We're now in Bolivia, in a city called Potosi, which is one of the most surreal experiences I've ever had, but ill bore you with that later.  I think I last left you as we were travelling to Buenos Aires on another 20+ hour coach journey, fortunately this was better than the catterrals style. We've heard of these coaches where your seat folds down into a perfectly flat bed, although I think this is a myth as each time we have paid for the most expensive service and found no beds! Much to our knees disappointment. We stayed in the Millhouse hostel which turned out to be a good job as it was pretty nuts. Only planning to stay in Bs As a few days to soak up the nightlife, the first person we spoke to had just returned from a Boca game (Boca Juniors FC) and told us it was Boca vs River Plate the following Sunday. We couldn't believe our luck as this is the biggest club football rivalry in the world and pitched the best team in Argentina against the second best. We had heard all about the South American atmospheres, let alone at this game (and with the potential of a bit of violence). So after re-arranging our plans, we paid over the odds for the tickets, and our safety!

So our first night out was fairly memorable and this time not like Rio and for going to a gay club, although it was called Club 69! We saw these two girls in the club that we recognised as we'd noticed them at both the Brazilian and Argentinean side of the waterfalls and at our hostel in Puerto Iguazu and it now seemed like they were stalking us. Not surprisingly it´s a common route and our hopes of female attention were dashed, but we got to know them and they were sound Swiss girls.

Thinking that we should spend our time wisely in Bs As rather than just drink, we took a tour to Recoleta, the affluent district. We visited Evita´s Tomb (Madonna film - which all Argentines dislike her for) and saw dog walkers in the plaza's, about 10 dogs per man. Still can't work out how they were not scrapping. We had a quick re charge of the batteries which is the norm for Argentina and went out for dinner about 11, after scoffing a three course dinner and a couple of beers, including the largest steak I´d seen (all for a fiver between us...so cheap), we felt to tired to go out. There's always tomorrow.

Tomorrow was a day of sorting. We booked bus tickets and I posted some stuff back, and as I was to tight to pay for the premium service I settled for the next best, by boat. 60 days rather than 7. oh well I was in no rush.  That night, feeling refreshed we went out to a club that had cabaret on, it was a nightclub and the girls were in thongs, which made up for Rio! Sweet.  Good night, however woke up late and had to scrap the planned trip over the estuary to Uruguay, which we regret (another stamp on the passport and all that), and instead went shopping. The thought of shopping was a bit of a cop out but in a foreign country was doing our hangovers no good whatsoever.  Try telling a shop assistant that the quality of the material is not good enough. We struggled so we didn't bother. I ended up buying the Argentina national rugby shirt, which I'm quite found of.

The next day was our final free day before we left Bs As so we tried to tick a few boxes. We travelled to the working class area of La Boca, home of Boca Juniors and Maradona. We got there alone which was a surprise and it was worth the effort as the building were colourful and the tango dancers in the street gave us something to look at over lunch. We visited the stadium and Shaun bought the shirt. We visited the world famous Cafe Tortoni, no I haven't heard of it either, and we didn't feel welcomed in our shorts and flip flops but who cares we ordered te con leche and a toastie, drank up and got out, box ticked.

That night we went to a club called Pacha, same as the one in Ibiza and equally as good, not that I´d know as I haven't been to the one in Ibiza, but this was the best clubbing night of my life!  We didn't go till 3 and didn't return till 9. The place didn't stop till midday but, with the match that day and having to vacate our rooms by 11, felt that we should get some shut eye. None the less I slept in, the hostel guy woke me and took my sheets off while I was still in bed. Not appreciated. Not surprisingly I didn't feel great for the match but I was sure the atmosphere would pick me up.

This bit will be boring whether you like football or not, even my sister might get bored!

And it did. What an atmosphere. We were there two hours before kick off, with the two teams junior sides playing before the real game kicked off. The place was only half full but it was still buzzing. A Boca lad scored a good goal, taunted the fans and got sent off, which made the home support even more delighted. Boca one that 1-0. About an hour before KO the ground was full and everyone was going mental. And people were still pouring in!

The steps were crammed, people were sitting on the back wall with a three tier drop behind them! Im guessing they haven't got the same levels of H+S!  I had goose bumps and a shiver went down my spine. Anyway the game kicks off (im going to bore you with this bit). While Boca had the early possession and domination River had the early chances, memorably hitting the bar with a drilled shot. After 20 minutes of soaking up pressure River gained a corner. It was cleared only for the ball to be fired back into the box and a bit of a scramble resulted with the ball in the net. The place erupted...1-0 River. I joined in as we were in the home end. The jubilation didn't last long as Boca drew level within two minutes with a great goal and a classy volleyed finish from the corner of the box. 1-1.

The place went silent, except for the 10,000 away fans, which were pretty >loud even from the other side of the stadium. The game petered out until half time, which to our surprise lasted 25 minutes and being hard pushed to catch our previously booked coach we were getting anxious.  Again there was far more singing through half time than I have ever previously witnessed in England and the second half kicked off.

