And so on to New Orleans....
The first thing that struck me about Nola was the oppressive stuck heat particularly after to cold of San Francisco but after a couple of day I got used to it.
I lucked out with the hostel I stayed in, which had single rooms available for not much more than the dorms including a little kitchen!
Just around the corner was a 24 hour bar, bizarrely with a launderette at the back, where I went for a drink the first night. With what I found was typical southern hospitality, I was soon drinking free beers and getting involved in singing Pogues songs with the 'Irish' locals....
After taking some time to recover, the next morning I set out to explore. The oppressive heat kept me off of the streets for most of the day so I visited a few museums, including a fantastic second world war museum and a tiny civil war museum.
One of the highlights of Nola was the discovery that the New Orleans Saints were playing a pre season game while I was there and I managed to get a ticket! I do love a bit of American Football and so had a great evening. Again the local fans kept me in beer which was incredibly generous at $9 a pint! The Saints beat the SF 49ers do a was good.
The days were fun but Nola is all about the nights. I did make one evening trip to the famous Bourbon street strip of tourist bars, but I mainly hung out on Frenchman Street, which is literally teaming with live music bars and clubs. With blues, country and folk all night I was in my element!
While heading out one afternoon to find a bar known for showing all the Premier League football, I took a trip though the expanses of derelict space which is the result of Hurricane Katrina in 2005. I sobering trip, I was amazed quite how much of the devastation still remains 6 years later.
New Orleans was certainly the friendliest place I visited in the US and somewhere I would love to return to even just for the nightlife!
So with only one more stop on my trip I might even get this blog finished before the first anniversary of my return! Here's hoping.....
Saturday, 5 May 2012
Monday, 19 March 2012
San Francisco
So here we are, I've had another moment of inspiration and have decided to add another quick entry...
I arrived at San Francisco (SF) after an awful Greyhound bus trip. I couldn't believe that there was any need, on an 8 hour night trip, to stop at 3am at a roadside Burger King. But I'm obviously the only weird one as the entire bus trooped of to tuck into late night snacks! At least I made it although tired and headed down to the Mission District where I was booked into a nice hostel. The hostel kindly let me, after some persuasion, catch up on a bit of sleep before checking in!
I was instantly taken by SF. Firstly it was a comfortable temperature, or in fact a tad cold when the mist rolled in and secondly with narrower streets and great public transport, it felt much more like the European cities that I know and love!
I was lucky enough to have a list of hints and tips of things to do in SF and so set about ticking them off by exploring the Downtown area. I soon got board of this an decided to take a stroll back to my hostel. I had been warned that the Mission District was a bit dodgy, but I found it absolutely fine. I particularly enjoyed the small book shops and thrift stores along the parallel Valencia Street not to mention the great little bars along that route.
I realised my first evening in that the (then world champion) San Francisco Giants were playing a home series against the Arizona Diamondbacks that week. I managed to snap up a ticket for the next day...
I found a great little bar/cafe that night (Revolution Cafe between Mission St & Bartlett St), which was up there in my top drinking spots of the entire trip, it had nice beer and some great live music. Then again I think I probably just liked it because they played the whole of Five Leaves Left by Nick Drake shortly after I walked in but hey....
I spent the next few daytimes exploring the amazing districts of SF such as The Lower Haights, Chinatown, North Beach and also some of the obvious tourist areas such as Fishermans Wharf, where I went on a great boat ride around the bay.
So that second evening was my first trip to a real 'Ball game'! I have to admit I was underwhelmed, people didn't seem to arrive until well into the 3rd innings and left well before the end (SF lost). As such I found it was somewhat lacking in atmosphere. Anyway heres a pic:
I arrived at San Francisco (SF) after an awful Greyhound bus trip. I couldn't believe that there was any need, on an 8 hour night trip, to stop at 3am at a roadside Burger King. But I'm obviously the only weird one as the entire bus trooped of to tuck into late night snacks! At least I made it although tired and headed down to the Mission District where I was booked into a nice hostel. The hostel kindly let me, after some persuasion, catch up on a bit of sleep before checking in!
