GnTnZ's Big Adventure

The End

2010-06-27T21:50:00.000-07:00

Our around the world adventure draws to a close, and it is hard to believe we are at the end – or is it the beginning?

Thanks for sharing it with us, hope you enjoyed it – we sure did!

Here's a brief look at some numbers regarding the journey:

292:      Days Travelling
13:        Countries
29:        Flights
103:      Places We Spent The Night
11:        World Heritage Sites Visited
6,000+ Kilometers Driven In Land Rover (Namibia, Botswana, S. Africa)
1:          Wrecked Land Rover
2:          Presidential Elections Experienced (Botswana, Costa Rica)
4:          Items Lost At Airport Security (2 Knives, 1 Pair Scissors, 1 Horseshoe)
800+:    Approximate number of bird species identified.

Till next time, happy travels!

G

Tahiti

2010-06-27T21:30:00.000-07:00

     Tahiti – last stop on our world tour. We spent 4 days here doing pretty much nothing. Seems that travel fatigue has finally caught up with us and we basically ran out the clock until our return home. Not that this was such a bad thing – the weather was warm, the beach was right across the street, and the supermarket was filled with tasty French food and amazingly fresh hunks of tuna.
     We did manage one trip in to the “big city” of Papeete, where we wandered around downtown, listened to the locals playing their ukuleles on the street corner, and visited the local market (Fresh fruits, more great looking fish, trinkets and some good lunch spots). Also the Orange Festival was on so I walked over there and was treated to a nice display of local dancing.
     We previously thought our Spanish was bad, but we revised that opinion when we realized here in a French speaking country we could count all the French we knew on the fingers of both hands. Luckily the locals were very friendly and helpful to us and we got by.
     Hard to believe we are at the end of our journey and tomorrow we trade the warm tropical breezes for the cold southerlies of New Zealand!

G

Photos of Rapa Nui (Easter Island)

2010-06-24T14:06:00.000-07:00

The crater of extinct volcano Ranokau, one of the few water sources on the island.

Orongo, site of many stone shelters such as this. By far the most substantial structures remaining on the island.

Ahu Vinapu. This statue has been buried upright, probably to protect it from breakage. The platform behind has some fine stonework. Our guide said this prompted Captain Cook to blow it up, looking for gold.

A pukao, or "topknot". These were placed on the top of the moai (statues), and are believed to represent the typical hairstyle. We were amazed at how shallow the bottoms are - it takes some good balance to keep them on top of the moai.

Fallen moai. The moai contained the "mana", or prestige of the men they were modelled after. Enemies would topple the moai in order to try and break the heads off, which would release the mana.

Restored moai near the town of Hanga Roa.

Restored ahu (platform) and moai at Anakena Beach. These are particularly well-preserved - they were buried in the beach sand for many years. Also one of the many free-range horses found on the island.

Moai at Anakena Beach.

Showing detail of carved tatoos and rope (to tie clothing) on the back of a moai.

Ana Te Pahu, a large cave system that was home to many natives. Openings in the cavern were used as gardens. Even today we saw taro, bananas, and grapes growing.

A cave where residents hid from slaving expeditions. The entrance had been filled in and hidden with rocks, leaving only a small passageway.

Ahu Tongariki, with 15 standing moai, is the largest shrine on the island.

Ahu Tongariki, an impressive row of moai. Note the hawk seated on the moai 5th from the left.

Ahu Tongariki.

Although they look like they are lying in state, these moai were in the process of being born when work ceased at Rano Raraku, the quarry where the moai were created.

Work in progress at Rano Raraku. Tana providing some scale.

Moai seeming to sprout from the ground at Rano Raraku.

Zane with a moai that fell during transport. It is believed that the moai were transported standing upright. If they fell over, that was the end of the journey.

Rapa Nui (Easter Island)

2010-06-24T13:41:00.000-07:00

     Rapa Nui, or Easter Island – one of the world's most isolated islands yet world famous and home to the iconic mysterious statues, or moai. A place where a civilization flourished and essentially flared out before “discovery” by Europeans, leaving behind some very unique monuments, and many unanswered questions. Today it is a rather quiet place and does indeed seem far removed from the rest of the world.
     The general theory regarding the history of Rapa Nui is roughly this: settled by Polynesians around 400 to 800AD, the population rapidly expanded in isolation over the next several hundred years, peaking at over 20,000 (today the population is about 4000). Unfortunately, the island was not particularly well endowed with biodiversity, and was unable to support this increased population. This resource crisis led to internal strife and warfare. The stone monuments and statues, mostly erected between 1000 and 1400 AD, were destroyed during the upheaval. By the time of European arrival on Easter Sunday 1722, some of the statues were found to be lying on the ground. By the mid 1800's none were left standing. At this time the population was estimated to be 4,000. In subsequent years slave raids removed about 40 percent of these, and disease reduced the population to about 150, essentially erasing a great deal of the unique culture.
     We spent the better part of two days touring around the island, and were lucky to have as our guide and host a man who had first come here in 1964 as an archeology student. He shared some great insights in to what they found at the time, and how in 45 short years many of the statues have eroded considerably. If some way cannot be found to protect these monuments, it will not be long before many are lost forever.
     Luckily for today's visitors some restoration projects have been undertaken over the years and a number of the statues are now standing (perhaps not exactly in their original location, but they are standing). Even in their various states of deterioration they are massive and impressive. Imagining the amount of work to produce and move them (without beasts of burden or anything beyond the crudest stone tools) is mind boggling.
     Perhaps the most interesting site is the quarry itself, where statues in all stages of completion can be seen. Many have been placed vertically in holes for finishing. The holes have filled in over time, giving the appearance that the massive heads are sprouting out of the ground, a literal statue garden.

Next, and final, stop: Tahiti!

G

Photos of Valparaiso, Chile

2010-06-20T03:41:00.000-07:00

Valparaiso skyline.

Valparaiso is still a working port.

Scenery in old town, corrugated metal clad buildings.

Ascensors help residents up and down the hills. Half train, half elavator, most are well over 100 years old.

The World Cup was a big attraction wherever it was playing.

Fine looking Chilean chiles.

Many dogs in Valparaiso, few as well off as this one.

Artwork, authorized and not, covered many of the buildings we saw.

Valparaiso, Chile

2010-06-20T03:40:00.000-07:00

     From the high desert of Chile, we flew to Santiago and caught a bus to the port city of Valparaiso. Santiago was surrounded by snow-capped mountains and very cold, so we were glad to escape to the slightly warmer environs of the coast.
     Valparaiso has been a port city for a long time – this was the first port that ships would encounter on the west coast as they made their way around the tip of South America. The glory days of the pace were abruptly ended with the opening of the Panama Canal.
     This bit of history seems apparent when looking around the old part of the city – many old buildings, but the majority in some state of disrepair. It is a quite interesting place to wander around, with many alley-like stairways making their way up and down the steep hills, but for me calling it beautiful would be a stretch. The amount of grafitti is amazing, and the large number or dogs roaming the streets leave their decorations on the sidewalks. Of all of the World Heritage Sites we have visited, this was the first one we seriously wondered aloud “Really?”
     That said, we did enjoy our time here wandering the streets detween downpours (had not seen rain since April in Ecuador), and eating way too much at the local cafes. We got up early one day and out to a local place to watch Chile play in the World Cup. We were the only people in the place who did not know everyone else there. It was a successful morning, as the Chileans won their first World Cup match in 48 years. Oh yeah and the food was great too!
     One feature of Valparaiso we really did enjoy were the ascensors. These are a cross between a railway and an elevator, and are sprinkled around the city to help transport residents up and down the steep hills. Most were built around 1900 or before, so in addition to a nice view you get the added excitement that the ancient equipment might fail and send you hurtling down to the bottom.

This is our last stop on mainland South America. On to Rapa Nui (Easter Island)!

G

Photos of San Pedro de Atacama, Chile

2010-06-16T12:18:00.000-07:00

Heavy traffic, downtown San Pedro.

Zane showing some fine sandboarding form.

Tana heading down the dune.

Salt Mountains, Atacama Desert.

Sunset over the Atacama Desert.

View of Moon Valley area of the Atacama Desert.

Zane enjoys the Puritama thermal pools.

Puritama thermal pools, a desert oasis.

Rainbow Valley.

Tana and Nikki in Rainbow Valley.

Furry little burro.

Panel of petroglyphs, many cross-legged men with headdresses.

Life size Llama petroglyph, carved over existing figures.

Fox (pregnant?) petroglyph.

San Pedro de Atacama, Chile

2010-06-16T12:02:00.000-07:00

     After leaving our Bolivian tour, we headed for the small touristy village of San Pedro de Atacama in Chile, happily dropping 2,000 meters of elevation in about 40km. Aside from the lower and warmer climate, we knew immediately we were in a different country – the road was nicely paved and had road signs, the people spoke with a strange accent which we had trouble understanding (the first couple of people we thought simply had lisps), and the cost of living had increased dramatically. Welcome back to the modern world!
     San Pedro is located in the Atacama Desert, one of the driest places on earth, and salty too – the nearby salt flats are the 3rd largest in the world (behind Uyuni in Bolivia and Bonneville in USA). The wide open and quite barren landscape was reminiscent of Death Valley, USA, only with less vegetation.
     Despite the harsh setting the area is rich in archeological history, as there were large organized civilizations here thousands of years ago. We did not make it out to visit any of the ruins, but did manage to see some nice prehistoric rock art.
     San Pedro is one of Chile's main tourist centers and we took advantage of some of the tours offered, going Sandboarding (snowboards + sand dunes), visiting desert hot springs and rock Aat sites, and downhill biking. There was plenty to explore for desert fans such as ourselves and we could have easily spent more time in the area. But sadly, our time is running short and we need to move on.

Next stop, the port city of Valparaiso, Chile!

G

Photos of Desert Tour, Southwest Bolivia

2010-06-12T15:32:00.001-07:00

Lunchtime fun with Llamas.

Uyuni Salt Flats, largest in the world and scenic too!

Salt harvest. Simply scraped off the surface with hand tools.

Isla Incahuasi, center of Uyuni Salt Flats. Supposely the tallest cactus in the world too.

Fun with perspective.

That's not plaster, but a hotel built of salt. Yes, we did lick the walls.

Nice view from salt hotel.

Inca cemetary at village of San Juan. Graves are at least 500 years old.

Desierto de Solili, view from hotel.

Arbol de Piedras, or Tree of Stone.

One of the many high saline lakes we passed.

Laguna Colorado, or Red Lake. 4300 meters high and steaming.

Fumaroles at nearly 5000 meters altitude.

Desierto de Dali. As if painted by the master himself.

Desierto de Dali.

Laguna Verde. Water green from naturally occurring toxic chemicals. Supposedly does not freeze until -20C

Scenery near Laguna Blanca.

Vicuna (wild relative of the Llama) at Laguna Blanca. Incredibly tough animals.

Laguna Blanca, ice and salt.

Fox at Bolivia - Chile border. Our guide assured us he was Bolivian, and sure enough he never strayed onto the Chilean side.

Desert Tour, Southwest Bolivia

2010-06-12T15:32:00.000-07:00

     It is said that a tour through the Uyuni Salt Flats and high southwestern deserts is a highlight to any visit to Bolivia. We could not agree more! We rode for three days in a Land Cruiser from Tupiza to the Chilean border, and witnessed some scenery that was at times simply hard to believe. Sometimes it seemed we were in Utah, sometimes Arizona, sometimes Death Valley, and sometimes another planet entirely.

