Hayley in Wanderlust: Lima & Mancora

 

 

Lima is a 22 hour bus journey from Cuzco, which sounds hideous, I know. But what if I told you it was actually one of the most comfortable 22 hours I'd had on this trip so far? I'd be lying, right?
Wrong.

 Cruz Del Sur are now and forever my favourite transportation company. A bus company that operate through Peru and parts of Ecuador and Columbia, it's first class travel for a fraction of the price. I got asked which meal option I would like, meat, chicken or vegetarian? They couldn't even get the right on my flight from London to Rio! I also had my own personal TV screen, seat that folded all the way back and effectively turned into a bed, blanket and pillow. It was bliss, and it cost me just over £40.
(It was also on this bus journey that I realised I could watch entire films in Spanish without subtitles in English and understand everything... but, that's just me bragging now).

As cities go, I really liked Lima. It's not somewhere I had heard much about in the way that I had, say, Buenos Aires or La Paz, but it certainly exceeded expectations. I was still travelling with an Australian guy I'd originally met in San Pedro, and we stayed at 'Pariwana Hostel' in the Mirafolres neighbourhood. It was lovely. The hostel was big, clean and cheap enough on the food and drink front. They also offered a range of day activities, including a tour of Downtown Lima, which we took up. It turned out to be less of a tour of that actual part of the city (although we did walk through the large Plaza de Armas) and more a tour of an old Franciscan Monastery. It was beautiful, and took my back to being at school, you know, because of the whole 'Roman Catholic' thing? Although, these days I'm more impressed at the fact that I can walk into religious establishments without instantly bursting into flames.

The strangest, and cutest, thing about Lima though is Parque Kennedy. A park in the middle of Miraflores that is full of stray cats. I don't mean stray cats in a maingy, gross kind of way either. I mean it is literally a park fill of fluffy, cuddly cats who are out to scam you for your last chip. There was so many of them, and it made a nice change to the amount of street dogs I've seen across the continents various cities. Bizarre and adorable.

Sadly, it was in Lima that I had to say goodbye to James who was returning to Sydney. Without a doubt, the worst part of travelling and living in this little nomadic bubble is creating bonds with amazing people who live miles and miles away and having to say goodbye. It keeps you on your toes, and just ends up making you want to travel more so you get to see everyone again.

Then it was another fab journey with Cruz Del Sur up to Mancora, a beach town in north Peru. No words to express the happiness I felt at feeling the sun in my face once more. Lima had been both warm and by the beach, but was horribly overcast.

I had been told, by many, many people, that THE place to stay was the Loki del Mar. I had been told it was the craziest of all the crazy hostels and that I should prepare myself for full blown debauchery. In my head, it was like something out of 'Sun, Sex and Suspicious Parents' and my mother was going to pop out of the swimming pool catching me downing 3 litres of rum... It wasn't anything like that. Instead I found a good hostel, with a fab sized swimming pool and decent menu, that had a great vibe and offered alcoholic slushies. It had a little pathway straight on to the beach, where there were planet of opportunities to take part in water sports and surf lessons. Mascara was also fab for shopping, and I spent money out of my now dwindling budget on clothes I wont really be able to wear in a British climate (crochet crop top, anyone?)

It was also here that I met the next group of poor unfortunate souls who'd be stuck with me until way  into Ecuador.

I love the beach.

- xo

Hayley in Wanderlust: Cuzco

 

The Holy Grail of my trip, and one of the main reasons I've been so obsessed with coming to South America, is Machu Picchu. It's just one of those fantasy places. You know, the kind you read about and see pictures of but never actually think you'll get to visit? Like Lapland or the Moon.

There is, however, a lot more to Cuzco than just a fleeting visit on route to the famous Inca ruins. I was there for 11 days and could have stayed so much longer- the place is so much fun.

