Pics from Bogota

Here are the rest of the pics from Bogota. Trying to get my buddy to send some from the giant concert that we went to as well.

http://www.kodakgallery.com/I.jsp?c=8ab2nqp.8yoe9swl&x=1&y=hfejou

Sandboarding in Peru

Landed in Lima for a few days. Found a nice little hostel that had nice big cozy couches, and an awesome DVD collection. Spent the whole time watching movies and resting. Actually went a bought Kraft Dinner and hot dogs one day. The people who lived in the hostel referred to me as the couch potato. It was awesome.

After bordem set in, I headed for Huacachina to do some sandboarding. I can't believe that more people didn't tell me how amazing this place is. It is literally an oasis in the middle of the desert. Real hot at day.....real cold at night. The hostel had an awesome pool, so it kind of had that Mexico resort feel.......except with bunk beds......and roaches. The sand dunes were absolutely massive. I couldn't get over it. Because I got there at night I couldn't see them, but when I woke up in the morning, they were literally towering over the hostel. We found a cool little restaurant there they we made part of our nightly ritual. Great food.....and free cards.

As for the sandboarding.....it could possibly be the most fun that I have had in months. I went with a couple of hot English chicas named Abi and Tahnee, and an Englishman named Sean. The boarding wasn't even the best part......it was the dune buggies! These machines, with crazy huge engines and psycho drivers, rip you through the town and into the dessert at full throttle. It was hilarious. The first thing he does is take us over a couple of jumps, and then he tears up the side of a giant sand dune, and back down again. Some of the dunes were so huge, that you felt like you were on a roller coaster........except with no tracks. You would get the same nervous feeling when you would get to the crest of a dune, and then when you'd fly down the other side, you would actually experience that centripical force feeling at the bottom! It was absolutely awesome. The actual boarding was just the cherry on top. The wipeouts were awesome......sand everywhere (check the pics). Got some cool videos too. For all you snowboarders out there......it isn't quite the same. You don't get to ride edges. More like riding flat the whole time, and trying to turn. Makes you feel pretty vulnerable. Awesome fun though. There were only 3 of us who had actually snowboarded before, so most people didn't stand a chance. I did a few runs just laying on my stomach, which actually gave you way more speed. A guy in our group did one of those face plants that seem to last an eternity......you know, the ones where you're not actually sure if they are going to flip ass over tea kettle, or if they're going to flop back down in the same direction. This guy completed the flip (after eating some sand of course). I laughed for 20 minutes. A rare sight indeed....you'd only see maybe 2 or 3 of those in a whole season of snowboarding. This guy pulled it off on his first run.

The people I'm travelling with continue to get a kick out of how I have managed to communicate in Spanish with such a limited vocabulary. Es possible, Es Necessito, No Problemo, Seniorita, Es muey carro. Ha! I love it. My taxi driver today actually asked me (in Spanish) where I learned to speak Spanish. How's THAT for a compliment. I said it was 'No problemo'.

Anyway, I´m now in Cuzco, staying at an awesome hostel called Loki. Here are the pics from the sandboarding. I wish I could have got some of the wipeouts, because they were absolutely hilarious. Hopefully you will be able to see just how much sand we had thrown into our faces.

http://www.kodakgallery.com/I.jsp?c=8ab2nqp.a2xuplo5&x=1&y=7mrb7x

Oh Yeah....

I got a lip ring. Ha!!

Still a little swollen, but coming around. Mom, the good news is, is that the guy told me that I wasn't allowed to kiss any girls for two weeks.


Ah, the bad news is, I'm not all that great at following advice.

My First Earthquake

I guess its something new to check off on the list, although it wasn´t part of my plans.

