Splash Planet

Today we had a brilliant day and just what was needed to lift me out of the down in the dumps mood into which I was sinking. We got up fairly early had our usual weetabix with honey (4 for Sam, 3 for me and about 12 for Will) and then we drove to Splash Planet about 20 mins up the road. This is a water park and we were a bit worried that the rain which has dogged us for the last two days would continue... but it held off. If you went to a theme park in England when the school hols had just started it's rammed and you have to queue for at least 2 hrs for each ride and it costs about £70 to get in... but not in NZ, this is when the lack of people is a blessing. We paid £35 for the three of us and took a picnic of salmon and avocado sarnies and spent the day shooting down tubes into massive swimming pools. It was brilliant. We also played crazy golf, went on go-karts and jungle buggies and spinny dingy things. Whilst we were there we met up with a family from the camp site so Sam also had more kids to play with and honestly, there were no queues... unbelievable.

We spent all day there and left as they closed the gates, we drove back to the campsite and cooked up a pasta with mushrooms, courgette, aubergine, asparagus, onion and garlic with tomato and cream sauce mmmmmm... followed by chocolate and red wine (coke for Sam). And we have just realised that we have now passed the 4 month mark today!!

I would attach a picture from the splash planet but the stupid camera broke again (we will have to pick up a new one in the Jan sales) so instead here's a picture of all the lovely surfers from the Mount... by the way Mum and Joni thanks for the girly hugs xx

Xmas time...

We are still on the campsite in Napier and Sam has spent two very happy days playing with his mates on an enormous jumping pillow, in the pool and is currently zooming around on a go-kart!! The site is full of kids which is brilliant. Meanwhile Will has gone mountain biking with his friends and so I am sat here in the computer room waiting for the computer to charge and feeling a bit sorry for myself because I want a friend to play with too!

The guy Will is mountain biking with is the one whose house we are going to over Xmas, we met them yesterday and they seem very nice people and it sounds like there will be quite a few people arriving at their place over Xmas. This will be good as it's cool to have people around but it also makes me a bit nervous as they are all people that I don't know and I hope they are all nice! This is where boys and girls don't work the same way, Will says 'Of course they are all nice, they're my friends' and logically I know that, but being a girl it's also nice to get a hug and a bit of re-assurance, that's when you miss your girly friends the most!

Today me and Sam went for a walk into town and had a cake and a drink in the local bakery, we agreed that we really like Napier as it's a big town but not so big as to be overpowering and it has the Xmas spirit that was missing from Gisbourn. There's also quite a bit to do here and we will visit the water park and the aquarium over the next couple of days. The weather here is changeable at the moment and swings between being overcast and drizzly to sunshine but so long as it's not raining lots it's fine. We will head to the Mahia peninsula in a few days (I can't believe it's nearly Xmas - It doesn't seem so close!)

Attached a picture of the van and Don (the lovely guy who lent us his workshop in the Mount)

Napier

Today we drove to Napier which is a pretty cool town and is the Art Deco capital of the world having been re-built in the 1930's following an earthquake. We wandered around the town for a bit and had some lunch and then drove to a camp site in town in the hope that we would find some kids for Sam and guess what - we did! Sam now has a new friend called Shane who he has been happily playing with for the last few hours.

Tomorrow we will go to 'Splash Land' which is a big water park nearby with loads of slides etc and probably a great day for Sam. As you can tell we are starting to settle into life in NZ a bit more now and the lack of people and funny green hills isn't quite so daunting anymore.

That's it for now as am typing in the dark and can't see the keyboard and we are finishing a bottle of red wine. Will says please all pray for waves!!

Moaroara springs... I think

Last night I had a stern word with myself and have managed to stop moping around, in fact we had a lovely day today. We woke up and drove to the local store where we picked up some bacon and then parked up by the river and had for breakfast a lovely greasy bacon butty complete with posh ketchup mmmm... it beats the weetabix which we have had every day since we arrived in NZ and none of us can face eggs again after the overload in South America.

Full of breakfast we drove 50k up the coast to a place which has hot pools which you can bathe in. The pools are set in a lovely rainforest environment and we walked in the rainforest for 30 mins until we came across the pools. There were 3 pools, one was freezing, one pleasant and one boiling and so we hopped between the three (well I avoided the cold one) and chatted to a couple from Bournmouth a couple from Holland, a couple from Germany and a guy from Chile. It was lovely, sitting in a hot bath for an hour or so. Sam played in the river and tried to climb a tree (unsuccesfully) I like it when he does things like that it reminds me that he is only 12.

Tired and happy we drove back to the same camp site as last night and are now sat in the van, Will sleeping, Sam reading and I'm about to make tea (butter chicken curry with beef) and do French with him. Tomorrow we are heading inland to a lake in a nature reserve where you can hire boats etc which will be brilliant... see I had forgotten that you have to go out and make fun things happen to have fun.

Mahia... I think

We have finally left Gisborn and drove down the west coast in search of somewhere new to stay. The road was windy as ever and still reminding us of tellytubby land, took us over a mountain pass and into the clouds so it was super foggy. It's a bit drizzly here today. After the mountain pass we realised that we had little fuel and no cash so we stopped to find out where we could find these things... as I said before, these aren't exactly the busiest towns around. We were told that there was a petrol station and a cash point 8k away at the Mahia Peninsula so we headed in that direction and filled up but we were unable to find a cash point which would take our cards. So back into the van and we drove around the peninsula... it was very pretty but guess what? No people!! I think I have agrophobia and am developing a fear of empty open spaces filled only with sheep!! We drove on to the next town, I'm afraid I don't know the name (only that it begins with a W) and so we decided to spend the night here as there are lots of people and shops etc. It's very pretty and we are camping by a river.

I don't think it's necessarily that I need to be in a town because I was fine in Nicaragua and El Salvador in which there were very few people, but there was at least a nice little community and I think that's what was missing in Gisbourn... oh listen to me moan, perhaps I should just stop thinking about it and get on with it! Emily I will follow your advice, we are headed to the South Island and then will head back to the top of the North Island and do the Coromandel etc as we have heard that it's lovely, where did you live when you were here?

We also spoke to Will's friend who owns a house on the Mahia Peninsula and has invited us for Xmas. There will also be an 8, 12 and 14 year old there so happy days for little Sam. Right off to mark Sam's English and eat a spag bol prepared by Will.

Jolly nice people

Today Will had his tooth extracted and is doing fine (although he can't eat tonight he he he). Will and Sam both had a surf this morning and Sam is really pleased as he has been getting some really good waves. We went to the YMCA to see if there were any kids activities going on but it's different to England as they don't seem to have any holiday schemes here for the kids, I guess they must all just go to the beach. You would think that now school has finished the town would be teeming with kids but it's not, you would also think that just before Xmas the streets would be filled with people doing Xmas shopping but they're not, it's all very strange, where is everyone?

I have to keep reminding myself that we aren't in England and that everyone smiles at each other here, and just because someone is smiling at you it doesn't mean that they want anything from you or are a bit strange, it's just that they are generally really friendly, trusting people. Perhaps it's because it's such a new country and doesn't have all the mistrust and grumpyness that seems to come with being English (or in fact European). As I like smiling at people it's great that people smile back, although occasionally it is nice to slip back into a bit of UK grumpyness and not smile at anyone for a while.

I think we may move on from Gisborne in a couple of days. I can't say I have really bonded with the place it's an odd town and as I said before it's a bit empty. Next stop Mahia peninsula and hopefully a tonne of kids.

Thanks for all your comments on the last post it was lovely to hear from you all and we love you all lots. Grandma Lynne how about we schedule a call at 9pm your time tomorrow that's 10am our time the following day?

Toothache

Today we went to the dentist as Will has really bad toothache, we went to one who said they only had one dentist and directed us to another with 4 dentists and they agreed to see Will. It turns out he has a decaying tooth and can either have root canal which will cost a fortune or just have the tooth taken out tomorrow so he has opted for the second.

