The final stop on the South American leg of our journey - and on the equator would you believe we're in low cloud and 16 degrees. More to come soon. As this really was the last days of our travels proper we pushed the boat out and stayed at the Hotel Quito which is set in lovely gardens at the top of a hill and has wonderful views across the city (but with all the low cloud around we only caught tantalising glimpses every now and again). Only having a couple of...

The journey from the airport on the small island of Baltra to the main town of Puerto Ayora on Santa Cruz serving the Galapagos Islands is in three stages - a free bus from the airport to a jetty from which a ferry crosses the channel to Santa Cruz, then finally a 45 minute bus ride. For some time now M has been troubled by a sore shoulder caused by lifting and carrying her rucksack. E had therefore stubbornly decided that enough was enough and he would therefore...

We said a sad farewell to Rosemary at the CIFA bus station in Piura (she had given us a lift - with the driver being a local guy whom Rosemary pays to drive her into the 'big city'). The bus station is pretty grotty but we were encouraged to see a smart, modern double-decker looking ready to go. However, a downturn in events began when an old rickety looking single decker pulled into the garage with a cry of 'Bus para Guayaquil'. The side of the bus proudly adver...

Here for Hogmanay staying with Rosemary who is surrounded by her rescued dogs and cats. She immediately made us feel very much at home and we were soon settled in to our comfortable room - with our own private terrace. Colan is a small sleepy village (well, normally anyway) on the coast with a lovely long beach, a perfect setting in which to relax for a few days over New Year. We'd heard about Colan from niece Gillian who'd gone to stay with Rosemary last July ...

Another long bus journey again through the vast coastal desert landscapes punctured by verdant areas watered by rivers (what will happen when these dry up once the mountain snows and glaciers vanish ....?). In the Trujillo area sugar cane is the dominant agriculture whereas further north it is rice, paddy field after paddy field of rice. We pulled into Piura after dark scanning the streets for bus companies that go to Ecuador. We had found a cheap deal on Expedia...