Surfing down Volcano Negro - Black hill.

Climbing the active volcano
with the boards

Imagine huge ash mountain that is growing all the time, since it is still active... Imagine this huge mountain in the middle of green ocean of plants. And finally imagine that from this mountain people are surfing down in the orange parachute overalls. This is the volcano Negro.

Nicaraguan friends, Polish agents and best food in central America. Everything in Leon.

Agent: Pink Bocian and Agent: Black Bocian
mastering they hiding skills in Leon.

I arrived with chicken bus to the suburbs of Leon. I walked out from the bus, and wanted to eat dinner. It was a very warm afternoon so I had a huge desire for a cold beer. I walked to the local restaurant where I met two Artesanía guys: Chapi and Jonne. They were very surprise to see extranjero (foreign) in this part of the city. But they got very happy when they heard that I am Polish, since Jonne had girlfriend from Czech Republic - Jidka. She was apparently around the corner, so in the moment I was also able to meet Jidka. I ate my dinner and we drunk together a beer. Jidka brought Frisbee so in the meantime we threw a bit Frisbee to each other. It was ages since I did not throw Frisbee!!!

Bat's Breeze and an active Masaya volcano

Bat's Breeze

I know many ways to get fresh and cold. One can take a cold shower, turn on a vent or look for a shadow under big tree. Those are a few standard methods. But now I discovered another way. One has to find the bat cave and wait for the sun. When the bats are flying out, they can get you fresh.
The bats can fly surprisingly closed to the face but I was told that they would not hit the person thanks to their great echolocation. And I can prove it. Despite that I am really tall, they did not hit me!!!!

Isla Ometepe

On the way to Isla Ometepe.

I moved straight to Nicaragua from Panama. I did not want to stay in Costa Rica since I heard that it was the most expensive country in Central America and it was predominant holiday destinations for Americans. So as fast as possible I moved to Nicaragua. In the bus I decided that I want to visit Isla Ometepe.

Peace Corps volunteers in Panam City.

Peace Corps volunteers.

In Panama I met four amazing girls. They were just about to start their volunteering for Peace Corps. They were going to spent next two years in a small, underdeveloped village somewhere in the jungle in Panama and help the local community with different types of environmental sustainable projects.

One year passed like.... few life times.

On my way.

Do you remember what you did one year ago? I exactly remember, I boarded the plane in Warsaw, and I started my trip. It was one year ago, but it seems that it was ages ago. During this year I experienced so many things, I met so many people, I visited so many places. I think I changed quite a bit also. I hope that we will meet and you will be able to judge this change.

Sailing Cartagena - San Blas - Panama

San Blas.

In Cartagena I was searching for a boat that would go to Panama and that would need a qualified sailor. There are many sailing boats traveling between Colombia and Panama since the land border goes through a jungle controlled by drug cartels and is almost impossible to cross. All flights are very expensive.
 Many backpackers that travels through America, goes on the sailing boat.

Yacht hitchhikers

Boat YouYou, optimist and Mikołaj.

What is the chance to meet another long term traveler from Poland? Unfortunately there is not too many Polish travelers. Till now I met three of them. What is a chance to meet a traveler facinated with the sea much more than I am? Additionally what is the chance that this traveler has the same first as me????

Colombia, Cartagena

It is a country with great vibration, incredible local people and very interesting music. From every bar and pub there is a music that makes your leg starting to dance. On the street the Colombian Hamburger seller was dancing while preparing his hamburgers!!!

Dolphins, harmony, full moon...

True friendship.

Pink dolphins, overwhelming animal harmony, full moon rise over the amazon and the longest snake in the city.... I experienced it all in Colombian jungle in Leticia and Puerto Narunio.

Peru - very diverse country.

Cusco.

For me Peru consist of different parts. I experienced South Peru with a great company of my sister and my cousin. Afterwards I moved to central Peru - beautiful Andes, further on to North Peru which is less touristic developed and has some amazing archaeological sides like Kuelep and finally my beloved Amazon....

Polish people in Peru

Children in Peru celebrates
beatification of John Paul II.

Poland and Peru despite of huge distance, has a very unique relationship. The first connection of Peruvian people with Poland is the Polish papa, polish pope, John Paul II. He visited Peru three times and his visit made a huge impression on many Peruvians. Our host lady in Lima remembered the details of his visit and she considered him as the most spiritual powerful person that she ever came across. I also met a guy in Iquitos that had been a child when he greeted the pope on the airport. And he said that it had been the most memorable event in his whole life...

Butterfly love.....

Transparent butterfly.

I would never before expect that the animals that butterflies can fascinate me so much.... I was already fascinated with them in Asia, than suddenly in Brazil, at Iquazu Falls I came across magic butterfly spot. Finally in Iquitos I visited butterfly farm, where I came across one of the most beautiful life form I have seen. Transparent butterfly.

Juicoholic

Fruits -one day market shopping!!!

