February 2009
In October 2008 I resigned from my job but carried on as caretaker until the end of January 2009. At the time of the resignation I had no idea what to do next – until it was suggested that I go travelling. Once I had thought about it a bit I realised it was quite a good idea…
Sometimes you need inspiration to do or achieve anything and I should thank my friend Penny who has helped me so much during the last year (in particular) – Penny is a search-engine and change-engine in one.
I was given details of a site that would enable me to set up a blog and record my travels – which I subsequently did – although more for my amusement than anyone else’s. What follows are the notes I posted on the blog as I travelled around. Much has changed since 2009, no doubt, and there aren’t any photos from the trip as I didn’t take a camera…
Brazil
Jenny kindly dropped me off at Heathrow around 07.40 – and it was clear that all was not well at Terminal 5. For a start it is clearly not designed to handle large amounts of people – such as passengers. Sweet, really – did they not think to see how Disney handles crowds – is it that difficult?
The queues for the check-in machines merge & mingle with the queues for the laughably named “Fast Bag Drop” points – which are just like the old check-in desks except that to speed things up you have to check in at a machine first (unless you can print a boarding pass at home) and then queue up to check-in your luggage.
The British Airways systems were down, so the staff had great difficulty checking people’s bags in. Half the desks in section H weren’t operating until 10.00am despite the queues. I queued for 110 minutes to give you an indication…
I arrived in Rio at 02.15, some 5 hours late but at least I got here. There had been snow at Heathrow and the runways were closed for two hours, adding to the chaos caused by the systems failures.
Still, who cares? I’m here now. And it’s beer (cerveja) time – saüdé!
The tour operator being most understanding had rescheduled my city tour for tomorrow – so today has been quite civilised – just wandering around.
I was actually here during Christmas 2001, so there are bits I remember from that trip. I didn’t do any tours then as the weather was bad. Hopefully I’ll get to see Sugar Loaf Mountain – well, go up it, as it can already be seen – and visit the big statue of Jesus.
It is a balmy 32 degrees Celsius here – the occasional fresh breeze wafts in from the Atlantic, toning down the humidity…
My hotel, Orla Copacabana, is on the sea front. Anyone who likes fruit would love the breakfast here: fresh papaya, water melon with flavour, weenie bananas, juicy mango – ok, you don’t fly 5,500 miles just for a nice breakfast but it does start the day well. Rough coffee, though. That’s better, something to complain about – there’s nothing we English like more than a good moan…
Copacabana: I’m staying on the sea front and it’s nice to see the Atlantic Ocean blue rather than grey. The beach front is 4km long – quite handy to know after you’ve walked up & down it a few times. I racked up over 20km on my first day. Considering that I’d like to lose 15kg & the two bags under my eyes during this trip I might just get there if I keep up that amount of walking every day….
Copacabana is like a sunnier Blackpool – weather and the nice beach aside – it’s hard to see why it is so famous – but there you go…
The area was originally called Sacopenapa – but was then named after the church of the Virgin of Copacabana (the patron saint of Bolivia) that was built in the mid-18th century. Today it is home to a 4km row of dreary apartment blocks & hotels that all seem to have been thrown up sometime in the 1970´s – and all designed by the London firm of architects Blind, Leading & Blind (incorporating Rule, Straight & Line)…
Activities on the beach liven things up somewhat – they take beach volley-ball very seriously here but it’s not all Baywatch…
Another popular pastime here is dog walking – either your own dog or someone else’s – you also see dogs with shoes…
I am fascinated by the number of Frigate birds – amazing birds with huge wingspans that just circle & wheel & occasionally dive – like a squadron of mini-stealth bombers (if you’ve seen a stealth bomber you’ll know what I mean).
Frigate birds can’t walk very well & can’t take off from water or flat land. They tend to nest on craggy cliff sides so that they can just lurch into the wind & let the thermals do the rest. They often remain airborne for a week at a time – snatching fishes that break the surface of the sea. Anyway, Frigates aside, Rio can also claim the world’s skankiest pigeons as a claim to fame. Nice.
Anyone remember Skol? Skol actually started out life in the late 19th century as a lager brewed by Allsopp’s in Burton on Trent. In 1927 production was transferred to the Alloa brewery and re-named as Graham’s Gold Lager before becoming Skol in 1959. Like all Brazilian beers, it is made with a mix of cereals – not the end of the world in itself – but they all also contain anti-oxidants & stabilisers – and yes they are all uniformly dull. There’s clearly a hop-shortage here, too. Not even properly cold either. The Brazilian brewing industry is dominated by AB-InBev. AB-InBev makes Brahma and produces Skol under licence from Carlsberg.
Still: that’ll also help in the battle to lose those 15kg…
Yesterday I went to Corcovado, where the statue of Jesus is. The mountain is 710m high and a big statue of a very stern Jesus looks down over the good folk of Rio. We went up the mountain in a funicular – Swiss, obviously – which was quite fun. Amazing views from the top, as you can imagine. The statue was finished in 1931 – the one in Lisbon was finished in 1959 in case you were wondering which came first.
We saw the 700-metre “street” that was created to host the Rio Carnival – the idea being that each team that enters has to dance along the 700 meters in no-less than 70 minutes and no more than 80 minutes. The street – such as it is – is lined with tiered seating either side.
For lovers of irony, the Catholic Cathedral of Saint Sebastian in Rio was inspired by an Inca design – and is quite impressive – maybe it helps with the guilt? Might explain the walls that appear to drip blood in April, June and November…
OK, I made that last bit up…
After the cathedral we went to the Sugar Loaf Mountain – so named after the sugar loaves that the colonists imported from the Azores & Madeira (back in the days when they imported sugar).
Hmmm – the Azores – they sound like a great place for a holiday – go in May to see the flowers – or not at all if you don’t want to incur the wrath of your wife…
Anyway, you go up to the summit in two cable cars. The first stage takes you to the Urca Mountain & the second one takes you up to the Sugar Loaf Mountain itself. Now this is only 396 metres high – but I think that you get more of an idea of the city from there than Corcovado. In addition to the views over the city & sea you can also watch the vultures and the Frigate birds – just amazing to watch them hovering on the thermals and then wheeling and diving…
Well, this is my last day in Rio – and I’m looking forward to leaving – the next stop is Iguaçu and the adventure will begin properly…
I am now in Foz do Iguaçu – Iguaçu in Brazil and Iguazu in Argentina – anyway, I flew from Rio this morning – very straightforward – checking in was easy as was security – the airline was TAM & the plane a newish A320.
Now – if they’d painted it chocolate brown & given out chocolate biscuits during the flight then they could – of course – call the airline TIM-TAM – but they aren’t & they don’t and it wouldn’t be any funnier to them than it would be to anyone else unfamiliar with Tim Tams…
Anyway – I left Rio knowing that Iron Maiden are due to play there on the 14th March (phew!). The plane was catered by Gate Gourmet & in the terminal I could have got a coffee at Caffè Ritazza…
On my last night in Rio, I found a great Brazilian restaurant – www.cozinhatipica.com.br – not as arcane as it might sound. The food was really nice & the service was friendly – unusual as the Brazilians seem to have the same attitude to service as the English. I had the set menu for one but there was enough food for two or even three…
I’ve had a quick look at the falls from the Brazilian side – tomorrow I’m going over the wall to the Argentinean side – there’s more of it to see apparently. The falls are made up of a 2.7km series of cataracts – and so much more interesting than the Niagara Falls (impressive though they are). Another treat, if you like butterflies, is that there are an amazing number here – lots of different colours, patterns & sizes…
Good luck to Penny who has her HR exam at Ashridge tomorrow (Sunday 8th) – funny day for an exam – but hope it goes well regardless of that. And Happy Birthday to Maya for the 8th as well. Maya is somewhere in Borneo at the moment…
Argentina
Well – I’ve left Brazil behind and am now in Buenos Aires. My last day in Foz do Iguaçu was interesting. My guide drove me into Argentina to see the falls from the Argentinean side – you can see more of the falls there than from the Brazilian side – which I’d wandered around the previous afternoon.
After wandering around the falls, looking at Capuchin monkeys, vultures, butterflies, lizards and lots of coatis – very sweet little animals with long tails and noses – members of the raccoon family I think – we went to Los Trios Fronteras – a place where, standing in Argentina, you can look out over the Rio Parana and see Brazil and Paraguay – well, I thought it was neat…
After having been dropped back at my hotel I went next door to the bird park – fascinating – it covers 6ha but they have another 11ha of land to develop – well, not develop exactly but turn into sanctuary – anyway, I met one of the directors there – John Leggatt – www.parquedasaves.com.br – an English chap – very friendly & chatty. We got talking in the area where they have humming birds – which are just the most fascinating things.
One – a pure black one – came & hovered right next to my face while I was talking to John – eerie but quite sweet at the same time – it reminded me of a scene from Star Trek when you get one of these devices hovering & scanning Captain Kirk, Spock & the unknown member of the “away-team” you know is going to get killed.
Anyway, this morning I was driven back across to Argentina to go to the Argentinean airport to fly to Buenos Aires (you can’t fly direct from Foz do Iguaçu to BsAs) – checked-in & flew on a Lan Argentina A320 to Buenos Aires.
Despite the big sign saying: “Las Malvinas son Argentinas” the Argentine Immigration people were very friendly…
Anyone interested in doing a trip to South America might like to look at www.lastfrontiers.com or www.blumar.com.br
Buenos Aires is a big city with wide streets – the widest being about 12 lanes wide – 6 lanes of traffic going in each direction – that’s the biggest but most of their streets are much wider than you’d find in most cities.
Cars? Well, fans of Renaults are well catered for: 9’s; 11’s; 12’s; 18’s; 19’s and 21’s in addition to current models, obviously. The only other place I know where you can still see Renault 12’s is in Turkey – where they were made under licence. They even have Hillman Avengers – renamed Dodge. Peugeot fans will be pleased to know that there are lots of 504’s and 505’s still running – although all the 505’s are in pretty ropey condition. With regard to new cars, there’s a neat Citroen C4 saloon that we don’t see in Europe (shame) and Ford have a compact 4×4 called EcoSport – rubbish name but neat car – and a Fiesta saloon – again we don’t get it in Europe.
Books are expensive in Brazil and almost as expensive here in Argentina – but there are lots of book shops in BsAs whereas I only came across 2 in Rio. I bought a book by an African author I’d never heard of before – Mia Couto – set in Mozambique – took a while to get into but very enjoyable – anyone who can cope with the idea of spirits & native religions in a modern setting might also enjoy it…
Yesterday morning I did a city-tour – which was a bit of a shambles, it has to be said – but at least got to see something of the city & get my bearings. We stopped alongside the Boca football stadium, which is in the heart of an area known as Caminito, where the Tango originated, apparently.
I stayed in a nice hotel in Recoleta – quite a smart area of the city – and just a short walk from the famous Recoleta cemetery. The hotel, Ayres de Recoleta, didn’t have any restaurant facilities but there was a lovely café nearby with whom they had a reciprocal arrangement for breakfast. It was close to lots of restaurants & bars and a shopping centre with cinema and a book shop…
One thing I should also mention is that the beer here is much, much better than in Brazil – so long as you don’t drink Brazilian beer, obviously. Hurrah for that…
Like Rio, dog-walking seems very popular and you often see people struggling to control 6 or 7 dogs. Buenos Aires has even more pigeons than Rio and while they don’t appear to be as skanky I would advise against eating outside, otherwise you’ll soon be inundated.