I woke up the other morning to my couch shaking. The funniest thing was, was that although I´ve never experienced an earthquake before......I knew exactly what it was. Weird, eh? It measured in at 6.4 on the scale, and apparently was the biggest tremor that Peru has had in 5 years (this is what the word is on the traveller´s beat anyway). Apparently it lasted about 30 seconds, but I only got to experience half of it (deep sleeper). None of the locals seemed all that concerned though. Well actually, nobody in the hostel seems to give a shit. Most people either slept through it, or immediately went back to sleep. I on the other hand, actually launched myself to my feet and then ran under the door frame. Its amazing how things that you learned in grade 3 come back to you so quickly in times of crisis.......or should I say, apparent times of crisis.

It was actually quite eerie to experience. The reason why at first I knew it wasn´t just strong wind blowing, was because of the loud creaking noise that the building was making. The shaking was actually pretty crazy and kind of scary. Apparently the only ones concerned though, were myself, and the 10 or 15 local neighborhood dogs. Oh well....its good to know that nobody was harmed, and that due to the lack of presence of other travellers in my room, my pride has also managed to remain intact.

Heading to Huacachina

Huacachina is a little town south of Lima, close to Ica. This is where I will hopefully be able to do some sandboarding. Will probably stay there for the rest of the weekend, and then start heading for Cuzco, which is close to Manchu Pichu.

Cheers!

Pics from Taganga

I´m sad to say that I have now left Colombia. What an awesome country. Had an amazing time there, due largely to the people that I was hanging out with. We were pretty sad to leave our whole big group.

I am now in Lima, Peru with Meital and Arad, staying at the Backpackers Hostel. Going to be heading towards Ica soon though, as I have been wanting to tryout some sandboarding (starting to miss snowboarding already, so I figured I´d try to get my fix). Little chillier here, but not much different than Bogata.

Had an awesome time in Bogata over the past few days. Almost the whole crew managed to make it there, and I also got to hang out with Adriana, who lives there. Managed to go to the big outdoor rock festival as well. actually got to watch Manu Chao. It was spectacular........140,000 people!! Not too shabby. Was an awesome night. Managed to get close to the front for a while, but it got a little hectic once Manu Chao hit the stage, so we moved back a bit. Was a pretty amazing site to see. The people of Bogata have some serious style too.....we were all pretty impressed. It rained quite a bit when we were there, but it actually kind of added to the atmosphere of the concert.

We ended up staying in an Israeli hostel called Centro Plaza Hostel. It was cool because there were six of us there, and we ended up getting our own dorm. The Jewish owners were busy doing early morning celebrations for their holidays, and we were busy doing our late night dorm room parties. Overall, there wasn´t a lot of sleep to be had at the hostel. My little iPod speakers have really come in handy. I also had trouble finding decent food, so I spent most of the time starving (although, the soup at the store next door was pretty damn good). First thing I did in Lima, was head out for a big meal, and then picked up some pizza on the way back to the hostel.

As always, feeling a little down after leaving a big group, but I´m looking forward to Peru and to seeing Manchu Pichu (or as I keep mistakenly calling it....Manu Chao).

Anyway, here are some pics from Taganga.

Talk to you all soon.

http://www.kodakgallery.com/I.jsp?c=8ab2nqp.2l3l212d&x=1&y=-1nwumk

Pics from Colombia

Hey, finally found a decent internet connection where I could upload some pics.

http://www.kodakgallery.com/I.jsp?c=8ab2nqp.1lq41xlx&x=1&y=-ujv4ao

Left the Beach

Yes, it was tough, but it had to be done. I am now in Bogota staying at the Israeli hostal (can´t remember the name right now). Twas a 19 hour bus ride (my longest yet) but luckily, I slept through most of it.