It was also a day for sorting out things like flights to Bali etc and checking out our insurance (for dental cover) etc. It's nice and warm again here although it fells quite muggy tonight and I hear they may be rain coming for the next few days but we'll see. We have bought steak for tonight which we will cook on the campsite BBQ and have with a salad. It's nice to be able to cook our own meals and obviously saves us cash as well (that said we did have a McDonalds for lunch, but that was so we could use their free wi-fi)

Life in the van is still ok. We have quite a routine going now for setting up the beds in the evening and folding everything carefully away in the morning and we all seem to sleep quite well although the bed is giving me backache if I lay on my side but it's ok if I just lay flat, we also still have to sleep on a bit of an angle as the beds a bit short. Sam seems to sleep well although he claims he's not (which means he may have opened his eyes once in the night). This evening I am going to read my NZ book to try and find some stuff to do on the way south. I would like to visit a Mauri site with Sam as I think it would be educational for him and there is an interesting relationship here between the Maori's and the European settlers. It's a bit like the UK I think in that the government would like to think that all is ok and they make efforts to incorporate Maori culture into everyday life, such as using the language on the signs etc... but the people say that there are still lots of divisions and that things can't be smoothed over as easily as the government would like to have you believe... but that's only the European point of view it would be interesting to hear the Maori side... although the Maoris do look quite big and scary.

Yesterday I was having a 'what the hell am I doing here' day. Just walking along wondering why we are travelling around the world and why we are not cosied up in our house in England enjoying the winter snow, mucking out in the freezing cold and drinking mulled wine... but then I chatted with a few people and realised that this is just as good only different. That it's nice to experience different cultures and see the way that people celebrate in different ways. When I say to people here that I miss the snow they look at me like I am a complete lunatic! I guess holiday times make you nostalgic and Xmas is a time when we would be together with friends and family but it's only a year and we have already done 4 months!! I don't want to wish my time here away but being away does make you appreciate what you have left behind (I think I felt like this before - sorry if I'm repeating myself).

I think one of the problems is that we are not yet in a proper routine here although one is slowly starting to form. It's good to be able to update the blog again ( pics coming soon) and Sam and Will are surfing again. I am also getting back into a book and have started yoga again today and schooling is back under way with a regular pattern, so I think once the routine is more settled so I will feel more settled.

Right off to cook steak and drink red wine - it's not a bad life ;)

Camping

If you think the English weather is crazy you should try New Zealand!! Today we woke up to lovely sunshine after a boozy night on the campsite. A few couples got together and drank wine and beer (and some jamesons!) and we had a lovely steak salad whilst Sam played with his friends Tom and Will. The drinking went on until about midnight when the Jamesons ran out and the noise levels were getting a little too loud for camping comfort... needless to say there were a few thick heads this morning and a few red eyed people wandering around the site. One couple were the parents of the kids, another Scottish couple have just emigrated here and are driving around until they find somewhere to stay. Then there were the friends of the couple with the kids and a random couple from NZ who are travelling for 6 months in a big converted horse box!

This morning we went with the other family for a surf around the bay and I chatted to a man in a car for about 40 minutes whilst Will and Sam went in the sea with the kids... Sam got some fantastic waves. Then we had an amazing burger and Sam had a whopping ice cream. This afternoon we have chilled out at the camp site, studied some French, done the laundry and had a nice shower. Most of the campers have left now as the weekend is almost over. We will stay a few more nights as Will wants to see the dentist as he has a whopping toothache. We have just met another couple travelling from the UK (unfortunately no kids).

So now we are off to find the leisure centre to find more kids - wish us luck.

Cccccold....

I know i have no right to moan whilst most of you are buried under 10 ft of snow in the UK but when the sun isn't shining here it's blimin' cold. And today is one of those days, it's amazing how much the weather can effect your moods. Yesterday was brilliant sunshine and good waves, we wandered through town and bought some xmas pressies and best of all, a van pulled up next to us on the camp site with a 13 year old and a 16 year old complete with lovely mum and dad. The kids surf and the parents drink wine and beer, perfect.

Sam spent the evening with the boys and we chatted with the parents (Martin and Michelle) about the trip and bless them, they have invited us to stay when we get to Australia. So all was well... and then today we got up to clouds and wind and it's cold. But we have a plan, we are going to check out the olympic sized pool here and see if they have any kids events on over the holidays and there is a golf course we are going to find so all is not lost.

Life in the van is pretty good and the sleeping arrangements are working well. Last night I made a disgusting stir fry, tonight maybe pizza hut (don't fancy cooking in the rain). Must go now as Will is going to call his Mum (Dee, have you had the baby yet?)

Gisbourne

We woke this morning to sunshine (thank god) and spent the morning pootling around the campsite, Sam enjoyed watching the TV for half an hour, a rare opportunity for him these days and Will sorted all the food out in the van. Then we went for a walk around Gisbourne. As it's the 'Surf Capital' of NZ we were surprised by how un-surfy the town centre is, with only two surf shops and about 20 book shops. Still it is a nice town and looks a whole lot better in the sunshine... even the waves have picked up and it looks like the boys will get a surf today (hooray).

We have decided to stay a few more nights on the campsite, generally there are more kids around on the weekend so it will be a good chance for Sam to make a few friends. We have also had a chat with the tourist info people so we can see what kids events are coming up over the holidays here as the kids break up from school next week... so it's looking good for 2 of our 3 requirements we have surf, kids (almost) and so far no coffee shops but I have had to give up coffee as Ellie turned me back into an addict and I had a raging headache for the first day that I had no coffee so I have decided to ease off for a while. As for future plans... we have none... we want to do the North and South Island and will probably stay for a bit with Will's friend on the Mahia peninsula. Right now I am headed for a lovely hot shower, Sam is back in the TV room watching 'Wizards of Waverly Place' and Will is out in the sea worrying about sharks... happy days!

The East coast

We have now left the Mount and have driven around the top part of the East coast and are now in Gisborne (the most Easterly place in the world) and the place where the sun rises first. Captain Cook discovered this place and there is a big statue of him here and lots of roads named after him... driving through NZ is a bit like driving through tellytubby land or a lego land. The landscape is made up of green hills and valleys covered in even greener trees, with the occasional lake or river shimmering at the side and sheep dotted around. Every so often you will come across a farm house along the windy road and perhaps a farmer herding sheep along the road and everyone gives a little wave as you pass. It's very unpopulated and the towns that you come across have a few houses, a village shop and not much else! It looks like England but with palm trees but it's a bit strange because there is just no-one here!

We of course drove in search of waves but didn't find any until we got to Gisborne, where we are now going to stay a few nights. It's raining here and very dreary (we miss the Mount) but perhaps the sun will come out tomorrow. That said, we are all in good spirits and have found a nice place to camp tonight. The site is on the sea front and has a building with a nice kitchen and a games room so we don't have to stay in the van to cook and get everything damp. Sam has been reading gossip mags on the drive over (well, he said he was reading but he could have been looking at all the boobs)!! He is now clued up on who is marrying who and who is divorcing who in the celeb world - very educational. The van has proved to be a success and Will laughs at me (and gets cross with me) because everything has it's place and I am super organised... still he was grateful when I could quickly lay my hands on the sowing kit to remove the urchin spine from his foot!

Right now Will is cooking a butter chicken curry, Sam is doing science homework and I am updating this. I think we will stay in Gisbourn for a while and see what delights it holds for us. Love and miss you all.

Back in the game...

Well, thanks to the lovely Brett and Ellie we are now back in the game and more blog posts will be coming your way (and more pics once I upload them). The reason that Brett and Ellie have saved the blog is that they have now left NZ and have left behind their internet connector with us... they have also left us loads of food and cutlery and bedding for our van which is now finished, We used Don's workshop and built a fab table in the van which collapses at night and turns into a comfotableish bed... it's very swanky. We have lovely foam mattresses which were professionally covered by Don. Sam has a fold out foam mattress which was professionally covered by Coralie (Ellie's next door neighbour) and all these lovely people helped us out and gave us their time and their stuff for free,,, we love NZ!

