Caribbean Union of Teacher's Conference and more of Barbados

This photo shows team Grenada on the left and team Dominica on the right at the Caribbean Union of Teacher’s Conference. Both are the Unions I worked with for Project Overseas.

It has been another great week in the islands. The weather is great, people fantastic and I have had lots of neat interactions and again opportunities. The Caribbean Union of Teacher’s Conference is on this week and I attended as an invited guest for the first couple of days. I was at the Caribbean Union of Teacher’s Women’s Conference as well. It was an honour to be included. I had made the connections with the Union in Grenada but once arriving there I also knew the Union members from Dominica as I had worked with their teachers in 2008 with Project Overseas. It really was an honour to be so warmly welcomed and there on behalf of the Canadian Teacher’s Federation. It was a historical year too as they welcomed with a unanimous vote the island of Guadeloupe into the Union.

My guest house is excellent and I think I could literally write a bestselling novel with the stories I have from its occupants. It has been great fun and most interesting learning about my houseguest’s comings and goings. It will have to be a story over a drink sometime that I share with you. Unfortunately I can’t write it publicly this way, but let’s just say it has been a memorable group of people and a great place to stay. One would think with the amount of action going on here it wouldn’t be quiet but it is when you need to sleep you can and when you want to join someone for a trip to the beach, restaurant or just chat all are available.

I was at Selvi and Eddie’s last night for dinner. It was an amazing Malaysian meal. Selvi is an incredible cook. She even lined the dishes with banana leaves from their backyard. It was delicious and we too had a great time chatting.

Off to Oistins Friday Fish Fry tonight. Always great fish, music, dancing, karaoke, you name it, lots of good people watching and then back to our lovely country.

You can check out the pictures at the following link;
Click on this link for photos from the Conference and more from the Barbados

Rihanna Concert in Barbados

Well it has been another world wind past few days. I thought I was just chilling on the beach for this part of the trip. Not always the case. On Friday four of us headed out to Crane Beach voted one of the top ten beaches in the world. We took the local bus for a dollar. The beach had lots of seaweed as it has been washed up with the storms. It was still good. We then took a visit to The Crane Hotel and used the facilities, swimming in their pool and washing the salt water off. I did smash into the rocks on a walking path there and my camera, knee and banana took the brunt of the fall. All are still in working order though. It was just a scratch this time on the outside of the camera Carol.

In the evening we headed down to the Oval for the Rihanna concert. Rihanna is from Barbados and this was her first concert at home after making it big. I had no intension of going to the concert and was just going to people watch and listen from outside the oval as it was an outdoor venue. But we were able to get $50 tickets, which was less than the original price so we went in. It was packed 30 000 people in there. The women were dressed to the nines in “prom” dresses and five inch stilettos. We were on the grounds in the standing area and as luck would have it I ended up right beside a fellow PVNC employee Donnalynn Paquette. Without the aid of technology guiding us to each other, i.e. no texting, I just looked over and was literally standing right beside her. The concert was good and I was surprised at how many songs I actually knew. It was mayhem trying to get a taxi after the show but again this time you just people watch and watch those women limping away carrying the shoes.

Today we headed out to Bathsheba which is on the East Coast of the island and about an hour bus ride away again for a dollar. It is a surfer’s paradise.

Tomorrow starts the Caribbean Union of Teacher’s Conference and I will attend tomorrow’s session which should also be interesting. It just happened that I am here while the conference is on so I have been invited to attend.

Click on this link for photos from the Rihanna Concert and Barbados

A wet Barbados Crop Over

All is well in the Barbados. It has been a nice time so far with relaxing on the beach, reading and liming (a Caribbean term which means chilling out). Sunday was an interesting day. I have a quote; “a good traveler has no fixed plans and is not intent on arriving.” That sums it up. I took the bus to church in the morning. The music down here is great. They always welcome the visitors and wish Happy Birthday and Anniversary to those celebrating during the week. I note this as it is a welcoming thing to do. On my way back “home” I saw that Selvi and Eddie’s vehicle was in the driveway so I got out at the next stop and walked back to their place. I surprised them they didn’t know I was on the island. So three bottles of wine later (and I don’t usually drink wine) and good conversation we were caught up. Five minutes later and I would have missed them as Eddie was going to pop into work. Needless to say he didn’t go in that day and limed with me. My other friends Helen and Carl just left the island after living here for six years, three weeks ago and small world, Helen is going to teach in Hong Kong at the school I have visited where Christine Bucholtz used to work. It is a crazy small world.

