She says they are going to have a party tonight.

“The win of $250,000!” she says.

She replies, “On a scratch-it ticket.”

I pour a drink.

I can see they are both very excited.

The party continues until late.

I go with her to the bedroom. She has the ticket hidden in a pillow.

I don’t see three symbols the same.

She replies, “Yes, look here!”

I explain that she needs three symbols the same.

Her face turns white. She looks shocked.

Slowly she says, “I think I need another drink.”

“Is this for you?” the man asks.

“No, it isn’t for me,” I answer, “it’s for my baby.”

I leave the store. I walk towards my house. It is very hot. The sun is very strong.

Behind me walks a black dog.

“Shoo!” I shout at the dog. The dog still follows me.

I stop.

“Shoo!” I yell at the dogs. They don’t listen.

“Ma’am, you smell bad,” says the waiter.

“I’m sorry,” I reply.

“Please leave,” says the waiter.

Outside, the dogs and the seagulls are waiting.

“I can’t go out!”

He smells the gift. He comes towards me.

“Meow, meow,” he says.

I was definitely going to be sick, but it was impossible, the balaclava would get in the way.

His black-clad shape was nervously hopping from foot to foot as we stood in the alleyway, waiting for the phone call.

“GO!”

Still a hundred metres to go.

“Get in the car!  GET IN THE CAR!”

“Hello?”

Our prank was funny no more.

Vanessa is more of a night owl than a morning person.

There exists a place in the world that is so magical, it is sometimes called “The border between Heaven and Earth”.

A small town in Bolivia by the name of Uyuni is famous for having the world’s largest salt flat.

During the rainy season, when there is a couple of inches of water covering the salt flat, it turns into a mirror. The sight really is something to behold.

With the layer of water acting as a mirror, reflecting the white clouds against the blue backdrop of the sky, it looks at though there is no divide between the ground and the sky.

Hence, this gives it the name ‘The border between Heaven and Earth’.

The wet season in Bolivia is from December to March, although this can vary from year to year.

Some years the wet season comes late, so, to guarantee you will see the reflection, the best time to go is in February.

Although many people go to Uyuni just to see the salt flats, there is so much more to see and experience.

The most popular option is to take a three day tour from Uyuni to San Pedro de Atacama in Chile. The scenery along the way is breathtaking.

Day one starts three kilometres outside of Uyuni with a visit to the train cemetery. Many old steam trains are parked here that you are able to climb over.

The tour then heads to the salt flats where magical photo opportunities await.

Day two of the tour visits various lakes, each different and spectacular in its own way. If conditions are right, at “Laguna Verde” you can see the green mineral waters.

There is also the very picturesque “Laguna Colorada”, an amazing red lake full of flamingos.

The tour reaches a height of 5000 metres, so be sure to take warm clothing. It is near this height you will visit the “Sol de Mañana” geysers.

Here you will see the bubbling mud pools and steam jets.

A fun activity can be jumping over these steam jets and watch as anything loose gets blown off, namely hats!

Be careful where you step though as the bubbling mud pools are scattered everywhere.

Some tours spend the night at a hot spring pool located at an altitude of 4400 metres.

This is a fantastic opportunity to enjoy the night sky full of stars while soaking up the goodness of the vitamin rich warm water.

Day three takes in more amazing scenery before stopping at the Bolivian immigration post.

From here there is a bus transfer to the Chilean immigration office located in San Pedro de Atacama.

The three day tour normally only costs around $200 yet provides many amazing experiences.

Without a doubt, it should be on the “to do” list of anyone travelling South America.

A woodman was cutting down a tree in the forest. It was late in the day and the woodman was tired.

He was not concentrating and his axe slipped out of his hands and into a nearby pond. The pond was deep and it was impossible for the woodman to retrieve the axe.

He was poor and the axe was all he had to earn a living. He didn’t have enough money to buy a new axe.

Now he would have no money to feed his family. The woodman was very sad and he began to cry.

The god Mercury suddenly appeared and asked what the trouble was.

The woodman told what had happened, and straightaway, Mercury dived into the pool. When he came up again, he held a wonderful golden axe.

“Is this your axe?” Mercury asked the woodman.

“Is this your axe?” Mercury asked the woodman.

“No,” answered the honest woodman, “that is not my axe.”

Mercury put the golden axe on the bank and dived back into the pool. This time he brought up an axe of silver.