We have all surfed and me and Ellie went for a lovely horse ride on the beach, we have eaten lovely food and are just having a great time. Yesterday we spent our last night with Brett and Ellie and a couple of their friends, Jamie and Mattie, at a music festival near to Mount Maunganui. A music festival here is very different to UK, it's a much smaller scale, more like a local festival, with a beer tent, a small stage and maybe 100 people, but it was great, we sat in the sun and drank a few beers listening to the music and Sam played rugby with a few kids. The festival finished at 6pm (bless) and we went to the campsite which was beside the river and free... Sam, Will and Jamie went in the river on the surf boards for a paddle and then we had a BBQ as the sun went down. Sam also had a go at fishing with his mates and has decided that he would like a fishing rod from father Xmas this year. All in all it was a perfect evening and we were very very sad to say goodbye to Brett and Ellie this morning :(

We drove back to Mount Manganui and decided to do all the touristy things we had missed out on. We walked up the mount which took about an hour and was beautiful (Will went in bare feet and is now foot sore!!) then Sam and Will went for a surf and afterwards we went to the hot springs for a soak, followed by a kebab!! We are all now in the back of the van parked up by the sea and Sam is reading, Will is snoring and I am updating this... sorry it's been so long I'm sure I have missed out loads of things. I hope you are all not freezing too much in the UK. Me and Sam wish we had snow but we have a Xmas tree in the van, loads of tinsel and advent calendars (much to Will's disgust). More updates tomorrow evening as we head off up the coast on our NZ roadtrip.

The beach

Today just a quick blog as am v. tired after a busy day. We got up this morning and jumped in the van with Ellie, Brett and Brett's friend Jon and headed for the coast in search of waves. We travelled to Raglan, two hours away and all had a good surf and lots of nice food.

Tomorrow we are horse riding... hooray!!

The nicest people ever

We have had a lovely few days in NZ and met the nicest people ever. After a good first nights sleep with Ellie and Brett we woke up and went off to find a place to rent tools to fix up the back of the van... we stumbled into an upholstery shop and asked the nice guy if he knew where we could rent some tools... after a while he said that if we went off and bought the materials we could come back the next day and use his workshop and tools for free!!! So we drove to a hardware shop to buy the wood etc... whilst we were there we met another really nice guy from Birmingham who chatted to us for about an hour and said that he was going away for Xmas and perhaps we could stay in his house (we weren't sure if he was serious but he invited us for a drink, so we are heading up there tonight to see him anyway because he was really friendly).

The next day we drove back to the workshop and spent the day building a bed and table in the back of the van, we haven't quite finished but Don who owns the workshop said that we can go back on Tues and finish it off (by the way Sarah, the van is called Ron (after Ron Weasley of course)). Yesterday we had a lovely day sat at Ellies in the sunshine, a few of her friends came over and we had a few beers in the garden, Sam played with the next door neighbours kids.

Today is Sunday and we got up this morning and bought some meat and veg and I made a roast... a long awaited roast, it all turned out well even though we couldn't find any goose fat! We are now about to jump in the van and head up to Carl's (the guy from the hardware shop!) for a drink or two.

All in all we are having a lovely time here, it's so much easier to communicate with people and the whole area is very laidback and safe. Sam has been having a fab time playing rugby and riding around on Ellie's bike. The shops are 5 mins away as is the beach. Tomorrow we are heading to Raglan in the van which is about 2 hrs away and then on Tues me and Ellie are going for a horse ride (Yay!)

Hope all is well in snowy England x

The van

We are now over the jetlag, just about! Yesterday was a crazy day, we decided to look into vans and how much they were to buy and looked at various vans online to get an idea of cost, as we were walking through the street a van drove by with a for sale sign in the window. It looked like a business van with 'tea/coffee/snacks' written across the side and lots of orange bubbles. We flagged the van down and a Czec couple got out, they had been travelling in the van for two months and were leaving NZ in a couple of days so really needed to sell it. The van looked really tidy and was a Toyota Hiace which is what we had been advised to buy... the only problem was it was too much money. We said if they didn't sell it to give us a call and we would make them an offer. We didn't think much more about it and went to watch Harry Potter at the cinema, it was really nice to do something so normal! Sam enjoyed the film but realised how much better the book is (a good lesson I think).

That evening we called the people about the van and made them an offer (much lower than their asking price) they said no and so we decided that the next day we would get a bus down to see Ellie in Mount Maunganui. But the next morning the people called back to say they would accept our offer but needed the money that day!! It's very difficult to withdraw a big amount in NZ on UK cards so we had to pool all our cards and try and withdraw a bit on all of them... after a great deal of stress we finally managed to scrape the money together and are now the proud owners of a cool van which Will is going to kit out. We drove the three hours to Ellie's in it and it drove like a dream, we also have all the receipts and past ownerships so I think we got a great deal in the end.

The drive through NZ was fab, it's very green a bit like driving through Devon in the summer and the sun was shining with a few whispy clouds in the sky. Sam was reading the map and we decided that all the names were hilarious and they all sound the same (I think because the Maoris only have about 15 letters in their alphabet - very confusing). Then we arrived with Ellie and Brett and had a lovely meal of fish and chips and beer (Sam had fanta!) it's great to see friends and we will spend a week here kitting out the van and getting ready for our next move, we don't know where we are going to go yet, but that's the beauty of having the van we can now just cuise wherever takes our fancy.

Blogs may be a bit less frequent at the moment as NZ doesn't offer free wi-fi like central America so I'll try and do longer ones when possible...no pic either I'm afraid as I'm on Brett's computer...lots of love to you all.

Auckland

We finally arrived in Auckland at 6:30 this morning after a 13 hour flight. The plane was as ever very nice with the usual blankets, eye mask etc... the only problem was that Sam couldn't get to sleep. It was one of those awful nights when you really want to sleep, know you should be sleeping, but it eludes you and so you sit feeling more and more fed up, knowing the next day will be hell because you haven't managed to sleep a wink... poor Sam sat wide eyed and fidgety as he went past being tired and eventually burst into tears! And I of course, feeling equally as tired managed to fight back the tears and tell him it was fine that he couldn't sleep and it would be ok... meanwhile Will snored on oblivious. At about 3am Sam finally managed to sleep, lying with his head on me and his legs stretched across Will, it was great that he managed to sleep, but I could feel my legs going numb and kept having to wiggle my toes and stretch my legs to alleviate deep vein thrombosis! Sam slept for about 6 hours and then watched a film and shortly after we landed in NZ.

I can't tell you much about the airport (although it all went smoothly) and we caught a taxi/bus to the hotel which is really nice. We arrived at about 8:30 and were informed that the room wouldn't be ready until 2pm!! Dead on our feet we tramped off into Auckland knowing somewhere inside that it was for the best as sleeping would through us off completely. We found a pie shop and the boys ate award winning pies whilst I tried not to be sick. It was shortly after this that we rounded a corner and there was a gigantic father christmas on the side of a department store...suddenly I felt a little better... then we had a starbucks (with christmas music playing)... and a little better... and we bought a couple of books... and then I felt fine, tired but at least the shaking had stopped and I didn't feel like all the cells in my body were trying to pull apart.

So it's now 6:30pm NZ time (about 1:30 am yesterday in our heads) and we have made the day without sleep, Sam is ok but a bit tired, I'm fine and Will has a headache...but we have had a surprisingly nice day. Auckland is lovely, the sun is shining, people speak English, the food is really tasty, the green man on the traffic lights does the moonwalk and the best thing of all is that you can put toilet paper in the bin... ah the luxury.

Tomorrow we are going to try and buy a car and we are going to watch Harry Potter 7 at the cinema, we are going to climb to the top of the tallest building in Auckland (the sky tower) and then we will work out how to get to Mangaunuahni Mountain (or whatever it's called) Goodnight all... or is it good morning??!!**

Delayed...

Sat in the airport it's 11:30 and we are delayed!!!!!!!!!!!

Last day of the Americas

Well here we are on the last day of the Americas. We fly out at 11:00 tonight and have a 13 hour flight, landing at 4am NZ time... it's best not to think about these things!! Once we have landed we will stay in Auckland for a couple of nights and then head over to the lovely Ellie Pipe for a wee while whilst we work out our next move.

We have finally seen a bit of Santiago which has been nice, took a ride on the metro yesterday which is much easier to work out than the London underground and a lot cleaner!! We picked a place on the map (El Golf) and headed there... turned out to be a posh financial district but they had a Starbucks Yay!! Then we found a grassy area and Sam did some science fieldwork, working out how much flowing clover was in the field using an improvised quadrant! Then last night we went for food at a nice sushi place and ate our bodyweight in sushi... the people there were lovely and gave us more free sushi, free drinks and a free dessert... I think it was Sam's big brown eyes because everyone loves Sam (and giving him free desserts).