I was instantly taken by SF. Firstly it was a comfortable temperature, or in fact a tad cold when the mist rolled in and secondly with narrower streets and great public transport, it felt much more like the European cities that I know and love!
I was lucky enough to have a list of hints and tips of things to do in SF and so set about ticking them off by exploring the Downtown area. I soon got board of this an decided to take a stroll back to my hostel. I had been warned that the Mission District was a bit dodgy, but I found it absolutely fine. I particularly enjoyed the small book shops and thrift stores along the parallel Valencia Street not to mention the great little bars along that route.
I realised my first evening in that the (then world champion) San Francisco Giants were playing a home series against the Arizona Diamondbacks that week. I managed to snap up a ticket for the next day...
I found a great little bar/cafe that night (Revolution Cafe between Mission St & Bartlett St), which was up there in my top drinking spots of the entire trip, it had nice beer and some great live music. Then again I think I probably just liked it because they played the whole of Five Leaves Left by Nick Drake shortly after I walked in but hey....
I spent the next few daytimes exploring the amazing districts of SF such as The Lower Haights, Chinatown, North Beach and also some of the obvious tourist areas such as Fishermans Wharf, where I went on a great boat ride around the bay.
So that second evening was my first trip to a real 'Ball game'! I have to admit I was underwhelmed, people didn't seem to arrive until well into the 3rd innings and left well before the end (SF lost). As such I found it was somewhat lacking in atmosphere. Anyway heres a pic:
I was feeling a little city jaded by this point so I booked up a trip to Yosemite National Park for a few days, but I still had time to visit the secluded Japanese Tea Gardens and take a trek through Lincoln Park to catch some (misty) views of the Golden Gate Bridge. I also managed to catch a couple of great gigs just in case you we're missing my drinking exploits!
The trip camping and walking in Yosemite was bliss and although not much to talk about here's a couple of pictures:
Heading back to SF, I had only allowed myself about 8 hours for sleeping before my flight across to NOLA and my penultimate stop on the trip, but what a stop it was! Then thats another story.....
Thursday, 19 January 2012
Los Angeles
Last stop on my trip was 4 weeks in the United States. Starting off with a week in Los Angeles.
I found Los Angeles and indeed America as a whole a strange place. I was expecting it to be far more like home than it actually was! That said I still enjoyed my time here.
I booked myself into a hostel on Hollywood Boulevard itself thinking it would be super glam... Turned out it was a shithole so I moved to a slightly less shit one ten doors down.
After a day of viewing the obvious sights in Hollywood I decided I wanted to head out a bit and see more of LA. This is where I hit a major snag. It is actually impossible to see LA without a car. With this, admittedly major, handicap I set out to view the metropolis.
First up was the "old" town in the Downtown district. (I'm sure I've lived in older houses but I'll let that go....) Although this is primarily the business district, some of the original Spanish settlement buildings still exist and so I spent a pleasant day wandering around this area.
I managed to totally baffle locals by travelling everywhere by bus which no body in LA does! Next stop was the slightly more bohemian area of West Hollywood. I mainly spent my time here hanging around in record shops. No change there then. I also managed to visit the Le Brea Tar pits and the LA county museum of art. Both were highlights of LA particularly the LACMA which had a fantastic exhibition on the artwork of Tim Burton.
The evenings in LA I spent drinking in bars around the Hollywood area, a notable highlight of which (for me anyway) was actually "singing" on Hollywood Bvd in a bar with Karaoke. One thing I really found when our in bar in America was how friendly the people were. Definitely noticeable from my experience in other big cities. I did manage one big night out on Sunset Strip including watching loads of great music in both The House of Blues and the famous Viper Room, formally owned by Johnny Depp and the place where River Phoenix died in 1993.
My longest trip from my base in Hollywood was down to Long Beach where I headed down to see the Queen Mary. Sadly the highlight of this trip was finding an English shop on board that sold Frys Orange Creams...
My last day in LA I made a brief trip to have a look around Beverly Hills (dull) and a look around UCLA (which puts British University's into shame). I finished my stay by going to see the last Harry Potter film in the Chinese Theatre, which where they hold The Oscars...