August 1 is the main day of Crop Over the biggest celebration of the year on the island. There was a parade through the town with people dressed scantily clad marching through the town drinking, dancing and having a real mash up (another Caribbean term that means a great time or blast). I love this parade can you imagine having a big transport truck at the front of each group blasting out the tunes, followed by the booze truck, followed by the coke, mix truck, two hundred people roped in in their costumes dancing and drinking through the streets and then the truck with the porta potties and then it repeats and repeats and repeats as there are 21 groups. It sure is a sight and today it rained on them but they didn’t let this bug them. It just kept them a little cooler I guess.

When I was here for Crop Over in 2008 it was one of the hottest days I have ever experienced with the sun beating down, it was all we could do to keep hydrated with water and this year we were saturated to the bone as it ended up pouring rain. We were soaked right through and stayed that way for hours.

You can check out photos from Crop Over at the following link;
Click on this link for photos of Barbados Crop Over 2011

As I post this I realize I have not taken any photos of the lovely white sand beaches here, I never take my camera to the beach as it is just one more thing to worry about. Over the remaining days I will have to take some for you.

It is a really long post but worth the read, with two links for photos at the end

The three legged race, sniffing cocoa beans, my participants all decked out in red and white for Canada Day and my smelly feet in the cocoa beans.

Well again it has been another amazing week. Our workshops came to a close on Friday with a morning full of incredible participation by the Grenada Teachers in our Canada Day festivities. You could feel the excitement in the air as everyone was decked out in red and white, dripping in sweat and participating in the three legged race, bowling with coconuts, curling with coconuts, a hockey shootout, the lima bean blow, limbo, floating islands, quiz, quiz, trade, duck, duck, goose, standing long jump, Frisbee throw, keep the beach ball up activity and a free Canada stuff table. We ran it like a good old fashion play day with five minute stations and the old school bell ringing to move you to the next group. It was an extremely hot day. I was covered in sweat, I felt as if I had taken a shower in sweat as I was dripping from head to toe. It didn’t matter though these people were troopers and it was awesome.

Our closing ceremonies were lovely too. With each group presenting a cultural song or a song about what they had learned or something related to their subject. The math group sang their Math Olympics theme song. It is to the tune of “We will rock you” but has lines like we will add you, we will multiply you etc. I cannot say enough about the incredible participation. Certificates were awarded, emails exchanged and goodbyes said. Another amazing opportunity to meet and work with great people. Thanks CTF (Canadian Teacher’s Federation) and GUT (Grenada Teacher’s Union) for the opportunity. We were also presented with GUT union teachers shirts and made honourary members.

I should also tell you about Kanisha (one of my participants) trying to teach me to whine. Not that kind of whining the kind of whining that is part of the Caribbean dance moves where you have to move your hips in a circular fashion to the beat. It sure was a lesson. I didn’t know it but Roxann was filming it, so you can have a laugh at my expense when you see me try to do this.

The team finished the day with another special occasion at The Special Education School in St George’s Grenada. We planted an avocado tree to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Project Overseas, teachers teaching teachers. A tree was planted in Ottawa at our orientation and around the world trees will be planted to commemorate the 50th anniversary. A poster was created with the names of all of the last 50 years participants on it. It is pretty neat. The font is small but if you look closely the blue background is actually names and the tree is made up of pictures from over the years. We brought a copy with us and were able to have it with us at the tree planting.

