Colombia

Monday, 25 IV 2011

$1 = 1,765 COP (Colombian peso)

I hate border crossings. Everybody is trying to sell you something or take you somewhere for a ridiculously high price. You can't trust anyone.
I entered Colombia without any problem and got a visa for 60 days. I had to change money as I heard later on it's very hard to do. With all the chaos I changed the money for less then I was promised. He did some calculator voodoo and ripped me off for $7. You have to watch everybody every second.
Since I was left by my previous ride I had to look for another one. I got a mini bus to Palomino for 30,000 COP (3h).
There is a well known coastal Parque Tayrona (35,000 COP). Since I didn't have much time for Colombia I dedicated one night for the beach camping. I've red that first you have to walk for 2-3h through the jungle to get to the beach in Tayrona. The heat combined with humidity was overwhelming and I really didn't want to hike for a long time with my whole backpack on my back. Two people told me before that I can go to the beach by pueblito Palomino instead. That it is also awesome, free and without almost any people. I have decided to go there.
As soon as I set my foot in Palomino I started wondering what am I doing here. This is not what I enjoy doing especially not in this tropical weather. Oh well, I'm here to explore and see different things. I bought water, apples and I hopped on a moto taxi and zoomed off in the direction of the ocean.
The beach was nice but was nothing special. It might of been a mistake not to go to Parque Tayrona. It's too late to go back now. I had to walk in a soft sand for a while before I found a great camping spot under coconut palms. I put up my hammock and I thought of sleeping in it but dark cloudslooked like they were up to no good. I pitched my tent and the rest of the day I was reading swinging in my hammock. There was nothing else to do. Due to clouds I didn't get to see a sunset and at night it did rain.

https://picasaweb.google.com/maurycy.sarosiek/ColombiaPalomino#

Tuesday, 26 IV 2011

Without any rush I packed my camp and headed out at 11am. This time I walked to pueblito which wasn't too far from the beach. Local buses are super slow and it took 2 hours to get to Santa Marta (8,000 COP). At least the road was very picturesque paved on both sides with lush green vegetation and view of the ocean at points.
I found a hostel (14,000 COP) by the coast and went for a short swim to cool off. In the evening I went out to stroll the streets at night with 2 people from the hostel (Cheri and Sebastian) and Cynthia (local CSer) and her friend Christian. Santa Marta is a nice town with cool plazas. The temperature at night is perfect where you can finally breath a little.

https://picasaweb.google.com/maurycy.sarosiek/ColombiaSantaMarta#

Wednesday, 27 IV 2011

There is only 220km (137mi) to Cartagena from Santa Marta so I thought it shouldn't take too long. Boy was I wrong. Taxi driver taking me to the terminal flagged down a minibus to Baranquilla saying that I have to go there first and then take another one to go farther (2h - 15,000 COP). After an hour wait I hopped on another minibus heading to Cartagena (3h - 15,000 COP). So in total I traveled for 6 hours! Later on my host Telmy said I could have taken a bus directly and travel only about 3.5 hour. I feel like I'm back in Bolivia where everybody is lying and telling you different things. Grrrrrrrrrr I have to start going about things a bit differently again.
With all this the day was shot.

Thursday, 28 IV 2011

The weather is even worse here than in Santa Marta! Humidity is through the roof!
Cartagena is a very nice colonial city. Old town is surrounded with a wall and there is a fort overlooking the water. Small streets, colorful buildings with balconies and green plazas. It's got a nice feel to it. Too bad the weather is unbearable.
I visited the Gold museum (free). It was small but had plenty of interesting pieces. The Naval museum (7,000 COP) is not worth it unless you're really interested in the who, when and where of the region.
In the evening I went out with Telemira to see the city after dark. It looked pretty awesome with lots of colorful lights and music coming from everywhere.