Right now Sam is doing maths in the room whilst Wigfields, Saturday Night, booms in through the windows... this hotel is VERY noisy! I'm about to jump in the shower and then we will store our bags and wander the town until 8pm when we head to the airport. Hopefully we will sleep lots on the plane so that we aren't too knackered when we arrive in NZ.

Pic of Sam under a big Jesus statue in Arica.

Santiago

Last night we went for a wander round the streets of Santiago and when we were in the main plaza we saw a comedian (of course we didn't know he was a comedian we just saw loads of people standing around) so we wandered over and the comedian saw Will and pulled him into the middle of the circle... he abused him in Spanish for a while (not that we understood a word of it) and Will as you can imagine was highly embarassed and me and Sam thought it was very funny. Then we came back and spent the first night in our new home, it was ok just a bit noisy and there are the original floorboards in the room so the floor creaked every time you moved!

After a decent breakfast this morning we studied English and then went for a walk through Santiago to a hill called Santa Lucia, we climbed to the top of the hill to a lookout which has views across the city, in the background you can just make out the Andes through the smog. Santiago is very hot, much hotter than we thought, we really still don't know much about it's history and I'm still amazed by the difference between Chile and the other countries we have visited, I think a trip to the museum is in order tomorrow.

Sam is very excited as Harry Potter 7 is out today and we will go and watch it when we get to New Zealand, Will is getting a HP crash course so that he can come to the cinema as well.

Picture of Chilean market attached with loads of colourful fruit and veg

Casa Morro

Today we had to move from the lovely Casa Morro - one of my favourite places we have stayed so far. If anyone comes to Santiago they should definitely stay at Casa Morro. The house itself is converted into a B&B but has retained all the traditional features and because it's filled with music and colour and dogs and cats and super friendly people it's like home from home and we were very sad to leave. Walter called around for us yesterday and booked us into another hostel called Casa Bonita which also seems nice, but in a more B&B type way, more formal, not like being welcomed into someone's house... still it seems nice here and we have a lovely big room.

Yesterday we strolled around Santiago - we didn't do anything touristy but I think we are all touristed out, we just ate nice food and looked around the shops. We went to a pizza and sushi restaurant last night but the sushi was a bit expensive so we ordered pizza, the lovely people brought us free sushi anyway which was the best sushi ever. Today we will probably do more of the same and perhaps take in a monument or two, it's too expensive to do too much sight seeing so I think we will just stroll, the cost of accommodation here is pretty high ... although there is a spa which sounds pretty appealing.

The people of Santiago are really nice and I think you're right Dad, the weight of the incas was definitely getting me down in Peru. It's also nice to be out of the desert and although we are in the capital it doesn't feel as polluted here - it feels like I can breath again (physically and metaphorically). One thing we are all really looking forward to is a roast dinner in NZ. We all keep talking about it, juicy lamb, roast potatoes, cauliflower cheese...mmmmm.... and green fields and open space....mmmmm.... NZ better live up to all the hype!!

Here's a picture of Sam with the dogs at the beautiful Casa Morro...

Santiago

We got up at 4:00 this morning and caught a taxi to the airport (surfboards sticking out of the boot)! Then we jumped on our 3 hr flight to Santiago and caught another taxi to our hotel. The hotel is lovely, more of a B&B, run by a really friendly guy called Walter who used to run a gallery in the states. As a result the hotel is very cosy and filled with art, it has big comfy beds with nice soft pillows and lots of dogs and cats... we were greeted with a lovely cup of coffee and home made muffins and Walter showed up some good places to see and eat in the city.

Santiago is far more cosmopolitan than any of the cities we have visited so far. The people, the buildings, the architecture, it's really quite beautiful. We just had a lovely bowl of Casuela which is a traditional soup filled with potatoes, rice, beans and meat which just falls off the bone (Dad it's like Grandma Lil's Chicken soup). We walked around Santiago for a few hours this afternoon but were all so tired that it was tough to put one foot in front of the other so we are now back at the hostel, all under the duvet in the massive bed watching a film, we'll drag ourselves up in a couple of hours and go out for tea, either to a crazy Mexican which has been recommended or to the oldest restaurant in Santiago, which I would prefer.

I like Santiago (but it's still expensive - apparently due to the copper trade!) Picture of posh bus attached.

Moan moan moan...

I hate to moan again, but moan I will... what a day! I got up and tried to book accommodation for Santiago as we are due to leave tomorrow at 4:30 am! For two feckin' hours I searched for accommodation and couldn't find anything that we could afford. The boys had gone surfing, so nearly crying with frustration I walked on the beach to find them, but you try and pick out two surfers amongst 100's... non plussed I sat where I always sit to read my book, figuring that they would find me. But after an hour I decided to head back, either they were having a super long surf, had drowned OR were back at the hotel... I wandered back, nearly in more tears of frustration to find that I had been locked out of the gates to the hotel, I waved to the owner who let me in and reported that the boys had already got back and were in the room...grrrrrr!!

After a much needed cry, we walked into town to get some food, when we got back to the hotel Will went to pay the agreed $40 per night, only to find that when she said 40 per night she meant 40,000 pesos...$80 per night...aaaargh!! So we ended up paying double what we thought for a rubbish place!! I went in to the office to beg for more discount but realised that I was about to cry again so had to make a quick exit.

This afternoon we tried to find accommodation in Santiago and finally found somewhere that would take us for 2 nights and was semi affordable so we'll see what that's like when we get there... am feeling much better now and not about to cry so don't worry about me (Mum). On to Santiago manana...Chile is really bloomin' expensive!! xx

Feeling better

Sorry if the last blogs have been a bit downbeat but after 2 days by the sea I am feeling much better. Arica is actually really nice and the hotel is in a perfect position by the sea, so Sam and Will can surf and I can read Marian Keyes on the sand.

Today we had breakfast and then Sam and Will went for a surf. Once they went in they called out to me as they had spotted a dolphin close by, the dolphin must have stayed around for about an hour, playing in the water about 5 metres from where they were surfing... Sam thought it was brilliant. There are also loads of pelicans which are huge and float on the water like small boats. Whilst the boys were surfing I chatted to an American guy who must be about 70+ and is running in the South American championships. He was telling me about his life, his kids and how he almost ran against Roger Bannister in his youth.

After the surf we walked into town and booked out tickets to Santiago, we fly at 6:30 am on Monday which will be a wrench because it´s another really early start...our body clocks are all over the place at the moment. We then walked up a huge hill to a look out point which is where Chile won a battle against Peru and gained Arica as part of their country (I think!)

Chilean people are lovely, really polite and friendly and they don´t try and run you over when you cross the road. They look very different to Peruvian people, with fairer skin and less indigenous features. We are now doing English homework and then if there is enough time the boys will have a second surf whilst I try and find accommodation in Santiago...should be tricky because it´s very expensive!!

Arica

We don´t have a signal for the netbook here so I am typing this on the hotels computer - so no pics for a while I´m afraid.

Yesterday we made the journey from Arequipa to Arica in Chile and it was one boring journey! We caught a taxi at 6:15am to the bus station, it took a few atempts as most taxis wouldn´t take the enormous surf board bag! We arrived at the bus and climbed on to 2nd class, no leather seats here - but at least they did recline. We then set off on our 6 hour journey south to Tacna (the border of Peru and Chile). The journey was endless and wound it´s way through miles and miles of desert, I´m sick to death of desert now. It´s so barren, so lifeless, literally when you looked out of the window there was no life, only crosses on the side of the road every few feet where people had died. Every so often a little voice in the back of your mind would say,´Please don´t break down here in the middle of bloody nowhere!¨ I saved my sandwich just in case.