Following La Paz, I thought it best to avoid staying at the 'Wild Rover' here, and opted for the 'Milhouse' instead. Unlike it's Buenos Aires counterpart, this 'Milhouse' is unbelievably chill, the breakfast is amazing (fruit for breakfast in Bolivia and Peru doesn't really happen in hostels) and each bed is section off slightly and comes with it's own reading light. Sadly, I was only there for one night before opting for a cheaper hostel called 'The Point',  but I probably should have just spent my money. 'The Point' was clean, and offered the same facilities as 'Milhouse' but the place was organised chaos. As receptionists in one of the busiest backpacking point in South America your ONLY job is to assign people to the correct bed. That's it. Tell us where to sleep and get it right. Not rocket science, but when there was an issue every single day I was there, I started to wonder if maybe one required a degree in Quantum Physics in order to get it done.

I would love to say that I used Cuzco as a time for a little RnR, but that would be a lie. The Wild Rover here, although much tamer than the one in La Paz (Thank you Lord baby Jesus, and Mary and all of the saints), still served as the perfect place to start nights out on account of cheap drink offers and fun atmosphere. Then, we'd head to either Temple or Mama Africa's (very little recollection of either).

I also, went to a music festival whilst in Cuzco, and can subsequently never return to Ollantaytambo or The Sacred Valley of the Incas.

Spontaneity isn't really a word i'd associate with the choices I make, no matter how much i'd like to. I'm a control freak, who always tends to have a plan. Pulling an all-nighter at amusic festival in the middle of Sacred Valley was not part of my plan, but in the name of being a good backpacker (and because my friend and I woke up horrifically hangover and looking for anything to brighten up our day) when the opportunity to go to Arkana arose, I didn't say no. The three day pass was about £25, and despite the fact that we were only going for a night, it seemed like good value.
The whole thing was an experience, and I'm still not sure why Psych Trance is allowed to be a type of music, but I'm glad I went. Truth be told, I think I'm still getting over it...

Following Arkana, and once I'd managed to get a decent nights sleep and eat a meal not made on festival grounds, I headed into the Plaza de Armas to book my Inca Jungle Trek. To do the actual Inca Trail, you have to acquire you permits months in advance and be aware that it's over $700 to do. No thanks. I'd already read about, but had also been recommended the Inca Jungle Trek by dozens of people. It's way cheaper and wasn't just a solid four days of trekking - I was sold. I got mine, including white water rafting and zip-lining for $230, then paid an extra $10 to catch an earlier train.

Day one involved mountain biking 2000km down a road... it went horribly. I'm not a cyclists and Peruvians drive like crazy. I was mid panic attack about sixty light years behind the rest of my group when my guide pulled up in the van next to me asking if I just wanted a lift down. I obliged. Don't get me wrong, it was just another thing that made me feel like a big fat loser who can't do anything right, but sometimes it's important to admit defeat. I have other strengths.
The afternoon and whit water rafting where a much bigger success and whilst I'm still unsure as to the safety of the company we went with, it was so much fun I honestly didn't care. The views were unreal too. It looked like someone had painted the mountains and cloud around us.

Day two was hike day. It was hard work. Bloody hard work, actually. The sun shone gloriously and a solid two hours was an almost verticals uphill climb. At the start we walked along a road and I remember looking ahead to this great mountain that stood before us and thinking 'Fuck me, I'm glad we're not walking up that!'
We walked up that.
I resented every single second of the climb, but when we reached the top it was so worth it I wasn't sure if my lungs hurt from the strenuous exercise or the sheer beauty of the valley below me. It was incredible. I should hike more often (hahahahaha). On route, we stopped at two 'Monkey Houses', whilst our guide explained about Inca history, their culture and the way they used the land around them. Fascinating, by the time we reached lunch I felt I'd never earned a meal more in my life! (This 'out door' thing is still all quite new to me).



Day three involved a morning of zip-lining, which is probably the closest I'll ever come to flying and was proof my fear of heights is dwindling as I grow older and wiser and then a three jour walk. Following the pervious day's hike, three hours didn't seem too bad, but it was monotonous. We walked along the train tracks that take you to Aguas Calientes, the town that sits below Machu Picchu. Once you got over the prettiness of the place, the following 2.5 hours were mind numbingly dull. Aguas Calientes is a really cool town, but one that's soul purpose is clearly geared around tourism. Still, it was dinner with the group before heading to bed, ready for a 4am start.

