such occasion, she was sitting on the last step of the ladder building up the courage to come in while I was swimming around spotting my favourite purple fish. At this point, a sea lion that had been sitting up on platform hiding in the shade, decided he wanted to come down the ladder and get in to cool off. He made his intentions perfectly clear by sitting at the top of the ladder and staring at Dani expectantly and eventually impatiently. As Dani stubbornly refused to get in (but did attempt to shuffle to one side as her other exit strategy was now prevented by aforementioned marginally pissed sea lion) the sea lion had enough of waiting and started waddling down the narrow steps. Her punishment for so selfishly standing her ground was to be bitch slapped by the sea lion on his way down much to the amusement of onlookers. After a quick dip and swim around, the sea lion came and rested his head near her feet with a look that appeared to say…“well are you moving or what?!”. This time there was no getting around it; a simple side shuffle would not suffice, so she reluctantly climbed the stairs to allow him past. On our trip to Tintareras, we were able to swim with giant mantarays beneath us as well as schools of tropical fish and turtles fighting against the tide. We were also lucky enough to spot a few penguins perched on the rocks as well as frigates and blue-footed boobies soaring overhead. This half-day trip takes you to one of the 2 good snorkelling spots near the dock. The spot you get on your tour is dependent on the tides on the day and we discovered our spot was directly behind Concha de Perla. You are also taken to a small island made out of lava rock where we encountered innumerable baby marine iguanas due to it being nesting season. There are so many free things to do on Isabela. You can wander down the beach to the giant tortoise sanctuary where you can learn all about the life cycle of a giant tortoise and see a plethora of these fine creatures up close and personal. You can see hatchlings and larger 20-year-old tortoises being readied for release as well as some older than our grandparents. This walk also takes you past the lagoon where the flamingos sun themselves and more marine iguanas float past. There are also walks you can do to the wall of tears, which was built as a punishment for convicts that were placed on the island when it was being used as a prison. All in all you don’t even have to do the expensive day trips to see what you came to see. Just being on the island is a magical experience. After 3 wonderful days we woke early in the morning to head back to Santa Cruz for our final few days. Having already done the trips we had planned to do on Santa Cruz our last 2 days were spent enjoying the free activities the island had to offer. We explored the local hotspot of (?) which is a small canyon with a deep body of water at the bottom. This is full of large fish and a beautiful contrast to other snorkelling areas on the island. We also checked out the small mangrove boardwalk Las Ninfas, which is a pretty afternoon stroll where you may spot the occasional sea lion chilling out or chasing fish. There are also good twitching opportunities for those bird watchers out there. Overall the experience in the Galapagos was worth every cent. Although it is a very expensive excursion we felt justified in the cost based on the experiences we got to have. I would say that even if you can’t afford the day trips the cost on the islands aren’t prohibitive once you’re there so don’t let the flight cost put you off. There are some once in a lifetime places that shouldn’t be missed and this is one of them. If you can afford to get to another island I would say that Isabela offers the best of everything. Cheap enough accommodation (we know that it’s double the mainland cost but $30 USD ($40.60 AUD) is fairly reasonable for a private room) and ways to prepare your own meals certainly keep costs down if you’re willing to live on rice, beans and tomatoes for your journey. I think I can speak for both of us when I say do it…you won’t regret it.
We have very detailed budget and costs available to those who would like them. Please send us an email if you would like more information.Baños turned out to be the best decision. When we got in to the bus station we agreed that it was Dani’s turn to check out the accommodation. Within 5 minutes she was back and gleaming. She had managed to find the most amazing room at Hostal Soliel for $15 USD ($20.25 AUD) per night for a beautiful double room, overlooking the mountains with a private bathroom and it’s very own balcony. We couldn’t believe our luck and happily agreed to the discounted price if we would stay for 3 nights. Baños quickly became one of our favourite places in Ecuador. Unfortunately due to the number of tourists that visit, it is more expensive for basics, but it is definitely worth the extra expenses. An easy money saving tip is to eat at the market stalls around the bus station (yes they do have llapingachos!) rather than in the main market but there are also plenty of street vendors selling delicious snacks out of baskets. As we were fast losing our opportunity to visit the Amazon we decided on a day tour from Baños. This trip is one of the best things we did in