Hasta Luego!

As the sun goes down on my South American adventure I thought I'd do one final post. I get a flight back to the UK this afternoon and I need to pack up my bags for the last time on this trip. Thankfully I can check two bags on my flights home so my usual near-miraculous act of fitting everything in can be relaxed today.

Maybe I should list some highlights...

1. Staying and Teaching in Posadas.

I don't think you can really get an idea of what a place is like by staying 3 days and doing two tours to tourist spots (see number 3). So staying 4 weeks and teaching here was fantastic. Maybe teaching should be a highlight on it's own - great fun and very rewarding.

2. Being asked if I was Spanish!

I'll explain that properly later. I've enjoyed learning spanish and it's great to celebrate the wee successes along the way. It was great to know I could be understood when asking for basic things like bus tickets etc but the best times are when you have a "proper" conversation. Ok, it's quite limited and the native speaker has to be patient and speak slower than normal, but I have managed on occasion to have a decent chat with some people that don't speak any English. Of course I still have loads to learn but Rome wasn't built in a day!

I was asked if I was Spanish by my taxi driver in Salta after exchanging initial pleasantries and confirming I was going to the airport. I felt like giving the guy a high 5!

Thanks again to everyone who has helped me along the way with this. I must mention Josefina, my teacher back in Edinburgh. Without the good grounding I had before getting on the plane it would've been much harder over here.

3. Heading off with no plan for a few weeks.

This was a little difficult to get used to initially but I soon got in the swing of it. I think it is very easy to get hooked into seeing as many places and as much as you can all the time. This, I suspect, is because everyone is busy at work, finds it hard to relax at the best of times and only has a limited amount of time to travel etc. However, I met a few people along the way that actually saw/understood very little about where they had been at all because they spent most of the time on a tour bus to or at (albeit quite amazing) tourist spots. After I got over this I enjoyed myself much more and had more opportunities to speak to the locals. However, there is a limit to travelling for me and I think 4 or 5 weeks or so is probably about enough. All power to the guys that head off for 6 months or a year.

4. The people of Argentina and Chile

I've found the people here to be very friendly, helpful and interested in having a chat with me. Of course it helps knowing a bit of their language as the vast majority of the locals speak little or no English. Most people like a laugh too which is great.

5. Some touristy highlights (in no particular order)

• Las Cataratas - Iguazu - One of the 7 wonders of the natural world.
• Perito Moreno Glacier
• Staying on the Estancia near Mendoza (pretending to be a Gaucho for a couple of days! The wine and Parilla were pretty tremendous too)
• Steak and Ice Cream - the food of champions!

So what faces me when I get home?

- A weather shock! It's been around 35 degrees here and I've had rain one evening (in Salta) in the last 6 weeks. It'll be about 5 degrees with rain and a windchill from hades. Oh well, I'll just dig out my hot water bottle and wear a few layers.

- A work shock! Thankfully I'm not due back at work until mid-feb so I can get used to the weather shock and then worry about work later.

- A triathlon to train for! A full olympic distance, open water swimming, triathlon. I think I'd better get some swimming lessons!

Ok, that's the end of this particular blog folks. Thanks for reading and for your messages.

Until the next time I do some crazy challenge or head off somewhere adventurous.....Chau! Hasta Luego!