Carnival

Starting in Ushuaia, at the southern tip of the South American continent, this adventure goes through the windswept plains of Patagonia and past settlements whose immigrants from Wales brought their language and customs with them. The Patagonian plains give way to pampas before reaching the major urban centre of Buenos Aires for some culture and relaxation.

A journey of 1,200 kilometres northwards reaches the magnificent thundering Iguazú Falls on the border of Argentina and Brazil and then crosses into Brazil. There is a lot to explore in the Pantanal area of wetlands to see piranhas and capybaras, a giant member of the rat family, before heading to Rio de Janeiro for the extravaganza and colour of the carnival, the biggest party on earth where everyone is invited. Have you ever wondered what it is like to be in a city where everybody is partying for a week? But Brazil is a big country and what else is there to see? And that is before traversing the three Guyanas and a space port to reach the Caribbean coast of South America.

Norman Handy was born in 1957 in Beckenham, Kent, in the south-east of England. He went to school in Beckenham and later went to boarding school in Cranbrook, Kent. He studied Business Economics, Accountancy and Law for accountants at Southampton University.

During the time that he studied, he also travelled and after finishing university, travelled and worked abroad. He returned to the United Kingdom and after some time working in a riding school, followed a career for thirty years in the financial services sector in London, including periods working overseas.

He has two children and is a keen horse rider, walker, skier and of course, writer. He spends his time between his home in West Sussex and travelling.