Chile

Time spent: About 16 days roughly (In 2 spells, not counting the 3 hours or so on the Ushuaia-Rio Galleagos journey)

On budget/time: Spent a lot, but went on some really great tours, can hopefully make up for it in the Andean countries.

Lost/stolen: Lost my glasses in the hot springs near Pucon, D'oh!

Sound of Chile: They seemed to know their British Indie in various places, but it may always be remembered for Any Winehouse, Shakira and Sophie Ellis Bextor who all had their moments.

Taste of Chile: Lomo a la Pobre gets a mention; Poor mans steak, it comes with fried eggs and onions and chips. It's a no brainer.

Highlights of Chile: The Navimag and Torres del Paine definitely win. Santiago was a decent city, Valpairiso a bit of a let down.

Drink of Chile: Where to start, where to end? Cristal and Esciudo beers come in 1 litre bottles. Ron Silver, Long Island Ice teas, Pisco sour, and Frutilla Colada all get a mention. I didn't lower myself to try the local speciality in Punta Arenas - Fanta Schopp, which is a Fanta shandy. How wrong.

I liked Chile, it was pretty easy to travel and meet people, though some of the cities and towns were a bit scabby and uninviting. I had a great time on the bus tour down throught the lakes, though the weather was dire so we didn't get to do as many activities as we'd like (except drinking). When the Navimag was delayed two days by weather I was considering cancelling and missing out Patagonia. I'm so glad I didn't as the Navimag was great, as was Torres del Paine, and the weather, though not perfect, was pretty good.