(Cecilia Markley) After nearly a month in Peru, I have learned that it has everything. Marijn and I have been to cities, mountains, deserts, beaches, and we will even be going to the Amazon rainforest. When thinking of Peru, you might just picture Lima and Cusco, but the country also has the city of Huaraz, located in the department of Ancash, north of Lima. In this lesser-known region lies the tallest part of the Andes Mountains in Peru, the Cordillera Blanca, or white range

(Cecilia Markley) Standing at 1,935 feet (590 meters) tall, falling down a mountain in seven ‘steps,’ La Chorrera waterfall outside of Bogotá is a sight to behold. As the tallest waterfall in Colombia, Marijn and I knew we had to see it before leaving the country. Bogotá was our last stop before flying into Lima, Peru, and seeing such a massive natural wonder in person would be a great way to say goodbye to the country where we had spent six weeks. Getting to La Chorrera The

(Cecilia Markley) Marijn and I made a thorough itinerary before beginning our backpacking journey through South America. We agreed we didn’t have to stick to it exactly, but we wanted to know where we were going, what we would do and how much time we would spend in each place, how much to budget, and how to get from each location to the next. Salento was not on the itinerary at all for Colombia. Why not, you might be asking. Well, this was Marijn’s second time in the countr

( Cecilia Markley ) The vast Chicamocha canyon, the quaint nearby town of Barichara, rappelling down waterfalls, bungee jumping, paragliding, I could go on and on. San Gil, in northeastern Colombia, has so much to do that we had to spend two weeks here to enjoy as much as possible. San Gil, Colombia After spending a week on the Caribbean Coast, starting in Cartagena and then heading over to Santa Marta, it was time to head to San Gil in northeastern Colombia. This would be my