Well, trip is over. Back to "reality". I strongly encourage anyone who has the inclination to go see the world to get out and do it. Travel is an education in itself, and I'm glad I threw myself out there to see everything there was to offer. I can't wait to do more.
Thanks for reading, and coming around the world with me.
Cory
Thursday, July 10, 2008
Wallet
Well, after New York, I took the 12 hour train ride up to Toronto, running through Niagara Falls. The plan was to visit family and friends over the next few weeks, and I was going to rent a car to do so. Took a cab from the train station to where I was renting a car.
Unfortunately, it was after the cab left that I realised that my wallet was still inside. So, faced with no Credit Cards, no Driver's Licence, no bank card, and no idea as to the cab company that took off with everything, I made the decision that it was time to return home. Luckily, I had my passport and a ticket booked from Toronto to Calgary already, so after some haggling with Westjet, I was set to leave the next day.
With only $9 in my pocket, I made my way to Calgary, where after sitting in the airport for 10 hours, I was thankfully picked up by my sister.
I have been back in Edmonton now for about a week, and things are rolling along. I have bought a house already, and should return to work soon after possession.
Unfortunately, it was after the cab left that I realised that my wallet was still inside. So, faced with no Credit Cards, no Driver's Licence, no bank card, and no idea as to the cab company that took off with everything, I made the decision that it was time to return home. Luckily, I had my passport and a ticket booked from Toronto to Calgary already, so after some haggling with Westjet, I was set to leave the next day.
With only $9 in my pocket, I made my way to Calgary, where after sitting in the airport for 10 hours, I was thankfully picked up by my sister.
I have been back in Edmonton now for about a week, and things are rolling along. I have bought a house already, and should return to work soon after possession.
Saturday, June 28, 2008
New York Day 4
Today I slept in a fair bit, and then got up to take the free Staten Island Ferry, which goes right by the Statue of Liberty. Better alternative than having to pay to go to Liberty Island I figured, they don't allow people to go up in the statue anymore, so a free ride right by it is just as good as a paid ride to the base of it.
After seeing the statue, which is smaller than I thought, I was walking around trying to find a subway station in the financial district, around Wall Street. Subway service is sporadic on weekends, and combined with construction and upgrade, you cant always find a line that is running to where you're going.
I was walking and walking and walking, and came around the corner of one building, and there was a girl lying in the middle of the street, pretty much right on the yellow line. People started to walk out to her, and when I got close, it was obvious why she was lying there.
She had jumped.
The only buildings around were at least 20 stories tall, and the brokenness of her body gave testament to how high she must have been. I'm pretty sure she didn't feel anything. Cops were on scene in mere seconds, as they are everywhere in Manhattan, and started sorting things out. I didn't really see anything so I left.
Not sure what to do tonight, I have to get up early tomorrow to get to Penn Station to catch the train to Toronto, so probably not a lot.
After seeing the statue, which is smaller than I thought, I was walking around trying to find a subway station in the financial district, around Wall Street. Subway service is sporadic on weekends, and combined with construction and upgrade, you cant always find a line that is running to where you're going.
I was walking and walking and walking, and came around the corner of one building, and there was a girl lying in the middle of the street, pretty much right on the yellow line. People started to walk out to her, and when I got close, it was obvious why she was lying there.
She had jumped.
The only buildings around were at least 20 stories tall, and the brokenness of her body gave testament to how high she must have been. I'm pretty sure she didn't feel anything. Cops were on scene in mere seconds, as they are everywhere in Manhattan, and started sorting things out. I didn't really see anything so I left.
Not sure what to do tonight, I have to get up early tomorrow to get to Penn Station to catch the train to Toronto, so probably not a lot.
New York Day 3
Again, out and about in NYC. Spent most of the morning walking around Manhattan, and went to the Empire State Building to try to get to the observatory deck. Unfortunately, due to the enormous line, I didn't make it up there, as I had to leave to catch the train to The Bronx to go watch a Yankee game at 2 pm
This game was the first of 2 in the same day, Yankees vs. Mets, Subway Series 2008. The first game they were playing at Yankee Stadium, the second at Shea Stadium later that night.
I managed to get a seat behind home plate and off to the side of the fist base line, not bad seats at all. There is construction everywhere around Yankee Stadium right now, as they are building the new Yankee Stadium right next to the current one; it's scheduled to open in 2009.
The game itself was good, turned out to be a blowout for the Mets. I was surprised at how small Yankee Stadium actually is. You can see that they do actually need a new stadium, the halls outside the playing area where they sell food area amazingly tiny and cramped. This game was the 42nd last game to be played there.
At night I wandered around again, heading down to Times Square at night to look around. Everything is busy all the time, I cant get over that. Cant find a moment to yourself anywhere. The only thing I really have left on my list is to see the Statue of Liberty, then I will have covered everything I want to do in NYC, but that is for tomorrow...
This game was the first of 2 in the same day, Yankees vs. Mets, Subway Series 2008. The first game they were playing at Yankee Stadium, the second at Shea Stadium later that night.
I managed to get a seat behind home plate and off to the side of the fist base line, not bad seats at all. There is construction everywhere around Yankee Stadium right now, as they are building the new Yankee Stadium right next to the current one; it's scheduled to open in 2009.
The game itself was good, turned out to be a blowout for the Mets. I was surprised at how small Yankee Stadium actually is. You can see that they do actually need a new stadium, the halls outside the playing area where they sell food area amazingly tiny and cramped. This game was the 42nd last game to be played there.
At night I wandered around again, heading down to Times Square at night to look around. Everything is busy all the time, I cant get over that. Cant find a moment to yourself anywhere. The only thing I really have left on my list is to see the Statue of Liberty, then I will have covered everything I want to do in NYC, but that is for tomorrow...
Friday, June 27, 2008
New York Day 2
After getting some things sorted out in the morning regarding tickets and whatnot, I managed to get away about 1030 am from the hostel. I bought a cheap bus tour that went around the city in several different loops, and was good for 2 days, covering pretty much everything.
I started off at the World Trade Centre site, bypassing everything else to get there first. It is enormous in size, but the construction is progressing, and the hole that is there doesn't so much look like a hole anymore, there are pillars and cranes that have risen past street level now. I walked around looking for the viewing area that I had been told to go to that allowed Emergency Services members in for an additional look that wasn't open to the public. After talking to a few Transit Authority Cops, I learned that it had been closed as construction progressed. There are many interesting things to see there though, including memorials, and interesting stories, such as a very old church that was next to the WTC that wasn't harmed at all, as it was protected by it's trees that surrounded it. Some trees died, most survived, even after being smashed by giant steel I beams that fell from enormous heights. If you talk to people that work in the area, most were there that day, and have interesting insights and things to say.
After that, I walked around some, as the bus is a hop-on-hop-off deal, making my way through the financial district, down Wall street, and to the Staten Island Ferry location. Went by the Brooklyn Bridge, and spent some time down by the water. All day I spent hopping from bus to bus, and jetting around on the subway, through Harlem, up to Central Park, and pretty much everywhere else you can get to.
If you can name a sight in New york, chances are I saw it on this day. the next day I planned for a Yankee game, and hopefully getting up to the observation deck on the Empire State Building.
I started off at the World Trade Centre site, bypassing everything else to get there first. It is enormous in size, but the construction is progressing, and the hole that is there doesn't so much look like a hole anymore, there are pillars and cranes that have risen past street level now. I walked around looking for the viewing area that I had been told to go to that allowed Emergency Services members in for an additional look that wasn't open to the public. After talking to a few Transit Authority Cops, I learned that it had been closed as construction progressed. There are many interesting things to see there though, including memorials, and interesting stories, such as a very old church that was next to the WTC that wasn't harmed at all, as it was protected by it's trees that surrounded it. Some trees died, most survived, even after being smashed by giant steel I beams that fell from enormous heights. If you talk to people that work in the area, most were there that day, and have interesting insights and things to say.
