So we’ve been back nearly 2 months now so I guess the travel blog should be over…. But it’s only now that I actually have a job. As of the 12th June I will be employed and so the travels officially end.
So… This is the last entry of our blog, but lets be honest - the travels will never be over.
Our passports are no longer naked but there’s always room for more.
Until then…. It’s been emotional! - S
Ok - so the weather may suck, the prices may be high and the motorways may be grim - but after a solid feed at the pub, of fabulous mouth watering pork belly with mustard gravy and a side of black pudding followed by not one but 2 boxes of cream eggs waiting to be devoured with cups of tea….. Things could definitely be a lot worse! It’s good to be back oop north! - S
So now we’re in our rose tinted mode - top conversation between us right now is ‘top 10s’….. beaches, foods, sights etc… So here’s the first one… Food of course! This is a toughy so to simplify - we’re just talking mains - if it was desserts too, I think Ben may have a breakdown!
10. Banana pancakes with honey / sweet milk - all completely different but each one amazing…Not technically a main but by far the most eaten thing on our travels so for shizzle needs a mention!
9. Beef rendang - Bali
8. Fish kebabs - Gili Air
7. Goat-fest in Tupiza
6. Rooftop BBQ @ Ho Chi Min - live prawns!!!!
5. Shanghai sushi
4. Prawns wrapped in beef @ Mango Rooms, Hoi An
3. Ceviche - just now at the ferry terminal in Tambor
2. All curries at Papaya on Phi Phi - especially the panang
1. Double fillet steak in bone marrow sauce @ Iguazu
That was tough with so many runners up (the steak pie in Bali, bariloche chocolate - we ate it as a meal?!, malbec wine tasting with countless cheese boards, pie face with it’s saviours shaped as sausage rolls…) The list is endless!
But of course in the name of balance, there’s got to be a top 5 worst!
5. Stale sugar bread - all of Argentina
4. Live scorpions - china (granted we didn’t eat them but they looked gross - as did the weird smelling things in banana leaves everywhere!)
3. Stale cheese empenadas - Bolivia
2. Morning glory - the smell just makes me heave but they seem to have it in everything in Cambodia and Nam!
1. Duck brains - Shanghai (still makes me chuckle and ben hurl!)
It may not be a beach laden paradise…. But London has it’s charms..and by charms I obviously mean cake! - S
Home sweet home!
The simple things in life truly help! (love you Chidlaw for hooking us up with the mighty bacon & twinings combo : ) x!!!) - S
So this is what happiness looks like for us. I’m blogging it so we don’t forget that it’s possible!
We’re currently on a boat with the sun going down both metaphorically and literally as we make our way back to San Jose for our flight home tomorrow. Needless to say - this sucks!
But we have had an awesome last day with drinks last night, swimming in the rock pools in the ‘garden’ and then playing in the waves on the other side of our hostels ‘garden’.
It’s a strange feeling with denial, anxiety and excitement probably being the top 3 feelings right now. We’ve had an amazing trip these last 8 months; seen some awesome things, met great peeps and of course eaten a fair few treats… and I guess it had to end sometime… We’re just mortified it had to happen so soon. Thank god for good friends, bacon butties and real tea to ease us back into the real world! - S
There is one reason and one reason alone for the lack of blogging recently…. DENIAL!
I genuinely can’t believe that our adventure is nearly over. Right now I’m sat in a hammock chair overlooking the ocean (the picture is my view right now!) in the blazing morning sun with a cup of coffee - it’s heavenly! With our only problem being that it’s so damned hot!…. I have a feeling that in 2 sleeps time our mornings are going to change A LOT!
These last couple of weeks have been amazing! We spent one week in Santa Teresa at a yoga chillout place with a huge 50m walk to the deserted beach. So I guess we semi detox-ed there with yoga every morning and so much fresh fish for every meal - and just as the icing on the cake - a sunset horse ride galloping down the 7km of beach… A-Mazing!
After a week of that beach we moved 40 minutes down the coast to Montazuma - a hippie little beach town where we’ve stayed in Proyecto Montezuma - gone is the 50m walk to the beach - we’re now literally overhanging the ocean in our beach side, hammock swinging house with cool people - more yoga and a few surf lessons in and we’re ready to settle down here forever!
This place is pure paradise! It’s just insanely beautiful with every angle looking like a postcard shot all to the sound of the crashing waves 24/7.
So with only 1 more day here we’re choosing to stick with denial and so we’re heading out for banana pancakes followed by another surf lesson!
Let the dream continue!!!! - S
It’s not been a bad weekend so far at all really…. A 9am start yesterday for morning yoga on the deck to the sound of the waves set us up for the day… Again twisting and stretching muscles we didn’t know existed… Followed by some fresh fruit and amazing costa rican coffee.