Friday, 29 IV 2011

Today I went to the Fort San Felipe (16,000 COP). There isn't that much to see there. Just the construction, some tunnels and views of the city from a higher up.
Afterwards I went strolling through Boca Grande. The beaches aren't too impressive there and the shore is dotted with high risers. I stopped at the beach bar to hide from the sun for a while and have a cold one. Right away there was a lady offering me a massage. She wouldn't take no for an answer. She would say it's a sample but took time to massage my neck, shoulders, arms and hands. I can't say it didn't feel good so even though I wasn't obligated it would be weird not to give her something (5,000 COP).
Goodbye beautiful but sweaty Cartagena. I hopped on a bus to Medellin at 9:30pm (108,000 COP).

https://picasaweb.google.com/maurycy.sarosiek/ColombiaCartagena#

Saturday, 30 IV 2011

The road was snaking through the mountains and the bus driver wasn't afraid to pass cars as soon as they came up. So my sleep was interrupted very often. It ended up taking 14 hours - D'OH!
Jaime, who I met in the Salar while hiking one volcano, took me into his house. Medellin is pretty big so it's good to have an inside man especially that tourist information didn't even have a map to give me. We drove around for a while and went to Pueblito Paisa. It is a model square with few houses from the county side. It is located on a hill so you also have a panoramic view of the city. We also went to Parque Pies Descalzos. It is an interactive park where you can relax, soak up your feet or walk on "massaging" rocks. It started raining and Jaime had a meeting to go to in the evening so we postponed further exploration.
At night we headed out to Calle 10 and Parque Lleras along with Jaime's girlfriend Marcia. Hundredths of people were out looking to get drunk. Jaime's friend had a birthday in one of the bars. Of course the music was so loud you couldn't talk to anybody. The bar scene here is like most places around the world - shut up and drink. Not exactly what I enjoy.

Sunday, 01 V 2011

Today I met with the Austrian giant Manuel that everybody had to have a picture with hehe. We met prior in Cusco, Peru and went to Machu Picchutogether. First we went to an aquarium in Parque Explora which was very interesting. Lots of amazing fish including fresh water ones. One aquarium was like a flooded part of a jungle with submerged trees and all. Very cool stuff.
Across the street was Jardin Botanico (free). A popular place for the locals to get away from the city. We met up with Manu's friend Carolina and spend some time there.
We went to La Villa de Aburra to have a beer. It is nothing more than a grassy slopy stretch but for some reason it is a major meeting point as well as a smoke out spot.
On Sunday almost everything was closed so we just chilled at Manu's house.

Monday, 02 V 2011

Jaime was my guide again and we went via metrocable to Santo Domingo located high on a north eastern slope. You have to know that Medellin is located in a huge valley and brick houses pave the bottom as well as climb up slopes on each side. It is a poor neighborhood but at least got some nice views. Later we walked around downtown visiting plaza Botero with his disproportional statues and Parque Bolivar. I found out that it's a law requiring every city to have such park and a statue in his honor.
My travels are almost over so it's time to visit one more place. I boarded a night bus to Bogota (12h - 55,000 COP).

https://picasaweb.google.com/maurycy.sarosiek/ColombiaMedellin#

Tuesday, 03 V 2011

Yessi was my host in Bogotá. Even though I was a bit tired after a bumpy night ride after brunch we headed out to town. I only have two days left here so there can't be any time wasting.
Bogotá is pretty big and it takes a while to go around it. We went downtown. Just wandering around we visited planetarium (free) with almost nothing inside and a VIP cemetery. Yessi had to go to work and I went to a botanic garden (2,000 COP) which was quite nice. Really peaceful, a bit overgrown in places with almost no people and geese that were chasing and wanted attack me.
At night we went to a bar with Yessi's brother Harry and her sister's husband Jairo. Que buena onda! I really enjoyed myself conversing with them. True, honest and good hearted people!