After that, I walked around some, as the bus is a hop-on-hop-off deal, making my way through the financial district, down Wall street, and to the Staten Island Ferry location. Went by the Brooklyn Bridge, and spent some time down by the water. All day I spent hopping from bus to bus, and jetting around on the subway, through Harlem, up to Central Park, and pretty much everywhere else you can get to.
If you can name a sight in New york, chances are I saw it on this day. the next day I planned for a Yankee game, and hopefully getting up to the observation deck on the Empire State Building.
Thursday, June 26, 2008
New York City
New York City at last. A quick flight from Miami landed me in NYC about 6:30 pm on Wednesday, and I made it to my hostel about an hour after that. It was close to dark then, so I just hung around getting some things sorted out for the next day, what I was going to do and whatnot.
I had originally planned to go up to Ottawa, around there a bit and then tour back through the states in several places before going back to New York for the flight home. Funny how things are always changing.
Due to costs, I decided to cut the trip back after New York and just fly straight into Calgary. I called United, to change my ticket. No problem, they said. With fare difference and fees, that will be.....hmmm......let me see.........$1240.00.
I says "Pardon?"
The next half an hour to 45 minutes were spent talking to supervisors and then supervisor's supervisors, but none changed their tune. So given the initial cost of the ticket, plus the changes and fees, they were trying to suggest that a one way ticket from New York City to Calgary at the end of June was somewhere in the range of $1500.00. I don't think that's reasonable. So, for a hundred bucks on the train to Toronto, and a cheap flight with Westjet, I am booked to come back into Calgary on the 6th of July for much less than $1500.00. While I'm at it, I'm going to take the week to visit family and friends.
But, back to New York. After that fiasco, I simply went out and got something to eat. It was dark, and I was walking back to the hostel. Flip flops on my feet, just walking down the sidewalk, when something ran across the front of my feet, missing my toes by a few inches. I didn't jump, because I thought it was a cat, and we've all had cats run out in front of us, right? Cats are harmless. When I looked at it running into the park to my left, I saw that it was actually a very large rat. About 1 1/2 feet long from nose to tail.
Welcome to New York!
I had originally planned to go up to Ottawa, around there a bit and then tour back through the states in several places before going back to New York for the flight home. Funny how things are always changing.
Due to costs, I decided to cut the trip back after New York and just fly straight into Calgary. I called United, to change my ticket. No problem, they said. With fare difference and fees, that will be.....hmmm......let me see.........$1240.00.
I says "Pardon?"
The next half an hour to 45 minutes were spent talking to supervisors and then supervisor's supervisors, but none changed their tune. So given the initial cost of the ticket, plus the changes and fees, they were trying to suggest that a one way ticket from New York City to Calgary at the end of June was somewhere in the range of $1500.00. I don't think that's reasonable. So, for a hundred bucks on the train to Toronto, and a cheap flight with Westjet, I am booked to come back into Calgary on the 6th of July for much less than $1500.00. While I'm at it, I'm going to take the week to visit family and friends.
But, back to New York. After that fiasco, I simply went out and got something to eat. It was dark, and I was walking back to the hostel. Flip flops on my feet, just walking down the sidewalk, when something ran across the front of my feet, missing my toes by a few inches. I didn't jump, because I thought it was a cat, and we've all had cats run out in front of us, right? Cats are harmless. When I looked at it running into the park to my left, I saw that it was actually a very large rat. About 1 1/2 feet long from nose to tail.
Welcome to New York!
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Back in Miami
Well, after the long drive to Houston, through Dallas and back, I am in Miami again. I put close to 3000 miles (miles, not kilometres) on the rental I had, in 6 days. Not bad, not bad. It was nice to be able to drive through Louisiana, Alabama and Mississippi, it's really nice down there. The thing that amazed me the most was the amount of traffic on the Interstate everywhere you were. It was a constant game of trying to pass people while trying to get out of others' way, and it rarely let up.
Houston was great, visited some friends and spent time just relaxing. After the short hop to Dallas, it was again great to see some familiar faces and get together. Dallas is a city I will definitely visit again.
In Miami, I again haven't been doing much, just enjoying the sun, and have myself booked in to fly to New York tomorrow at about 3. From there I am not too sure what is going on. NYC is expensive, and right now I only have a place to stay until Friday, then I have nowhere. It doesn't help the fact that the 4th of July is approaching, and travelers who are getting in the city early are already booking things up. I had hoped to get to Ottawa, but flights aren't cheap.
I am looking forward to New York, so much to do, so little time...
Houston was great, visited some friends and spent time just relaxing. After the short hop to Dallas, it was again great to see some familiar faces and get together. Dallas is a city I will definitely visit again.
In Miami, I again haven't been doing much, just enjoying the sun, and have myself booked in to fly to New York tomorrow at about 3. From there I am not too sure what is going on. NYC is expensive, and right now I only have a place to stay until Friday, then I have nowhere. It doesn't help the fact that the 4th of July is approaching, and travelers who are getting in the city early are already booking things up. I had hoped to get to Ottawa, but flights aren't cheap.
I am looking forward to New York, so much to do, so little time...
Thursday, June 19, 2008
Miami to Texas = Long, Long Drive
So I rented a car and planned to drive over to Houston, Texas to visit some friends. I got up early, went to take a shower, only to find no water in the hotel. I quickly found out the problem when I went to the lobby and found several construction workers trying to seal off the water main they had sliced in half while digging up the street. So, no shower I guess. After I was late picking up the car, I finally set out from Miami around 11 a.m., enroute to Texas.
I made my way up the east coast, and north of Jupiter, I hooked it westbound onto the Florida turnpike, passing through Orlando, and hooking up with Interstate 10 on the northern end of Florida. I made it all the way to Pensacola before I decided to call it a night, staying there.
The next morning, I set out at 8 am, and passed through Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana before hitting Texas. It was nice to have 2-3 lanes the whole way, without much of a slowdown, but I was amazed at the insanity of the amount of traffic on the road. Bumper to bumper, side to side, it was a fight the whole way. It's a nice drive, following the coast mostly, and you are surrounded by trees the whole way, but not a drive I want to make too often.
Around 4 pm, I made it into Houston, and then up to Spring, TX, where I am now, staying with friends. the plan is to hit the road once again tomorrow, heading up to Dallas to visit some more people, then the long, arduous drive back to Miami, where I plan to spend a few days before flying to New York.
I made my way up the east coast, and north of Jupiter, I hooked it westbound onto the Florida turnpike, passing through Orlando, and hooking up with Interstate 10 on the northern end of Florida. I made it all the way to Pensacola before I decided to call it a night, staying there.
The next morning, I set out at 8 am, and passed through Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana before hitting Texas. It was nice to have 2-3 lanes the whole way, without much of a slowdown, but I was amazed at the insanity of the amount of traffic on the road. Bumper to bumper, side to side, it was a fight the whole way. It's a nice drive, following the coast mostly, and you are surrounded by trees the whole way, but not a drive I want to make too often.
Around 4 pm, I made it into Houston, and then up to Spring, TX, where I am now, staying with friends. the plan is to hit the road once again tomorrow, heading up to Dallas to visit some more people, then the long, arduous drive back to Miami, where I plan to spend a few days before flying to New York.
Miami
After clearing US customs, I got a ride down to South Beach, which was close to my hotel. Miami reminds me somewhat of my short stay in L.A. Nice place to visit, but I wouldn't live there. Lots of nice cars, clean, very rich atmosphere. 
I hung out for the day on Sunday and Monday (15th/16th) just on the beach checking things out and walking around, finally soaking up some sun. Not a lot to mention, just enjoyed some down time where I don't have to be ready to fly the next day. Although I did have to drive to Texas to visit friends on the 17th.
More Flights...
After spending the night in Cusco, I flew back to Lima on the 14th. I had less than 24 hours there before having to fly to Miami on the 15th at 6 am. This meant, unfortunately, that I had to get up at about 3 am to make it to the airport for the initial flight to Columbia, where I was to connect to Miami. As Peru and Colombia were playing in a qualifying soccer match for World Cup in 2010, I didn't manage to get a lot of sleep.