South America. I know some of you are thinking…day trip, seriously? Our decision to do this was purely based on the time of year and the expenses in each country. The weather in all of South America has been changing over the last few years and rainy season hadn’t come in a lot of the Amazon Basin in the surrounding countries (I know it’s called the rainforest but you know...keep denying global warming!) In Ecuador there has been higher than usual rainfall. This means that the places you can visit the Amazon from have become unpredictable in relation to whether you’ll be able to get down the river or have the opportunity to spot that giant otter you’re so desperate to see. As we’d had a slightly disappointing experience in the Pantanals, we were reluctant to fork out such large sums of money for what was probably an amazing experience at the right time of year but wouldn’t be when we were there. This trip did not disappoint! It cost $22.50 USD ($30.40 AUD) each for a long day trip starting at 8am and returning after dark. We were driven to a few look out points along the road and in the sunshine I’m sure they were beautiful but in the pouring rain not so great. We were then taken to an animal sanctuary, which had gorgeous creatures that had been saved from the animal trafficking circuits. This all lead up to our incredible experience of riding river rapids down one of the Amazonian rivers in traditional dugout canoes. Our 20-year-old guide navigated these rapids with incredible skill and we had a lot of fun cruising down the river to our lunch spot. Lunch was served in a gorgeous cluster of traditional houses overlooking the river. Next, it was time for our trek through the rainforest to a waterfall. We had been told that this was an easy walk similar to walking through town. This was a lie. It was a climb through jungle, on muddy tracks, stopping every so often to have medicinal plants explained to us, or to be given an Amazon mud face pack. At the peak of the hill there was a rope swing that swung out over the open canopy. This terrified me but Dani was straight up on that swing and out over the precipice. You could see that moment of terror when she reached the point where the ground gave way to a sheer drop but she claimed she loved it. The last stop was a village across the river, where we had our faces painted and had a lesson in using a blow-gun. I was very proud that I was the first person to manage to hit the target. Then there was the “just for tourists” shop that had some beautiful handicrafts. After convincing my wife that I need 2 more bowls (I have a small problem with buying bowls for the house we don’t yet have) we headed back to the car for the beautiful drive home through roads lined with lush greenery and waterfalls cascading all around us (there’s a reason this drive is known as the waterfall highway). We collapsed into bed that night, so grateful that we were in a real bed after such a wonderful day (I know we’re old haha). After some wonderful relaxing days of eating and shopping in Baños (yes I did buy some more bowls but they were gifts I swear) we were ready to face Quito. Quito is a really interesting gritty city. We arrived into the southern terminal and there is a really easy metro bus to the old city right outside the terminal. It only costs $0.25 USD ($0.35 AUD) and takes just under an hour. It was my turn to find the hostel so I left Dani sitting with the bags and headed off. An hour later I had only managed to find one place within budget. It was just off Santo Domingo Plaza and looked like a convent. Grateful to be able to even go back to my wife with an option I chose not to inform her that it was right opposite the bus stop we’d gotten off at and started off up the hill! We have a love for free walking tours so Dani was straight onto the wifi to arrange a tour for the next morning. The tour just so happened to start close to the central market so it was decided that that’s where we’d go for breakfast. This market has a wonderful selection of tasty treats but we did find that the stores on the bottom floor are a lot cheaper than those on the second floor. For $1 USD ($1.35 AUD) you can get a large breakfast of bolon (a big potato, yucca or plantain ball with cheese or meat) and eggs with coffee. The walking tour was great and took us through Quito’s old town. It allowed us to orientate ourselves with the city and discover it’s hidden treasures. It was also on this tour we met a new friend who would join us for the next few days (and then again in Colombia). We all decided that the following morning we would meet for breakfast in the market and head to the 'Middle of the World' together. Mitad del Mundo is located an hour out of Quito and is simple enough to get to. You catch a bus to the La Ofelia bus station and then there are regular buses to Mitad del Mundo, which are well sign posted when you arrive. The whole journey costs less than $2 USD. We hopped off the bus when we saw the Mitad de Mundo marker. Now, you may or may not be aware that this is actually not the equator line. It is approximately 300 metres out and actually marks where the equator was measured to be in the 1700’s. Lots of people give this monument a hard time for not being on the actual equator but I think it’s pretty