Northern Colombia

I spent a few great days on the Carribean coast. Its absolutely roasters up there but really humid and there was thunderstorms every day with the most incredible thunder and lightning Ive ever seen. My surgeon told me to stay away from the sun, sand, salt water and rain so heading up there probably wasn´t the brightest idea but I was so bored of Bogota and all mates were up there. It worked out really well. I got to visit two lovely towns, Santa Marta and Taganga and then I spent a few days in Tyrona National Park which was an amazing experience. You have to trek through the National Park´s forests and jungles and beaches to get to two isolated beaches that are not accessible by any road. There is a little community living there and gringos can stay overnight in hammocks. There is nothing to do there during the day except sunbath, snorkel or explore the surrounding area but its like paradise. The beaches were the most beautiful Ive ever seen and getting there is like something out of the movie `The Beach´. Definitely one of the most special things Ive done in South America.

I had to wear the cast the whole time and my face was still fairly bruised and swollen which was a good talking piece. Its lucky Im not shy about the surgery. I had to hightail it back to Bogota to get the cast off a few days ago which was a shock. My nose looks completely different. Its hard to get used to staring back at a different reflection. The swelling takes three months to go down so I still look a little strange and its hard to tell the final result but overall Im pleased and I think I made the right decision. Time will tell. The final final result wont be seen for a whole year though!

The poor girls Im travelling with have been sick in bed for a few days. Luckily a wicked Ozzie bloke Ive met a few times along the way arrived at the hostel so weve been hanging out together for our last few days in South America. He also flys home on Monday. At the moment Im in a colonial town with him 4 hours outside Bogota called Villa de Leyba. In Ireland I probably woudn´t travel 4 hours for 1 night away but travelling here has completely changed my perspective on time and distance.