Danco Island

 Next stop on our trip was Danco Island, which is just off the coast of the Antarctic Peninsula. By this stage there were plenty of giant icebergs like the one shown in the photo. The light blue ice is more compressed, so has less ice bubbles in it, therefore it reflects the light differently.

We climbed to the top of the island for a group photo before sliding all the way down on our bums!

There are always plenty of penguins and seals ready to be photographed like the one in the photo.

Aitcho Islands in the South Shetland Islands

We set off on our cruise and were very lucky to enjoy a smooth passage across the notorious Drake Passage. This is the rough ocean between Argentina and the South Shetland Islands at the top of the Antarctic Peninsula. We jumped into zodiac boats to make a landing on Aitcho Island.

We found many Chinstrap penguins who were standing in groups motionless - as they were malting.

There were also many friendly orange-beaked Gentoo penguin chicks, who were always very curious and came up to us.

Ushuaia National Park - Tierra del Fuego

The Pan-American Highway runs the length of the American continents from Alaska to Ushuaia National Park on the island of Tierra del Fuego in Argentina. These three photos show the area where the road ends. I took a half-day trip there with about 12 others on the morning before my cruise departed.

Days 3 & 4: Iguazu Falls

Getting up close and really wet
on the Argentinian side of the falls

Flying the CSIRO Discovery flag
on the Brazilian side of the falls!

Quad bike racing in the jungle

I spent Wednesday morning on the Argentinian side of Iguazu Falls. There are several hundred waterfalls, which vary in height from 60 to 80m. I went on one of the zodiacs (see photo) which takes you right under one of the falls, so you get absolutely drenched!

The following day I took a half-day tour to the Brazilian side of the falls, which allows for a more panoramic view of all the falls. I will upload more photos to my FaceBook page when I get a chance.

It might not surprise some of you that I enjoyed the quad bike riding more than seeing the falls. Racing these bikes through the jungle was the best part of my trip so far!

After our day tour left Brasil, we crossed the border to visit Paraguay's second city, Ciudad del Este, where I wandered around the shops. I bought a 64G thumb-drive for about $20 and a Barcelona football shirt for only $12.

Now I getting ready to fly from the heat and humidity of the tropics at top of Argentina to the world's most southern city at the bottom of Argentina. I think a change of clothes will be required on the plane!

Days 1 & 2: Argentina and Uruguay

A pre-tour chat with my
mate Diego Maradona

On the stadium tour

My post-tour comments for TV

I flew out of Sydney at 11 am on Monday, and 13 pleasant hours later I had crossed the international date line, and so I arrived in Buenos Aires an hour before I left on the same day!

I ate lunch in a quiet back-street cafe with ambient latin music, and then took a one-hour ferry trip across the river to the small town of Colonia in Uruguay. Being a long weekend, it was so busy that every backpackers' hostel and hotel that I tried was fully booked - until I found a room in a four-star hotel. Beggars can't be choosers, so I took it and went for a swim, a workout in their gym, and then a sauna before crashing for my first sleep in a day and a half!

The next morning after a walk around the town, I took the ferry back across to Buenos Aires and caught a local bus up to La Boca. I visited a football museum there, and then went on a guided tour of the Boca Juniors football stadium.

After that I headed out to the domestic airport to catch my flight up to the tropical north of Argentina near the border of Brazil. We landed in the middle of a savage tropical storm, which was the first rain they had experienced for months. I caught a bus to my hostel and booked myself on a tour to see the Iguazu Falls the following day.

Going to Cuba!

Looks like a movie set!

Visiting Habana is a reality! From Santiago, I am going to fly up to Panama City and spend a couple of days there. This will be my first time ever on the Central American mainland! Then I am going to fly across to Cuba for two whole weeks. For the first two nights in Havana, I am booked into a "casa particular", which is a private room staying with a local family. And then I will travel around the island enjoying the music, the cars, the pretty girls and the beaches!

Boca Juniors vs. Independiente

Boca Juniors' three-tiered Bombonera stadium
currently has a capacity of around 49,000

Now that my departure date has been put back two days, I will have to wait until after my cruise to go an Argentine football match. On Sunday 11 March, Boca Juniors, who were the undefeated champions in the Apertura last year, are playing at home against Independiente, who are also from the capital, so it should be a great atmosphere! I will have to buy a ticket before it sells out. I just found out that after Buenos Aires, I can spend the next two weeks in Cuba for about the same price as going to the Galapagos Islands. Spoilt for choice really!

Visiting Uruguay

In Montevideo, a long boulevard
stretches along miles of sandy beaches.

My latest news is that I have had to change my travel dates. I am now flying from Sydney to Buenos Aires on Monday 20 February, and I will be flying back out of Santiago de Chile about six weeks later on Saturday 31 March. After landing in Argentina, I have decided to take the ferry ride to Montevideo, the capital of Uruguay, because I missed out on this trip last time I was there. Now, all I have to do is decide where to travel for my last three weeks in South America after my Antarctic cruise. Life is a beach!