My way through SA

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After leaving Mompos, I continued my way down to San Gil. San Gil is currently THE place in Colombia for extreme sports - rafting, canyoning, repelling, anything you can think about really. What did I do over there ? I went to visit waterfalls and do walks around small colonial villages. I was back in the mountains and the temperature was perfect so I was fully satisfied. I then went to Villa de Leyva - another very picturesque colonial town (yes, there’s a lot of those) where I spend some quiet days walking around the town and going for a horse ride to see blue lagoons sitting in a desert surrounded by mountains (just as nice as it seems). My next destination, which is also more or less my last destination was Bogotá. Back to the city, to the noise and to (much) cooler weather. So first thing I did in Bogotá was to go to the cinema. I hadn’t been in one of those in over a year. The movie, a documentary really, is called Magia salvaje (wild magic) and is about fauna and flora in Columbia. It shows beautiful sceneries and talks about all the wonderful resources that exist in Colombia. At the same time, it explains how in Colombia the forest is being cut down for agriculture and mining, how rivers are being polluted - basically how this treasure is being wasted away.

The next day I went to a salt cathedral a little outside Bogotá. It's basically a salt mine that has taken a very religious turn at 180m below ground - impressive but lacked the reality of the working conditions in the mine. For a little over a week, I then spent my time in an ecovillage in the mountains not far from Bogotá. It was really really nice. I would work in the mornings and the rest of my time was spent doing some cleaning and cooking tasks but more importantly, chilling by the river or the fire. It was so relaxed and pleasing, I would not min spending a couple of months amongst this amazingly friendly community. I'm now back in Bogotá and have one more day to go. My flight back to France is tomorrow... It's a strange feeling. It's the end of this adventure, of this exceptional year and wonderful experiences. I hope to be back soon - I'm not done with this continent yet !!!

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Colombia from South to North

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Day 365

Congrats to my trip !! Today marks one year exactly that I reached this amazing continent. I'm currently on a plaza in Mompós, a colonial city in the middle of nowhere, still stuck in the 19th century. I came from Cartagena where I spent 5 days walking around the nearly-too-perfect historical centre. I reached the Caribbean coast 2 weeks ago and have been to Palomino - a quiet hippyish beach town, to Cabo de la Vela where desert meets sea and Minca, a small mountain ideal to escape the heat of Santa Marta. Before that I was making my way up from Ecuador to Medellin with various stops on the way. Medellin is a very cool city: the efforts that have been put in to transform it, to make it safe, enjoyable and appealing are tremendous and on-going... It is a city full of life, agreeable public spaces and culture. My battery is running out so I'll continue my Colombian description later.

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Saying goodbye - round 2

I say this a lot but TIME FLIES WAY TOO FAST. I’m still in Ecuador and have of course overstayed again … I’m planning to leave next Friday and this time I don’t believe that coming back anytime soon will be an option. It’s been a great experience and life lesson - this is a true understatement but no words can really explain what I’m living right now. Before I leave I’ve been persuaded to take part in a cycling competition this coming Sunday - it’s a 30K race at 2600 masl featuring beautiful landscapes, windy roads, mountains all around and two wonderfully long and painful ascents. If I survive and am still able to use my legs, next week I’ll be going around Salasaka spending time with all the people that have made my stay here so special and intense. A year is very short but it does give one time to partially integrate and right now it really feels like I’m leaving home without knowing when or if I’ll be back. Work wise, tomorrow is my last official day of teaching the kids, as I’ve been taking care of the vacation classes up at the school. We’ll be having a Pampa Mesa, which means that everyone brings something - usually natural product from the earth such as potatoes, choclo and tostado (types of corn), mijoco and ocas (potato family), habas (beans) - that is then spread out on a table for everyone to grab. We’ve also planned to fly kites and walk up the hill to see Tungurahua - the active volcano watching over us. As you can see, we know how to have fun at Katitawa. I see you getting all excited… She’s leaving Ecuador, she’s coming back to Europe … Not too fast ! My trip does not end quite yet as I’m going up to Colombia for a couple of weeks after leaving Ecuador. I’m hoping the Caribbean beaches and the Colombian happiness will take care of my post-Salasaka depression. While traveling in Colombia I’ll try to be a little more active on the blog.