Had the time of my life up in Taganga and Tayrona. As I said before, I have hooked up with an awesome crowd, which are wicked fun. Felt nice to go 2 weeks with no shirt and no shoes. The room the we got was beautiful......full kitchen, and huge fans to help for sleeping at night. Mornings consisted of getting up, heading to the fruit stand for a fruit shake, and then hitting the beach. Unfortunately there was no surf there, but I did get to do a couple of dives. The reef was beautiful, and I got to go through my first little cave. The Maltese friends that I´m travelling with had a buddy who was a divemaster (Marco), so he took us out on the boat (Matt & Fran, Bert, and Anna from UK). Did a dive in the morning, then hung out at a cabana for lunch, and then did another dive in the afternoon. We got the freind discount, so it was only 20 bucks a dive......half the price of Bocas in Panama.

Usually managed to have one big awesome meal per day (chicken schiztel at Luis, or a big ass sub from Maria´s). At night, we always had a little party outside our little palace, and then we usually would go for a few drinks at the local bars (La Puerta, and Garaje). Also got to spend tons of time hanging out in hammocks and playing guitar. We got to know lots of locals too, so they would always come to hang out as well. My nickname has eventually evolved in Gringo, as there are no Americans around and so I am the closest thing to it (NOTE - Gringo´s are American tourists).

Colombia is amazing........definitely South America´s best kept secret. People are super friendly, beaches are awesome, cities are clean, and there are tons of police everywhere, so you always feel safe.

Anyways, its a little colder here in Bogota, but it is a huge nice city with a good student scene. We are going to head to a music festival here tomorrow and Monday and Bolivar Park. Supposed to be awesome. Also meeting a bunch more friends here, so that should be cool. Will try to work on posting pics, now that I have a decent internet connection.

Bye for now.

Taganga, Colombia

Back in Taganga, Colombia now, and having an absolute blast. Have hooked up with the coolest group of people, which has been awesome. Doesn’t hurt that we are also hanging out in a sweet little beach town, and staying in a super nice hostel. The travelling pace has slowed significantly and I am now in full force beach mode.

Tayrona National Park
It was difficult to get to, but in was absolutely worth it. The beach there was exactly what I was looking for. Awesome sand, turquoise water, lots of palm trees, and nice and secluded. It took us 3 hours to get there in a shitty outboard boat getting pounded by waves. There are no hostels there, but there was a place that would rent out hammocks to you for pretty cheap. Was actually a funny sight to see all these hammocks lined up. You literally were touching the people next to you at times. At night time, there were tons of candles and fires that everyone would sit around to eat and have drinks, and then in the daytime you could grab your own exotic beach to lounge on for the day. Twas nice and relaxing. In total, we have a group of about 15 people (Meital, Arad, Johnny, Ronan, Edo, (and a few other names I can´t spell or pronounce) from Israel, Monique from South Africa, Adrianna and Natalie from Columbia, Bert, Matt and Francesca from Malta). We headed back into Taganga to our hotel overlooking the ocean, and had a party on the giant double decker patio on the top (we were celebrating one of our amigo´s last day of his 6 month trip).

We have now moved to another cheaper hostel called Casa de Felipe. We have a super nice room with a kitchen etc. so the chica´s prepared a proper meal for us last night. My Spanish has been improving significantly thanks to the help of our Columbian chicas Adrianna and Natalie. I am still hoping that I can actually pull of some diving before I leave here. We have met a couple of the divemasters, and it is supposed to be pretty nice (and its super cheap). Probably going to hang out here for a few more days, and then start heading towards Boogata, the capital of Colombia. We are meeting some friends there and hopefully heading to a 2 day music festival, with the headliner being ManuChao. Should be pretty fun.

Sorry for the lack of communicato, but it is tough to get decent internet connections here. Trying to do a post on this can take up to an hour at times. Loading pics basically isn´t possible, so I´m going to have to try to do it in Boogata. Anyway, talk to you all soon!!

Back to the Beach

In Taganga right now, back on the beach. This one isn´t the nicest beach, but our hostel has a balcony hanging over the ocean, so I guess you can´t beat that. The guide books for this area say that the really nice beaches are just up around the corner, in a place called Tayrona National Park. Have been travelling with a group of seven, and the hostel we´re staying at is called Casa Blanca.