In Peru I fully developed my addiction towards fruit juices. This was the country where I have seen the highest number of local people addicted towards fruits juices. On most of the Mercado there was a special section with selling different combinations of fruits mixed with water or milk. Sometimes they even prepare more surprising mixtures like the ones counting beer....

Getting connected to the Amazon or getting lost in Amazon

Amazon.

Thanks to the night under the bridge while being in Himalayas I managed to establish unique connection with Himalayas and Zanskar river and I knew that the adventure like this might happen also in South America. But I did not expect that I would get lost in the biggest tropical jungle and literally in the waters of biggest world river....

My 24h menu in Iquitos after boat trip.

Grilled fish with grilled platano.

I am asked quite often, especially by my grandparents: "Grandson, but what do you usually eat on your way?" My menu differ a lot and usually I try to eat the staff that the local people eat. For sure my favourite dining place is Mercado (Market).

With the flow of queen of the rivers...

Hammocks on our slow boat.

One of the best Polish movies ever is an cult movie called "Rejs" ("The Cruise") and talks about a interactions between passengers during the river cruise along Vistula and was released in 1970. This move has a very specific atmosphere and is full of mostly difficult to translate polish humor. This movie is extremely rich with great quotations, just to give a feeling, here are two examples:

"...but what voting system can be used to select the method of voting?"
"...it's time for actions, not words. Now let me speak."

Long, long time ago there is no such a river cruise on Vistula river. In most places around the world the river transport was substitute by much faster road one. But there is the queen of the rivers - Amazon, where one can still feel an unique atmosphere of slow traveling, lazy boat going down the stream while one interacts with other travelers on board for days...

Bus entertainment and live teleshopping (infomercials).

I came across a special type of the entertainment on the local buses in Peru. A guy jumped on the bus and for five minutes is citing the bible and emphasised how important is the God, human life, love. Then he complained about the moder life and how people were getting disconnected from their roots. He emphasized that the modern life was too fast, that the food was very bad and that this was a reason that we all had problems with our ...... stomach.

North Peru - Kuelap, Sipan, Chan Chan

North Peru.

North part of the Peru is a bit less touristic than the South but it is very reach in different archaeological sides. After few days rest at the Pacific seaside I started to explore three very diverse archaeological sides and one incredible waterfall.

Majestic peaks of Cordillera Blanca.

Cordillera Blanca.

In those one of the most beautiful mountains around the world, I had only three hiking days before I had to go back to Lima for my dentist visit. So I decided to use this time as much as possible and to go for three different day hikes.

Peru dentist

My tooth.

For all this time I did not have a need to go to any kind of the doctor. But already in Paraguay in Argentina I started to feel inconvenient pain in my jaws. One of my tooth hurt.

One of the most interesting crossroad in the World!!!

Did you ever come a cross a street crossroad that fascinated you a lot? I did in Lima. This is one of the biggest crossroad in town with the traffic lights Lima of 9 December street and Paseo de la Republica. It is the most interesting crossroad that I have seen in my life.

Machu Picchu - "Lost City of the Incas"

Lamas in Machu Picchu.

After four days of Salkantay trek and one day rest in Aquas Caliente, we reached magical located Lost City of the Incas. It is situated above a loop of the Urubamba River, which surrounds the site on three sides, with cliffs dropping vertically.

Salkantay trek

Beautiful tree on the trek.

There is only one trekking path from Cusco to Aguas Caliente and Machu Picchu which can be done without the guide. It takes four days. The second day one have to go over the high pass at 4600m and afterwards descent through the jungle. This is an alternative road towards crowded Inca trail.

Isla Amantani

Together with Malgosia and Maciek, we made a home stay on this island. We stayed in a small room where we were provided with typical meals three times a day. The most delicious were different types of potatoes. Bolivia and South Peru are the mother lands of potato and they have huge variety of this vegetable here.

One of the most beautiful sun rise Puno - Capachica over the Lake Titicaca.

Our next step was a city Puno from which we wanted to go one of the Islands on the lake Toba. Instead of islands hopping, which is very touristic, we decided to spent more time on the biggest island on this lake, Isla Amantani which is the biggest and the least touristic.

Whole inside the earth - Colca Canyon.

Colca Canyon

From Arequipa we wanted to see "the whole inside the earth" - Colca Canyon, which is promoted to be the deepest canyon in the world. And it is apparently twice deeper than Grand Canyon in USA.

Arequipa

Convento de Santa Catalina

Arequipa was the first city where I sight saw with my sister Malgosia and my cousin Maciek. We walked around the city and it took me a bit to convinced them to go for the dinner and for juces to the market. Maciek wanted to try chicha..... Fermented juice, I did not realize how dangerous this can be but we drunk it. It is delicious so we even bought two small bottles for the evening.

Meeting my sister and my cousin

Malgosia and Maciek.

Finally in Arequipa I managed to meet my sister, Malgosia and my cusin, Maciek. They both came to Peru for three weeks and we wanted to travel together through South Peru.

Bolivia and La Paz

It is the cheapest country to travel in south America. Only 5%country roads are sealed ones, so the bus road is usually very slow.