In my one hour stop in Columbia, I had to get off my plane, walk down a hallway, and get on another plane going to Miami. In this short, short distance to walk from plane to plane, I had to go through security 3 times. And we thought the States was strict? 1st step - x rays and metal detectors. 2nd step, frisk search and physical examination of my carry on bag. 3rd step - again, x rays and metal detectors. Keep in mind, this was all within 50 feet, in a straight line of sight. Kudos to Columbia for keeping the planes safe, I guess.
After all that, it was a short 4 hours to Miami....
In my one hour stop in Columbia, I had to get off my plane, walk down a hallway, and get on another plane going to Miami. In this short, short distance to walk from plane to plane, I had to go through security 3 times. And we thought the States was strict? 1st step - x rays and metal detectors. 2nd step, frisk search and physical examination of my carry on bag. 3rd step - again, x rays and metal detectors. Keep in mind, this was all within 50 feet, in a straight line of sight. Kudos to Columbia for keeping the planes safe, I guess.
After all that, it was a short 4 hours to Miami....
Macchu Picchu
So, the following day after the train ride from Cusco to Aguas Calientes, I got up early again to get up to Machu Picchu before it got too busy. I caught the first bus up there at 5:30 a.m., and waited in line for the site to open at 6:30.
Upon getting up to where you give the guy your ticket, I was told that my backpack was too 'large' to go in with, and I had to store it outside. This after they recommend you bring a lunch and water up there, to avoid having to go back out and eat. I protested for a bit, but no dice. It quickly became obvious that it was only a money grab, as they simply randomly picked people out of the crowd and told them to go store their bags, while allowing others with larger bags to walk through. When you had to go store your bag, they then charged you for storage. I then pushed my way back to the front of the line and went inside to have a look around.
Macchu Picchu was nice, and it was great to be able to get around in there without the pathways and stairs being choked with tourists. It is multi-levelled, and it takes some time and energy to be able to climb everywhere to look at everything.
After a few hours and a bunch of photos, I decided to leave when it started to get full. I hopped a bus down the mountain and went back to town. Rather than waiting for my train to arrive later that afternoon around 5 p.m., I changed my train to go to Ollantaytambo, and got out of Aguas Calientes.
The train was almost empty, which made for a much more comfortable ride, being able to stretch out and relax, and even sleep comfortably for a bit. Upon arriving to Ollantaytambo, I got a cheap taxi for the 1 1/2 hour ride back to Cusco, where I had one more night before flying back to Lima the next day.
Ultimately, Macchu Picchu is nice, but is the largest tourist trap I have run into since I left home. With all the hassle and cost it is to get there and back, I don't feel it was worthwhile. Others disagree, but I wouldn't go back.
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Update
I have a fair bit to write about, just no time to do so. Currently in Miami, heading over to Texas to visit some friends for a few days. It'll be good to see familiar faces! Updates to follow soon.
Thursday, June 12, 2008
Aguas Calientes
Well, up bright and early this morning and boarded the train for the 4 hour journey to Aguas Calientes, where I am now. It isn´t actually far from Cusco to Aguas Calientes, but the train only goes about 25-30 km per hour due to the terrain it has to negotiate, so it takes a while. I bought myself a ´backpacker´ticket, the cheapest you could get, and it was still $100 US round trip.
The trains are fairly comfortable, but packed full, and I wasn´t happy to see that they have the seats facing eachother in groups of four. You cant put your legs out, as the person opposite you has their legs there, so it is cramped and uncomfortable. At least when seats are in normal rows you can stick your legs under the seat.
I spent the journey in and out of something similar to sleep, with my face mashed up against the glass of the window, and created a nice red dent in my forehead from occasionally tring to rest my face against the window frame. Either that or I was slumped forward in a crumpled mess. I dont think I actually slept at all the night previous, as insomnia is another side effect of altitude sickness. That and people rolling into the dorm at 3 am and making a bunch of noise. Ahh, traveling.
The town itself is a giant tourist town, I´m not entirely sure it would exist if it wasn´t for people coming here to either hike the Inca trail or go up to Macchu Picchu. All that seems to exist is markets, hostel and hotels, restaurants, and lots of dogs and cats everywhere.
My altitude sickness has calmed down somewhat, I managed to get rid of the three day headache for a few hours, but it is back with a reinforcements. The nausea is gone, and my balance has leveled out for the most part. I have overheard others talking about it, and I am not the worst off by far. Some American kid had to be hospitalized for a while he had it so bad. Aguas Calientes is about 3000 feet lower than Cusco, so that is a bonus, and thankfully I only have about 12 hours in Cusco after I return, and then fly back to Lima, which mostly is at sea level or close to it.
Tomorrow is another early morning, about 4:30 am to get up and catch the first bus up to Macchu Picchu, trying to avoid the masses. Then it´s a lovely train ride back to Cusco at 5 p.m., and another early flight back to Lima the day after.
The trains are fairly comfortable, but packed full, and I wasn´t happy to see that they have the seats facing eachother in groups of four. You cant put your legs out, as the person opposite you has their legs there, so it is cramped and uncomfortable. At least when seats are in normal rows you can stick your legs under the seat.
I spent the journey in and out of something similar to sleep, with my face mashed up against the glass of the window, and created a nice red dent in my forehead from occasionally tring to rest my face against the window frame. Either that or I was slumped forward in a crumpled mess. I dont think I actually slept at all the night previous, as insomnia is another side effect of altitude sickness. That and people rolling into the dorm at 3 am and making a bunch of noise. Ahh, traveling.
The town itself is a giant tourist town, I´m not entirely sure it would exist if it wasn´t for people coming here to either hike the Inca trail or go up to Macchu Picchu. All that seems to exist is markets, hostel and hotels, restaurants, and lots of dogs and cats everywhere.
My altitude sickness has calmed down somewhat, I managed to get rid of the three day headache for a few hours, but it is back with a reinforcements. The nausea is gone, and my balance has leveled out for the most part. I have overheard others talking about it, and I am not the worst off by far. Some American kid had to be hospitalized for a while he had it so bad. Aguas Calientes is about 3000 feet lower than Cusco, so that is a bonus, and thankfully I only have about 12 hours in Cusco after I return, and then fly back to Lima, which mostly is at sea level or close to it.
Tomorrow is another early morning, about 4:30 am to get up and catch the first bus up to Macchu Picchu, trying to avoid the masses. Then it´s a lovely train ride back to Cusco at 5 p.m., and another early flight back to Lima the day after.
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Cusco
Cusco is a nice place, about 300,000 people, and sits way way up at an elevation of about 10,500 feet above sea level. That´s probably why I got sick as soon as I arrived.
By the time I got to the hostel yesterday, it was close to noon. Had a bit of a headache, and decided to have a nap of about an hour or so to see it that took care of it. I woke up 4 hours later, feeling worse than when I went to sleep. I wandered around for a bit, had some supper, but by then the nausea had also set in and my balance was a little bit off, all signs of Altitude sickness. You can try chewing coca leaves or making it into tea, which helps apparently, but I´ve also been told that if you have too much, you can test positive for cocaine on any drug test, so I decided to avoid it.
After a nice 14 hour sleep, I woke today feeling much better, but still in a little bit of a haze. It´s really an odd feeling. I wandered around the city today, as there was finally some nice weather. Today was the nicest day I have had weatrher-wise since I arrived in South America.
Tomorrow, the train tickets are booked to Aguas Calientes, leaving bright and early. Thankfully, Macchu Picchu is several thousand feet lover in elevation that Cusco, so hopefully that gives me a bit of a break.
By the time I got to the hostel yesterday, it was close to noon. Had a bit of a headache, and decided to have a nap of about an hour or so to see it that took care of it. I woke up 4 hours later, feeling worse than when I went to sleep. I wandered around for a bit, had some supper, but by then the nausea had also set in and my balance was a little bit off, all signs of Altitude sickness. You can try chewing coca leaves or making it into tea, which helps apparently, but I´ve also been told that if you have too much, you can test positive for cocaine on any drug test, so I decided to avoid it.
After a nice 14 hour sleep, I woke today feeling much better, but still in a little bit of a haze. It´s really an odd feeling. I wandered around the city today, as there was finally some nice weather. Today was the nicest day I have had weatrher-wise since I arrived in South America.