It is a nice city to walk around and people-watch – a chic & fashionable place – they dress to impress…
I’m not doing justice to Buenos Aires but have to admit I’m a bit bored – sorry – maybe it’s just the big city thing – missing my old job and friends – anyway I’m off again tomorrow – sailing across the Rio Plata to Montevideo…
Uruguay (interlude)
The mouth of the Rio de la Plata (River Plate) is 100km wide, which might explain why the ferry took 3 hours. It was a very calm crossing. And a very boring crossing – sailing directly into the sun with very little to see…
Uruguay – mysterious Uruguay – pronounced “ooroo-gwhy” as opposed to “euro – gwhy” – a land of 3.3m people and 12m cows – a land famous for its beef and barbecues – it looks a relatively small country on a map of South America, but is in fact about 176,000 sq km (roughly twice the size of Portugal).
Famous Uruguayans then: the architect Rafael Viñoly; there are several footballers such as Luis Suárez, Edinson Cavani and Diego Forlán; José Mujica, Uruguay’s astonishing president from 2010-15; Francisco Canaro, who wrote that famous Tango tune (anthem?) and several authors and poets, including Mario Benedetti…
Colonia is the oldest city in Uruguay – founded by the Portuguese in 1680 and then lost by the Portuguese as the Spanish attacked the city – the Portuguese nabbed it back and then the Spanish re-took it….
Montevideo, the capital, is a relatively young city – founded in 1724 by the Spanish and for a time Uruguay was a province of Argentina until the Brazilians annexed it in 1821. The Uruguayan national hero, Jose Artigas, declared independence in 1825 and this became a reality in 1828 – thanks, believe it or not, to support from the British.
Montevideo is a small city by South American standards – “just” 1.4m people – and doesn’t have the glitz & glamour of Buenos Aires or Rio – and is probably all the better for it. It does have a certain charm – but it’s a poor city in much need of renovation – still, it seems unhurried & the traffic moves calmly – albeit slowly – and it is safe & easy to wander around – and that counts for a lot these days…
I stayed in a NH hotel – a German chain – with nice clear views over the river…. – the hotel itself was pretty unexciting – I’ve stayed at NH hotels in Germany – mostly in Düsseldorf for Prowein…
So that was Thursday 12th – on Friday 13th I took a coach to Colonia – from the very organised & efficient central bus station in Montevideo. The journey took about 2 hours and was mostly motorway. In Colonia I was met by a driver & taken to the hotel Don Antonio – a charming hotel built around an upper courtyard with swimming pool.
In the afternoon the lovely Alessandria guided me around the city. Colonia really is very nice indeed. Alessandria is a teacher and her husband is a Coast Guard. It is becoming difficult for the local people to buy houses in Colonia as so many rich Argentineans & Brazilians are buying holiday homes here – as are rich Americans & Europeans.
Fortunately the old town is a UNESCO World Heritage site and so remains unspoilt. In addition to the old Portuguese and Spanish buildings there are tree lined cobbled streets – the trees being London Plane trees, would you believe…
A lot of tourists drive around in golf buggies – although quite why they feel the need to drive anything is a mystery – it isn’t a big town and it is so nice to walk around. Colonia is set on a peninsula – surrounded by the Rio de la Plata on three sides. Despite the water being a very murky looking chocolate brown (because of the sediment) the locals insists it is really very clean & swim in it…
I would certainly recommend a visit to Colonia – to Uruguay in fact – very friendly, safe and calm…
Argentina
Well, it’s Saturday 14th February and I got the Buquebus Hydrofoil from Colonia to Buenos Aires – the hydrofoil does the 35km journey across the River Plate in 45 minutes or so – much better than the ferry.
I was met at the terminal by the very suave Jose who drove me to the Estancia Dos Talas (www.dostalas.com.ar), which is in the Pampas – about 15km from Dolores & about 180km from Buenos Aires. The first impression upon seeing the Estancia is that it is French in style & set in lovely grounds. I got to the Estancia about 3pm – had a quick late-lunch & then went horse riding at just after 4 – what a life, eh?
There were two Swedish families staying at the Estancia – the Lehmann’s and the Henriksson’s – and being Swedish they were, of course, fluent in English. They were also fluent in Spanish.
The two families had never met & knew nothing of each other but discovered that the Henriksson’s had a summer house in the next street to where the Lehmann’s live. Not only that but a daughter and son from each family are currently studying in Buenos Aires, which was why the two families were in Argentina – visiting their respective offspring – coincidences, eh?
Lars Henriksson is an extremely interesting chap – having been born in Brazil, he & his wife lived in Brazil for many years but went back to Sweden so that their daughters could finish their education there (ironic) – he has travelled & worked extensively throughout South America. With all due respect to the Lehmanns I did not find out what they did other than they bought Peter Lehmann wines out of a sense of duty – yes of course they gave me a withering look when I brought that up – just as they were baffled by my talking about the Munskänkarna and having been to Östersund – but I digress…
It was really nice having company & people to talk to and being Swedish they were very polite, unassuming, very friendly and amusing – they left on Sunday afternoon, sadly…
Anyway, Dos Talas is set in about 31 hectares of parkland surrounding the house and that is set in about 1500 hectares of farmland – mostly given over to cattle. You can read about Dos Talas in Monty Don’s Around the World in 80 Gardens (p116) (there’s a picture of Monty on every page in case you forget who wrote it); it features in the Footprint guide to Argentina apparently and in On a Hoof and a Prayer by Polly Evans (pp207-221)…
I was so lucky with the weather – gloriously hot & sunny. I went riding twice on Sunday & twice on Monday but only once on Tuesday as various parts of me had lodged complaints. But the riding was easy because the Armadillos dig burrows all over the place you have to go at walking pace – which suited me fine but must have driven Pedro, the Paraguayan gaucho, completely up the wall – especially having to accompany just me on those 5 occasions…
There are two lovely Alsatians – sisters about 10 months old – very playful – Speedy & his mother make up the dogs plus Rudolf the deer – I assume it is a Fallow Deer – very sweet but must be lonely…
It is so tranquil & very relaxing – something I didn’t think I’d be able to do – Monday morning I wanted to leave – enough already of this paradise! – but the walks through the trees & gardens & riding through the pampas spotting Nando; molito; nutria; zorro & hares as well as Southern Screamers; Chimango Caracara; Baywinged Cowbird; Guira Cuckoo; Golden Breasted Woodpecker; Lapwing; Swallows and more – finally brought me back to my senses – I couldn’t go back to England – there wasn’t a job for me to go back to – which was why I was here in the first place…
Plus the lovely Sara Elizalde & her staff looked after me royally! I even drank a whole bottle of Felix Lopez Semillon at lunch on Tuesday (sorry, Sara) – good grief! In my defence it was boiling hot; the food was delicious; the wine was cold & I was sitting outside in the shade of a big oak tree…
Sara’s gorgeous daughter Clara is marrying the suave Jose on March 28th – so keep your fingers crossed for a beautiful day!
Dos Talas would be a lovely place to stay when you come over to Argentina…
At about 1pm on Wednesday 18th, Ricardo drove me back to Buenos Aires so that I could catch my flight to Trelew….
Patagonia
I am in Patagonia – home to the Welsh! The city of Gaiman has 4 Welsh choirs – and no, I’m not making this up. The first Welsh settlers arrived in what is now Puerto Madryn in July 1865, looking for a new life. Patagonia seems to have got its name either from the apparently overly-large feet of the native Indians – an illusion caused by them insulating their moccasins by stuffing them with grass or from Gran Patagon – a character from Greek mythology…
The landscape here is flat – not as Fen-flat as the Pampas – and is mostly semi-arid scrub as opposed to lush pastures as in the Pampas.
I flew from Buenos Aires to Trelew. Trelew is one of those places where you’ll never get the pronunciation right – it is roughly “tru” as in “trust” and then “lieu” – on the rare occasions when someone recognises what you’ve said you get a horrified “but you’re not staying there are you?”…
The one hour flight took almost 2 hours because – of course – there’s a time difference. Oops! Patagonia is 1 hour behind Buenos Aires – so I’m now 4 hours behind the UK. I am actually staying in the sea side town of Puerto Madryn – which has become a tourist centre and has a major aluminium smelting plant (Aluar). The bauxite comes from Brazil by ship (obviously) and the power comes from a hydro-electric plant some 90km away in the Andes.
In case you’re wondering, the aluminium plant is not why the tourists come. The tourists come to visit the Peninsula Valdes.
From Puerto Madryn you drive for about 80km and cross the Ameghino Isthmus to enter the peninsula – which is a reserve of sorts and mostly barren scrub divided into Estancias – the biggest being 100,000 hectares (good grief) – they raise sheep out here (mostly Merinos, sheep fans). Each sheep apparently needs 4 hectares of scrub to sustain it. They are in competition with the much more graceful Guanaco (a member of the Llama, Alpaca, Vicuna family).
Tourists head for the coast to see sea lions and elephant seals. Want to know how you can tell a seal from a sea lion? Well, sea lions can walk on their flippers (seals can’t); sea lions have external ears – albeit very small ones (seals have internal ears) and sea lions live by the sea and go out each day to catch fish while seals – or at least the elephant seals here – can spend up to 7 months at sea – can dive to 1500 metres and stay under water for 2 hours at a time. Even though seals have lungs very much like ours, they have a technique of oxygenating their blood that allows them to stay under water for long periods. Just don’t ask me about Walruses – if I see any I’ll let you know. It hadn’t occurred to me that these were three very different (albeit similar looking) species – I didn’t come here to have my ignorance thrown in my face but hey: travel’n’learn…
At Punta Norte on the Estancia San Lorenzo we had a very nice lunch – I couldn’t eat all the lamb, though – luckily my guide was hungry & did justice to the amount of lamb cooked!
Anyway, there is a colony of around 100,000 breeding pairs of Magellan Penguins. We were allowed into the sanctuary and walked amongst the Penguins – so sweet! Most of them just stood & stared up at us – cocking their heads to one side and then the other as if they were trying to make out what we were.
We sat close to the shore where a long line of penguins were gathered – just standing – chatting, I assume – the line stretched at least a kilometre in either direction – just an astonishing number – anyway, some penguins were obviously swimming – then a couple of sea lions appeared and there was a mass exodus of penguins from the sea (even though sea lions don’t eat penguins) and the penguins walked quickly away from the sea up the beach a metre or so – except of course, the ones near us just stood in front of us, looking up and glaring – you could feel them thinking “get away from the sea, fool!”…
In the meantime – unbeknown to the penguins, we’d been tracking the progress of – yes – two killer whales – they were swimming close to shore and broke the surface a few times in front of us – a male and a female – funnily they seemed to have missed the two sea lions and didn’t grab any penguins – but gosh it was exciting (and very lucky) to see them.
Watching the Stormy Petrels was interesting, too – very big birds that can fly very low, skimming the surface of the sea – not averse to eating penguin chicks, either…
We also saw on the peninsula some vultures; Lesser Rhea (Choique); Oystercatchers (a bit late, most of the oysters are fossilised); grey foxes; a hare (no Mara around yesterday) and a hairy Armadillo – so a pretty good day all round for wild life…
I stayed at the Hotel Bahia Nueva – right on the sea front – highly recommended – very friendly. My trip locally was organised through Argentina Vision – www.argentinavision.com – if you travel to Patagonia then I’d recommend them.