So the only thing to do was watch the films which they show along the way, this would be ok, but they showed English films, dubbed into Spanish with English subtitles, and you have to listen to them as they blare out of the speakers... Finally the ordeal was over and we arrived at Tacna station, now we just had to cross the border. Before we have always gone across on the bus which has been much nicer as we just had to get our passport stamped and back on the bus. But this time we had to take all our luggage from one bus terminal to another, then buy a ticket to pass through the terminal and find a taxi (that would take our boards) and this would drive us to Arica. We found a taxi big enough and loaded the luggage and then another man got in, and then another man got in!! The taxi driver took our passports off and I thought, ´Bloody hell, now we have no passports and we don´t know where we are or where we are going and there are two strange men in the car´... and then I thought...¨Just breath and relax and it will all be fine¨. And it was fine, we drove to the border stood in a queue and had our passports stamped, then drove to the the next border, unloaded all our stuff, stood in another queue and had our passports stamped again and then drove through into Chile, we also realised that in the space of 10 mins the time had jumped from 2:30 to 4:30, It´s two hours ahead here. Wierd!

The taxi dropped us at a hotel we had seen on the internet, it´s a bit run down, but is right on the sea front and has a balcony that looks over the sea. I have been a bit spoilt with accomodation recently so I guess I´ll just have to slum it for a few days. So today will consist of surfing, and then we will walk to the centre and try and book our flights to Santiago , hopefully for Monday or Tuesday. I´ll try and update tomorrow!! Bye for now x

Arica

Today we spent the day exploring Ariqua, after a lovely breakfast on the sun terrace and a bit of science (we have just finished Immunisation!!). We walked through the streets to the museum which houses the 'little ice girl, Juanita'. She is 500 years old and was offered to the gods as a sacrifice by the incas but was preserved in the ice until she was found about 20 years ago. It's amazing she is kept in a glass ice box and you can see her teeth, skin, hair, finger nails all perfectly preserved and all the offerings which she was buried with. I thought Sam might find it boring as we watched a video and were given a tour but he thought it was really interesting.

Arequipa is very nice and built from white stone which came from the volcano.

Tomorrow morning we have to be out at 6am to get another bus at 7am to take us to the border, this journey should take 6 hours and sam is most unhappy as we are not travelling 1st class!!

We haven't managed to book any accomodation yet so it will be another trial and error day of hoping to find good accommodation when we get there. All in all a bit pissed off today, am sick of moving around ... might actually be nice to get to the coast for a few days.

Arequipa not Antigua....

Firstly an apology we are NOT in Antigua as I said in the last post (that error was due to a snotty head) we are actually in Arequipa. We boarded the night bus at 10pm last night and snuggled into our fully reclining seats with blankets and pillows ready for the 9 hour journey ahead. Sam had told everyone that we were travelling 1st class, when we turned up at the station the guy said 'I remember you, you're travelling 1st class!'... We watched the ipod for an hour and then tried to sleep. I thought it would be much more difficult than it was, I think we all slept fairly well but it was a light sleep rather than a deep sleep so we are all knackered today.

We arrived at 7am and collected our bags and the taxi brought us to the hotel 'La Casa de Mi Abuela', which means The House of My Grandma. We were taken to our room and it was just like you would find in your Grandma's house (Well not my grandma, but an old smelly grandma). The room was skanky and the beds looked dubious, it was also near the enterance and potentially very noisy, so I asked the guy on reception if we could move. We have to pay $10 more but we now have a nice room with clean beds and a view of the pool, much more our style. Will is also going to eat his bodyweight in free breakfast to make up the extra $10!

Today has been slow as we are back at higher altitude and this combined with the tiredness, the heat and the flu has led to a very lazy day... it's now 5pm and Sam is watching a film and myself and Will have just woken up. Tomorrow we are going to find the ice mummy which is in one of the museums and book our tickets to Arica (another 6hr bus trip!!) Attached a picture of authentic Peruvian people (rather than just the usual pics of me and will and Sam!)

Antigua here we come...

After a few days in Nazca it's now time to head for Antigua, Peru's second largest city. This has been a great place to relax and recuperate and I am now feeling much better, a little congested but no where near as bad as I was. Yesterday we went for a walk into Nazca and realised what an awful town it is, it's dirty and congested and doesn't have a nice vibe, thank god we have been staying in our little oasis on the outskirts of town.

The bus for Antigua leaves at 10:00 tonight and gets in at 7am so hopefully we will have a good sleep. It's the same bus we came on so it's got the fully reclining seats etc... Sam is very excited about sleeping on the bus. We will spend two nights there and then on to Arica in Chile, here the boys can surf and then we are going to fly down to Santiago so that we can catch our flight to NZ.

We are all ready for NZ now, Sam is looking forward to meeting more kids, Will is looking forward to fresh fruit and veg and home cooking and I am looking forward to talking in English again.

That's all folks. Update tomorrow, here is a picture of our hotel.

The lurgy

I officially have the lurgy and spent all day yesterday around the hotel, reading, sleeping, eating and eating paracetamol to try and combat this cold. When you are ill, you really start to miss home and because it was bonfire night in England yesterday it made it worse. I kept picturing fields with ground frost and the cool crisp November mornings, the smell and excitement of bonfire night, drinking hot tea at the farm with Justine whilst Sam plays with his friends....aaaahhhh home!! But to be honest of all the places we have stayed I think this is one of the best places to be ill. The hotel is quiet, we are the only guests and have our own private cabina with a huge bathroom. There is a view of the mountains and a fabulous pool with a waterfall for Sam to swim in. The people are lovely and have just brought Sam ice creams and the breakfast is delicious so I can think of worse places to be ill.

Missing home is actually quite nice because it makes you realise how lucky you are to have such lovely friends and family and it's not like we are away forever. Time goes so quickly I can't believe we are almost at the end of the Central/South American leg of the trip. I am amazed by Sam and how well he is able to live in the present, perhaps it's a kid thing, perhaps it's a Sam thing but he never seems to worry about the future or to dwell on the past, just live in the moment which is a thing that many of us strive for. He also is able to trust people implicitly, which is something that myself and Will are learning to do. That said he is still a bloody know it all - I think he is also getting a touch of 'spoilt child syndrome' which we are going to have to beat out of him. I guess it was inevitable being with so much adult company but that should change in NZ.

He is also really getting into photography and took most of the Macchu Picchu pictures, I am going to look out for a photography competition for him. So I'm afraid that there is little to report today, Sam and Will have gone to chemist to pick up more medicine and we will then have another lazy day around the pool - 2 weeks to day we will be in New Zealand!!! Picture of sealions attached above.

San Fernando

Yesterday we had a great day, we woke up and had a huge breakfast at the hotel and then we were picked up by 2 guys, Cesar and Roberto in their 4x4 to take us out to San Fernando. We drove on the Pan American highway for about 45 minutes and then pulled off the main road and onto the desert. We drove across the desert for about another hour and a half until we came to some huge sand dunes - here the guys pulled out some sand boards and we all had a go at boarding down a little dune, Sam and Will managed to stand up but I prefered to sit down - we stayed here for about 20 minutes and then Will moved on to the big dune and me and Sam stayed on the little one. After a while we walked back to the truck which was parked on the edge of the dune but we couldn't see where Will and the guides were and there was a strong wind which was blowing the sand into our mouths, hair, eyes, ears etc... suddenly we felt really isolated up there on the dunes alone in the middle of nowhere...'Shall we sit in the car and wait?' I asked Sam, 'No' he said, 'look at the truck' and it started to move a little bit towards the edge of the dune!! We looked around and finally saw Will and the other guys on a big dune, they waved us over to them. We walked across the top of the dune and Will told us that we would have to sandboard down the big slope as the driver was going to take the car down the side of the steep dune and meet us at the bottom. It's ok Roberto assured us, 'Cesar is the Peruvian 4x4 champion driver!' We watched as Cesar drove the car down the hill and spun in a neat circle at the bottom, meanwhile we sat on our sandboards and cruised down to meet him.

We got back in the car and drove to San Fernando which is an isolated coastal peninsula - so isolated that only 2 drivers in Nazca know the way there - when we arrived the peninsula was deserted and all you could hear were the calls of the sea lions (which sound like sheep!). Sam really wanted to see a condor and we walked to the top of the cliff, then like a scene from a film, a huge condor with a wingspan of about 5m, flew up over the cliff and over our heads. They are huge and black with white tipped wings, sudddenly more appeared and there were 4 condors swooping over us and it seemed showing off for the camera. They stayed for about 5 minutes and then as quickly as they appeared they were gone. We turned our attention to the sea lions which were below us in the bay - 100's of them, like a David Attenborough programme, sunbathing, swimming and playing in the sun - It was a real privelage to see them and for Sam this surpased Macchu Picchu as his new favourite day. We also saw penguins, baby penguins and starfish.