Again Boca started brighter and squandered chances, much to the home fans delight and River punished them. Their second goal was class. A lovely ball through from the man of the match number 8 midfielder (Norwich should sign him), the striker took the ball on, rounded the keeper and slotted in from a tight angle passed two desperate defenders. 2-1 River. The place went even crazier. Then the third went in...a toe poke through the keepers legs, a little less glamorous but the fans didn't care. They knew this sealed the win and deliriously taunted the Boca fans not bothering to watch the rest of the game. 3-1 River. This was the final result and the fans kept cheering for an hour after the game while the Boca fans, still giving massive support to their idols where forced down the stairs and out of the ground. (I should write for The Sun, or at least The Advertiser!).

The home fans had to stay in the ground long after to avoid violence, which included us, still anxious that we'd miss our bus. We managed to catch our bus as we arrived back at the hostel 20 minutes earlier than expected, although still proceeded to almost miss it as ambled around looking to fill our hungry stomachs. But we were on the bus to Cordoba and we were happy, for the moment until we saw our leg room! Our legs could only manage 90 degrees and this wasn't good for an overnight bus where we needed sleep, and lots of it. Not happy.

We didn't really do much in Cordoba but it was the setting for our first argument...about map reading. Shaun can't do it and I can. I always got us to places quicker and more direct yet he insists on keeping hold of the map, and still does, but I just let him get on with it and bite my tongue. Far easier. Another thing about Cordoba was the women. I´d say thirty percent of the population were pretty women aged 18 - 24. Brilliant. Cordoba is not far from Che Guevara's family home in Alta Gracia, which we did a little tour of. Quite fascinating and got me thinking but don't worry im not going to start leading any revolutions. Not unless they, in anyway shape or form, involve Newbold!

From Cordoba we went further north to Salta. We didn't stay long but was a nice town...and home to the one and only Graeme Le Saux. Quite random but apparently he has a Argentinean wife and hangs out there when he's not being dull on the BBC. Salta was a connecting town a stop before the Bolivian border which we were looking forward to visiting for as everyone says how fantastic it is. Roll on Bolivia...

Ciao, Skins/Andy

(Im actually in the Amazon now and about to leave Bolivia but if I included Bolivia on this email it would be far to long!!

December 2006 I'll try to keep this brief as I have done so much since I last updated you all. I know how much you'd like the full in depth, blow-by-blow account but you'll just have to make do with this I'm afraid.

I last left you in Bolivia on my way to Peru. So Peru, what a country, or what I saw of it. We basically spent two weeks in Cusco living it up, and it was where I encountered recognisable faces of Tom and Dan from the rugby club, and their new friend Pinches, the lobster. Legend. Its a beautiful town and just the right size, although I think they class it as a city. Cusco was our base for the Inca Trail trek to Macchu Pichu. For those of you who have not heard of Macchu Pichu...look it up on the net, remember this is brief. We trekked for four days through mountains to arrive there (the other option is a 4hr train!) but is was well worth the effort. The pictures you'll see do the site an injustice. The Trek was fun. On the second day the elements were testing us as it constantly rained and we got soaked wet through and we were a bit miffed at the thought of putting fresh wet clothes on, not the next morning but that night for dinner! Nice. The site was mesmeric, with amazing 360* views. I just sat for a while looking and thinking. It was that kind of place.

After that we spent a few more days relaxing and watched a Red Bull urban downhill race, which was rubbish except for the after party, which was another mega night in Cusco. We left Cusco for more relaxation on the West coast of Peru in a town called Ica, near Arequipa. This place had more sun than you needed to burn and the hostel had a swimming pool which was bliss. Here we had a ride in a dune buggy, and tried the exfoliating sport of sand boarding. Yep, sand got everywhere and stayed in some places for longer than I had hoped. This was our last stop in Peru before crossing to Chile through to the seaside town,& Arequipa. This was nice but that was it. The beaches were ok but we heard of some nicer ones further south labelled the best beach resort in Chile. And it was. Reminded me of Rio with the long sandy beaches except better as here they had the sun! We stayed at a hostel right on the beach front and went swimming in the sea...which was cold but good waves. This area is renowned for its paragliding and is recognised as one of the best places in the world so we signed up for what we thought would be a thrilling day before leaving to Santiago. The bloke never turned up which was really annoying as Dan and Tom had already done it and raved about it. As we had already paid for our bus ticket we couldn't stay another day to do it. Shame.