Tomorrow, the train tickets are booked to Aguas Calientes, leaving bright and early. Thankfully, Macchu Picchu is several thousand feet lover in elevation that Cusco, so hopefully that gives me a bit of a break.
Monday, June 9, 2008
Peru
I haven´t been able to post anything interesting of late, as I really haven´t been doing anything interesting. I have moved on from Chile, which was a disappointment to say the least, and am now in Lima, Peru.
I am heading to Cusco tomorrow on a flight I managed to find for cheap, and will be splitting my time between Cusco and Aguas Calientes, which is a small town at the base of Macchu Picchu. I have chosen to spend a night there to let me get up early, around 5am, and head up to Macchu Picchu, avoiding the crowds that come on the train from Cusco, arriving in the late morning, and leaving in the early afternoon. I will have to hop the afternoon train to go back to Cusco, spend one night there, then board a flight back to Lima Saturday morning, spend one night in Lima, then fly to Miami on Sunday, via Bogota, Columbia.
Starting tomorrow, I am busy, busy, busy. I will post photos of Macchu Picchu as soon as I ahve them.
I am heading to Cusco tomorrow on a flight I managed to find for cheap, and will be splitting my time between Cusco and Aguas Calientes, which is a small town at the base of Macchu Picchu. I have chosen to spend a night there to let me get up early, around 5am, and head up to Macchu Picchu, avoiding the crowds that come on the train from Cusco, arriving in the late morning, and leaving in the early afternoon. I will have to hop the afternoon train to go back to Cusco, spend one night there, then board a flight back to Lima Saturday morning, spend one night in Lima, then fly to Miami on Sunday, via Bogota, Columbia.
Starting tomorrow, I am busy, busy, busy. I will post photos of Macchu Picchu as soon as I ahve them.
Monday, June 2, 2008
Santiago de Chile
After a flight of about 2 hours, I arrived in Santiago on Sunday. Flying in on the plane, it is neat to see how the city is situated right in the mountains, and planes have to wind their way in through the mountains to land at the airport. As I was going through customs, I was told I had to go back and pay an entry tax to get into the country. Apparently if you are from the US, Canada, Australia or Mexico, you have to pay a reciprocity tax to get in. I was not pleased to find out that it was $132.00!!! Higher than any of the other 3 countries as well. Airport tax to leave Argentina, and now another to get into Chile. Give me a break.
I cabbed it into the city from the airport, and on the way in, noticed all the flags at half mast. A long, long conversation consisting of broken spanglish ensued with the cab driver, and after a while, I got the story as to why. The Friday previous, a high ranking General in the Chilean Police Force had died in Panama in a helicopter crash, along with his wife. The funeral was today. The police had shut the entire downtown area down, and as a result, I had to walk in about 15 blocks to my hostel .
The hostel itself is very nice and clean, but I was disappointed to find out they allow smoking in the main area. Then again, so does everywhere. Everybody in South America seems to smoke, everywhere, all the time. Airports, restaurants, movie theatres, hostels, all pro-smoking. Oh well, might as well get used to it while I am here.
Tomorrow hopefully I will be able to head into the Andes mountians and do some hiking and exploring. I looked into Easter Island, but it is way too expensive, regrettably.
I cabbed it into the city from the airport, and on the way in, noticed all the flags at half mast. A long, long conversation consisting of broken spanglish ensued with the cab driver, and after a while, I got the story as to why. The Friday previous, a high ranking General in the Chilean Police Force had died in Panama in a helicopter crash, along with his wife. The funeral was today. The police had shut the entire downtown area down, and as a result, I had to walk in about 15 blocks to my hostel .
The hostel itself is very nice and clean, but I was disappointed to find out they allow smoking in the main area. Then again, so does everywhere. Everybody in South America seems to smoke, everywhere, all the time. Airports, restaurants, movie theatres, hostels, all pro-smoking. Oh well, might as well get used to it while I am here.
Tomorrow hopefully I will be able to head into the Andes mountians and do some hiking and exploring. I looked into Easter Island, but it is way too expensive, regrettably.
Buenos Aires
Well for the remainder of my time in Argentina, I remained in Buenos Aires. To travel over to the much heralded Mendoza wine region would have been nice, but with time restrictions and not wanting to shell out scads of cash to get there and back, I opted against it.
In Buenos Aires, I just mostly walked around, admiring the architecture and taking in the atmosphere of the city. I spent time in City squares, watched a few protests taking place in the street for something, and waited for it to erupt into somehting else, but the Policia had it well in hand. No excitement for now.
I am now off to Chile, and will be spending a week there, exploring the Andes and the capital city, Santiago.
In Buenos Aires, I just mostly walked around, admiring the architecture and taking in the atmosphere of the city. I spent time in City squares, watched a few protests taking place in the street for something, and waited for it to erupt into somehting else, but the Policia had it well in hand. No excitement for now.
I am now off to Chile, and will be spending a week there, exploring the Andes and the capital city, Santiago.
Friday, May 30, 2008
Iguazu Falls
Well, the bus ride from Buenos Aires to Puerto Iguazu was nothing short of spectacular. I was anticipating a greyhound bus-style of a ride with uncomfortable seats and little sleep. I was pleasantly surprised.
The bus we took was a double decker bus, with fist class seats on top, and others down below. I had booked a first class seat, because at only 380 pesos round trip (about $130), I figured why not. I went up into the bus and to my amazement, found seats that back homne would cost a lot more. If you´ve ever had the opportunity to walk through first class on a long flight, or better yet sit in first class on a long flight, you will know the seats I am about to mention. Large. Comfortable. Roomy. They fold all the way back, with a foot rest coming up and locking in place, so you are completely horizintal. To tell the truth it was better than some of the hostel beds I have stayed in. I was also surprised to find that there were meals served on the bus by an attendant, and tv screens to watch movies on. We left at about 7:40 pm, and after a long comfortable drive and excellent sleep, we arrived at about 12:45 pm the next day.
After walking around a bit, I found my hostel and dropped my bags off. Back to the bus terminal and caught the next bus going to the Falls. The temperature had dropped off and it was only sitting at around 7 degrees with the wind howling, which I´m sure made it much colder.
At the falls I walked around and took a train out to Garganta do Diablo, which translates to The Devil´s Throat. The views are nothing less than mesmorizing, with massive amounts of water going over the edge, and large plumes of water vapor rising from the depths below. From the edge of Garganta do Diablo, you can see across to the Brasilian side fo the falls. I would´ve gone over there, but I don´t have a visa for Brasil, and don´t want the hassle of haggling at borders trying to get in.
Iguazu has several different levels of falls and is a massive national park. Absolutely stunning to see, it is approximately 3 times larger than Niagra Falls.
Today it is back on the bus, back to Buenos Aires, then on to Santiago de Chile on Sunday.
The bus we took was a double decker bus, with fist class seats on top, and others down below. I had booked a first class seat, because at only 380 pesos round trip (about $130), I figured why not. I went up into the bus and to my amazement, found seats that back homne would cost a lot more. If you´ve ever had the opportunity to walk through first class on a long flight, or better yet sit in first class on a long flight, you will know the seats I am about to mention. Large. Comfortable. Roomy. They fold all the way back, with a foot rest coming up and locking in place, so you are completely horizintal. To tell the truth it was better than some of the hostel beds I have stayed in. I was also surprised to find that there were meals served on the bus by an attendant, and tv screens to watch movies on. We left at about 7:40 pm, and after a long comfortable drive and excellent sleep, we arrived at about 12:45 pm the next day.
At the falls I walked around and took a train out to Garganta do Diablo, which translates to The Devil´s Throat. The views are nothing less than mesmorizing, with massive amounts of water going over the edge, and large plumes of water vapor rising from the depths below. From the edge of Garganta do Diablo, you can see across to the Brasilian side fo the falls. I would´ve gone over there, but I don´t have a visa for Brasil, and don´t want the hassle of haggling at borders trying to get in.
Today it is back on the bus, back to Buenos Aires, then on to Santiago de Chile on Sunday.
