All my Czech friends are always banging on about how beautiful it is, and they weren’t exaggerating. I find a little mossy clearing on the bank of the lake to pitch my tent. Green leafy shrubbery, cool water, shady trees and warm sun…
Pietro opens his front door with a smile, and I collapse onto his couch. The hitch from London to Paris went very well, but I have only slept about 2 hours in the last 24…
I get dropped off on the edge of town and walk down the road a bit to find a good hitchhiking pitch. There’s a sheriff’s cruiser parked on the side of the road. There isn’t a whole lot of traffic. I wonder if this guy gets bored sitting on the side of this lonely road all day…
“We only have one sort of marijuana in Australia. It’s called ‘dope’, and it’s illegal.”
Bill smiles.
“This is another world my friend. Welcome to California…”
My body feels more like easing into a deck chair and scrolling facebook than tramping into the Rocky Mountains. But, I need the exercise, so I swap out my flip-flops for my hiking boots, make some peanut butter sandwiches and join the hiking expedition…
“Bogota has very colourful street life, as you can see. Unfortunately there are also many homeless people on the streets in the city. During the tour, homeless people may come and stand near our group. Don’t worry. They are just curious because we speak English. They will not do anything bad…”
One Australian, two Colombians and two Belgians go up a mountain to see a giant Jesus. On the way we listen to music and swap travel stories. The music sounds a bit like a hip-hop boy-band produced by Ricky Martin…
On Saturday, Carlos leads an expedition into the hills around the volcano. I want to go to see the lava and stuff, but Carlos tells me it’s too dangerous, and anyway the top of the volcano is off limits to the public…
Like Chiang Mai, in Thailand, Quito has become a very popular place with the nomad expat crowd, and after spending a few days here, it’s easy to see why. Low cost rent. Great, cheap restaurants…
Some of these graves look more comfortable than hostels I’ve stayed in. The neighbours wouldn’t wake you up banging doors in the middle of the night either…
Sunday afternoon I was in jolly old England, wearing two jumpers… Monday lunchtime I’m eating a gigantic pork chop with fried bananas in Ecuador, South America…
Things that are usual: 1. working; 2. shopping; 3. eating; 4. drinking beer; 5. procreating; 6. watching television. These are usual things. If you see something not usual, report it. It won’t hurt you. You’ll feel so much better if you report…