impressive that it was only out by 300 meters back then with no GPS. We decided against going into see the monument because it was expensive for a large stone block but we did head to the museum that lies on the actual equator. This is a really fun experience because you are able to do experiments to prove you are on the actual equator like balancing an egg on the head of a nail and watching water go down the drain in different directions depending on which hemisphere you happen to be standing in at the time (yeah we did the geeky thing of jumping across hemispheres). It was well worth the $4 USD ($5.40 AUD) entrance fee for that alone. Our last day in Quito was spent wandering through the new town and checking out the markets as well as climbing the tower in the central cathedral. We had a flight booked to the Galapagos the following afternoon and we had to debate how to get to the airport. The airport is in the middle of nowhere and a cab costs a set rate of $25 USD ($33.80 AUD), which doesn’t sound like a lot but that was over our daily budget for one of us for the journey alone. So we decided, as our flight wasn’t till the afternoon we would take the long but not complicated trip. You catch a bus to Rio Coca bus terminal and then catch the airport bus from there. It also transpired that there are direct buses from 3 major bus stations including the southern terminal and the northern terminal. Once at Rio Coca, which takes between 45 minutes and an hour it is an hour and a half on the bus from there. I know this sounds really long, but the whole journey cost us less than $5 USD ($6.75 AUD) for both of us and is definitely a good option for later flights as none of it is actually in anyway difficult. It was happening…we were off to the Galapagos. Budget Time $$$What it Actually Cost: 21 days = $1,028.54 Accomodation: $392.08 Food: $293.92 Transport: $127.52 Entertainment: $78.16 Souvenirs: $71.51 Drinks: $38.24 Miscellaneous: $27.11 All in all, Ecuador turned out to be one of the cheapest destinations in the whole of South America for us in terms of a daily budget. We aimed to average $20USD/day each and actually wound up coming very slightly under that. That being said, we didn't actually 'do' and awful lot while we were there. We undoubtedly explored the county extensively (including going rather fruitlessly off the beaten track) but when it came to partaking in the common traveller experiences like hiking the volcanoes or intrepid trips into the Amazon, these didn't really feature in our time in Ecuador. Most standard features of a backpackers trip to Ecuador are about average in terms of South American pricing. Food and transport are both reasonably priced in terms of quality to cost ratio. Accomodation can be slightly more expensive in certain places but not prohibitively so and there is often room for significant negotiation in quieter periods in popular destinations. The one thing that could and would totally blow a tight budget would be excursions, so your choices need to be carefully considered and planned. There are a lot of amazing things to do in Ecuador but the fact that it is an American dollar economy simply means that things can be and often are more expensive in terms of tourism. It is by no means impossible to happily visit and explore Ecuador on a tight budget but if it is your only destination in South America (or one of few) and you want to do and see a lot then it is likely to cost you a pretty penny or two! LGBT: Ecuador was another conservative South American country but again not somewhere we were ever made to feel uncomfortable. We had an extensive conversation with a gay man from Ecuador who left due to feeling unable to be himself. He had only recently returned to Ecuador 17 years after he left and he felt Ecuador has changed for the better in recent years. He was actually saddened that he hadn't returned earlier. Ecuador also recognise same sex relationships and have civil unions but not marriage equality. In 1998, Ecuador became the first country in the Americas (and only the third worldwide) to include sexual orientation as a protected category in its constitution. In relation to gender Ecuadorians are able to change their ID to reflect their identity. Ecuador also had an openly transgender candidate in their 2013 elections and was openly praised by the Ecuadorian president who stated that he had a huge amount of respect and admiration for the candidate Diane Marie Rodriguez Zambrano.
We arrived back in Cusco around the time we would have been getting back onto the minivan at hidroelectrica and were relieved to have an afternoon relaxing and recovering. We decided we'd stay a few nights to chill and then head north to Lima on a delightful 24hour bus journey. Luckily for us we'd mastered the micro (local bus) system and were able to find the right one to get us to the bus station when we were ready to leave. The most logical option was to leave mid morning so that we would arrive mid morning the following day in Lima. I'm sure if you've read my previous post you are aware that I wouldn't recommend this route through Perú at all and instead think that Puno to Cusco then Cusco to Arequipa and along the coast is the better option. However, if you have decided to come this way you're in for