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
Argentina
Arrived in Argentina on Sunday, after a 10 hour flight from Cape Town.
I have been spending the past few days just wandering around the city, looking at this and that, and having fun trying to order food in Spanish. I eat a lot of chicken, as pollo is one of the few food associated words I know in Spanish.
Later today, I have an 18 hour bus ride to Iguazu Falls, which is approximately 3 times the size of Niagra Falls. Not looking forward to that.
I have been spending the past few days just wandering around the city, looking at this and that, and having fun trying to order food in Spanish. I eat a lot of chicken, as pollo is one of the few food associated words I know in Spanish.
Later today, I have an 18 hour bus ride to Iguazu Falls, which is approximately 3 times the size of Niagra Falls. Not looking forward to that.
Saturday, May 24, 2008
Kruger National Park Day 4
In the morning at the Lodge, we went for a walk around looking mostly at native plants. No gun necessary this time, as there were no large predators around here, except for the occasional Leopard. Reassuring, hey?
We were told about lots of plants that can be used for other things, some that can be used as an alternative to shampoo, medicines, etc. A pretty subdued walk around as it was our last day and we weren't hunting around for large animals to see, just looking at plants.
After breakfast, we set out on the approximate 6-7 hour ride back to Johannesburg, with a few stops along the way, including, like I mentioned, at God's Window, on the top of the Blythe River Canyon.
So, after a while, we made it up to God's Window, and had a look around. Very nice, very scenic, with some of the edges dropping straight off, all the way down. We were looking around and hopping from rock to rock, probably a little close to the edge (hindsight is 20/20, right?), when I bit the dust. I flew off the one boulder, fell about 6 feet and came to a stop on the ground, right next to the edge. It was a looong way down.
It scared one lady who saw me go flying more than it did me, she screamed, I just kind of laughed it off. A few scrapes, and a hole punched into my left palm, but nothing major to speak of. Adds some excitement to the trip!
We then got back inside the van and continued on to Johannesburg. A lot of violence erupting here right now, with a lot of fighting going on between refugees from Zimbabwe and local people living in the townships. They had to call in the army to assist the police in quelling the riots. Flying back to Cape town the day following, and on to Argentina on Sunday.
We were told about lots of plants that can be used for other things, some that can be used as an alternative to shampoo, medicines, etc. A pretty subdued walk around as it was our last day and we weren't hunting around for large animals to see, just looking at plants.
So, after a while, we made it up to God's Window, and had a look around. Very nice, very scenic, with some of the edges dropping straight off, all the way down. We were looking around and hopping from rock to rock, probably a little close to the edge (hindsight is 20/20, right?), when I bit the dust. I flew off the one boulder, fell about 6 feet and came to a stop on the ground, right next to the edge. It was a looong way down.
We then got back inside the van and continued on to Johannesburg. A lot of violence erupting here right now, with a lot of fighting going on between refugees from Zimbabwe and local people living in the townships. They had to call in the army to assist the police in quelling the riots. Flying back to Cape town the day following, and on to Argentina on Sunday.
Kruger National Park Day 3
For the third day in the park, we had to make the long drive from our camping site at the northern end of the park all the way down to the Lodge we were staying at for the final night, just at the south end. Again, we had a 5:30 am start, did some looking around, and after breakfast, we set out.
On the way there, we spotted two Lionesses hunting Wildebeest, which were mixed in with a large herd of Impala. We watched what went on for about an hour, and a few times I thought we were going to see some action. Twice, an Impala came within about 20 feet of the Lions, but they ignored it both times, more focused on the Wildebeest. Eventually the Impala noticed the Lions, and began to snort and make noise to alert the others, but surprisingly, did not run away. Eventually, it walked away when the herd left, and we also went on our way.
We spotted a herd of Water Buffalo, and got some good pictures of that. We were told they are the preferred meal of Lions due to the fact that they are so thick and full of meat. However, they also can kill Lions due to their size and aggression, so it isn't as easy as picking off a Wildebeest. Our guide said it can take up to 3 hours for a group of Lions to take down a Water Buffalo.
We then went over to a large Dam that was built to control the flow of water to Kruger and the surrounding area, called Blythe River Canyon. We took a small boat cruise there, going around on the reservoir, which at the bottom ranges from 700 to 1300 metres, depending on the size of the cliffs surrounding it. Tomorrow we were going to swing around to the top on the way back to Johannesburg. The river cruise highlighted things such as the weeping face of nature, which is a natural formation in the rock that has a small waterfall running down what appears to be the right cheek of the face.
Eventually, we got to our Lodge and had the rest of the afternoon and the evening to sit around and do nothing. Tomorrow would be the final day.
We then went over to a large Dam that was built to control the flow of water to Kruger and the surrounding area, called Blythe River Canyon. We took a small boat cruise there, going around on the reservoir, which at the bottom ranges from 700 to 1300 metres, depending on the size of the cliffs surrounding it. Tomorrow we were going to swing around to the top on the way back to Johannesburg. The river cruise highlighted things such as the weeping face of nature, which is a natural formation in the rock that has a small waterfall running down what appears to be the right cheek of the face.
Eventually, we got to our Lodge and had the rest of the afternoon and the evening to sit around and do nothing. Tomorrow would be the final day.
Thursday, May 22, 2008
Kruger National Park Day 2
So we set out at 6 am after getting up at 5:30 and drove around looking for the tail end of the night animals, who were just finishing hunting before going to bed.
We caught sight of a male Lion right away, who was walking fairly slow, and once we got close enough, you could see why. When he turned so he walked away and we could see his profile, it was obvious that he had killed something the night before. His large belly was slung so low to the ground, that it almost touched. He was in no hurry to get anywhere, and just sauntered along, seemingly content with how full he was.
As was the case yesterday, there were plenty of Impala and Wildebeest around, usually hanging out together, which our guide said they do as a form of protection to have more eyes out for predators. Sometimes apparently Zebra and Kudu tag along as well.
We came across some Zebra too, as well as Baboons, Giraffe and Elephant. We just spent the day driving around.
When the afternoon rolled around, we went on a walk with two Rangers from the park, who take you out for about 2 hours just before the sun sets. Each one had a .458 rifle, so there wasn't too much to worry about. We wandered around, spotting smaller animals, before coming across a large Elephant, followed by a younger male. Luckily, we were down wind from them, so they didn't really realize we were there, even though we were only about 70 feet away. They stopped and ate for a bit before moving on.
Finally we spotted a Hippo on the other side of a creek, and once we got within about 40-50 feet of it, it up and bolted through the bush, taking a few trees with it on the way. Hippos kill more people in Africa each year than any other animal, as people sometimes happen upon them in the bush when they are going from watering hole to watering hole.
I was surprised at the sheer size of it, and how quickly it could move and accelerate. We were told they can reach up to 4000 pounds.
After that we came upon some remains of a Cheetah, but didn't manage to find anything else. Returning to camp, we had another excellent meal, and spent the rest of the night around the fire, looking at the Hyenas 10 feet away, on the other side of the fence.
We caught sight of a male Lion right away, who was walking fairly slow, and once we got close enough, you could see why. When he turned so he walked away and we could see his profile, it was obvious that he had killed something the night before. His large belly was slung so low to the ground, that it almost touched. He was in no hurry to get anywhere, and just sauntered along, seemingly content with how full he was.
As was the case yesterday, there were plenty of Impala and Wildebeest around, usually hanging out together, which our guide said they do as a form of protection to have more eyes out for predators. Sometimes apparently Zebra and Kudu tag along as well.We came across some Zebra too, as well as Baboons, Giraffe and Elephant. We just spent the day driving around.
When the afternoon rolled around, we went on a walk with two Rangers from the park, who take you out for about 2 hours just before the sun sets. Each one had a .458 rifle, so there wasn't too much to worry about. We wandered around, spotting smaller animals, before coming across a large Elephant, followed by a younger male. Luckily, we were down wind from them, so they didn't really realize we were there, even though we were only about 70 feet away. They stopped and ate for a bit before moving on.Finally we spotted a Hippo on the other side of a creek, and once we got within about 40-50 feet of it, it up and bolted through the bush, taking a few trees with it on the way. Hippos kill more people in Africa each year than any other animal, as people sometimes happen upon them in the bush when they are going from watering hole to watering hole.
