Wednesday 9th April Iguazu Falls

The day started at 8.00am with a morning walk of 1km which took over an hour and a half at every turn there was another view of the falls quite breathtaking when looking directly across at them. We are now in Brazil. Next was a visit to a bird park that works for conservation of species, it also has a larfe butterfly eenclosure, a few of the native snakes, including an Australians cassowary. It was quite well done and situated in a rainforest setting. Whilst walking around the Bird Park the sky turned black, we heard thunder and then within 5 minutes torrential rain fell this was the first of 2 lots of rain this day. If we thought we were wet well we were to get wetter before days end. After a snack lunch it was time to experience the jet boat ride up to the Deep throat area of the falls, running the rapids, flying around under falls, so much fun and wonderful to be so close to these famous falls one of the wonders of the world. Back on dry land wet as wet it was straight back to the hotel a hot shower and rinse clothes out and hope they would dry out before morning. Our evening meal was at the hotel.

Thursday, 10thh April Iguazu Falls-Rio De Janeiro

Today we flew fron Iguazu to Rio de Janiero. On arrival our trusty guide Riccardo was not prepared to, leave the airport until he new where our bags were. With Bill in tow they crisscrossed the air terminal looking for someone in authority. Eventually it was established our luggage was still in Santiago in Chile. Our guide Riccardo was taken through security to some managers office and when he left there he had the flight number it would be on, plus time it was leaving and arrival time and estimate of time it would be at our hotel the next day. So no bag and clothes for another day, it is amazing how you can survive, with toothbrush, 2 pairs of undies, 2 shirts and sleeveless jacket 2 pairs of socks and 1 pair of shoes, the main problem is that it is hot and Bill would kill for his shorts. Our home for the next 3 nights is the famous Copocobana Palace Hotel, Copocobana beach. Arriving mid afternoon in Rio we took a trip to Sugarloaf Mountain by cable car for views of the city and beach areas, the day was reasonably clear so good for photos. Dinner was at Porcao restaurant a Brazillian BBQ a bit different to the Argentine BBQ in that Meat and salads or vegetables are eaten together, the meat is on long skewers and the waiter carves it and you with tongs in hand put it on your plate, everything from Beef, Lamb, Chicken, Pork, sausages. Brazillian people like a lot of salty foods, so some of the meat was either coated in cheese or rubbed with salt. As with all the provided meals we ate to much, Bill is trying the local beers and I drank the local drink an alcoholic base with lots of lime and ice, very refreshing.

Friday 11th April - Rio De Janeiro

This morning we had a choice of 3 activities, visit the botanical gardens - not for us, visit the Petropolis an historical area with a palace museum, we decided on a trip to the Favelas as we were unsure when the decision had to be made whether we may need to do more shopping. Initially I thought I would feel a little uncomfortable going to this area as it is very old and these days quite a poor area unless you live there by choice and also it is where many drug lords reside. When Rio won the rights to the Olympics it was on the proviso they cleaned the area up. Well most of the drugs lords moved out just to somewhere different and continued their trade and for 12 months or so things improved but now they have started to move back in. The narrow lane ways run in all directions and the house is not allowed to be more than 5 stories high. All children must go to school and the school is split into two halves. First children go from 6.00am to 1.00pm and the next lot 1.00pm to 700pm teachers are paid $400 US per month and teach up to 40 students in a class. Because the children are at a loose end for a large percentage of the time an Italian couple, set up a Child Care centre which is free and runs on donations from anyone. The children we met were in the computer room which had about 8 computers in it, outside 6 boys were playing soccer in an area about 3 metres wide x 6 metres long. They were the happiest people wehad seen to date (see photo these kids just wanted to pose and then see the photos). Back at the hotel Hooray our luggage has arrived. We generally have a good breakfast as lunch is generally 1.30-2.00 so as lunch was on our own today our new found friends Max & Melita, Bill and I walked to the nearest shopping centre for a coffee, which turned out to be hot chocolate then a walk along the beach and a paddle in the ocean. Returning to our hotel Bill who now had all his clothes chose to have a swim in the hotel pool. I feel that I am getting a cold so refrained.

Saturday 12th April, Rio De Janeiro

Today we are off to Christ the Redeemer on Corcovado Mountain. The statue is a simple design standing 3 metres tall and 28 metres across hand to hand standing on a granite base on the very top of Mount Corcovado. The men built the statue of reinforced concrete with lightening rods and

the women designed the clothing and it is made out of soap stone mosaic style. The views are similar to Sugarloaf Mountain which is directly opposite Mount Corcovado. If you stand on a particular step with your arms outstretched it appears to are touching the statues outstretched arms, hundreds were doing just that but not us to dangerous with the pushing and shoving of some people. Again views around the bay were magnificient, both towards Rio and the other direction Ipanema. Travelling back towards Rio we noted all the work in progress cor the World Cup but boy they had better shake the tail feathers or it will be a disaster, they only have 2 months to go and many buildings are half finished so the surrounds are a mess but they feel confident it will happen along

with the Olympics.

Sunday 13th April Rio De Janeiro to Santiago

It sure was Sunday the 13th a wasted day. We had to check out of hotel 11.45am hardly enough time to go anywhere you haven't already walked to. Arrive at the airport 2 hours before the flight to another country this time Chile, so passports to the front and centre, through immigration and customs for the wait, plane delayed so instead arriving around 7.00pm it was later 8.00pm. Very tired after doing nothing.