a very pretty, but incredibly windy journey through the Andes. One firm recommendation I'd make is that you come prepared for the arctic, because this bus ride at times is freezing. It is also wise to have some food with you as there aren't any major stops and as it's through the Andes, there were limited vendors jumping on board. We set out at 10am and arrived in Lima at around 11 the next morning. Our company (Transporte Wari) were reliable and relatively comfortable for the price (S/60/$24.40 AUD/18.45 USD) . On arrival in Lima we decided to head to Miraflores to look for accommodation. That was our first mistake! The bus had pulled in pretty close to Old Town and Miraflores was a 6km cab ride away. We had taken the cab costing S/18 ($7.30 AUD/5.55 USD) and arrived, only to discover there was no reasonably priced accommodation to be found anywhere. Our only option seemed to be a single dorm bed for around what we had been paying for a double room in the rest of the country (including Machu Picchu). After hunting around and even resorting to the familiar comfort of a Starbucks to use their free wifi, we came to the conclusion that we should head back to Old Town. We were pointed in the direction of a bus that cost S/3 ($1.20 AUD/0.90 USD) to get there. The bus stops about 3 blocks from the main square. Old Town has a bit of a reputation for being rough but as we're not the sort to be out at night we felt perfectly safe here. We managed to find a place called Hotel Europa right across from the San Francisco Church for S/40 ($16.25 AUD/12.30 USD) for a double room. This was a far cry from the S/60 ($24.40 AUD/18.45 USD) we had been quoted in Miraflores for the cheapest place we could find. We also found a really nice looking 2 star hotel around the corner for only S/50 so it's worth looking around. The benefit of being in Old Town is it feels a lot more local and a lot less over developed. Miraflores is clearly affluent and has been very westernised, thus making it a very sanitary and expensive part of Lima. We booked onto a walking tour of Old Town the next day and it was an enjoyable way to get to know the city but we still weren't really sold on Lima. A couple of interesting things we did discover about the city were that it's the second driest capital in the world and that there is a daily show for the changing of the guard at the presidential palace which have a full brass band that play all sorts of music from classical to pop. This happens at 12.00pm and is worth checking out. The other area close to Old Town which warrants a trip if you have a spare afternoon is Lima's bustling Chinatown. As surprising as this may seem, there are some excellent chifas (South American Chinese restaurants) serving fantastic Chinese food and it has fun and buzzing vibe. The rest of our time in Lima was actually used up by us finding out how to leave. We had been informed by our guidebook that there was no formal bus station in Lima, however this is not true. The Norte bus terminal is a modern fully functional bus terminal and is conveniently connected to Lima's metro system. This is much easier to navigate than the individual bus stations for each company in central Lima and gives you an opportunity to shop around. All you need to do is catch the metro to Tomas Valle and cross the road to the station. Most buses come through this station on their way out of Lima and if you board at this point it saves you the epic boredom of sitting in Lima's unrelenting traffic. You will find that most buses have two different times that they depart from Lima, one from the companies office in the centre of town and one about 1-1.5hrs later from the terminal. Unless you have a penchant for being on long distance buses in city traffic for no real reason, I would opt for the latter! After much deliberation we decided not to stop at any of the costal towns in Perú when we left Lima, as we're not big beach people and we don't surf. This meant another long haul journey to Tumbes before crossing into Ecuador. We were quoted prices ranging from S/60 ($24.40 AUD/18.45 USD) to S/120 ($48.75AUD/36.95 USD) and in the end we went with 'Flores' with the middle ground price of S/100 ($40.65 AUD/30.80 USD). This journey is long and very much the same as the ride from Atacama to Santiago (monotonous!!) The coast of Peru and Chile is a long stretch of desert that runs along side the Andes. It made for a long and boring 24 hour trip. Tumbes is also not the greatest stop but it's functional. This is a good place to change money before heading into Ecuador and by the main square there are official money changers that give good rates. This crossing also has a bad reputation but is actually really easy and no longer the danger ridden nightmare it has previously been made out to be. We decided to take the easy way with Cifa bus but in hindsight it would not have been a problem to do this crossing independently. To get to the Cifa station you walk along Avenida Simon Bolivar until you see the Jose Alfredo Mendoza Olavarria Hospital and it's on the opposite side of the road. Don't get a taxi it's not necessary no matter what they tell you. The bus cost us S/21 ($8.50 AUD/6.45 USD) and there were a few buses leaving in the morning. The bus stops at the very modern and simple