There are two ways up to the Manhu Picchu site. The first, is taking the shuttle bus, which costs you $12 and starts running from 5:30am; the second is to walk up the Inca steps when the park opens at 5am. I chose the steps, you know, in the name of pushing myself. There were 1763 of them. 1763 steps of death that made the steps up to my Zia Gina's house in Sicily feel like an escalator. It was torture, every time I thought I was almost there I was most certainly not  almost there. It took me an hour. Please don't read this and think that it was your average staircase either because it wasn't. Each step was a different height, width and length. Some were gentle, some felt like the spirit of gym memberships past come to kick my arse. Reaching my destination has honestly never felt so good. When I entered the site and finally saw the ancient City of the Incas, I'm not ashamed to say that I had tears in my eyes. It just stunning, the weather was perfect and it was all just a bit 'knock me over with a feather' to be honest. I was speechless at it all because I'd done it. Me. Hayley Devlin who was last for every sports team known to man, the girl that used to hide behind the tennis courts during cross country, had made it to Machu Picchu. My ultimate Bucket List item, officially ticked off.

My return to Cuzco was brief, I arrived back at half 11 and by midnight was out and drinking, celebrating the fact that I'd survived it.

Dramatic and drunk...

They'll probably put that on my tombstone.

-xo

Hayley in Wanderlust: Bolivia

From Uyuni, my trip into Bolivia took me to the mining town of Potosi. I'd caught up with one of the girls I met in Santiago again after my Salt Flats tour ended and we made our way there together. Potosi is, it has to be said, far, far nicer than Uyuni (although, that isn't exactly hard), but unless you're going to do one of the mine tours, you don't really need a lot of time there.

My dislike of small spaces and, let's call it, 'fondness' of panic attacks, meant that climbing into a tiny working mine was off my agenda, but the girl I was travelling with went and said it was fascinating. For many, its a 'must-do' whilst in Bolivia, and its not a very expensive activity either. Whilst she was doing that, I decided to take a tour of the Iglesia de San Francisco (Church of St. Francis, my Nonna will be so proud). Its the second oldest church in Latin America, and the tour, which only cost BOB$15 (£1.50), offers the most amazing views of the city from the rooftop. However, the tour is in Spanish, and as far I know, isn't available in English. Fab if, like me, Spanish is one of the few (ok, only) skills you have, mot so great if not.

From Potosi, we caught a four hour bus to the city of Sucre, which apparently is the capital (if you follow me on Instagram, I will have already shared that fun fact with you- sorry for repeating myself). Sucre is beautiful, whilst I was there, the sun was shining and the days were warm, bizarre  for Bolivia, but I can't say that I did a great deal. Truth be told, I used to spend the day wandering in and out of the giant fruit and veg market, 'Mercado Central', where you can get your hands on a whole haul of fresh produce for well under a tanner. Take that, Tesco.
We stayed at the perfectly pleasant 'CasArte Takubamba', a quiet hostel with friendly staff, clean bathrooms and a kitchen set half in garden... Because everyone loves a bit of Al Fresco.

I'll be honest, it was really nice to have three 'down' nights following the Salt Flats. I know that being able to travel is all about seizing every opportunity available, but its also really easy to take things to far. As someone who could honestly party without a break for at least a month solidly if given the opportunity, it was wonderful to give myself a bit of rest time before I headed to La Paz...
I wouldn't fully appreciate how good it was until I was in La Paz and my life was swimming around me.


La Paz is an unbelievably amazing city; it's awesome. There's lots to do, its great to party and its a fab location for meeting other backpackers. But like most cities, it has it's dark side, and you really do have to be so much more careful here than anywhere else so far on this journey. I stayed at 'Loki' for one night and then 'Wild Rover Hostel' for about 6 nights. Both are infamous party hostel chains across Bolivia and Peru, but it 'Wild Rover' was undoubtedly the crazier of the two. There's three separate happy hours, free shots throughout the night and debauchery is generally encouraged. I felt right at home. Plus they have am extensive food menu, meaning if you didn't want to leave the hostel (and, honestly, it all came down to just how fragile you were feeling), you didn't have to.
I had lots of plans for my time in La Paz. I wanted to do Death Road, absail down a hotel with Urban Rush, see the city from one of the cable cars and browse both the Witches Market, and the market in El Alto.
It didn't go to plan.

