A few pictures!

Pyramids of Teotihuacan

Tower Bridge Hostel Puerto Escondido 

The Aussie BBQ

Drinking games after dinner!

Mexico- what an introduction!!

Got the flight at 1 in the morning but one of the passengers had a heart attack so we were delayed by 2 hours while she was taken off. The delay meant it looked unlikely that I would get to the tour bus in time which was in the centre of Mexico city. I was whisked away to a taxi at the airport and told the driver to drive fast. Should have phrased that differently, it was scary fast. No matter what people say about driving in London, this is 100 times worse. There is no organisation. Even the traffic police are ignored. I did however arrive on time for the tour and was put in a mini van by the tour guide. We drove into the heart of the city to see the ruins of some Aztec temples. These temples had a lot of sacrifices weekly. On special days 1800 people could be sacrificed from the surrounding villages, these where either soldiers captured in battle or villagers. It was no wonder the Aztec enemies joined forces with the Spanish.  After that we drove to a restaurant just outside the pyramids where we had an all you can eat meal and unlimited amounts of local tequila. After that we went to the pyramids of teotihuacan. These were huge structures which could take 20 mins to walk to the top. They were both used for sacrifices by the people who abandoned the city in around 800AD. One of the temples I believe specialised in the sacrificing of children. It was an amazing city.  After that I returned to the hostel where i waited for my night bus to Oaxaca city. After the 6 hour long journey I arrived at 6 in the morning at Oaxaca. I got a taxi to the hostel but only had 500 pesos, about 23 quid notes. The fair was 60 pesos about one pound. The driver gave me 10 pesos back and drove off. It being 6 in the morning I did not take much notice of how much I had been ripped off. I went in got a nice room and fell asleep for a few hours. Woke up and met the owner of the hostel who spoke good English. I told him about the taxi, he was fuming that they rip off his customers. We both looked at the CCTV but couldn't see the number plate. So we drove down to the taxi depot where Habe the hostel owner spoke to the taxi companies boss who sat me down in front of 5 huge files all with pictures of the 800 drivers.  On book 5 it seemed like an impossible task but as I was about to give up a person stood next to me. When I looked up it was the driver. I said it was him and after correctly identifying the drivers taxi I watched the driver get told off by his boss and with that he gave me back the 500 pesos and in turn I gave him back the 10 pesos just to be cheeky. Habe said some words on his way out that should not be repeated on this blog. I had a relaxing evening by the pool, I was the only person at the hostel.  The next morning I got a bus into town which was tricky to understand where to get off and how to say can I get off here please. I over shot the place I wanted to go but turned up at this huge colonial church. Inside the, roof, the alter and the walls were all decorated in gold. I got a guided tour and learnt about the deep Catholicism that runs through Latin America.  After that I went to a market where I got leather belts for 5 pounds and lunch for 3 quid. I went back to the hostel where as i was reading my book i got a view of the police raiding a house. A few gun shots here and there. It was a very relaxed day so not much to say about it. I had a bus at 9:30 which would take me to puerto Escondido a surf town full of Aussies and the English. 

Seattle to L.A.

