Okay, I know you are getting sick of mountains. But today I took a HELICOPTER to the top of the glacier. I just had to share it with you because it was such a great day!
The views from the helicopter and the top of the glacier were incredible.
Franz Josef Glacier Ice FallMountain Top from the Helicopter
It was also fun to play in the snow on the top of the mountain!
So I won’t bore you with any more commentary. Here are some quick pictures to see what I saw today. If you are not interested, you wont hurt my feelings.
The helicopterThe helicopter pilot – Clark
Have a great day! And remember, you can comment and send me messages directly from the post or email!
Hello!!!! I didn’t realize it had been so many days since my last post until I received a message from one of you asking if she was still subscribed. OOPS!
Yes, I am still here and still enjoying the trip. I was up in what they call here, the Far North. I stayed in a sweet little town called Russell where I met friends of my friend Claire (the woman I shared a room with in the Galapagos).
Russel is a picturesque seaside town that is in the center of an area called the bay of islands. The town itself looks like what Hollywood would create if it were creating the perfect seaside town, complete with cute gulls and interesting murals.
My first full day in Russell, I actually got sick. I felt the cold coming on for a couple of days and then it hit full on. So, I took a nice walk of the town and found the pharmacy. The pharmacist gave me this great homeopathic cough medicine made with ivy leaf extract. It was amazing. Worked in 1 day. Healing power of plants! I bought more to keep on hand for the next cold I get.
The next day, I took a boat cruise on the bay. It was a beautiful clear day with wonderful scenery…
And DOLPHINS!
The boat crew knows most of the dolphins in the bay and can identify them by the dorsal fins. These two are named Bad Jelly (front) and Fuzzy Bum. How a dolphin has a fuzzy bum I do not know.
One of the best sights on the bay is the Hole in The Rock.
We were fortunate on our trip that we got to take the boat THROUGH the hole.
The next day I went to the Waitangi Treaty Grounds. This is where the treaty was signed between the Maori people and the British crown. The grounds contain a carved Meeting House. Visitors can see tradition Maori dance and hear songs and explanations of Maori traditions.
After my day at Waitangi, I enjoyed an evening on the deck of some new friends.
Up in Northland, I also visited the northernmost point of New Zealand and saw some of New Zealand’s tallest trees. Northern New Zealand is really beautiful and I don’t know if I would have ventured up there if I had not met Claire in The Galapagos. I hope to get back there again in the near future.
I am now in the central coast of the North Island in a place called Hawkes Bay. I have a couple more weeks in this beautiful country. Stay tuned for more adventures.
Oh, and driving on the Left gets easier by the day. I have only been honked at once today!
I spent three days in Auckland in a hotel that had the worst internet connection outside of the two poles. I could not log on with my computer no matter how much I tried and the ladies at the desk were no help. Even connecting with the phone was a problem. Don’t stay at the Waldorf (no connection to US company) apartment hotels in New Zealand. You’ve been warned.
Auckland is a lovely city. So clean and organized. It is clear that it is a great place to live; however, there is not much for a tourist to do. The first day was spent walking around and trying to stay awake until a reasonable bedtime.
Harbor Building in central Auckland.
The second day, I had lunch with the daughter of my roommate from the Galapagos. She also took me around to some wonderful parts of the city. Thank you, Megan for a great day.
View of Auckland from Cornwall (?) Park
There is a wonderful little working farm right in Auckland where we saw the lambs! They don’t let you get too close to them but they were still cute.
And then, we saw this guy. I think it’s a rooster of some sort, but he was just too fabulous to leave out.
One wonderful little day trip is to Waiheke Island. It a quick 35 minute ferry ride from Auckland and has some beautiful coastline and nice wineries.
View of Auckland Harbour from the ferryWaiheke Island Rocky CoastBeach on Waiheke IslandVineyards with Sea View – Must be a nice life the winemaker has
There is also a nice little village on Waiheke. Walking around, I came across this shop. I just loved the sign…make sure you can read the slogan. (Sorry to my vegetarian friends.)
Shop in Waiheke Island
I survived my first day with the rental car. Took my time getting to the “motorway” and kept telling myself “keep left, keep left”. Driving got easy pretty fast but I still turn on the windshield wipers every time I try to use the turn signal! At the first stop on the drive North, St Joseph and The Penguin came out of hiding.
Penguin even tried meeting some of the locals…
We all arrived in the Northland in one piece. I am here for about four days before heading back south to Hawkes Bay and then on to the South Island.
I came back to Santiago for a couple of days before flying on to New Zealand. Once again, I got lucky. It rained the day before I got back here and there was more snow in the mountains. The biggest benefit to a day of rain is that the skies are clear (it washes the air, as they say).
Since it was such a clear and gorgeous afternoon, I went up to the top of the Costanera Center Tower (the building whose twin is in SF). The actual name of the attraction is Sky Costanera. It’s pretty overpriced for an elevator ride but the views are incredible.
Even The Penguin was in awe of the view.
The next day I visited the Museum of Memory and Human Rights. If you are unfamiliar with what happened in Chile (and the US involvement) between 1973, I encourage you to read this:
You could also watch the movie Missing, starring Jack Lemon and Sissy Spacek. It’s very good.
Before I talk about the museum, I want to tell you a story. In 1987 (yes, 31 years ago), I came to Santiago for the first time. I was traveling solo around South America for the summer and no, my mother was not thrilled. I arrived in downtown Santiago very late at night. My bus from Mendoza, Argentina was delayed at the border due to snow. I had the address of the local Youth Hostel, but my information was out of date. Pinochet’s government had closed all youth hostels the previous year (which I only learned later).