On the Sunday that I was there, some friends from the hostel and I decided to kill two birds with one stone and take the red cable car up to the El Alto market, which only takes place on Thursdays and Sundays. The cable cars cost BOB$3 (30p), each way and offer the most stunning panoramic views of La Paz, which is basically a city in the clouds anyway. After an hour or so of worming our way around the market, we decided to head back down. The guys wanted to return to the hostel, but Catherine and I wanted to head to Witches Market. Both involved getting in taxis. The boys got in one, and Catherine and I got in the one that was flagged down, and pulled up behind it.
Essentially, there aren't uniform taxi's in Bolivia. In Sucre and Potosi, almost all of them had looked fake, but weren't. Its mot like being in London or New York, where legit taxis are very obvious, you know? There is also a type of taxi used in many South American countries called 'collectives', shared taxis that sometimes only follow a certain route, sort of like a bus, or hang about and take multiple passangers. When I first encountered them in Chile, I thought they were weird, but like most new customs you encounter when travelling, you get over it. I just want to say, that even though they're the norm out here, I still wouldn't get in one on my own and certainly not at night, but it was 2pm on a sunsay afternoon, and I was with someone.... Why would we have questioned it?
Then, the fun started. Another 'passenger' gets in, tells us he's from Ecuador and starts yapping away in Spanish and English. Then we're flagged down by a guy saying he's police. He asks the taxi driver for his papers, which the taxi driver shows him, and then he gets in the car. He starts talking, quickly and again in broken Spanish and English, demanding to see our passports (which obvz we didn't have on us, are you effing kidding me?!) and claiming that, since we were braking Bolivian law by mot having them on is, we just had to pop to office so he can see when we entered the country. Then, he starts searching through the other 'passenger's' things before demanding to search through our stuff too. I should probably add that, by this stage, we are now being driven, extremely fast, up the motorway that leads out of La Paz... but the penny still hadn't quiet dropped for me. All I knew was that I was terrified.
Before I knew what was happening, the driver had pulled over, and we were being told 'Thank you. Goodbye' (I'm not joking) as the 'Police Officer' opens the door and ushers us out onto the side of the road. Then they drove off.

Ours phones, Catherine's Kindle and some cash still with them.

Took a while to realise we'd been scammed to be honest, which just added to how horrific the whole thing made me feel. I cried on and off, for about four days and it took a least a week before I felt ok on my own again.

It all just made me feel like a bit of a failure. This trip has been my entire life since I finished university. I sacrificed the dream job, my life in Manchester and, if I'm being honest, relationships (or the possibility of relationships) to make it happen. Not to mention the fact that it's been my dream since I was at least 11. Things weren't supposed to go wrong. They were meant to be perfect. I was just beginning to feel like a capable human being, who could stand on her own two feet and be fearlessly herself again. It had been such a long journey to get back here... But in the space of a taxi ride, it had been shattered. Who was I trying to fool, right? I was rubbish at this.
For 24 hours (maybe more) they stole more than my phone and £8. They'd taken my entire trip.
I know that we got lucky, it wasn't violent, there were no knives or guns or force involved. That evening, when we were back at the hostel, we cheers'd to not having been raped, because honestly, if we had cottoned on to what was happening and fought it, it could have been a possibility.

Obviously, we were just unlucky. Wrong time, wrong place and all that jazz. I have really got to learn not to take things so heavily to heart, but two days later in was thrilled to leave La Paz and head to Lake Titicaca.

 

It's a high up, watery paradise. From Copacabana, I caught the ferry over to Isle Del Sol, where I spent the night. I have slept on Lake Titicaca, the room cost me £3 and it's possibly the most beautiful view I've ever woken up to.

Bolivia was a mixed bag, but so unbelievably beautiful I can't really say anything bad about it.

'An experience', as I believe the saying goes...