     The salt flat at Uyuni are the world's largest, and sit at roughly 3500 meters above sea level. We spent approximately 3 eerie hours driving across the wide white expanse, an experience that was slightly unsettling. We spent the night in a hotel made of salt, and just to be sure we did lick the walls, as we guessed most guests do.
     After leaving the salt flats we continued through an incredibly barren, cold, and scenic series of landscapes, often above 4000 meters, sometimes 5000 meters. Even in these enviroments the salty lakes had birds, and we often saw Vicunas (wild relatives of llamas) that seemed to survive on nothing but the thin air.
     We visited a very interesting cemetary near the village of San Juan. Incas, or their antecendants, had carved crypts out of a group of volcanic rock outcrops. Corpses, soon to be mummies, and their worldly belongings were placed in the open cavities, many are still there today for the viewing.
     Another highight was a stop at a nice hot thermal pool at the edge of a saline lake, well above 4000 meters in elevation. The warmth and setting were quite enjoyable. More warmth would have been appreciated, as that night was spent in an unheated hostel – in bed under a pile of blankets by 7PM! Although sorry that the tour was over, we were looking forward to lower elevations and higher temperatures.

On to Chile!

G

Photos of Tupiza, Bolivia

2010-06-12T15:31:00.000-07:00

The town of Tupiza, surrounded by nice scenery.

Saltenas, our favorite Bolivian food.

Buying Tamales on a cold morning at the Mercado.

Some sights reminded us of being back in Utah.

It was good to be out hiking in the desert again.

These fins were remarkably sharp and tall.

Arizona or Bolivia?

Mouth of "el canon" just outside Tupiza, right into the fins.

Tupiza, Bolivia

2010-06-12T15:30:00.000-07:00

We rode the bus for seven hours through the high mountainous desert, mostly unpaved road, to get from Potosi to the small desert town of Tupiza. We enjoyed the more comfortable altitude of 2950 meters. The town itself is rather unassuming (and extremely quiet on the weekend), but luckily it is surrounded by some terrific scenery of the wild west variety. We thought we had been transported to the southwestern USA.

We walked and rode horses through some nice desert canyons and sampled the local food. Really there was not much else to do except roam the dirt streets and climb up to the large statue of Jesus above town and check out the view. We rested up and got ready for the next big thing, a 4x4 tour of Southwest Bolivia.

G

Photos of Potosi, Bolivia

2010-06-04T16:53:00.001-07:00

View over Potosi to Cerro Rico (Rich Hill), a silver mine for nearly 400 years.

Convent of Santa Theresa. After all-white Sucre, it was nice to see some color.

Cathedral, main square.

A courtyard of Casa Nacional De Moneda, a mint from 1572 to the 1950's.

This piece of machinery in the mint, driven by 4 donkeys, was used to flatten silver ingots, which were then made into coins.

Inca or pre-Inca skull, showing deformation characteristic of the ruling class. (Mint museum)

The mint museum holds many fine pieces of silver.

Lock mechanism, made of silver, on Spanish trunk used to transport silver ingots from Bolivia to Spain.

Did not read the sign to try and figure out the deal with the statue of liberty thing, but this pigeon did not seem to care one way or the other.

Feeding pigeons in the main square.

Potosi, Bolivia

2010-06-04T16:53:00.000-07:00

     Potosi is an interesting place, for several reasons. At 4060 meters (or so), it is one of the highest cities in the world. Potosina, the local brewery, claims to be the highest (in altitude) brewery in the world. Potosi's other claim to fame is that silver was discovered here in 1544, during the Spanish Conquest. Spain took full advantage of this, forced the locals to do the dirty work, and the silver of Potosi funded the Spanish Monarchy for nearly 300 years. In the late 1500's and 1600's Potosi was easily the most populated city in the Americas, and had nearly as many people as London or Paris. Surely you knew that, right?
     Today some desperate souls still work the mines, which are now run as a cooperative. Working conditions are terrible, and a few years in the mines is guaranteed to shorten your life considerably. We passed on the opportunity to visit there.
     Otherwise Potosi is a fairly quiet town with loads of colonial buildings and churches to admire. The day we arrived the town was very quiet, as it was a holiday - Corpus Christi. We asked around, but nobody could tell us exactly what it was about, something having to do with 40 days since Easter. We wandered around town (slowly, this is over 13,000 feet!!) and soaked in the sights. The next day we visited the Casa Nacional de Moneda, or National Mint, where coins were made from 1572 until the 1950's. The fortress-like building features a collection of manufacturing hardware from all time periods, as well as a great museum with siver pieces (even a bedpan) artwork, mummies, and Inca artifacts.
While in Potosi we went to a local place for lunch, and the meal was amazing. After a little potato salad, we were served a huge bowl of soup. This was followed by a very full plate of meat with rice or pasta (none could finish), with some ice cream to finish. We were bursting. Cost was USD $7 - for 4 people!

Next - Tupiza Bolivia

G

Photos Of Sucre, Bolivia

2010-06-02T17:51:00.000-07:00

Church of Santo Domingo.

Convento de San Felipe Neri

Plaza Anzures

Is This Boliva or Santa Barbara, California?

Apparently, selling veggies and baskets can be very tiring.

The potato section of the local market.

Cow noses anyone?

Parade in celebration of Santa Maria.

Young fans of Santa Maria.

Brass band on parade.

Sucre, Bolivia

2010-06-02T17:50:00.000-07:00

       Next stop, the city of Sucre, billed as “Bolivia's Most Beautiful City.” We would not argue with this description (Not that we have seen much of Bolivia, yet) The old town of the city features many whitewashed buildings with red tile roofs. We thought we had been transported back to Santa Barbara, California.
     Sucre also has a rich history. This was the site where Simon Bolivar declared independence from Spanish rule in 1809, and is the judicial capital of Bolivia to this day. Also, the city features approximately 100 historic churches.
     We spent a good deal of time walking about the city, enjoying the scenery and eating far too much. We enjoyed the "low" elevation of 2700 eters, and the relatively flat terrain. We found the local market and enjoyed ogling the fruits, veggies, meats, and of course the potato room (this is still the Andes, after all).
     We were also treated to a couple of unique parades (although not nearly as exciting as the big parade we saw in La Paz). First was a religious procession in celebration of Santa Maria, featuring many very well dressed young people, a brass band, and even a banner for Radio Santa Maria FM 95.5. Another evening, we were enjoying dinner on the main plaza, when a candle-lit procession came by. We asked the waiter what was happening, he replied it was a protest against the government. We asked what they were protesting, and he merely shrugged his shoulders.

Next up, Potosi Bolivia.

G

Photos of Cultural Parade, La Paz, Bolivia

2010-05-30T14:16:00.000-07:00

Here are some photos from the Cultural Parade we saw in La Paz.

Luckily Tana had her camera along.

Great costumes. We saw several groups with this style.

Brass band. Note policeman in foreground trying to talk on the phone. It was LOUD.

Andean women strutting their stuff.

Some of the groups were huge.

More great costumes.

La Paz, Bolivia

2010-05-30T07:07:00.000-07:00

     We have spent the last few days in La Paz, Bolivia. Claim to fame - highest capital city in the world, at 3600 meters above sea level. Luckily this is a slightly lower elevation than lake Titicaca, so no problems with the elevation (climbing stairs is a chore, though).
     We find La Paz to be reasonably nice, by South American standards, but not full of historic buildings such as Quito or Cusco. There is an interesting mix of odern high rise buildings ane crumbling adobe wrecks. What you get, more or less, is a fairly prosperous city going about its business.
We spent (at least part of) most days walking around, visiting the fruit and veg market, which was huge and very colorful with the locals in traditional dress. We visited the Coca Museum, which was very interesting, and of course the artisan shopping areas.
     Our biggest score was on Saturday, when a shopkeeper told us there was a cultural event happening in the center of town. We walked down there just after noon and found the main street lined with grandstands, with a parade going on. We got some seats, and were treated to a procession of costumed dancing groups being backed up by brass bands. The costumes were quite varied and spectacular, and moany of the groups had about 200 members, some of the bands had up to 10 sousaphones. We watched for about an hour, and the groups just kept coming. We then wandered back to our hotel, the street was full of vendors selling food, drinks, and many other items. Amazingly enough, we turned on the TV at 9PM, and the parade was still going! Were the marchers just going around in circles, or were there really that many participants?
(We heard later there were 30,000 people in the parade!)
Next stop, the city of Sucre.

G

Photos of Lake Titicaca, Peru and Bolivia

2010-05-27T12:59:00.000-07:00

Floating Islet of Uros, made of reeds.

Woman on floating island, traditional buildings in backround.

Man rowing traditional reed boat.

View of harbor and lake from top of stairs, Isle of Taquile.

Isle Of Taquile, note agricultural terraces.

Tana and Nikki make way for local transport, village of Yumani, Isla Del Sol.

Local agriclture, shore of Lake Titicaca.

Extensive terracing on Isla Del Sol.

Woman walking her sheep (and pig) up the trail, Isla Del Sol.

Walking the trail, Northern Isla Del Sol.

Village of Challa, Isla Del Sol.

Palacio Del Inca, Isla Del Sol.

The high road across Isla Del Sol, going straight uphill off into the distance.

Terraced Isla Del Sol with Cordillera Real (Mtns) in background

Descending Inca Staircase (easier than ascending!!), Isla Del Sol.

On the boat from Isla Del Sol. Note steering technique.

Lake Titicaca, Peru and Bolivia

2010-05-27T12:38:00.000-07:00

     After leaving the Sacred Valley we headed south towards Lake Titicaca and Bolivia. Lake Titicaca, also known as the “Sacred Lake”, is located at the ridiculous altitude of 3800 meters (12,350 feet). We first explored the lake from the Peru side, taking a day trip from the lakeside city of Puno. From here we visited the floating islands of Uros and Isla Taquile.

     Nowadays the floating islands are primarily a tourist attraction, although the local people do actually live there. We expected the worst in terms of “dog and pony show” but our visit was actually reasonably enjoyable and informative. We were given basic demonstrations about how the islands and buildings are constructed from reeds, how the locals hunt and fish, etc.
     We continued to the Island of Taquile, which is a “real” island (not floating) inhabited by approximately 2500 people. Most of the island is covered in terraces built long ago to improve the agricultural situation, and there are only footpaths and many stairs, so no vehicles of any sort (exception: Donkeys). The people here have unique and colorful clothing, and we saw several men knitting their stocking-type caps. After climbing to the top of the island where the main plaza for views and shopping, followed by lunch with a great view of the lake and the western shore. We then walked back down the million steps, got on the boat, and returned to Puno.
     We continued south by bus, crossing into Bolivia, transferred to a boat in the town of Copacabana, and headed for Isla Del Sol (Island of the Sun), the largest island in Lake Titicaca. Historically this island is important to the people of Bolivia and Peru, as legend has it this was the birthplace of the first Inca, and even the sun. Somewhat similar to Isla Taquile, this island has about 2500 residents, and donkeys are the only vehicles. It also features some nifty Inca ruins, and pathways and stairways built by the Incas are still in use today. Also, the scenery is great.
     After arriving at the island we hauled our gear up 382 steps (yes, we counted) and some uphill as well, to the village of Yumani, where we 1) caught our breath 2) tried to stay out of the way of the donkeys 3) found lodging and 4) enjoyed the great views.
     The next morning we set out on a walking tour of the island. As we followed the Inca road north, we were passed by ladies with their flocks of sheep, typically accompanied by a pig or two. We also people with cows, and of course donkeys. Most were very friendly. After passing by a couple of villages and some nice beaches, we arrived at the northern village of Challapampa in time for lunch. Here half the party took the boat south, the other half continued north to visit the ruins and return south by the high road. The ruins were interesting mostly for their spectacular setting high on a peninsula with great views of the lake. With regard to the high road, let me point out the the Incas' favorite direction to go is up, straight up. The road took us directly over the highest parts of the island, which literally takes one's breath away at approximately 4000 meters above sea level. The scenery was not bad, which provided a nice distraction. The next morning it was down the 382 steps with our luggage for the return boat ride. We all appreciated how much easier it was going down than up.

