10 Top 3´s

A busy few days catching busses (including running through the streets of a city at 345am trying to find a taxi to the bus terminal) and hurriedly exploring the places we get to finally caught up with us and we have a little break to throw up a blog post. We tend to spend evenings relaxing on roof top terraces and on balconies and occassionally we make lists and such to pass the time with the intention of possibly making them a blog post. So, more of these might be coming. This one is our top 3 (with some honorable mentions) for various categories for our trip:

COUNTRIES
1.Colombia-the perfect mix of landscapes, friendly people, great cities, good beaches, awesome fruits and a road slightly less travelled.
2. Bolivia-The altiplano including the salar, great and interesting cities, intriguing politics, fascinating indigenous cultures, beautiful art, and full of the world´s highest __________ (fill in the blank, almost everything is the worlds highest here)
3. Guatemala-It got our LAtin American addiction started and we still love it. Great colonial cities, beautiful landscapes, some of the worlds best archaeological sites, fascinating cultures, and good friends make this place stay at the top of our list.
HM- Nicaragua and El Salvador didnt quite make top 3, but both are places would love to go back to.

CAPITAL CITIES
1. Quito- We wanted more time here. Lots to see, good museums, great weather, near the center of the world and a lively place.
2. Buenos Aires- Ultra hip, ultra modern but still with a latin american flavor of its own. Its almost too big, but with so much to see and experience, a year here wouldnt be enough.
3. Bogotá- Great weather, good views, nice neighborhoods, huge student populations, nice public transport, good museums, hot chocolate with cheese in it, Botero.
HM-La Paz- Worlds highest capital city, feels a little rough around the edges, but with lots to see and an intriguing clash of cultures.

CULINARY REGIONS
1. Oaxaca, Mexico- See our latest post.
2. Coastal Belize- Main ingredients are lobster, shrimp, coconut milk, garlic and plantains along with caribbean flare. Cant go wrong with food anywhere here.
3. Buenos Aires- It is true that there is lots of great meat here, and we mean LOTS. But, with empanadas of all varieties and homemade stuffed pasta on every corner, plus the amazing gelatto along the streets it deserves credit for more than the meat.

LODGINGS
1. Campground in Ancud, Chile- Check back at our blog post from Chiloe for a photo of this spot. Unbeatable.
2. Wasi Masi, Sucre, Bolivia- Nice locally run hostal. Sleeping can be a tough call on a tight budget, so the good hostels that are cheap and nice are memorable.
3. D&D at Lago Yojoa, Honduras. Decent lodging, but good food and a local brewery onsite as well as a British birding nerd with a huge beard onsite, makes for a pleasant stay.

VIEWS
1. Salar de Uyuni from Fisherman´s Island- A rock formation covered in nearly thousand year old cacti surrounded by pure white salt as far as you can see in every direction. Feels like you are not on earth. This was number one by a long shot.
2. Machu Picchu from Wayna Picchu- A tough hike from Aguas Calientes to MP made us question whether we wanted to scramble up Wayna Picchu, but the view justified the fame that Machu Picchu has.
3. Mountain peak in Parque National Llao llao, Bariloche, Argentina- Snow capped mountains over a giant river feeding multiple lakes.

RUINS
1. Machu Picchu- We almost didnt go. Worried about our budget and worried about the huge crowds that pour into the place, we debated opting for another site. Glad we didnt. This one is impressive and has a deserved reputation for being breathtaking.
2. Yaxha, Flores, Guatemala- Almost as big as Tikal, large excavated sites and you only have to share it with the howler monkeys. There is something about being nearly alone in an ancient site that makes it remarkable.
3. Tikal, Flores Guatemala/Monte Albán, Oaxaca, Mexico- Two great sites we could not decide between. Both are great sites with lots to offer. Our list, so we dont have to choose.

BEACHES
1. Tulum, Mexico- We actually just thought people flocked to resorts in the Yucatan because of the moderate prices. Now we realize that the powdery white sand on the bright turqoise water probably has a lot more to do with it. Add in the coral reef and sea turtles swimming right off shore and it makes sense.
2. Parque Nacional Tayrona, Santa Marta, Colombia- Gorgeous and a bit challenging to get to. Dont like this beautiful beach with crystal clear water, hike 10 minutes through the woods and you can have another one all to yourself.
3. Mahahual, Mexico- Again with the beautiful Yucatan. We timed it right and were almost the only gringos in the town. Eating every meal right on the ocean makes a beach even more memorable.

FAVORITE FARMING ACTIVITIES
1. Milking sheep- Seriously, we really liked this job a lot. Hopefully we can introduce sheep cheese into the high country of NC within the next 5 or so years.
2. Plowing with a mule- We didnt get to do much of this, but it was a great experience. Inefficient, sure, but tractors lack personality.
3. Herding sheep- The jumpy, crazy, intelectually lacking animals can be frustrating, but we admit we loved trying to solve the puzzle of getting them to herd into whatever area we wanted them for the day.

THINGS THAT WE WOULDNT HAVE TOLD OUR MOTHERS ABOUT BEFORE DOING
1. Hitchhiking in various countries. Sounds more dangerous than it is, but in a lot of places this is a perfectly acceptable mode of transport.
2. Waterfall jumping- 10 meters high, and make sure you jump far enough because that rock juts out some at the bottom. weeeeee.
3. Hiking a very active volcano to the point where you can touch the lava with a stick- The irony is, we took our mothers here. However, we failed to mention the part about the lava flows before they were already there and feeling the rubber melting on the bottoms of their shoes.
HM-taking a small boat between Colombia and Panama in 15 foot seas. Scary and painful.

COUNTRIES FOR ARTISANS
1. Guatemala- Just go there, you cant miss them. When art is entrenched in culture and clothing, it gives it an additional beauty that we love.
2. Bolivia- Again with the art that cannot be separated from daily life. Traditions passed on for thousands of years thrive here and are breathtaking.
3. El Salvador- Beautiful Naive art in El Salvador. The way that such beauty oozes out from such painful tragedy in this country gives the work an extra meaning.

Alright, that is all we got for now. Let us know if you want us to list any other top threes.

Here is a little something for your computer wallpaper: Adam Zapata and Tracy Pancho Villa.