-xo

 

Hayley in Wanderlust: Salar de Uyuni

One of the main stop on the Gringo Trail (the main route/destinations a lot of travellers through South America take/visit), are of course, the Bolivian Salt Flats.
Honestly, before I started planning and researching (and staring enviously at my Facebook feed at those who made it out here before me), I'd sort of forgotten that they were thing. Look, I've never claimed to be any good at geography. Being born with extreme wanderlust doesn't magically warrent you that skill.

Anyway, since I'd been travelling up through Chile, the logical route was for me to enter Bolivia as part of a Salt Flats tour from San Pedro. The place is full of different tour opporaters who all offer you roughly the same package, for roughly the same price. The tours vary in length too, with one option leaving you in Uyuni, and the other bringing you back to San Pedro. I was going to be doing it with two of the girls from my G Adventures tour (as well as one of the girls I has met in Valparaiso and a guy from our hostel) and, to be honest, they did most of the planning.

We booked with a company called 'White and Green' and, admittedly, our tour was slightly more expensive. It meant that we followed a slightly different route and instead of having six passengers and a driver, we had five passanagers, a driver and a tour guide who spoke both English and Spanish. It was definitely a bonus, but since I speak Spanish, I could have easily done one of the cheaper tours and been fine. Not complaining though, it really was amazing going to different spots from all the other tours and the peacefulness of it all was unreal.

On day one, we set off for the Chilean/Bolivian boarded (where I almost froze to death, it's over 4000m above sea level). Once we'd cleared immigration, we headed down to a thermal spring, which was pretty interesting. I'd never been in one before, and after the cold start to the day, it felt amazing to step into nature's bath. The rest of the day was spent visiting three massive lagoons, all of different colours, thanks to the various elements in the earth. My favourite was the 'Coloured Lagoon' as the water looked pink and attracted thousands of flamingos. So cool, flamingos are my spirit animal.



Day Two started with a visit to Rock Valley, which involved climbing up and around various different rock formations. This included rocks that looked like a camel, the World Cup and entire city. From here we headed to Laguna Mysteriosa, which was absolutely unreal. Hidden, thousands of metres above sea level, we had to cross a field/marshland filled with grazing Llamas and scramble across more rocks to get to it, but it was completely worth it. With water black like ink, and reeds taller than me, it was easy to see why they called it 'Mysterious Lagoon' - it was just so beautiful. Following lunch, we visited a canyon that, yet again, tested my stomach for heights, but gave awesome views of the tiny stream that ran through the bottom of it. After this, it was a three hour drove through the national park to reach our 'Salt Hotel' on the edge of the Salt Flats for the night.

Our final day started bright and early, as we were up and on the move by 5:30am to make it to Cactus Island, on the Salt Flats, in time for sunrise. I'll be honest, it was freezing and I really, really, really haven't packed for the cold weather. Had it not been for a jumper given to me by one of the girls I'd met in Cordoba, I would have seriously screwed. Waiting for the sun to come up in the cold was agonising, and I barely stuck it out. The two things I hate to feel the most are cold and hungry, and by sunrise, I was both. Still, it was bloody spectacular and one of the most gorgeous things I've ever seen, so yes, it was worth almost dying for. Following breakfast we spent an hour or so out on the Salt Flats taking a whole range of touristy and perfect photos (although, our driver kept trying to have artistic direction of the pictures, which I hated). Then it was time to go to our final stop, the train cemetery, which lay on the outskirts of the town of Uyuni. The train cemetery was creepy, but so cool and was basically a big kids playground, as all the trains were there to be climbed and explored.

On top of seeing some pretty amazing things, it has to be said that my group were brilliant (and yes ok, I'd met them all before we jumped in a jeep together for three days), as were our guide and driver. The food prepared each day was delicious and they accommodated a vegetarian and a vegan with absolute ease, something I had been told wouldn't be possible in Bolivia!

Yet another beautiful highlight to this continuously amazing trip.

-xo

Hayley in Wanderlust: La Serena and San Pedro de Atacama

 

From Valparaiso, I left the fab group I'd met there behind, and headed further up the Chilean coast for a couple of quiet days in La Serena.