I have to admit I found a week in LA more than enough time and sort of wished I'd headed on earlier. Maybe it would have been different if the LA Galaxy had been playing at home!
Next stop after a greyhound bus ride.... San Francisco!!
I found Los Angeles and indeed America as a whole a strange place. I was expecting it to be far more like home than it actually was! That said I still enjoyed my time here.
I booked myself into a hostel on Hollywood Boulevard itself thinking it would be super glam... Turned out it was a shithole so I moved to a slightly less shit one ten doors down.
After a day of viewing the obvious sights in Hollywood I decided I wanted to head out a bit and see more of LA. This is where I hit a major snag. It is actually impossible to see LA without a car. With this, admittedly major, handicap I set out to view the metropolis.
First up was the "old" town in the Downtown district. (I'm sure I've lived in older houses but I'll let that go....) Although this is primarily the business district, some of the original Spanish settlement buildings still exist and so I spent a pleasant day wandering around this area.
I managed to totally baffle locals by travelling everywhere by bus which no body in LA does! Next stop was the slightly more bohemian area of West Hollywood. I mainly spent my time here hanging around in record shops. No change there then. I also managed to visit the Le Brea Tar pits and the LA county museum of art. Both were highlights of LA particularly the LACMA which had a fantastic exhibition on the artwork of Tim Burton.
The evenings in LA I spent drinking in bars around the Hollywood area, a notable highlight of which (for me anyway) was actually "singing" on Hollywood Bvd in a bar with Karaoke. One thing I really found when our in bar in America was how friendly the people were. Definitely noticeable from my experience in other big cities. I did manage one big night out on Sunset Strip including watching loads of great music in both The House of Blues and the famous Viper Room, formally owned by Johnny Depp and the place where River Phoenix died in 1993.
My longest trip from my base in Hollywood was down to Long Beach where I headed down to see the Queen Mary. Sadly the highlight of this trip was finding an English shop on board that sold Frys Orange Creams...
My last day in LA I made a brief trip to have a look around Beverly Hills (dull) and a look around UCLA (which puts British University's into shame). I finished my stay by going to see the last Harry Potter film in the Chinese Theatre, which where they hold The Oscars...
I have to admit I found a week in LA more than enough time and sort of wished I'd headed on earlier. Maybe it would have been different if the LA Galaxy had been playing at home!
Next stop after a greyhound bus ride.... San Francisco!!
Sunday, 8 January 2012
Acapulco
My original plan for Mexico had been to get out of Mexico City and to spend a week in Puerto Escondido. The bus was booked and paid for only for me to arrive at the bus station to find a landslide had cancelled all buses... Afte a quick re planning (and couple of beers) I decided to opt for a trip to Acapulco instead.
My first impression of Acapulco was of a faded British seaside town such as Blackpool. It definitely lacked glamour... That said I checked into my hostel and hit the beach for my first swim in the see of my entire travels!!!! Later that evening I tried out a few of the beachside bars. None of which particularly covered themselves in glory. Most bring theme bars catering to the limited number of package holidaymakers.
So far I could see why no body advises a stop in Acapulco while in Mexico....
I decided at this point to revise my plans for the week. Somebody recommended a cheep beachside hotel in a tiny fishing village called Pie De La Cuesta about 20 kilometres along the coast.
Pie De La Cuesta was everything I could have hoped for. The hotel backed onto the beach, the village had one bar that was happy to put the football on for me and the little beachside restaurants all sold amazing fresh grilled fish. The only downside was that the Pacific was too dangerous to swim in at this point with very strong currents. Not that it stopped some of the crazy surfers I saw.
Although I spent much of my few days here sprawled in a hammock I day make the effort to do a bit of exploring.
Pie De La Cuesta is at one end of a spit of land between the pacific ocean and a freshwater a lake called Coyuca, so I took the opportunity to go on a boat trip around the lake stopping off on one of the islands for a swim.
Back at the hotel I pretty much spent the next two days chilling out, a very welcome break.
