South America

The following text and subsequent blogs were written in 2011.

After an incredible two years and three months in Taiwan it was time to go. I could have easily stayed there forever BUT at 24 years old there were still lots of countries I wanted to tick off my list! With a couple of months worth of my Taiwanese savings ready to be spent I planned the trip of a lifetime to *drumroll* SOUTH AMERICA!

Leaving Taiwan was difficult so to cheer myself up I spent my birthday and Christmas in Indonesia (Bali, Nusa Lembongan and the Gilis) and Thailand (Koh Mak). I then returned to the UK for the first time in two years and nine months (crazy)!!! The plan was to get rid of my summer clothes and pack up thermals and anything that would keep me warm high up in the Andes. It also meant I had two weeks to revisit the food (and ribena) I couldn’t get for years in Taiwan (my mum’s incredible cooking, cheese, roast dinner, cheese, fish and chips, Lancashire hot pot, my mum’s incredible cooking, gravy, cheese, pies, homemade cakes, decent Italian food, cheese, a properly sized pizza, cheese, more of my mum’s incredible cooking… you get the gist).

I was about to spend 8 months and 24 days travelling around the incredible continent of South America (February – November 2011). I saw a lot, walked A LOT and loved it even more.

I left my home town of Bury after a busy two weeks on Friday 4th February 2011. I caught the train from Manchester to London, Euston and ate one final delicious roast beef dinner and bacon butty the following morning at my aunty’s house. At 10am on Satuday 5th February I waved goodbye and flew to Caracas, Venezuela.

Here’s where I visited, in the order that it happened…

Venezuela…

(February 2011)

Caracas, Maracay, Puerto Colombia, Coro, Maracaibo.