iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

ben finch @benfinch.bsky.social · 24/08/2026

two years ago this amazing woman and i got together, and it’s been the best two years of my life. here’s to many more adventures

a selfie of gabi and i in cajas national park. we’re both in heavy navy jackets. hardy grass is growing behind us

a selfie of gabi and i in asuncion, paraguay. she’s in a white top, carrying a bunch of flowers and i’m in a y shirt, carrying her black bag. there’s a food festival behind us

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ben finch @benfinch.bsky.social · 18/07/2026

another year around the sun, and an incredible day out with my love exploring

a selfie of gabi and i with bamboo shoots behind us. gabi is in a white top, teal trousers and a cap, i’m in a black t-shirt

drawings of brazilian flora and fauna cover walls in a museum in são paulo. a set of steps moves down through them

light shines through a white lattice artwork that stands on a mirror

people walk in and out of a covered alley with a sign that reads: liberdade side street. it’s full of japanese street food

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ben finch @benfinch.bsky.social · 26/04/2026

got to see nairo win a race in the end

nairo quintana rides his bike at the end of a race

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ben finch @benfinch.bsky.social · 26/04/2026

close enough to the monitor to know there’s a break, too far to see what’s actually happening

two men look at computer screens with a bike race on

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ben finch @benfinch.bsky.social · 26/04/2026

eeeep! it’s been two years since my last race

the finish line of the vuelta a asturias in oviedo. there’s some old buildings behind and a crowd of people milling around in front

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ben finch @benfinch.bsky.social · 25/04/2026

aha! thank you! i’d missed that on my first look

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ben finch @benfinch.bsky.social · 25/04/2026

here now, anyone got a rough finish time for the vuelta a asturias in oviedo tomorrow? i can find the broadcast times, but nothing more. turns out we’re 30 minutes walk from the finish line…!

a narrow street full of old apartment buildings and shops in oviedo, spain

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ben finch @benfinch.bsky.social · 23/04/2026

20 months together! and we’re having a lovely time exploring as much as we can of spain

a selfie of gabi and i in valencia. she’s in a yellow top and sunglasses and i’m in a grey top and sunglasses

a tower in a convent that had been converted to a museum in valencia

The Alhambra in Granada seen from a view point. Palm trees are in the foreground and the snow capped Sierra Nevada is behind

another selfie, she’s in a pink top, without sunglasses. i’m somehow in exactly the same clothes. a san miguel lorry is behind us

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ben finch @benfinch.bsky.social · 14/02/2026

happy valentine’s to my amorcita! we have many more adventures and much to discover about each other to come

a selfie of gabi and i in a park in porto alegre. i’m in a t-shirt and shorts, she’s looking beautiful in shorts, a vest and sunglasses

a selfie of gabi and i outside a pizzeria. there’s two good pizzas in front of us, which is unusual. we’re both wearing black tops

a selfie of gabi and i in an arty restaurant in porto alegre. she’s in an off white top and i’m in a stripey t-shirt. large flowers and leaves are painted on the wall behind us

a selfie of gabi and i under the house of culture in porto alegre. it’s an old art deco hotel, painted an orangey pink. the ground floor of it stretches out behind us

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ben finch @benfinch.bsky.social · 12/02/2026

we’re on to gramado, possibly the most german city outside of germany. it’s a romantic place with sights like the fountain of eternal love for us to explore

a selfie of gabi and i beside the fountain of eternal love in gramado, brazil. the edge of the fountain is covered in love notes that people have clipped on. it’s not spraying much water, so the pool is still. behind a large green hedge is a building built in a german style

a german-style stone church is seen through some trees and patio cover. the blue sky is full of fluffy clouds. a red trolley bus is just in front of the church

a vw beetle is parked on a street in gramado. german style chalets are on the edge of the street, and it is lined with trees

statues of jesus’ disciples run along the edge of a pool with small fountains. a green hedge runs behind them and a large building is behind that.