Back in Acapulco itself I booked into a different hotel in the old part of town in view of the famous cliff jumpers.
Next up (bar a quick couple of days back in Mexico City described in my previous post) was Los Angeles and my final country the good ol US of A
My first impression of Acapulco was of a faded British seaside town such as Blackpool. It definitely lacked glamour... That said I checked into my hostel and hit the beach for my first swim in the see of my entire travels!!!! Later that evening I tried out a few of the beachside bars. None of which particularly covered themselves in glory. Most bring theme bars catering to the limited number of package holidaymakers.
So far I could see why no body advises a stop in Acapulco while in Mexico....
I decided at this point to revise my plans for the week. Somebody recommended a cheep beachside hotel in a tiny fishing village called Pie De La Cuesta about 20 kilometres along the coast.
Pie De La Cuesta was everything I could have hoped for. The hotel backed onto the beach, the village had one bar that was happy to put the football on for me and the little beachside restaurants all sold amazing fresh grilled fish. The only downside was that the Pacific was too dangerous to swim in at this point with very strong currents. Not that it stopped some of the crazy surfers I saw.
Although I spent much of my few days here sprawled in a hammock I day make the effort to do a bit of exploring.
Pie De La Cuesta is at one end of a spit of land between the pacific ocean and a freshwater a lake called Coyuca, so I took the opportunity to go on a boat trip around the lake stopping off on one of the islands for a swim.
Back at the hotel I pretty much spent the next two days chilling out, a very welcome break.
Back in Acapulco itself I booked into a different hotel in the old part of town in view of the famous cliff jumpers.
Next up (bar a quick couple of days back in Mexico City described in my previous post) was Los Angeles and my final country the good ol US of A
Thursday, 15 December 2011
Mexico City
Okay so I'm determined to get this all finished before the New Year...
Next stop was Mexico City as part of the 2 weeks I had in Mexico.
I was fortunate to have a friend, that I first met at Glastonbury, who lived in Mexico City and so I had plenty of tips for my time here.
As per usual I spent the first couple of days in the City wandering around getting my bearings. Mexico City is HUGE so I quickly realised I wasn't going to be able to see all of it, as such I focused on districts that particularly appealed to me.
These first days I visited the university district and San Angel, an older town that got submerged as the city spiralled. An area most famous as the home of Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo, a nice contrast to the crazyness of the Centro Historico.
As well as getting all this culture in I still managed to find time to watch Mexico get knocked out of the Copa America in a recommended Tapas bar.
Next up I met up with Alejandro who showed me some of the less visited sight around town, including a stop at the Plaza Garibaldi-Mariachi where we drank pulque while watching genuine Mariachi touting for business!
We then booked a day trip to see some of the sights around Mexico City culminating in a trip to Teotihuacán, a pre Aztec city on the outskirts of Mexico City. It is a truly staggering archeological site with two pyramid temples believed to be the inspiration for the famous Aztec temples built in Mexico City itself. Unfortunately it was chucking it down with rain all day we lingered far longer in the traditional tequila factory next door...
Alejandro also pointed me in the direction of some great gig venues so I finally got a fix of live music that I'd been sorely missing.
I returned to Mexico City after a few days on the West coast of Mexico to visit the remaining sites including the Metropolitan Cathedral (The largest cathedral in the American continent), the Palacio Nacional and the Templo Mayor the only remaining ruins of the Aztec city upon which Mexico City now stands. I also stopped by to show solidarity with the trade unionists occupying the Zócalo...
Mexico City was definitely one of the best cities I visited, a vibrant place with more museums and archaeological sites then anyone could hope to visit in one trip. You could spend two weeks in the National Anthropological Museum alone!!!
Next up was Acapulco an unintended destination... All will be explained (hopefully in less than 2 months this time)
Next stop was Mexico City as part of the 2 weeks I had in Mexico.
I was fortunate to have a friend, that I first met at Glastonbury, who lived in Mexico City and so I had plenty of tips for my time here.
