I used my time off here in Villa Union to rest my legs, and also to book a flight back to England.

I also had to come to a hard decision…. That decision being that I will not make it to Ushuai, the southernmost part of Argentina. It was a hard one to make, but I do have my reasons, not all of them I can go into here and now, but which I will expand on in the future.

The main one though, is the money situation. In all fairness, considering I ran out of money in January 2010, I haven’t done too badly! However, there is only so much more that I can beg or borrow for this trip! In addition, although I can earn money through the freelance writing gigs, I need to remain in one place whilst doing it. This would mean that I would almost definitely miss this years narrow window when the weather is most suitable to get to Ushuai. Obviously, it goes without saying that I am a little bit irritated!

However, that said, I have come to enjoy the lifestyle more and more, and the goal of a “final destination” has really become less important. Basically, if I had the cash, I would just continue cycling year after year! As it is, I will be at nineteen months on the road when I return home… Not bad for someone who has never really earned more than minimum wage during those times that I have actually been working!

So, I return to England during the third week of Feb. From here, I will cycle the three or four remaining days to Mendoza, have a McDonalds in celebration, and then look at buses to Buenos Aires.