shared border and you stand in one line to exit Peru and then move to the next queue to enter Ecuador before getting back on the bus and heading to the border town in Ecuador. Here you change to connect with other cities. Overall, we absolutely loved southern Perú. Past Lima we found there was less to do for our sort of traveller as it was a lot of adventuring or beaches so we did skip over a lot of it. We had been told to be careful of buses in Perú however we found them to be reliable and comfortable despite taking the cheapest options almost every time. The food is also as excellent as they say it is so try as much of it as you can. Just a quick note about Perú though, as some of the information above may now not be accurate. A week after we left (March 17th 2017) there was some major flooding from Lima all the way up to Tumbes. As I've already mentioned Lima is one of the driest cities in the world and this meant it was not equipped with drainage systems to deal with the water when the river that surrounds Lima burst its banks. The roads heading along the coast were also damaged and flooded. Due to this, the route north we took is not currently functioning. A friend of ours was in Lima during the floods and had to fly to Tumbes and others we met were having to redirect the way they were planning on entering Perú based on current conditions. The roads should return to normal and Lima will also recover but it is something to be aware of as Perú is a developing nation and this may take time. The only thing I can say is have patience and a sense of humour and you'll be just fine. Budget Time $$$What it Actually Cost: 23 days = $1,364.73 (AUD) Transport: $415.61 (this total includes a train journey from Machu Picchu that was significantly out of our budget but was a very kind last minute gift from our travel guardian angel ;-)) Entertainment: $308.21 Accomodation: $262.30 Food: $241.90 Drinks: $58.21 Miscellaneous: $50.92 Souvenirs: $27.19 This worked out at an average daily budget of $29.65 AUD per person per day. We came into Perú from Bolivia and two things I was expecting to be significantly more expensive in this location were transport and accomodation. In reality, this was not the case, in fact, in most cases, accomodation was actually significantly cheaper, of a better standard and easier to find. We could have paid a lot more than we did for transport as the range for most journeys is pretty wide, but something we did learn about Peruvian bus travel is that it doesn't really matter how much you pay, you get what arrives on the day. With the exception of a few companies like Cruz del Sur and Oltursa (which are always of a high standard but also always come with a high price tag), it's a game of chance. There has been a big deal made about the safety of Peruvian long distance bus travel, but honestly, we saw no evidence of unsafe looking vehicles and never had a problem on any of the journeys we took. Meals in Perú come in a similar set menu fashion to those of Bolivia. Breakfast, lunch and dinner can all be acquired at any number of small local family 'restaurants' and each meal comes with the addition of some form of extra whether it is bread and a juice/coffee with your breakfast or soup and a small dessert with lunch and dinner. On average these set us back anything between S/5-8 ($2-3.25AUD/1.50-2.50USD) and almost always felt like very good value for money! One thing that will undeniably stretch your budget in some way in Perú will be Machu Picchu. I checked every possible method of getting to and from there and all combinations of visiting, from all-inclusive packages to total independence. All of my research turned up one rather disappointing answer, Machu Picchu is expensive. That being said, it is totally worth it and is a must-do when you are visiting Perú. One of those worth-while budget breakers I have talked about in the past. Perú was another country where we managed to come in a little under our expected budget but I don't believe this would have been possible had we not been travelling in quiet season. We were there in February when the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu is closed for maintenance and the impact of this is a huge decline in the number of tourists all over Perú. Obviously, if you intend to do the Inca Trail this is not the time to visit, however, if that's not really your thing this is the perfect time to come!! There are great deals to be had all over the country for everything from accomodation to excursions and even transport. LGBT: Perú is a relatively conservative country however neither Dani or I had any problems. The people are friendly and appeared pretty accepting. As of January this year discrimination towards people based on sexuality or gender has been made illegal and they now recognise that violence towards a person based on either sexuality or gender is a hate crime. This being said there is a higher level of conservatism in Perú than surrounding countries and LGBT Peruvians still face difficulties living openly as laws designed to protect "public morals" are often used against those who identify as LGBT. This being said a bill to legalise marriage equality was put forward for debate in February.
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