Here we are – the dreaded day has come where we pack our bags for the last time, throw away our final pieces of over-worn summer clothes and put an end to our love-hate relationships with our rucksacks. As we sit here crying into our rooftop pool in Rio, soaking in the last bit of sunshine, it has suddenly hit us that we have only a matter of hours before our world trip comes to an end. Returning to our 9-5 working lives is inevitable (no, we never did come up with a business plan)… Why does time go so quickly when you’re having fun!?

It only seems like yesterday that we were leaving the Hawaiian sands after entering the final stretch of our trip and hours later we were sat in a bar drinking vodka shots and cocktails in the cold and rainy Seattle. This was the result of a very spontaneous decision that we’d made in NZ after listening to Beyonce’s new album on repeat for 3 weeks in the camper van and impulsively booking tickets to see her live at the Centurylink Stadium. The first part of the night was spent in a bar singing Beyonce’s greatest hits at the top of our voices with the locals and the second part was spent dancing, screaming and singing (if you could call it that) as loud as we could in the stadium. We’re pretty sure that everyone near us wanted to knock us out. We also spent a lot of the evening loitering around the alcohol stands like 16 year olds, hiding from staff and asking people to buy our drinks as they wouldn’t accept our ID. We had the best night but after scoffing hot dogs and popcorn to sober ourselves up at 2am, it wasn’t long before the alarm went off and 6am had hit us in the face. Even now we don’t know how we made our morning flight back to LA, hungover is an understatement. As we dragged our sorry arses out of bed we crawled through customs and sat in Seattle airport feeling like we were dying a slow and painful death. On a positive note though, it was probably the first time that we didn’t care about the plane crashing.

Once we had recovered, we were soon walking the famous streets of Hollywood, visiting all the well known sites before being let loose in Universal Studios. Despite a fun few days in LA I think the most exhilarating moment would have to have been the Uber ride to the airport. At 3am we had found ourselves sat in the back of a blacked out 4X4, racing around the city with Snoop Dog blasting, when suddenly the tinted windows rolled down to, “Yo yo, I’ve just been started on by a group of hoes, shall I fight ’em or walk away?” Unfortunately, before we could advise the poor boy to walk, the driver had sped off and the music was cranked up another notch. Five Snoop Dog songs later and luckily we had made it to the airport in one piece where we spent the next two hours stood in queues waiting to board the plane. Then, suddenly in the midst of our prayers begging God not to be sat next to the nearby screaming toddler, we heard a tannoy announcement for a “Michelle Collins” to come forward. Twenty minutes and 10 announcements later, just as we were about to hunt down this Michelle Collins ourselves and drag her to the customer service desk, it suddenly dawned on us that it was actually my name they were calling. Oh crap. So as we made our way past the tuts and sighs from other passengers we reached the desk only to be told that we had been upgraded to first class… WHAAAAAT!? For most people this wouldn’t be such a big deal, but for Jen and I you’d have thought we’d just won the lottery. 15 minutes later and we were sat alongside the wealthy businessmen, lying in our reclining leather seats, looking like tramps.

Air steward: “Can I get you a cocktail, madam?”

Jen: “Erm, no it’s ok thank you.”

Jen: “A cocktail?! How much are they?”

Rach: “I dunno. Maybe it’s free?”

Jen: “Really? Nah, it can’t be.”

Rach: “Well I can’t see anyone else paying?”

*Air steward hands out a three course lunch menu.*

Rach: “Jen, there’s no prices on here.”

Jen: “This is so weird. It must be free then? But surely it can’t be?”

Rach: “Oh God. We don’t belong here.”

Air steward: “Ok girls what can I get for you?”

*silence*

Jen: *in the quietest voice possible* “Erm sorry, is the food free?”

Air steward: *in the loudest voice possible* “YES OF COURSE ITS FREE!!”

Jen and Rach: *red faced* “Oh ok. Well in that case we’ll have this this this and this!”

So it’s safe to say that we ended up taking full advantage of the first class perks – thanks American Airlines! Sadly though, our taste of the high life didn’t last long and we were soon back down to earth with a bang after landing in Mexico, collecting our worn out rucksacks and being hit with the unbearable 40 degree heat again.

A few hours later however we were reunited with Li who was brave (or stupid?) enough to risk a second trip out with us! The three of us spent our days in Mexico travelling through the Yucatan Peninsular, exploring the rare mix of beaches and ancient Maya ruins in Tulum, snorkelling in the underwater world of Dos Ojos Cenotes and eating a whole load of Mexican treats in Playa Del Carmen. We also had the best time swimming with wild turtles in Akumal Bay before heading to our next destination – Central America!

After another short flight we had landed in the heart of Guatemala. I think it’s safe to say that none of us knew what to expect when we arrived here, but without doubt this has to be one of the most beautiful countries in the world. We began our trip in the stunning colonial city of Antigua, a place where every little road looks the same and you’re destined to get lost several times a day. We explored the historic buildings, wandered the local markets along the cobblestoned streets and watched the local life go by in Central Park.