I was surprised at the sheer size of it, and how quickly it could move and accelerate. We were told they can reach up to 4000 pounds.After that we came upon some remains of a Cheetah, but didn't manage to find anything else. Returning to camp, we had another excellent meal, and spent the rest of the night around the fire, looking at the Hyenas 10 feet away, on the other side of the fence.
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
Kruger National Park Day 1
So Sunday morning at 5 am, I set out for Kruger National Park. We hit the road for the long drive, about 6 1/2 hours from J'Burg to there and arrived in the afternoon.
We met our guide, Martin, who took us into the park and dropped off people here and there, depending where we were staying. Turns out there were only 3 people in my group, myself and an American brother and sister from Michigan.
We started spotting animals right away, starting with the Giraffe. What they want everyone to see is the "Big 5" that they taut as being the ones to see. Elephant, Lion, Jaguar, Water Buffalo and Rhinoceros. After the Giraffe, we ran into Elephants, including a huge older male with both it's tusks still intact. They were only about 20 feet off the side of the vehicle, which was nothing more than a pickup truck with 9 seats in the back. It was pretty interesting to see Elephants in the wild as opposed to a Zoo. There were 3 or 4 males there, and after eating a bit, they crossed the road in front of us. After the older male crossed, a younger one did behind him, and stopped and looked at us for a bit. He charged the vehicle a bit, whipping his trunk around and raising it in the air, and flapping and flaring his ears about, but stopped after about 4 steps before continuing on.
We moved on and spotted Rhino from a distance, about 70 meters, close to a watering hole. It's size was enormous, and it seemed very light on it's feet as it trotted along. Unfortunately, it was as close as we' d get to seeing a Rhino.
Continuing on to the camp, we spotted Hippo in the water, with only their eyes and ears protruding, and also saw herds of Impala, as well as Kudu, Wildebeest, Vultures, Eagles, Monkeys, Baboons, Hyena and Water Buffalo from afar.
At camp, we were in tents, and after dropping our gear, we set out for more touring around. This time we managed to find Giraffe that were really close, only about 20 feet outside of the vehicle. After a few hours, we returned to camp for supper.
After supper, we went out on a night drive to see what we could find, as most animals are somewhat nocturnal, preferring to hunt at night when it's not as hot, and sleep all day. The last 2 animals we had to see to complete the Big 5 were the Lion, which we were almost certain we'd see, and the Jaguar, which is fairly elusive. Our guide stated he had only seen Jaguar about 3 times in the past year he had been working as a guide, so we had our work cut out for us if we were going to find one. That and we needed a lot of luck.
Right off the hop, we ran into a male and female Lion on the road, about 5 minutes out. It is mating season here, so the male Lion was entranced with the female, following her around. She didn't seem to like the vehicle much, but the male didn't mind at all, he was focused on her. The Lions were literally right outside the truck, and at more than one instance, I could've reached out and touched the male. He looked up at us a few times, but didn't really care we were there. The size of these cats is amazing.
I have seen them in zoos before, but to look into the face of a Lion from 5 feet without an inch of plexiglass between you is an unforgettable experience. We followed them for about 10 minutes, as they slowly sauntered up the road. They would stop and sit, the get up and walk a bit, and kept going like this before disappearing into the long grass.
As we continued on, we came across Elephant, more Impala (which are everywhere), a large Honeybadger, which has a black body and white tail, and is quite long and apparently very aggressive. They are known to go after Elephants and all kinds of large game to scare them off when they are in the way of what the Honeybadger wants.
Finally, when I was working the spotlight, I came across a pair of eyes glowing in the bush. We thought it was a Lion at first, but it came out right beside the vehicle, and turned out to be a male Jaguar. It didn't stick around long, walking up the side of the truck and across the front before heading into the golden grass, vanishing right before your eyes. So, after seeing that, it completed us seeing all Big 5 animals in the first day, as well as several others. We were very lucky. Finally the night tour finished, and we went to bed, trying to get a bit of sleep before the 5:30 am wake up call.
We met our guide, Martin, who took us into the park and dropped off people here and there, depending where we were staying. Turns out there were only 3 people in my group, myself and an American brother and sister from Michigan.
We started spotting animals right away, starting with the Giraffe. What they want everyone to see is the "Big 5" that they taut as being the ones to see. Elephant, Lion, Jaguar, Water Buffalo and Rhinoceros. After the Giraffe, we ran into Elephants, including a huge older male with both it's tusks still intact. They were only about 20 feet off the side of the vehicle, which was nothing more than a pickup truck with 9 seats in the back. It was pretty interesting to see Elephants in the wild as opposed to a Zoo. There were 3 or 4 males there, and after eating a bit, they crossed the road in front of us. After the older male crossed, a younger one did behind him, and stopped and looked at us for a bit. He charged the vehicle a bit, whipping his trunk around and raising it in the air, and flapping and flaring his ears about, but stopped after about 4 steps before continuing on.
We moved on and spotted Rhino from a distance, about 70 meters, close to a watering hole. It's size was enormous, and it seemed very light on it's feet as it trotted along. Unfortunately, it was as close as we' d get to seeing a Rhino.Continuing on to the camp, we spotted Hippo in the water, with only their eyes and ears protruding, and also saw herds of Impala, as well as Kudu, Wildebeest, Vultures, Eagles, Monkeys, Baboons, Hyena and Water Buffalo from afar.
At camp, we were in tents, and after dropping our gear, we set out for more touring around. This time we managed to find Giraffe that were really close, only about 20 feet outside of the vehicle. After a few hours, we returned to camp for supper.After supper, we went out on a night drive to see what we could find, as most animals are somewhat nocturnal, preferring to hunt at night when it's not as hot, and sleep all day. The last 2 animals we had to see to complete the Big 5 were the Lion, which we were almost certain we'd see, and the Jaguar, which is fairly elusive. Our guide stated he had only seen Jaguar about 3 times in the past year he had been working as a guide, so we had our work cut out for us if we were going to find one. That and we needed a lot of luck.
Right off the hop, we ran into a male and female Lion on the road, about 5 minutes out. It is mating season here, so the male Lion was entranced with the female, following her around. She didn't seem to like the vehicle much, but the male didn't mind at all, he was focused on her. The Lions were literally right outside the truck, and at more than one instance, I could've reached out and touched the male. He looked up at us a few times, but didn't really care we were there. The size of these cats is amazing.
I have seen them in zoos before, but to look into the face of a Lion from 5 feet without an inch of plexiglass between you is an unforgettable experience. We followed them for about 10 minutes, as they slowly sauntered up the road. They would stop and sit, the get up and walk a bit, and kept going like this before disappearing into the long grass.As we continued on, we came across Elephant, more Impala (which are everywhere), a large Honeybadger, which has a black body and white tail, and is quite long and apparently very aggressive. They are known to go after Elephants and all kinds of large game to scare them off when they are in the way of what the Honeybadger wants.
Finally, when I was working the spotlight, I came across a pair of eyes glowing in the bush. We thought it was a Lion at first, but it came out right beside the vehicle, and turned out to be a male Jaguar. It didn't stick around long, walking up the side of the truck and across the front before heading into the golden grass, vanishing right before your eyes. So, after seeing that, it completed us seeing all Big 5 animals in the first day, as well as several others. We were very lucky. Finally the night tour finished, and we went to bed, trying to get a bit of sleep before the 5:30 am wake up call.
Saturday, May 17, 2008
Safari
I take a flight today from Cape Town to Johannesburg to go on Safari in Kruger National Park for 4 days, starting on Sunday. Should be good!
Thursday, May 15, 2008
Robben Island
Took the boat out to Robben Island today, where Nelson Mandela was held as a political prisoner by the Apartheid government of South Africa. He was sent to the island in 1964, and released in 1990. His prisoner number, 466/64, represents the fact that he was the 466th prisoner sent to the island in 1964. Robben Island closed as a prison in 1996, was opened as a museum in 1997, and was declared a UN world heritage site in 1999.
