India - Maximum City

Tomorrow we are on our way to Mumbai (Bombay.) In preparation, I have read (almost finished) the book Maximum City: Bombay Lost and Found by Suketu Mehta. The book is amazingly descriptive and gives a super behind the scenes to what is really happening in India, on the streets and behind closed doors. I am actually quite floored and look forward to "meeting" India in person.

xxx Vanessa

Australia!!! Welcome to Oz!!!

Oz... the land where the most dangerous and venemous animals live.

I am so tired and internet access here is so expensive... that I will keep this one short.

In the land of Oz...

• Arrived in Sydney
• Arranged 2 India Visas
• Visited the Japanese Embassy - no need for visas
• Went to Cairns and I got my deep diving open water certificate. I can now go to 30 meters below to look for sharks and sweet lip fish.
• Back in Sydney, organized 2 Chinese Visas (and still waiting)
• Out by train and bus to Mildura
• Visited Mungo National Park
• Bus and Train to Melbourne
• Sitting in the hostel internet cafe

Check out the pics on Facebook.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=103288&id=504184250&l=04ddea12ec

xxx Vanessa

Exploring New Zealand (Aeoteroa)

We started in Auckland in the North Island and after a few days flew to the South Island to the cool town of Christchurch. Here we picked up our "love bus" named Rusty. This camper van had quite a bit of rust covered with loads of graffiti spray paint picture of Kelly Slater (pro surfer.) Rusty was good to us. He gave us shelter, a bed, a mini kitchen and loads of fun (and a couple of crashes - ooops.)

We took Rusty to Mount Cook, Dunedin, Te Anau, Queenstown, Doubtful Sound, Fox Glacier, Franz Josef Glacier, Pancake Rocks, Marlborough Sound. Then took the ferry to Wellington on the North Island.

In the North Island, we drove up to Rotorua and went on a class 5 river raft tour. We went down a 7 meter waterfall in the raft. ROCKIN!

Our favorite meal on the road was SteakFajitas cooked on the campground grill with Speights beer. This meal was supplemented with Snickers bars regularly.

We met lots of people (from Germany and Switzerland ;) plus a really friendly Maori guy who was a lumber saw person. He told us some crazy ass stories about hunting wild boars only with a stick.

To find our pictures, you can go here on Facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=103269&id=504184250&l=b1c8f5a38a

A NEW POST (finally)

After we left the comforts of Santiago's apartment with swimming pool and WIFI... we entered the land of the Incas, Peru. We've done so many things in the last 20 days, you wouldn't believe it.

Finally after one month of no computer access, no email and no bloggin... we are back!!

Stay tuned for the updates... and if you want to check out the pics, you'll have to log into to Facebook.

xxx V