Well we've made it all the way through South America and finally arrived in Campbell River, our final destination on our trip, and its cold!!! I know, I know, we've had enough sunshine to last a life time and its still not as cold as you all had at home this winter - but it's still taking some getting used to!

Our last stop was Acapulco, Mexico for a week to have a final crash out in the sun and recover from the Rio Carnival - which was amazing! Everything we had expected and so much more. The main event, the samba school parade in the sambadrome, was like nothing else we have ever seen or experienced. During the night (which starts at 9pm and finishes 6am) 6 schools go through the parade arena - up to 6000 people per school all dancing and singing to the music of their own 500 strong percussion band. And they are all supported by at least 8 parade floats for each school. The sheer scale of the event is mind blowing. Truely an amazing night. The rest of the carnival is made up of hundreds of street parties all throughout the city over a 5 day period. It's like the whole of London coming to a stand still and everyone hitting the streets to party - all day, all night, all ages, all walks of life. Absolutely crazy. So yes, we definitely needed to recover in Mexico!!

Canada is turning out to be a somewhat different experience due to family illness, but its still great to be here. And of course the end of the trip is looming - which is a shame. But I have to confess to a touch of homesickness setting in...Mum can I put in a request for your lemon meringue pie when i get home please!! Looking forward to catching up with everyone when we get back.