Panama – Gateway to Central America

Panama – Gateway to Central America

By roychinnorNo Comments
It’s a funny old life, sometimes it would be better to just go back to bed and wait for tomorrow. My first day in Panama and I came down to breakfast early; I had too, the traffic noise outside my bedroom window made it impossible to sleep any longer. The hotel agreed to move me into a quieter room and I should have realised then that it would be best to stay there. Breakfast is normally a very straightforward affair, cereal, fruit juice, toast and marmalade, and coffee. Toast; the most common breakfast item anywhere in the world except Panama. They have a kitchen where the chef will prepare all sorts of delicious dishes from around the globe, but he can’t do toast. I took a taxi to the shipping agent, my first priority, so that any paperwork problems could be sorted out before Bridget arrives on Monday. The agent wants money before he does anything. I explained that all costs have...
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Farewell South America

By roychinnorNo Comments
My last days in Ecuador have been spent in Guayaquil. This is Ecuador’s largest port and an intriguing city in that nothing is what it appears to be. The cathedral at first glance is a magnificent structure probably from the 18th or early 19th Century. In fact when you look closer at the detail you will notice that the beautiful stained glass windows are in fact modern, what I would refer to as printed. As late as 1915 the building was little more than a large brick-built warehouse with a reasonably imposing frontage. There is also a clock tower which would not look out of place on the esplanade of an English seaside resort; indeed the clock was purchased from England in 1842 and is still keeping good time. Teach the Swiss a thing or two about timepieces. Although I am guessing I would say there are very few, if any, buildings here that are a hundred years old and in...
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Short and Sweet – Ecuador

Short and Sweet – Ecuador

By roychinnorNo Comments
We had crossed the border into Ecuador with my feeling uneasy about the route I had chosen. I should have researched the Pan American more deeply but having looked at the map I believed that the route I had chosen was the Pan American. However the condition of the road does not comply with any description I have seen of the Pan American Highway. Bridget has just undertaken the toughest challenge she has faced so far. The road surface no longer exists on much of the route taken, but I have checked my maps and this really is the Pan American Highway. The conditions are as bad as those between Cusco and Nazca when I refused to take her further. In this instance I have little choice short of returning to Peru and trying the other route, but in Australia I established the policy of not going back because it was tough. The road climbs thousands of feet and then plunges down...
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Birthday Special

By roychinnorNo Comments
It is precisely one year since Bridget and I left the UK on this adventure. I had no idea of the challenges and experiences ahead of us or even if we would get much beyond Germany. I have been fortunate enough to meet hundreds of beautiful people and made some marvellous new friends. My thanks go to all those I have met, especially those that went out of their way to help so much, and in particular all the MG’ers in Oz. My thoughts recently have also been very much with those new friends that I made in Iran and Pakistan. I hope things improve for you all so that you are free to live your lives the way you want. Finally my special thanks go to my family who have been so supportive rather than just humouring the poor old man....
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Goodbye Peru

Goodbye Peru

By roychinnorNo Comments
I returned to Nazca from Cusco by the same means that I had gone there, bus, and the second trip was no better than the first. I was pleased to see Bridget again and gave her a wash, then took her into town and found a garage that would weld repair her exhaust. That done I was ready to get back on the road towards Ecuador. Driving has become so much less stressful now that Bridget is running properly. I have decided not to visit Lima as I have had enough of major cities for now, particularly Capitals that are not at all representative of the country as a whole. The Pan American highway seems, if anything, to be getting even better. The scenery continues to be interesting although it is changing from the southern half of the country and must be far more fertile as commercial agriculture is very evident here. As I get nearer to Lima the traffic gets worse. Congestion...
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