Goodbye South America Reviews

Oh my God I can't believe it, I've never been this far away from home! :o

Welcome back blog buffs!
1293 Blog views in, and we're leaving Latin Americaaaaa!!

There's been a lot of highlights and things to remember, and maybe a few things to forget. So I'm compiling a list of my personal top 10 drinks, foods, hostels and places we've visited. So keep your shorts tight, belt up, and enjoy this ride through top 10 wonderland :D



HOSTELS:

10 - Hostel Estoril - Buenos Aires
Right on Avenida De Mayo in the middle of Buenos Aires, this hostel had a great location, and the roof top balcony had amazing views. The only negative was the atmosphere was a bit dead, and Cats bed had bed bugs (not that, that bothers me though) :p

09 - Pangea - San Jose
This hostel was pretty crazy. Open a tiny metal door on a busy street of San Jose, then there was a MASSIVE hostel with TV rooms, bar, loads of showers and toilets, swimming pool, loads of modern computers, pool tables etc etc. Only problem was it was a bit like a factory and impersonal.

08 - El Viajero - Colonia Del Sacramento
Nothing to fancy about this place, but it did the simple things right. On a nice quiet cobbled road off the main street, the beds were nice, rooms were spacious, helpful staff, and they served some sexy tasting breads with dolce de leche for breakfast :)

07 - Zephyr Lodge - Lanquin
This place was located on a mountain with a 360 degree views of the trees, mountains and lakes surrounding it. Best view from a shower EVER. Had a cool bar / restaurant. Only problem was they used a stupid tab system to make payments (the town had no cash points), and our beds were just matresses on a floor. Plus our little cabbin had no windows and it was FREEZING in the morning.

06 - El Refugio - Pucon
Another no frills, but did everything right hostel. Located right opposite the bus station, and a block from everything in the small town. We had a big strong metal and rubber tent that held 6 people to sleep in. The covers were thick and warm, they had an outdoor kitchen to cook in, it was very social, and the staff were very helpful and organized.

05 - Alaska - Bariloche
Bariloche was a beautiful mountain village with a european feel, and this hostel suited the place perfectly. Warm, cozy cabbin, all wooden and homely. Very nice.

04 - Naked Tiger - San Juan del Sur
Crazy hostel. Probably the biggest "party hostel" we visited. Had a pool with amazing views of the beach below us. Saw a beautiful sunset every day. All the walls were graffed, they cooked good pizza, and they had a tv room with movies and south park boxsets :) Only problem was the "party vibe" was less "Get drunk and have fun" and more "Sniff lines and act pretentious".

03 - Quetzal - Cancun
Our first stop, and to this day, we've never met and made as many friends as this place. They inculded breakfast AND dinner, and even really cheap beers. Meaning, everyone sat on the outdoor table every day and got chatting. Cool staff, nice location.

02 - Brewha - outside San Jose
CLOSE call for number one spot. We almost didnt come to this hostel as it wasnt really near anything. BUT, the hostel was placed on a hill with a big waterfall beside it, they had a load of friendly dogs, and the staff were amazing. They made us feel and home, and we felt like we were staying with friends. They cooked beautiful home cooking, and they had a big underground tv room with a projector. We watched a lot of movies and Idiot Abroad :) At the end we made a sign showing how many KM it was to Harrow, and they made us a goodbye necklace :)

01 - Phoenix - Buzios
Phoenix gets our number one spot. Near a beach in Buzios, Brazil. This place was spotlessly clean. We had a dorm for 4 people (which we shared with 2 friends from our tour). The rooms had a lot of space, good en suit bathroom, and a private patio with hammock. Good kitchen we cooked in a lot, swimmingpool with wifi coverage around it, sunbeds, and a pet TORTOISE! :o Was very quiet so it felt like the 4 of us had just one the lottery and bought a dream home :)

Wooden Spoon - Weary Traveler - Tulum
The only place I got ill in. (MAYBE not its fault). But the hostel was pretty filthy, the dorms were damp and looked like prison cells. It also seemed to attract pretentious hippies who didnt like you if you didnt fall into their deep abyss of bullshit.




