Hernán Cortés arrived at the site of present day Veracruz on Good Friday, April 21st 1519 and began his siege of Mexico shortly thereafter. By 1521 he had crushed the Aztec empire…Veracruz provided Mexico’s gateway to the outside world for over 400 years. Invaders and pirates, incoming and outgoing rulers, settlers, silver and slaves –... Continue Reading →
Cuidad de Mexico or CDMX or Mexico City Having 5 days to 'fill in' whilst the car was in transit from Cartagena to Veracruz, we decided a visit to Mexico City might be a good way to have a break and explore a different kind of landscape. With a population of 35 million or so... Continue Reading →
As we have moved through South America, some things have ‘struck’ us as defining, not so much individual countries but geographical areas that cross borders. Whether it be the harshness and beauty of Patagonia, the stillness and enormity of the mountain passes that cross the Andes or the desert country of northern Chile and Argentina,... Continue Reading →
The car was to be shipped from Cartagena to Veracruz in Mexico and as part of the process needed to be cleaned and prepared for customs and narcotics inspections. We decided to do this at a campground just short of Cartagena, a couple of hundred km’s up the road from where we were. In IOverlander,... Continue Reading →
From Guatape we headed north through some incredibly interesting mountain country. By Colombia standards it was a good quick run up to lunch although the number of big trucks on the road laden with shipping containers was increasing, which was ominous! We were heading for the town of Caucasia and it looked like we would... Continue Reading →
Medellin is now a favourite city amongst Colombians and an extremely popular nearby attraction is the village of Guatapé which sits on the edge of an enormous man-made lake. The banks of the lake, are lined with private waterside ‘weekenders’ and the occasional luxury hotel. You can do boat tours .. or climb the iconic... Continue Reading →
Getting to Medellin from Salento was a short 270kms. The drive took 12 hours! A few road works hold ups took 3 hours in total. During one 90 minute stop, we were surprised by two Aussies on a motorbike who stopped to say hi because we were the first Aussies they'd seen in 5 months.... Continue Reading →
Salento, now one of Colombia’s major tourist attractions is known for its colonial architecture, verdant tropical vegetation, proximity to Los Nevados National Park and coffee. The village itself is small, with a population of about 7,000, and has retained its traditional colonial architecture as a result of the major route to Bogota being diverted during... Continue Reading →
There has been no shortage of weird and wonderful sights as we have travelled around South America over the past 6 months. The unpredictability of what might be just around the corner or up the road means there is never a dull moment, no matter what country we are in. Herein a few shots from... Continue Reading →
Salento is a beautiful little town in the mountains surrounded by coffee plantations. It is a renowned coffee-producing region, now a UNESCO recognized area and we enjoyed a tour of a working coffee plantation, seeing the process of picking, sorting and roasting first hand. A lesson in making a great coffee followed the tour, which... Continue Reading →
Notes from somewhere else... 