Later today I go down to Ushaia on the Tierra del Fuego – to see glaciers & the Beagle Channel.
The World’s End
Greetings from the end of the world (as they seem to like describing it here)…
Ushuaia started off as a penal colony – building of the prison commenced in 1902 and was finished in 1920. General Peron ordered its closure in 1947 declaring that Tierra del Fuego needed families not prisoners. By the early 1980’s Ushuaia had grown to about 7,000 people – but was still pretty much a remote fishing town. Later in the 1980’s the government turned Ushuaia into a free port and along with its tax-free status encouraged electronics companies to set up factories here. The economy and the population soon boomed.
Today there are over 70,000 inhabitants but the electronics industry disappeared in the early 2000’s – during one of Argentina’s many recessions. Today tourism, oil & gas are the main industries. A lot of cruise ships dock here on their way to or from Antarctica – as I was leaving there were 2 cruise ships in the harbour. You won’t find many people over 20 who were born here and it has a big population of people under 20 – a result of couples moving here in the early to mid- 90’s. So it is quite a boisterous place but friendly in a typically frontier kind of way.
We went out in a catamaran into the Beagle Channel to see Sea Lions; King Cormorants & Black Cormorants; Stormy Petrels; Terns – and a couple of Albatross – I don’t know which kind but they weren’t much bigger than the Petrels…
Rabbits were introduced to Tierra del Fuego in the 1920’s and now there are reckoned to be 30 million of them. The government introduced 20 pairs of beaver from Canada in 1949 with the aim of creating a lucrative fur trade. Now, the reason that Canadian Beaver fur is highly prized is that Canadian winters are very cold and the beavers grow nice, thick coats in order to survive. Winters don’t actually get very cold in Tierra del Fuego so the coats don’t get very thick and, as a consequence, the fur has no value. Now there are 100,000 beavers causing havoc and there’s a reward of 5 pesos for every beaver killed. Trout were introduced into the rivers here from Europe and now there are very few native species left as the trout have killed them off. Some bright spark also introduced the red fox…
After the cruise we went to the place where the “train to the end of the world” runs from. This cost 90 pesos for a return journey – the track runs for 8km and takes 1hr40 each way. An Argentinean couple got out & went on the train – I stayed in the Land Rover & drove to where the train ride ends & then went walking through the park.
Later we picked up the couple & walked by the Magellan Strait and the lakes. Lovely – but it was there that the guide told us about the daft things mankind has done to interfere with nature. Now most of the land is a nature reserve…
The weather here was much cooler & wetter than I’d previously experienced and the walking required the use of my 4×4 boots – they’re lightweight (but what else would you expect?), with limited slip differential – handy but not yet fully mastered and HDC (hill descent control) – again not fully mastered…
Out on the Beagle Channel it was blowing a fresh southerly – and given that Antarctica is only 600 miles away you can guess the degree of freshness – so the great big coat I’d been lugging around in the tropics came in handy as it did later in the pouring rain in the nature reserve…
Ushuaia is a great place to visit and Tierra del Fuego a lovely place to see.
Magellan called the area Tierra del Humo as he could see smoke from the fires on the land as he sailed through what was later called the Magellan Strait – but couldn’t see the people responsible for them – so, assuming the land to be uninhabited, he naturally assumed the smoke was a natural phenomenon and called the place Tierra del Humo – but his sponsor, King Charles V of Spain, reasoned that there couldn’t be smoke without fire and so renamed it Tierra del Fuego – there is also a theory that it was named after the bright red flowers of the notro or “fire-bush”…
Talking of cars, which we weren’t, I noticed a Renault model I’d not seen before – the Sandero – and there is a Nissan called the Tiida you see quite a lot of…
In an act of sheer buffoonery I ripped a hole in my trousers & in one of the “safe” pockets on the leg – with the consequence that I lost the keys to my flat (nothing else, fortunately) – what an arse…
So, to make up for it I’m going to go and have some splendid Beagle Beer in The Dublin pub. The Beagle Brewery brews 3 types of beer – a blonde; a red and a dark (stout) – all very nice. And The Dublin pub is just the kind of place you want to find when you’re at the end of the earth – not terribly Irish, though, but still warm, friendly, welcoming and with good beer.
Just watch the steps. On the way out…
So – El Calafate – a sort of Argentinean Kendal (without a Booths) (sadly) – parts of El Calafate would fit well in Carmel – and while Carmel is all well & good in California, it isn’t quite what I’d expected to find in Argentina – but, hey that’s probably progress – and yes, I do mean Carmel and not Cartmel, sticky-toffee pudding fans…
Calafate is the main town for the Patagonian lakes and the glaciers. Did you know that the Patagonian glaciers contain the third largest body of ice in the world after Antarctica and Greenland? As part of my tour we went to the Perito Moreno Glacier – one of the natural wonders of the world, apparently, and at the end of the Lago Argentino – and the trip included walking on ice. We were given crampons & with these natty devices you can virtually walk up sheer walls of ice – ok, maybe not sheer, but pretty damn steep – and down again, obviously….
The glacier is about 5km wide and rises to 60 metres above the level of the Lago Argentino with a depth of 110 metres below the water level. The glacier appears to be neither retreating nor advancing – making it one of only a few that aren’t receding. You can actually see film of chunks of ice breaking off from the glacier on You Tube.
The top of the glacier is advancing at about 2 metres a day while the bottom about 0.8 of a metre – hence the ice breaking off in the way it does. The glacier seems quite dirty – but that’s just from the sediment it picks up as it makes its way down the valley. The ice also looks blue – the more dense the more intense the blue and this is to do with light refracting from the ice.
The icebergs in Lago Argentino look for all the world as if a local council has commissioned some hopeless sculptor to shape random bits of scruffy ice in the water in the name of art. It isn’t until you get closer that you see the intensity of the blue and the intricate shapes and lines.
In addition to Perito Moreno we also saw the Upsala Glacier – named after the Swedish university city – the glacier is receding at about 200 metres a year.
So, yesterday evening I dropped my laundry off – the clothes were nicely washed & folded for only 18 pesos – so top marks to the friendly women in the laundry…
Best place to eat in El Calafate is Pura Vida – great food and lovely fresh bread. Another good place is at the other end of town near the flyover: Viva la Pepa that does crepes and also sells well-chilled Antares beer…
I stayed at the very comfortable Quijote Hotel – where they serve refreshing Margaritas and Pisco Sours…
The Dark Side
In the 1870’s the Argentinean General Roca led a campaign to eradicate the indigenous Indians from Patagonia – huge tracts of land were subsequently given to rich farmers who established huge Estancias – and they used the land for sheep farming – over-grazing by the sheep ruined the fragile land & turned it into the semi-arid scrub you see today. Sheep are not “good” grazers, apparently and do a lot of damage. Uninteresting fact: 8 rabbits eat as much as one sheep…
In 1829 the last of the Charrua Indians were massacred in Uruguay – so that today all the inhabitants of Uruguay are of European descent…
So in case you thought only the British committed atrocities…
Chile
Well: the bus journey from El Calafate was pretty straightforward – just long & boring. Oh, and tedious. It was dull, too…
The itinerary indicated that the journey would take 5½ to 6 hours – but it took 7. The border crossing took up over 2 hours – the problem being on the Chilean side – which just can’t cope with the volume of people that a 50-seat coach disgorges – i.e. 50…
And given that they must get 2 or 3 coaches an hour in season as it’s the main route from El Calafate to Puerto Natales…
The crossing is quite friendly & you can nip across the border to the shop/café while waiting, which is sweet.
Immigration Officer: No, you can’t enter Chile until you’ve completed customs clearance and immigration procedures – but you can nip across the road into Chile to have a cup of coffee while you’re waiting…
Anyway, we got through in the end…
The reason why the journey is dull is simply that the scenery is pretty monotonous & it just goes on for miles – a lot of it is also on gravel roads where the coach, inevitably, goes slowly…
Things livened up when we did eventually cross the border into Chile – we were shadowed by a Condor. If you’ve ever seen a Condor glide you’ll know what I mean – simply majestic – this one gliding along on its 3m wingspan – every now & again it gave a desultory flap of its wings & resumed gliding – now that’s flying with nonchalance – before getting bored & flying off…
I stayed overnight in Puerto Natales at the Lady Florence Dixie Hotel. Puerto Natales is a funny sort of place – the kind of town where all the tourists are in transit. There’s a nice vegetarian restaurant, though, called El Living – www.el-living.com.
Lady Florence Dixie is one of those amazing characters from history. During 1878-1879 she travelled with her husband & two friends throughout Patagonia. She wrote a book called “Across Patagonia”, noting that the indigenous population was in danger of becoming extinct (by 1947 they were) – and took home a Puma she called “Affums” – which, upon being released into Great Windsor Park, went on to consume the deer – so was subsequently removed to a zoo…
Another interesting character is Bernard O’Higgins. Ambrose Bernard O’Higgins was born in Ireland in 1720 but went off to South America to seek his fortune. He arrived in Lima (at that time Peru & Chile were one territory) and became involved in engineering & building new roads for the Spanish Army. Later he became Governor General of Chile and so everywhere you go in Chile you’ll see streets & parks named after him – although he’s better known as Bernardo O’Higgins, which is vaguely comical and was even bestowed with the title Don Ambrosio – although he did not, in fact, invent tinned rice pudding – that was Lady Ambrosia of St. Ivel, as you know…
Another Irishman who made his mark was William Brown – born in County Mayo in the late 1780’s he is regarded as the father of the Argentinean navy…
Anyway – on leaving Puerto Natales I went into the Torres del Paine – which is now a national park. The park is very beautiful, with fabulous scenery, lots of lakes & rivers and unpredictable weather. Oh, and very windy – though not windy in winter, apparently.
The name Torres del Paine means “towers of blue” and refers to the way the mountains can appear blue in certain lights. The park was created a “Biosphere Reserve” by UNESCO in 1978.
I stayed firstly at the Hosteria del Torres and then the Hosteria Grey. The Hosteria del Torres is set in 4,000 hectares of privately owned land – making it unusual as all the rest is national park. It is owned by a family of Croat descent – interestingly a lot of Croatians, English & Germans settled in this region.
The Hosteria Grey sits at one end of Lago Grey – and its restaurant must have one of the best views of any restaurant in the world – overlooking the lake; the glacier and the mountains – which at sunrise take on pinky/goldy colours…
In order to get to the Lago Grey you have to cross the rather fierce looking River Pingo – I suspect it is rather grumpy at having been given such a silly name. There’s a Lake Pingo, too.
Bernardo O’Higgins to Eminent Explorer:
B0’H – Why, oh eminent explorer, have you called the lake and this river “Pingo”? What does it mean?
EE – My lord, ’tis the name of my daughter’s teddy bear
B0’H – Gadzooks man, you can’t in all seriousness name a lake and a river after a teddy bear! But if you are – then my daughter’s teddy bear is called Affums – I insist you call it that!
EE – My lord oh, and Governor General (forgot that last time) – I promise to call the next river & lake I discover Affums and they will be bigger than Pingo!