After an hour or so it was time to head back through the desert and I think it's fair to say that me and Will were a bit nervous about getting lost, especially when the driver pulled out the GPS!!! Everything in the desert looks exactly the same and I have no idea how he navigated us out of there, there are no roads, no signposts, just endless dunes.

When we got back I realised I had a fever and had lots of paracetamol and medicine to combat a nasty cold which has attached itself to me, so I am now going to lie down and rest and try and shake this off.

Nazca lines...

Yesterday we caught a bus at 2pm from Lima to Nazca which took 7 1/2 hours - the bus was amazing, it was a double decker and we were sat in the VIP bit downstairs which was brilliant. The seats were fully reclining and leather, complete with a blanket and pillow and films. When we got on the bus Sam started doing his science, 'This is amazing' he said, 'this is the best schooling ever.'

We arrived in Nazca at 9:30 and were picked up by the woman from the hotel - she showed us to our room which is a big chalet type building with three beds and a huge bathroom with a BATH. The hotel is new only three months old and a beautiful building run by a mother and daughter from Nazca. Once again we have a beautiful view of the mountains, the desert and there is a huge pool complete with waterfall. After an amazing nights sleep we had a breakfast of bread, ham, cheese, orange juice, scrambled eggs, coffee and cake (all included in the price). Then we tried to decide what to see first. Many planes are not flying over Nazca at the moment due to safety issues and we asked Cecelia who owns the hotel what she would reccomend - we heard there was a viewing platform and she said that she was happy to drive us to the platform. We jumped into her car and she drove us there. We had to walk up three flights of stairs and from here we could see the hand and the tree lines... it was quite a spectacular site. From here Cecelia drove us to a museum which showed us more of the Nazcan history and Sam was most excited to see the mummies!! Much of the finding in Peru are really well preserved due to the arid climate and you can see the colours in the ceramics really clearly. There is still a lot of archaeology in Peru still to be discovered and they have only recently found more lines near Nazca. They do have a problem with grave robbers though who get drunk so that they are not afraid of the spirits and then wait until a full moon, when the spirits are supposed to be more patient. They then take metal rods and poke them into the dirt to find buried ceramics, you can tell which pots have been found this way as they have little holes in them from the metal rods... The grave robbers mean that the archaeologists are not getting a complete picture as the graves are now incomplete.

After we saw the museum we booked a tour for the morning to go to San Fernando where we can see penguins, seals and Condors and then we go sandboarding in the dunes! The other brilliant thing was that they have an eagle here and Sam got to hold it on his hand and stroke it's back, it had amazing eyes and loved it when Sam spoke to it - Sam wasn't afraid at all!!

Sam and Will are now in the hotel pool and I am about to sit out in the sunshine - the desert is fun. I have uploaded another Machu Picchu photo, Nazca photos to follow.

Nazca

Well last night we went for a chinese and for the first time we had a food poising meal - at least I think that's what it was because at about 3 this morning I was sick. This followed a sleepless night as the sign outside our bedroom is on until 2am and shines into the room - Will woke up at 1am and thought it was morning because the room was so bright! There was also a party going on over the road so we had to listen to that, nightmare!

So today me and Will were both really tired, Sam of course slept through everything and only woke himself up at about 7am when he did the loudest imaginable fart! We had lots of things to do today but found out that it's the festival de muerto today (the festival of death - where people visit the cemetry - nice). This meant that all the shops were closed, we did find a department store which was open and had fun wandering around there looking at the xmas decorations etc.

We walked back from the centre along the seafront and stopped along the way so that Will and Sam could do the monkey bars, we watched the parasailers jumping of the cliffs and then we sat in the skate park and watched the skaters, BMX and roller bladers which was alot more fun than it sounds.

When we got home we tried to book tickets on the Cruz Del Sur bus for Nazca for tomorrow, we had two options. A bus which left at 3am (no way) or one which left at 2pm and got in at 9pm. We opted for the second but when I tried to book it in broken Spanglish we realised that they couldn't take the credit card. There were only 4 seats left on the bus so we had to quickly jump into a taxi and shoot to the bus station and reserve the space. The bus is a double decker and we have fully reclining bed seats, there is also dinner, films and bingo! Sam is very excited! Having booked this we needed accommodation (this is the bit I dread) but we found a brilliant place in Nazca called the Casa Hacienda Nazca Oasis and they agreed to drop the rate from $85 to $50 per night including breakfast and free pick up from the station... Hooray! So we are now doing maths with Sam in the bedroom and about to watch Harry Potter on the ipod. Will has agreed to watch the film and Sam thinks that Will watching Harry Potter is as exciting as Xmas!

Here's a lovely picture of Sam, it was taken just as we arrived in Ollanty and he saw the Andes mountains for the first time - I think his face says it all.

Back to Lima

Today we flew back to Lima after a restless night in Cuzco due to lots of fireworks and rain storms, the flight back was pretty smooth and once we arrived we were pleased to find that our luggage hadn't been stolen. We chilled at the hotel for a while and then went out for a chinese, as usual we ordered far too much and asked for the leftovers which we took out and then wandered around Lima trying to find a family to give them to, and as usual we couldn't find one person who looked in need of a meal... in the end we did find a lady who was begging in the street and she looked very pleased, and somewhat bemused to receive a massive bag of chinese takeaway! It's also halloween here and the people really embrace halloween and everyone dresses up and walks the streets with pumpkins and little bags and all the shops and hotels give the kids sweets, it's really nice and even Sam got a lolly.

Tomorrow we will book our bus ticket to Nazca and Sam and Will are going to surf.

Here are a few musings on Peru so far:

1) It smells of wee

2) The people drive like lunatics

3) The indigenous people have beautiful faces and the women have long plaits

4) It has cool places to visit

Hope you're all well. Here's a pic of me and Will drinking Coca tea to combat the altitude sickness - I didn't realise it was made from cocaine leaves... still it made me smile!!

Cuzco

Today we drove from Ollantaytambo to Cuzco - we hadn't booked any where to stay but for once we aren't carrying the enormous surf boards so we were able to just turn up and find a place to stay. In the end we found a little hotel with a nice room with three beds and a bathroom with a bath (but only luke warm water!) It also has a little balcony which overlooks a lot of rooftops, not quite the amazing view that we have been treated to for the last few days but it's clean and cheap and in a nice area of Cuzco.

After we arrived we called our families and spent a couple of hours catching up then we went for a walk around Cuzco to see what the town is like. To be honest I am really pleased that we stayed the extra nights in Ollante as Cuzco is very very touristy, when you walk through the street people jump on you and try and drag you into their restaurant - it's also really busy. It is pretty but nothing like we have been used to with the huge mountains - there is a main plaza and this has the requisite Spanish church, but to be honest we have seen a few of these now - Cuzco reminds us a bit of Guatemala. There was a lot of dancing in the plaza by women in traditional dress but we weren't sure what they were celebrating.

The main thing we will remember Cuzco for is the worst meal so far... we sat in a restaurant with a balcony overlooking the main plaza which was pretty beautiful. We ordered our food, Will had an oriental chicken dish, I had a steak and Sam had alpaca (of course)! Will's was gross, just a mountain of plastic noodles and my steak was really tough and dry, Sam loved his alpaca. For those of you who haven't tasted alpaca I think it's disgusting, it's really strong and tastes quite bitter to me. After the disappointing meal we went to McDonalds for desert and Sam and Will ordered an ice cream, the ice cream was off and tasted horrible so we asked for our money back.

All in all we are underwhelmed by Cuzco, it just feels like a huge tourist trap and nothing like the real Peru which we have just experienced. I have attached another picture from Machu Picchu as we have loads. Tomorrow we fly back to Lima, hopefully all our stuff will still be there and then we will start to plan the road to Santiago. Definately including Nazca and Arequipa with Colca Canyon to see the condors.

