The plane takes off through the thick ocean cloud that blankets Lima most of the year round. After around 15 minutes the high Andean mountains begin to poke through and the cloud clears. The floor below looks close, probably because it is; the plateau is at around 3000m above sea level. Cusco airport is small, just a luggage belt, a couple of tour desks, and a stall offering free oxygen. The lack of air is noticeable, and the usual airport rush to the baggage re...

It is midnight as I finally arrive in Lima, it only took 14 hours since Melbourne according to my watch, but it was more like 30 in reality. Edgar, the representative from my travel agency greets me and we're soon on our way to my hotel. About ten minutes into the journey, police in riot gear standing near a tank-like vehicle usher us and a few other cars over. Edgar clearly knows the drill and gets his papers, and wallet, ready. It turns out they're doing crim...

I sit for 15 hours on a plane (needs no further explanation, listening to me describe it is maybe as dull as doing it.) At Los Angeles Airport I get some breakfast, since apparently it is even earlier in the morning now than it was when I took off 15 hours ago. I take my chance to grab some root beer, which is probably my favourite soft drink, but it's unavailable outside the USA for some reason. My mistake is ordering a large, an elementary error in the States....

Melbourne's Fitzroy Gardens to the east of the city contain an eclectic mix of stuff. There's James Cook's cottage: the oldest building in Australia. There's also an ancient tree from which the Aboriginies once used the wood to carve out canoes. There's also a rather odd miniature Tudor village. During the war the people of Victoria sent food aid to the people of Lambeth, London. After the war, Lambeth sent Victoria a miniature Tudor village - and we all thought ...

The sky is blue! Quick, run around and take as many photos as possible before it's back to the drizzle. I go to Eureka tower: "The Southern Hemisphere's Tallest Observation Gallery" where the lift propels me up 88 floors at 9 m/s. The view is indeed impressive, much better with the blue sky background. Eureka's big attraction is "The Edge Experience". You step into a cube which overhangs the building, the floor then changes from opaque to tra...