This is the end. The only end, my friend

Well, the adventure has come to an end my friends. The thing is, I can still remember getting off the plane in Singapore, walking the humid streets and getting excited about eating icecream sandwiches, buying my crappy watch (that after 3 new batteries is still working) and losing my plane ticket. Time flies. Yes, I cut my holiday short. I left Ecuador a week or so early and skipped meeting Hardy in New Zealand all together. No, he didn't go there by himself. He's going to take his holidays at home. See if we can't annoy the hell out of each other in familiar surroundings.

In my last days in Ecuador I kept getting minor anxiety attacks when I thought about leaving South America, that I would no longer be surrounded by Spanish speaking people, or hear salsa, cumbia or reggaeton music blaring out of tiny pirated cd shops along the road. The idea of going back to Canberra, or Australia, a land of stringent health regulations regarding food preparation and where rules are enforced about the number of people allowed on a motorcycle, was very scary, and mildly depressing. Going through Santiago was a small way of weaning myself back into the western culture I think. The place definitely feels like a European city and even the cafes were playing music I'd be likely to hear at home.

The first thing that happened to me in Santiago was that I went to the ATM and got money out, then was convinced to taking a shuttle to my hostel. It wasn't until I was on my way to the hostel that I had time to ponder on exchange rates and prices, and wasn't until I was checking in that I realised I'd been SEVERELY ripped off on the shuttle price, but then, as a small compensation, it seems I got double the amount I should have out of the ATM. Now that I’m back in Oz (and even in New Zealand) I can’t find anywhere to change those pesos back to dollars).

My last impression of Santiago was the hundreds of people flying kites on a Monday afternoon. I don't think I've seen quite so many kites flying on any park or open area all over one city. In between getting ripped off and seeing kites, I walked streets. I went up Cerro San Cristobal and watched the sun set over the city. I saw some very impressive contemporary art from Korea at the museum, and saw various markets on sidewalks and grassy areas. Mostly though, I was just disappointed that most streets had shops that were closed. Not just Sunday, but Monday too.

From Santiago I flew to Auckland to visit my friend Fleur. Auckland was fairly uneventful and another step towards acclimatising to Australia. It was very hard to stop speaking Spanish though. I kept wanting to order in restaurants in Spanish or say ‘Gracias’ in stores. It also got some getting used to being able to drink water from the tap and putting toilet paper in the toilet and not in a bin beside it.

I don't know if I have come away from my trip with what I was hoping for. I still have no idea what I want to do with my life or what I should study so I can change my work... I do know that I really want to go back to South America, and that I definitely need to go back to Iquitos, visit May and his family and see their village. I have great plans to practice my Spanish at home and make Hardy learn it, but I'm sure that's one of those things that will fall by the wayside.

Although I did all the travelling by myself, I've made some great friends along the way. Thank you Kristina and Raffaella for making Cusco unforgettable, thank you Diego for taking me to your grandma's birthday and showing me life en el campo, thank you May for showing me the jungle, taking me to numerous beaches and rivers to swim in (and my Peru soccer jersey!)

The holiday is over and back to Canberra I go with loads of memories in my head and photos, a couple of extra kilos (both in the luggage and on the hips - gracias a los churros, icecream and numerous cakes I've been consuming), new friends around the world, and an obligation to find work again. I hope that my blog and photos have provided some interesting reads for you. This is my last blog about my trip, although, still to come, is the final part of Mike's blog.

Adios amigos. Hasta luego.