Wednesday, 04 V 2011

I didn't sleep much but this is really the last day so I want to use it wisely. First thing we went to Candelaria which is an old town with museums, plazas, churches, old colorful buildings and a presidential palace. We visited Museo de Oro (3,000 COP) which was pretty impressive with lots to see. If you likes guns and stuff then Museo Militar (free) is for you with descent collection. After Yessi went to work I took the cable car to Cerro de Monserrate(14,400 COP) from where I had a view of Bogota.
At night we went to Parque de la 93. It is a place para rumbiar. Wednesday isn't quite a happening day so we just had some good artesanal beer and chatted into the night.

https://picasaweb.google.com/maurycy.sarosiek/ColombiaBogota#

Thursday, 05 V 2011

Not much else to do as to pack and head for the airport...
The trip has come to an end. 8 months which zoomed in front of my eyes faster than I hoped they would...
Unfortunately the flight had a 2 hour delay flying out so I had no chance of catching my connection. Spirit Airlines fly to LA only once a day so I was stuck in Fort Lauderdale, Florida for the following day. The airline only gave me vouchers for $7 for each of the three meals?! but at least they put me up in a nice hotel. I got a suite and the luxury was a bit of overwhelming after roughing it for so long. It felt a bit weird.

Friday, 06 V 2011

I don't think I will be choosing Spirit Airlines again. They had an hour delay due to changing of some lightbulb and then we were sitting on the tarmac in LA for another 30 minutes.
Ann and Bryant picked me up and we went directly to Warszawa Restaurant where some of my good friends were waiting for me patiently to have Zywiec together :)))


I can't even describe what this trip meant and how much value it had to me! It was an unforgettable experience. I learned more things about myself, changed some and reinforced other way of thinking. Right now everything is clear in my head and in accordance with my conscience.
Sooooooooooooo many chevere people made this trip unforgetable without whom I wouldn’t enjoy it that much. I'm forever in debt to ALL of you!!! Muchisimas gracias!!!
I have been traveling fast, changing places from day to day. This wore me out a bit. I should have stayed at some places for a longer period of time but I wanted to see as much as possible. This was in a way a recon trip hehe. For sure I will be back!!! with a plan for some extreme adventures…

Venezuela

Wednesday, 13 IV 2011

$1 = 4.3 VEF (Venezuela Bolivares Fuertes) - bank rate
$1 = 8 VEF - black market rate

1 gallon of gasoline = 5 US cents!!! = free

I took a flight to Caracas, Venezuela (7h - $407).
Maldito rain followed me here too. Felipe picked me up from a metro station and we went to his house where I met his 3 roomies and 3 Argentinian couch surfers = full house = more fun.

Thursday, 14 IV 2011

Hmmmmmmm... a day to ponder about my trip... time to make some more decisions about my life...
Time to cut off another week. The date is set. I'm coming back to LA on May 5th ($340) and on the 12th I'm going to Poland for 3 weeks ($1000). Everything is falling in its place naturally. It is how it was meant to be. I'm really excited to see my family and friends!!!
Downside is that I won't have much time left for Venezuela and Colombia. I guess it'll be a quick recon trip. I'm sure I'll be back another day. My exploration days are far from over...

Friday, 15 IV 2011

Time to move my butt and see this big ass city. It's got a fame of being quite violent and dangerous. I have to say I didn't feel too safe in downtown. First thing out of the metro station police stopped me to check my documents... this time. Police is pretty corrupted here and sometimes find a creative way to extract money from you or just plain rob you. This is what I've heard from some travelers and locals. Hopefully I will not be able to confirm this. Next thing as I quickly took a photo of one of the squares one lady quickly told me not to take my camera out.
I wandered around many streets and two big parks. Parque del Este or Parque Miranda even had a small zoo with funny monkeys chasing each other and playing drums on the tree trunks. It's a big city no doubt and I had enough of it already. Of course clouds were hanging around all day and it rained in the evening as it does everyday. I didn't see the point taking teleferico up to Avila mountain which was hidden in the white mist.
With Felipe and some of his friend we were going to a house party but we never got there. Rain didn't disappoint. Perrito with his girl was following us on his new moto but slipped and slid. Luckily they got only few bruises. To everybody's surprise police was super nice and even asked to send them a text message that Perrito got back ok on his banged up moto. It's not all bad here after all.