We had a great night out with our co tutors at a place right on the water as the sunset. It was an enjoyable night of fellowship and who knew that you hunt a tattoo (armadillo) by chasing it into a hole in the ground and catch it my putting your finger up its anus to make it not be so aggressive so you are able to pull it out of its den. There were many stories shared as we played games like two truths and a lie to get to know each other. As it turns out the Union President Mr. Kenny James is a hunter of tattoo (armadillos) and this is how you hunt them. You chase them with dogs into the hole and then pull them out my placing your finger up their anus.

We also visited the University of St Georges. It is an American University right on the south coast of the island known for its medical school and veterinarian school. It just makes me think again of the incredible opportunities that exist, who said you have to go to school in Ontario? Imagine University in the Caribbean, or what about those countries like Finland where you don’t even have to be a citizen to go for free. It is worth investigating.

Now we are on holidays. Betty, Kathrin and I are in Petite Martinique. It is a beautiful island. I have been fortunate to have travelled to the Caribbean a lot but I had no idea there was as many islands as there are. A great future trip would be to just island hop. We took a two hour ferry ride from Grenada to Petite Martinique. Grenada is made up of three islands, Grenada, Carriacou and Petite Martinique. So let me now tell you about this little piece of heaven. The island is less than 600 acres and for the next few days the population has increased to 703 while we are here. Can you imagine a Caribbean island with a population of 700? Oh it is awesome. We are in one of the two guest houses and right on the water. There is one road with three stores on it in people’s homes for your shopping. Nothing is open on Sunday, but we knew this and brought food provisions for the day and cooked them in the communal kitchen. We are the only guests in the building that has about 15 rooms. The beach is rustic with boats pulled up on shore and fishing nets at the edge. It is a fishing community and an authentic experience. I recommend it for those that like the islands but want seclusion and away from that all inclusive resort experience. Our room is about $50 a night. The principal of the schools family owns it and that is how we found out about it. There is one primary school on the island. The high school students have to take a boat each day to Carriacou for high school, about a 20 minute ride.

A half a mile away in plain view is another island called Petite St Vincent as I type this in our room and I look out the open door I can see it. It is a private island owned by two people that’s rooms are $1000 a night or you can rent the whole island for $35 000 a night. I am just as happy with ours thank you very much.

Well now it is Tuesday evening and today was another incredible day, but the evening has been action packed, stay tuned. This morning we took the ferry at 5:30am from Petite Martinique to Grenada. Once arriving back around 8:30am Betty and I set out on our adventure travelling up the island by local bus, our destination, the chocolate factory. Well what a day it was. I was walking on chocolate beans in my bare feet. The bus driver (van driver) was kind enough to take us off the main road and drop us off at the chocolate factory. Once there I walked into an empty room and yell hello, upstairs there were three women. Two were sorting cocoa beans while another was packing cocoa powder. They are working in a two story building that is maybe 10 feet by 10 feet. They say that they don’t do tours anymore and I could see why, no more than the two of us would fit in there. They said they could get fired but still continued to let us have a look and then she said come quick and we got to check out the machines and the process downstairs. Then she hands us a fresh chocolate bar that goes for $10 here to try. It was awesome, both the chocolate and their hospitality. They told us to go a mile down the road and check out the plantation and the estate. So we did, we hemming and hawed but ended up going and it was the highlight of my day. At the cocoa plantation they have huge trays of beans drying and the women walk in the beans every 30 minutes to turn them over. So they let me do it. I said my feet are dirty and they stink but he said don’t worry Sarah it will be all right. Each bean is encased in a shell that comes off later in the process. So I got in there and had to dig my feet down under the beans and kept walking around the tray. It was so cool oh yes and the aroma in this area was amazing, not my feet the chocolate in the air, ahhh.

The plantation was really cool. It is owned by a Grenadian family. It was one of 81 plantations that use to be on the island. The family that now owns it acquired it in 1944. The man made his fortune in nutmeg. During the war no one was exporting nutmeg but this man still bought it from the farmers and stored it. Once the market was reopened he sold it and made millions. He bought the plantation for 35 000 pounds in 1944. In 1778 the property was valued at 30 000 pounds, yes that is the right century, 1778.

