2002-2005 (c) GetJealous.com, All rights reserved. http://www.getjealous.com/alex1wilson/rss.xml 6 years after our original travels to Australasia & Asia, Dom and I have decided to step it up a gear, escape the commute to hell (aka Croydon), ditch the nice clothes and material things to do the Gringo Trail through Central and South America. Follow our progress here, we will try to update as much as poss! More photos will be added to facebook than here so check that regularly... http://www.getjealous.com/alex1wilson http://www.getjealous.com/getjealous.php?action=showdiaryentry&diary_id=636230&go=alex1wilson Dragging ourselves away from the beaches by what's left of our hair, we took a winding, stomach-testing bus to the wealthiest and grandest of all the gold towns in the Minas Gerais region, Ouro Preto. With an undulating skyline peaked with church spires at various points, this steep town dating back to 1711 definitely had us gasping and panting like rabid dogs in the hot sun, as we navigated the t... http://www.getjealous.com/getjealous.php?action=showdiaryentry&diary_id=636230&go=alex1wilson Tue, 22 Sep 2009 12:00:00 GMT http://www.getjealous.com/getjealous.php?action=showdiaryentry&diary_id=621226&go=alex1wilson You can hear the fierce roar of cascading water before you even catch sight of the mighty Iguacu falls, the excitement of which turns you into a kid again as you almost start running to approach them. After Iguacu, there seems no point in ever seeing a waterfall again...at least without yawning. Water flows and flies almost 360o around you, incessantly spraying you wherever you turn and your eyes ... http://www.getjealous.com/getjealous.php?action=showdiaryentry&diary_id=621226&go=alex1wilson Thu, 27 Aug 2009 12:00:00 GMT http://www.getjealous.com/getjealous.php?action=showdiaryentry&diary_id=613751&go=alex1wilson Buenos Aires could well be the most ironically named city in the world, or at least it feels that way as you arrive and the 'good air´ seems lost in translation, probably somewhere amidst one of the chaotic multi-lane motorways that dissect the city. Hype can be a dangerous thing, and we had heard so much about 'BA' that we were convinced that it would be something akin to utopia. Was it, ... http://www.getjealous.com/getjealous.php?action=showdiaryentry&diary_id=613751&go=alex1wilson Mon, 27 Jul 2009 12:00:00 GMT http://www.getjealous.com/getjealous.php?action=showdiaryentry&diary_id=605825&go=alex1wilson Our return to Chile through the snowy Andes proved to be something of a double-edged sword.  The capital city Santiago on a clear day affords the kind of views from Cerro San Cristobal and Santa Lucia you have to pinch yourself for, with snow-capped mountains backing the city skyline like a protective figure.  Even the layer of perma-smog that lingers above the metropolis gives it that extra mysti... http://www.getjealous.com/getjealous.php?action=showdiaryentry&diary_id=605825&go=alex1wilson Sun, 21 Jun 2009 12:00:00 GMT http://www.getjealous.com/getjealous.php?action=showdiaryentry&diary_id=596597&go=alex1wilson As we descended the terracota cliffs from the Pan-American highway into the beach resort of Iquique at sunset, the skyline carved a silhouette into the glistening Pacific Ocean and we knew we were going to like it here. After chaotic Bolivia, we were open-mouthed at signs of civilisation...cars that actually STOP at crossings?! Come to think of it...crossings per se! Now all we had to do was wor... http://www.getjealous.com/getjealous.php?action=showdiaryentry&diary_id=596597&go=alex1wilson Thu, 4 Jun 2009 12:00:00 GMT http://www.getjealous.com/getjealous.php?action=showdiaryentry&diary_id=592073&go=alex1wilson We watched the bleak film ´The Devil´s Miner´ in Sucre, about two young boys who work the mines in Potosi, but even though it prepared us for what we would see, it didn´t make the impact any less potent. Once the 3rd richest city in the world and Latin America´s boomtown, the Cerro Rico mountain that looms over the city has now been ransacked of all is silver and min... http://www.getjealous.com/getjealous.php?action=showdiaryentry&diary_id=592073&go=alex1wilson Tue, 19 May 2009 12:00:00 GMT http://www.getjealous.com/getjealous.php?action=showdiaryentry&diary_id=589181&go=alex1wilson We had heard the woeful tales of travellers taking the bus to Rurrenabaque so we were prepared for 14 hours of gravel hell, but we weren´t as aware that the road is almost identical to the Death Road. Usually sitting on the floor for 3hrs in the aisle of a bus, one incidentally where Bolivian women are said to urinate when they cannot hold it in much longer, is a nightmare, but in this case ... http://www.getjealous.com/getjealous.php?action=showdiaryentry&diary_id=589181&go=alex1wilson Sun, 3 May 2009 12:00:00 GMT http://www.getjealous.com/getjealous.php?action=showdiaryentry&diary_id=587048&go=alex1wilson Your first glimpse of La Paz - the highest capital city in the world at 3900m - shocks; it seems as though it is clinging on to the side of a valley for dear life. The views, as in Quito, are nonetheless astounding. Entering the centre of this city the chaos of the place hits you like steam train, from the most fume-belching, horn tooting gridlock traffic to the masclata fireworks of the seemingl... http://www.getjealous.com/getjealous.php?action=showdiaryentry&diary_id=587048&go=alex1wilson Wed, 29 Apr 2009 12:00:00 GMT http://www.getjealous.com/getjealous.php?action=showdiaryentry&diary_id=583501&go=alex1wilson Our last days in peru were split between Arequipa and Lake Titicaca, the journey from Cusco to the ´White City´ having the most incongruous jumps in landscape we have seen so far, from briliant white snow fields to arid cactus forests. Arequipa´s architecture was made entirely from white stone, giving it a brilliance that other parts of Peru lacked. We were lucky enough to be i... http://www.getjealous.com/getjealous.php?action=showdiaryentry&diary_id=583501&go=alex1wilson Thu, 9 Apr 2009 12:00:00 GMT http://www.getjealous.com/getjealous.php?action=showdiaryentry&diary_id=578327&go=alex1wilson We´ve come to realise that how much you enjoy somewhere travelling depends on how high your expectations are. In Lima´s case, the frenetic capital has a fairly dubious reputation so we were constantly surprised how nice it was. Miraflores and Barranco districts are both modern, bustling, sunny and green, with pristine promenades flanked by modern apartment blocks and the Pacific Ocea... http://www.getjealous.com/getjealous.php?action=showdiaryentry&diary_id=578327&go=alex1wilson Mon, 23 Mar 2009 12:00:00 GMT