Bogota Colombia 哥伦比亚波哥达 – 3/2017 (1)
3-8 It was going to be like going around the globe to reach South America from Kuala Lumpur. But I did not expect it to take 63 hours either. For some reason, the connection at Tehran was canceled. About 30…
Category Passionate and flamboyant Latin America in 60 days 拉美疯狂60天 3-4/2017
Medellin Colombia 哥伦比亚麦德林 – 3/2017 (2)
9 From Bogotá, I flew into Medellín instead of taking the bus. It took only 45 minutes instead of 10 hours by bus, due to the mountainous roads. Besides, there was a lot more ground for me to cover in…
Guatape Colombia 哥伦比亚瓜塔佩 – 3/2017 (3)
10 After Medellín, I made a day trip to see Guatape, a two-hour drive from Medellín. Guatape would prove to be the icing on the cake. The roads there were truly mountainous. Wow! Guatape was truly numbingly picturesque. It was…
Cartagena Colombia 哥伦比亚卡塔赫纳 – 3/2017 (4)
12-13 A couple of years ago, I met a super friendly young couple honeymooning in Cancún, Mexico. They told me I must go to Cartagena. I have not forgotten their friendliness down to this day. So, do not underestimate your…
Lima Peru 秘鲁利马 3/2017 (5)
14-17 After nine days in Colombia, I arrived in Lima, Peru. Peru conjures up images of mystique. Lima is a start. Let’s see. I excitedly came to this first landmark, Larcomar, in the Miraflores district. Shops and restaurants lined the…
Paracas/Islas Ballestas/National Reserve Peru 秘鲁帕拉卡斯 3/2017 (6)
18-20 I departed Lima on a luxurious bus. A pillow and blanket were provided, also a hot lunch and a dedicated video screen. My little luggage had to be checked in. I went through a security check where they did…
Huacachina Peru 秘鲁瓦卡奇纳绿洲 – 3/2017 (7)
21 An hour’s drive from Paracas, the public bus arrived at Huacachina, South America’s only oasis. The place looked quite ridiculous. Bizarre, really, a little pond in the middle of nothing but sand and sand hills that almost arched over…
Nazca Peru 秘鲁纳斯卡 – 3/2017 (8)
21-22/3/2017 I left Huacachina for Nazca the same day I arrived there. As I stood in the local bus looking down the aisle, I saw all these innocent big eyes staring at this yellow gringo with squirmy eyes who had…
Arequipa and Colca Canyon Peru 秘鲁阿雷基帕 – 3/2017 (9)
22-26 From Nazca, I took the night bus with a bunch of European youths. Ten hours later, I arrived in Arequipa, Peru’s second largest city. I quickly went out for a quick tour of the city center. This is a…
Cusco Peru 秘鲁库斯科 – 3/2017 (10)
27-30 A luxurious bus carried me from Arequipa to Cusco. The journey took 10 hours, arriving in Cusco early in the morning. I alighted the bus totally rested and fresh. This was the best and most comfortable long-distance bus ride…
Machu Picchu and Agua Clientes Peru 秘鲁马丘比丘 3/2019 (11)
28-29 There is a place in Peru every traveler touring Latin America makes a pilgrimage to wherever he/she is. From Cusco, I tried to get close to it, by finding my way first of all to Aguas Calientes. This was…
Puno Peru 秘鲁普诺 – 3/2017 (12)
31 After seven hours, the tour bus arrived at Puno, still in Peru but now close to the Bolivian border. This was a little town with humble people. I took a casual walk around the square in the morning. A…
Copacabana/Lake Titicaca Bolivia 玻利维亚科帕卡瓦纳 – 4/2017 (13)
1-3 From Puno on the Peruvian side, I traveled by bus toward Bolivia along Lake Titicaca, to arrive at the border. I then walked about 200 meters to cross the border, arriving at the border town Copacabana, by the lake.…
La Paz Bolivia 玻利维亚拉巴斯 04/2017 (14)
