Brazil » Experts

Favourite place for people: Peru

During my student days, I spent time in Peru staying at the house of two lovely ladies.

Neither spoke any English, and my Spanish at the time was pretty much limited to ‘hola’ and ‘gracias’. We spent the whole two weeks communicating by a mixture of sign language and rather elaborate facial expressions.

They lived on next to nothing, but were incredibly generous.

I have never felt more welcome anywhere in my life.

Favourite place for food and wine: Costa Rica

Costa Rica is where I learned to love fish. The incredibly fresh array of produce on the coast meant I ended up eating it almost everyday – this from someone who had previously struggled to keep down a fish finger.

Favourite place for landscape: Nicaragua, Argentina, Brazil or Ecuador

Nicaragua’s landscape rather took me by surprise, as I hadn’t realised quite how dramatic it was. The view from the top of Cerro Negro volcano, across the dark mass of the old lava path and out onto the forested valley beyond, will stay with me for a long time.

For sheer drama, nothing beats the Iguaçu Falls.

I love the drama and contrasts of Ecuador and the Galapagos Islands.

Most recent trip: Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama

I spent a whistle-stop few weeks visiting all three countries. Combining all three at once really highlighted how different they are from each other, despite being neighbours.

Revisiting Costa Rica is always a treat but Nicaragua was a revelation to me, I loved it!

Where to next? Brazil or Chile

I’ve only just dipped a toe into Brazil, so I’d love to spend some more time there, ideally exploring Salvador and Bahia region.

A ski trip to Chile wouldn’t be too shabby either…

Top travel tip: Keep an open mind and pack well

Approach every new place with an open-mind. And pack a spare change of clothes in your hand luggage.

Interesting fact: Katie’s appeared in a music video

As if the handwriting and darts/dominoes prizes were not enough! Katie’s fifteen minutes, or rather seconds, of fame involved dancing in the background of a ‘party scene’, made more interesting as everyone had to be filmed without music to get the sound levels for the singers right.

Luckily the camera was quite far away.

Career path

University of Sheffield, English Literature. Straight to working for a specialist tour operator fending off foxes in their North London garden office. A short stint at a posh office in Regent Street selling even posher holidays. Pura Aventura.

First holiday abroad: Corfu

I had my fourth birthday there. My abiding memory of the trip is getting a very jazzy stuffed toy (I think it was a clown), which I promptly fell asleep on, only for its brightly coloured face to be indelibly printed on my neck for the rest of the holiday.

Needless to say it put me off tattoos for life.

Most visited place? Spain

Up until last year I’m ashamed to admit that my visits to Spain had been limited to the southern costas with friends or family, with the exception of a brief foray to Barcelona.

However, I spent a week walking in the Picos in October and was blown away by it – I never knew such dramatic and beautiful scenery existed in Spain.

I felt incredibly welcome at the small, locally run hotels where we stayed. The food throughout was some of the best I’ve eaten – and not a full English breakfast in sight.

Where would you like to live? Argentina

Buenos Aires is one of my favourite cities. Being able to take a short flight to ride across stunning landscapes, or ski down Patagonian mountains, really appeals.

Most overrated place: Gambia

Trying to escape the gloom of February in London, the promised sunshine of the Gambia seemed like an enticing option.

It was certainly sunny, but that’s where the plus points ended. I’m afraid to say that, for me, it embodied all the bad sides of tourism. Foreigners are herded into fenced off hotels, with the result that as soon as you set foot outside the ‘compound’ you are pounced upon – not literally of course, but even walking along the beach is impossible without being approached every twenty yards by someone trying to sell something.

I never felt threatened, but it meant it was impossible to just wander and explore – which for me is the joy of being in a new place.