After a great few days in this charming city we made our way to Lake Atitlan, a beautiful volcanic lake in the western highlands of Guatemala. We ended up staying in Lomas de Tsusuna – an amazing place with incredible views of the lake. Unfortunately we hadn’t anticipated the 350 steps it took to reach our room up a steep cliff (which nearly killed us every day) but it was definitely worth it!

Our first planned activity here was horse riding in San Pedro. This started off as a bit of fun, making our way to the top of the mountain on horseback. However, I soon realised that I was sat on a very unpredictable horse when it decided to turn around and take me back down the mountain leaving everyone else. Just when the tour guide saved the day and pulled it back to the top it then decided to rear, leaving me with visions of myself being thrown off the side of the cliff or being dragged to the bottom as my horse bolted home. Of course before any of these scenarios could come to life I’d already shit myself, jumped off and spent the rest of the tour power walking and jogging behind everyone else.

Just when we thought the trauma was over, Li decided to sign us all up to do the Zip Lines for another adrenaline fix. We begrudgingly agreed to it, only because we were told that you could see the most amazing views over the lake and several volcanoes. We’d love to say how incredible these views were but unfortunately while Li sailed across the lines like superwoman, after one quick glance down at the 4000ft drop below jen and I spent the entire time with our eyes glued shut, screaming for our lives.

Our final stop in Guatemala was in Tikal National Park which is one of the largest Mayan complexes in the world, built as far back as 1000BC. We arrived here after an 18 hour overnight bus journey to find that Genius Jen had struck again… Despite there being several hostels in a nearby town, she’d decided to book us a place in the middle of the jungle, in an insect ridden cabin with no water, electricity or air-con. Woohoo! So, before any of us had a nervous breakdown we quickly set off on our tour around the ruins. As well as visiting the temples and ancient pyramids we also did a two-three hour trek through the jungle where we saw a range of wildlife including howler monkeys, coati and toucans before finishing the day with a climb to the top of the highest temple. The views at the top were unreal as we sat and watched the sunset over the surrounding jungle while listening to the Jaguars in the distance!

After sunset we headed to the nearby town for some dinner; however, we were soon faced with an unexpected problem on our way back to our insect infested room when we were dropped off in a taxi in front of a set of bolted steel gates. It was 11pm, we were stood in the pitch black, locked out of our hotel, in the middle of the jungle and in the middle of a storm. This was definitely one of the most terrifying moments of the trip. We spent the next 30 minutes screaming for help, banging on the gates and making as much noise as possible, but to no avail. Suddenly our insect infested room seemed so much more appealing as the three of us stood drenched, trying to come to terms with the fact that we might actually have to spend the night cowering amongst the lurking wildlife, imagining that even if we could escape being eaten by the jaguar, we would definitely be struck by lightening. Just as we began to lose all hope, Jen suddenly let out an almighty scream, shook the gate in desperation and suddenly… IT OPENED. Genius Jen really was a genius!! Praise the Lord, we were in!! The next challenge was finding our cabin as we used the worlds smallest torch to trek through the remaining jungle, sliding down through the mud before finally seeking refuge with the spiders and ants.

Luckily we only had one night here and we were up at the crack of dawn the following morning ready to head to the tropical Caye Caulker island in Belize for some relaxation! This little drop of paradise in the middle of the Caribbean Sea is beautiful. It has the perfect pace of life with its care-free and laid-back Caribbean vibe. The people are so friendly, the food is delicious and the weather is perfect. The only modes of transport on land are bicycles or golf buggies so we spent our days cycling around the sandy tracks and swimming in the crystal clear waters. We also had one of the best snorkelling trips at the second largest barrier reef in the world where we swam alongside manatees, nurse sharks, stingrays, sea turtles, and tons of tropical fish which rounded off our stay here nicely. Not long after our trip to Belize it was time to say our goodbyes to Li again for the last time as Jen and I headed to South America. Well done Li – you survived another three weeks with us! 😆

Hours later we had arrived in Bogota, the capital of Colombia. Bogota is home to a variety of museums, churches, beautiful cobbled squares and impressive street art. We had a great time exploring the city before catching a short internal flight up north to the amazingly colourful Cartagena!

One of the main attractions in Cartagena is the historic Old Town which is surrounded by walls, separating it from the rest of the city. Inside these walls are unique narrow roads filled with the most stunning colonial architecture and washed in the brightest colours imaginable. Local fruit sellers, street acts and market stalls fill every corner and the whole place is so vibrant and captivating. After a few days in the Old Town we decided to spend some time at Playa Blanca (white beach) in Isla Baru. It felt like the perfect time to get our beach fix after a week or so in the city and we weren’t disappointed when we arrived to find its white sands and calm turquoise waters. We also realised that this was probably going to be one of our final beach destinations so we were determined to make the most of it and catch some rays before heading back to the city. Unfortunately however, we quickly noticed that we hadn’t brought any sunscreen. Shit. So seeing as we were in the middle of nowhere in the 40 degree heat, our three days on the beach were spent fully clothed, chasing the shade.