FOOD / MEALS:

10 - Chez Michou crepes / Emporio la Rosa ice-cream
Number ten is joint between this two dessert restaurants with a twist. Chez Michou served sweet AND savory crepes. You could easily have a tuna and cheese crepe for dinner, and a vanilla ice-cream, marshmallow and chocolate sauce one for dessert. They played football games and even turned into a bit of a night club at night. Emporio la Rosa sold SEXY ice-creams. Weird random flavors. Honey, Peanut and Caramel, Chilli Chocolate are some of my faves :) Also can have them as a milkshake or with a brownie or waffel - orgasm

09 - Chorrillana
A dish very popular in Chile. Its basically a tray of french fries, with scrambled egg, beef strips, and onion on it. Man vs Food!! Very good with hot sauce, but makes you feel a bit shitty afterwards :/

08 - Guinea Pig (Coy)
One of Peru's most famous dishes, Coy (guinea pig to you and me) Is a tasty road kill on a plate. Taste a bit like duck, but VERY little meat on it.

07 - Inca Trail cooking
It has to make the top 10 for the wonders these porters created whislt on the inca trail to machu picchu. Every eveing after a long walk, they managed to knock up tasty soups, meat and rice, dessurts etc. One day they even baked us a CAKE. How do you do that in a tent in the middle of nowhere? Mad skills.

06 - All you can eat pizza, Rio
In Rio one day we decided to get a "all you can eat pizza". Many game changers were created, and my eyes were opened. My favorite was probably the crispy fries one. Dunno how it worked but it did. Also the milk and white chocolate pizzas were orgasmic, if not a lil sickly :) Worth it.

05 - Olivas Travels, La Paz This was an English stlye restaurant, run my Brits and Ozzys. Probably had the best bangers and mash of my life there. Also, had battered MARS BAR for dessert. Fenton!

04 - Lobster, Caye Caulker
On this Island, everything was expensive apart from rum and lobster. Probably was the first ever time I could afford lobster. Was cooked to perfection. Came with rice, noodles and hot sauce :) Sex

03 - Burritos - Joy Ride bar, Sucre
OH MY GOD!!! Best Best Best. These are meant to be shared between 6 people. Shared with 4 the first time, 3 the next (inculding me). Ah, I dont think I will even describe it, I might eat the keyboard im typing on....

02 - Siga la Vaca
This is the "all you can eat" grill place in Buenos Aires. Loads of different cuts of everything that once said "moo". Loads of side dishes to chose from, free bottle of wine and dessert EACH! Ive been drunk off food before, but here - i was off my TITS! :o

01 - Tango show
Again in Buenos Aires. We treated ourselves to a tango show one night. The whole experience made it a meal to remember. But the food was actually AMAZING. Probably the best steak ive ever had. Starters and dessert was pretty buff too. I even got to salsa with the sexiest girl in the show too :) Good times

Wooden Spoon - Ceviche
Ceviche was apparently the "must try dish" in Peru. Guinea pig was better. Its basically anything with gills dead on a plate. Served COLD with a bit of lime juice. BUTTERS!




DRINKS:

10 - Tea and Coffee
HA! Most boring answer ever? I usually drink a tea or coffee about 5 times a YEAR in England. But in latin america, game changer. Maté Tea, Coco Tea, Guatemalan and Costa Rican Coffee, allll good. Ended up drinking a lot more than usual.

09 - H2Oh / Guarana
Joint at 9 is the two best soft drinks in Brazil. H2Oh is a fizzy water with a hint of lime. It taste almost exactly like Sprite. Drank loads of it. Guarana was a kind of natural energy drink i guess. Taste like a slightly fizzy cherry drink. Nice.

08 - Inca Cola
Cats favorite fact she learnt in South America - "Inca Cola is the only drink, that is drank more in its native country than Coca-Cola" (apart from Irn-Bru in Scotland). Taste like bubble gum and happiness.

07 - Wine
OMG, game changer! Didnt like wine until our tour around the wineries in Mendoza. Since then I quite enjoy the odd tipple :p Also, I learnt Argentinians like to mix wine with a drop of redbull in clubs as its cheap. Works pretty well!