The tour started with the 1/2 hour boat ride out to the island in the choppy waters. Once there, they load everyone on buses, and do a small driving tour around the island, visiting places like the Limestone quarry, and various other buildings that made up the prison. Unfortunately, you are not allowed off the bus to look around by yourself. They go over the history of the island, as it has gone from prison to military base and back to prison again. They have sent Lepers and the Mentally Insane here, and use it now as a museum and host weddings in the small churches, and government and corporate events in the halls it has. Parts of the island were briefly used as a B&B, but that was closed down after a few 'incidents', which weren't elaborated on.
After the bus tour, you are taken inside the prison where most of the political prisoners were held. The tour from that point is operated by a former political prisoner, who gives you a view on what it was like there and how life in prison was. You get to stop by all the cells, including Mandela's, and take a few photos. then it's back on the boat and back to shore.
I wish I had more to write about this place, but there isn't really more to offer. I found the tour surprisingly short and somewhat uninformative, with a lot of repetition on dates and facts, but not a lot of insight as to what took place, different stories and personal accounts of what went on. I left felling a bit ripped off, thinking there would have been more. Still, for the low cost of the tour, it is still worth the time it took.
Photos to follow....
The tour started with the 1/2 hour boat ride out to the island in the choppy waters. Once there, they load everyone on buses, and do a small driving tour around the island, visiting places like the Limestone quarry, and various other buildings that made up the prison. Unfortunately, you are not allowed off the bus to look around by yourself. They go over the history of the island, as it has gone from prison to military base and back to prison again. They have sent Lepers and the Mentally Insane here, and use it now as a museum and host weddings in the small churches, and government and corporate events in the halls it has. Parts of the island were briefly used as a B&B, but that was closed down after a few 'incidents', which weren't elaborated on.
After the bus tour, you are taken inside the prison where most of the political prisoners were held. The tour from that point is operated by a former political prisoner, who gives you a view on what it was like there and how life in prison was. You get to stop by all the cells, including Mandela's, and take a few photos. then it's back on the boat and back to shore.
I wish I had more to write about this place, but there isn't really more to offer. I found the tour surprisingly short and somewhat uninformative, with a lot of repetition on dates and facts, but not a lot of insight as to what took place, different stories and personal accounts of what went on. I left felling a bit ripped off, thinking there would have been more. Still, for the low cost of the tour, it is still worth the time it took.
Photos to follow....
Table Mountain
Went up to Table Mountain today. Table Mountain is the large flat mountain that lies to the south of Cape Town, and overlooks the downtown and surrounding area, called the City Bowl. It is over 1000 meters high, and obviously gets it's name from it's large flat table top. You can take a cable car up, or choose to hike it, but as fog rolls in quite frequently and tends to stick around, hikers tend to get trapped when the 300+ routes tend to disappear, so most people take the cable car. 
That and the fact that people have died from time to time trying to hike up to the top. The clouds seemingly always surrounding Table Mountain are known as 'The Tablecloth'.
There were several hundred people in line when I first showed up, accompanied by some people from the hostel. The cable car had broken down the day before, so there were a lot of people returning from yesterday, combined with the fact that the weather here is so fickle, this was the first day in about a week that Table Mountain had been visible.
We got our tickets and stood in line, only to find out they were allowing people from yesterday that had tickets to jump the line and head straight up. That, as well as that the cable car was now running much slower as it was not fully fixed yet, and the high winds, made everything go much, much slower. Much. We waited in line for about an hour and a half before finally getting on the car, and taking the 6 minute ride to the top.
It was very windy at the top, and has spectacular views of both Cape Town, and the southern cape, stretching all the way to the most southern point in Africa. You could see all the way down. There were also great views of Lion Rock, and the Ocean in any direction you looked.
The edges in most places were secured by railings, but if you got in the right spot, you could look all the way down...... 1000+ meters is a long way to drop. Great spot to go have a look at the layout of the city, if you can manage to get there on a day where there is no clouds.
There were several hundred people in line when I first showed up, accompanied by some people from the hostel. The cable car had broken down the day before, so there were a lot of people returning from yesterday, combined with the fact that the weather here is so fickle, this was the first day in about a week that Table Mountain had been visible.
It was very windy at the top, and has spectacular views of both Cape Town, and the southern cape, stretching all the way to the most southern point in Africa. You could see all the way down. There were also great views of Lion Rock, and the Ocean in any direction you looked.
Tuesday, May 13, 2008
Rough Seas and Big Sharks....
Set out for doing some cage diving with the Great Whites today. The shuttle showed up 35 minutes late, and I started to get that feeling of dread again. Last time my shuttle was late, there was a bomb scare on my plane, it was delayed for 20+ hours, and I had to spend the night in a hotel. As today I was dealing with sharks, I didn't really want bad things to be happening off the get go.
It was about a 2 hour drive to where we were going, a small town close to Dyer Island, which has Geyser Rock beside it, forming a channel in between. This channel is known as 'Shark Alley' due to the fact it has the densest population of Great White Sharks known in the world. That and the fact that Dyer Island is teeming with seals. The Great Whites come there to mainly pick off the pups that haven't learned about sharks yet.
We set out into huge swell in the ocean, about 20-30 foot, and the boat was thrashing all over the place. It was the first time they had been out in three days due to the terrible weather and I could see why. The tour company had taken over for another and was running one boat for 2 companies, as the previous month, the one company's boat had flipped due to a rogue wave that the captain didn't see in time, and couldn't turn into it fast enough. Not what you'd want in shark infested waters!
It took about 25 minutes to get out to where we wanted to be, right at the mouth of the channel, on the south side. It wasn't long before there were people throwing up everywhere. I quite enjoyed the show, as did most people that weren't bracing themselves on the railing, bent forward, giving their morning offerings to the Ocean.
I was one of the first ones into the cage on the side of the boat, after sliding into a thick 7 mm wetsuit. They give you a mask and a weight belt, and you just have to throw yourself down in the cage to get underwater, due to the heavy buoyancy of the wetsuit.
They also have a seal decoy, which is simply a piece of wood cut out in the shape of a seal, and they toss in some fish on a rope as well, all the while chumming out the back of the boat with fish oils to attract the sharks. Recipe for success.
It wasn't long before the sharks came around. There were 5 of us thrashing about in the cage due to the waves, and the real danger seemed more from flying elbows than from the sharks outside. I was in the water for about 40 minutes, and had 2-3 large sharks come by. None came as close as I had hoped, staying about 10 feet out. One guy to my left decided to get sick inside the cage, and for a little while, we had the pleasure of floating around in his breakfast, but it soon washed away. After a while, we were asked to get out of the cage for another group, and I reluctantly left. However, due to the swaying and thrashing in the cage, I wasn't feeling very good at that point either.
I got out, dried off, and went to change. All was okay, until I decided to hop down into the little washroom to throw on some pants. That took a while, getting tossed around inside, and I found out quickly that small spaces and nausea from sea sickness don't go well.
I promptly got sick all over the side of the boat.
Most of it went in the Ocean, a little on the deck, but I wasn't too concerned.
After that, I must say, I was feeling tip-top, so I went back to looking at the sharks and taking pictures. Many, many more came around, and some were absolutely huge. One
male was very aggressive on both the bait and the decoy, actually coming out of the water a bit. At one point, he did a small leap, and crashed into the side of the cage, much to the delight of the people inside. The shark flipped upside down, and they pushed it away with a stick, but it continued to hang around trying to get the bait. The second group and the third group definitely got the best viewings out of all of us.
After all that, there was a little more throwing up by a few, but we made our way back into Port. The swell had dropped, so it wasn't as rough, and before long we were on dry land again. Great time!
It was about a 2 hour drive to where we were going, a small town close to Dyer Island, which has Geyser Rock beside it, forming a channel in between. This channel is known as 'Shark Alley' due to the fact it has the densest population of Great White Sharks known in the world. That and the fact that Dyer Island is teeming with seals. The Great Whites come there to mainly pick off the pups that haven't learned about sharks yet.
