Since it is taking us forever to actually post about the places we have seen and things we have done we are adding this photos page.  We won’t have much to say on here but will post plenty to photographs.  This will allow us to post photos of our travels quicker without having to break your social media.  Although we will still post things on facechat and instabook as well.  Sorry!

Ecuador

The farm, Pacto, Guanabana, Quito, Mindo, Otavalo, Banos.

Galapagos

Santa Cruz, Floreana, Post Office Bay, Baltra, Santa Fe, San Cristobal, Kicker Rock, sea lions and blue footed boobies.

Peru

• Mancora, Peru – We spent a few nights at this party/beach town
• Lima, Peru – We spent five days in Lima visiting the old town, Miraflores, and Barranco neighborhoods.
• Machu Picchu and the Gringo Trail – We did a truncated version of the Gringo Trail on the way to Machu Picchu with stops at:
  • Ica/Huacachina– Apparently this is South America’s only natural desert oasis.  It is also home to several Pisco distilleries.
  • Lake Titicaca, Peru-City of Puno, Uros (floating) Islands, Taquile Island. Lake Titicaca sits at an elevation of 12507 ft.  The man-made floating Islands of Uros are home to a Pre-Inca civilization which built these islands to avoid conquest.
  • Machu Picchu – Cusco and Machu Picchu.  These photos include our hike to Machu Picchu from Aguas Calientes and up Machu Picchu Mountain.
• Iquitos – This, apparently, is the largest city in the world that can’t be reached by road.  We flew in and boated out. This is one of the more unique places we have visited, hopefully some of that is captured in the photos.
• The Jungle – We spent a few nights at a lodge in the Amazon Jungle.
• Amazon River Boat Trip-We spent two nights and three days floating up the Amazon River.

Colombia

• Bogota, Colombia. Highlights include:
  • Flooded streets of La Candelaria Neighborhood
  • Views of the city from the Monserrate
  • Bolivar Square, which among many many many other things, is the location of the 1985 siege of the Palace of Justice by the M-19 guerrilla group.  The event is a quintessential example of the intertwined relationship between drug cartels, guerrilla groups, Colombian government, and foreign state actors.
  • Bogota Graffiti tour was one of the best tours we have done yet.  The art seems good and the meaning behind some of the pieces is fascinating. We hope to blog about them later. There is lots of history there, specifically focusing on the role of the U.S. in Colombian life and politics since the start of the War on Drugs.
• Medellin, Colombia.  Highlights include:
  • Botero Plaza-All the statutes here were donated to the city by the artists.
  • Botero Bird Sculpture in Pargue San Antonio-Constant reminder of Colombia’s deadly recent history.  The original statute exploded June 10, 1995 killing over 20 people and injuring over 200.  The story is that the government wanted to move the statute after the explosion but Botero convinced them to keep it as a constant reminder.  He later donated an exact replica to be placed next to the original as an “homage to stupidity”, symbol of peace, and a memorial to the victims.
  • Photos from a Pablo Escobar tour visiting some of the more infamous locations including the house one top of which he died and the cemetery where he is buried.
• Cartagena, Colombia.  Beautiful and very tourist friendly coastal city.
• Tyrona National Park, Colombia: There are some amazing pictures here including beaches lined with palm trees.  National Parks have only in recent history become safe for the public as they used to be run by the drug cartels and guerrilla groups.

Bolivia

• La Paz, Bolivia: Interesting city with a mix of very developed and developing areas.
  • There are some cool photos we took from the teleferico/cable car, which was recently built to connect the city’s poorer areas to the core of the city.
  • Photos of our jump from a skyscraper in the heart of the city.
  • Photos from our hike to the “Devil’s Molar”.
• Uyini Salf Flat Tour: These are some of our favorite photos of the trip.  Everything we saw was incredibly picturesque.
• Sucre, Boliva: We spent a few days in Bolivia’s capitol.

Chile

• Santiago, Chile: We spent about a week here with Leontiy’s parents.  There are loads of photos from Chile’s capitol.
• Valparaiso, Chile: Beautiful beach town with a bohemian vibe.
• Pucon, Chile: We spent two weeks here working at a hostal in this lake town positioned by a lake at the base of an active volcano. Lots of photos from our hikes and bike rides.  This is also where we hiked to the top of an active volcano.
• Puerto Varas, Chile: Another small town by a lake at the base of a volcano.
• Frutillar, Chile: We took a day trip to this small German influenced town in southern Chile.
• Torres Del Paine, Patagonia, Chile: A few photos from one of Patagonia’s best known areas.

Antarctica!!

Antarctica, Earth:  18 day turned 26 day sailing trip across the Drake Passage and through the Antarctic Peninsula (and back). Highlights include the company on the boat, glaciers, icebergs, swimming in an iceberg, seals, sea lions, penguins, whales, visiting the Ukranian base, and meeting a Russian explorer who was the first to sail around the Arctic in one season.

Argentina

• Ushuaia, Argentina (Fin del Mundo):  This was intended to be our last stop before moving back up the continent.  It didn’t turn out that way. There are a few photos from Ushuaia and the trip to what is known as the southern most town in the world.  However, there are a few photos mixed in with the Antarctica album as well.
• Mendoza, Argentina: We spent a few days in Mendoza visiting family, eating amazing food, and drinking wine.
• Buenos Aires, Argentina: One week with Kaylee in Argentina’s capital.  Highlights: Architecture and food.