G

Photos of Ollantaytambo, Peru

2010-05-20T18:59:00.000-07:00

Inca terraces and ruins overlooking the town of Ollantaytambo.

Urubamba river valley near Ollantaytambo.

Local bridge built in Inca foundation. Modern pilings are unused.

Edge of old town Ollantaytambo.

Beautiful Inca stone doorway.

Woman washing her clothes in the water channel.

This woman was watching the parade.

This donkey knew his way home and did not need any help getting there.

The ruins at Ollantaytambo.

Gateway to temple area of ruins.

What is left of the temple of the sun at Ollantaytambo.

Finely fitted pieces in the temple of the sun.

More whimsical Inca stonework.

Temple located higher above the main ruins. Unusually, this faced the setting sun.

Stairs and terraces.

The side of the mountiain itself was sculpted. The horizontal line on the face of the rock was a lipped channel that carried water far across the face of the rock to a fine fountain.

Beautifully intricate fountain.

Oxen decorated for blessing.

Priest blessing farmer and his oxen.

Procession leaving the Catholic church.

Costumed statue bearers.

More costumed statue bearers.

The start of the parade, which almost turned into the running of the bulls.

Ollantaytambo, Peru

2010-05-20T18:58:00.001-07:00

After leaving Machu Piccu we spent some time in the small town of Ollantaytambo, located about 50km up the Urabamba River in the Sacred Valley. The Inca fortress ruins located here are probably the next most significant in the area after Machu Piccu. This was the site of the only battle defeat of the Spanish by the Incas. The old town itself was originally built by the Incas, and has been continuously inhabited in more or less the same configuration since the 1300's. The original town was organized in blocks, each block is surrounded by stone walls with a single impressive Inca doorway for access to the internal courtyard and buildings. Some appear to be in near-original condition (filled with near original trash, too). The town also has an interesting system of channels that distribute water through the streets, something the residents find very handy for washing clothes, sidewalks, etc. The town and fortress are surrounded by large areas of Inca terraces, still in use by local farmers. In small villages outside town (and actually some people in town) life continues fairly similarly to the way it was hundreds of years ago. Many people in the area speak primarily, I not exclusively, the Quecua (Inca) language, and not Spanish. All in all a very interesting and scenic place, we wish there was more time to explore the area.

In addition to vitisiting some of the sites in the area, we were treated to a small bit of local culture, as on Saturday there was a ceremony and celebration to bless the start of the agricultural season. (I am not sure how this works, as the dry season is just starting and essentially no rain is expected for 6 months). First, there were a couple of small parades that ended at the Catholic Church. Then some local farmers gathered outside the church with their teams of oxen, whose heads had been decorated with produce and ribbons. The priest came out and sprinkled holy water over the animals and the men, after which the men and their teams started to parade through town. At first some of the animals were not cooperative and it looked like we might also see a local version of the running of the bulls. Then a procession started from the church, with the priest out front followed by three statues, each on a platform surrounded by cornstalks, being carried by festively costumed men, and finally the brass band. They went around town, joined up with the blessed oxen, and the united group took a few laps. It was all quite festive and fun, and we were sure to be extra careful where we stepped as we walked around town for the rest of the day.

G

Photos Of Machu Picchu, Peru: Animals

2010-05-20T18:58:00.000-07:00

Even with the many people visiting Machu Picchu every day, there were a surprising number of animals around.

White-Bellied Hummingbird, and Orchid

Green and White Hummingbird.

Rufous Collared Sparrow.

Blue and White Swallows were nesting in the ruins.

A Chinchilla enjoying some early morning sun.

This llama seemed to be playing King of The Hill.

Not sure what type of lizards these were.

The resident llama herd was popular and entertaining.

Photos Of Machu Picchu, Peru

2010-05-20T18:57:00.001-07:00

A classic view of the ruins, with Waynapicchu behind.

The Royal Residences section. Uptown Machu Picchu

Looking north from the main plaza.

Lucky residents enjoyed incredible views.

Temple with fine stonework.

Incas - the original stairmasters.

The only circular building in Machu Picchu. Fitted perfectly to stone below.

Sunrise at the Temple of three windows.

Insteresting stone details were everywhere. This staircase was carved out of solid rock.

Rooms with a view.

Temple of the three windows.

The wooden roof supports were tied to these stone pegs.

Intiwatana, stone for tracking the sun. Perhaps the most important stone in Machu Picchu. These were typically destroyed by the Spanish.

Shallow dishes carved of solid stone. When filled with water they make fine mirrors.

The caretakers said that often the Llamas come and drink all the water.

Subject carving in the Condor Temple.

Some of the many terraces at Machu Picchu.

Channels carved in a temple bench. To drain blood away during scrifices?

Whimsical Inca stonework.

Great detail on a huge stone block.

Machu Picchu, Peru

2010-05-20T18:57:00.000-07:00

     You may have heard that Machu Picchu was closed for a couple of months earlier this year due to flooding. The actual site is basically on top of a mountain, so the problem was not there, but down in the valley bottoms, where flooding killed several hundred people and caused widespread destruction. We saw plenty of the evidence as we made our way through the sacred valley towards Machu Picchu. Most towns were sporting a new bridge, and there was obvious damage to roads and railway. The train is only running the last section to the town of Aguas Calientes – this had to be fixed as no road exists in this section. From what we did see, do not expect the train to be running all the way to Cusco for some time.
     After arriving in Aguas Calientes late in the evening, I started things off right by spending several early morning hours being sick in the bathroom. Way to go! The next day as I basically could not get out of bed, Tana ran around rearranging our tickets to push everything back a day. By the next day I felt better so away we went – the others caught the 5AM bus, I held off until 9. The place must have some positive energy, because after that day I felt fine. The next day we all caught the early bus and spent a few more hours up there before departing.
     OK, so Machu Picchu itself? Insanely fabulous, as good as you might hope. Of course the ruins themselves are something, but as I arrived, two things stuck in my mind. 1) The view from up there is just stunning, and no photos can do it justice. 2) Being at the relatively low altitude (for Peru, anyway) of 2300 meters and surrounded by cloud forest, there are many tropical plants there, and the smell of the place reminded me very strongly of Hawaii.
     Due to the train being limited, there were fewer visitors around than normal, and we had plenty of time and were able to avoid what crowds there were. We wandered around the place scraping our jaws off the ground and pointing a lot, lying in the grass and petting the resident Llamas.
     Simply the sheer amount of work that went into the place, in such a remote location, was impressive. Not to mention the fine masonry in the temples, or the whimsical details in the stone walls and structures. But the thing I like best about Machu Picchu is the mystery. The Spanish never found the place (thank god, it was not wrecked like so many other Inca sites), and there is no direct record of why it was built or who lived there. We heard many stories from tour guides, some more believable than others. But the fact remains we will never really know the exact story. Down with history, up with mystery!

G

Photos of Pisac, Peru

2010-05-10T04:37:00.000-07:00

Crowd enjoying the entertainment at Cuy Fest.

This dish got our vote for best presentation.

Roasting Cuy over the fire at the Cuy Festinval.

A couple of women watching the bustle of the market.

Lunch? This Guinea Pig came straight out of the bag. The woman was happy with it and carried it away by the nape of the neck.

Loved this woman's smile.

You rarely see people here with any gray hair. The confetti was given in celebration of Mother's Day.

The flower and veggie section. Flower business was brisk, perhaps because it was Mother's Day

(dia de la Madre)

Market day, Pisac. Color everywhere.

Overlooking the temples of Pisac. Sacred Valley far below on left.

Inca terraces. An insane amount of work.

Fine stonework in temple of Pisac Ruins.

Defensive ruin overlooking Sacred Valley.

Stair going (painfully) straight up.

Built in steps on Inca terrace wall.

On the trail up to Pisac ruins, terraces of Sacred Valley below.

Dyed in the wool.

3 Colors of natural dye from a caterpillar that lives on Prickly Pear cactus.

Tana getting tips on raising Alpacas.

This alpaca was about 3 weeks old.

Miguel, our assistant tour guide

Pisac, Peru

2010-05-10T04:13:00.000-07:00

     The town of Pisac is approximately 30km from Cusco and lies at the head of the sacred valley. The town is primarily known for Inca ruins located above the town, and a lively market held every Sunday. We were fortunate to see both during our stay there.
     Luckily, on the way our driver suggested we stop at a place to see Alpacas and Llamas, as it was “very interesting.” Indeed it was, as the site was run as a cooperative of local villages striving to maintain their textile heritage (starting with the animals to provide the wool) without help from any governmental or aid agencies. Our guide was ably assisted by her two year old son. All was in Spanish but we actually understood a fair bit of it. We visited and fed Alpacas and Llamas (some only a few days old), saw how the wool was spun and colored using natural dyes, and saw weavers from various villages performing their craft. The shop was filled with incredible craftwork – we were overwhelmed and vowed to return.
    Once in Pisac, we hiked up from the town, through the agricultural terraces the Incas built in the side of the mountans, to visit the ruins. Starting from approximately 2750 meters (9000 feet) we followed the Inca stairways straight up the mountain. After about an hour of huffing and puffing, we came across a local woman, her young daughter, and nursing infant selling some simple crafts while sitting in an Inca terrace. Tana could not help but reward this effort at sales location by buying a woven hatband from her. The woman threw in a couple pinches of coca leaves to help us on our way. We continued higher until the terraces gave way to defensive fortifications, and finally a set of magnificently constructed temples with a grand view of the sacred valley, now far below. We continued on towards the parking lot along a cliffside trail, through a tunnel, and along more terraces before hailing a taxi for a terrifying 10km ride back down to our hotel. Drivers in mountainous Peru seem to have an aversion to using the brakes.
     On Sunday we got to the town center where the market is held around 8AM and watched as more and more vendors, locals, and tourists arrived. Many of the local women were dressed in their traditional clothes – the men, as elsewhere in the world, were more casual in their dress. Many booths were selling souveniers and locally produced crafts. There was also plenty of produce. The textile crafts and local costumes provided a plethora of festive colors, and the people watching was excellent.
     It also happened to be 1) Mother's Day and 2) The first annual City Of Pisac Cuy (Guinea Pig) festival. All of the mothers seemed to be rewarded with a sprinkle of confetti in their hair, so we got some for Tana as well. We found the Cuy Festival, which featured contests for roasted cuy and live Guinea Pigs (kind of a combination of livestock fair and BBQ cook-off), plenty of local costumes, and some live music.

Photos Of Saqsaywaman, Cusco Peru

2010-05-09T15:46:00.000-07:00

We slid down the polished rock, as we imagined Inca kids did hundreds of years ago.