5-7 I finally arrived in La Paz. The first few days in Bolivia were not easy. Few here accepted credit cards. Their ATMs did not take my China and Malaysian withdrawal cards. My dwindling US dollars were depleting alarmingly fast.…
Chile Arica 阿里卡智利 – 4/2017 (15)
8-9 After 10 hours of desperate escape from La Paz, I finally arrived in Chile’s northernmost coastal city of Arica. As I arrived on the coast, my eardrums popped, just like when a plane touches down. Today I slept like…
Chile Iquique 伊基克智利 – 4/2017 (16)
9-11 Chile is the longest country in the world, more than 4,000 kilometers long narrow strip of land facing the Pacific. Journeying south should provide a feast of beaches. Arica whets my appetite for more. Who can have too many…
Chile Antofagasta 安托法加斯塔智利 – 4/2017 (17)
11-13 At the end of seven hours of riding in the desert, after negotiating a few mountains, Antofagasta—a sizeable city of about 600,000 inhabitants—appeared before us. First thing in the morning, I went to the beach to have a peek.…
Chile La Serena 拉塞雷纳智利 – 4/2017 (18)
14-15 I took another night bus, proceeding southward along the Chile Pacific coast. After 10 hours, I arrived at La Serena. I hired a bicycle for the day for USD 10. This beach was wider than the beaches I had…
Chile Santiago 圣地亚哥智利 – 4/2017 (19)
16-17 I was on the road again, leaving La Serena behind. I noticed more clouds in the sky and more vegetation on the mountains. This bus ride would take six to seven hours, eventually arriving at Santiago, Chile’s capital. Of…
Chile Valparaiso 瓦尔帕莱索智利 4/2017 (20)
18 One and a half hours away from Santiago on the Pacific coast was the port city of Valparaiso, made famous by its street art, a euphemism for graffiti. A few cable car stations connected the foothills to different parts…
Mendoza Argentina 阿根廷门多萨 – 4/2017 (21)
19-20 I left the coast toward Argentina. The scenery on this stretch was yet another feast for the eyes. Today, the sun put on quite a show, flashing its glory with its utmost might in all directions. I felt young…
Buenos Aires Argentina 阿根廷布宜诺斯艾利斯 – 4/2017 (22)
21-23 Last night I was treated like a king in this bus from Mendoza to Buenos Aires, at a price of USD 120. I was served red wine, champagne, and a hot dinner. I watched two movies on my personal…
Iguazu Brazil 巴西伊瓜苏 – 4/2017 (23)
24-25 From Buenos Aires, the next logical stop should be Iguazú in Argentina before moving into Brazil. But I had mistakenly booked the accommodation for Iguaçu in Brazil instead. So here I am in Iguaçu, Brazil. Wow! There was so…
Iguazu Argentina 阿根廷伊瓜苏 – 4/2017 (24)
26/4/2017 I broke my own record yet again, this time leaving Buenos Aires on a 20-hour bus ride. The rain had been dripping naggingly through the night, with thick vegetation starting to appear outside the bus windows. I opened my…
Sao Paolo Brazil 巴西圣保罗 – 4/2017 (25)
28-29 I touched down in São Paulo, Brazil’s largest city, in no time. The flight took an hour, but the taxi ride from the airport to my accommodation took about two hours, bogged down by the traffic. Today was my…
Rio de Janeiro Brazil (A) 巴西里约热内卢 (上）4/2017 (26)
30 I left São Paulo behind and boarded a bus for a six-hour ride to Rio. Yes, this was the city of the last Olympics. Waking up in the morning, stepping out of my residence, which was in an unassuming…
Rio de Janeiro Brazil （B）巴西里约热内卢 (下）4/2017 (27)
30 I came to this Ipanema beach just before the sun set, to squeeze in one more beach for the day. This was another famous beach in Rio. The sun was about to retire for the day, shades of gray…