Lima, Huaraz, Huanchaco @ Kuelap..buggle up, cuz this = not gonna be a long message..;)!

Hey guys, how`s everything going..?!

After Cuzco, it was time for Lima, a huge city with approximately 9 million! people. Notorious for its criminal activity, we visited the capital of Peru for about 3 days. I found it quite a pleasant city to stay, although security was really everywhere! From Lima we took the bus to Huaraz, an extrodinary mountain village in the centre of the Cordillera Blanca…didn`t see a lot of places before like that…just amazing! After having arrived @ 6 in the morning, we left to Chavin de Huantar, ancient ruins….which wasn`t a big succes but ok..;). Next day we decided to do a hike from 4 days through the Cordillera Blanca, the Santa Cruz trek…which was FANTASTIC..!! More than 35 snowcapped peaks above 6000! meters…quite spectacular. During this trip we met up with some guys from Israel, which were a pleasant company these days! Back in Huaraz, it was time for the next city, Huanchaco. A typical relaxing place, with tons of wheet, nice beaches and good seafood. We also went to Chiclayo, quite similiar to Huanchaco..so you can imagine that I didn`t do too many things these days..;)! After another food poisoning (from what…???!) we went weakened:P on towards Chachapoyas famous for its ancient ruins of Kuelap @ the third highest waterfall in the world! Earlier that week there had been an earthquake near Chachapoyas, so the whole `highway` (= unpaved road over here) was totally destroyed, so time for another route.  So that one was a bit longer, 20 hours in total..we arrived in Tingo, gateway for the track towards Kuelap. With not too much physical strength we managed to walk up in 2,5 hours (1400 meters) which wasn`t bad at all…and suddenly walls from about 10 to 20 meters appeared out of nothing…KUELAP…in a beautiful environment with green hills n mountains all around us, it was just perfect!

Now, after this short summary I`ll go to my hostal in Chachapoyas where we are now (Jonas, belgium and me). Tomorrow we`re planning to head to the Gocta falls…and afterwards I have to decide if I go either to Iquitos (Amazon) or Ecuador! One more story will appear on this blog so stay tuned people!

PS. Photos are again under the flickr link & I appreciate all the reactions I receive from you guys!! Take care everybody…Peace.

Arequipa, Colca Canyon, Mismi, and Cuzco!

Buenas, damas y caballeros!

A short summary from the past 3 weeks because:

1) I`m in the beautiful city of Cuzco, so I don`t wanna spent all my time inside!

2) The weather is more than pleasant today, so out for a drink is a serious option!

Well, A couple of weeks ago, I arrived like I told you guys before in Arequipa, Peru. I spent sth like 5 days in this great colonial city with white buildings, friendly people, really good food, and great cultural heritage! I did a city tour, went out a couple of times, ate one of the best plates ever (Arequipa is the gastronomical capital of Peru)! and saw tons of buildings which were worth visiting! The time I spent over here, I met a couple of Spanish and Argentinian guys (again;), which was great fun, afterwards I hung out alone for 2 days..the thing was, I wanted to go to the Colca Canyon that saturday, but the ATM took my card inside, and I had to stay in Arequipa, arrange all the bloody things to get it back..hrrrr..!!…but luckily my Spanish was sufficient to handle these business..!

So, from Arequipa I took a bus to the Colca Canyon, where I met with two other Dutchies, a guy from Denmark, Belgium and Spain, a cool group. We travelled together for almost a week in the famous Colca Canyon with its huge condors and indigenous villages! It was one of the best trips so far, we met indigenous people, ate with them, and really got to know how these people live over here..AWESOME!! We also visited thermal baths, huge waterfalls, and played soccer with some locals..which was great! My backpack was quite heavy as well, and the warm weather (during the day) made it quite a challenge, but again, I won;)!

After having finished the canyon, we went to Yanque, a pitoresque village at the beginning of the canyon, and again, we went to the hot springs:)! Btw, you can find them everywhere over here, perfect after a hard hike! Next day I went to cruz del condor, the most known place in the canyon to spot some condors, the biggest `bird` in the world!..I saw just one, quite far away, so a bit unlucky, but still…an experience of a lifetime, besides we saw some during our hike as well..!