"The Inca's Throne", carved directly out of solid rock.

These are some seriously large stones, perfectly fitted together.

Zane looking over the ruins of Saqsaywaman, with the city of Cusco below in the valley.

Remaining stones are massive. Note worker in center on upper wall.

Impressively large defensive walls.

Photos Of Qorikancha, Cusco Peru

2010-05-09T15:39:00.000-07:00

Solar calendar. The shadows from the protusion I am pointing to line up with those below on the solstices.

Can stonework be more precise? No mortar here!

The projections of the sun through the year on this wall mark the Inca calendar. Note the white line through the alcoves, this was the extent of the solid silver coating on the lower walls.

Platform believed to be used for sacrifices, including human.

Temples said to be dedicated to thunder and rainbow

Entryway for Inca Ruers. Fantastic masonry.

Spanish masonry on fine Inca stonework.

Church of Santo Domingo, built over Inca's "Temple of the Sun"

Church most recently rebuilt after 1950. Foundation of Inca walls sustained minor damage.

Photos Of Cusco, Peru

2010-05-09T14:41:00.000-07:00

Cuy - roast Guinea Pig. Not bad if you can get past the teeth and claws.

Peruvian - Italian fusion cuisine

We made friends with this kitty, and later went back to the restaurant where it lived so we could play with it some more.

Zane and a baby Alpaca getting to know each other.

Zane checking out the Inca craftsmanship.

A very impressive Inca wall, supposedly the foundation of the palace built for the 6th Inca Ruler.

Local bread store.

Cusco has many interesting doorways.

For some reason the road is built around this stone.

Puffing uphill. Unfortunately Cusco is not flat.

Woman tending a shrine outside the cathedral.

The Cathedral, Plaza de Armas, Cusco

Locals at Iglesia de San Cristobal

Central Cusco

Cusco, Peru

2010-05-09T14:30:00.000-07:00

     After surviving our first cancelled flight of our trip (Quito airport closed due to bad weather), we made it to Cusco, Peru only a few hours later than scheduled. We were immediately taken with the city, which is literally built on Inca foundations. It is amazing to walk the narrow streets and admire the spanish colonial buiildings perched on stonework at least 500 years old.
     We visited Qorikancha, “temple of the Sun”, perhaps the center of the Inca universe. The Spanish stripped hundreds of tons of gold and silver from the site and then built a Dominican church on top of it. Several of the original Inca temples remain inside the church, constructed with amazingly fine masonry. The church was destroyed by earthquakes as recently as 1950 – the Inca stonework only suffered minor damage. Several of the temples were used to follow the progress of the sun and track the Inca calendar (18 “months” of 20 days each, plus a couple of extra days at the solstices). We had a great guide who had studied the astronomical features of the site and shared his findings with us.
     Our next excursion was puffing up to the Inca ruins of Saqsaywaman, located above the city, which itself is 3,300 meters (11,000 feet) above sea level. What is left of the ruins is very impressive – the Spanish hauled away most of the samller stones in the mid 1500's to build the cathedral and other buildings in Cusco. The remaining stones are massive and perfectly fitted. We wandered around and found an area of the natural rock formation that formed a natural slide, polished smooth by countless people sliding down, which we did of course – just like we imagined the Inca children did hundreds of years ago.
     Aside from exploring the historical aspects of the city, we enjoyd wandering the streets, sampling the roast cuy (Guinea Pig), and searching for the perfect Pisco Sour.

Next stop, the Sacred Valley and Machu Piccu.

Photos Of Galapagos Islands: Birds

2010-04-28T00:35:00.001-07:00

Galapagos Lava Gull

Galapagos Pelican

American Oystercatcher

Noddy, a type of tern.

Flightless Cormorants on the nest.

We practically had to step over them as we

got off the boat.

Flightless Cormorant. Only in the Galapagos.

Flightless Cormorant checking its shadow.

Lava Heron hunting for crabs among

Marine Iguana tails.

A curious Lava Heron.

Great Blue Heron.

Galapagos Penguin. Strange to see a penguin

sitting under a cactus!

Galapagos penguins relaxing on the lava rocks.

Storm Petrels. They practically walk on

the water while eating insects.

Blue Footed Booby in mating dance.

Blue Footed Booby

Magnificent Frigatebird

Magnificent Frigatebird. They loved to follow

the boat and were very entertaining.

Immature flamingo. No pink yet.

Flamingo, of course.

Galapagos Mockingbird.

Galapagos Flycatcher.

Medium Ground Finch. The 13 species of finches

found in the Galapagos supposedly inspired Darwin's

theories on evolution.

Cactus finch. Males do most of the feeding.

Cactus finch.

Photos Of Galapagos Islands: Animals

2010-04-28T00:34:00.003-07:00

Sea turtle hatchling.

Sea Turtle on the way to the sea. Sadly its journey ended

in the beak of a frigate bird.

Galpagos Lava Lizard.

Sea Lion pup enjoying a quick meal.

Sea Lion pup, waiting for mom to come back with some milk.

Sandy Sea Lion. They took little notice of us.

This poor little pup was very hungry.

Evolution is apparently still happening in the Galapagos,

sometimes with strange results.

Land Iguana. Luckily for us they are vegetarians.

Land Iguana. More handsome than his marine cousin.

Marine Iguanas. They love to congregate in

large groups and spit out excess salt water.

Marine Iguana. Not handsome creatures.

We saw many sea turtles, both from the boat

and while snorkeling.

We were fortunate to see this and 4 other tortises

during a walk on Isabela Island.

They do a lot of eating.

An oldster giving me the eye.

Breakfast time at the tortise center.

Which came first, totise or egg?

A couple doing their part to maintain the species.

A shy tortise.

This little tortise is about 1 year old.

"Lonesome George" When he dies, his species dies.

Can I Bring it home?

Hanging out with a local.

Zane checks out a baby tortise.

Photos Of Galapagos Islands

2010-04-28T00:34:00.001-07:00

Although very hot, it was the wet season

and there was plenty of vegetation and flowers.

Prickly Pear cactus flower.

Lava cactus, typically the first

plant to arrive on fresh lava flows.

Fish Market, Puerto Ayoro.

We had some great sun rises and sets, this one on

Isabela Island.

The crater of Cerro Negro is the 2nd largest in the world,

after Ngorongoro Crater in Tanzania.

No herds of animals here, just lava.

It was Sea Turtle nesting season, and we saw

many tracks on the beach. There had been

about 12 turtles here the previous night.

Rugged face of Big Daphne Island.

Volcanic activity in evidence on Isabela Island.

We saw some very nice beaches, this one on

Mosquera Island.

Our home for the week, the Angelito.

Galapagos Islands

2010-04-28T00:33:00.001-07:00

We were certainly enchanted by the Enchanted Isles, spending 7 days on a boat and finishing up with 2 days in the "big city" of Puerto Ayoro on Santa Cruz Island.

While on the Yate Angelito, we visited, at least briefly, the islands of Mosquera, Isabela, Fernandina, Floreana, and Santa Cruz. The weather was fine and hot, the scenery was brilliant, and the wildlife was truly amazing. Also, the crew took very good care of us. Although there was a pretty good swell at times, nobody was seasick but we did have trouble getting a good night's sleep with the boat rocking.

Although the pressures of the modern world are certainly nipping around the edges of the archipelago, the vast majority of the area appears to be relatively free of impact. The animals are still going about their business and evolving away, with their famous disregard for human presence. We were pleased to see plenty of birds and animals wherever we went, and happily watched the sea lions, sea turtles, and penguins as there always seemed to be a few near the boat.

The shore excursions were fun and we always managed to see some interesting things: a baby sea turtle running to the sea, only to be scooped up and taken away by a frigate bird; beaches crawling with sea lions; rocks crawling with marine iguanas; lava herons hunting for crabs at our feet; or the pleasant surprise of coming across a giant tortise along the trail.

We especially liked the snorkeling. Not much coral, but plenty of life, especially the many fish. Where else can you snorkel with sea lions, sea turtles, and penguins - at the same time? We saw many many sea turtles, as it was their nesting season. Often you could see several at a time, once I counted 10. We also encountered curious sea lions that came to investigate and made it look oh so easy underwater. Also a few sharks around but luckily for us, nothing to worry about.

We also had the good fortune to visit the tortise breeding centers on Isabela and Santa Cruz Islands, and saw everything from tiny 2 month old babies to massive old specimens, and of course "Lonesome George" the only remaining member of his species. (He's not really that lonesome, he lives with two females) It was a special treat to be able to old some of these amazing creatures.

And when our boat trip was finished we were pleasantly surprised to learn that the Galapagos wildlife is abundant along the waterfront of Puerto Ayoro, as we found when we checked into our hotel to find a few sea lions relaxing under the tables in the bar area, and marine iguanas patrolling the deck by the pool. We also saw herons and pelicans checking out the hot tub and pool, and a sea lion that thought the pool was just the spot for a swim. Just down the street we visited the local fish market where fisherman bring their catch to be prepared and sold while the pelicans, herons, gulls, and sea lions bustle about and fight for the scraps. Much more entertaining then television!

Next stop, Peru.

Photos of La Selva Lodge, Ecuador

2010-04-17T06:49:00.000-07:00

Piranha for dinner! It was quite good, actually.

\Jungle frog. Our guide had not seen this one before.

Transparent winged butterfly.

Flower of the wild cacao tree.
Very pretty and the fruit was good too.

With the incredible biodiversity in Ecuador there are

only two types of salamanders. We were lucky to see this one.

Poison dart frog. Locals rub their darts on the frog's back.
Poison is strong enough to kill monkeys in a few minutes.

Caiman lizard relaxing.

Tarantula. We saw many on our night walk.

Parrots eating clay at a "clay lick" along the rivebank.

Zane tries his hand with the blow darts.

Our local guide Boliver looks on.

Dart quiver. Pirana teeth are used to score the darts
so they will break off and stay in the animal.

View from 45 meter high canopy tower.

Zane practicing his dugout paddling technique.

An opening in the jungle. Under the canopy tends to
be very dark and difficult to photograph.

Enjoying a ride on the lake.

Lake view from La Selva Lodge.

Our river transport on the Rio Napo

La Selva Lodge, Ecuador

2010-04-17T06:46:00.000-07:00

We escaped the high altitude for a few days to explore the jungle of the Amazon Basin. We took a short flight from Quito to the town of Coca, then boarded a river canoe, about 10 meters long with a generous outboard motor, and went about 2 hours down the Rio Napo river, which is a tributary of the Amazon. The Rio Napo itself was quite a large river, about 1 to 2 km across. If you continue another 20 hours downstream you hit the Amazon, or so I am told.

After disembarking from the canoe, we walked about 15 minutes through the jungle on a boardwalk, then boarded a smaller canoe and were paddled across a lake to La Selva Jungle Lodge. Here we spent four days walking in the jungle, paddling on the lake, swimming with the piranhas, and miraculously, not getting rained on, by rain anyway. The first night we were sitting in the bar, when the sound of pouring water got our attention. Since it was not raining out, this was very curious. Upon closer investigation we found a very large splattering of what looked like white bird poop. We looked up into the thatched ceiling and saw not a bird, but a boa constrictor! One unlucky guest got splattered when on the way down the white stuff (literally) hit the fan.