So this evening we are coming back on the bus and hear the news on the radio start up. I note to Betty hey this is the first time I have heard any news. So what is on the news? Liat airlines cancelled flights today do to employees not receiving their pay. So the first news I hear and that is it. We are to fly with them tomorrow at 6am. So we get back to our house and call to confirm our flight and they say no it is cancelled. It is 6:40pm the night before our flight but they say can you get here for 8:30pm? We have a flight then and don’t know about any for tomorrow. So we throw our stuff in our suitcases call Glen our ride to the airport to see if he can come now and take us and he can so now we are in the airport waiting for the now delayed flight to head to the Barbados.

What a day it has been and it is not over yet.

We have arrived in the Barbados and made out fine. Within four hours of finding out the flight was cancelled to getting to the airport and then onto the flight we arrived in the Barbados. Wow what a world wind day.

We stayed at a nice hotel for the night where two other Project Overseas leaders were staying for a five day holiday. So we had a great visit and now Kathrin and Betty are in the air home.

There are tons of photos here, two separate links as they all wouldn’t fit on the same account.

Click on this link for lots more photos from Petite Martinique, Grenada and Project Overseas

Click on this link for many MORE photos from Petite Martinique, Grenada Chocolate Factory and Project Overseas

I am having an absolutely fabulous time. My team mates are great, my participants are excellent and we are on the beautiful island of Grenada. We had a little bit of a change to the team this week. Poor Owen had to fly home as his father in-law was hospitalized and Dave left Team Grenada to take Owen’s place on team Carriacou. Grenada consists of three islands, one being Carriacou where Owen and Melissa were conducting leadership and management workshops. So now team Grenada consists of the three ladies. It was a bit of a world wind day as we found out about the changes at lunch and at 6pm we met Owen getting off the ferry and sent Dave away on the ferry back. We wish Owen’s father in-law a speedy recovery.

My math workshop is going really well. I have an amazing group of enthusiastic teachers to work with. You should have seen their participation the other day in the math Olympics. The other sessions were envious of our events. We paraded the “athletes” through the courtyard singing a Math Olympic song about hoping you brought your meter stick and get ready for the cotton ball put and the paper plate discuss throw or the lima bean blow all to the tune of “we will rock you” and then they did a Calypso version. It was evident that the math participants were having fun while learning.

It’s been straws made out of fractions, fractions using paper folding, MATHO, sandpaper numbers and much more. My group consists of teachers from kindergarten to grade 12 so that makes things interesting when it comes to planning.

We were fortunate to visit the fish fry Friday night and witness the local calypso competition. Saturday we had an island tour and we were able to swim at a waterfall.

There are tons of photos to check out and there are a variety of themes within hit the slideshow option and sit back and enjoy. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do.

Click on this link for lots more photos from Grenada and Project Overseas

Project Overseas Team Grenada

This is a photo of our team chatting with the Prime Minister of Grenada as we wait for the ferry.

I am currently in Grenada having a wonderful time doing Project Overseas. Project Overseas is in its 50th year of offering aid to teachers around the world. I am one of 52 teachers who have been sent to one of 13 countries this summer to teach teachers. I am on a team with three other members. One is from Whitehorse while the others are from Calgary and the Ottawa Valley. We met on July 2 in Ottawa for an orientation session and flew to Grenada on July 6.

We are offering workshops on mathematics, special education, visual arts, reading, leadership and management, HIV and Aids, workshop facilitation and gender equity. It is an honour to be working with such amazing people.

The people of Grenada are wonderful and we have had a warm welcoming and our sessions are going extremely well. There are about 20 teachers in my mathematics workshop. We are having a lot of fun.

Our team met with the Deputy Minister of Education the other day for an informal meeting, we have been interviewed by the local news and had the privilege of meeting the Prime Minister as we shared the same ferry back from Carriacou. He was a nice man and did not have an army of security officers with him. He warmly greeted us, thanked us for our work and wished us well. Grenada consists of three islands, Grenada, Petite Martinique and Carriacou. We took the ferry to Carriacou to drop off Owen and Melissa as they are running workshops there, a satellite campus if you will. Gorgeous little island (13 square kilometers) with maybe one guest house and very few tourists. A really neat spot. I will have to return. It was an hour and a half ferry ride that was quite rough but all of my cookies stayed down. We had to pass over an underwater volcano and that area is always very rough. It is an inactive volcano but it is where the two oceans meet therefore causing rough seas.