Chivay was the next stop, first to see Inter – Barcelona..!! It was a great match and the village was a pleasant one as well. Next morning I went on to Tuti, a village with sth like a thousand inhabitants, and only with indigenous people, so I spent the night in a crappy hostal and made plans for the next day…cuz I was heading to Nevado Mismi, source of the Amazon river!…The people didn`t have any map of the area so my compass had to do the job! The people asked me (not for the first time this trip) if I was crazy or sth, but I headed out anyways:)!

I walked for 2 full days alone over the altiplano and spent the night @ sth like 5000 metres in nothing more than my sleeping bag, which can resist temperatures til` +10 degrees…(it was somewhere between -3 n -8 that night, n after eleven hours I was kinda freezing;)! I climbed a mountain, but I have no idea if it was Nevado mismi or not, and the original source of the Amazone I couldn`t find it, but eventually, I saw tons of streams which were similiar, so actually I was quite satisfied in the end!..Btw, no pics from these moments, because a layer of ice covered my backpack (n so my camara) so that one didn`t work! Later on, I kicked a dog his ass, cuz he tried to bite me, and I`m vulnerable for rabius, so I didn`t take any risks:P!

Well, after spending one night more in Chivay, I took a bus back to Arequipa, to go later on to Cuzco, the ancient Inca capital! It was a bus ride from about 13 hours, so quite tired when I arrived! A girl from Denmark got robbed in the bus from her wallet, cards, camara etc. and the following days I spoke with other people (3 of them) who were robbed @ nighttime, even with machetes.!!..so, again, I was allerted in advance..thnx guys..:P!

Cuzco is a beautiful city, situated between green hills and with an amazing architecture! It`s a bit expensive though, and you encounter tourists @ every corner of the street. Normally not my style, but for now it`s ok…it`s a really relaxing city to kill some time together with other backpacks n just have a good time, I like it:)!  In Cuzco I met up with the same group as the one from the Colca Canyon, and we took the same hostal as well, it“ called Marlon`s house, and the people are great! But Cuzco is all about Machu Picchu, so after having checked the prices for a tour towards the old Inca ruins, we decided to do it on our own! So last tuesday we took a bus from 7 hours to Santa Teresa, which is already situated in semi-jungle. Next day we hiked up to aguas calientes, the main gateway to Machu Picchu , along the famous railroad, a beautiful hike. Aguas calientes is a touristy but funny place  to hang out, n so we did!..Next day my alarm went off around 3 AM, and @ 4 AM we already went up!..We hiked so fast that nobody could stop us:P..and so we arrived first @ Machu Picchu before 5 AM!! After having entered Machu Picchu we went to the famous Huayna Picchu, a high peak behind the ruins, and again, we kicked some ass during the hike up!:P

Although the weather was kinda cloudy (and sometimes rainy) I enjoyed it @ max..!!..it`s so impressive to see what these guys already did so many time ago, that you have to be amazed!! After a hike back down, a great meal in the evening, and a good night of sleep, we hiked the next day back to ochenta y dos, a village 30 km from aguas calientes, again along the railway! Totally soaked we arrived @ 4 in the afternoon, to take a bus back to Cuzco, where I am right now!

Time for some relaxing now, I`m gettting hungry and I wanna enjoy the weather!! I`ll keep you guys updated!!

Thanks for all the reactions and emails!!

PS. I just posted new photos as well…ENJOY n have a good one..peace!

Lauca NP, Sucre, La Paz & Lago Titicaca.., that`s real backpackin`!!

Buenos dias everybody!!