The jungle was very interesting and we saw many many different plants and animals - weird insects, tarantulas, frogs, lizards, a young anaconda, dozens of monkeys, and many birds. Most of the birds were seen from the top of the 45 meter observation tower, which gave a great view over the forest canopy.

The lodge also has a butterfly farm, where about 30 types of butterfies are raised, the pupae are shipped all over the world to research facilites, zoos, etc. We enjoyed a nice visit there checking out all the interesting caterpillars and beautiful butterflies.
One day we went back out to the river and visited a Parrot "clay lick" where the birds come to eat the clay, which supposedly helps their digestive systems. Perhaps they just like to eat dirt. Whatever the reason the dozens of parrots made quite a racket! We then proceeded across the river to visit a local family, who shared some of their local beer and cane alcohol with us, as well as letting us try our hand with the children's training blow-gun.

Our final day we did some fishing. Tana caught two piranhas, one of which we kept and ate. It was actually rather tasty.

Next stop, Galapagos Islands.

Photos of Cajas National Park Ecuador

2010-04-17T06:28:00.001-07:00

Some areas were carpeted with tiny succulent-like plants

Datura flower

Many kinds of lichens

The plant in foreground is related to pineapples and bromileads

Paper tree forest. Very magical in there.

Fire Shooter floweres

Interesting scenery in he paramo.

The park contains over 200 lakes, most small and shallow.

Surprisingly, there were many interesting floweres in the paramo.

Zane climbing down the rock in the foreground.

Hiking the paramo at about 3750 meters

Cajas National Park Ecuador

2010-04-17T06:28:00.000-07:00

We spent a day visiting Cajas National Park, near Cuenca. Most of the park is at high elevation and consists of a grasslands known as paramo. The park also contains over 200 lakes, most of them small and shallow.

We drove up to the ridiculous elevation of 4150 meters to stand on the continental divide, only 100 km from the Pacific but 5000 km from the Atlantic. We retreated to the slightly more sensible elevation of 3750 meters to begin our hike.

The scenery was very unique, and luckily for us there was no rain, as it rains about 80 percent of the days up there. The diversity of plants in the paramo was also impressive, with mosses, lichens, and many types of small and pretty flowers.

The part we enjoyed most was the Quenua, or paper tree forest. Apparently these trees grow at high elevations in South America, but only in this park do they group together to form forests. They are delightful little forests, full of moss, that reminded us very much of Grimm's fairy tales.

Photos Of Cuenca Ecuador

2010-04-17T05:38:00.000-07:00

Local woman at the flower market. Note "Panama" hat.

Zane and his Panama hat.

Alberto Pulla has been making these since he was six.

Shrunken head, for real. Cuenca museum

New Cathedral, Cuenca.

Downstairs at the Central mercado, Cuenca

Central mercado, Cuenca

Flower market, Cuenca

Cuenca scenery.

Zane and his new friend.

Pig for sale and locals, town of Guamote.

Andes scenery on the way to Cuenca

Cuenca Ecuador

2010-04-17T05:37:00.000-07:00

From Banos we made our way south via bus and train (well, actually more like a bus on the train tracks as the rail ine was undergoing repair) to the city of Cuenca. The Andean scenery along the way was quite nice. The "train" stopped for awhile at the small town of Guamote, which was filled with festively dressed locals (some being chased by camera toting train riders).

There is great debate among Ecuadorians and tourists alike as to which is prettier, Cuenca or the Old Town of Quito. Both are recognized as World Heritage Sites due to the collection of historic buildings. Our votes go to Quito, but we did appreciate that in Cuenca the Old Town is still the heart of the city with plenty locals going about their daily business. We spent plenty of time here walking around and admiring the architecture and colorful markets.

Cuenca is also the center for the production of "Panama" hats. They are known as such because they were first exported to Europe from Panama and made popular by people from Panama wearing them. They are still essentailly hand woven and the finest ones can fetch upwards of 1000 USD. We visited the shop of Alberto Pullo, who had been making them since he was six years old, and now appears to be about 80.

Photos Of Banos, Ecuador

2010-04-08T05:42:00.001-07:00

The devil's cauldron. A loud and impressive waterfall.

This fellow dropped down from the trees.

Looked mad and dangerous!

A pretty lizard Zane caught on our walk.

More scenery from the route of the waterfalls.

On the route of the waterfalls.

Note cable car to right of taller waterfall.

BBQ Guinea Pig anyone?

Market day. Tons of fruit, veggies, and interesting corn, beans, and grains.

Banos is also famous for taffee, and there were plenty of men pulling away.

Inside the basilica during Easter service. For some

reason Good Friday is the big day here.

The local basilica. Inside paintings depict

miracles by the virgin of the holy waters. (car wrecks, hotel fires, etc)

Banos boasts soem great scenery.

Lucky for us the nearby volcano was quiet.

Banos, Ecuador

2010-04-08T05:42:00.000-07:00

Luckily for us the town of Banos is named for thermal baths, and not bathrooms. Upon our arrival we also learned that after the Galapagos Islands, it is the most visited place in Ecuador. A big difference is that here, most of the visitors are Ecuadorian. Most of them seemed to be here for the Easter weekend, and the place was hopping.

The center of activity was the Basilica, where on the day before Easter we found Jesus holed up in a glass casket. He was still there Sunday afternoon so I guess it was just a model. The church was interesting in that the walls were covered with large paintings depicting miracles attributed to the virgen of the holy waters, a local deity. Apparently by calling out her name in a tough situation you can escape car crashes, volcanoes, burning hotels, and the like.

We enjoyed soaking in the thermal pools and walking around soaking in the scenery, both natural and human. We rented bikes and rode about 20km (mostly downhill) alosng the "route of the waterfalls" where the canyon and waterfall scenery were very impressive indeed, especially the "devil's cauldron" which we hiked down to see up close and personal. After hiking back to the top we got our bikes on top of a bus and were in downtown again in 30 minutes - how convenient!

One thing we did see in Banos which we had been looking for since our arrival in Ecuador - cuy, or roasted Guinea Pig. Tana has been going on for months about how we are going to eat some of these. This point of view suddeenly changed when we were face to face (or face to tooth) with the roasted critters. "There is NO WAY I am eating one of those!"

On Monday we enjoyed the deserted nature of the town, as virtually all the other tourists had gone home. It was quite a large and welcome change.

Next, we head south towards the historic city of Cuenca.

Photos Of Bella Vista Cloud Forest Reserve: Flowers

2010-04-06T07:18:00.000-07:00

Fuschia

Bromilead

Tiny Orchids

Photos Of Bella Vista Cloud Forest Reserve: Hummingbirds

2010-04-06T07:17:00.001-07:00

Fawn Breasted Brilliant

Green Violet-Ear

Violet Tailed Sylph

Fawn Breasted Brilliant (Left) and

Speckled Hummingbird (Right)

Collared Inca

Duff Tailed Emerald

Purple Throated Wood Star

Booted Racket-Tail

Duff Tailed Emerald

Photos Of Bella Vista Cloud Forest Reserve

2010-04-06T07:16:00.001-07:00

Crimson-Mantled Woodpecker. Not the greatest photo ever,

but definitely the best photo I have ever taken from my bed.

Masked Trogon

Blue-winged mountain Tanager

Tana hiking in cloud forest - do you see her?

Bella Vista Dome.

Typical cloud forest view.

Room with a view.

Ladder to top of dome.

Cloud forest on a clear day.

Bella Vista Cloud Forest Reserve, Ecuador

2010-04-06T07:15:00.000-07:00

From Quito we headed about 2 hours Northwest to the Bella Vista Cloud Forest Reserve. The first couple days it seemed more like a rain forest reserve, but the third day was nice and sunny in the morning so all was forgiven. The cloud forest here was very beautiful and quite different than those we saw in Costa Rica. The plant life was much more diverse and there were tree ferns, bit no monkeys. There were tons of flowers and birds, and the guides were very good about pointing out these and the many interesting and useful plants. We all enjoyed watching the hordes of hummingbirds at the feeders. On the first day I saw 12 different types of hummingbirds there.

The part Zane liked the best was that we got to stay up in the top of the dome building, with 360 degree views into the forest (or sometimes just clouds), and we had to climb two flights on ladders to get there.

One morning we took a trip out to a lek used by Andean Cock-Of-The-Rock birds. A lek is a place where the males congregate every morning to show off their stuff and try to attract a mate. We left at 5:15AM, drove for 30 minutes, walked for 15 minutes, then sat down in the forest and waited. Sure enough, in a few minutes some birds sta,rted calling. Not too long after that the trees around us were exploding with the raucus calls of these strange-looking birds – with bright red heads the shape of flattened light bulbs. The birds were somewhat hard to see but the sound was amazing. After about an hour the party died off and we went back to the lodge for breakfast. Not an activity that was on the “must do” list when we left home, but memorable nonetheless.

Next stop, Banos. (the town, not the bathroom)

Photos Of Quito, Ecuador

2010-03-29T18:37:00.000-07:00

This woman shucked and sold corn down the street from our house.

Shopkeeper at shop down the street from our house.

Sometimes you just need a rest.

Dancer.

Dancers.

Dancers weaving ribbons on the flag pole.

Ecuadorian musicians. They were great, but we did not catch the name of the group.

View of old town Quito.

Clock tower, Basilica del Voto National. Note stairs.

Stained glass, Basilica del Voto National.

Palm Sunday service, Basilica del Voto National.

View of Basilica del Voto National. Note position of clocks in tower.

Palm Sunday service, Church of San Francisco, oldest in Ecuador.

Worshipers leaving Palm Sunday service,Church of Santo Domingo.

View of Church of La Merced.

The cathedral and museum at Plaza Grande, old town Quito.

Typical street in old town Quito. Fantastic architecture.

View of old town from our rooftop, white tower is Church of Santo Domingo.

Portal in our rooftop wall.

View from our rooftaop.

Quito, Ecuador

2010-03-29T18:36:00.000-07:00

We departed Costa Rica for Quito, Ecuador. The man at the check in counter said the flight was oversold, so we got stuck in business class. Boo hoo!

We landed at Quito and immediately started breathing hard, as the elevation here is over 9,000 feet, or about 3,000 meters. Tana had found us a nice rental house in the old town which was great, especially the rooftop deck.

We spent our days walking around the amazing collection of buildings in the old town section, justifiably granted status as a world heritage site. The building were fascinating, many many old churches originally built in the 1600s. Earthquakes have wrecked the originals, but many now date from the late 1700s.

We climbed the towers of the massive Basilica del Voto National (twice) which did not go unnoticed by our legs and lungs. The view from up there was fantastic, and the less than substantial stairs and ladders gave a bit of an edge to the affair.

On Palm Sunday the churches were packed, the streets to the old town were closed to traffic, and the city had quite a festive air to it. While walking back towards the house we came across a little performance happening in a courtyard, so we popped in for some local music and dancing, both quite good. The dancers each had a ribbon connected to a central pole, and as they danced around each other the ribbons became woven together around the pole, first loosely and then tightly They danced some more and the ribbons miraculously became unwound.

Feeling that 3000 meters was not high enough, we took the gondola up to 4100 meters. Great view, thin air. On the way down stopped at the local amusement park for a few rides and rounds of bumper cars.

We like Quito and are looking forward to our return. Next stop, Ecuadoran cloud forest.

Photos of Pacuare Reserve, Costa Rica

2010-03-25T06:36:00.000-07:00

Agami Herons at Pacuare Reserve.

I got this photo from the Internet Bird Collection Website.