We are very lucky our apt is 500m from the beautiful Grand Anse Beach. I think I have hit the water everyday but one so far.

You can check out the photos from our training in Ottawa and our first few days in Grenada at the following two links.

Click on this link for photos from our orientation in Ottawa

Click on this link for photos from Grenada and Carriacou

The Royals and Canada Day in Ottawa

Canada Day on Parliament Hill, wow, what another great experience to add to the many I have had, did I ever luck out. I arrived in Ottawa June 30th in the evening and went for a walk of the town. I ended up on Parliament Hill to watch the rehearsal for the Canada Day festivities. I was able to sit (key word here, sit) right up front in the VIP section. A woman sitting beside me said, oh this is the only way to see the show, or the best way. There were maybe a couple of hundred people there opposed to the five hundred thousand the next day. There were two shows on Canada Day that were great. I was literally in the front row for the evening show and in the afternoon 100 – 150 meters back from the Royals. You will have to check out the photos. The entertainment was awesome, Great Big Sea, Sam Roberts Band, Dan Mangan, Jenn Grant and really cool acrobatics. Did you see me on TV? The camera guy came right up to me and had the camera on me for awhile. Dan Mangan came right out to the barricade and sang for us there.

The Royals did a surprise visit in the evening and because I was in the front row you should have seen the RCMP everywhere. There were the ones in plane cloths, the ones in all black uniforms and the ones in their regular uniform. Just before Will and Kate arrived the number of RCMPs quadrupled in the area and they brought in a bomb sniffing dog that went around the perimeter followed by two officers scanning the perimeter with two different bomb scanners. In the evening they Royals were maybe 25 meters from me.

It was something to see the sea of red and white and be part of our Nations Birthday. I was so excited to actually be in Ottawa for Canada Day. What a great experience.

Check out the photos at the following link;

Click on this link for photos from the Royal's visit in Ottawa and the Canada Day festivities on Parliament Hill

San Gil and a very hospitable Colombian family

Have you tried fried ants? They are delicious and a delicacy in Bucaramanga. All along the highway there are people with bags of them for sale.


Saturday June 4, 2011: I am currently in San Gil Colombia on Ana Maria’s father’s farm. It is in the middle of the mountains and though it is only about a 100km from Bucaramanga it took all afternoon to get here. You have to go up and down and weave your way around the canyons and there are roads washed out. There was one really cool spot where a humongous bolder had come down the mountain in an avalanche. The boulder was about the size of five vehicles put end to end and if you stacked three vehicles on top of each other it would be about that high. It had come down and taken out a bridge in its path.

The ranch style house here is really neat. It is an open concept and can accommodate a lot of people. The kitchen is on an outdoor patio and it reminds me of one of the picnic shelters at the zoo with its high open beam ceiling. Different construction when you don’t have winters to contend with.

Yesterday was one of Juliana’s friend’s birthdays and we went to the chain Archie’s for lunch. It was excellent. One of the girls had a two year old with her. The staff took him with them to their children’s prep kitchen and gave him an apron and hat to wear and helped him cook his own pizza. He even ate it at the work station as the staff was caring for him. We were on the patio. I don’t even think the mother remembered she brought him with her as we hardly saw him for the three hours we were there. They even entertained him too with balloon animals and various creations. I was extremely impressed with their service and the attention they pay to the children. I thought it was an excellent idea having a prep area for kids to roll out their dough and make their pizzas.

Monday June 7, 2011: Colombian people are so generous they will even loan you their pajamas.

Sunday was Ana Maria’s great nephew’s Christening and Stephan was the Godfather. The celebration was something! Wow did I ever have a true Colombian family experience. Ana Maria is one of 12 kids so you can imagine the amount of people participating in the festivities. It was an excellent time. There must have been close to a hundred people at the restaurant for lunch. Fresh fried fish was my choice for the meal and I was not disappointed. I also tried the fried ants, cow tongue and stomach.