I`ll start from scratch…and that means sth like 2 weeks ago…
I left Arica in Chile to proceed towards Lauca NP, a national park in North-East Chile…famous for its Chungara lake n volcanoes! I thought there would be a village or sth..but no..no..no..just 2 souvenir shops and that was it! But hardcore as I am;) I got out of the bus on my own…and saw the bus leaving towards La Paz…and there I was, in the middle of nowhere!! An incredible feeling though:)! I began walking towards a hamlet 15 km east of the road and arrived a couple of hours later…Hello Parinicota!..My stay there was magnificent…I was the only tourist, and surrounded by volcanoes, lakes and harsh climate of the altiplano!
Next day I hiked back to the road, walked 8 km more and hitchhiked consecutive with the Chilean border police and a Bolivian dude, Miguel all the way to Oruro, Bolivia! Was a great experience to get to know the Altiplano in all its glory without sharing it with somebody else!

In Oruro I took a nightbus to Sucre..(again;)…to catch up with some locals I met earlier during my trip!..I spent another 2 days in this beautiful capital of Bolivia, and took another nightbus to La Paz. When I arrived in the early morning I hiked back to the `Ossio family` where I`d stayed my first 6 weeks, and again, it was great…I met the family of Javier, the `brother` in my hostfamily, and Jake an American guy from my age who`d travelled for a long time in South America!..Saturday we had a relaxing day and we went to the Zona Sur…which was cool! The next 2 days I hung out with Jake and the family organized a BBQ..which was perfect:)!! Man, the food here is amazing…and especially the BBQ part…South Americans know how to grill..!!

Tuesday morning I said goodbye to the family, which were a great homestay…I can recommend them to everybody who`s planning to go to La Paz! At 8 am I went off to Copacabana, a city situated next to Lago Titicaca!! This lake lies @ an altitude of +3800 meters above sea level. Anyways, I travelled to Isla del Sol..sth like the spiritual capital of Bolivia, there`s a kind of religious atmosphere, where of course, superstition is represented as well, but really interesting to experience!
The island itself was amazing…I hiked around the whole island in about 2,5 days with my equipment and there was plenty of time for relaxation as well;)! I met some Spanish and Argentinian guys which I met before in Potosi-Uyuni which was great fun:)..The landscapes were changing all the time…The island is sth like 12 km long and 2 km wide I would say..and you can find sooo much variety over here…agricultural activities, ruins, snowcapped mountains, beautiful beaches..!! GREAT!!

Thursday evening I took a bus to Arequipa, Peru…!! Weird to cross borders all the time…but it`s kinda funny as well..! I`ve spent a couple of days in Arequipa so far and it`s (one of) the best city(ies) so far…amazing architecture, pleasant weather, good food, nice people! I`ll include Arequipa in my next message so stay tuned!

Thanks for all the reactions (webblog-mail-facebook) I really appreciate that!! Btw, I`ve  put quite a lot of new photos on the flickr link as well…after seeing these ones you probably can imagine a bit better how everything looks like over here..!!

I`m gonna stop writing now because;
1) I wanna enjoy Arequipa a bit more &
2) my ass hurts like hell;)
so until the next message people…Have a good one wherever you are!! Peace, Niek.

The journey, first week..!!

Hey people…after a couple of weeks without a message, I`ll write a short summary about what happened so far!

So, after having said goodbye to my hostfamily, I took a bus to Sucre, a city in the centre of Bolivia. @ the terminal I met up with Alex, an Australian guy, and we stayed together for the time in Sucre. Anyways, this city was big fun, a relaxed atmosphere, tranquilo:P! taking a drink, that`s hard life eh..?!;) Saturday night we (Alex and 2 other guys from Sweden, Israel) took  a bus to Tarabuco, which is the biggest indigenous festival in Bolivia. After a great night and too many beers..:(!! we stayed another day in the city and I met up with some locals from the night before:)!

Next day it was already time to go…quite sad because I really liked Sucre..!! Well, it´s all about travelling, so our bus to Potosi left around 1 pm. In the bus I met some Israeli dudes, really cool guys and at the terminal I said goodbye to Alex (he went on to Uyuni). Potosi wasn´t really attractive, but what it did have, was a record: the highest city in the world with more than a 100 thousand people (4100 metres)!!…it was all about the mines over there, so the next day I went on a tour into the famous mines of Potosi. It was really impressive to see…it`s incredible how strong these miners are, and what they have to suffer every day again….I felt already quite crappy after 4 hours.;) the week before a miner died…the average age of a miner in Potosi is 37 years…quite sad!!