Sadly that was the last anyone ever heard of the Eminent Explorer and Lago Pingo and Rio Pingo remained, much to everyone’s chagrin…
Anyway – you cross the Rio Pingo by means of a wibbly-wobbly bridge.
Now, the designers here kind of knew what they were doing – unlike the designers & engineers of the Millennium Bridge in London. If the bridge just wibbled as people stepped on it – then they’d simply slide off it into the turbulent waters of the Pingo. So to counterbalance the wibble they factored-in a wobble. So you wibble & wobble across the bridge – that has, as an added bonus, a bounce – as it is also a suspension bridge.
Quite why they designed it like this I don’t know – other than to frighten the bejaysus out of innocent folk – crossing it is a little disconcerting until you get the hang of it.
The other daft thing is that it’s designed for only 6 people at a time to use it. So when the 50 people turn up wanting to go on the boat trip across Lago Grey to see the glacier at the same time as the 50 people coming back from having been on the boat across Lago Grey to see the glacier, then it can take a while for everyone to get across.
Bonkers.
The Condors are just amazing to watch and, to satisfy their curiosity, often fly over just to see what you’re up to. Another great bird of prey to watch is the Chilean Grey Eagle (also known as the Black Chested Buzzard Eagle) – it has a remarkably short tail so that it looks for all the world like a giant moth – and a wingspan up to 6′ – it has the amazing ability to just hang in the air – wings outstretched but still as it scrutinises whatever has gained its attention – eerie…
We saw lots of Rhea; Gaunaco; Flamingo; silver fox – but no Puma or Geoffroy’s Cat. Allegedly there are 35 to 50 Puma in the park but they don’t seem to know about the number of Geoffroy’s Cat…
Anyway, the Torres del Paine is a great – if very expensive – place to stay & walk & gawp at the scenery – away from the hotels it is blissfully quiet. The hotels don’t have TV, radios and papers – so you just vanish from the world. They did, in fairness, have limited Internet access but the connections were hopeless & kept dropping out…
The journey from Torres del Paine to Punta Arenas took about 5 hours – and once out of the park the landscape is just monotonous scrub – although you do get to admire the handiwork of the early settlers who burned huge tracts of forest in order to clear land for grazing.
These being the same settlers who drove the indigenous people from their land; almost wiped out the Guanaco & Puma and desecrated the landscape…
Punta Arenas itself is a fairly dull port town on the Magellan Strait – important as an oil & gas terminal. I am here to catch a flight up to Puerto Montt – but while here have had time for lunch at La Luna – www.laluna.cl – which was excellent.
On leaving Punta Arenas I discovered that it has the most amazing cemetery – with ornate mausoleums and fancy tombs. There are big Croatian, British, French, Italian & German communities here – in the 1850’s the Chilean government was keen to settle this part of the country and encouraged European settlers with inducements of free land and free food for 6 months…
Also on leaving the town of Punta Arenas for the airport we passed the offices of Standard Wool. The driver told me it was an English company, based in Bradford and with offices in Chile, China and New Zealand – www.standard-wool.co.uk – where you can learn about greasy wool…
Greetings from Puerto Varas – about 25km from Puerto Montt on the shores of Lake Llanquihue (which means “deep water”). My hotel is the Bellavista and it lives up to the name. It is on the lake front & from my room, complete with balcony, I can see the dormant volcano Osorno in the distance. Osorno does a passable imitation of Mount Fuji – with the cone covered in snow. Calbuco – an extinct volcano – can be seen off to the right.
A volcano 6 miles from the Chilean town of Chaiten erupted on the 20th February – many of the 4,500 inhabitants are refusing to leave the town despite government attempts to evacuate the area.
The main industry around here is fish farming – yet another of man’s follies. Fish farming is where you attempt to breed fish but instead create reservoirs of infection and end up filling the water & the fish with antibiotics in order to get rid of the parasitic lice and create environmental havoc. The Chilean government is issuing no new licences to farm fish & once the current concessions have expired then that will be it…
Some of the farmed salmon have, of course, escaped and now there are salmon in the lakes & waterways around here. Remember the trout story from Tierra del Fuego?
Quite a lot of this region suffered deforestation and the government seems quite keen on planting – yes, you guessed it – eucalypts – for heaven’s sake – a six-year old child could tell them the folly of doing that…
For all that, I like Chile – what I’ve seen is lovely & the people are friendly. It seems quite an efficient & organised country – that one border crossing aside. The economy appears to be in reasonable shape, too. The same is true of Argentina – a beautiful country with friendly folk – although the economy has never been in great shape – or, at least, never for very long. The Argentineans regard recessions with resigned bemusement. It will be interesting to see how Santiago compares with Buenos Aires…
The hosteria in Torres del Paine aside, Chile is reasonable value too, for Brits whose currency has little value these days. Argentina & Brazil are both quite expensive by comparison – more on a par with UK prices.
I’ve just seen another Toyota FJ Cruiser – I saw one in Montevideo – a strange looking 4×4. There are also things called “Durango” – a huge & ungainly 4×4 but surprisingly, depressingly – popular here…
The flight from Punta Arenas to Puerto Montt last night should have taken 2hrs 15 minutes but good old Lan Chile did it in 1 hour & 45 minutes – nice going, Lan Chile! Reading their in-flight magazine I see that the average age of their fleet is 5 years – which is pretty impressive – in Europe only EasyJet & Ryannair could match that – the average age of aircraft in the Argentinas Aeriolinas fleet must be around 30 to 35…
The President of Chile is Michelle Bachelet – elected on 15th January 2006 – she seems to be very popular. The main complaint seems to be that, with around 6m of the 16.5m population living in Santiago, everything seems to be pretty much centred on the capital. It must be quite a difficult country to manage as it is about 2,700 miles long and only 150 miles at its widest point.
Chile has an area of around 757,000 km²; it is one of the smaller countries in South America (38th largest in size in the world). Compare that to Brazil at 8.5m km² (no.5) and Argentina at 2.8m km² (no.8). For comparison Australia is 7.7m km² (no.6); NZ is 267,000 km² (no.74) – while the UK is 244,000 km² (no 77)…
Argentina also has a female president – Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner – she became president in October 2007…
Santiago
Next stop Santiago – bright blue sky, bright sunshine, about 30 degrees – lovely! The centre of Santiago seems quite nice – bustling without being hectic – several pedestrianised streets make wandering around easy. Although – beware! – there is a chain of department stores in Chile called Ripley. They have 39 stores in Chile, 17 of which are in Santiago – so wandering through the central streets for the first time can be a bit alarming as you keep passing Ripley department stores and you think – er?? They have a Ripley site if you’re interested: www.ripley.cl
Santiago has grand squares & fine buildings and on the city tour we had the lovely Loretta – who was really sweet but I’m struggling to find things to write about Santiago.
The hotel was ok – but not very good at passing on messages – the hotel has an Easter Island theme (a bit hokey) & the bar is called the MakeMake bar – after the Rapa Nui (that’s Easter Island) god (pronounced “makkymakky”) – which doesn’t seem right somehow – but they do run a good bar with great service…
Santiago seems to be woefully short of bars – unless they are all disguised as Ripley stores…
I should probably write something about the Mapuche; Temuco and Father Sadler – but that’ll have to wait. I seem to have missed out on Valparaiso – which is meant to be lovely – but it has been a great trip, otherwise, so missing out on that is not the end of the world…
One thing strikes me, though – and that is I arrived with a great deal of ignorance about these countries – culture, history, etc. – and ignorance is not a good thing – but there’s just so much to take in on a trip like this that all I can do is memorise the edited highlights and so end up with copious amounts of “little learning” – which potentially makes me pretty dangerous. Yes folks – tonight on America’s Least Wanted – armed with copious amounts of little learning this man is dangerous – do not approach! Do not vote for him as President in the next election!
Slowdown in Atacama
I got an early flight from Santiago (06.45 in case you think I’ve forgotten what early is) to Calama – which is in the Atacama Desert. From Calama airport it is a 90 minute drive through the desert to San Pedro de Atacama.
I found the drive from Calama boring – just rocks and sand – it wasn’t until I started exploring the area around San Pedro de Atacama that I started to appreciate the spectacular scenery (needless to say the drive back was amazing & I was totally absorbed in the colours, the rock formations, the views of the Andes)…
I am staying at the hotel Altiplanico – which is really nice – built in an adobe style around a large courtyard – www.altiplanico.com – although it is in Quitor rather than San Pedro itself. That’s a bit like saying Bray instead of Maidenhead – except with a lot more sand & temperatures well into the 30’s – it’s very dry here, as the Atacama desert is one of the driest regions in the world. In this area they usually get between 35 – 50mm of rain a year but the last few years have been drier than usual & they’ve not had that much. Above 2,800 metres the rainfall increases and you start seeing widespread vegetation – albeit sparse clumpy looking bushes called paja brava. There’s also a bush called Pingo-Pingo…
We did see a large area of cardon (cactus) – which are spooky looking things – and you might think well, cactus/desert – kind of obvious – but no! Step forward mankind who destroyed most of the cacti in Chile – chopping them down for fires & building material, etc. – now all species of cactus are protected in Chile and the once-thought-extinct cardon is making a comeback. There is also a cactus with the rather wicked name of “mother in law’s pillow”…
In terms of wildlife I saw lots of Vicuna – the main way to tell the difference between Guanaco and Vicuna is that Guanaco have a little sticky-up tail & the Vicuna don’t. Also, Guanaco & Vicuna are wild whilst Alpaca & Llama are domesticated (in case you wondered) – and they are all members of the camel family – which explains why they can survive in such arid conditions. I also saw lots of Flamingo and various other birds such as Rhea – the big, Ostrich-sized ones, Andean Gulls, crested brown ducks, giant coots, Andean geese and Wilson’s Phalarope – a curious bird of the Sandpiper family that swims round & round in circles – what it is doing is stirring up the mud to bring out tiny creatures that it then eats – intriguing to watch…
Some of the attractions around San Pedro are the Moon Valley and Valley of Death. The Moon Valley is a beautiful landscape – allegedly resembling the surface of the moon – there’s a natural amphitheatre – some strange rock formations – 3 of which are called the Three Marias – and because this area is very salty – a disused salt mine. In the Valley of Death – originally called the Valley of Mars because of the red colour of the rocks – some new romantic (or marketing person) thought that Valley of Death sounded better – anyway, the landscape is beautiful with the different strata and rock formations. There’s a lot of gypsum here – shame there’s no water because this place could have rivalled Burton upon Trent…
Lovely though it is you don’t get the colours you see in Death Valley in California. Another fabulous park to see in the USA is Bryce Canyon in Utah – where the wind & rain have eroded the red rocks into astonishing little figurine-like shapes that look for all the world like terracotta figures – you get a similar effect in the area around these two valleys in Atacama but not as intricate.