On day two we attempted to book a trip to Isla Del Rosario – a small tropical island just a short boat ride away. We say ‘attempted’ because no one anywhere spoke any English and obviously we can’t speak a word of Spanish, so when asking for two bottles of water is an issue, who knows where you’ll end up trying to book a tour in the form of Charades. Needless to say, we didn’t end up on Isla Del Rosario. Instead, we had joined a Spanish snorkelling group and for the next 2 hours we were swimming in what felt like the roughest part of the Caribbean sea with two broken snorkels. We saw about three fish, we didn’t understand a word anyone was saying and the only thing we got from the trip was bad sunburn. We have never been so grateful to be back on land as we scurried back to our little Eco-friendly hotel that afternoon.

One thing about Playa Blanca is if you do visit on this little stretch of heaven, be prepared to stay in very basic accommodation. Imagine a shed on a beach – that was our room. Then imagine a sauna – that was exactly how it felt inside our room. Then imagine a bowl – that was basically our toilet, located down some wooden stairs next to the sea, with no flush. This was our accommodation for three nights, which actually, despite having no shower, no air-con and no fan while sweating profusely for 72 hours, would have been just about bearable if I hadn’t have eaten some dodgy fish on the final night and ended up with food poisoning for the last 12 hours. Worst. Night. Ever. Not to mention that there was a local football match on and because the owner of our hotel was the only guy on the beach with a TV, we had the whole neighbourhood watching the game while I puked my guts up next to them all in a beach shack. Jen also spent the first half of the night thinking we were stranded on a tiny island and had visions of herself trying to arrange an emergency rowing boat to take us to the nearest medical centre on the mainland, before realising that we had arrived at the beach in a mini van and were in fact connected to one of the biggest cities in Colombia by bridge. So once she’d got over that slight panic her next priority was trying to dodge the men downstairs as she ran up and down the beach emptying a sick bucket for the next 7 hours. It’s safe to say I left my dignity on that beach. 12 hours later and we had never felt more relieved as we stepped foot in Cartagena city for some fluids, sunscreen and sleep!

Our final days have been spent in the one and only Rio de Janeiro. Although we can’t really say we’ve done much exploring here, we did make it to the top of Corcovado Mountain to see Christ the Redeemer which was absolutely fascinating. However apart from that, for the first time we really have just been lying by our pool, lazing along the beaches and coming to terms with the fact that we are going to be back at work in a matter of weeks. It’s been the perfect end to an incredible 6 months.

And so the day has come – we wish we didn’t have to leave as we haul our rucksacks for the last time to Rio de Janeiro International Airport, say goodbye to our freedom and wipe away our tears. 30 flights, 32 Buses, 44 ferries and 46,434 miles later we have officially made our way around the world in 180 days and it has been the best 6 months of our lives. It’s time to say farewell to our scraggly hair, our bare freckly faces and our new-found hippie style. We watch our ‘travel trends’ fade away as we take off our 15 handmade bracelets, leave our dusty flip flops behind and return to squeezing our legs into skinny jeans and wearing colour coordinated clothes. We’re going to miss this life. The simplicity, the spontaneity and the adventure of waking up somewhere new everyday and not having a clue what to expect. We won’t forget a single moment of this amazing journey and who knows, maybe one day we will get to do it all again, but for now it’s time to board our final flight home as reality drags us back down to earth! ❤️

Jen and Rach xxx

UPDATE:

Ok so it’s a true saying – be careful what you wish for. Moments after posting this blog we climbed into our taxi only to be greeted by the slowest taxi man on earth and a shit load of traffic. Seriously, this is literally the only time in the last six months where we have entered a cab and not feared for our lives. A slow and frustrating 3 hours later we arrived at the airport with 20 minutes to spare. We grabbed our bags, sprinted to the check-in desk with our 20kg rucksacks on our backs, only to be told that we were 10 minutes too late. Ladies and gentlemen, we have officially missed our flight home.

As if things weren’t bad enough, we’ve now had to shell out just under a grand each on a 35 hour journey back to the UK which includes a lovely exotic 15 hour stop-off in Morocco. Well, at least we can add another continent to our world trip which has now become 182 days long.

So, instead of boarding our flight and waving goodbye to sunny Brazil, we’ve been sat on the airport floor for the last half an hour, using the free wifi to book another hostel before getting yet another taxi back into the city. I think the reality of the situation hit us when the taxi man welcomed us to the country, said he’d hoped we’d had a pleasant journey here and asked if it was the first time we had been to Brazil.

As we rest our heads for one final night (we hope) in Brazil, at 6am tomorrow morning we will embark on the longest journey of the entire trip. Jen’s decided to book herself a first class train journey home from London on Sunday night but has unfortunately thrown away all of her clean knickers, leaving her having to sit in the same pair for the next three days and I’ve thrown away my toothbrush. God damn. We’re undoubtedly going to be stopped by the UK Border Force on Sunday evening…