Probably going to try to head to Tayrona today. We met a bunch of backpackers here last night at the other hostel who are heading that way as well. Apparently the beaches are quite quiet, so it is good to go with a large group so you have people to hang out with. I have been told that there is no internet there though, so I won´t be able to reply to your messages for a bit (sorry Fam......couldn´t figure out the phone system here in Taganga). Probably going to stay there til the weekend, and come back on Sunday. Have been told that they have nice little huts that you can rent, so I´m hoping to score one of those.

Anyway, I´ll be sure to try to get lots of pics. Will talk to you all soon.

Ryan

Colombia

Currently in a city called Medellin. Absolutely loving Colombia....it's a spectacular country. And it's so much safer than what the CNN leads you to believe. Scenery is amazing, and the people are super friendly.

Managed to pull off another Rum and Coke party in Quito, where I met a group of 4 people who were heading in my direction. So the group of us headed for Columbia the next morning. If you look on the map, Quito is actually pretty close to the border, however the bus rides here take forever. I vastly underestimated how long it takes to get around this continent. The scenery is stellar though. Wish that I could have taken more pictures of it, but it is difficult to get decent pics from sitting inside a bus.

Spent the first night in a border town called Ipiales. Pretty big town but not much to see, except a huge church that was built in the rock in a giant valley. Next day we did another 11 to 13 hour bus ride to a town called Popayan. It is a beutiful colonial city that has about 30 different private universities. Was a super cool town. Stayed there for a day, and then headed for our ultimate destination, Medellin. Medellin is an amazing city (about 2.5M people). It almost looks like downtown Vancouver where I am staying. Super wealthly, and super nice. The city is amazingly clean. Staying at a hostel called Black Sheep Hostal, which is owned by a Kiwi dude. Feels awesome to be in a nice hostel again, after sleeping in some dumpy motels. Have been travelling with a Russian guy named Robert, and a Cdn girl named Mel. Here's the link to the hostel. One of the nicer ones that I have been in since getting to South America.

http://www.blacksheepmedellin.com/

The absolute most amazing part about Columbia is the people. They are unbelievably friendly, and they absolutely love travellers. Everywhere we go, people are approaching us and trying to spark up conversations. I think I kind of know what it feels like to be a celebrity now. We got on the subway yesterday and were chatting with a student that we met. Then I looked up, and realized that EVERYBODY on our subway car were looking over at us! Finally somebody spoke up and asked us something in broken english. My buddy said a joke and half the subway car broke out laughing. It is hilarious......I have never seen anything like it. And it happens everywhere we go. If we stop to look for something, somebody will come over to help us. And as soon as we start talking to them, 2 or 3 other people will come over to talk to us. Everybody wants to know where we're from and why we're in Colombia, and then they try to help us out. The people here love to call me 'Gringo', and so we hear it all the time when we are walking downtown through the shops. We stopped into a tiny little bar for a quick drink and a bite to eat, and the bartenders came over and gave us free drinks. I could really get used to this lifestyle! Ha.

Anyway, this hostel is great for meeting people. Having a great time just hanging out and seeing the city. Going to stick around here for a bit, and then will probably head north to the beaches. Want to go up to Santa Marta, but will probably have to pass through Cartagena. Looking to get to a beach called Playa Blanca, which is supposed to be awesome. Will hopefully be able to find a nice hut right on the beach. I met some people here from Malta (a country just south of Italy) who have a friend who is a dive instructor here, so hopefully I'll be able to get back in the water as well.

I forgot my card reader for my camera in Toronto, so I'm having difficulty getting pics posted. Will try to get it figured out.

Talk to you soon!

UPDATE
Heading to Santa Marta, and then on to Taganga. Going with a group of 7 of us, that have been hanging out here in Medellin. Looking forward to getting to the beach. May try to stay at a hostel called La Casa de Felipe, owned by a French couple.