Anyway, we stayed out in this area to see the sunset – the temperature starts to fall after sunset but it was still around 18 degrees by the time we got back to the hotel at 9pm – it obviously continues to fall away…
We visited the town of Toconao – that has an old church which has an unusual feature – an image of God. Apparently it is very rare for God to be depicted in Catholic churches. It’s just a shame that they got Gerry Anderson to do the artwork, however…
Near Toconao is the great Atacama salt flat and, in particular, Lake Chaxa where we saw the flamingos – Chilean Flamingo; Andean Flamingo, (James’ Flamingo was absent) Avocets and many others – you can tell I’m no ornithologist – and we also saw the sunset, which was lovely, our backdrop being the Andes & the lake surrounding us. The lakes & pools are quite shallow and, needless to say, the water is very salty. Watching the flamingos fly is intriguing and watching them come into land on the water was amazing – by this time (just after sunset) the wind had picked up so they were flying sideways – gauging their angles of trajectory with care. As indeed one should…
The name Atacama comes from Accathca – meaning “head of the country” in the language of the Ayllu de Quitor – the native farming people who settled here. They came under the Tiahunaro Empire until around 900ad when that empire crumbled – and then they were ruled by the Inca from 1450…
Then the Spanish came along in 1540 and annihilated them…
Near my hotel is the Pucara de Quitor – a fortress built by the Ayllu de Quitor – it has been restored – not fully, but enough to get an idea of the scale & layout, etc. The fortress is about 1,100 years old. The Ayllu were quite advanced in some ways – they built channels to irrigate fields and terraces to make the most of the steep slopes and poor soil.
You can see various oases dotted around the area and the contrast between the lush vegetation of each oasis & the surrounding desert is stark. Without the irrigation the oases would shrink by about 80%….
We went to see the geysers at El Tatio (aren’t they an Irish brand of crisps?) (actually that’s Tayto – which I think is a great name) – the geysers are at 4,320 metres above sea level (San Pedro is at about 2,400). I’ve never been this high without the aid of Boeing before. I got a little light headed (but not giddy, thankfully) as the air’s a bit thin – but aside from that and the cold, I was fine…
The last time I was anywhere near this high-up was in La Paz (3,640m) back in 2001…
Anyway, we arrived about 7am (oh yes, dear reader – a 3.30am start for this little jaunt) – so saw the sunrise and watched the geysers. The geysers stop around 9 to 9.30am as the sun warms up the area. There were 4 fields of geysers in Chile – one has already gone as the government siphons off the water for the copper mines. El Tatio – the biggest field & the big tourist attraction – will disappear sometime next year as the government needs to siphon off more water for the copper mines – a great shame that these intriguing geological features are disappearing…
The Andes is the second highest mountain range in the world, the youngest and is growing at around 6cm a year. Chile has 20% of the world’s volcanoes – several of which are active. The early tribes that settled here regarded the volcanoes as gods – giving them names and weaving stories around them – sweet, eh?
The Chilean government is building the world’s largest radio telescope array (ALMA) near Chajnantor (at around 5,000m) – it is an international project with funding from the EU; the USA; Canada; Japan as well as Argentina & Brazil. With 300 clear nights a year you can see why they would site it here. It should be finished by 2013. Watch out aliens – we’ll be Googling you soon – Alpha Centauri isn’t as far away from our prying eyes as you might think…
http://www.almaobservatory.org
Not far from San Pedro de Atacama is Aldear de Tulor. Tulor is an abandoned village dating back around 3,000 years. Nearby are the Domeyko Mountains to the west and the Andes to the right. The Andean volcanoes of Licancabur; Simbad; Lascar and Pili were held to be rivals of the volcano Llullaillaco in the Domeyko range…
Rapa Nui (Easter Island) – March 2009
I’m somewhere out in the South Pacific – 2,500 miles from Chile – 2,000 miles from Tahiti and 1,200 miles from Pitcairn – the nearest inhabited island.
The statues & the culture here have always fascinated me as it all seemed so mysterious. As it transpires there’s not that much mystery to it – but the story of the island and its people is a sad one – which I wasn’t expecting. I won’t relay the whole story but the edited bits covering the period from 1805 to about 1960 will make you despair (although there is a happy ending)…
So, we’ll start with the nice bits, shall we?
Easter Island is a 5 hour flight from Santiago – Lan Chile business class is a damn fine way to travel – the only downside being a distinct shortage of Champagne – 2 glasses (not even remotely full) & they’d run out – and in case you’re wondering, all my internal flights throughout South America were in economy…
The audio selection is pretty good by airline standards & I was able to create a play list from the tracks available – including, believe it or not, Cheap Trick – a bit of a blast from the past – and this helped make up for the parsimonious flight.
Easter Island is very pretty – surrounded by a sparkling, bright blue Pacific Ocean with blue sky & a fierce old sun to complete the idyllic picture. Outside the town it is very green with hills & valleys galore – plus the one fine beach – oh and the spooky statues staring vacantly at the sky – of course, the odd Pisco Sour enhances things somewhat…
There are quite a lot of trees planted now – and thanks to Thor Heyerdahl* a native tree has been saved from extinction – there are 3 planted in the garden of the Hotel O’tai, where I’m staying – sadly a lot of Eucalypts have also been planted, which has naturally upset a lot of people here (they shed bark which acidifies the soil & they suck up water like billy-oh)…
*Nowadays Norwegians no longer have to come here by raft – in 1998 the law was changed to allow them to fly here…
It seems the original settlers came here from either the Marquesas Islands or Mangareva at some point between 400 – 600 AD. The Marquesas are a group of 12 islands about 875 miles from Tahiti and are part of French Polynesia. Mangareva is the largest & most populated island of the 14 Gambier Islands – again, part of French Polynesia and about 1,000 miles from Tahiti.
The settlers appear to have brought tools, food, plants & animals when they came to Rapa Nui – so they must have known what to expect having, presumably, been before…
The island is 171sq.km. – (66 sq. miles) – so not very big but it did have a forest of Palm Trees – as well as other trees – and craters held drinking water – fed by underground springs. Obsidian was available for making tools & weapons. Once settled, the people spread across the island but they resorted to slash & burn farming methods in order to clear land to plant crops & graze animals. Once the forest cover had gone then soil erosion set in and, just to compound things, having knocked down or burnt all the trees they couldn’t then make canoes to go fishing or escape…
The settlers built houses of stone – being a volcanic island there was (& still is) plenty of rock for building and for carving the statues (moai) that we know about today. The settlers were good at reading the stars, too, and used a magnetic stone they had brought with them to help create a calendar and determine equinoxes.
Given that the magnetic stone – which can still be seen – is not native you’d think it might be possible to work out where that came from. It’s quite a big old piece of rock, too – so the craft bringing it couldn’t have been that flimsy.
The moai stand on platforms (ahu) – which are essentially graves – the ahu contain bones and each moai represents a chief who had died. The society was divided into clans (mata) and the island split between east & west. The original king claiming the west for him & his immediate clans and the east was given to other, lesser clans. The moai were carved by craftsmen who were prized for their skills. How the moai were moved from the central quarry is a matter of conjecture – either “walked” on flint stones with the aid of ropes or rolled on tree trunks, again with the aid of ropes – no one knows for sure.
The moai were carved from the soft porous rock taken from the volcanic cone – which is one reason why they are in such a bad state today – erosion & lichen have taken their toll. The eyes were made from coral with stone inset to represent the pupils. The top knots (pukao) – which may have represented head-dresses – were made from the much harder red scoria. One pukao is 2m in diameter & weighs 11.5 tons – so how they got the pukao onto the head of the moai is also a mystery…
Today there are about 360 moai visible – varying between 2m and 9m in height. The moai were arranged on ahu – the longest ahu being 60m with 15 moai standing on it. This is probably the most photographed group of moai as they were restored to their vertical positions in 1996 by a Japanese consortium in conjunction with the government. One even has its pukao in place..
In total there were about 800 to 1,000 moai made – many are still either buried or with only their heads visible above ground at the quarry. Indeed you can still see the largest moai ever carved – it is 20m long and estimated to weigh 270 tons – it wasn’t finished and so is still horizontal in the quarry not fully carved out – one suspects they abandoned it when they realised they had no means of moving it or erecting it.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-44466163
By the way – this type of statue can be found in the Austral Islands as well as Tahiti (although I didn’t see any when I was there) and the Marquesas – so they aren’t unique to Easter Island.
When Captain Cook arrived in 1774 he found only one moai standing – this was later found toppled in 1786 when the next European vessel arrived – so what happened?
Well: the population grew to an estimated 7,000 people- which is a lot for a small, isolated island (today it’s around 4,500). The people finally realised that having destroyed the forests in order to move the moai and to support their slash & burn farming, this meant no more canoes to go fishing or escape to another island. The soil was being eroded by the wind and the rain and so crop yields were lower – making it even more difficult to support the burgeoning population.
A warrior class emerged – and with the resulting internecine fighting – villages were destroyed and the moai toppled. A new religion emerged based on a creator god called MakeMake and a bird-man cult established. Each year there was a contest between the clans – the chief of the clan whose team was the first to acquire the first bird’s egg of the season became island leader for that year.
As things appeared to have calmed down and some kind of order and harmony restored – then life should have been ok for the Easter Islanders – shouldn’t it? And in fairness to the first European visitors – they came for supplies and left well alone. Jacob Roggeveeen a Dutch explorer was the first European to visit the island – which he did on Easter Sunday in 1722 – hence the name. Don Felipe Gonzalez landed in 1770 and claimed the island for Spain – but didn’t stay. In 1774 Captain Cook arrived and then Comte de la Perouse in 1786.
No – what did it for the islanders follows next.
In 1805 whaling ships started calling in at the island and kidnapping people to work on the boats. In 1862, 8 ships from Peru captured 1400 islanders (about 30% of the population) and took them back to Peru. Those that didn’t die on the voyage died soon after landing. There was a public outcry and the Peruvian government outlawed the kidnapping or enslavement of the Easter Islanders. Sadly the kidnapping did not stop then – more were kidnapped and taken to Peru. The government ordered that these people should be sent back to Easter Island. And so 470 islanders were packed onto a vessel designed to accommodate 160 – by the time the vessel reached Rapa Nui only 15 were left alive – and they all had smallpox. Released into the community, these 15 souls infected the population which was soon decimated by the smallpox virus…
The years 1860 to 1877 brought more hardship as a villainous French naval officer, Dutrou Bornier, effectively took over the island – the islanders were restricted to Hanga Roa – the town on the island – whilst the rest of the island became the Frenchman’s fiefdom. A well-meaning French mission tried to assist the islanders but without success.
In 1888 Chile took control over the island – the 12 leaders who signed away their sovereignty must have naively assumed the Chileans would treat them fairly. No such luck. Control of, and responsibility for, Easter Island was given to the Chilean Navy who treated the island & the islanders with contempt. A visiting English lady – Katherine Routledge – witnessed an uprising in 1914 and was impressed by the way the islanders behaved and conducted the uprising – after all, they just wanted decent living conditions and their island back…
From 1860 to around 1950, Easter Island was effectively just a ranch – with the islanders penned in the town – living conditions in the town were poor and life fairly grim – many islanders accepted inducements to leave to Chile or to Tahiti…
See www.islandheritage.org – for a more complete history.
Life did not start to improve until 1967 when piped running water was made available and in 1970 electricity was introduced. Today the islanders own the land – no one from outside can own land – there seems to be a degree of harmony & prosperity. Life is still not exactly easy as so much has to be imported – and just to make life interesting there’s no natural deep-water harbour. Ocean going craft anchor out at sea & Zodiacs (or their equivalent) go out to collect goods from the ships. It must be a nightmare unloading cars or building material.