The bus to Santiago was 26 hours. Yes, more than a day on a bus. Nightmare. It went surprisingly fast and we arrived in Santiago upbeat. We didn't find much to do in Santiago. We wandered around, its a nice city with a nice fish market. We watched the Champions League on TV (Man U losing to Celtic - brilliant), then, after being in the pub since four, the local team Colo Colo came on, playing in the semi-final of the Coppa Sud America, the round we thought we watched in Rio two months prior! The bar filled up with locals and we were joined by a few lads passionate about their football (as all South Americans appear to be!). Shaun wanted an early night as we were leaving for NZ the next morning, bless him. I stayed and lapped up the atmosphere and the free beer they insisted on buying me. It was great singing (used loosely) all the local chants, and by the time Cola Cola won 2-0 against Mexican opposition it was one in the morning and I was clattered. What an unexpectedly great night!

I arrived in Auckland with massive jet lag. We left Chile at 11pm and arrived in NZ at 5am...the next day. We lost a day by going backwards! I watched four films on the flight, The Devil Wears Prada is good for a chick film, trying to stay up late because I thought the later I leave it the easier the jet lag will be. Well after spending a very tired first day in NZ I went to bed at 9pm, after the cricket had finished. I was wide awake at 4am that morning and couldn't get back to sleep for love nor money. I was ready for the day ahead (and actually feeling awake!!) by five, probably for the first time in my life! Perhaps I should be jet lagged more often!

Auckland is a gorgeous city surrounded by water and more coast line than a place this size should have. No wonder it is called 'The City of Sails'. We didn't do much in Auckland and headed north to the Bay of Islands, numerous islands of the coast with beautiful beaches. We timed our one night trip well as we received the first day of good sunshine in five weeks! So we sunbathed, Beautiful. And as it was Sunday we had a campfire hippy style, including customary acoustic guitar and whaling singers. Hummm...Returning to Auckland we prepared for our three week trip around the North and South Islands with an early night.

Highlights of the North island were Kayaking in...somewhere with nice caves and hot water beaches (you dig a hole in the beach and the hot springs fill it with very hot water, like having a bath on a beach...strange but true), surfing in Raglan (where they filmed the sixties surf film 'one long summer'). As expected I was as good on a surf board as I am on a rugby pitch, lightweight and getting smashed about!! Great fun though. We also did a 'top ten in the world' one day walk called the Tongirero crossing. Everyone raved about it but I thought it was slightly better than average. Walking home from town to Brownsover at dawn on a sunny Sunday morning is better! (that one's for Melv)

But by far the best thing on the North Island had to be the parachute jump. I wasn't that nervous building up to it but when the red light turns to green, signal for you to jump from 13,500 feet you do start to wonder whether your instructor has strapped you on properly! But what a feeling freefalling was. To date it was the best thing I have done with clothes on! Free falling through the cloud when the ground suddenly appears out of the mist it is quite a feeling. Then seconds later he releases the parachute and you get yanked back up and for those five seconds the tranquillity is lost, but it soon returns as you float gently to the ground, until he says, "right, I'm just going to let you get comfortable and loosen the harness"!! "Are you sure you want to be doing that, I'm comfy as it is!" was my response as I questioned the sanity of this guy I barely know! But I was fine and the journey down was quite majestic. Back on safe ground I was buzzing with adrenaline and couldn't stop talking, which for anyone that knows me knows that isn't me! I would recommend it to everyone! Even Granddads!

The South Island is stunning! Again it has everything. Beaches, mountains (very similar to the French Alps but with more water), glaciers, very large lakes, dense forest etc etc. My main highlights of the south would be the scenery, absolutely stunning (think Lord of the Rings). We went sailing on a catamaran around the northern coast which was stunning with beautiful turquoise water and sandy beaches. Shaun wasn't sea sick which he promised he would be. Shame as I really wanted to rub it in. We also went glacier walking including ice climbing with a very funny guy called AndreI from Sweden. Trying to wangle an invitation to his homeland for more than one reason! Ice climbing is great but not too challenging until we did a slight overhang on the last of five climbs. At this point I was tired and wet and cold from the rain. I had my two ice axes in and my crampons jabbed into the wall, but not as well as I thought. The two axes slipped out, I fell back and my feet came away leaving me to swing around in my harness. The first fall of the day, not a competition I wanted to win.

From there we travelled down to Queenstown, a really touristy place with a lot of adventure activities to do, I didn't do any as I checked the amount of money I had spent the previous day and realised I had been living it up far too much. Having said that we did do a day trip to a place called Milford Sound. This is a sound coming in from the coast with volcanoes literally coming out of the water, absolutely stunning! There were a lot of waterfalls virtually running straight down as the volcano were that sheer, and as they were only temporary they were everywhere. Dolphins were also spotted which was pretty cool.

We then travelled to Christchurch on the East coast of the southern island which was a very English looking city. Hard to describe what an English looking city looks like but when you have been away for three months you can soon tell. It felt a bit like being home which was nice.

We're now in Melbourne and I have just written this while watching England embarrassingly relinquish the Ashes. Shocking, especially as we are going to watch the next test match in Melbourne with nothing to play for.

Memo to Skinners: Look up the meaning of the word brief.

(Editor's note:- if you got this far be grateful for the time spent editing this !!!! - so much for a grammar school education !!!!)