Track of a leatherback turtle. We covered these up so it would be harder for the poachers to find the nests. The turtles are sensitive to light, so sadly no turtle photos.

Access to the reserve is by boat along a series of canals.

Diggin like a turtle.

The "Turtle Stop" which we built at the midpoint on the beach, complete with custom sign by Zane. It was a nice place to stop when the rain was coming down, but the mosquitos liked it too.

Doing a little sign making.

Lots of wildlife at the reserve. Besides turtles we saw monkeys, lizards, frogs, snakes, birds, crocs, and caimans.

Sunset at Pacuare. Lots of rain there so we only saw this once.

Beach at Pacuare Reserve. 6 Km of prime Leatherback Nesting.

Pacuare Reserve, Costa Rica

2010-03-25T06:33:00.000-07:00

Our last major stop in Costa Rica was at the Pacuare Reserve, a privately held sanctuary on the Carib Coast. Our friends Scott and Julie run a non-profit organization Ecology Project International, (EPI) http://www.ecologyproject.org/ which we have supported over the years. They send high school students from the US and Costa Rica to this reserve to help with the Leatherback Sea Turtle Nesting Program. They have been trying to get us to come here for years, and finally we made it. Boy are we glad we did because it was a fantastic experience!

The reserve has about 6km of coastline and is one of the prime Leatherback nesting areas in Costa Rica. Last year the reserve recorded over 1100 Leatherback nests. There turtles are critically endangered, so this is a very important spot for them.

As volunteers, our primary duty was to go on night patrols and help the research assistants. This involved walking 4 to 8 miles along the beach looking for turtles that had come up to nest. If we found a turtle the tag data would be noted, or new tags put on if there were none, measure the turtle, etc. We would capture the eggs in a bag and relocate them to a safe spot. This involved lying behind the turtle holding the bag under them to catch the eggs. Sounds great, but then imagine it is pitch dark, pouring rain, or you are getting eaten alive by mosquitos or sand flies. Even under these conditions it was quite a thrilling experience. After the turtle departed we would camouflage the track.

The reason for hiding the eggs and camouflaging the track is to deter poaching of the eggs. The eggs are eaten by humans and believed to be aphrodisiacs. One clutch of eggs can bring the equivalent of 2 weeks wages, so poaching is a popular local pastime. Due to its location, guard patrols, and other practices the Pacuare Reserve has relatively little trouble from poachers. That being said we did lose one nest while we were there, which is extremely frustrating as you might imagine.

Being early in the nesting season we were not sure if would be lucky enough to see any turtles. We went out on the first night, and behold not 100 meters from where we left was a turtle! These are huge animals, with shells that measure about 1.5 by 1.0 meters, and weigh at least 400kg. They really are massive! We helped collect the eggs, Zane got to hold her rear flipper so we could see the eggs being laid. It was quite exciting.

After she left we walked not 200 meters down the beach, where to everyones amazement there was another! This time Glenn got to hold the egg bag, which means getting up close and personal with the turtle, so that was quite an experience.

Over the course of our 12 days there we ended up seeing about 8 to 10 turtles each, and never stopped being impressed by them. It was great walking along the beach at night ( a bit less so in the pouring rain). We saw shooting stars and even a bit of moonlight.

The staff at the reserve was fantastic. The research staff was very friendly and helpful. We were impressed with the dedication of the guards, who would notify staff when they found a turtle and mark the nest and read the tags of nobody could make it there. Even the folks building new buildings and the cooks would go out at night hoping to see turtles.

During the day, between naps, we would explore the reserve and work on projects such as sign making, painting, bike repair, shelter contruction, etc. The reserve has plenty of wildlife besides turtles. In fact when we arrived (by boat) the first animal to greet us was a massive Croc - no swimming in the lagoon! The reserve also has the only known nesting colony of Agami Herons in Central America, which are quite secretive and very beautiful. We saw monkeys every day, and many frogs, lizards, and a few snakes.

At the end of our stay a group of students from California arrived, so it was great to see how the EPI program really works. All the students went on night patrol, and they were all lucky enough to see at least one turtle.

We were sorry to leave the reserve by looked forward to dry and clean clothes. Even leaving the reserve was an adventure. We took a boat on the canals to a point where we met a truck to take us into town to catch a bus to San Jose. Unfortunately just outside town there was some road construction, and no vehicles were passing. The driver called for a taxi to meet us on the other side. To get there we had to haul our luggage approx 100 meters through a banana plantation. As we discovered, bananas are not grown on nice flat fields, but each row is separated by deep ditches to drain the water away. We made our way through, and some local students were kind enough to help the ladies over the big jumps. On the other side the school girls rewarded themselves by taking pictures of themselves with Zane. We got to town and caught the bus, which was delayed going over the mountains as mudslides were still being cleared from the road. We also stopped to take on passengers from a bus that had broken down.

Finally arriving in San Jose, we are tired but happy to have had an amazing experience at Pacuare Reserve.

Next stop, Quito Ecuador.

Photos of Puerto Viejo, Costa Rica

2010-03-25T05:51:00.000-07:00

Big and little sloths.

Hey ma he followed me home, can I keep him?

Tana with baby 3 toed sloth.

Baby 2 toed sloth.

Is that a howler monkey on my head?

Helmeted Baselisk lizard.

Eyelash Pit Viper in the wild. Very Poisonous.

Yellow Eyelash Pit Viper behind glass. Very poisonous.

Red Eyed Tree Frog.

Very handsome and perhaps the most photographed frog in the world.

Beach at Puerto Viejo. Heavy rain had left plenty of debris.

Puerto Viejo, Costa Rica

2010-03-25T05:45:00.000-07:00

We had briefly visited the southern Caribbean town of Puerto Viejo early during our stay in Costa Rica and decided we wanted to go back, so we spent a few more days there in the middle of March.

Our visit started a bit interestingly when we went to the bus station in San Jose. Although we had purchased our tickets the day before, the driver sent us back to the ticket window for a reason we could not understand. It turns out that the main road to the East Coast was closed due to mudlsides, and we needed to take a longer route. This meant paying extra as the bus was going further. The ride was longer and the road more windy but we did get there.

On the Carib Coast it had been raining heavily for some days so the place was a bit soggy, but after a couple days the sun came out and life was nice.

We soaked up the local Carib culture, enjoyed playing with the tree frogs by the swimming pool, visited a local animal rescue center, and Glenn went for a walk in the woods with a local biologist. Unfortunately for Zane the surf was not happening so there was no surfing.

The local animal rescue center was quite fun, as they had monkeys and baby sloths that we could hold and play with. Even baby sloths are cute! They also had examples of all the poisonous snakes in Costa Rica, which we did not hold and play with.

After a few days here we were off to our final destination in Costa Rica, the Pacuare Reserve.

Photos of San Gerardo de Dota, Costa Rica

2010-03-03T18:32:00.000-08:00

Resplendent Quetzal. One beautiful bird.

Respendent Quetzal - check out those tail feathers!

Emerald Toucanet. Toucans and Toucanets only fly in straight lines.

Not sure why these butterflies were so fond of this rock, other than it was in the sun.

Happy horse rider. Sure beats walking, especially uphill!

Some of the large oak trees are more than 500 years old. They've seen lots of clouds!

Clouds - always moving, changing the landscape.

Just another pretty mountain stream.

San Gerardo de Dota, Costa Rica

2010-03-03T18:17:00.000-08:00

We have just spent 3 days in the cloud forest about 80km south of San Jose, in the area (not really a town) of San Gerardo de Dota, which is located within Los Quetzales National Park. To get there we took a bus along the Pan American Highway, and got dropped off in the section known as "Cerro de la Muerto" or "Mountain of Death". Driving through the clouds at an elevation of 3,000 meters it was easy to see why it was called this!

The lodge where we stayed was down the hill at "only" 2550 meters. The road was steep and the air was thin, as we found out walking up and down the trails and road. The forest and valley were scenic, and there were many birds to be watched, right from our window. Unlike the cloud forest in Monteverde, here we were often in or above the clouds. It was a fine show every day watching the progression from a clear morning to a cloudy afternoon or even a downpour. It was also nice to be cool.

We especially enjoyed dinner. The lodge only served breakfast and lunch, so we walked up the hill (and I do mean up) each night for dinner at local restaurant, run by two ladies. It was like eating in someone's living room, and the food, served family style, was fantastic. Luckily we could waddle back downhill to our place after dinner was over.

A highlight was seeing the Resplendent Quetzal, or Mayan Bird or paradise. It is also the national bird - of Guatemala. (The Costa Rican national bird is the Clay-Colored Robin, a visually uninspring but audibly appealing garden-dweller). We all saw Quetzals, at least once, and could see why it was a worthwhile endeavor to create a National Park in honor of it.

We will now be making our way to the Caribbean Coast.

Photos of Drake Bay, Costa Rica

2010-02-26T14:34:00.000-08:00

World's smallest gecko?

Osa peninsula is one of the few places in Costa Rica to see Scarlet Macaws.

Butterflies everywhere.

Kayaking on the river - very pretty and we did not even get attacked by Caimans once!

Scary bridge. Zane's comment: "It looks like they stole some people's decks to build it"

Sunrise over Drake Bay - view from our veranda.

Typical beach, Osa Peninsula.

The "New Terminal" at Drake Airfield, or so the sign said.

Drake Bay, Costa Rica

2010-02-26T14:19:00.000-08:00

We have just spent 4 days at Drake Bay on the southern Pacific coast of Costa Rica, on the Osa peninsula and near Corcovado National Park. This area is one of the least developed and least populated parts of Costa Rica. We flew in a small plane to a smaller airstrip then drove in a "taxi" (Land Cruiser) over interesting "roads" to get there. We did a lot of sweating and collected various sunburns and mosquito bites. It was very beautiful, with the rainforest coming right down to the beach. It was also amazingly hot and humid - I do not recall getting my shirt soaking wet so quickly by just standing around. We walked through the forest, went kayaking and swimming in the local river, and took a trip to Cano Island to go snorkelling. Along the way we saw many birds, lizards, butterflies and fish, as well as the local caiman (croc) who lives near the mouth of the river. Somehow we missed the mammals - marine and terrestrial. The snorkelling was nice, with more coral and fish than we had expected. Even better the water was about 80 degrees F. The weather, aside from hot, was generally good until the last day when it absolutely poured for several hours, with thunder and lightning to boot. All in all a very nice little adventure with the exception of the man who came into our room at 4AM and made off with Zane's backpack. Zane has handled it very well. After returning to the city today we made a trip to the mall and have replaced most of the essentials.

Next stop - not sure!

Photos of Monteverde, Costa Rica

2010-02-20T16:32:00.000-08:00

Even deep in the forest you were never far from a rainbow.

Looking down to the Pacific Ocean.

Monteverde roads. Lots of complaints but frankly they were freeways compared to what we drove on in Africa.

Tarantula. Harmless, or so we were told.

Cloud forest. Very dark and difficult to photograph.

Forest flowers. Seemed like you could always see at least 1 type of flower from wherever you were.

Blue-Crowned Motmot. A Handsome bird.

Wild Orchids. Something like 400 or 500 type grow in the area,

only about 10% of the species grow on the ground.

Hey does this make my ears look big?

Monteverde, Costa Rica

2010-02-20T16:23:00.000-08:00

We have just spent a week in the cloud forest of Monteverde. Zane attended another week of Spanish classes, and the rest of us tried to help the first two weeks of classes sink in with some independent study.