Machu Picchu

We have just got back from an amazing day at Machu Picchu, infact Sam said 'it was one of the best days of his life!.' We caught the train at 8:30 from Ollantaytambo station and spent an hour and a half winding our way through the Andes which were beautiful. The train was very nice, I think it's owned by Orient Express, and we were even treated to a little snack and soft Peruvian music that played as we wound our way through the valley and up into the cloud forest. Eventually we stopped in 'Aguas Calientes' and here we bought a bus ticket and our entry to Machu Picchu. The bus journey took us up the mountain along narrow windy roads and took 20 minutes, not a pleasant journey if you are afraid of heights but a brilliant journey if your not - the views here were even better than those from the train.

We entered Machu Picchu and saw the first Inca house which you had to pass through to enter and then as you turned the corner you saw Machu Picchu, just like in the pictures...an old settlement of houses and terraces with the big mountain behind, the sun was shining and I think that first sight of the settlement is one that none of us will forget. We walked up as high as we could go and then sat on the terraces overlooking the ruins and ate our packed lunch. We had picked one up in the morning from our favourite cafe here and had a sandwich a pasty a muffin an apple and a drink and it was the best packed lunch I have ever had. There was no-one around and it was really peaceful just surrounded by the mountains, we read the guide book and found out about the history of Machu Picchu.

We had a couple of hours to explore before our train home so we walked back down into the settlement and tagged on to the end of various guided tours so we could hear about the history of the ruins. We were surprised by how recent they were as the Incas were around in the 1400's and we had thought they were older - Will loved the architecture and the massive blocks that fit together with no cement and form a perfect wall!! We also took thousands of pictures because everywhere you turned there was a perfect view.

It's really hard to encapsulate how breathtaking it was up there - it's an expensive trip but well worth the money. Eventually we caught a return bus and got on the train home and got back in time for tea. We are all very tired after our days excursion so we are heading out for tea and then to bed.

Yesterday we also walked to another Inca ruin this time 5 minutes from the house, this was also an old Inca temple but much smaller than Machu Picchu - we had a lovely day wandering around the site and then walked around a traditional Peruvian market with loads of trinkets and old Peruvian artefacts - we treated ourselves to a couple of things which was really nice. All in all we have loved this part of the trip, infact it's been my favourite part so far without a doubt. Pic above of Machu Picchu and other pics from the previous days below.

Ollantaytambo

Sorry for the rubbish updates recently (and lack of pictures) but things have been super hectic recently. I am now sat in the reception area of Apu (he he) Lodge whilst Sam and Will are still in bed. I got up to try and book our tickets to Macchu Picchu but the internet isn't working for their site so thought I would update. As I sit here I have a view of the Andes, it's one of those completely awe inspiring sights!

Yesterday we caught the plane from Lima to Cuzco at 4:40 am and landed an hour later in Cuzco. A taxi picked us up and drove us through the Andes to Ollantaytambo. As we stepped off the plane myself and Will both felt very dizzy, Cuzco is really high 3,000 + so we had to take it really easy to combat the effects of altitude sickness...we stayed at the hotel and had a sleep and then Sam was sick!! But in true Sam style after 10 minutes he was fine and we walked down to the main plaza for some lunch. It was a great day to arrive as they had lots of dancing in the plaza and everyone was dressed in traditional costume. We sat in a restaurant with a balcony overlooking the event. Later we walked around Ollantaytambo - in the hills around there is other evidence of Inca settlements and the whole place is just surrounded by gigantic mountains, the light reflects off them and it's beautiful. There is also a little market full of colourful trinkets and ornaments and it's so cheap it's amazing. As ever we are off season so whilst there are some tourists here, it's not too busy.

Now we are going to walk down to the station and book the train tickets to do Macchu Picchu tomorrow, this is probably a better idea as it will give us another day to acclimatise to the altitude.

Cuzco...

It's a super quick update today to say that last night we sat in the hotel and the Japanese Surfing Team were also staying there. One of them approached Sam and asked if he would like a wetsuit and then he gave him a free Oakley wetsuit, turns out he is sponsored by Oakley - Sam was very very excited! He repaid them by showing them a magic trick and all the Japanese cheered.

We are now in Lima and have to be up at 2:40 to go to the airport so are just getting ready for bed...so that's it for now - short but sweet I know.

Peru...

We are now into our 4th day in Peru. At first it was quite a culture shock moving from the tropical rainforests of Costa Rica and Central America to the arid, cloudy environment that is Peru, but I think we have just about acclimatised. We are now staying in Punta Hermosa which is a beach south of Lima, it is a place which has realised that tourists are on their way but not quite caught up to them yet so there are a lot of half finished hotels which look like they will be beautiful in a couple of years but not just yet.

After a couple of days of searching we did find a hotel which seemed to fit our bill, from the outside it's beautiful, has a pool overlooking the sea, loads of cool art and the Japanese Olympic surfing team are staying here... however when you get through the doors things aren't quite what they seem. We are sleeping in a dorm room (to ourselves) with 3 sets of bunk beds (yes, bunk beds!) and a shared bathroom!! At first it was a nightmare but we are getting used to it. The best thing was coming to the hotel which we did in a little tuk tuk, with all our luggage and boards strapped on top, it was brilliant and we laughed all the way here (mainly because we thought it would fall over everytime we went over a bump!). On the positive side, there is an amazing seafood restaurant nearby and so we have been dining on fresh calamari and octopus, with drinks the meal has cost the equivalent of £15! Another positive is that Sam has found some kids to play with and spends the evenings playing football by the sea whilst we have a beer. It has been great for him, not only is he playing but also realises that he knows a lot more Spanish than he thought and is able to communicate quite well.

It has been a stressful few days as we have moved around quite a bit recently and booking accommodation is one of the most stressful things of all. It takes so long to research on the internet and then to call from skype and try and communicate in broken Spanish... but we are getting there! The next move is back to Miraflores in Lima tomorrow where we need to go to the travel agents to confirm the flights, then the next morning we fly to Cuzco (safer than taking the bus), we stay in Ollantytambo for two days in a place called Apu lodge (which sam thinks is hilarious). We stay here to acclimatise to the altitude as it's lower than Cuzco. Then we go up to Macchu Pichu, from there we go back to Cuzco and then fly back to Lima on Sunday!!! Whew!!! Now it's all pretty much booked I feel alot calmer and we are all really looking forward to seeing the Inca trail and a bit of Peru's culture.

Peru is really lovely and the people are very nice, with beautiful faces! The fact that we are by the ocean and can look one way and see desert and the other we see ocean is amazing, there is also loads of wildlife and we are on the look out for dolphins at the moment as there are quite a few pods around here... anyway must go and do Sam's English now... believe it or not he is on the computer next to me right now doing a maths game (voluntarily!!) home schooling is amazing...he is also really really well and loving the travels... me and Will may be a bit stressed at the moment but Sam is definately not stressed, bless him... will add picture of tuk tuk later.

Peru

Well we made it to Peru without a hitch, got up and had a huge brekkie and then got a taxi to the airport, then we caught the flight which was about 4 hours and landed in Peru at 3:15 - so now we are only 6 hrs behind the UK.

The taxi picked us up from the airport and brought us to the hotel. We were greeted with a glass of juice and then shown to our room, which is ENORMOUS!! Seriously, it's a suite, complete with king size bed, huge TV, kitchen, dining table etc. The people are lovely and really have gone out of their way to make us feel welcome. They recommended a place for us to eat tonight in Miraflores and so we got a taxi there (Mum you would love it here). Miraflores overlooks the ocean and is super swanky, with amazing shops and nice restaurants and there is also lots of culture around, tomorrow we are going to see a 2,000 year old pyramid which is 5 blocks away. It also seems quite a bit cheaper here which is brilliant.

So it's 9pm now and time to settle into our amazing, huge bed and read and then get some sleep - good night all (ps Lima is ffffffreezing!!) x

On to Peru...

Just a quick post to say that San Jose has been lots of fun, we visited the national museum and learned about the original native Costa Ricans, the invasion of the Spanish and then Costa Rican independence, well... I learned about it and Sam and Will lost interest half way through.

San Jose is a sprawling city with lots of shoe shops!! Weird isn't it but there are lots of shoe shops here, it's very cosmopolitan and very busy compared to where we have come from. The strangest thing is walking into shops and hearing Christmas music and seeing all the decorations up - honestly we haven't even thought about Christmas yet, it's like living in a time warp.