We set out into huge swell in the ocean, about 20-30 foot, and the boat was thrashing all over the place. It was the first time they had been out in three days due to the terrible weather and I could see why. The tour company had taken over for another and was running one boat for 2 companies, as the previous month, the one company's boat had flipped due to a rogue wave that the captain didn't see in time, and couldn't turn into it fast enough. Not what you'd want in shark infested waters!It took about 25 minutes to get out to where we wanted to be, right at the mouth of the channel, on the south side. It wasn't long before there were people throwing up everywhere. I quite enjoyed the show, as did most people that weren't bracing themselves on the railing, bent forward, giving their morning offerings to the Ocean.
I was one of the first ones into the cage on the side of the boat, after sliding into a thick 7 mm wetsuit. They give you a mask and a weight belt, and you just have to throw yourself down in the cage to get underwater, due to the heavy buoyancy of the wetsuit.
They also have a seal decoy, which is simply a piece of wood cut out in the shape of a seal, and they toss in some fish on a rope as well, all the while chumming out the back of the boat with fish oils to attract the sharks. Recipe for success.It wasn't long before the sharks came around. There were 5 of us thrashing about in the cage due to the waves, and the real danger seemed more from flying elbows than from the sharks outside. I was in the water for about 40 minutes, and had 2-3 large sharks come by. None came as close as I had hoped, staying about 10 feet out. One guy to my left decided to get sick inside the cage, and for a little while, we had the pleasure of floating around in his breakfast, but it soon washed away. After a while, we were asked to get out of the cage for another group, and I reluctantly left. However, due to the swaying and thrashing in the cage, I wasn't feeling very good at that point either.
I got out, dried off, and went to change. All was okay, until I decided to hop down into the little washroom to throw on some pants. That took a while, getting tossed around inside, and I found out quickly that small spaces and nausea from sea sickness don't go well.
I promptly got sick all over the side of the boat.
Most of it went in the Ocean, a little on the deck, but I wasn't too concerned.
After that, I must say, I was feeling tip-top, so I went back to looking at the sharks and taking pictures. Many, many more came around, and some were absolutely huge. One
male was very aggressive on both the bait and the decoy, actually coming out of the water a bit. At one point, he did a small leap, and crashed into the side of the cage, much to the delight of the people inside. The shark flipped upside down, and they pushed it away with a stick, but it continued to hang around trying to get the bait. The second group and the third group definitely got the best viewings out of all of us.After all that, there was a little more throwing up by a few, but we made our way back into Port. The swell had dropped, so it wasn't as rough, and before long we were on dry land again. Great time!
Monday, May 12, 2008
Township Tour
I set off on a tour of Cape Town's townships today. It was slated for the entire
afternoon, and luckily, there were only a few people on the tour. The only thing I really knew about the townships around Cape Town were that they were similar to the Barrios of Rio, and supposedly not a place to be venturing out into by yourself.
The tour started out going through one particular village, which is where the tour guide was originally from. He ran through the history, the effects of Apartheid, and what to expect to see. First off we started at a community centre, then moving on to 'dorms', a house, and on to the small shacks that people tend to construct and live in. At first I thought it was going to be another one of those "typical ______ homes" tours, just insert whatever country you're in at the time in the blank. If you've been to Mexico or Dominican Republic or Fiji, you know what I mean, having done the village tours. Turns out it was pretty good, if you had questions, you could talk to people, look around, and other than having to pass by the standard arts and crafts 'for sale' table when you left, it was okay. The dorms in the past had up to 16 families living in one dorm, with only 16 beds in three rooms, and one small sitting area. The size wouldn't have been as large as most people's garages. However, they have changed that, not packing so many people into so many places. The houses were typically what people moved into after spending time in the dorms and applying for a house. Not much bigger, but more livable. Finally, the shacks, most of which had no electricity, were also horribly cramped and unstable. The only way people managed to get electricity was to climb the pole and run a wire down. All the land and buildings except the shacks were owned by the municipality, who charged small amounts of rent to live there. Shacks are what they want to get rid of, getting people into buildings, but shacks are where most pe
ople live, and they are everywhere. Cape Town's township population is estimated to be in the millions.
Next we went and tried some locally brewed beer, which was made from dried corn and some form of milk. They said the alcohol percentage was somewhere in the 2 1/2 to 3 % range, but can get as high as 90% depending on the fermentation and brewing process. The government outlawed it a long time ago, with several incidents of people going blind, but they still make it in township shanty bars today. Turns out it was not half bad. A little warm, and you could definitely taste the milk, but it was decent. It was served in this bucket, and was passed around communally for everyone to have a slurp. When in Rome...
After that, we toured around several other streets, looking at the shacks people had erected. It is crazy to drive around for 20+ minutes at a time, and just be surrounded by nothing but theses shacks, make out of wood, plastic, tin and iron. A pretty unreal sight.
Finally we stopped at a B&B, which actually operates inside the townships. It was simple, but nice, and the owner said it did quite well, which I can believe. When we stopped, it was currently all booked up.
According to our guide, unemployment in the townships runs high, about 40%, so most turn into entrepreneurs, starting B&B's (12 in total in the townships), small hair places, fruit stands, etc.
An interesting tour. Tomorrow, it's diving with the sharks.
afternoon, and luckily, there were only a few people on the tour. The only thing I really knew about the townships around Cape Town were that they were similar to the Barrios of Rio, and supposedly not a place to be venturing out into by yourself.The tour started out going through one particular village, which is where the tour guide was originally from. He ran through the history, the effects of Apartheid, and what to expect to see. First off we started at a community centre, then moving on to 'dorms', a house, and on to the small shacks that people tend to construct and live in. At first I thought it was going to be another one of those "typical ______ homes" tours, just insert whatever country you're in at the time in the blank. If you've been to Mexico or Dominican Republic or Fiji, you know what I mean, having done the village tours. Turns out it was pretty good, if you had questions, you could talk to people, look around, and other than having to pass by the standard arts and crafts 'for sale' table when you left, it was okay. The dorms in the past had up to 16 families living in one dorm, with only 16 beds in three rooms, and one small sitting area. The size wouldn't have been as large as most people's garages. However, they have changed that, not packing so many people into so many places. The houses were typically what people moved into after spending time in the dorms and applying for a house. Not much bigger, but more livable. Finally, the shacks, most of which had no electricity, were also horribly cramped and unstable. The only way people managed to get electricity was to climb the pole and run a wire down. All the land and buildings except the shacks were owned by the municipality, who charged small amounts of rent to live there. Shacks are what they want to get rid of, getting people into buildings, but shacks are where most pe
ople live, and they are everywhere. Cape Town's township population is estimated to be in the millions.Next we went and tried some locally brewed beer, which was made from dried corn and some form of milk. They said the alcohol percentage was somewhere in the 2 1/2 to 3 % range, but can get as high as 90% depending on the fermentation and brewing process. The government outlawed it a long time ago, with several incidents of people going blind, but they still make it in township shanty bars today. Turns out it was not half bad. A little warm, and you could definitely taste the milk, but it was decent. It was served in this bucket, and was passed around communally for everyone to have a slurp. When in Rome...
After that, we toured around several other streets, looking at the shacks people had erected. It is crazy to drive around for 20+ minutes at a time, and just be surrounded by nothing but theses shacks, make out of wood, plastic, tin and iron. A pretty unreal sight.
Finally we stopped at a B&B, which actually operates inside the townships. It was simple, but nice, and the owner said it did quite well, which I can believe. When we stopped, it was currently all booked up.
According to our guide, unemployment in the townships runs high, about 40%, so most turn into entrepreneurs, starting B&B's (12 in total in the townships), small hair places, fruit stands, etc.
An interesting tour. Tomorrow, it's diving with the sharks.
Sunday, May 11, 2008
Africa
Well, after a long, arduous trip from Malaysia, I am finally in Africa, Cape town to be specific. It is cold and wet here, lots of fog. Everything is closed, as it is Sunday, so I will have more of an idea what things are like tomorrow. Hopefully the sun comes out.
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