My hostel, 'El Arbol' was basically hotel, and home to the most comfortable beds I'll sleep in all trip. La Serena is a quiet little city, and one of the oldest in Chile, but there's still plenty to do. At the start of the year The New York Times released a list of the top 50 places to visit in 2015, and the Elqui Valley, Chile, was one of them. My geography is absolutely terrible, so when I discovered that it was only an hour or so away from La Serena, I jumped at the chance to visit. Chile has one of the top four skies to stargaze in the world, and it really didn't disappoint. My hostel offered a Observatory tour which  cost CP$16,000 (approx. £17.70) and it was 100% worth the money. We were given a tour by an English speaking astronomer, got to see craters on the moon, Jupiter and clusters of stars that from Earth just look like one. It was SO cool and made me wish I'd had more faith in myself and taken Physics as an A Level.
Besides stargazing, La Serena is home to 29 churches (I saw two), a really beautiful Japanese Garden that's cute to walk around for a couple of hours and the beach. Sadly, the weather resembled London in March (although drier) so sun bathing was off my list... I did go for a run though. Exercise is so much better when you have a beach view!

Next up was an 18 hour night bus to San Pedro de Atacama, which, dare I say it, is possibly one of my top three places so far. The town basically exists for people who want to cross the boarder into Bolivia and it's in the middle of the driest desert on the planet, which means it isn't exactly cheap, but there is so much to do here.
I stayed at my favourite hostel so far, 'La Rural'. Although it didn't offer breakfast, the staff were friendly and helpful and the hammock area was perfect for lying around in the desert sun.

I'd bumped into a girl I'd met in Valparaiso on the bus, and then bumped into one of the girls from the Santiago walking tour at the hostel. I remember when I was in Cordoba and I never thought I was going to find anyone moving in the same direction as me. I'd been on my own, really on my own, for the first time since my G Tour ended and it felt impossible. Turns out, you just have to give it a couple of weeks; sort of like when I started university and never thought I was going to recognise people to say 'hi' to in nightclubs or the supermarket.

One of the most beautiful things I've done so far was a tour of Valley de la Luna. A small group of us from the hostel paid an extra CP$5000 to do a tour with five people, instead of 15-20, so that we could avoid the crowds (who wants hundreds of tourists in the photos?! Yes, I know I am one) and it meant we got to have a cocktail as the sun set beyond the mountains. It was stunning, once the sun had gone down the mountains opposite went the perfect hombre shade of pink to purple, and I found myself oddly nostalgic for the hair I once had. I'd also 85234% recommend the night sand boarding, as its the most fun thing I've done since the boat ride in Iguazu. The light up a sand dune, there's a DJ, you can bring your own booze AND if I didn't die, then chances are anyone can do it. It was bloody hard work carrying a heavy sand board up a sand dune each time, and my calves ached the next day, but it was also hilarious and now I really want to learn to snowboard because j wasn't even that terrible and could totally be the next Sean White!

In San Pedro, I also booked my Salt Flats tour into Bolivia. We went for one of the more expensive options, but it meant we got a tour guide as well as a driver, and went with a company that didn't allow their drivers to drink. Apparently, drink driving on the Salt Flats is a thing and it's a problem.

As always, I'm sad to be leaving. Chile has, for reasons I cant't entirely explain, been my favourite country so far and the idea of living here someday excites me greatly. But for now, it's time to move on and get salty in Bolivia.

-xo

Hayley in Wanderlust: Santiago and Valparaiso

Usually, I'm a fan of taking the night bus. Since South America is so big, the journey's all tend to be at least 8 hours and it saves on paying for a hostel. However, I'd been told to do the journey from Mendoza to Santiago during the day, because the crossing through the Andes was not to be missed. It's advice I'm so glad I listened to. The entire journey is winding roads through the mountains, with the ragged terrain and snowy peaks... Not exactly what I see as I drive to work along the M40, I must admit.

 

Santiago is easily one of the most underrated cities I've ever been to. The place is amazing, with so much to do and see, and because it doesn't have the same pull as Rio or Buenos Aires, it didn't really feel like I was paying capital city prices, which I liked.