As per usual I spent the first couple of days in the City wandering around getting my bearings. Mexico City is HUGE so I quickly realised I wasn't going to be able to see all of it, as such I focused on districts that particularly appealed to me.
These first days I visited the university district and San Angel, an older town that got submerged as the city spiralled. An area most famous as the home of Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo, a nice contrast to the crazyness of the Centro Historico.
As well as getting all this culture in I still managed to find time to watch Mexico get knocked out of the Copa America in a recommended Tapas bar.
Next up I met up with Alejandro who showed me some of the less visited sight around town, including a stop at the Plaza Garibaldi-Mariachi where we drank pulque while watching genuine Mariachi touting for business!
We then booked a day trip to see some of the sights around Mexico City culminating in a trip to Teotihuacán, a pre Aztec city on the outskirts of Mexico City. It is a truly staggering archeological site with two pyramid temples believed to be the inspiration for the famous Aztec temples built in Mexico City itself. Unfortunately it was chucking it down with rain all day we lingered far longer in the traditional tequila factory next door...
Alejandro also pointed me in the direction of some great gig venues so I finally got a fix of live music that I'd been sorely missing.
I returned to Mexico City after a few days on the West coast of Mexico to visit the remaining sites including the Metropolitan Cathedral (The largest cathedral in the American continent), the Palacio Nacional and the Templo Mayor the only remaining ruins of the Aztec city upon which Mexico City now stands. I also stopped by to show solidarity with the trade unionists occupying the Zócalo...
Mexico City was definitely one of the best cities I visited, a vibrant place with more museums and archaeological sites then anyone could hope to visit in one trip. You could spend two weeks in the National Anthropological Museum alone!!!
Next up was Acapulco an unintended destination... All will be explained (hopefully in less than 2 months this time)
Tuesday, 4 October 2011
Lima
Although I spent a week in Lima I couldn't for the life of me remember what I actually did with that time.
A day or so thinking about it has brought it all back to me... I watched a lot of the Copa America and by a lot I mean almost all of the games!
I was staying in the Miroflores area of Lima which is the most touristy district on the coast. It has several picturesque squares and also lots of (again touristy) bars and restaurants. Miraflores is several kilometers away from the Centro Historico the original part of Lima laid out by the conquistador Pizarro.
I decided to visit the Centro Historico early on in my stay. I had been warned that Lima was quite a dangerous city and in particular the public transport. During my stay I used the local buses and the new Rapid Transport metro system and had no problems what so ever. Having caught the bus up to the Centro Historico I visited the Cathedral, the Bishops Palace and the Presidential Palace as well as the Convento de San Francisco, one f the earliest Convents in the whole of South America. Complete with catacombs containing the remains of hundreds of the founding inhabitants of Lima, not for the fainthearted!
I thought Lima had some of the best nightlife in South America particularly of you got away from Pizza Street in Miraflores. I really enjoyed a couple of nights out in Barranco, a neighbouring district to Miraflores with a much more edgy vibe and some great bars.
One of my original plans for Lima was to take some surfing lessions. Unfortunately I took one look at the dirty polluted coastline in Lima and decided it wasn't for me...
Lima was also home to one of my favourite museums in South America, the Larco Museum, a fantastically presented collection of pre Inca art and artifacts.
Lima was a great place to top off a great country and indeed a great continent. Next stop was a flight up to Mexico and a brief stop in Central America.
A day or so thinking about it has brought it all back to me... I watched a lot of the Copa America and by a lot I mean almost all of the games!
I was staying in the Miroflores area of Lima which is the most touristy district on the coast. It has several picturesque squares and also lots of (again touristy) bars and restaurants. Miraflores is several kilometers away from the Centro Historico the original part of Lima laid out by the conquistador Pizarro.
I decided to visit the Centro Historico early on in my stay. I had been warned that Lima was quite a dangerous city and in particular the public transport. During my stay I used the local buses and the new Rapid Transport metro system and had no problems what so ever. Having caught the bus up to the Centro Historico I visited the Cathedral, the Bishops Palace and the Presidential Palace as well as the Convento de San Francisco, one f the earliest Convents in the whole of South America. Complete with catacombs containing the remains of hundreds of the founding inhabitants of Lima, not for the fainthearted!