06 - Terremoto (Earthquake) In Chile a Terremoto (Earthquake in English) Is unfiltered wine, grenadine, fernet (which is like unicum), and PINEAPPLE ICE-CREAM. Game changer? I think so. Only taste good when you mix it up, but you get drunk easily :) Bad hangovers :(

05 - 100% Rum
The alcohol selections might be more common in the higher parts of the top 10 ;) And whats better than 100% RUM!! Alot actually. Bought in Bolivia for miners (not minors), it feels more like a kick in the balls than a drink. But its a good party trick atleast ;)

04 - Pisco sours / Piscola
Pisco sours usually is a mix of Pisco, Lime and Egg whites. Common in Peru and Chile (I prefer Chiles I think), It can be mixed with other things too. Piscola is basically Pisco and Cola. Both really nice.

03 - Bobs Milkshakes
Sex. Thick milkshake which can be bought from Bobs (Brazilian fast-food joint). NICE! Chocolate, whippy ice-cream, milk, and crispy ovaltine bits in it. Gave me diarrhea every time - WORTH IT!

02 - Caipirinha
Made from Cachaca (brazilian liquor). Its only mized with crushed nice, sugar and lime juice. Which makes it STRONG. But refeshing and uplifting ;) Can also be mixed with other fruits. Gives you headaches - WORTH IT!

01 - Power Rum
"If you ask whats in a power rum, you have to buy a power rum". Famous last words. I arrived in a hostel in Ometepe Island and saw a drinking challenge with 5th place only having 3 DRINKS! I thought I could beat that, and did. Got to 4.5, and blanked out. 5 different rums and Raptor energy drink (banned in every country but Nicaragua apparently). CHUNDERED EVERYWAHH!! Off my bed, through the wholes in the wooden floor and to the bar below me. Any drink that makes me do that after just FOUR deserves respect - WORTH IT!! lol

Woodern Spoon - Machu Picchu
This was a cocktail I had in Puno, Peru. I had it for the name, and the fact they used dry ice, carbon dioxide to make it smoke. Was rank. I Bassonged it (downed it) to get rid of it, but it had bits of jelly and taste like marzipan. Making the taste AND texture horrible. Got the worst hangover of my LIFE after that night. Probably more to do with the altitude, but im blaming that crap - NOT WORTH IT!




PLACES / TOWNS / SIGHTS:

Hard to some up my favorite most memorable places, but here we go....

10 - Buenos Aires - Argentina
Very cultural and romantic city. Great food, restaurants, nightlife, history. Some things annoyed me about it. Buses, shops closing early - small things like that. Still a great place though.

09 - Colonia Del Sacramento - Uruguay
Been to a lot of "colonial towns" since leaving. Cobbled streets, churches, quaint restaurants. But this one was the nicest. Really quiet, and pleasant. Beautiful building - Old people would love it.

08 - Uyuni - Bolivia
Salt flats, snowy mountains, and huge moon like rock lands. Really mystical photogenic place.

07 - Tikal - Guatemala
Probably my favorite Myan Ruin we visited. A lot less touristy than Chitzen Itza, and more places to wonder. Climbed one Ruin and got to see great views of all the other ruins and jungle below it.

06 - Caye Caulker - Belize
Breaking away from Latin America to a more Caribbean vibe was nice. Lobster, Rum, Reggae, Beaches and Snorkeling. Good times :)

05 - Bariloche - Argentina
My biggest surprise. Wasnt on our plan to go there. But when we got there we witnessed some of the best views ive ever seen. Google image the place and you will understand.

04 - Valparaiso - Chile
Reminded me of Disneys Aristocats or something. Mazes, apon Mazed of colourful streets, buildings, street art and restaurants. Loads of alley ways going up and down hill. The only place where getting lost is a pleasure.

03 - Machu Picchu - Peru
Four days after walking the Inca Trail - WORTH IT! Seeing it at first from the "sungate" was a little underwhelming, but I could of wondered around there taking 6000 photos from every angle possible. Amazing.

02 - Iguazu Falls
Something ive always wanted to see. Didnt dissapoint. Not much I can really say about it. Humbling experience.

01 - Rio de Janeiro - Brazil
Probably the only place I visited where id NEVER get bored. Beautiful parks, Beautiful beaches, Beautiful women - Cool clubs, Cool Graffiti, Cool people. Will def visit again.

Wooden Spoon - Guatemala City - Guatemala
Shit hole. Feel sorry for the people living there. Its like one big filthy market - not worth it.




That concludes my South America reviews.

Hope you enjoyed and I hope its helpful to anyone traveling.

See you on the flip side in New Zealand and Australia :D

Keep em tighttttt!! xxx