 

 

My hostel was very quiet, which I found frustrating as I use hostel to meet people and as some of you will know, I generally like being able to talk to people at all times. To begin with I was worried that I wouldn't be meeting anyone during this leg of my trip. It wouldn't have been an issue so to speak, I just would have driven myself mad having conversations with myself (in my head, and don't look at me like I'm mad, you all do it too). Turns out, I shouldn't have stressed. City walking tours are also great ways to meet other travellers and the one in Santiago is so much fun. Lead by a 'Wally' (of the 'Where's Wally fame.. Also note how you're not met by a 'Waldo', here's looking at you, USA...) there are two tours in Santiago each day.

I took the afternoon tour, which walks you around the main attractions in the city. Our guide was amazing, super knowledgeable and handled our group of 30 like a pro. The tour itself is free, and then you tip at the end (the name is Tours 4 Tips after all). Obviously, you don't have to tip if you don't want to, but the guides are so fantastic you can't help yourself. I did the walking tour in Valparaiso with the same company and it was equally as fab.

 

That evening was a fairly quiet one, although I did try my first ever Pisco based cocktail, which for someone who drinks as much as I so, was pretty special.

Santiago has some of the most beautiful parks I've seen so far, which is yet another reason I loved it so much. In the centre of the city is Santa Lucia, a park created on top of a big rock. It's free to enter, all you have to do is sign up, and walking to the top gives you beautiful views of the city's rooftops from the middle of the action. There was a protest going on whilst I was there, so it was amazing watching hundreds of people swarm the streets from higher up. 'Parque Metropolitana' is one of the largest parks in a city, three times the size of Central Park in New York. It's where you find 'San Cristobol' hill and the statue of the Virgin Mary. I took the funicular up, which cost me CP$1500 (approx. £2) and then decided to walk down. The views from the top are absolutely unreal, and thankfully I was thereon a relatively clear day. Santiago is prone to smog and it can really affect how far you can see if it's a bad day. I thought walking down would be easy, but ended up walking the wrong way and doing a 5k hike to the bottom. It was a blessing though, because walking down I met these two amazing South American women, both in their 70s who live in Brazil and were grovelling together. We chatted the entire way down, which was very good practise for my Spanish (after struggling through my A Level, I'm still so impressed at how well I can actually speak it. Felt like I was never going to get there) and it was just so nice to speak to women from an entirely different generation who seemed so interested in my journey, and so pleased I was taking the time to see the world. I got a slightly different reaction from my Nona...

That evening I met up with a few of the girls from the walking tour and we went for drinks. One nice drink turned into us drinking in a student bar that only served beer or rum (perfect) and ending up in a reggae themed club called 'Jammin'. It was a really, really good night but meant that the next day we headed to Valparaiso severely hungover. I never learn.

Valparaiso (Valpo) stole my heart a little bit, and I ended up staying for six days, when the plan had been to stay for three. I stayed in a hostel called 'Muffin' which was close to bus station and far from everything else, and then at one called 'The Licananty' which was close to the centre of town, but run in organised chaos (or just chaos), I would however, stay at both again. Valpo is a bright, colourful city with street art in every corner. Again, the walking tour with the Wally's here is fantastic and it was fascinating to learn about the city's history, and the meaning behind some of the murals that paint the city's streets. Twice we ate at a resturant called 'El Domino', which is great if you eat meat as it does the best in a local Chilean specialty of a dish containing chips (French fries), fried meat, egg, cheese and fried onion. It was less great if you're a veggie as the only thing on the menu for you was a portion of chips. Please, no one mention how much weight I've gained when I get home, 'rolling back to UK' is my new motto *sigh*.

There's always something happening at night here too, there's a bar called 'El Gatos en la Ventana' (The Cat in the Window), which sells a jug of 'Terremotto' (a Chilean cocktail made with sweet white wine, grenadine, Pisco and pineapple ice cream) for £4 and hosts live bands playing local music. On the Saturday night, we went to a club called 'Metro' (I think...) which was a lot of fun, and gringo friendly. We'd been warned that certain areas might mot be the safest for js after dark, but encountered no problems and danced with the locals all night. Even when it came to going home and I got on the wrong bus and ended up in the next town over, people were more than hap to help me find a taxi and get back to the right place. Admittedly, not my smartest move, and I can't say that I would have been so cool about it had I mot been able to speak Spanish well, but thankfully I got myself home in one piece.
As well as nightlife, Valparaiso's hills are littered with loads of cute cafés and restaurants, that aren't overly expensive, selling delicious food and good drinks. Orange and strawberry juice was my personal favourite.

