#SouthAmerica 20th May 2015

First update. Arrived Lima via Madrid. Flew with Iberia. Functional - no frills - food modest - a shame on long haul. However the flights were trouble free and I had window seats throughout. The flight from Madrid was 11 and half hours. I got all my paperwork in order, slept a lot, listened to some really  enjoyable music described as relaxing - a real find. Some of the artists names Jens Bushert and Aphex Twin. Also ploughing through Al Gore 's The Future - heavy going at times but a must read I am sure. He says it is an optimistic book!

I had (to use a modern term) a bit of a wow moment gazing out of the window about 2 hours from landing. Leading up to this trip I will admit to feeling a bit anxious - pondering on why I was doing it. South America can be a full on place, I have no Spanish apart from a dictionary and I am travelling alone. I was looking down on these individual brilliant white, meringue like clouds with massive flat bases thinking I will shortly be in Lima Peru, tomorrow  the Amazon basin and yes I thought wow. I thought how lucky I am to be able to do it and patted myself on the back for making it happen -actually quite an emotional moment. So that was the wow. I will carry it with me now!

Tomorrow morning early I take an internal flight to Puerto Maldonado to stay in a lodge and sleep in a hammock. It is in the Amazon basin and they promise something special over the next few days including 2 1/2 metre fish, piranhas, as well as monkey's, parrots etc. There is  long trek and several canoe trips including in the dark so a lot to look forward to.

I attach a couple of photographs - I have been on a plane all day so what did you expect! We were chasing the sun all day so plenty of day light.

A fine clear day approaching Madrid

Turbulence 1 hour out of Lima

Low over Lima early evening. Pilot skirted the Pacific  Coast  and the Andes in the background.