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ben finch @benfinch.bsky.social · 28/01/2026

midnight express: thomas gets caught trying to smuggle weed out of istanbul and is sent crazy in a turkish prison

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ben finch @benfinch.bsky.social · 28/01/2026

think we’ve bumped into one of the prettiest sunsets on the east coast of the americas

sunset in porto alegre, brazil. the silhouette of a cyclist and some trees on the bank of a huge river. the sun is close to the horizon and reflected in the water, like a narrow cone stretching to the shore. light is bursting through some clouds into the sky

a selfie of gabi and i on the riverside. we’re both laughing. i have a passion fruit juice and she has a cocktail

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ben finch @benfinch.bsky.social · 28/01/2026

i’ve avoided that thankfully, it’s always horrible

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ben finch @benfinch.bsky.social · 27/01/2026

the ecuadorian government doesn’t really have much they can complain about here to be honest, except because they want to be friends with trump

2024 raid on the Mexican embassy in Quito
2024 diplomatic incident between Mexico and
Ecuador
On 5 April 2024, the Mexican embassy in Quito was raided by Ecuadorian police and military forces. Mexico and numerous other countries decried the raid as a violation of the 1961 Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations and the 1954 Caracas Convention on Diplomatic Asylum.

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ben finch @benfinch.bsky.social · 27/01/2026

got a thing of oreos into me just after that pic. turns out it feels like 37c today!

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ben finch @benfinch.bsky.social · 26/01/2026

happy birthday to my beautiful girlfriend! here’s to many more. the iguaçu falls really are everything they’re cracked up to be

a selfie of gabi and i at the iguaçu falls. we’re both a bit wet from the spray. she’s in a white stewpot top and sunglasses, i’m in a navy and orange striped t-shirt and squinting. the falls are crashing all around us

a shot of the iguaçu falls from a distance through the trees. the waterfalls still fill most of the shot. fluffy clouds float in tge blue sky above

a bridge crosses one of the many plunge pools of the falls, closest to the main waterfall. the pool has some green rocks, but is mostly turbulent water

water tumbled over a series of huge waterfalls at iguaçu falls. it’s really hard to describe the scale of it, but it’s larger than you can think of

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ben finch @benfinch.bsky.social · 25/01/2026

it could well be you know. this area of brazil was settled by the northern, central and eastern europeans, so they’ll have seen something similar in it. they’re definitely playing better football here than tayside though

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ben finch @benfinch.bsky.social · 25/01/2026

a good example of what deforestation looks like. welcome to the atlantic forest, formerly the second largest rainforest on the planet

green fields stretch out over rolling hills with a few trees spotted here and there. the sky is a bright blue with fluffy white clouds

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ben finch @benfinch.bsky.social · 25/01/2026

feel like someone i know should have some help here (i haven’t, for my sins)

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ben finch @benfinch.bsky.social · 25/01/2026

this was followed by a moqueca, which is a delicious (and huge) seafood stew from bahia

a huge clay bowl of moqueca, a bahian seafood stew, with rice, farofa, and a plantain sauce, plus some passion fruit juice

a selfie of gabi and i in a restaurant smiling. we’re both in black tops, and she’s in brown shorts. there are lots of paintings hanging on a red wall behind us

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ben finch @benfinch.bsky.social · 23/01/2026

17 months together, and still very much in love! we’re now deep in gaúcho territory, at the border between brazil, argentina and paraguay. slightly unexpectedly, we spent this anniversary at the region’s chinese buddhist temple with buddha and budai

a selfie of gabi and i in front of a large statue of the sitting buddha, surrounded by smaller golden statues of buddha. gabi’s smiling, and wearing sunglasses and a floral print dress. i’m smiling, and in a black t-shirt with a rucksack on my back

the gardens of the buddhist temple and full of manicured trees and statues. the sitting buddha is in the distance, and a painted buddha (i’m not sure which one this is) is closer to the camera. you can just about see a row of the multiple golden buddhas

a large golden statue of budai, often called the fat buddha, in the temple’s garden, surrounded by manicured shrubs. another stone statue stands to the right. the sky is a bright blue with a single large white cloud