Saturday, 16 IV 2011

This is the beginning of a Holly Week so all the bus tickets are sold out everywhere. I wanted to go to Merida located in the mountains and it didn't look good. Luckily there is a terminal La Bandera that only sells tickets for the same day. You have to get there before dawn and wait in super long and slow lines. The terminal is small and each bus company have only one window! The lines were like never-ending snakes crisscrossing each other. Everybody was screaming and pushing. Person next to a person struggling to breath. Istny Saigon!!! I haven't seen a bigger cluster fuck during my whole trip. Given this is Semana Santa and everyone wants to get out of the city but give me a break. Finding the end of a line borders with impossible and if you mistaken an end people are ready to kill you for cutting in. I stood in a line for 5!!! hours but at least I bought a ticket out of here. Unfortunately there were some rock/mud/road slides and there was no direct route. I had to go to Barinas first (7h - 88 VEF).
Getting a ticket for the evening really tired me out so I just went back to Felipe's house to rest.
I really thought the craziness ended at the ticket booth. When I got to the terminal the crowd was even bigger trying to board the buses. I could barely squeeze through to get somewhat close to my bus. Again, there was no room to breath. I don't know how I finally managed to get on and leave Caracas.

https://picasaweb.google.com/maurycy.sarosiek/VenezuelaCaracas

Sunday, 17 IV 2011

I got to Barinas at daybreak. Hour later I left for Merida in a minibus (4h - 40 VEF).
Fabricio agreed to host me for few days. Two German guys, Max and Felix, were already couch surfing there. The more, the merrier.
In the afternoon we went to La Culata where we hiked a bit up the mountain. We didn't go far as the fog was thick and it did start raining.
Tired from an all night trip that was it for today.

Monday, 18 IV 2011
Today Augusta (German girl) joined us at the house. It was a lazy day soaked with rain.
Merida is a good base town for outdoor sports such as biking, canyoneering, trekking, climbing, paragliding and so forth. Unfortunately all of these don't sound too appealing when you're getting soaking wet.
At night we went to two bars filled with smoke :/ In the next six months they will ban smoking in bars but for now it is what it is. On top of that the music was almost too loud even to hear your thoughts.

Tuesday, 19 IV 2011

The Germans wanted to eat some mushrooms so we went looking for them in the fields of Paramo along with Carolina and Maruxi. I realized that this time of the year it's not a question if it will rain but at what time will it start. Especially if you go higher it starts earlier with a thick, drizzling fog.
The super green, wet mountain fields were looking pretty mysterious engulfed by the fog. We found cows and Max found a bull that wanted to charge him. No shrooms though. We got pretty wet and it sure didn't help my cold I caught yesterday. On the way down we got a ride from a Spanish dude. Actually we got a seat, or a space on the back of his Ford F-150 truck along with 7 other hitchhikers making a total of 13 hehe.
Not wanting to go out to some smoky bar with a cold I went to Maruxi's house with Carolina to relax and watch a flick.

Wednesday, 20 IV 2011

Sleeping till noon feels good hehe. With Maruxi we decided to ride bikes around the city since I still haven't really saw it. It was a good plan until it started raining hard. At first we hid in a restaurant. We hoped that after a meal it would die down but that didn't happen. We got completely soaked zooming down the streets which almost turned into rivers.

