Here is some general observations on South America:
- Men turning their T-shirts into crop tops - why do South American men roll their t-shirts up to their breasts and stroll around like Thai lady boys. They must be proud of their beer bellies!
- Peter Pan imagined cakes - you know the ones, the crazy coloured ones that Peter gets everyone to imagine in the book. Well you seen them everywhere in Peru and Bolivia, even petrol stations. Who buys them and why so many?
- Cars with flashing lights - they look like Christmas trees. I understand why bus or truck drivers might do it, but come on guys blue flashing lights on your cars should be left to the the pow-lise.
- No change - I have mentioned this before, but for crying outloud get some change so we don't all have to suffer all that wasted time as every shop owner heads off for 20 minutes to get the equavelent of a dollar or two in change for your bottled water or crisps.
- Women and crop tops, similar to men, these ladies seem to love to give everyone a good view of their large fuel tanks. Even if they were pregnant it wouldn't be an excuse.
- Rubbish - it is weverywhere and it smells, learn to use bins, period.
- Stray dogs (many on roofs in Arequipa, Peru) - I have never seen so many stray dogs wandering the streets, it is like a real world version of Lady and the Tramp. And don't get me started on the mess they make.
- Beetle cars - you can find loads of these on the road, quality, I want one. Herbie rides again people.
- Terrible driving - do you require a wild adrenaline rush? Visit Peru and Bolivia. If there is a blind corner with sheer cliff like drops, why not attempt a daring pass?
- Concept of time - whatever you are told double it and some more. Smae with distances.
- Inefficiencies - so many to name but the shops that have four people to do one person's job is a particular pet hate, one to give you a ticket, one to take your order, one to give you the order and another on the other side of the room to pay, frustrating.
- Queues - these don't exist, people just push past whether you are a tourist or a local. Give as good as you get.
- Use of indicators or lack of - no-one uses indicators, which makes crossing the street somewhat of a lottery, watch out.
- Public indescencies - relieving oneself in the street, women and men. We have seen it in every country on this trip, including a Peruvian woman who dropped her skirt in the middle of a busy street, hovering over a drain in the road. More public toilets required.

The good, the bad and the ugly - the best and worst of South America
Best experience - the journey to Angel Falls in Venezuela by Cessna and dug out canoe.
Best beach - Lopes Mendes, Ilha Grande, Brazil.
Most beautiful national park - Canaima National Park in Venezuela.
Coolest city - Buenos Aires.
Best view - View from the sungate at Machu Picchu, Peru.
Most beautiful city - Cartagena in Colombia, hands down.
Most dangerous experience - the journey back from the Death Road to La Paz in Bolivia in the mini bus, it made the ride on the bike a walk in the park in comparison, the driver was nuts.
Most exchilarating experience - paragliding off the beachfront cliffs of Miraflores in Lima, Peru. Running off the edge of the 100 metre high cliffs was adrenaline central.
Most chilling experience - wading out into the river waist deep to fish for Piranha in Brazil's Pantanal while they nipped your calves and many cayman sat on the banks observing us.
Most bizarre place - Salar de Uyuni, Bolivia. Salt plains and crazy volcanic shaped rocks makes this area look like something from a science fiction film.
Most bizarre episode - watching the guy fly our Cessna plane from Canaima to Porto Ordaz while reading the newspaper over the controls.
Most simple border crossing - ironically it was Colombia to Venezuela at Paraguachon, despite what we heard all done in 15 minutes.
Best hostal - Hostal Lao in Mendoza or Portal del Sur, Buenos Aires.
Best meal - Don Mario's in Mendoza, Quebracho in Cartagena and Patagonia in Santiago. They were all that good that we had to name them all.
Trendiest place - Valparaiso, Chile.
Best plaza - Plaza de Armas, Arequipa, Peru.
Best building - Cathedral in Cuzco, Peru.
Worst city - Nasca, Peru. A total dive. Followed closely by Caracas.
Worst meal - Hummingbird Cafe, Cusco, Peru. Also the dodgy pizza place in Caracas that gave us food poisoning, we don't know the name.
Worst experience - Trying to sleep in 40 degrees in a hammock in the mosquito infested Pantanal, Brazil.
Worst hostel - Probably Hostal Jerusalem in Potosi in Bolivia, the rooms were very dingy and the showers didn't work.
Worst border crossing - Argentina to Chile at Los Libertadores (Mendoza to Valparaiso), 3 and a half hours in queues to get our bags scanned, highly annoying.