I thought Lima had some of the best nightlife in South America particularly of you got away from Pizza Street in Miraflores. I really enjoyed a couple of nights out in Barranco, a neighbouring district to Miraflores with a much more edgy vibe and some great bars.
One of my original plans for Lima was to take some surfing lessions. Unfortunately I took one look at the dirty polluted coastline in Lima and decided it wasn't for me...
Lima was also home to one of my favourite museums in South America, the Larco Museum, a fantastically presented collection of pre Inca art and artifacts.
Lima was a great place to top off a great country and indeed a great continent. Next stop was a flight up to Mexico and a brief stop in Central America.
Sunday, 2 October 2011
Cusco
After the fun and games that was the crossing from Bolivia to Peru and then the eerie quiet that was Puno I finally made it to Cusco, although not without a 5 hour detour to avoid the protesters. Cusco was absolutely one of the highlights of my trip! I enjoyed it so much I stayed for two weeks!
I was lucky in my timing arrive bang in the middle of Inti Raymi (Festival of the Sun), one of the most significant Inca festivals with daily activities and parades though out Cusco. It coincides with the Summer Solstice and culminates in a magnificent festival at Sacsayhuamnan the Inca fort on the outskirts of Cusco.
I decided as I was going to be in Peru for several weeks to join the South American Explorers Club, which has club houses in both Cusco and Lima. This turned out to be an inspired decision.
On my second day in Cusco (the solstice day itself) they were running a guided trek around Cusco visiting ancient Inca sites that can only really be explored with a guide. We visited temples and sacrifice sites specifically designed so that during the solstice the shadows from the sun create images of sacred animals and gods. Unfortunately it was cloudy that day.... Maybe next year.
I had planned to fit in plenty of activities while in Cusco which meant some juggling with schedules. Number one on my list was a trip to Machu Picchu. I made the trip to Aguas Calientes myself by bus shared taxi and a 10 km walk along the railway at the end. A lovely trip that saved me $45.
After a pleasant night in the town (watching the Copa Libertadores Final) I got up to go to Machu Picchu the next day. I decided not to join the race to climb Wayna Picchu (I didn't go traveling to stress out racing to climb a hill) and so when I arrived at Machu Picchu I was heading in the opposite direction to everybody else. I decided to walk up to the Sun Gate, the entrance for those doing the Inca Trail and an amazing view point of the entire complex. Back in the complex itself I visited the breath taking Inca Bridge and then decided to try and climb Machu Picchu Mountain itself it was only 800m more to climb....
If only it was that easy!! The entrance to the climb was hidden away but i eventually found it. At this point I had no water left and had not eaten but I though hey its only 800 meters. Little did I know what I'd set myself in for. It was 800m straight up, the view was stunning but suffice t say it nearly killed me!! By the time I came back down I was on the verge of collapse, the trip back to Cusco was all a blur.
After a day to recover I set out on activity number two... More White Water Rafting this time for 3 days along the sacred Apurimac River with rapids up to grade 5+ certainly the craziest rafting trip I took during my travels. A highlight of this trip was camping on the shores of the river with a group of Condors circling, as far for civilisation as it was possible to be. Also I didn't fall in once!
Trying to squeeze every little bit from Cusco the day after I got back from the rafting I headed out for a 4 day trek around the Lares Valley. This was not the most technically challenging trek (although it reached 4200m) but was stunning in scenery and an amazing way to meet the local people living in a manner not that far removed from their Inca ancestors!
Back in Cusco I spent a couple of days chilling out and visiting the local tourist spots. Including Qoricancha which was one of the most sacred Inca palaces in Cusco and the site of a post Colombian cathedral built on its foundations. This is amazing to see the standards of Inca stone work particularly when compare to Middle Ages European style. Its no wonder that during the many earthquakes Cusco is subject to, not a single Inca building collapsed while the early Spanish building have long since collapsed.
After and amazing couple of weeks next stop Lima... and a lot of football watching
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