https://picasaweb.google.com/maurycy.sarosiek/VenezuelaMerida

Thursday, 21 IV 2011

In the afternoon I went with Maruxi, Carolina and Shawn to Mucuchies, a small village up on the paramo. It had a nice and relaxing feel to it strolling the hilly streets in the rain (D'oh).
On the way we passed a series of... I can't even call them villages. Few houses hugging a side of the mountain along the road. Cool stuff but there is just nothing to do there locked in by the valley walls. 3km (2mi) of the main road were some hot springs but we opted out of it as it was raining and getting late.
This stupid rain is really pissing me off. It's ruining my trip. I wanted to go for a few day trek but with my gear letting the water in and thick fog it would be pointless and not fun at all. Around Merida are great conditions for ridge soaring with paragliders so I might be back.
I was planning to leave today to Maracaibo on a night bus but with Semana Santa that plan crashed and burned. I was able to buy a ticket for Saturday morning. I wanted to avoid loosing a whole day for travel but it wasn't possible this time.
I don't know why but uncomfortable situation arouse at Fabricio's house so I moved to Maruxi's place for the next two nights.

https://picasaweb.google.com/maurycy.sarosiek/VenezuelaMucuchies

Friday, 22 IV 2011

Today we wandered for quite a while up and down the one way streets of Merida. It have some nice plazas and views from atop. Too bad that teleferico is still not working. Through 4 stations it goes up to almost 4,800m (15,750ft) and I'm sure the view has to be amazing from up there.

https://picasaweb.google.com/maurycy.sarosiek/VenezuelaMerida

Saturday, 23 IV 2011

Loooooooong ride to Maracaibo (10h - 85 VEF) killed my day. Police/military check points were every 30 minutes or so. Only one really checked us and only asked me a whole bunch of questions who, what, where and why.
The humidity slapped me in the face upon stepping off the bus. My host Jose picked me up and gave me a night tour of the town. Some parts were really nice with small streets dotted with colorful buildings. People hanging out enjoying the cool of the night.

Sunday, 24 IV 2011

Jose had time again to show me Maracaibo during the day. We drove around and walked a bit but the heat was pouring down from the sky. Air conditioning in the car was sooooooo good lol. Later on we met with other CS-ers and went to Santa Rosa de Agua. Very characteristic houses on palafitos (wooden logs) elevated above the water. It was pleasant to chat and drink a beer with a fresh breeze coming from the water. The only problem with that neighborhood is that trash is being thrown out everywhere into the water. I'm sure this part would get touristy if they would clean it up.

https://picasaweb.google.com/maurycy.sarosiek/VenezuelaMaracaibo

Monday, 25 IV 2011

Instead of taking a bus it is faster to take a regular "taxi" car (2h - 70 VEF) to Maicao (first town in Colombia). I did just that but the driver left me on the border saying the line with the immigration will take me 3 hours. He unloaded my backpack and I had no choice. As it turned out there was no line. Others told me that I will have to pay around 70 VEF to exit Venezuela but that didn't happen either.

Goodbye Venezuela.

Brasil

Sunday, 27 III 2011

$1 = 1.65 BRL (Brazilian Real)

Luccas, my Brazilian primo, picked me up from the bus terminal and we did a round on the island. He showed me some beaches and we stopped at few lookout points to take in the nice views.

Monday, 28 III 2011

He lives a bit outside of Florianopolis on the mainland in Palhoça. Buses go everywhere so I had no problem getting to the island. I went to the south side of it to Pântano do Sul. There was a 3km (2mi) hike to a secluded Lagoinha do Leste. The trail climbed up through a jungle like vegetation and then dropped down to the lagoon. Closed off by the rocks with sand dunes with no civilization in sight... pretty nice.
Unfortunately dark clouds came and something was brewing up there. Half way back it started raining - D'OH!!! It wasn't a small drizzle. Huge drops soaked me head to toe in a minute. Not exactly what I wanted but at least I wasn't camping out somewhere and had a dry house to come back to. The small muddy trail was flowing and special care had to be taken not to slip, fall and have a roller coaster ride down. Probably would be fun up to the point of flying off the trail into the thick bushes. Maybe next time I'll try it out jeje.
In the evening we met up with my other Brazilian primo Lucas and Luccas' special friend Bruna. We were starving so we went to Sergio's Hot Dogs. My stomach was calling the shots so I ordered two right away. That might off been too much. They were humongous double dog with a mountain of toppings. I managed the two but regretted it a bit as they really filled me up.