There is an independence movement but – as my guide Sabina said – what use is independence? How could such a small, remote island survive independently? They would like more autonomy but generally regard Chile (now) as a benign state- certainly there is investment now.
Except for this: http://www.sabinabecker.com/2010/12/easter_island_wtf.html
My guide – the fabulous Sabina – was a font of knowledge & passionate about the island; its heritage; traditions and culture – so if you come here, book Rapa Nui Travel – www.rapanuitravel.com – and see if you can get Sabina to guide you…
Do not come here for more than 3 or 4 nights, though – unless you’re the sort that can switch their brain into stand-by mode. It’s not that Hanga Roa is a one-horse town – it isn’t. There are lots of horses roaming the streets and country lanes – which can make walking and driving interesting. But once you’ve done the tours (2 days) then that’s pretty much it.
I have been exceptionally lucky here, though – not only in having the wonderful Sabina as a guide I also met the equally wonderful & lovely Nicola Banks – a fabulous English woman who is nearing the end of her travels – having been to Ecuador, Peru; Bolivia; Chile – and now Easter Island – as I write she is flying back to Chile for a few days & then back to Cambridgeshire…
Nicola is the epitome of the classic English lady – always in total control – always calm (patient & long suffering) (ha!) – frighteningly capable – extremely funny – supremely smart with a never ending store of fine tales and just brilliant company – safe journey home Nicola!
I still haven’t written much about Santiago and I fly to New Zealand tomorrow…
Update February 2025 – an interesting article from The Guardian: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/feb/19/rapa-nui-easter-island-science-extinct-endemic-tree-sophora-toromiro?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other
Land of the long white cloud
Greetings from Auckland – this is the start of day 3 in New Zealand. You should have seen the place yesterday – anybody would think that St. Patrick was the Patron Saint, Saviour, landlord and Governor General of New Zealand all rolled into one…
Still, any excuse for a Guinness…
I missed my friends Lauchlan & Abi in Auckland – they left at 01.10 on the 15th and I arrived at 03.30 on the 16th. Planning is as important as timing…
That was a big shame as it would have been lovely to see them & learn a bit about Auckland from a Jafa…
Anyway, after the big excitement of the 17th – i.e. St Patrick’s Day – came the 18th, St Hangover’s Day, whereupon I duly left a slightly subdued Auckland behind in my Toyota Sprinter as I – er, sprinted – across the harbour bridge following Highway 1 northbound…
I sprinted out of Auckland on the motorway. It transpires that NZ has about 8 miles of motorway going north from Auckland and about 15 miles going south from Auckland and that would appear to be it – so much like East Anglia, driving anywhere takes a while. Just to add to the fun, NZ has dubbed itself “road-works capital of the world” – well, many hurrahs for that. It seems that there are two reasons for this: one being a government-funded initiative to create work and the second is that with so much seismic activity the roads are in constant need of repair anyway. All the more reason why not to hire a Toyota Sprinter…
You’ve probably never heard of this model – it’s a variation on the Toyota Corolla saloon of 1998/99 – although quite why the automotive world needs a Corolla variation is something of a mystery. It lacks grip, power, a decent gearbox & decent brakes – but apart from that…
To be fair – having done over two thousand kilometres in 4 days it has loosened up but goodness me it’s hard work – especially on the hilly-bits (of which there are lots) with hair-pin and swooping hair-pin bends (of which there also lots)…
My fault, I know – I rented the cheap option instead of getting the Ford Focus (moron!) – I’ll see if it can be changed in Wellington before heading south…
The Kiwis are spirited drivers, so even though the police here are hot on speeding – like their Australian counterparts – Kiwis will hack along merrily. I could make you cringe by telling you I’ve been overtaken by a Daihatsu Charade and any number of Honda Odysseys – and that’s bizarre – why are there so many Honda Odysseys here?
I’ve seen several ERF’s and lots of Fodens – so for any of you for whom Sandbach means more than just a service station on the M6 – spare a thought & shed a tear for the passing of England’s once-great engineering heritage (albeit latterly with Cummins engines rather than faithful Gardners)…
Anyway, the point is: in a ute race between an Aussie & a Kiwi – back the Kiwi…
I headed north to Cape Reinga – having passed Mairangi Bay (thought I’d get the container ships out of the way on day one) – the drive north is lovely – through rolling pastures, gorges, forests and hills. From Kaitaia you run parallel with 90-mile beach to Cape Reinga – which is lovely and how Land’s End in Cornwall should be…
I stayed in Kaitaia & drove down to Tauranga, via the Coromandel Peninsula, the next day – lots more scenery & ocean views. If you’re down that way & fancy a good Chinese then go to the East Ocean Chinese Restaurant in Tauranga – extremely good food, freshly cooked and really yummy…
From Tauranga I went to Gisborne via WalkieTalkie (Whakatane); Te Kaha & Ruatoria – yet more scenery and ocean views. Now most of you will know Gisborne from Sir Guy of Gisbourne and the adventures (all true) of Robin Hood. It seems a bit sad that – having been chased out of Nottingham – Sir Guy ended up here – but maybe it’s a fitting end – anyway, that’s folklore for you…
I stayed in Gisborne – but daftly chose a motel some way out of town. The motel was, however, quite close to the Wild Food Café & World Café that serves Gisborne Gold – a fine local beer and incredibly friendly service…
Moving swiftly on – but sadly not in quite the right direction – I went out on Highway 2. The good bit was that I drove through a 58km gorge following the Waioeka River – just stunning and enjoyable even in the Toyota Tepid – but it did mean ending up in WalkieTalkie again – not quite the end of the world as Wakatane is a lovely place – and I quickly picked up the road works to Rotorua…
From Rotorua I headed out to Taupo and picked up a Dutch hitch hiker (hitsch huyjker, shurely?) – she seemed to have more bags with her than seemed either plaushible or, indeed, shenshible (thatsh enough Dutsch) and surprisingly for a Dutch person not overly chatty. Still, she had been in NZ for several weeks & had been down to the South Island. She is now just killing time until her Chinese visa arrives. She didn’t find the joke about only 75% of the Dutch population being allowed in the Netherlands at any one time remotely funny – and, if this were possible, even less so once I’d explained it (twice – she didn’t understand the first time) – you lose some – you lose some more – anyway, I dropped her & her mountain of luggage safely in Taupo town centre…
I’m here for 2 nights – it’s a great place with lots of good bars & restaurants and the motel I’m staying at is pretty swish, too (Lake Taupo Motor Inn). I’ve booked my balloon flight in Hawke’s Bay for the 24th – so I’ll stay in Hastings for 3 nights in case they can’t actually fly on the 24th.
After that I’ll head down to Masterton to see if Emma’s mother is up to receiving a visitor – then Wellington and then to the south island.
One thing you can’t fail to notice as you drive through the forests here is the number of ferns – NZ has around 164 types of fern – many endemic – and some grow up to 8 metres in height – they are lovely – well, if you like ferns they are. Given that hacking down trees (logging) appears to be a national sport – as in many countries it’s a sensitive subject – it makes you wonder how long some of these species of fern will survive…
Well – the drive from Taupo to Hastings via Highway 1 and then Highway 54 was really quite splendid – such a beautiful country – from Alpine meadows to gorges to mountains to forests to high country covered in gorse & heather to lush valleys and pastures – it’s almost like someone from a design agency has put this country together. It’s just as well New Zealand is tucked away in the furthest corner of the earth – all the other countries must be seething with jealousy at how lovely it is…
Anyway – I’m now in Hastings awaiting instructions re-the balloon flight that patently will not take place tomorrow – i.e. the 24th – and not the 26th now, either – but hey, Plan B…
Hastings is not the sort of place you’d normally stay for 3 nights – or at least not voluntarily – it is quite sweet, however. The town was largely destroyed by an earthquake in 1931 – it also caused massive damage to Napier and over 250 people were killed. Both towns were rebuilt in an art deco style – and fortunately both town centres have been largely preserved. They even have art deco street lights…
Hastings has also lined the town centre streets with hanging baskets and flower pots – it’s just a shame that the pots & baskets only have either white flowers in them or pink flowers in them. A riot of white flowers doesn’t quite work…
There’s a railway line running through the town – and indeed through the central fountain. Bizarre. There are no passenger trains now – just freight.
Tomorrow I’m driving down to Masterton to have dinner with Emma’s mother & step-father – which I’m looking forward to….
Kia Ora! – which, as Lauchlan has reminded me, is a Maori greeting meaning “be well” or “be healthy”…
Some Kiwi-isms:
Scroggin – a mix of fruit, nuts & grains (& sometimes chocolate) – it’s meant to be a healthy, nutritious snack you take with you when you go hiking (or a “tramp” as the Kiwis say)
Didymo – you see signs for this all over the place – Didymo is an algae that is thriving in New Zealand waterways & is regarded as a pest as it clogs up river beds, lakes and waterways
1080 – is a pesticide used for the eradication of possums. In NZ they regard possums as a pest & believe that they spread bovine TB in the same way that the UK authorities believe badgers spread bovine TB…
manchester – lower-case “m” – is bed linen
After a lovely meal in Masterton with Emma’s mother & stepfather (Joan & James), I left the next day to drive down to Wellington – having been told that the drive was spectacular.
Well, when you sit out on the deck of Joan & James’ house you get fabulous views of the Tararua Range of mountains (peaking at 1571m) – in winter the peaks are dusted with snow – so a lovely backdrop and left me wondering how the drive to Wellington could improve on that.
Highway 2 runs through the Tararua National Park and the southern end of the Tararua Range – and it is indeed spectacular as you wind up through the hills & gawp down into the ravines…
I went up the cable car in Wellington – the cable cars are obviously Swiss – and a neat way to get to the city from the botanical gardens (and vice-versa, clearly). I stayed in a hotel opposite the park – handy for the city & the inter-island ferry terminal. Nearby I discovered a fantastic little Japanese restaurant called Leafee on Tinakori Road – across the road from the smart Speight’s Ale House…
The ferry crossing was nice – very calm & very beautiful as you come into Queen Charlotte Sound, South Island – the crossing takes 3 hours & “tin” minutes – but the ferry is well equipped with bar, cafe & lots of outside viewing space – so there’s enough to keep you occupied (Buquebus please take note) – plus, of course, the scenery as you come into Picton is – er – “awesome” as Kiwis are somewhat over-fond of saying…
From Picton I drove to Westport – which wasn’t Plan A – a quiet place on a Saturday afternoon & mostly closed – gets lively from about 7, though, as the pubs fill up & everyone comes out to watch the rugby games on big screens that they probably watched earlier in the afternoon on smaller screens…
Anyway, after Westport I drove down to Greymouth in order to pick up highway 73 which crosses the island via Arthur’s Pass – a quite spectacular journey, really beautiful, and ended up in Methven as I’d booked a balloon flight for the morning of the 30th…
Methven – near Christchurch – and I’m here to go ballooning – or at least I was but mother nature decided to give the blue skies & sunshine a rest today – much like she did in Hastings on the 24th – Long White Cloud, indeed…
Now, despite the on-set of autumn in New Zealand, the weather since I’ve been here has been fabulous – so the beautiful scenery is enhanced by the good weather making it even lovelier – with two exceptions. The 24th & today (30th) have both dawned grey, wet & miserable – so Aoraki Balloons couldn’t fly this morning – fingers crossed for tomorrow, eh?