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Inti Raymi preparations, Desfile, sunset, birthday party and other moments up at the school !

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Salasaka moments

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I’ve been back in Ecuador for 2 months, still working at the school in group 4, preparing them for next year - colegio. Time goes by crazy fast. I was planning to leave once school ends in early July…but that’s in six weeks and I’m really not sure I’ll be ready to leave when that time comes. I’m not making any plans or taking any decisions right now - I do still want to go to Columbia for two months and I had planned to be back in Europe around September so let’s see how that goes. As far as life here in Salasaca and up at the school is going, everything is fine. The kids are preparing a very important exam organised by the ministerio that will be coming up pretty soon - I even taught them on a Saturday. Preparations for Inti Reymi, an Inka celebration - literally the ‘sun party’ - is already under way up at the school.

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Back to everyday life at the school

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Back to where it began

I finally managed to leave Chile and have been back in Salasaca for just under three weeks now ... and it more or less feels as if I never left. All the kids seemed very happy to see me again and of course I was extremely pleased to see their faces again. I am still teaching group 4, and I teach an arts class to group 3. The only real change that will be taking place soon is that I will be the new volunteer coordinator. More work, more responsibility ... But hopefully everything goes for the best. Last weekend I went on a very tough trek up a couple of mountains to reach a laguna comfortably sitting in a horseshoe formed by the volcano, El Altar. If you like mud, mud and more mud then this hike is for you... But I don't, and unfortunately my shoes have not quite recovered from the hike. But the view was worth it !!

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Staying South

For those of you wandering if or when I'm coming back to Europe, I'm officially announcing that I will not be back before August/September 2015. I've left the job at Buro Happold I never started - after thinking about it over and over again - and decided I did not feel like going back to London. I'm currently still in Santiago but have a flight on the 1st of April to Piura, in northern Peru. From there, I will travel back to Ecuador to Salasaca to continue teaching at Katitawa until early July (end of the school year). And if I follow my current plan I will then head to Colombia for a couple of weeks before flying back to France. ... Yes I am enjoying my trip and South America a lot !!!

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Welcome to Chile

For over a month now I've been in Chile - or to be correct the northern part of Chile that goes until Santiago. I started off in San Pedro de Atacama - a really cute, super touristy but very welcoming town. And there's loads to do. One of the must-sees is the Valle de la Luna, a valley in the Atacama desert that supposedly is the earthly landscape closest to that of the moon. And while I cannot confirm this having never travelled to the moon, I can say that it is an alien site. I also went camping in the Valle de la Muerte in the sand dunes to admire the precious night sky of northern Chile (where the ozone layer is very thin so the stars are very clear - which also means the sun is dangerously strong). I left San Pedro already loving Chile and a bright red patch on my back. The following part of my trip was very unplanned and based on day-to-day decisions. The aim was to reach Santiago to meet up with a friend whom I met in Bolivia but that was also still traveling so I needed to take my time traveling south. I therefore made a first stop in Copiapó, a mining city where there is literally nothing to do or see... But very close to the city is the national park Tres Cruces Nevada which holds amazing sites but very few tourists. Tours are incredibly expensive so I had no idea if I would actually get to go but upon arriving in the early morning in Copiapó I met a Spanish backpacker that also wanted to go - and so we did. We rented a pick-up and styles overnight at a refuge 4763 masl on the shores of another Laguna Verde. It was a great experience. My next stop took me to the coast at Punta de Choros - a wild, calm and very charming beach where I spent most of my time sun tanning, playing in the waves, going for walks and watching the sunset. I then left to go to another beach at La Serena which is very much a summer resort for people from Santiago. I was planing on going inland a bit to visit the Valle del Elqui which is supposed to be very pretty but my friend arrived early to Santiago so I off I went. I have now been in and around Santiago for over three weeks - I've received a private tour of Valparaiso, Viña, Reñaca, Concon and Santiago and went trekking and camping in the mountains around Santiago to see two different glaciers. Having no prearranged leaving date I've been pushing my departure away until today. I booked my ticket, packed my bags, went to the terminal preparing myself for the 30h bus ride to Arica and...due to very heavy rains the river in Copiapó flooded 4km of the main road making impossible any traffic. I am hence stuck in Santiago for another week or so and am now wondering whether a flight to Peru would not be more reasonable... The adventure never stops.