Tuesday, 29 III 2011

The weather was still crapy but I decided to go to Floripa. I was just strolling the streets being a tourist. I wanted to go to another beach also in the south but the light rain deterred me from it. I went back to Palhoça and waited for Luccas and his mother, Marta to come back from work. We had a very pleasant dinner with caipirinhas y caipiroscas.
Later we picked up Bruna and Lucas and went to a low key samba bar with live band. A true samba look where locals go to shuffle their feet. Fun times with wonderful people. Obrigado amigos :) Hasta proximo.

https://picasaweb.google.com/maurycy.sarosiek/BrasilFlorianopolis#

Wednesday, 30 III 2011

Time to move north. I went to Curitiba (5h - 45 BRL).
I didn't have luck with the weather... again and it rained. It was evening and I didn't feel like getting wet so I hid in the Hostel Roma (38 BRL) and that was it for today.

Thursday, 31 III 2011

In the morning I went to Museu Oscar Niemeyer (4 BRL) with Louis (French). It houses many different expositions ranging from paintings to cool and weird contemporary pieces. Some were interesting and others not so much. One part of the building was constructed in a shape of a gigantic eye.
In the afternoon I met with Mathisa who lives in Curitiba which meant I had a personal guide :))) We wandered around town visiting some parks and interesting plazas. The city has a lot of green places and I have to say it is interesting but it's still a big city.
At night we went to move our hips to the rhythms of forro. I never danced that but I felt the music and was making it happen jeje. I had fun :)

Friday, 01 IV 2011

Today Mathisa took me to Parque Tangua. Large green area with cliff, waterfall, small lake and a tunnel. Very peaceful and relaxing place.
The stupid rain that is following me through Brasil canceled our farther plans so we hid in a bar. Later we went to a different one to enjoy the tunes of samba played live.

https://picasaweb.google.com/maurycy.sarosiek/BrasilCuritiba#

Saturday, 02 IV 2011

Time to visit Gicele in Saõ Paulo (6h - 61 BRL). Third or fourth largest city in the world and the heart of Brazilian commerce. A lot of people really like this city but I'm pretty skeptical since it's a BIG city. I'm sure it'll still be interesting to see... maybe lol.
As I arrived it started to rain!!! I really don't have luck with the weather here in Brasil. The stupid rain follows me everywhere I go! That's it for today I guess. Just chatted with Gi and her family.

Sunday, 03 IV 2011

Rain or shine we're going downtown. The clouds are hanging low but for now being quiet.
As I said the city is huge and it takes hours to get anywhere. You always have to take a combination of buses, subway and plan to nap between stops. We went to Mercado Central, some museum, churches, few nice plazas and wandered the streets. Around 2pm the clouds opened up and dropped buckets  of water on us. That was it for outside sight seeing. We went to the movies for a movie we only saw on a poster and which should not be mentioned. Let me just say that Nicolas Cage should be ashamed.
I really hope this weather leaves me alone and I'll be able to enjoy Brasil a bit more.

Monday, 04 IV 2011

More clouds and more rain :( We went out to stroll the city regardless. First we went to a bus terminal for me to get a yellow fever shot. Maybe I'll need it to enter Venezuela or maybe I won't. Better be prepared. It cost nothing and took 10 minutes. For the rest of the daylight hours we wandered around a huge Parque Ibirapuera. Nice place to get out of this huge ass city.
In the evening we went to Campinas located next to Sao Paulo where Gicele lives.

https://picasaweb.google.com/maurycy.sarosiek/BrasilSaoPaulo#

Tuesday-Friday, 05-08 IV 2011

Time to be a lazy, write/post on the blog, organize pictures, plan further trip, look for paragliding schools, write e-mails, etc.