Again, the woodman said it wasn’t his. He explained that his axe was just an ordinary one with a wooden handle.

Mercury swam down for the third time. When he came up again he had the correct axe. The woodman was very glad to have his axe again and thanked Mercury.

Mercury was very pleased with the woodman’s honesty.

“I admire your honesty,” he said, “and, as a reward you may have all three axes. The gold and the silver as well as your own.”

The happy woodman returned to his home with his treasures. Soon, everybody in the village knew of the story of his good fortune.

There were several other woodmen in the village. They greedy and believed that they could easily win the same good fortune.

They hurried out into the woods and hid their axes in the bushes. They pretended they had lost them and then cried and called on Mercury to help them.

Mercury soon appeared. To each one he showed an axe of gold, and each one said it was the one he had lost.

To their surprise, Mercury did not give them the golden axe. Instead, he hit them on the head with it and sent them home.

– Honesty is the best policy.

One day, a lion was going for a walk through the jungle when he started to feel tired.

It was a hot day so he thought he would escape the heat and take a rest under a large tree.

As he slept with his great head resting on his paws, a timid little mouse came upon him unexpectedly.

She tried to be careful and to not make a noise.

In her fright and rush to get away, her tail accidentally tickled the lion’s nose.

Woken from his nap, the lion laid his huge paw on the tiny creature to kill her.

“Spare me!” begged the poor mouse. “Please, let me go and someday I will surely repay you.”

“How could you ever help me?” asked the lion in a very deep and powerful voice. “I am the king of the jungle.”

“Yes, I know you are the king,” replied the mouse in a shaky voice, “but I always keep my word, and if you spare me, I shall repay you one day. Plus, I am so small I am not even a snack for you.”

The lion thought it was funny that a mouse could ever help him. Finally, he was generous and let the mouse go.

Some days later, while stalking his prey in the jungle, the lion got caught in a hunter’s net. Unable to free himself, he filled the jungle with his angry roaring.

The mouse knew the voice and quickly found the lion struggling in the net.

She ran to one of the big ropes and chewed on it. Before long, the rope broke and the lion was free.

“You laughed when I said I would repay you,” said the mouse. “Now you see that even a mouse can help a lion.”

– A kindness is never wasted.

He walks from his house to downtown.

He feels hungry. He goes to a Chinese restaurant. He asks for a table for one. The waiter gives him a menu. He orders the lunch special.

He drinks his water while he waits. The food arrives and it is very hot. He waits while the food cools. There are fortune cookies on the table.

He opens a cookie. He reads the message: “Your life is in danger. You must leave the city immediately and never return.”

He feels worried. Is it a message for him? He looks around the restaurant. Nobody is there. He looks outside and sees a car. There are two men in the car. The two men look at him. He feels nervous.

He walks down the street away from the car. The car follows.

Now he is more nervous. He unlocks the door. He quickly goes inside…

He freezes. People yell and clap. He is in shock. What is this?

He laughs and says he needs a beer. He also says he needs time. Time to think of a surprise for his wife.

Patagonia is a popular hiking destination in South America. It is in the southern region of Chile and Argentina.

————————

The bus was on it’s way to El Chalten. Suddenly, the passengers stopped talking and quickly got out their cameras.

The view was breathtaking. From the front of the bus, in the distance, they could see the impressive Mount Fitz Roy.

The bus driver smiled as he watched everyone taking photos. He was a kind man. He parked the bus on the side of the highway.

Everyone got off the bus eagerly and took photos of the scenic view.

The passengers were very happy and thanked the driver. After ten minutes, everyone got on the bus and they continued towards El Chalten.

A short while later, the bus arrived in the small town. Everyone was even more amazed by the beautiful scenery that surrounded the town. It was truly breathtaking.

The bus started stopping at passenger’s hotels. One American tourist was unsure if his hostel was on the list.

He approached the driver. He asked if he knew where the Rancho Grande hostel was.

The driver didn’t speak any English, so the American asked, “¿Dónde esta el hostel Rancho Grande?”

The driver replied in Spanish, “which hostel?”

To which the American replied, “Yes.”

“Do you know the name of the hostel?”

“Yes.”

“What is it?” asked the driver.

“Yes,” replied the tourist.

“… Can you tell me the name of it again, please?”

“Yes.”

“Well, what is it?”

“Yes.”

“Do you know my wife?”

“Yes.”

[…]

It was at this point the driver understood the American tourist could speak a few words, but understood no Spanish.