After some catching up and exploring Vina Del Mar and Valparaiso ive booked a bus up to San Pedro in the Atacama on Monday evening. At 24 hours its a hell of a bus ride but has to be done. This part of Chile is famous for having the clearest night sky in the world due to the very dry air and lack of light pollution, but i wont be hanging around. Im planning to get a 4WD to go for 3 days across Bolivia´s Salar De Uyuni, an endless alien landscape of salt flats that will eventually lead to the town of Uyuni. More when i get to San Pedro.

Pablos parents have very kindly been letting me stay at their house until he returns today from Argentina. Valperaiso is a great city with thousands of houses ingeniously built across the surrounding hills. Dozens of funiculars throughout the city give access up the steeper parts with terrifyingly angled roads serving everywhere else. Im probably going to stay here a couple more days and then head straight up to San Pedro in the Atacama desert. A hopping point to get to Bolivia.

Ive just been out doing a spot of white water rafting on the Tanctura river a short distance from here, although it was fun with 4m waterfalls in part it was fairly tame compared to the full on rapids of the trip i did in Thailand.

Im heading up to Valparaiso soon for a beer with Pablo so i´ll put up a post when im there.

Now the thing i love about non westernized countries is their approach to health and safety. If you´re stupid enough to stand on the edge of a cliff, jump in a boiling spring, or sit on the roof of a train, no ones going to stop you. Just be prepared for the consequences. These places still issue life jackets, crash helmets, or whatever equipment you need. They just don't hold your hand to cross the road. All to often, especially in NZ, you were are always being told. "Don't climb that mountain, its to windy", when in fact you couldn't have flown a kite. Or "Don't swim in the lake its deep, in parts"...Hmmm. After all, in adventure sports and outdoor activities its often the small element of risk that makes them fun, and out of the ordinary.

As i mentioned, Pucon is shadowed by Volcan Vallarrica. At 3000m its small by Andes standards, but higher than most European peaks. It last erupted in 71 wiping out a neighboring town, and is still bubbling away fiercely. At night the peak glows against a backdrop of stars as a funnel of smoke rises into the sky. Oh, and you can climb it if you want.

Early this morning i put on some crampons, grabbed an ice pick and set off to do so with my guide, Rodrigo. The first stretch is by chair lift to carry you over the rocky debris that litters the base, then on foot up the snowy slopes to the summit. I had no idea what to expect at the top. The volcanoes i climbed in NZ where all dormant or extinct.

Gazing into what appears to be the center of the earth is mesmerizing and hypnotic. The heat and fumes are almost unbearable, and the situation obviously quite dangerous. You really got the feeling that you couldn't get away with it in most countries. Every now and then the fiery red crater would roar and through bright red lava into the air some 30m from where we stood. The smaller fragments of rock and ash would then rain down even closer, sometimes we´d move to avoid it. Incredible.

There are easier ways of getting down a snow covered slopes than walking. After hanging around at the top for a while, it was time to get on my arse and slide to the bottom, using the ice pick as a brake. Tremendous fun, but kinda painful.

Off for some food.

After a few days walking around some of Santiagos quarters ive headed south 14 hours on a bus down to the small town of Pucon. This is home to Volcan Villarrica, a massive 3000m active volcano that dominates the skyline pouring clouds of smoke into the air. I couldn't get a hostel and so im staying in a house belonging to a local lady, who´s very fond of saying "No Problema!!".

Tomorrow, weather permitting, the plan is to climb up to the top of the volcano with a trekking guide and look into the bubbling lava from its snowy peak. Its more crampons and ice picks, which are hard work, but will definitely be worth it. There´s quite a lot on offer here due to its location on the edge of a national park, but after 3-4 nights im going to have to head back on the bus to meet Pablo in Valparaiso.

Ive arrived in Santiago after a long flight. Its quite strange landing before you take off, but im reasonably accustomed to having my body clock squeezed, stretched and shattered, and feeling the similarly named consequences that it then brings. Im meeting up with an old friend of mine and my brothers from the uni days in just over a week, he lives in Valparaiso on the coast, but is currently in Argentina. And so in his absence I'm heading south down to the Lake District (at least i think am) to a place called Pucon.

Right!!...Now where did i put that "Teach yourself Spanish" book.

Auckland isn't the urban sprawl I'd been warned of. Its worse, and barely merits a mention. My flight to Santiago is tomorrow afternoon and so its just a matter of killing time until then. Once there I'll try to sort some kind of route up to Peru, probably through Argentina and Bolivia. Will be in touch in a few days.

Apart from the odd patch of interest the North Island of NZ is relatively plain in comparison to the grandeur of the south. Scruffy charmless towns and endless rolling grassy hills fill the majority of the island, the remainder being filled with rather home sick looking sheep.

The Tongariro crossing was a good walk. A steep accent to the edge of the crater was followed by stretches of other crater crossings. It was particularly cloudy that day and so the majority of the views where obscured with broken cloud. The area was used extensively in the filming of Lord of the Rings, the volcano itself playing the part of Mt.Doom (minus the fiery eye of course). A lot of geothermal activity still exists around the area with many steaming vents, hot streams and mineral stained lakes. Although this added an extra dimension of interest to the walk it also made it rather pungent. Sulphur, does not smell good.

After departing the national park i headed for Rotorua, the giza capital. How anyone lives here is a mystery. The entire place reeks of sulphur, and the majority of the population seem to spend their time trying to charge you vast amounts of money to see why. I've never in my life had to pay to see unguided, naturally occurring and maintenance-free phenomena and I'm not going to start now. Call me stubborn, but they can sit on their gizas for all i care.

Instead i went down the local park, massive steaming lakes and bubbling mud would normally be quite entertaining if it weren't for the local council permanently retrieving crispy fried duck from the surface. Despite all this, I've actually just been relaxing here for a few days, reading, walking etc. Mainly in an attempt to put off going to the reputed sprawl of Auckland.

The hostel owner here is a Jordy, and one of those "people say I'm crazy" characters that terrorize the work place. He's made over the entire hostel as an American western style town. Currently I'm staying in 'Jail'. I joked with a Japanese man from my dorm that it would be my first night in the cells since being away.

"Ohhhh..For me seventh" he said
"So you've been staying here a week?" i asked
"No No. First night"

I decided not to pursue the conversation any further, padlocked my backpack, and fell asleep.

As the city packs out and goes mad, i seem to be the only person leaving as everyone prepares for todays Rugby Sevens match in Wellingiton.

Im getting a bus to Tongariro National Park this morning so that i can set off early tomorrow for the walk across the Volcano. Its only a day walk but very popular for obvious reasons. Hopefully the weather will improve a little as it has been very foggy everywhere recently.

I had a good day yesterday and took a visit to Karori Sanctuary, an epic project to restore 250 hectares of native plant and wildlife back to its original state, all behind a predator proof fence. They say it will take 500 years to complete the project but already its recovering well. I was quietly amused at the entrance where i had my bag checked, not for guns, but for mice. Shockingly, there weren't any!

After a quick 4hr trip on the ferry across from Picton i have arrived in Wellington. The boat trip would normally be very pleasant, but thick low cloud prevented views of the thousands of islets creating what is known as the Marlbarough Sounds.

Wellington is a very cosmopolitan capital, and also very small. Im staying here a few nights just to take a quick break from what seems like endless transport before heading into the center of the North Island, the home of all the volcanic landscapes.