The booze was a flowing and these people were having a good time. It was a beautiful setting on a pond where large fish were being caught by the patrons. In the evening the party continued to the couple’s house where I was told they live in a typical Colombian house this is what we do in the evening and these are typical Colombian vehicles. I think it could have been in reference to the fact we did come into this small town and turn some heads in the BMW. Not the typical car around there, anyway totally not the point. The 26’s were a flowing and the men were enjoying their whisky straight and many, many a bottle was consumed. They welcomed me with open arms and I thoroughly enjoyed the experience. The music was a pumping and they were dancing in the street. Our late evening meant that it was too difficult and dark to get back down the mountain road to the farm and we were farmed out to sibling’s houses in San Gil. So I was dropped off and told we will pick you up in the morning. Hence my opening statement: a Colombian will give you anything even their pajamas. All of my clothes were at the farm so this lovely sister who only met me that day lent me a pair of pajamas and a bed for the night.

The family was so good to me and I was a novelty at the experience that was for sure, so I got to try my conversational Spanish out with them all and they “tried” to teach me some of their dance moves. I took a ton of pictures for them and you can have a look at them at the following link:

Click on this link for photos from San Gil Colombia

A little hiatus as I return home for a few weeks. Check back at the beginning July when the journey continues.

Having a relaxing time in Bucaramanga

This is a photo of Zammy, Juliana, Cristian and Ana Maria, my hosts while in Bucaramanga Colombia.
Thanks Carolina for letting me stay with your family. Wow what an incredible relaxing experience I am having. I wish you were here to enjoy it too. For the last few nights I have stayed with Juliana and Zammy (Carolina’s sister and brother in-law). They also live in Bucaramanga but on the mountain looking down onto the town. It is a neat setup. To access the mountain road you need to have a swipe card to enter the gated mountain communities. If your school uses the swipe cards for weekend access that is the kind of card it is. You drive up and around the mountain and there are 25 – 28 gated sub divisions with large homes. There are about a 1000 houses on the mountain and maybe 5000 people living up here. Juliana and Zammy have a lovely new home that they built a year and a half ago. They have two maids, one live in and one that comes six days a week. The house is spotless and constantly being cleaned. Today they took the area rugs outside and washed them by hand. The meals they make are excellent and at each meal there is a different kind of freshly squeezed juice. South American’s are big on their fresh juice. I am being treated like a queen.

The sub divisions are around an 18 hole golf course. Yesterday Ana Maria and I went to the clubhouse and had massages and a steam bath. Then in the afternoon Juliana’s tennis lesson was cancelled so I went and rallied with her. I have not rallied in years, but I did a good job and who couldn’t when you have a ball boy to run around retrieving all the balls. That sure makes tennis enjoyable.

Today Zammy, Juliana and I road mountain bikes up and down and around the mountain checking out the different subdivisions and then followed it up with a trip to the clubhouse for another steam bath and massage. Today’s masseuse was amazing she got right up on the table and worked my back and ass. It was the best massage I think I have ever had and she exfoliated me too. We returned back to the house and Stephan and Ana Maria joined us for lunch. Then this afternoon I took the golf cart over to the supermarket to buy myself some more toothpaste. Not that you care, but the idea of driving the golf cart over is pretty cool.

So again thanks Carolina and Ralf for this experience.

For some more photos you can click on the following link:
Click on this link for more photos from Bucaramanga Colombia

Giron Colombia

Today Ana Maria, Pedro and I took a trip to Giron. It is a colonial town just outside of Bucaramanga and the buildings are all original from the colonial period. The town is complete with cobble stone streets. My hosts are more than hospitable. We are having a great time and Pedro (Carolina´s uncle) went a little camera happy with the personal photos, so hope you don´t mind the numerous ones of me.