Because we had enough of Potosi (somehow the atmosphere was a bit of depressing:P) we went on towards Uyuni, famous because of its Salar, or salt flat in English;)! There are so f*cking many tour operators in Uyuni, and because of this, it was quite hard to find one…but, in the end…the Israeli guys and myself found a good one…departure: next day!! The salar itself was amazing, tons of salt spread out over a huge surface…salt everywhere..crazy!

Actually I liked the altiplano more, but both were breathtaking!! Btw, the altiplano is a kind of tundra in Bolivia, 4000 metres or higher! It`s full of volcanoes, lagoons and amazing scenery:)! exactly what I was looking for…it`s like you`re on another planet, weird:P! The group was cool as well, like I said, I was together with the two guys from Israel, two French:P people, which were boring, 😉 a Darren (South Africa) and Maria (Spain).

After the best three days so far ( I mean, in my opinion this area is a world wonder as well) I said goodbye to the group, and went on to San Pedro de Atacama in Chile, on my own, for the first time, quite a weird feeling to cross borders in a other continent, but cool at the same time!! btw the others are also travelling to the North, so I could catch up later;)! Anyways, S.P de Atacama was great,l but really expensive!! it`s Chile…and you pay at least 5 times more than in Bolivia, for transport and food it`s actually close to 10 times more…:((…so that`s  the reason why I`m not staying too long over here;)…I did the moon valley tour which was great…it really seemed like the moon!..next day a mountain bike trip into the canyons, which was fantastic…going down in el nariz del diablo, devil`s nose;) it was tough though, approximately 40 degrees! Right now I`m in Arica close to the border with Peru, it`s a nice n relaxing city, and so I didn`t do anything today! I went to the beach (nice temperatures and good drinks) and went to McDonalds..:):)!!! and now I`m writing my story;)! Tomorrow I`ll go off to Lauca NP in Chile, and afterwards back to Bolivia again, to Sajama NP, hopefully with a view on the highest peak of Bolivia, the Sajama volcano (6500 metres)!

So, now I`m done with writing..;) so I would say take care and until the next time…!! Peace out guys..Niek.

PS. I forgot to tell about my jungle trip in Rurrenabaque: in short, My flight was delayed ( of course Bolivia) I missed my trip , had food poisoning as well…oh oh oh ..:P ) but finally everything went well, I booked a tour a day afterwards, slept first for 20 hours , and during the tour we saw plenty of wildlife…Mr. Frederico is my favourite (look at the pics)!..the way back wasnt possible because the airstrip is made from grass so it rained dayssss…and we were stuck…result: a trip by toyota landcruiser (14 hours) was a hell of a ride..but eventually everything went well!! 

That`s it!!…look at the pics right in the menu..the flickr one…see yahhh!

Mnt. Huayna Potosi

Hi everybody, how’s it going over there?!

This time my post won’t be as long as last time, because I think sometimes photos say more than a huge description right..??..stay tuned for that..! So what did I do last week…I had classes as ususal and luckily, this week I started my last week of school here in La Paz! Not that it’s that boring…but now I wanna explore more of this continent…so time to go:)!! I went several times to the city…which is never boring..crazy things happen all the time…and when you walk the streets…you’re just surprised (every time again) about the way people live over here…amazing! Furthermore I went to Bolivar vs Estudiantes (with good old Juan Sebastian Veron:), a game for the Copa Libertadores, let’s say the South American Champions league, 0-0, but nevertheless awesome to experience, cuz the atmosphere is totally different than in Europe…PS. Liga de Quito is way better..:P!