Fast forward a few hours of lazing on the deserted beach (cue Ben losing the battle between him and some big ass waves, with his sunglasses being the casualty.. Sad times).
A nice stroll down the beach to the fish shop for some AMAZING ceviche (note to self - must learn how to make this… It’s awesome!). All this then followed by a perfect sunset horse ride through a jungle monkey trail and a galloping sesh down the beaches of Mal Pais, Carmen and Santa Teresa - and of course, some tasty food and a couple of beverages to round off the day…. Today, so far, has been the type of Sunday I could roll with more frequently! Lazy lie in, banana pancakes followed by a stroll down the 7km of beach this place has to offer us. Hmm… I wonder why so many people pack up and move here?!? - S
Today may be the best day ever!!!!!
Many of you already know that the turtle watch has been high on my list of priorities / sources of excitement for some time now…. Ie forever! Well…. Tonight was the night and It did not disappoint!
We headed down to a secluded beach with our trusty tour conservationist / guide in the hope of seeing some leatherback turtles - we didn’t exactly have our hopes up because let’s be honest, we’ve not had the best run when it comes to our good friend ‘luck’ having to play a part in our sightseeing. But about half way into the drive our guide speaks up…. He’s just had word from the beach that not only has a giant leatherback settled on the beach but a load of babies were also hatching as he spoke!!! Well… Needless to say I was a little giddy at this point!
When we arrived armed with our soft red beamed torches, I was pretty much a puddle of excitement, so we headed onto the beach, passing a huge blow fish out of water and a few crabs along the way… And then there they were! 3 teeny tiny little squirts pushing their way out of the sand where their eggs had been buried.
Once free, they then made their way to the water for the first time. A few however, were a little disorientated so we had to guide them along a little using the red beams to guide them to the water. Now - I am not maternal, we know this. But i can’t put into words how exciting it was to see our baby turtles head to the ocean and take their first steps into the ocean!
And the excitement wasn’t over!… Seconds later, a giant mamma turtle then started making her way - rather speedily, especially given her size - back to the water. Closely followed by another!
So luck was definitely on our side tonight. The stars were amazing and we got to see not one but TWO giant leatherbacks AND babies hatching and taking their first steps. A-Mazing! - S
Hot springs rock! We just enjoyed a day of exploring different hot springs, one was in the middle of a costa rican national park and as you can see completely natural. The other was quite a poncy one in the grounds of a luxury hotel complex. Both were very different but equally sweet!
The first took 2 hours to get to by car on roads that can only be described as rocky paths of crap. We had an automatic Toyota Yaris and a very good heavy metal soundtrack which made the experience pretty awesome actually, it was just like playing mario kart but with full insurance. So we bumped our way around with mike showing some great zen styled driving skills and we finally made it to the park. We then faced another 40 minute uphill trek through the jungle which made our arrival at the springs all the sweeter as we we’re all draped in sweat. The spring was roasting hot, probably about 80 degrees plus, which should make it impossible to sit in, however it’s next to a freezing cold river which seeps in making the middle a delicious cauldron of fresh water. The temperature is probably around 40 degrees so similar to a good hot tub but occasionally you get waves if cool water or hot water surging up all around you. Very refreshing, even if you have to go in with just your pants on after leaving our swimming clothes in the car - real slick Mav!
Later that evening we went to the Baldi hot springs, 25 different thermal pools all ranging in temperature from 67 degrees to 42, set in tropical gardens under the stars with an all you can eat buffet. Now this was a very interesting experience as we started by eating as much as humanly possible as you do at an all you can eat buffet, then decided to go on the water slides which I’m sure were designed by someone from a mental asylum. It was by far the most dangerous but awesome slide I’ve ever been on. They say to not lie down, which we thought made them pussies but in reality they saved me from having my skull crushed and split open by the ridiculous pitch black 20 foot vertical drop mid way in the slide. As I said before - awesome! Anyway…. On to the pools… The first we hit was too cold at about 42 degrees so we went straight to the 67 degree one. Now remember body temperature is 37, so in essence we just sat in this pool Slowly cooking our bodies like you would with a nice beef stroganoff. We had smuggled our own beers in as well, as you do if you come from England. Their beers were $8 each or we could but them from the supermarket opposite at $7 for 6. Hmm difficult choice there. Oh the pleasure of consuming contraband in a near boiling hot pool under the stars. 40 mins later we could no longer function due to the heat so sought out a slightly cooler pool at 50 degrees, which felt cold at first but after jumping in the cold pool in the middle it went back to bliss. So there we sat for the remainder of the evening, dipping in to the cold when the heat got too much and plunging back into the lush warmth of our own private pool for the next beer. Good times.
Oh and this was made all the more amusing as Sarah had ripped the top off her toe a few days earlier so in true survival style we had to wrap her toe in a condom to avoid the wound getting infected. Real classy. B
