I’d been to South America a decade earlier, doing all the tourist hot spots — Iguassu Falls, Machu Picchu, Cusco, Rio, Buenos Aires, Lake Titicaca, and so on. This escorted tour in March 2020 was to fill in some of the bits I didn’t see last time, including salt lakes in Chile’s north and the spectacular glaciers and walks of southern Patagonia.

Of all the many trips I've done, this was the only one to be cut short. Coronavirus was getting out of hand. Getting out, and back home to Australia, wasn't easy ...