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ben finch @benfinch.bsky.social · 13/01/2026

is that ostrava? that’s a cool, weird little city

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ben finch @benfinch.bsky.social · 11/01/2026

i’m going to keep trying to find an interesting ride, but at the minute i’m doing tours of industrial estates and highways. i did bump into a few hills

me smiling in my blue cycling kit. my eyes are half open cause my sunglasses are slotted into my helmet

a white and red truck enters an industrial estate near curitiba

a red road bike leans on some planters at a petrol station near curitiba

my ride today from curitiba to campo magro and campo largo. it reads:

STRAVA
Morning Ride
Distance
100.46km
Elev Gain
1,307 m
Time
4h 8m

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ben finch @benfinch.bsky.social · 01/01/2026

feliz ano novo from us, who had a surprisingly quiet but beautiful new year’s in the end

gabi and i take a selfie in our flat. she’s in a white blouse and i’m in a burgundy t-shirt and shorts

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ben finch @benfinch.bsky.social · 31/12/2025

we got caught in a storm on the way to see the capybaras, so explored the market and had some amazing lebanese food instead

a selfie of gabi and i in the rain. she’s in a black top and brown shorts and i’m in a burgundy t-shirt. we’re smiling

a wide shot of the city from distance. a small part of the sky is blue, the rest is an angry grey that you can’t see through

the inside of the covered market in curitiba. it’s quite posh and pretty and the food quality looks good

kbbeh, tabbouleh and pita bread, it was good

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ben finch @benfinch.bsky.social · 28/12/2025

she’s a cx so i’d get by with some knobbly tires, a little mtb could be tempting though. need to go through all the routes i made now cause i’m a bit worried in going to be time trialling on the highways for a while

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ben finch @benfinch.bsky.social · 28/12/2025

komoot fail and some proper underbiking. was expecting ~5k of gravel, but that was 10 before i turned off the route for another 6 or 7k of cobbles. i am blistered and bruised. need to work out if every shop is closed on a sunday this week, or every week because i also ran out of water

me smiling in a selfie. i’m in pink cycling kit, with a white helmet that has my sunglasses tucked in. there’s a big lake behind me

the lake at piraqura, curitiba, stretches out to some mountains that aren’t huge. there’s some amazing trees with huge canopies on its banks

a big house on a gravel road. it must be part of a farm, but i’m really not sure. it’s very fancy and covered in decorative details

a red road bike beside some blue flowers that fill the background

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ben finch @benfinch.bsky.social · 25/12/2025

and ramen for christmas dinner, because why not? feliz natal!

a shoyu and miso ramen on a table with kimchi and sweet potato

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ben finch @benfinch.bsky.social · 25/12/2025

it’s far too hot (32c) but curitiba is a lovely place to wander through so far, and mi amorcita is the perfect person to explore with

a selfie of gabi and i in curitiba city centre. she’s in a brown dress with sunglasses on her head and i’m in a brown and white stripy t-shirt. there’s some shops behind us

the main square of curitiba old town is surrounded by pastel coloured buildings — yellows blues and pinks. they’re covered in christmas decorations, like wreaths and bunting. the blue building in the centre has a huge bell tower, it looks so top heavy that it could fall over

a sculpture of a horse’s head in a fountain. water falls from its mouth. behind is a square with some trees and an old big house

a pastel blue church and pastel pink building covered in christmas decorations. the sky is blue with some fluffy clouds

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ben finch @benfinch.bsky.social · 24/12/2025

it’ll be a new location but the same bike as always 😉

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ben finch @benfinch.bsky.social · 24/12/2025

thankfully it’s my duct tape so it’s all my fault if something went wrong with that. she got lost in transit by an airline

