We began our Southern Leg with a very scenic drive through the mountains and hills between Picton (where the ferry docked) and Nelson. Nelson was a cheerful town with more of a buzz than most of the places we had visited in the North Island. Unfortunately, because of our relatively late arrival here it meant that most of the hostels were full. We settled for a room above a bar, which seemed pleasant enough…until we woke up on Monday morning with fleas crawl...

40 hours after leaving the farm in Temuco, Southern Chile, Matt and I touched down on the tarmac of Auckland airport, on monday 4th February. It was 4am, but the jet lag meant that it felt like noon. Former Reigate Grammar School gap year student Mike Ryan met us at the airport, and after a short drive through Auckland we arrived at his house. I then relised that I'd lost my passport, documents and traveller's cheques. After lots of looking, worrying and calling ...

Our introduction into Chilean culture was quite blunt. Coming out of arrivals at Santiago Airport, about 2 flights and 22hours after leaving Heathrow, Matt and I were greeted by a large crowd of taxi drivers, who all seemed to be shouting their fares in Spanish. This would have been helpful, had we spoken Spanish. Moreover, we were immediately targeted by taxi drivers wearing cheap suits and with their hair slicked to the side, looking very slimey. They knew we h...

Well! One week to go! Nerves are building but so is the excitement. Preparation is now at its most rapid, with packing, jabs and planning all coming to an end, and there is just the small matter of considering what it will be like to be on the other side of the world, away from friends and family and with (particularly concerning SE Asia and Chile) some language barriers that must be overcome. There are also those last minute worries, such as vaccination cards,...

Hey all This is a bit of a dummy run, and I thought I would just let you know of our plans for our travels This is the rough plan for our route: Chile - New Zealand - Australia - Singapore - Malaysia - Thailand - Cambodia - Laos - Vietnam - China - Fly home from Hong Kong