Kia Ora from Oamaru!
This is the furthest south I’ll be able to make it as I’m now going back to Methven to see if I can go ballooning tomorrow morning…
Mother Nature is being capricious – but I guess that’s her prerogative – and after 2 grey, wet days it has once again dawned bright & sunny…
One of the balloon pilots with Aoraki Balloons is from Preston, would you believe? Aoraki is the Maori name for what we call Mt Cook.
Oamaru is a fascinating town with some astonishingly fine buildings – it might not qualify for UNESCO World Heritage Site status but it is certainly a town for New Zealand to be proud of. A lot of this is due to a Dunedin architect called Robert Lawson and two Oameru architects – Forrester & Lemon. The city’s heyday was from around 1880 until around 1930. A visit to the Criterion Hotel is certainly a must as it has a fine selection of beers – including a couple from Emerson’s of Dunedin – which were good.
If you read the blog http://fushnchups.co.nz – you’d get the impression that all Kiwi beers are awful. Certainly the mainstream ones are all uniformly dull – such as Tui; Waikato and Speight’s Special. They are like John Smith’s or Boddington’s keg beers – bland & boring. But there are some beers worth searching out – such as Emerson’s; Mac’s make the excellent Hop Rocker & Brewjolais (hmm); the Gisborne Gold is worth a mention as a clean, malty lager and even Speight’s Summit is good. Monteith’s beers – despite their claims – I found dull.
Anyway, I mention that as a distraction – of course – as you really wanted to know about the blue-eyed Penguins. Well – they were all at sea, so I didn’t see any. I saw lots of Cormorants but that’s not very exciting. Near Oameru there’s also a colony of yellow-eyed Penguins as well – allegedly…
Talking of cars – which we weren’t – there are a couple of oddities on sale here you might like to Google: Toyota Raum; Toyota ist; Toyota Levin; Toyota Caldina; Mitsubishi Emeraude and the Nissan Presea. I haven’t made any of those up, by the way – but quite why any of them made it into production is a mystery. I went to the car & tractor museum in Geraldine – which was actually very interesting – although they didn’t have a Leyland P76, sadly. The people at the desk were very jolly & welcoming – wanting to know where I came from, etc. On hearing that I was English they said – “Oh – the English always say that New Zealand is like England was 40 years ago. What do you think?”
No it isn’t.
I’ve heard this several times and is just the most bollocky-bollocks ever. Who on earth could compare 1970’s England with New Zealand – and why?
The towns & cities are like those in Australia or the USA. The scenery could be compared to various different countries as it is so varied.
In rural New Zealand it is indeed very green, relaxed & friendly. But it still has more in common with Australia or the USA. Anyone who has travelled in rural USA will tell you how friendly the people are – that they don’t bother locking their cars or houses, etc.
Any idea of a similarly idyllic England is either myopic or hopelessly romantic. Blame it on the cucumber sandwiches…
Now – will the weather improve such that I can go up in a balloon? The lovely Jackie at Aoraki Balloons assures me it will be…
Thursday April 2nd did indeed dawn bright & beautiful – just as Jackie had predicted. Up early before sunrise we set off for a suitable take-off point about 16km from Methven – in the direction of the hills. The pilot – Graham Church – is indeed from Preston with a grand Lancashire accent to match! Terrific! Graham has been in NZ since November flying for Aoraki – he goes back to the UK at the end of April to fly balloons in Lancashire for the season (season? – is he sure there will be a “season”??)
In addition to Graham there were 11 passengers: 2 Israeli women; an English couple on honeymoon, 6 assorted Kiwis & me…
On arriving at the take-off field we had to help get the balloon ready – unpacked; unfurled and inflated (takes lots of puff). Eventually we were ready & climbed aboard. It was a stunning morning – very clear & still; bright blue sky & bright sunshine creeping over the horizon. Rural New Zealand is a very beautiful and tranquil place. The field was at about 1300 feet above sea-level and we rose initially to about 2800 feet to draw roughly level with Mount Somers. We could see Mount Hutt and Mount Cook very clearly, too. We then drifted down to gawp at the fields & rivers; cattle & crops – the ocean in the distance – before coming down to a perfect landing…
Methven is not the kind of place you’d normally spend 3 nights – but it does have a few things to recommend it. Aoraki Balloons – www.nzballooning.com – and the friendly, chatty Jackie (obviously) – it being the main ballooning centre for the South Island; its proximity to Mount Hutt makes it a popular skiing base in winter and I can thoroughly recommend Brinkley Resort – www.brinkleyresort.co.nz. The Blue Pub – it is painted blue – www.thebluepub.co.nz – is a great place for beer and food and Cafe 131 does the best breakfasts in New Zealand – plus great service from the lovely women there.
Now you might think that a wild and outlandish claim and one that could not reasonably be substantiated. But I tell you – Cafe 131 does bacon you can eat. OK? Need I say more?
There are two things that New Zealand cannot do to save its life: baked beans – uniformly disgusting things obviously created by someone with a hatred for them & supported by a conspiracy that prevents Heinz from selling their beans here and, secondly, bacon. They have for some bizarre reason invented a cut called “the loin” – which is between 70% to 80% fat depending on where you go. What is wrong with back bacon, you Kiwis? Give tourists back bacon – it isn’t much to ask…
Whilst driving through the country you’ll see lots of majestic Australasian Harriers – a swooping and a hovering – beautiful to watch & help you forget the generally poor bacon available here…
I used www.aatravel.co.nz throughout to book motels – all good value although some were further from town than I’d have liked – that was my fault, clearly – but all I stayed at were very good.
I spent my last weekend in Wellington – have to say I love this city. It has a nice buzz to it – it also has a fresh-old wind that blows in off the harbour and keeps things lively. It has the great Te Papa museum; the Mac’s Brewery bar – with good beer, good food & a great outside area overlooking the harbour and it has several good book shops. I should just mention Unity Books in Wellington; Scorpio Books in Christchurch and Muir Books in Gisborne – as they stand out like beacons in an otherwise impoverished land.
I’ve just finished Tana French’s The Likeness & am just starting The Woods by the same lady (the wrong order by the way – but still)…
So – after a night in Blenheim; two nights in Wellington & a night in Hamilton – I am now at Auckland airport ready to fly to Melbourne. I handed back the Toyota Sprinter (it’ll be glad of the rest) and while I would recommend Apex Cars to anyone as they have a useful deal that includes a return trip on the Interislander ferry – a) select a decent model and b) the map they give you to find the return place at the airport is hopelessly misleading. It is actually quite easy to find – just don’t try & follow their map!
See: https://www.stuff.co.nz/ for news on all things New Zealand…
Haere Ra!
Australia – April 2009
G’Day…
I left Auckland on the 6th April – it was the third time I’d flown out of Auckland but on the previous two occasions I had been in-transit – this time I could finally say I’d seen something of the country. I didn’t make it down to Dunedin, Invercargill and Queenstown – but that just gives me an excuse to go back…
Flying into Melbourne was depressing. After the lush green pastures of New Zealand it was sad to see the country around Melbourne so dry. Having flown into Melbourne & driven around Victoria so often during the last 10 years I should be used to it. Sometimes I wish I could do as the Crowded House song suggests and “take the weather with (you)”…
Immigration & customs were a breeze – a very friendly Aussie bloke at the immigration desk made me welcome & the bags came out pretty quickly. You can forgive an airline & an airport a lot if your bags appear quickly. Then I darted across the concourse to the airport Hilton – not that I’ve stayed there very often but I did get my usual room…
Next morning I flew to Brisbane – which sounds daft – why not fly from Auckland directly to Brisbane? Well – that comes down to lack of planning & foresight and a total lack of understanding what Easter entails (not the island – the religious festival, clearly) – what a plonker!
Anyway, Gae very sweetly picked me up from the airport and took me into the city – I had booked into the Quay West apartments opposite the Botanical Gardens. I was given a 17th floor room with amazing views over the gardens and the sweeping Brisbane River…
I hadn’t been in Brisbane for about 2 years – so it was lovely to catch up with Gae and her daughters again. Gae’s daughter Penny is living & working in Melbourne now but Annie is back in BrisVegas after a brief and not overly enjoyable trip to London…
On Easter Saturday we went to Mount Tambourine – where they have a cheese maker with an excellent range of cheeses including – wait for it – “Cow Philly” – and a brewery that makes an interesting range of beers. They do a neat tasting tray – 4 tasting glasses for $10 – a clever idea – (www.mtbeer.com and www.witcheschasecheese.com.au) – I later discovered that the Portland Hotel in Melbourne does the same kind of thing (www.portlandhotel.com.au) – “noice” as Kath &/or Kim would say….
We stayed over in Burleigh Heads, on the Gold Coast, as the guests of Bianca & Vikki – Bianca turfing her daughter Natasha out of her own bedroom so that I could sleep in there – I did say a very sheepish thank you to Natasha but a louder one mightn’t go amiss: thank you very much indeed, Natasha!
On Easter Monday I caught up with Michael & Kelli and the very sweet Samantha (8-months old) for lunch. I hadn’t seen Michael & Kelli since their trip to the UK in March 2006. Anyway, we had lunch at Eve’s on the River – which was great (Gae & I had met the lovely Victoria there for a glass of wine a couple of days earlier) – Michael & Kelli insisted on paying for lunch which was extremely generous of them & then they took me back to Gae’s house…
Now, the area where Eve’s, and where Victoria lives, is called Teneriffe (yes, double-ff). It has been called this for over 100 years & the Teneriffe wharves were the centre of the wool export trade. Now the old wharves have been turned into very fancy apartments & bars & restaurants – the area has been regenerated very nicely. I haven’t been able to find out why they call it and spell it Teneriffe, though….
I then flew back down to Melbourne – Gae very kindly taking me to the airport – and to an appointment that Gae had set up for me with Foster’s – yes, the mighty Foster’s.
I met a very interesting HR lady and talked about the wine market in the UK & in Australia – I’d like to think I came across as knowing what I was talking about – which would have made a refreshing change…
I then caught up with friends, and ex-colleagues, Peter & Antoinette for dinner – well, I say dinner – more banquet – and Nicole Andrews joined us – so it made for a very convivial evening – we drank a Domain Day Saperavi 2004 – a modest 12.5%abv and very pleasant – but I wish Brown Brothers would make one as I’m sure Wendy & her team could produce a real stunner – we did then have the Brown Brothers Noble Riesling 2006, which was fabulous…
In a flight of fancy I then went back to Brisbane again – this time staying at the swanky Stamford Plaza – where Gae had got me a room upgrade to a very swish junior-suite (bigger than my flat), complete with stunning views over the river – and managed to get us a table at Ecco (they were fully-booked when I phoned) – by coincidence Ecco got a great review in that weekend’s edition of the wine & food section in The Weekend Australian. Annie works at Ecco along with her boyfriend Alan – who is the Sommelier – the service was impeccable (obviously!); the food was extremely good and we had an excellent Albariňo (Spanish not Australian), too – a lovely weekend all round…
So – having managed to lose some weight in South America – I proceeded to put it all back on in Australia…
I did not get time to visit everyone – nor did I have time to go to Milawa – I’ll save that for my next trip down-under but in the meantime – thank you so much to Gae for her never-ending kindness & hospitality – long may the bright lights of Brisbane continue to shine …
Talking of cars – which we weren’t – it never ceases to amaze me how many different vehicles Toyota makes – I’m assuming that most are just variations derived from core platforms – but it just seems bonkers – how do they ever keep track of them all? They must have a legion of brand managers and marketing people – and the sheer cost of type-approval; design; manufacture – not to mention the squillions of components – and yet they presumably all maintain Toyota’s legendary quality & reliability…
For instance over here they have the Innova; the Wish; the Vios; the Fortuner & the Isuzu MU7 (a variant of the Fortuner) in addition to the usual Yaris, Corolla & Camry, etc. It makes you wonder – it’s either fiendishly clever or niche marketing gone mad – no idea which…
I’ve been catching up with reading, too – having read very little in South America. I came across Qiu Xiaolong & his enjoyable series of Inspector Chen mysteries that are set in Shanghai and give an insight to the changing life of China; a couple more Colin Cotterill books that are not related to his excellent Dr Siri books that are set in late 1970’s Laos – “Evil in the Land Without” is interesting for its comments on Burma (Myanmar) & “Pool and its role in Asian Communism” – which I’m still reading.
