A breakfast of açaí

A breakfast of açaí

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Açaí berries are a purple fruit from the Brazilian rainforest, which  for hundreds of years have been a central part of the diet of native Amazonian people. In the last ten years açaí (pronounced ah-sigh-ee) has become known as one of the latest superfoods, alongside goji berries and adzuki beans. Its popularity was given a particular boost in 2008, when its antioxidant properties were highlighted on the Oprah Winfrey show. It is claimed that the berry helps combat premature aging and promote…

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5 things every traveller should know about Brazil

5 things every traveller should know about Brazil

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No.1. You might have to search for an ATM that accepts your card  We’d not had any problems getting money out of the ATM in any country in South America. Then we got to Brazil.  After crossing the border, we headed, with our bags to the nearest cash point. It wouldn’t accept either my or James’ card. Neither would the next two that we came across. After traipsing around town in the heat with our backpacks, we finally found one that…

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Rainy rainy Rio

Rainy rainy Rio

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By the Arcos de Lapa in the rain After our successful and sunny day in Rio visiting the sugar loaf and the Christ the Redeemer statue, the rest of our stay in the city was unfortunately very wet. Rio is very much a city to be enjoyed in the open air. But no matter, with our long experience of rainy British summers to help us, we were determined to get the most out of our time in the city, even if we did…

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The tale of the Sugar Loaf and the White Christ

The tale of the Sugar Loaf and the White Christ

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The sugar loaf from Flamengo We are lucky to have a friend in Rio de Janeiro, who let us stay with him while we were in town. He lives in the Flamengo area of the city with an incredible view of one of the most iconic sights of Rio – the Pão de Açúcar or sugar loaf. With the weather forecast for most of our time in Rio not looking good, we quickly realised that if we were going to see the best…

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Our top eight travel apps

Our top eight travel apps

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We use a number of different apps when we are travelling to make help us on our way. Here our eight favourites. Number eight: XE Currency Exchange is a money exchange app, which when it links to the internet gives you the latest up to the minute exchange rate for pretty much every currency across the globe. Its a massively useful app when you’re moving from country to country and need to know how much stuff costs! Number seven: Podcasts allows you…

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Where we stayed – Chile

Where we stayed – Chile

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The courtyard at Hostal Iquisa San Pedro de Atacama –  The small family run Hostal Iquisa is a quiet and relaxing hostel, 10 minutes out of town. Several reviews on hostelworld complain about the distance into town. While it definitely is a 10 minute walk, it really isn’t a big deal, and is quite a pleasant walk! However, it is a little dark getting back at night and so maybe not one for solo travellers.   When the weather is warm…

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Beautiful Bonito!

Beautiful Bonito!

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From the Pantanal, we headed to Bonito – a town known for its proximity to some of the clearest and most beautiful rivers in the world. You climb in with a snorkel and just float down the river which is teeming with fish and plant-life (as well as the odd caiman – eek!). It is much like climbing in to a giant aquarium in the middle of lush green jungle. If you only have time (or the budget – activities in Bonito…

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Nine South American Sunsets

Nine South American Sunsets

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A paddle in the Pacific 1. Lima: Our first South American sunset was in Peru’s capital Lima, where on day one of our 6 month trip, I enjoyed my first ever paddle in the Pacific Ocean as the sun went down. We then walked up the path from the beach to Barranco – the arty area of town we were staying – to enjoy a cold one as the sun  disappeared below the horizon on our first day away. The Peruvian…

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The rest of our time in the Pantanal

The rest of our time in the Pantanal

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Sunset in the Pantanal The highlight of our visit to the beautiful Pantanal in South-West Brazil was undoubtedly the jaguar sighting on our first day. However, we also enjoyed the rest of our stay at the Pousada Santa Clara – which is about 5 hours out of Campo Grande. The pool area at Santa Clara On the ride out to the lodge, we saw more caiman than we’d seen on our whole visit to the Bolivian jungle. And when we arrived at…

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Jaguar!

Jaguar!

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I hear our guide call out “Jaguar” in a loud stage whisper and see him pointing to the bank of the river. At first I see nothing and think he is joking, but then sure enough, between the trees and bushes, I see her eyeing us suspiciously. It is our first full day in the Pantanal in southern Brazil – a wetland area that covers over 80 thousand square miles. We’re out on a small motorboat on an early morning trip…

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