Travelogues

My first 20 weeks in Latin America were a sweet escape from working life - with a distinctive soundtrack:

	Week 1 / Track 1: Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood (The Animals) - I arrive in Guatemala speaking almost no Spanish, visit "the most beautiful lake in the world" - Lago De Atitlan - and meet the boozing, nictotine fiend and totally bribable ¨saint¨ Maximon. Full article
	Week 2 / Track 2: Ring Of Fire (Johnny Cash) - A week spent playing with with fire - climbing the erupting Pacaya volcano, riding the Chicken Bus to Guatemala city and discovering that Hell is a shopping mall. I mix with the young and the beautiful at Fly Party (a fiesta at the airport) and find myself flirting with (near) disaster. Full article.
	Week 3 / Track 3: Neon Bible (Arcade Fire) - I discover some of the religious flavour of Guatemala - foreign missionaries, Jesus chairs and salvation in a cup of coffee Full article.
	Week 4 / Track 4: Black Coffee (Ella Fitzgerald) - Visiting the Bella Vista and Azoteca Coffee farms near Antigua I learn about both production of some of the world´s best coffee and the appalling poverty of much of the local population. Guatemala´s rich musical heritage is explained to me and I buy an an obscene piece of candy.
	Week 5 / Track 5: Hips Don't Lie (Shakira feat. Wyclyffe Jean) - I recover my my long lost hips when beginning salsa lessons, meet my new flatmate Xela and uncover some of the painful drama of Maya history at the Museo Anthropologia.
	Week 6 / Track 6: Exodus (Bob Marley & The Wailers) - Leaving Guatemala for Honduras, I exploring the amazing Maya Ruins at Copan. Learning to Scuba Dive in the Bay Islands gives me a passport to see the glories of the underwater world of the Caribbean. I meet some of the many itinerant Israelis traveling the region - normally young people just liberated from national service as ¨Warriors.¨
	Week 7 / Track 7: You're Missing (Bruce Springsteen) - Crossing back to Guatemala on foot, I see dancing kites send messages to lost loved ones on The Day of the Dead. Smoking a hooka pipe in Antigua results in me hosting dinner for a mystery guest on an alcohol free election day.
	Week 8 / Track 8: All I Need (Radiohead) - Living in Antigua, I have to adjust to maintaining largely transient relationships in this city of drifters. I get nostalgic for Australia when visiting the Valhalla Macademia farm and partake in a casual chat that turns into a job interview.
	Week 9 / Track 9: The Ground Beneath Her Feat (U2) - I experience my first earthquake and find some peace and love with The Firedancer. In a no doubt doomed attempt to become bad-ass, I start motorbike lessons. Full article.
	Week 10 / Track 10: A Day In The Life (The Beatles) - Feeling at home in the Gringo theme-park that is Antigua - my day to day life has found its own rhythm and routine: morning Spanish lessons, afternoon shopping in the market and walking the cobbled streets in this beautiful city of ruins.
	Week 11 / Track 11: Flame (Bell X1) - I camp overnight on Volcan De Pacaya, toasting marshmallows (and nearly my fingers) in the lava. Finishing my last salsa and Spanish lessons I get ready to leave for Brazil.
	Week 12 / Track 12: The Girl From Ipanema (Astrud Gilberto) - Touching down in Sao Paulo, almost the first thing I see is a TV replay of a soccer game: I am in Brazil! I quickly move to Rio De Janeiro to experience Ipanema Beach, the Sugar Loaf and Christ The Redeemer beachtowels.
	Week 13 / Track 13: Waterfall (Stone Roses) - I swap green and canary for blue and white - I cross the border to Argentina for multi-sensory overload at Iguacu Falls. Full article
	Week 14 / Track 14: Boa Sorte (Vanessa Da Mata feat Ben Harper) - Take showers in more waterfalls - this time in Brotas in Sao Paulo State. River rafting, horse-riding and river rock sliding - not to mention listening to the singing sand.
	Week 15 / Track 15: Shut Up And Drive (Rhianna) - 10pm on Christmas Day in Sao Paulo - a 5 hour driving odyssey begins to discover how diverse Paulistas - policemen, homeless, street kids, prostitutes, NGO volunteers and families - spend their christmas night. The tour includes some soccer stadia - temples of the game Brazil made beautiful.
	Week 16 / Track 16: Hope And Fear (Geronimo) - I return to Rio De Janeiro to take part in Reveillon, the world´s greatest new year party: 2 million cariocas dressed in white with music and fireworks on Copacabana beach. I then confront some of my fears in Hot Park in Goias - Brazil's biggest waterpark.
	Week 17 / Track 17: Bonito (Jarabe De Palo) - I visit the Eco-Capitalist wonderland that is Bonito in Brazil's Mato Grosso Do Sul - snorkeling downstream in pristine waters, rafting and caving whilst simultaneously striving to protect my distressed wallet from the town's beauty cartel.
	Week 18 / Track 18: Whirlwind (Architecture in Helsinki) - Travelling on bus, foot and by pane, I celebrate my birthday in three Brazilian states - Goias, Brasilia (DF) and Amazonas.
	Week 19 / Track 19: Find The River (REM) - My last week in Brazil is spend on the Amazon - experiencing nature's pharmacy, up-close hydro-power, waterfalls, jungle lodges, giant fish, river dolphins and a love motel.
	Week 20 / Track 20: Black Sand (The Space Cossacks) - Returning to Guatemala, my last weekend before returning to working life is spent on the black sand beaches of Monterrico. I swim in the Pacific, watch a dis-comforting turtle race, experience dawn break over the mangrove swamp and see the four volcanoes of Pacaya, Acatenango, Fuego and Agua lined up in a row, fiery sentries to the home to which I have returned.