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Salar de Uyuni tour

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I realise it's been a while so let me provide an insight of my doings. The trip from Potosi to Uyuni is a short but breathtaking 3hour-ride down the Bolivian altiplano. Uyuni is literally a city that was constructed in the middle of nowhere for touristic purposes - the Salar de Uyuni tour. This can either be a round trip or takes you across the border to San Pedro de Atacama, Chile - which is exactly what I did. The tour lasts three days and takes you through a variety of landscapes that leave you feeling humbled and blessed by nature - the salt flats are of course amazing but the cacti island, the lagunas and the geysers are extraordinary. It might be possible to find equally beautiful landscapes around the world but more beautiful, I doubt it. On the third day, after a 4am wake-up call to go and see the geysers as the sun rises and a stop at the Laguna Verde (which we saw nothing of due to the fog), probably one of the highest located border customs in the world lets you exit Bolivia.

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Sucre, Samaipata and El Carnaval de Oruro

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So I survived the jungle even though three Bolivian mamas looked at me as if I was crazy and strongly advised me against going alone - Sola ? Noo, es peligroso ! - when I asked for the way to the Cerro Brujo. But after getting lost and getting a motorbike ride I finally found the place and it was worth it. My plan to leave Rurre that same day failed as the only bus leaving for Trinidad was full and so I got to enjoy another day in town where the preparations for their Carnaval were well under way. The bus from Rurre to Trinidad was an interesting experience - I was clearly the only non-Bolivian local during the 15h ride in the Beni pampa where one could casually see capybaras on the side of the road (I was the only one excited by the view). We also had a 2.30-hour unplanned stop under the terrible midday sun due to road works... This is Bolivia ! Finally got to Trinidad, a cute city with a very nice plaza in the Amazon. However having spend 2 days more than planned in Rurre I decided to catch a night bus directly to Santa Cruz. I only spend one day in the city (more than enough in my opinion) which is enough I realise how modern and rich the city is - quite a surprise. The next day I left the hostel's pool and took a colectivo to Samaipata. This small town next to the huge Amboro national park is a haven of peace and hippyness! The hostal/camping El Jardin is so relaxed that my 2-day stay developed into 6 days - going for walks, bathing in waterfalls, chilling in hammocks, listening to the continual guitar players and socialising around the fire at night. I eventually decided it was time to leave and off I went to Sucre. Now, one good thing to know is that from the 12th of February the preparations and celebrations for Carnaval - officially from the 14th to the 17th - overtake the city. It is hence near-impossible to walk around without getting attacked by water bombs and spray foam. It's actually crazy...cities become war zones where going to the market becomes a highly stressful and dangerous task where you unavoidably come back drenched and covered in foam. For the first day of Carnaval I went to Oruro where they have the biggest celebration in Bolivia. Another crazy and amazing experience - 28,000 dancers, 10,000 musicians and a 24-hour long parade overtakes the town. It's the most folkloric Carnaval in all South America - the costumes are unbelievable and everyone is in party mood. After Oruro I made my way to Potosi where from I am writing (4100m high but best wifi in all Bolivia). Water and foam fights are also going strong here. The city is a mining city and was - in it's prime - the richest city in South America. Today the mines are still operational and can be visited - but Carnaval is celebrated by everyone, including the miners so the mines stand empty at the moment. My next stop will be Uyuni, from where I'll be visiting the salt flats before crossing over to Chile. Chao.

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A wet hike on Isla del Sol, views of La Paz and Rurre’s amazing flora and fauna