And then, where it’s all about in this message, I went last weekend to the North of La Paz to climb Mnt. Huayna Potosi, a mountain which is 6088 metres above sea level! The way towards the area was already impressive…vast mountain ranges full of indigenous people with their lama’s, cool to see. First day, we hiked up to base camp…which is situated @ 5100 metres of altitude. We enjoyed sunset and went to bed around 7 PM. @ 1 AM, we started our trip, which sometimes felt like hell but eventually, it was the best hike I ever did! Micheal, a Vancouverite who is crossing South America by bike?! 2 guides and myself, we did the notorious ‘Ruta Francesa’ the most difficult hike up…(this track included a huge ice wall – 500 metres high – 75 degrees steep…as you guys can imagine I suffered a lot):P!! The view was absolutely breathtaking…now have a look @  the pics and you’ll understand!

That’s all for now…next message could take a while…cuz I’m going off to the South next week, and chaotic as South America is, I don’t know when I’ll encounter the next internet cafe…>P!

Pics again under blogroll – flickr link..!! Peace out guys…Greetz!! Niek.

Third en fourth week; Death Road n relaxing:)

Hola!

First of all, everything alright with you guys? n thanks for all the messages, mails etc! I appreciate that:)!!

In my third week here in La Paz I had classes (which are quite intense;) went out for dinner a couple of times, relaxed in the parks here near downtown and of course followed the olympics in beautiful Van city!! In my hostfamily I´ve access to tons of sport channels so no complaints about that! I also extended my ´tourist visa´ from 30 days to 90…so now I´m sure I won´t be legal when I´ll enter Bolivia another time from Chile later on!;) Furthermore, I decided to do ´Camino de la muerte´ or ´Death Road´ which is situated quite close to La Paz. You can find tons of crosses along the way, all people who died here years n years ago! A fact about traffic casualties in Bolivia: only in January 2010 already 60 people died on the road from La Paz to Coroico:P:P Anyways, Death Road is free of traffic so one warning was enough for me;) We went down from about 4700 to 1200, only downhill spread out over 60 km of dirt track….it was absolutely my best downhill experience so far, many thanks go to one of our crazy guides..!!:) After this thrilling experience I met up with my 4 housemates from the States in an awesome hotel in Coroico, a village situated in the yungas, a tropical environment! With a swimming pool, buffet, huge breakfast and a fantastic view over the valley I enjoyed my time at max! ==> (it was only 8,50 euro, can u believe that..:P:P…I love Bolivia;)

The week after I took it easy…relax…easy going, perfect. By the way, I do have the feeling that my intense classes are paying off…communicating in Spanish is going quite well…grammar stays the crappy part of every language eh..??..;) My housemates discovered a delecious empanada place, which is really cheap as well…so they´ll probably earn some money in the coming weeks..;)! In the weekend I didn´t plan a trip, because in the coming weeks I´ll already travel enough I would say..;)..besides, my housemates were leaving, so on the saturday we hung out a bit in La Paz, had some lunch, drinks etc. Sunday morning I said goodbye to them, and after I met a couple of locals and saw the AWESOME ice hockey final…Team Canada vs the USA…revenge:):)..!! Even the Bolivians liked it…..that says enough I guess..;)!

I´ll spend probably around 2 weeks more here in La Paz n after that I´m heading  towards the South of Bolivia…but later on I´ll tell you guys everything about it…(also look at ´main route´ ==> blogroll;)

See you guys next time, Greetz from La Paz…for now, Peace Out!! Niek.

PS. PHOTOS (not the best ones…the first bunch were taken by our guide who had to ride his bike simultaneously..;) AGAIN UNDER BLOGROLL ==> THE FLICKR LINK!!…THIS WILL NOT CHANGE IN FUTURE MESSAGES..!!

´El Choro´ second week

He guys! (this time it´s really a summary, but pics are attached)!

