After 11 months away, there are a few things that we feel we’ve learnt…

• The Laos option – just because it’s on the menu doesn’t mean they ever sell it.
• You can wear pyjamas in the street
• Never expect you can buy it later, it won’t be there.
• Taking photos on an iPad looks very very stupid.
• Fountains are normally off. Unless you’re in Lima.
• 6000m really is quite high.
• Carnival is utterly crazy.
• Ché was a geek before he was a revolutionary.
• You can take a toboggan down from the great wall.
• Geocaching in Tibet is hard, and a bit risky!
• The west has a lot to learn from the bed, food & wifi buses of South America.
• Rum the night before a long journey is a bad idea.
• Get the waterproof sun lotion. No skimping.
• Wear your shoulder bag with the strap across your body. Ask Laura – the security is definitely worth it.
• When crossing the road, keep moving at all times. The traffic will go round you.
• EU customs won’t let you bring rum back from Cuba in Duty Free. Hope they enjoyed it!
• Belly-out is best in a hot climate, if you’re not white.
• To ride a motorbike (well, Laura did).
• Four hours is long enough on a pedalo.
• Even if the road ahead looks impossible… the bus would have done it!

…but still plenty of things that still leave us confused

• Where do all the marigolds in India come from?
• Why do they have a police festival in Bogota, with only police attending?
• What’s the difference between por and para in Spanish? (Sorry Javier!)
• Can a good spicy curry ever be bettered?
• Why is the bread in Bolivia always stale?
• Why isn’t it all a lot more messy when babies are bare-bottomed?
• How does Cuba actually work?
• How do people manage to vomit silently on the buses?
• Why doesn’t the asian sound of someone hocking and spitting disgust everyone?
• Why do you only say ‘buenos dias’ in the morning?
• Are mountaineers actually insane?
• Will we ever want to stop travelling? It certainly doesn’t feel like that right now.