The weather, which is typical of the area, has been quite interesing. Often the sun would be shining on us, yet a strong wind would be pushing the clouds down the mountain and making us wet. Almost always a rainbow is hangng around somewhere. This constant moisture (366 days a year we were told) is what makes the cloud forest thrive. Up to 1/4 of the living mass of the forest is epiphytes - bromiliads, spanish moss, etc.

We walked through the forest both during the day and in the evening. It was quite beautiful, very dense and moist. along the way we saw birds, monkeys, racoons, agoutis (giant rodents), and spiders. Luckily, no snakes.

We visited a bat house, which was very interesting and educational - there are over 100 types of bats including vampires!) in Costa Rica, and more bats flying around at night than birds during the day! After the demonstrations, we visited the 90 or so resident fruit and nectar eating bats, which were actually very cute hanging from the ceiling eating bits of pineapple and papaya.

We got a bit of the history of the area (which is quite interesting) during our tour of the local cheese factory. Actually even the tour guide also had an interesting history - Costa Rican parents, raised in Wisconsin, now giving tours of the cheese factory in Monteverde. Monteverde itself, as well as the cheese factory, was founded by a group of Quakers who left the USA around 1950 after being prosecuted for failing to register for the draft. The 11 families came to Costa Rica, which had just gotten rid of their army, bought land in the mountains, named it Monteverde, then tried to figure out how to make a living. Cheese was it. Today the factory takes the milk from about 240 farms, the largest of which has 50 cows. About half the farmers bring their milk to the factory every day in 40 liter milk cans. Along the way the Quakers also donated land to allow the establishment of he first Cloud Forest Reserve in the region.

Next stop, the beach and jungle at Drake Bay in SW Costa Rica.

Hummingbirds, Monteverde Costa Rica

2010-02-16T05:05:00.000-08:00

Yesterday, after studying Spanish all morning we visited the Hummingbird Gallery whuch is located near the entrance to the Moneverde Cloud Forest reserve. Inside is a gallery, gift shop, and cafe.

Outside is where the action is - there are about 10 hummingbird feeders that are very busy. At any time there may be 10 to 20 hummingbirds around, as well as a few Bananaquits (wishing they were hummingbirds). We saw at least 8 different types of hummingbirds, and they were very entertaining. The birds are quite used to having people around and let people approach them quite closely without flying away.

Coppery-Headed Emerald (Female) - Found Only In Costa Rica

Violet Sabrewing (Male)- Largest Hummingbird In Costa Rica

Green-Crowned Brilliant (Female)

Green-Crowned Brilliant (Male)

Purple-Throated Mountain-Gem (Female)

Photos of Arenal Costa Rica

2010-02-14T05:13:00.000-08:00

Waterslide action!

Sunset from the base of Mt Arenal.

Mt Arenal, one of the world's most active volcanoes - though you would not know it from this photo!

Mt Arenal showing a bit of volcanic activity.

Some sort of basilisk lizard, I believe.

Green Iguana. Tastes like chicken, so I hear.

These Morpho butterflies are especially stunning.

Butterfly on ginger plant.

Sloth doing something unusual - actually moving & scratching!

Note the green algae growing on its arm.

Collared Aracari (small Toucan) coming for breakfast.

World's smallest frog?

Muy bonito rainforest stream, Chachagua.

Rainforest in Chachagua, Costa Rica

Arenal, Costa Rica

2010-02-14T04:54:00.000-08:00

After leaving our Tico Familia in San Joaquin, we spent a couple of days in nearby Alajuela. This coincided with election day in Costa Rica, and the Super Bowl in the USA. Election day was a rather festive affair, with people driving around flying their polical colors and madly honking their horns. The favorite, Laura Chinchilla, was elected as the first woman Presidente of Costa Rica. We did manage to catch most of the Super Bowl as well, and were pleased to see New Orleans emerge victorious.

Then it was on to the area around the Arenal Volcano, one of Costa Rica's most popular tourist destinations. We spent the first few days south of Arenal proper, near the "town" of Chachagua, at a remote lodge nestled among the rainforest. The place was pretty much deserted and we enjoyed the surroundings and the many birds, lizards, and frogs to be found there. Walking through the rainforest was particularly nice.

We took a tour to the Arenal volcano, which is one of the most active in the world, having been continuously active since a massive and surprising eruption in 1968 that killed about 90 people. THe volcano was quite sleepy during our visit, and in fact hiding behind the clouds, but our guide was very good and gave us plenty of information about the volcano and local environment. It was amazing to walk through what appeared to be a mature forest, but had in fact been growing on bare lava for only about 15 years.

We splurged a bit and spent a day at a flashy hot springs resort at the bottom of the volcano, which was quite nice, complete with hot and cold water slides, and hot pool with the requisite wet bar. They also had a nice collection of crocodiles, butterflies, and leaf-cutter ants, and we saw lizards and monkeys around the grounds, as well as many kinds of birds.

Refreshed from the hot springs, we spent our last night in La Fortuna, the tourist-trap laden town that caters to the Arenal area, where a good bit of the afternoon and evening was rainy.

Later today it is the Jeep-Boat-Jeep transport to our next stop, Monteverde. Zane will have another week of Spanish school, and the rest of us will do our best to study and keep up with him.

Photos From San Joaquin de Flores (and around) Costa Rica

2010-02-07T14:27:00.000-08:00

Black Vulture, Sarapiqui river. They were eating a dead cow floating in the water.

Sarapiqui River.

Leaf cutter ant, Puerto Viejo.

Lunch cooking, Puerto Viejo.

Sloth. So close on the trail it startled me.

Sloth (just crossed the road), near Puerto Viejo.

Beach near Puerto Viejo, southern caribbean coast.

Church (Catholic, of course), Sarchi.

Finished Ox Cart, Sarchi.

Oxcart factory in Sarchi. All machines run from a water wheel.

Our Tico familia: Wendy, Mariella, Anna (Mama) and Minor (Papa).

Arriving at Spanish language school, San Joaquin de Flores, Costa Rica.

San Joaquin de Flores, Costa Rica

2010-02-07T14:09:00.000-08:00

We have just spent two weeks attending Spanish Language School in the town of San Joaquin de Flores, not too far from Heredia and San Jose in Costa Rica. My brain is hurting! We lived with a Costa Rican (Tico) family, who were very nice to us. However, they did not speak English, so we had plenty of opportunity to practice very basic communication! All of their children and grandchildren lived close by so the house was often full and boisterous. We walked to school in the morning, classes were from 8AM to noon - all Spanish all Morning. The teachers were excellent and we all made some great progress, hopefully a good start in order to survive the next few months.

In the afternoons and weekends we studied or went on outings. We went to the city of Heredia for a walking tour, and to the movies at the local mall (Avatar 3D, English with Spanish subtitles, a few of which I actually understood). We visited the town of Sarchi, which is noted for the production of "traditional" and festively decorated Ox Carts. We visited the "factory" where these were produced. All the power tools were run from a water-wheel. Many belts and wheels running around the place. Each cart is hand-painted, which takes one painter about 2 weeks.

We spent a weekend down on the southern Caribbean coast in the town of Puerto Viejo. Here many of the residents are descended from afro-caribbeans, and the culture is more like Jamaica than Costa Rica. The beaches and jungle are very beautiful. The weather was hot and humid. We were fortunate to be in town for the big surf competition. Watcing the crowd was (for me) just as interesting as watching the contestants. We rented bikes and rode around on the (mostly) dirt roads. I went a little further down the coast and saw many birds, a few monkeys, and two sloths - both very close up. Zane went boogie boarding, and we all ate very well. Sadly, for our Spanish skills, there was not much studying that weekend!

After school ended we took a couple more excursions: a boat trip on the Sarapiqui River, and white-water rafting on the Pacuare River. The sarapiqui river was tranquil and pretty. We saw many monkeys, a sloth, some bats, poison dart frogs, a caiman (small croc), and many birds. The rafting trip was fantastic, 18 miles and 38 rapids, class 3-4, through pristine rainforest. We all agreed perhaps the most beautiful river we had ever seen. Might have even been prettier if I had worn my glasses!! Only Zane took an unplanned swim, and he was hauled back into the raft quickly. Unfortunately no photos from that trip, although we may return!

Quepos Photos

2010-01-24T04:12:00.000-08:00

Swimming, anyone?

Sloth in Manuel Antonio National Park, just above our towels on the beach.

Iguana in Manuel Antionio National Park.

White-faced monkey in Manuel Antonio National Park.

Our first breakfast in Costa Rica - Gallo Pinto, Breakfast of Champions!

Zane rides in a wave. Making it look easy.

Tana shows some good surfing form. Who knew?

Nice beach at Manuel Antonio National Park

Quepos, Costa Rica

2010-01-24T04:09:00.001-08:00

Our first stop after arriving in Costa Rica was the town on Quepos on the Pacific Coast. We caught a bus from San Jose at the ungodly hour of 6AM, and arrived there just after 9AM after a nice ride. After dropping off our luggage and our first breakfast of Gallo Pinto (rice and beans, very nice), we set off to explore a bit, visiting the local fishing port and wandering around the town. We spent the rest of the day recovering from our two days of travel, and trying to adjust to the heat and humidity, which frankly I welcomed, hoping to erase memories of those -20C nights in Utah.

Over the next three days we checked out some of the local attrations. The beaches and national Park at nearby Manuel Antonio were a big hit. Plenty of people but also plenty of scenery and wildlife. Tana and Zane took a surfing lesson and were quite successful in gettting up on their boards and riding the waves. We visited the park and saw Howler and White-Faced Monkeys, as well as Sloths, Racoons, Iguanas and other lizards. The beach there was also very nice, we parked ourselves in the shade under a tree. Above us in the canopy was a mother sloth with a young baby. Luckily there was no falling sloth poop to report.

On our last day here we engaged in some of the more adventurous activities. The ladies went Horse Riding through the rainforest, and the boys did a "canopy tour" which involved riding ziplines through and above the forest canopy. Some of the lines were about 500 meters long and 100 meters off the ground. It was quite fun and really not too scary. We also saw more monkeys and a hummingbird nest with 2 baby hummingbirds in it, among other things.

We have been practising our Spanish. Sometimes we can even make ourselves understood.

This morning we catch the bus back towards San Jose, where we will begin our two weeks of Spanish Language school tomorrow. Wish us luck!

California

2010-01-20T17:25:00.001-08:00

From the shivering mesas of Utah we proceeded to California for some classic warm and sunny West Coast weather in Santa Barbara, Pasadena, and San Diego. We ran some errands and caught up with as many co-workers, friends and neighbors as we could. As usual there was not enough time to see everyone, so we apologize to those of you we did not see. We also visited our cats, who actually seemed to know who we were even though it has been four years since we left them in Uncle Lane's expert care. Highlights included Sunday afternoon at Cold Springs Tavern with Tom & Kenny (Glenn), Legoland (Zane), and Hanging out with friends (Tana). We also ate and drank too much (no surprise there). The ever-popular Cajun Kitchen wins with 4 visits in just under two weeks. The weather was true to form and it was great to wear shorts again. We knew it was time to go when the rains began to roll in. Our last full day involved driving from San Diego to Los Angeles, through some of the most intense rain we have experienced. We left Legoland when the park was closed due to rain, and even 30MPH on the highway seemed a bit fast for the conditions. We passed through the storm without incident and arrived in Los Angeles to clear skies. Many thanks to all of our hosts for your great hospitality!!! No photos from California, as I gave the camera some time off.

