Toronto, Canada - Home

The best part about flying at night is you sleep really well on the plane - and thats exactly what happened. i boarded the plane, sat down (first row between economy & business = more leg room), and fell asleep and slept almost til i landed. i was exhasuted - it was nice to just sit down...

At one point i contemplated of not coming home (must have been around the time in Santiago when Richard asked if i want to go hiking in Pucon (which is by the lake district in Chile) and i actually thought about going and not going home. I actually wanted to defer my last semester of school and keep travelling for the next 4 months...ok now why didnt i do that? its -13 degrees right now in Toronto and i could've been hiking in Patagonia by now...but instead im sitting at the computer lab feeling really determined to finish the rest of my blog while procrastinating with homework (already)...something is wrong with this picture! I guess its the responsible side of me that got my arse home :P

I'm at the end of my blog (for this trip), i'm already missing my days in south america and remembering some of the highlights and/or interesting tidbits:

*staying in hostels is FUN - i know some people still think i'm crazy or dont think im the type to stay in hostels. i never thought i was too but really...its so fun staying in a hostel! u get to meet everyone from all over the place, share stories and have a good time. most people i met can afford hotels but would rather stay in hostels to meet people and to stretch the trip for as long as they can. i totally agree - i wouldnt do it any other way either. if i can travel for a long time i would do the same.

*i dont have a favourite place/city - just because each city is different and had a different experience at each of the places i went. although, i think the inca trail was the best part since i challenged myself doing something that is totally out of my element and completed the entire trail (thanks VC for making me book the tour!) i also love the Salars de Uyuni - the salt flats were so amazing - i dont think i've ever seen something so unique! also the Chilean desert landscape was breath taking - who knew i like the outdoors? hahaha

*I already have my next trip planned out - well, the next trip to South America that is.  OK, I fly directly to Santiago, go south to Pucon in the Lake District, do some volcano trekking, go further south to Punta Arenas then later over to Argentina to Patagonia, more trekking, then up to Buenos Aires for some city living and partying, over to Mendoza for some wine country, up to Cordoba, further up to Salta for some cool architecture, maybe up to Bolivia and see Potosi, Sucre, and Cochabamba....THEN over to Brazil......haha i can go and on. now i only need time!

*speaking of planning a trip - i didnt plan this trip at all. Well, i mean i bought my ticket for flying in and out of Lima, booked my air ticket from Lima to Cusco, booked my inca trail tour...that was it! I had an idea of where to go and what to do - i knew i wanted to see MP and salt flats...so i knew i had to head east to Cusco and south to Bolivia. Initially i wanted to see Argentina but it just was not possible to see so many places in 4 weeks. In hind sight though, i should've gone from San Pedro to Salta (which is a 10 hour bus ride), south to Mendoza then over to Santiago (but then i would need more time or have to fly from Santiago to Lima which would've cost me a lot). I read a ton of blogs before going to South America and talk to many people along the way - everyone does similar routes. they're either going south or north so u meet people who may be going the same route as u or just passing u by and going the exact opposite direction. Anyway, what i liked about my trip was that i didnt have a definite plan...it was nice to be somewhat spontaneous...i would totally do that again!

*i'm VERY happy that i finally saw South America - although it was never high on my list but i never set foot on this continent and i wanted to see Machu Picchu. I took full advantage of my 4 week between semester break and jumped on a plane and saw this beautiful continent. I'm even MORE happy that i didnt get altitude sickness, didnt get stomachaches, and didnt get robbed...It was a successful trip! :D