Luckily, I was in a taxi and my taxi driver was doing everything to help me. We asked around and were given an address. It turned out to be a rooming house for female students at an international studies program in Santiago. They were horrified that I was out on the streets alone that late and insisted I stay with them. I ended up staying five days and learned quite a bit about what was going on in Chile.
One night, a group of us were drinking tea in the kitchen and the national police (Carabineros) pulled up in front of the building. I saw terror on the faces around the table. The Carabineros were looking for someone next door. We saw them take a young gentleman away. The women I was with knew him and told me they would never see him again.
It is one thing to read about what went on all over this continent in the 70’s and 80’s. It was another thing to live it. I got a small taste that night in Santiago but too many lived with terror on a daily basis. Since there are still some 1,000 people missing in Chile, many are still living it. The Museum of Memory and Human Rights’ mission is to ensure that by remembering the past we do not repeat it. It was heart wrenching to see and learn from many recently declassified documents.
The museum itself is very tasteful and very well curated. It does not try to sugarcoat any of the atrocities but also does not strive to make the visitor uncomfortable or depressed.
Exterior of the buildingWhat happens if I forgetWall of the missingNewspaper from the time
The dictatorship lasted from 1973 to 1990. It was only in recent years that the CIA has admitted its involvement in the coup and the extent to which it supported the Pinochet regime.
My final day in Santiago was spent just walking around and visiting another museum: The Museum of Contemporary Art. It’s located in a lovely building next to the Quinta Normal park. Much of the collection is too “installation art” for my taste, but there are some wonderful paintings and several good sculptures.
My next stop is New Zealand. Stay tuned and stay happy!
Do you remember when I posted that I had a problem with an SD card and that I had lost some pictures. Well, I have finally been able to recover them. These were taken on the second day of the Galapagos trip and include a couple of decent photos of yours truly as well as some shots of the Galapagos Penguin.
The weather has not really improved. We’ve had a couple of dry days and then a big storm the other night. Dirt streets afer rain make for muddy boots, and even muddier dogs. On the 20th, I went to the Valle de Arco Iris (Rainbow Valley). Beautiful colored mountains. Our guide told us how rare it is to see so much snow at these “lower” elevations…9,000 ft.
Valle de Arco Iris
Yes, that’s me
In the high valley, we got to see some lovely llamas. They like the cold and snow.
In the afternoon, I visited some beautiful lagoons. The light at sunset was incredible.
The next day, I went to Valle de la Luna. It was so named by a Belgian priest, Gustavo la Paige, who was sent to the Atacama and recognized the historical and geological wealth of the region.
The three “Marias” named by Father la Paige. Rock formations. I think the Maria on the left looks more like an iguana.
Further in to the valley, we hiked up a sandy hill to see the views. I do not like hiking uphill in sand, but the view was worth it!
During the trip, our tour was adopted by a puppy. She was on the side of the road and our bus driver said we could take her with us back to town. Her tag said her name was Kahla and our guide was going to try to find her owners or find her a new home.
Kahla was very thirsty
At the end of a busy afternoon, we stopped for a roadside snack and pisco sour at the top of another hill. The sunset views were spectacular.
And, we all got a chance to get on the roof of the bus for photos!
Stay tuned for updated on whether or not I can get out of here or if I am destined to be stuck in the Atacama until Spring.
The first thing you notice when you get to the Galapagos is how stark everything looks. It is a region of contrasts. On the coast of the islands, it is almost a desert. Up in the highlands there is lush vegetation.
Beauty is everywhere, especially along the shore.
Of course, it’s the animals we all came here to see.
The sea lions are everywhere. I don’t think a day went by that we didn’t see some. And, on a couple of islands, you had to be careful not to trip over them.
The blue footed boobie is perhabs the most famous animal of the islands and they did not disappoint. The instensity of the color of the feet depends on when they last ate. The bluer the feet, the more recent the meal. They are also known as the clowns of the Galapagos and you can certainly see why. Their faces are just so goofy. I fell in love.
The juveniles’ feet arent blue yet, but their faces are still fantastic.
Boobie chicks are really fluffy.
There is also a red footed boobie. Not as common and much shyer (shier?), but we were able to see a few on the second to last day.
They have really beautiful blue faces. Yes, that really is the color.
I am off the boat and back in Quito for a few more hours. I have a flight at 4:15am tomorrow morning to start what will be the travel day from hell. I go from Quito to Lima, Lima to Santiago and then Santiago to Calama. For those of you unfamiliar with South American geography, it would be like flying from New York to Dallas via Chicago and Los Angeles.
The Galapagos were AMAZING. I am still sorting through the photos for a proper post, but below are some teasers. I think I took 500 picutres of Sea Lions and even more of the famous blue footed boobie (is that not the best name in the world). Don’t worry, I won’t post all of them.
I also think I lost some picutres. I had an issue with an SD card being corrupted. I have not lost all hope of recovering them. One that card were pictures of the Galapagos penguin. Something tells me St. Joseph had something to do with the missing picutres.
Anyway, as I said, tomorrow is a LOOONG travel day so I will have time to sort through the remaining pictures and tell you all about my visit to the Galapagos. Here are some picutres to whet your appetite:
The blue footed boobie
A beautiful beach
Pink Flamingo (Hello to Ashbury Terrace and Upper Terrace)
Sea Lions (they are smaller than the California species)
The first thing you notice when you get to the Galapagos is how stark everything looks. It is a region of contrasts. On the coast of the islands, it is almost a desert. Up in the highlands there is lush vegetation.