The hotel is very nice and it is absolute luxury having a bath every night, last night me and Will had a 'date' and sat in the bar and drank a bottle of red whilst Sam was in bed watching a film, very romantic!! Actually we missed Sam lots and came to bed and jumped on him (poor Sam!)

Today has been really stressful as we tried to book accommodation in Peru. Because we are travelling close to the weekend all the mid range price places are booked and it's really not as cheap as you would think to book accommodation in Lima, it's actually cheaper to book a hotel in San Jose. But finally we found a place called the Casa Bella Boutique Hotel and we are booked in there for 2 nights, we fly tomorrow at 10:30 so have to be up by 6am so I leave you with a picture from the Waterfall at Montezuma... good night all. x

Canopy tour and San Jose

So we all survived the canopy tour (just). We were driven up into the rainforest where we had to negotiate nine zip wires of varying lengths. We were strapped into a harness and given a hat and gloves and told that the gloves acted as our brakes and we should sit in the harness with one hand on the wire (behind the pully bit) and when we wanted to slow down and this should only be at the end, we were to use the glove as a brake on the wire, we should also never take our hand off the wire (although one of us may have forgotten this).

The view from the wires was amazing because we were in the top of the canopy (I wouldn't like to guess how high). We didn't see much wildlife because we were whizzing along so quickly but it was very exciting and Sam as usual absolutely LOVED it. After wire 6 we walked down some steps and came out at the most beautiful waterfall with a plunge pool where we swam for half an hour and cooled down, it was deserted and really fresh. Then we had 3 more wires to go and, it could be that on the last one I was so relieved that Sam had made it to the end that I sort of forgot the, 'Don't take your hand of the wire' bit and crashed into the end... but it's ok, I just bruised my shoulder a bit, no serious damaged done. The problem is that once you take your hand off the wire you start to spin a bit and it's a bit hard to remember which hand went where when your whizzing along above the tress so I just decided to crash land into the platform instead!! But that aside we had a brilliant day and all really enjoyed the tour.

The next morning we needed to be up at 6 to catch the direct bus to San Jose, we asked about 5 locals what time the bus left and they all gave us a different answer so we aimed for the earliest time of 6.30, We had a few options for getting to San Jose. The private shuttle would cost $45 each and take 3 hours or the local bus would cost $10 each and cover the same route so we opted for this. At the bus stop we were informed that the bus couldn't get through as there had been lots of rain in the night, so a taxi would drive us to Cobano to pick up the bus, it was then a 1hr journey to the ferry port, a 1hr ferry crossing and then 2 hrs to San Jose. On the final part of the trip, Sam and me were watching Harry Potter when Sam suddenly stiffened as there was a huge cockroach climbing up his knee, he's so brave, if that was me I would have run screaming from the bus but he just waited until it crawled off and up the wall, still we were a bit tense for the rest of the ride and changed seats pretty quickly!

I was a bit worried that the Gran Hotel may be a faded beauty but when we pulled up in the taxi we weren't disappointed. From the outside it's very Grand, lots of US presidents, Pele and Julio Inglesias have stayed here! It also has a very central location and I think we were all pleased to arrive somewhere with a bit of luxury (and a bath). The room itself was quite small but comfortable and I realised that there was no plug and not enough towels so, really wanting a bath I went down to speak to reception, Sam also realised the telly didn't work so I asked them about this, honestly after roughing it for 2 months, you want your moneys worth when you do splurge. The receptionist was lovely and sent the maid with a plug, another towel and a new telly. All set now I went to run my bath and realised that there was no hot water. After travelling for hours and wanting to soak my shoulder I was not too happy about the situation and stomped back down stairs. 'Ok, I now have a towel and a plus, but no hot water', I said to the receptionist with a fake smile. 'I know this may seem unimportant but I have been travelling for 2 months and NEED a bath.' 'Yes', she said, 'it's an old hotel and the water doesn't always run hot in all the rooms.' 'Then I would like a room that does have hot water.' I said still gritting my teeth and still fake smiling because I thought if she said no I might cry... but she realised the seriousness of the situation and gave me another key. So we now have a slightly bigger room with hot water. This morning we are going to get our moneys worth and stuff ourselves with the free buffet breakfast and then explore San Jose and visit the National Museum. Picture of the Zip lining above!

Montezuma

Today we caught a taxi to Montezuma which is about 40 mins down the bumpy road from Santa Teresa. The main reason for coming here was to do the zip-wire tour through the rainforest - but now we're here I realise it's really bloody high and involves something like 9 zip wires, ending with a swim at the waterfall - of course Sam thinks this sounds brilliant. I however wish I would stop having these bright ideas that scare the shit out of me, 'I know, let's go round the world, what fun!!', 'I know, let's go ziplining in the rainforest!!' when will I learn? So that's booked for 9:00 tomorrow morning!

Montezuma is a cross between Santa Teresa and Tamarindo, in that it has more shops etc but also still quite a bit of rainforest (not as claustrophobic as Santa Teresa though). We walked down to the beach but it's really dirty with loads of plastic etc on the shoreline and doesn't look that appealing - so much for 'Pura Vida' (Pure Life) which is what EVERYONE says to you here in Costa Rica, 'Pura Vida man, Pura Vida'. We have checked into our hotel, which seems ok, we have two double beds and an en-suite bathroom - It's Saturday night though so we hope it wont be too noisy. We are heading out tonight to a restaurant on the sea front for tea. I think one of the problems at the moment is that we are travelling in 'green season' when a lot of the tourist attractions, hotels and restaurants close down, as a result walking around here is a bit like walking along Blackpool pier in winter when there are only a few local restaurant owners, a few hangers on and the occasional tourist.

Our next stop will be San Jose and we have just booked a deal through Expedia to stay in the Gran Hotel (I hope it's as grand as it sounds, I hope it has a bath and free samples, I hope it has napkins and I hope there are people dressed smartly quaffing champagne). I can't believe Will let me book it but I think he's building me up for the freezing desert of Peru, he keeps dropping hints about how cold it is there. I'm sorry if this sounds like another moaning blog post - I am having a really nice time - I guess the gloss and novelty may have worn of a little and I'm not 100% certain how I feel about Costa Rica, 'Pura Vida Man, Pura Vida'. I'll update on the canopy tomorrow (hopefully)!!!!!

Life in the rainforest...

Life in the rainforest is actually a bit boring. I mean it's very nice to see the weird and wonderful creatures, the colourful birds and the huge, prehistoric looking iguanas, but honestly, after a while it's boring. And it's constantly hot, so even taking a walk on the beach is not that enjoyable because you just end up dripping in sweat... and to be honest even if you do walk down the beach there's not much to see except more beach (I think i'm turning into Tom Hanks when he got marooned on a desert island, went mental and made friends with a football). It's also constantly humid so there always seems to be a layer of water/sweat on everything and there are loads of mozzies (our room - beautiful as it is doesn't have mozzie nets at the windows etc) so I am covered in really itchy bites! We do have aircon in the room but it's a battle between Will, who likes to sleep in an ice box and me and Sam who like a comfortable temperature. The aircon also smells really odd.

Santa Teresa is also (as you will have gathered from the journey here) quite a way from anywhere and the main activities are all in Montazuma where we are heading next. It's off season so there aren't that many people around other than the locals and I don't know, it just feels a bit different here - the weather and the trees and the isolation of the place make it feel a bit claustrophobic (I haven't even been inspired to do yoga here)... there, I feel better for that whinge - but the good news is that we have plans to escape. In two days we will head to Montazuma where we will do the zip wire canopy tour which looks brilliant and visit the waterfalls and possibly the butterfly farm which is meant to be lovely. We will stay there for two days and then head to San Jose (the capital) for two nights and then we fly from San Jose to Lima, Peru for our final month in South America (we have been travelling for two months tomorrow!). Peru should be fun and we have quite a cultural tour coming up there.

Other than my moaning everything is fine, we have all got on brilliantly so far and are having lots of fun together, seeing the sights, learning lessons, playing cards and chatting about random things. Sam's ear infection is much better, just a little bit of redness but hopefully tomorrow he will be back in the sea. Will has stopped moaning and I have started moaning and as usual Sam never moans - but he is a know it all. So there you go - have a lovely day all. I leave you with a view of yet more bloody rainforest!