On the Road in Chile and Argentina

I arrived in Santiago de Chile in the middle of the night, after a multi-hop flight from Panama via Bogota and Lima. The bike arrived too, although a few bits were protruding from the box. All things considered, it survived the journey well. Two wonderfully helpful Colombian ladies helped me to organise a taxi to my accommodation, and it all went very smoothly.

During my 3 day stay in Santiago, I got organised for the trip south. That included making a rough plan of the route. In order to have a chance of getting down to Ushuaia before the end of March (when it would already be too cold) I plan to take a bus south to Villarica and ride from there. I will to ride to Pucon, then cross a small pass to reach Junin de los Andes in Argentina. From there I'll follow Ruta 40 south to San Carlos de Bariloche via the "Siete Lagos" route. I will return to Chile by taking boats across 3 different lakes with cycling in between. First Lago Huapi Nahuel, then Lago Frias and finally Lago Todos los Santos in Chile. From Petrohue at the end of Lago Todos los Santos,  I'll take the Caretera Austral south.

With my foot that I hurt in Costa Rica returning to normal and a bit of basic Spanish under my belt, I'm ready to go. 

A Man A Plan A Canal, Panama

Now say it backwards :-) This was something that was written on the wall of one my classrooms at school, and now I finally had the chance to see it live.

Nicolas returned to Spain for Christmas, and Muriel and I travelled south to Panama. We stuck to the Pacific coast, which was having fine weather. We visited the hill towns of Guadalupe (near Cerro Punta) and Boquete, which were both relaxing escapes from the heat and humidity on the coast. 

Peaceful Guadalupe with its verdant gardens and abundant fruit and vegetables was a real highlight. Muriel bought a cheese fondue from Switzerland and so we had a little Christmas celebration. 

In Boquete, we made interesting trips to some natural hotsprings and a working coffee plantation and roastery. 

Back down at the coast we made our way to the surfer town if Santa Catalina, from where we organised an overnight trip to Isla Coiba. This was a tropical island paradise, with great snorkelling perfect white sand beaches and jungle. Back in Santa Catalina we rang in the new year 2015 with a delicious meal and a few drinks with travelling friends at the beach.  

Panama City with its impressive skyline was a huge contrast to everything we'd seen in Central America thus far. We stuck mostly to Casco Viejo, the old part of town, which is where many of the main sights are. We made some interesting side trips as well. To the Miraflores Locks on the Panama Canal, to Isla Taboga in the harbour and a great trainride along the canal to Fuerte San Lorenzo on the Carribean coast. It guards the entrance to the Chagres River. Now just ruins, it once stored the gold that Spain had plundered from Peru prior to it being shipped back to Spain. As such, it was a juicy target for pirates such as Captain Henry Morgan. 

Sadly, the Central American part of my journey is over. It was a fun trip with two cool friends. See you guys back in Switzerland!

Just outside Guadalupe with Volcan Baru in the clouds. 

A beautiful garden in Guadalupe. 

Swiss fondue outside on the steps on Christmas Eve. 

Hummingbirds on the balcony of Los Quetzales Lodge in Guadalupe. 

A cozy room inside the lodge. 

Coffee in the hills outside Boquete, Panama. 

The finished product. 

Sunset at Santa Catalina, where we welcomed in the new year. 

Sunrise in Isla Coiba. 

Paradoxically, this island paradise is also home to a former penal colony...

Only the most disobedient were actually locked up; the others worked in isolated labour camps. 

The island and those around it have some amazing snorkelling and beaches. 

Another beach perfect beach. 

Panama City's skyline. 

Casco Viejo in Panama City. 

Slow-motion excitement at the Miraflores Locks on the Panama Canal. 

Locomotives guiding the next boat up to the lock. 

Isla Taboga: One of the best hotel room views ever!

View to the pier on Isla Taboga. 

On the Panama - Colon train. 

Early-morning canal traffic as seen from the train. 

The view of the Caribbean coast from Fuerte San Lorenzo, the mouth of the Rio Chagras to the left. 

Amongst the ruins. 

A captured English canon. 

Downtown Colon, a rundown place with a very different vibe from the rest of Panama. 

Costa Rica: Land of Jungle, Animals and Beaches

I travelled in Costa Rica together with my great friends Nico and Muriel. We had an action-packed trip: jungle exploration, hiking the highest peak in the country (Cerro Chirripo), ziplining, snorkelling and of course relaxing at the beautiful beaches. 

Costa Rica will remain fondly in my memory for one particular reason: I loved to see the jungle animals in their natural habitat. Manuel Antonio and Corcovado National Parks were the places where we had the most success with this. 

Back of Beyond Reloaded

Due to popular demand -ahem- I've decided to re-start the blog. I'll try my best to keep it up. Thanks for taking the time to check in occasionally and leave comments!

After working 3 months in Switzerland from August - October 2014, I decided to head to Latin America. First to Costa Rica and Panama together with two friends, and then alone by bike through South America. 

With a few basics of Spanish, a big box with my bike in it and my luggage, I was ready to go. On 24 November, I departed Switzerland bound for San Jose in Costa Rica.

Switzerland and Iceland

It was an odd feeling to be back in Switzerland again! I never expected to be back so soon, but it was summer and great to be amongst friends again. I was able to gain a temporary contract at my old employer for 3 months between August and October 2014. Once I knew this would work out, I immediately put my next plans into action: an alpine crossing by mountainbike from Buchs SG in Switzerland  to Lake Garda in Italy over 7 days, and a 3 week cycle tour of Iceland. Iceland was tough to cycle but amazing and I hope to put some photos up here one day.

During 3 months of working in Switzerland, I decided my next big trip should be by bike. The southern half of Africa was one option, but in the end I settled on the idea of cycling Patagonia. I have never been to Latin America before and this will be my chance to learn a bit of Spanish too.

Burma en route to Switzerland

After a brief sojourn back home in New Zealand, where autumn was beginning and winter just around the corner, I decided to return to Europe for the summer. On the way I made a stop-off in Singapore to visit an old school friend, before continuing on to Burma, one SE Asian country I have always wanted to visit. 

Burma was a real treat. I came into contact with more adventurous travellers than are usually to be found in Australia, and I met wonderful Burmese people too. After four weeks in Burma, I returned to Singapore and flew on to Zurich. 

Melbourne and back to Sydney

I took a bus from Melbourne back to Sydney and after a few days of much-needed rest with my uncle and aunt, I was ready to return to New Zealand to spend some time with mum. And so my Australian adventures came to an end!