Saturday, 09 IV 2011

Rio de Janeiro here I come (7h - 76 BRL). Andre's friend Felipe picked me up from the bus terminal and we dove into the chaos of yet another BIG city. I'm glad I had point of contact in all of these crowded metropolian places.
The rain? Of course it followed me here as well grrrrr... Humidity hit me as well. Cold beer by the shore was a great idea Felipe aaaaaaaaaah...
More beer at night? Yes please hehe.

Sunday, 10 IV 2011

Time to hit the beach. Well... not really hehe. It's not exactly my cup of tea. I can play some sports or take a swim but laying down and frying on the sun = booooooooring.
I walked around playas Ipamena and Copacabana. Nice waves and small grain sand. Did I mention the crowds? Yes, another minus. I went to see Fort Copacabana and relaxed there for some time with a coconut in my hand. Rio is pretty hilly and it makes it an interesting city with pleasant views.

Monday, 11 IV 2011

Time to act like a tourist and go to Corcovado where Cristo Blanco lives. I haven't been doing any exercises lately so I decided to hike to the top instead of taking a train. The beginning of the trail can be found in the green lush of Parque Lage. The trail offers steep climb and no views as it snakes through a tropical, jungle like forest. It took me only one hour to get to the top but sweating like a pig. This trail is good only if you want to exercise. It doesn't offer views or anything else.
Surprise was waiting for me on the top. You can't get to the Christ without a ticket and they sell them only on the BOTTOM!!! WTF!!! I had to go down in the van just to come right up (7.50 BRL entrance, 9.75 BRL transport). Ridiculous! The views from the top stretched for horizon but the sun was strong and a gray haze blurred the land.
Since I already knew the trail and I had to pay for the transport anyway why not ride down and see a different part of the city. On the bottom I found out that it's not really a bottom. There are no buses either. I had to walk down on the road for about 40 minutes to get to a bus stop to take me back to a metro station.
This hot and humid weather tired me out so I went back to Muda. In the evening I watched the movie "127 Hours" and I saw myself there. Even on this trip I had few occurrences where I could have found myself in a similar situation. Unfortunately thing like that can happen to anyone at anytime.

Tuesday, 12 IV 2011

Touristy walk around the streets of downtown visiting few old and beautiful churches, history museum (6 BRL), street markets and stuff.
Rio is cool with nice views and clear water. It is still a big city with lots of traffic and noise.
Unfortunately Felipe and Carolina work and study hard and did not have that much time to hang out. Thank you guys for your endless hospitality and your kindness!!!

https://picasaweb.google.com/maurycy.sarosiek/BrasilRioDeJaneiro#



Well, I haven't seen that much of Brasil. Rain was following me wherever I went. With no more rainproof gear I didn't feel like hiking for few days and getting wet. There are some islands I could have visited not to mention the whole north part. Truth be told Brasil is really good for relaxing and baking in the sun or diving into the jungle. Both of those options are not that appealing to me so in a way my trip ended as I left Ushuaia, as I left the serious mountains. I need adventure in my trip or it gets boring quick. I can do completely nothing and relax but for a short time followed by some adrenaline powered activity. This is me and I'm always searching for an adventure and a way to challenge myself. I'm driven by flying and I can't wait to jump out of an airplane again and start soaring under paraglider from mountain peaks!!! Not to mention flying a wing suit and doing BASE jumping off of cliffs, bridges and buildings!!!
Don't get me wrong, I'm loving this whole trip meeting new people, getting to know new cultures and places but it've been a long one already. I still want to travel the whole world but I need a break now. Following trips will be a bit more adventure oriented with some specialized equipment such as paraglider, BASE rig, rock climbing gear, etc.
Another huge factor in cutting my trip short is the fact that I still don't know where will I live after this trip?! It's always on my mind and I would like to know NOW. It will be a huge change in my life and I can't dismiss it and push it on the back burner. It's hard to make a decision like this but if I won't I will regret it. I need to find MY place in this messed up world. I need to try at least and see how will it play out.