Sorry I haven't posted anything in a while. Haven't had a moment to sit down and write something. Well the 23hr journey from Seattle to San Francisco was probably one of the most enjoyable journeys. Really relaxed, great views and very comfortable. Way better than a plane. Arrived at San Francisco at 8 in the morning in the financial district with no idea where I was. I had to ask a few people about finding the hostel. I can't do that in central America so next time I've got to work out my destinations before I get there. I turned up in my ski coat, sweater, jeans and walking boots, the typical look for Canada but in 25 degrees i cooked myself. After a 45 minute walk up hill I nearly died from over heating. Before I even checked in I asked for a shower. After my shower and change into shorts I headed to where the famous trams go. Went to the fishermans wharf by tram where I saw the sights and went in a very cool 3D mirror maze. Relaxed for the rest of the day at the hostel. The following morning I got the open top tour bus around the city. I stopped off at the science centre to have a look. It was an impressive museum with the largest planetarium in the world. Taking it all in was impossible. After that i went and saw the famous golden gate bridge. Got back to the hostel to find my room mate josh had signed us up for the karaoke night. So I sung two songs, Y.M.C.A and sex on fire. Was a lot of fun and with free beers, first I'd had in a week thanks to the drinking law made it an enjoyable evening. That night however I found out that my train tickets from San Francisco to L.A had just arrived in Canada. I was told it would be ok but the following morning I was told a very different story. Woke up at 5 in the morning, got to the train station, went to pick up my tickets and I was told that I needed the originals, with no other option I had to buy new tickets. So for the rest of the morning I was in a pretty bad mood. The train this time wasn't as nice, with it being very hot the viewing car was like an oven so I stayed in my seat for most of the journey. I arrived at 9 o clock in the evening to find I had to navigate my way by bus out of l.a to the out skirts. Turns out at night the funny people are about. I had to borrow this guys phone to call the family friends I were staying with and if I'm honest he seemed a little dodgy. I made it though and pretty much passed out as soon as I got into bed. The following day was a relaxed day just wondering around. Today I went to universal studios, took me 3 hours to get there and for 50 quid admission I found it a little dissapointing. The studio tour was typically over American with the guide trying to act out scenes with the exhibits which were very cheesy and rubbish. Went back to the house and have just been dropped off at the airport. I'm now sitting on the ground where there is wifi waiting for my flight that leaves at 1 in the morning.

Vancouver & Seattle

Killing off 9hrs in a city I didnt know turned out to be very tricky. Spent most of my morning in a shopping mall running some errands. Went to Stanley Park which is well known in Vancouver as the place to go if you are a tourist. Was a nice parkland similar to ones you would see in London. It also had an aquarium where I thought I would blow the last of my Canadian dollars seeing. Got to see Dolphins and Beluga whales perform which was pretty cool. Didnt stay long as I had to rush to go get the Monorail to go meet my grandpa's half brothers grandson (very confusing). Met up with him and went back to his family's house for dinner. This is a side of the family that I never knew existed and they had no idea I existed. Had a really great time talking about the family connections and how weird it was to finally meet.

The next morning I got the bus to Seattle. I probably shouldnt have been such  an idiot at the border by poking fun at the Americans high security. I was talked down to by two officers who both had massive hand guns and fists like melons. I was asked 100's of questions and they almost stopped me because I had no proof of leaving America (I have printed the flight itinerary yet). They did let me through and got me to do an eyeball scan and finger scan so that they know when my prints come up they know im leaving the country. I kept the whole bus up. Kinda need to stop pretending the British accent will get me through any situation.

Arrived in Seattle station downtown in the pouring rain. I had to trek all the way up to a street just to get a bus to head to the university where I would meet a friend. I was an hour late but I've made it and am now pretty much passing out on the sofa.
Next stop tomorrow at 6 in the morning, San Francisco, a 23hr train journey! I do love trains but I fear I wont be saying that when I have got there.

First journey not the best journey!

Arrived in Vancouver after a pretty uncomfortable journey. Got the isle seat at the back of the bus by the washrooms,every time someone went to the washroom I was sat on when they lost there balance or if my head was there I would get someones backside in my face. As well as this the man I was sitting next to was trying to take as much of my seat as possible, I came close to falling off my seat. With this I didnt really get much sleep over the twelve hours but have arrived now with a day to kill before I meet my grandpas half brother.

So it begins, 8,500 km trip in 1 month

Was up till three last night making the finishing touches to my trip. Pretty excited and nervous. My house mate Jen moved into my room this morning so I had to finish packing pretty quickly. Had to ditch a lot of things before I left, I seem to have more paper in my room then a post office. Have spent most of the day saying goodbye to people in Banff and taking bags of chocolates round to everyone. I have lived here for the last 4 months so it's pretty weird thinking I'm going. My bus for Vancouver leaves at 8:30 this evening, I have a 12 hour bus journey ahead of me. Hopefully I get some sleep. I'm hoping I will have a reasonable amount of wifi for this blog but in some places I may not have any so sorry about that.

Getting Ready to Go!

Never done this before so hope this doesn't sound to naff. My second to last day and I'm supposed to be packing but after a heavy night I feel alot better lying in bed. I've managed to collect alot of stuff out here so am wondering how the hell im going to fit it all into a rucksack no bigger than a pigeon!