I could have stayed in Valparaiso. It's big, arty, fun and only a short bus ride from the beach, but sadly, I was starting to run out of time. Mid June, and my flight to Central America was fast approaching, and I needed to get a move on.

Time to head north and hit La Serena and San Pedro de Atacama before entering Bolivia.

- xo

 

Hayley in Wanderlust: Córdoba and Mendoza

I (sadly, and with the mother of all hangovers) left Buenos Aires and headed west to a city called Còrdoba. 

 

It seemed like a logical stop on my way to Mendoza, before heading into Chile, and I'd heard that it was a large student town with lots going on. I figured two nights and three days would be enough time to check the place out.

 

Còrdoba is a really beautiful city, and so obvious it's densely student populated the second you get into the centre. I stayed in a small but friendly hostel, called 'Che Selguaro', which was close to bus station and served pancakes for breakfast. Something I am rapidly learning about backpacking is that the breakfast a hostel serves is of HUGE importance... It's food that you (usually) don't have to pay for! I spent my first day wandering around the city centre, exploring it's main plaza, plethora of shops and beautiful churches.  I get the feeling I will be doing a lot of church and cathedral visits whilst in South America. They're just so detailed and pretty, and I like that each one is different. The following day, I wandered along the canal and generally pottered about. Truth be told, there isn't a lot to do actually within Còrdoba and the excursions were really pricey. If I could have (you gotta be 25) I would have hired a car and driven out to the mountains. There was a group staying at the hostel who did exactly that and they said it was 100% worth it. 

Being a student town, bars and nightclubs are plenty in Còrdoba, so on my last night there a few of us went out to explore the nightlife. In true Argentine style, the clubs were dead at 2am, and filling up nicely by 3. A lot of them offer deals on drinks and entry. We didn't have to pay to get in, and our group got two free beers. The club had a band playing live, which was a lot of fun and broke up the amount of Reggaton being played. 

I woke up the next morning, hungover, having to check out and waiting around for my night bus to Mendoza...

 

 

 

It'll come as no shock that I went to Mendoza. It was pretty much the only place in Aregntina I was determined to visit. Wine makes up approximately 87% of my bloodstream, and it was important I visit one of the world's most important wine regions. 

I stayed at the 'Hostel Lagares', which is beautiful, clean and super well run. It was, however a little bit quiet. A lot of hostels in Mendoza offer free wine hours, and sadly this one didn't, but it was still a very comfortable three nights sleep and money well spent.

I arrived on Saturday at midday, so spent my afternoon exploring the city. Mendoza is home to MASSIVE park, called 'Parque San Martin' which houses a theatre, a zoo, a university campus, a lake, a sports village and a football stadium as well as a golf course. I walked around the place for FOUR hours and still didn't make it to the amphitheater. Oops.

 

On Sunday's, all the wineries are shut, which I didn't realise so I extended my stay for one more night, and had what I can only describe as my ideal Monday instead. I caught the bus from Mendoza to Maipu (AP$22, £1.70 return) and bumped into two of the boys I'd shared a room with in Còrdoba. I'd been ready to spend a Monday drinking wine in my own (I don't have a problem, I swear), so was happy to have people to do the wine tours with. We hired bikes from 'Mr Hugo's' and set off. There are loads of bike hire places around the main road, go in and talk to a couple to see who will give you the most for your money. We visited 'La Bodega Rural' for our first glass, the place had wine barrels you could swim in (SO much better than an actual swimming pool) and the Malbec was delicious. We went to a beer garden for lunch, and then the boys went off to do a tour of a winery whilst I decided to cycle around in the sun and visit a wine bar instead. 

I can't believe I'm already done with being in Argentina and heading into Chile. I've fallen a little bit in love with the place, especially since the air in Mendoza smells of wine, and what isn't there to love about that?

-xo