Monday 14th April Santiago

Today our local guide is Ricardo our Tour Manager, Santiago is his home town. We commence with a tourof the city which is a mixture of French, Italian and Spanish influences. There are churches and major buildings on every other corner. One thing I do like about this continent that Mr Pisaro the Spanish explorer founded some 500+years ago is that the cities and some towns are built around a main square, with either a fountain or statue of a founding father surrounded by lovely gardens, roads and important buildings, like palaces, government buildings and cathedrals. The squares are very clean unlike some areas just behind the square. Palaces wer

e for royalty, which there is little evidence of today and these huge buildings often are the home of the countries president or museum or art gallery. After our tour ofthe city, that gave us no time to get off and explore, we headed for Valparaiso. Our first stop was Emiliana Winery, some very nice wines as far as Chilean wines go, they intend to export to Australia within the next 12 months. Malbec seems tobe the most popular red wine and they make a blend of malbec, merlot and Cab Sav. Emilliana also make whites Sav Blanc being the most popular and they make "bubbles". The cellar door and surrounding gardens like most wineries were lovely although they do not seem to plant roses at the beginning of the rows but they are intermittently around the winery. We were supposed to be going into the hills of Valparaiso for lunch but bush fires prevented this from happening and on reaching our destination there was a huge crowd in the street making donations and sorting items for those who had lost their homes. The second choice restaurant for lunch was very nice. After lunch we visited the older part of Valparaiso that has been heritage listed by UNESCO again a very interesting walk around some old buildings. When we have had lunch we never feel like tea so we watched the CNN News for a while and had an early night as we had to leave hotel next morning.

Tuesday 15th April, Santiao to Lima

Our wake up call was 5.00am as our luggage had to be ready at the door ny 5.45am and we left for airport at 6.30am for our flight to Lima and the next 8 days in Peru. More passport showing, immigration and customs as we will be mpving to yet another country. Our flight was scheduled to 10.50 and delayed until 12.10, hence it was going to be another wasted day but as it turned out it was not to bad. Our bus tour of the city was cut out and we went straight to a Restaurant Brujas del Cachiche for lunch, as usuL to much food but most enjoyable Peruvian style cuisine. We checked into the Marriott Hotel and Bill discovered he had left his hat at the restaurant. Bill said not to worry about ot but I wanted it back he has had it about 20 years now and ithas been o/seas 4 times everywhere in Australia and it is one way I can find him in a crowd. The staff at the hotel were good and rang the restaurant to check if it had been found, we hopped into a taxi showed the drived where we wanted to go and while Bill stayed in the taxi I went in and retrieved the hat, back to the hotel the driver charged us the equivalent of $3.85au for about 20 mins driving.

Wednesday 16th April, Lima to Cusco

Another early start left hotel at 8.00 for the drive to Lima airport for a 9.50 flight that turned into a 12.10 flight to Cusco the heart of the Inca Ex

perience. Airports are so boring when you are just waiting. Arrived Cusco around 2.30 and with no time to look around headed for Chinchero where we saw an interesting insight into their way of life and the way of spinning, dying and weaving and knitting the wool of the Llama, we also had a snack lunch of delicious corn patties, potatoes (one of 1200 varities they grow up here) and guinea pig - no Carson family I could not eat your pet no matter what they say. Dad tried a very small portion but didn't like so at least I don't have to learn to cook this delicacy. Today we made a couple of purchases a jumper for Bill and a Jacket for me from Llama wool so soft. We are now in the high altitude areas so have had a couple of cups of the famous tea "Coca" and mint tea that aids digestion. A short distance from Chincero is our hotel for the next 2 nights in the Sacred Valley. Another early night after an early start

Thursdays17th April Urumba in the Sacred ValleyRd

After a good nights sleep for me not so restful for Bill he was suffering indigestion through the night not sure why. At 8.30am we began our tour of the Sacred Valley so called because it was where the Inca nations built there villages but more importantly grew their crops for food. Food production is still a major part of life for people who live in the area and for Peru. Try and imaginea making a living off 18 acres of land some on a hillside and the only means of transport is yoirlegsand feet, no tractors or harvesters to be seen around these parts.Main crops are potatoes, big kernel white corn, quinoa and broad beans but many stoned fruits come from here along with pumpkins, wheat and 3 other varieties of corn (purple, yellow, white normal sized kernels) The big white corn is used for lots of things and is very flavoursome. People that live traditional lifestyles and that is most grind there own flour, whether it is potatoe, corn or wheat. Today we had a lovely drink made from purple corn, pineapple and strawberries all foods from the area. Our first stop was Ollyantatambo where there is a small market but the main attraction was the remains of un unfinished village and temple. Bill asked the questions about cutting the stone and how they fitted each into position no nails, glue or cement for this lot in 1000BC. The only tools were the stone used like a hammer, bronze implement for a chisel type instrument and silver for template to makes things fit together and human life. Peru is known for its silver and must be still reasonably plentiful as it is eveywhere inthe shops and markets. Our next stop was a market in a little square and there was the usual souvenirs of the area including Llama items, weavings, clothing bags and miniature animals. All the roads leading to the market are from Inca times very narrow with a water drain down the centre and cobblestoned so a rough ride most of the time and like the Favelas the house built on top of one another most being Adobes. We were taken into an Inca home there are still many of these around they are one long room with a bed for parents one end , a stove for cooking, children sleep on the floor and guinea pigs run around ad hoc and are herded into a corner at night. The droppings are swept daily and used for fuel and of course the pig is meat.These rooms also have a mezzanine floor for drying of crops. Around the room were little niches with ornaments in them also with weird things that I would think are of pagan origin like the 3 sculls of dead people. Our final Iigemof interest was dinner in an Andean private home, very nice, nibbles of sweet orn white, avocado and cheese , quinoa soup, beef stew served with rice and homemade chips, then a fruit similar to a Tamarillo, all very nice home style cooking. The rest of the afternoon was free and all made for their rooms and a rest feeling quite tired due to the altitude. I had a cup of Coca tea and eventually my headache disappeared.

Sorry the font etc is all over the place I don't know why or how to fix.