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ben finch @benfinch.bsky.social · 24/12/2025

to be clear, it’s not a new bike. it just got lost for a few days

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ben finch @benfinch.bsky.social · 24/12/2025

rojita’s a her… and i think it’s probably like ships where they’re all meant to be feminine? but i don’t think it matters anymore

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ben finch @benfinch.bsky.social · 24/12/2025

i’ll build her again later smartarse 😉

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ben finch @benfinch.bsky.social · 24/12/2025

my bike has finally arrived!

a bike box and pink rucksack lean against a wall in a living room

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ben finch @benfinch.bsky.social · 24/12/2025

it was sacrilege to think of monday as the first day in the very protestant part of the world where i grew up so i get it, the whole thing’s just weird though

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ben finch @benfinch.bsky.social · 24/12/2025

just realised that in portuguese the days of the week are numbered, not named. except for the weekend. and monday is day 2 so day 1 doesn’t exist

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ben finch @benfinch.bsky.social · 22/12/2025

went to get sim cards and supplies while gabi took a nap. plenty of hire bikes kicking around, decent looking lanes, and the world’s first brt for the urbanist nerds

a row of blue docked hire e-bikes. they look in good shape, if a bit heavy. they’re step through and have a little basket at the front

a red bike lane, separated from the road by a curb. the paint is wearing off. there’s a sign reading: “circulação exclusiva de bicicletas”

a bi-directional bike lane taking up a full lane of the road, in the centre. it’s not really separate

a stop of the curitiba bus rapid transit. it’s a long cylinder with tinted glass. you get in and out at either end, and board the bus through platforms that jut out the side around waist height

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ben finch @benfinch.bsky.social · 22/12/2025

bem-vindo a curitiba! however, most of the bags and bike are still in lima. my first time on a plane in four(?) years and they lose everything

a view of curitiba from an eighth floor window. there a few tower blocks and lots of roofs. the sky is bright blue with puffy clouds

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ben finch @benfinch.bsky.social · 21/12/2025

the past week has been a bit hectic with packing, but we’ve also made the trip through the hills to the coast and to some of the best food around

forested hills grow into mountains through a series of ridges. there’s a tree stump in the foreground, and the light is playing tricks through the clouds

a layer of clouds sits below the ridges of the mountains with blue skies above. the photo is take from above the clouds. some blue flowers, trees and a green field are in the foreground

gabi and i take a selfie on the beach. she’s in a red bikini and i’m in a brown t-shirt and pink swimming shorts. there’s a wooden hut, some palm trees and waves crashing into the sand behind us

prawn ceviche, patacones, and white rice on a red table in the shade on the beach. waves break on the sand

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ben finch @benfinch.bsky.social · 21/12/2025

it is time for us to leave cuenca and start a new adventure together

gabi and i hug in cuenca. she’s in a grey top and jeans, with a navy bag, and i’m in a navy t-shirt and jeans with a black rucksack. there’s some shrubs behind us and a huge palm tree

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ben finch @benfinch.bsky.social · 16/12/2025

for food in the mountains, hornado and cuy are the main ones. hornado’s much better. the coast has the best food — encebollado, ceviche, and bolon. i’m sure i’m forgetting a lot right now 😄

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ben finch @benfinch.bsky.social · 16/12/2025

climbing to the refuge at cotopaxi is relatively easy and spend some time in the park too, chimborazo will take you closer to the sun than everest. the coast is very sketchy right now, avoid guayaquil and manta…

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ben finch @benfinch.bsky.social · 16/12/2025

cuenca’s prettier than quito, but quito’s still worth your time, lake’s quilotoa and quicocha, otovalo, alausí to take the train through the mountains, cajas national park, el angel national park, ingapirca and cojitambo for the ruins, baños for extreme sports, and tena’s the amazon hotspot

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ben finch @benfinch.bsky.social · 14/12/2025

ah yeah for tenements? panelaks can definitely have a bad reputation because they were built by the communists and are now falling apart a bit. the spanish caserío might be a bit sexier

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