I’m also reading “Fool” – Christopher Moore’s latest book and have to say I’m struggling with it (never thought I’d say that about a Christopher Moore book) (I must be getting old) (I mean really old). And I’ve read several George Pelecanos books – gritty books set in Baltimore & Washington DC – he was also involved in the series “The Wire” – so if you liked that you’d enjoy his books…
In terms of non-fiction, I’ve recently finished “In Search of Kazakhstan” by Christopher Robbins – which was very interesting indeed – excellent book; “I was a Potato Oligarch” by John Mole – interesting but a bit odd at the same time – I’d be intrigued to know what Penny would make of it as it is about trying to set up a business in Russia – and have at long last started “Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee” by Dee Brown – which is astonishing and painfully sad at the same time. I’ve got Simon Payaslian’s history of Armenia to read next…
A few months ago I read “From Russia with Lunch” – a truly awful title for an excellent book on Lithuania by David Smiedt – reading about former Soviet states is heart-breaking because of the suffering caused – primarily by Stalin and his regime and then to read what the settlers in America did to the native Americans – anyway, I started thinking about this travelling & reading malarkey – there is only so much you can take-in; only so many books you can read; cd’s you can listen to & countries you can visit – oh terrific! – bumper-sticker philosophy strikes again – but how you choose…
Thailand – April 2009
Sawasdee
Greetings from a very wet Bangkok. In fairness the first week was simply hot and humid – but it rained heavily on Sunday (26th) and even more heavily yesterday, resulting in flooded roads throughout the city. Judging by the colour of the sky I’d say there will be a further deluge today…
When I got on the BA flight from Sydney to Bangkok – you know, the quirky arse-about-face seating layout they have in business class – I did something I’d not done for 11 weeks – yes, I read an English daily paper…
Lovely stewardess – really friendly and chatty – kept the Champagne flowing. The in-flight entertainment system was on the blink – I hope to goodness they got it sorted in Bangkok – otherwise the onward flight to London would have been even more boring for the poor souls stuck on there for another 12 hours or so….
So, having let me stay in her very fancy Sukhumvit apartment back in October, Lucy very kindly offered to let me stay on the way back from Australia on this trip. In October I was full of “woe is me” now, of course, it’s the whole Alfred E Neuman “what – me worry?” shtick. What happened to the “inspiration” I was going to find during my 12 weeks of travelling?
Although we went on the 26th (the day after Anzac Day) we went to the war cemetery at Kanchanaburi to pay our respects and to the nearby museum – which is very interesting – but understandably grim. In the museum I read that Thailand had declared war on America & Britain in 1942. Now, I’ve always been ignorant of Thailand’s role/fate during the war – so this statement surprised me and so I looked on the Internet for some background on what happened. Very (very) briefly:
Phibun was the Thai prime minister at the time – having come to power in 1938. He set about modernising the country – and changed its name from Siam to Thailand in 1939. In late 1941 Phibun agreed to collaboration with the Japanese in what he believed was the best interests of the country & its people. By 1944 the tide was turning against the Japanese & Phibun was forced to resign and a pro-Allied Forces government took over. After the war, Phibun was charged with war crimes but acquitted after intense public pressure. He came back to power in 1948 – pursuing moves to democracy and with American support…
Lucy spoiled me by booking a table at the Breeze restaurant at the Lebua State Tower (www.lebua.com) – with drinks at the outside Sky Bar to see the sunset – the Sky Bar being on the 64th Floor and with panoramic views over Bangkok – not for the faint-hearted, though – Lucy wouldn’t go close to the edge. The restaurant we had dinner at was on the 55th floor – again outside and just fantastic – a lovely meal with lovely service…
While in Bangkok I decided to renew my passport – a relatively simple exercise as it meant I could drop it off & then pick it up when ready. It takes 10 working days and cost 6,448 Baht (£124) (not cheap) and the accompanying photo has to be 35 x 45 mm and the head has to be between 65-75% of the picture area. The new passport will be what they call “biometric”. Now, I just assumed it just meant that immigration had found a way of recognising people by looking at them & then comparing their faces to the picture in their passports – but apparently it is even cleverer than that.
It quite clearly states in the bible: “give a man directions and he will be lost for a day – but give a man a map and he will be lost for life” – I’m not sure whereabouts in the bible it says this, but it does – I just get lost every time I try to find it…
Since entering the – ahem – “third age” – I have acquired the unerring knack of always turning in the wrong direction upon emerging from a station or a car park in a new town or city…
I went looking for Diethelm Travel’s office in Wireless Road. Easy: take the BTS to Phloen Chit – wander down to Wireless Road (almost opposite the British Embassy) – cross to the same side of the road as the embassy but turn left & walk away from it. But no. I turned right & wandered for a while in the wrong direction – finally got my bearings, crossed the road & went back in the correct direction (passing the embassy) – only to walk straight past the block that their office is in (no. 140) – walking for ages before giving up, turning round, walking back and seeing the number “140” writ large on the entrance – what an arse. Now, the total distance walked was just a few kilometres – but in the searing heat & high humidity of Bangkok I quickly became quite damp – so it was a real treat to discover that the visit was largely a waste of time as they do everything via phone & internet – still, there’s a trip to Isan I want to do – if I can get a into g – of which I’ve done very little of here, mostly lounging around & reading. See www.diethelmtravel.com – they offer tours throughout SE Asia.
A previous excursion had me setting off to find the BA sales office on Rama 4 Road so that I could change my return flight – again, pretty straightforward – take the BTS Sukhumvit line & change onto the Silom line. For some reason I it got into my head that I needed to get off at Ratchadamri – so having wandered around there for a while I looked at the map again & of course Sala Daeng is the obvious station to get off at – which I then did & of course then proceeded to walk up Rama 4 in the wrong direction…
Of course, you can’t write about Bangkok without mentioning the pavements. In Europe, pavements tend to be for walking on – although we’ve taken to parking cars on them, too. In Bangkok, however, pavements are multi-functional – the Thai for pavement is “baat withee”, by the way. They are home to random fire hydrants; phone boxes that take up 90% of the width; stalls selling all sorts of things, impromptu restaurants, the occasional sleeping dog (left to lie in peace, traditionally) and so on – such that walking along pavements is replaced by weaving as everybody weaves past each other and the various obstacles and occasional cyclist & motor cyclist – plus, you’ll quickly discover, the surface of the pavement is equally random – with pot holes; loose slabs; dips and bumps – requiring careful navigation but the Thais seem to float along quite merrily in their flip-flops (“thongs” to any Australians reading this)…
Bangkok traffic is legendary for being very heavy & slow moving – but then – isn’t that true of most big cities? Crossing the road on a zebra crossing (as opposed to light-controlled crossings) is a challenge – but fun once you’ve mastered the art (art?) – if you’ve ever crossed a main street in either Hanoi or Phnom Penh – then crossing here is a breeze…
I had to phone Lucy to find out how the devil you cross a busy street in Phnom Penh – standing on the pavement gibbering elicited no sympathy whatsoever, let alone assistance. I didn’t fancy 50:50, either, as clearly that would have entailed ending up mashed into various bicycle spokes – so phone-a-friend it was. After the first couple of attempts, however, I was away – like a local…
Sad, isn’t it? I used to be quite good with directions. I even found myself struggling in Melbourne – you can’t get lost in Melbourne as the centre is designed around a pretty straightforward grid – but goodness me you can walk miles if you’re not paying attention…
Well, the Thais had a public holiday on Friday (May 1st) and they have another one on Tuesday (5th) and again on Friday (7th) – the Thais like May as much as the English for the public holidays…
In the meantime I have now finished “Fool” – which is in fact very good – it just required some concentration as it is very clever and finished “Pool and its role in Asian Communism” – which isn’t a great title and it took until page 130 to get into – but the last 2 lines of page 130 should grab your attention and then you’ll be away – well worth reading – now, I really ought to get on & finish some of the others…
This trip is fast coming to a close but – fret not – I’m considering another one – if the second trip goes ahead is anyone out there interested in reading about it? In other words – shall I keep this blog going? Answers on a postcard….
The Death of Korkyt
On the Kobyz a swan’s cry was played
As he crossed the Syr Darya with the
Fifty women that his life depended on
Death came calling disguised as a snake
And he cried: “That’s no disguise!”
But it is when mesmerised by both eyes – seduced
And in an instant falling
Well – the bit about Korkyt was supposed to have been a clue as to the next destination – but I got a bit carried away and Kazakhstan will have to wait for a while. It will be Armenia next – unless Georgia wakes up, in which case it’ll be Georgia next & then Armenia…
So: I got my new biorhythmic passport and, with its organic groove (it’s taking me to funky town), can resume travelling…
I am due to return to Blighty on Wednesday 13th May – a mere 98 days since leaving the UK in February. The term “Blighty” comes from the Hindustani for “home” (vilayati – pronounced bilati) – which was then picked up by British troops serving abroad.
Despite being incredibly lazy, I’ve really enjoyed being here for 3 weeks courtesy of Lucy and her swish apartment in Sukhumvit – feel quite the local now (yeah, right). I’ll have to come back to visit Isan & revisit Laos…
UK – May 2009
Back in the UK after 98 days away.
I arrived into Heathrow on Wednesday 13th – Jenny very kindly met me & brought me back to my flat.
Bless her!
The flight was ok – the route was interesting, though, as we flew over Russia – don’t remember having done that before…
Once at Heathrow I was interested to try out my new biodynamic passport – a bit of an anti-climax as the Border Control lady just looked at it blankly & I thought she was going to tell me it wasn’t valid – I did also wonder if I should point out the photo – you know, so that she could look at it then at me to see if there was a vague resemblance…
When I got back to the flat I sorted out my post into 4 piles: junk; utility bills; finance (that’s over doing it) and others. Travel is all very well – but can the thrill of coming into land at Easter Island really compare with coming home & sorting your post into four piles?
Quite.
So? – did I lose the 15kg? Did I hell! Did I lose the two bags under my eyes? Oh yes…
I never thought I could do this – just take-off and go travelling – but hey…
So I have finalised my trip to Armenia – but that’s not until June 23rd. What to do in the meantime? Well – one thing would be to stop waking up at 4am…