Next stop, Costa Rica!

Panoramic Photos

2010-01-06T07:38:00.001-08:00

I have discovered the photo-stitching software. Here are some results:

This is in Arches National Park. On the far right you can see Broken Arch, a hole in the rocks.

The view from Fisher Towers, a few miles from our place in Utah. Fisher Mesa is to the left of center. To the right of this in the distance you can see Castle Rock.

This was where we stayed at Kwa-Tuli island camp in southern Botswana.

This is near our place in Utah, looking over Professor Valley. Castle Rock is on the left, Adobe Mesa right of center, La Sal Mtns on the far right.

Utah Photos

2010-01-03T08:40:00.003-08:00

The turducken. Very yummy and few leftovers!

Zane in fine sledding form.

The tree. Nearly killed us getting this on the roof of the van.

Tana showing off her sledding technique

Snowing and everything!

Park Avenue, Arches National Park

An icy morning in Castle Valley

The Ol Homestead

Wintry view from Fisher Towers

Castle Rock in winter clothing

Utah

2010-01-03T08:40:00.001-08:00

Happy New Year Everyone! Hope your holidays were great and 2010 will be kind to you and your families!

For the holidays it was off to the homestead in Castle Valley (Caboose, Love Shack, and Barn) Utah where we celebrated a wintry Christmas with family and caught up with neighbors and friends. Oh yeah, do not forget the Turducken for Christmas Dinner! (and the Eggnog, and the Whiskey Sours, and the Margaritas, and - well, you get the picture)

We had never spent any real time here in the middle of winter before, and wintry it was. We "enjoyed" snow and very cold temps (lows of -20C/-14F, highs of -12C/ 10F). It was very beautiful with snow on the red rocks. The herd of Bighorn Sheep we saw along the Colorado River was a nice bons as well.

In spite of the temperatures (it's a dry cold), we took advantage of the calm and sunny days and managed to get in a few hikes and even some sledding. (Thanks to Mitch and Tory for that!) Otherwise we sat around eating and drinking too much.

We also squeezed in a brief jaunt to Glenwood Springs Colorado to meet friends and soaked in the outdoor hot pools as thick clouds of steam swirled around us. Also, we ate too much there as well (this is becoming a theme, no?)

Next stop, California - hoping for warmer weather!

NYC Photos

2009-12-13T05:10:00.000-08:00

Lunch In Little Italy - YUM.

Zane checking out a Turkey in Battery Park. Wildlife in NYC?

We enjoyed The Lion King on Broadway.

Tana and Zane ice skating at Rockerfeller Center.

Giving the Wall St. Bull a little fondle for good luck.

The boys enjoying some street food

Empire Lego Building, ToysRUs, Times Square

More Christmas decorations, Fa La La La La.

Rockerfeller Center Christmas Decorations

New York City

2009-12-13T04:58:00.000-08:00

From London we headed to NYC to reunite with Tana. It was colder than London, and we were even more freezing, but the weather was not so gloomy. Plus the Christmas decorations added a bit of warmth.

Oddly enough, although both Glenn and Tana had grown up about 150 miles from NYC neither of us had really ever been there before, so it was all new to us. We did our best to eat and (unfortunately for some) shop our way through Manhatten. It was interesting to walk by and actually see all those places we had heard about and seen so often through our lives - Times Square, Broadway, Carnegie Hall, Central Park, Rockefeller Center, Macy's, the Empire State Building, and so many more.

Aside from shopping, we managed some other touristy-type activities. Tana and Zane got in some Ice Skating at Rockefeller Center, we visited Battery Park to catch a glimpse of the Statue of Liberty, but did not venture out on the harbor as it was so cold and windy we feared the boat would be struck by icebergs. We did however meet a wild turkey in the park - how many wild turkeys live in Manhatten anyway?

On our walk from Battery Park to Little Italy for lunch we passed through the financial district where Glenn stopped to give the Wall St. Bull a friendly rub for good luck. We were hoping to see some grief-stricken investment bankers jumping from the tall buildings, but no luck.

We also managed to catch a performance of "The Lion King" on Broadway, which was quite enjoyable and reminded us of the warm weather in Africa and many animals we had seen before.

London Photos

2009-12-06T21:35:00.001-08:00

Nice view from the London Eye.

Windsor Castle. Flag flying but no sign of the Queen.

Windsor Swans.

Parliament.

Westminster Cathedral

Parlaiment and the Thames River.

A bit of Sand Sculpture along the Thames.

Pies at Harrod's.

Natural History Museum.

Enjoying a little pub culture.

Ice skating at the Natural History Museum

London Calling

2009-12-06T21:33:00.000-08:00

We flew from Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania to London for a few days there. Unfortunately Tana continued directly on to New York to attend her father's funeral.

Of course it being December London was grey, dark, wet, and cold. We were freezing! Since Tana was not here it was our duty to do a little shopping - warm clothes, please! Believe it or not we also spent two ejoyable hours exploring Harrod's (voluntarily even), the most amazing store I have ever witnessed. The food alone was simply amazing. After that we found some warm clothes to purchase and we were on our way.

We used the underground to get around, which was easy and mostly enjoyable (except for the one time we got on the wrong train). We did some touristy things like riding on the London Eye, visiting Windsor to see the castle (flag was flying so queen was in but we did not see her peering out of any of the windows), Ice Skating at the Natural History Museum, and a visit to the IMAX theater to see "Polar Express" in 3D. Mostly we walked around until our legs were sore, and did our best to support the local restaurants and pubs. Also we dodged raindrops.

It was nice to see so many places in person that we had seen so many times in photos and films. In general we found the city to be quite friendly and low key after the chaos of some of the African cities we had seen.

We also caught up with some friends that we made while volunteering in Namibia and the Thai Elephant Camp back in January, which was great fun. They entertained us, showed us the sights and generally spoiled us rotten.

Next stop, NYC.

Northern Tanzania Photos

2009-12-01T20:27:00.000-08:00

Large male baboon - very intimidating.

Ngorongoro Crater - largest in the world and full of animals!

Nursing hyena.

A very muddy Cape Buffalo.

Thompson's Gazelle.

We waited quite awhile for this little one to stand up.

Lazy lions, no doubt full of Cape Buffalo.

We saw only a couple Elephants in the crater.

Hyenas picking the ones clean.

Flamingos, of course.

A jackal and an eagle picking at scraps.

Vultures doing the dirty work.

Zane and his Masai friends.

Lots of animated Zebras in the crater.

It was rare to see a Giraffe not standing.

Big mouth.

The mobile phone network in Tanzania is called Zain, so everybody Zane introduced himself to easily knew his name.

Northern Tanzania

2009-12-01T20:26:00.000-08:00

After Zanzibar we headed to northern Tanzania for a last bit of Safari before leaving Africa. Traveling through Masai country, we visited Lake Manyara National Park and the Ngorongoro Crater Conservation Area. Many Masai still live a fairly traditional life looking after their cattle wearing their colorful clothing.

Lake Manyara is located at the edge of the escarpment that defines the edge of the rift valley. We had a nice day of game viewing there, seeing many monkeys (baboons, sykes, and vervet) as well as antelope, giraffe, elephants, hippos, and many bird species, including large groups of flamingos.

If you have seen the movie "Madigascar 2" (parents, you know what I'm talking about), you will recognize Ngorongoro Crater, which is a caldera located at about 2,000 meters above sea level, approx 15km x 15km in size, and chock full of animals. Due to the gentle climate there, animals such as lions and hyenas normally active at night in hotter areas can be found active at any time of the day or night. We had a tremendous day driving around down in the crater. The scenery was amazing and it seemed there were animals everywhere you looked. We saw many zebra, wildebeest, and buffal0. Also elephants, black rhino, hippos, elephants, lions, hyena, and various antelope. The highlight was the two fresh buffalo carcasses we came across - the lions had been busy early in the morning. The first was picked fairly clean, but had a few jackals and vultures picking the bones clean. The second carcass had about 16-18 hyena nearby, and also many vultures. The hyenas tore into the carcass as the vultures worked to clean to bones, shaking the carcass and making an amazing noise as we watched from just a few feet away. We were very glad to be inside the vehicle!

Our final African adventure for the trip came when we took a bus from the town of Arusha in the north to Dar Es Salaam, where our flight to London would depart from. We left Arusha about 8:30 AM, and were making reasonable progress until about 1PM, when some horrible noises started coming from the rear axle, and we noticed the unmistakable smell of heating rubber. After a quick inspection stop we proceeded at a much reduced speed to the nearest village, which had a roadside bus stop/restaurant and not much else. Here we ate lunch while they began to work on the bus. After a couple hours we began to be concerned that we would not make it to Dar Es Salaam in time for the flight at 7AM the next morning. Tana started asking around, and the man who seemed to be organizing things at the establishment arranged fo us to get seats on another bus. We paid the fare and boarded the bus (Mohammed Transport), to find it was full and we had been given the staff seats in the front of the bus. They sat on the engine and stood by the door (after they had split our fares among them). Departing at 4PM we struck out on the road. The driver's theory seemed to be something like this: I am driving a very large and fast vehicle. It has a loud horn. Pedestrians, cyclists, cars, buses, and trucks will get out of my way no matter where on the road I am. We passed other vehicles near the crests of hills, around blind curves, and in the face of oncoming traffic. Miraculously, we arrived in Dar Es Salaam about 9PM safe and sound, but quite tired and with a few frayed nerves, in time for a brief night's rest before departure to London.

Zanzibar Photos

2009-11-24T19:19:00.000-08:00

Zanzibar.

We could not figure out why this man took his chickens swimming.

Early morning scene.

Rollin' down the beach.

Red Colobus Monkey. Not many left.

School field trip.

Seaweed is grown for sale.

On the way home from the seaweed patch.

Sailing out for a snorkel.

Stone Town, a great mix of Africa and Arabia.

Doing a little ship building, the old fashioned way.

Stone town, a great place to wander.

Dried Octopus at the market. Yum?

Stone town was full of interesting old doors.

Zanzibar

2009-11-24T19:08:00.000-08:00

We have spent the last week or so on the island of Zanzibar, which is located about 40km off the coast of Tanzania. Although politically it is part of Tanzania we got our passports stamped here when we got off the ferry - go figure.

As Zanzibar was controlled by Arabs for a couple of centuries (Oman, to be specific), the architecture and culture is quite different than we have seen in other parts of southern Africa, and makes it seem quite exotic to us. The other thing we noticed is that being a tourist area we were constantly being approached by locals trying to sell us things or offering taxi rides, tours, etc. With one exception they were all very polite. Then we realized that up until the point in our trip we had generally been in areas where people were simply going about their business and not paying any attention to us.

We spent a couple days exploring the old portion of Zanzibar Town, called Stone Town, which was really interesting with the maze of tiny streets and alleys, open air markets, and old buildings. Very easy to get lost in there.

We then headed off to the east coast of the island for a few days at the beach, which was really nice and relaxed. The people were extremely friendly (even the ones not trying to sell us something), and the scenery was beautiful. Did I mention that the ocean was as warm as a bath? Oh yes, our waistlines liked the food as well.

We went sailing and snorkeling on a traditional outrigger, and visited the local national park, complete with endemic Red Colobus Monkeys. Being the rainy season we experienced a couple of tremendous downpours as well.