On my departure from Ecuador, the country was plunged into chaos. The President, Rafael Correa was physically attacked and trapped in a hospital for several hours on Thursday by Ecuadorian police until the military leadership came out on his side and army troops rescued him in a blaze of gunfire. It is not sure whether the attack was an organised coup attempt or whether it was a protest against spending cuts by the police which spiraled out of control. Either way, the country, whose last three presidents have been ousted by coups, has been plunged into uncertain rule in the last few days. For a while there, Ecuador was as lawless as Crossmaglen.

Even now that I am in Peru, the South American political heat has not turned down. I write from Lima, where everything has shut down and you can´t even buy beer due to the mayoral elections this weekend. That´s right. The sale of alcohol has been forbidden. No beer. On my way down the coast, there were election rallies, marches, drive-by megaphone speeches and all other manner of blatant electioneering. The parties here are nearly as heavy at grass roots level in the villages as Sinn Fein. Except their suits aren´t as nice. Gerry Kelly wouldn´t wear anything but Tiochfaidh Armani in the Ardoyne.

After Merazonia I journeyed back to the Irish bar in Quito to watch the All Ireland final. The previous Saturday had been ´Ínternational Pirate Day´and the pub had staged a themed party to commemorate such an important occasion. And so I watched Down v Cork on an Ecuadorian Sunday morning amidst a rabble of leftover and locked-in drunken (and in some cases) sleeping pirates, half-finished White Russians strewn around the tables, blow-up parrot dolls and eye-patches falling from the bar. But my focus was on the red and black heroes in Croke Park. We were very much in the game and Cork just squeezed it out in the end. This group of Down players is special and all Mourne followers should be immensely proud of them. I really hope they can all stick together and build on the success of this year.

I was so unbelievably heartbroken that I jumped on a 16 hour bus straight after the game, past Cuenca, to my last stop in Ecuador. This was the isolated village of Vilcabamba, which has been named the ´Valley of Eternal Youth´ due to its aged and healthy inhabitants. The locals do enjoy a healthy climate and excellent drinking water, as well as a physically active lifestyle amidst the mountains and relatively little stress. I sampled all of this for a few days and understand why so many gringos just stay. Myself and a guy from Kerry took on some hiking in the hills and completed the Mandango trail, but not after getting lost and panicking about the howling of wild dogs as the night came down upon us. Two Irishmen will, however, as the man from the Kingdom reminded me, always find a way to survive.

And so to the Peruvian coast. Mancora, the surfing and party town was the first stop, where I put a stamp on my back as a sign of respect to the Down players who got to the final. An Dun Abu. I also decided to go Inca and get myself a Mohawk, refined even further in Huanchaco, another surfing and fishing village an overnight bus trip down the coast. Here the climate changed dramatically, meaning my alpaca jacket is now a must whenever I leave the hostel and for the first time, wetsuits are required to stay in the water. Huanchaco has a very laid back vibe and is home to some of the friendliest local surfers I have met thus far. Not to mention some mean Burritos and locally baked cookies.

My stopover in Lima is precisely that. A stopover. Today I brave the bus again to Pisco, another four or five hours down the Peruvian coast. Here I will be volunteering for a few weeks with Pisco Sin Fronteras, a volunteer disaster reconstruction organisation that works in and around the city of Pisco. In August of 2007 a 7.9 magnitude earthquake devastated the region, destroying 80% of the homes in Pisco and killing around 600 people. The earthquake left many people living in makeshift housing of cardboard, scrap wood and plastic, and on dirt floors, with no more than a bucket in the corner for a toilet. I will be volunteering for a few weeks with PSF as they work to improve the living conditions of those families affected by the earthquake by building and improving houses, working in schools, building sanitation units and working in community development.