Last week I did the usual stuff, went to school, visited some restaurants/pubs during the evenings, but most important I walked ´El Choro´, an awesome trail which starts at something like 5000 metres, and eventually ends around 1200 metres! First there are magnificent views on several mountain ranges and the jungle is the last type of landscape which you´ll encounter during this hike. It took 3 days, 2 nights and around 65 km to finish ´El Choro´, but it was definitely worth it! Furthermore I played soccer with a bunch of locals which was fun, had a perfect BBQ at the balcony of  ´our´ house here in La Paz with too;) much meat for everybody, and watched the olympics in beautiful Van City several times! As you see I´m enjoying myself here, hopefully you guys do the same wherever you are!

That´s all for now, cheers!!

FOR PICS CLICK AGAIN @ THE FLICKR.COM – LINK @ THE RIGHT SIDE OF THIS BLOG UNDER ´BLOGROLL´!!

From La Paz, Bolivia!

He you guys, what´s up?

I´m gonna give you a short summary about what happened so far;)

Saturday morning I left together with my parents, Lory & Erik to the airport…after saying goodbye, the journey began! After a long, tyring but stunning trip I set foot on Bolivian territory, 4100 metres high, El Alto, which is a suburb of La Paz!

An hour later, around 3 AM, I met Rene and Gloria the owners of the homestay and their daughter, Andrea…all awesome people. The next day they took me out for lunch which was quite heavy but great, I also met Javier now, their son who´s 33 years old, lived for a while in Santa Cruz, but now found work again in La Paz. His wife and children will come in about 5 months to La Paz. Later on, 4 Americans arrived, all from Denver, Colorado and they will be housemates for the coming 4 weeks. There are also 2 Japanese student right now, so enough to talk about;)

Monday I went to I.E. (instituto exclusivo) to meet the teachers, students etc. A bit of mayhem but it was ok. After a couple of arrangements, Tuesday was my first day of school, which was nice but exhausting as well. During the week I´ve enjoyed he delicious meals which Rene and the family prepare every day again. I get breakfast, lunch and dinner, and 2 out of three are warm meals:)

The rest of the week I went into the city a couple of times, which is absolutely amazing…tons of indigenous people, mountain peaks looking over the city and the traffic is crazy! There are plenty of markets, and the people spread out their products everywhere, which creates a weird but interesting atmosphere.

Last weekend I made together with the 4 Americans two trips, one through the city, including the moon valley which has some cool landscapes. We also went to some viewpoints with our guide that day. Sunday I went with the same group to Tiwanaku, a place with old ruins of wich the majority has to be discovered. A really interesting place in a suberb environment. On the way back I saw a lot of peaks (sometimes 6000+)!

Other things which are good to know:

– I forgot to buy suncreme…and I got punished for it;)

– The altitud is so high that everybody walks slow over here & they drink the ´coca tea´

– The internet connection is like sh*t, so next time there won´t be so many photos anymore;)

That´s all for now folks, hope you´re doing good, have a good one! Gr. Niek.

For the photos, have a look at the right side of the website, where it´s written under ´blogroll´ — the´flickr address´….!!

First message from Holland

Hola..!!

For everybody who’s interested in following this blog for the next 4,5 months, I’ll explain shortly what my plans are in the nearby future;):

Around the beginning of February, I’ll fly to La Paz in Boliva. Over there, the main idea is to learn Spanish for a planned 6 weeks. After La Paz, I’m going to travel all the way up to Quito, Ecuador where I , as you might know, already spent a couple of months in 2008! In summary the journey will go as follows:

La Paz (Bolivia) – Uyuni – San Pedro de Atacama (Chile) – Arequipa (Peru) – Colca Canyon – Cuzco – Nazca – Lima – Huaraz – Trujillo – Piura – Vilcabamba (Ecuador) Cuenca – Quito.

I hope to keep you guys updated so now and then, and the reason that I’ll write the messages in English are:

1) that both Dutchies and other nationalities can follow my stories

2) that I can maintain my English..!

That’s all for now folks! –> Hasta pronto, Niek.

PS. Don’t expect huge updates…I’ll probably write short messages combined with a couple of photos;)

I hope to hike a lot during the trip, and improve my previous record!

The colourful indigenous people that live in the Andes moutain range

The capital of Ecuador which is going to be my ‘final stop’, this time;)