Click on this link for photos from Giron Colombia

Bucaramanga Colombia

Would anyone like a little meat?
Friday May 27, 2011: I arrived to the airport today at 8am for my 9:30am domestic flight. I was waiting around for the check in counter to open and still at 8:50am there was no one around. I was able to find an information person who started looking into things for me. The departures board said my flight and posted it as going at 9:30am. The woman said the airport did not know anything about the flight and tried to call the companies office but did not get anyone. I thought it was a little odd that the airport was so segregated that they would not know if a flight was cancelled, coming, not here, whatever. Finally a woman showed up to the airport Easy Fly (that is the airlines name) office and with her little English and my little Spanish I figured out that the flight had been changed to 12:05pm. I could see on her computer that was name was on the list of flyers so that was good.

I am flying to Bucaramanga where my neighbor from Peterborough’s mom lives. Carolina is from Colombia and invited me to stay with her mom while I am in South America. I feel bad because her mom Ana Maria was inconvenienced by the late arrival. It was a little weird to be standing in a check in line with no one around you and no one working the desk and the flight to “leave” in 30 minutes. But it has all worked out.

I would say Colombia is an up and coming holiday destination for backpackers and all inclusive travelers alike. A lot of it is uncharted and beautiful. It is a gem of a place to come. The sites are spectacular, people extremely friendly; there is beautiful scenery and the sea. It is neat to because there is not much English around which makes me work harder and practice my Spanish. In the airport usually anywhere in the world they say things over the loud speaker in the native language first and then follow it up in English, but that is not the case here.

Sunday May 29, 2011: I am in Bucaramanga Colombia at Ana Maria and Stephan (Carolina’s mom and brother’s) apartment. They are lovely people and we are getting along nicely with the little English and Spanish that we each know. They are extremely hospitable and truly lovely people. It is great to have a real Colombian experience living with a Colombian family. Their apartment is a new large three bedroom apartment on the 10th floor that looks out onto the city. They have only been in it for two months. They have their master bedroom with ensuite set up as their guest room so I am living quite the life of luxury.

People’s preconceived conceptions of Colombia can be let at the airport it is a fabulous prospering country with good education, jobs, nature, history and tons to offer tourists and its citizens alike.

I have met Carolina’s sister and her husband and her uncle and cousin have spent the last couple of days touring about with us. Today we went to Chicamocha National Park. It is amongst a canyon with beautiful panoramic views. I took a 20 minute cable car ride down one side of the canyon and up the other. At the top of the other side there are then many amusement park attractions. We were there with some big shot from the government and he was pretty heavily guarded by men with subtle guns on their hips. We didn’t make the connection until later so they probably didn’t appreciate me walking in and out of them as they were not moving too fast and I was trying to get by them.

Stephan is a lawyer, Ana Maria works in insurance and her sister owns her own boutique clothing shop. We can see Stephan’s office from the balcony and the clothing shop is a few blocks away. I cannot believe how first world it is here.
You can check out the photos from Bucaramanga and area at the following link;

Click on this link for photos from Bucaramanga Colombia

Cartagena Colombia

Check out his catch from the beach in Caragena.

Cartagena is great. The Old Town is lovely and the cobble stone streets and balconies are great to check out. Today I spent the day at the beach. The water was so warm it was like entering a big bathtub. It was over 30 degrees today but not muggy so you weren’t melting.

At the beach there were some fisherman collecting their catch. They must have pulled in a net for 30 minutes and we were excited because we thought they were going to pull in a huge swordfish like I had seen the other day when I didn’t have my camera with me, but it turned out to be shrimp and small fish they had caught. They were working pretty hard pulling so we were sure it was a swordfish but no such luck.

We have been visiting the Café Del Mar pub on the wall each night it is a magical setting. They make the best strawberry daiquiri I have ever had.

I was able to take some cool photos of locals today. Have a look at the following link.

Click on this link for photos from Cartagena Colombia

Taganga and Cartagena Colombia

This is a photo taken in Taganga Colombia
It is mighty hot now. I feel sometimes like I am melting it is so warm. The cloths I have with me are not for this type of muggy hot weather so today I chose to wear my bathing suit and shorts to walk around town. It did the job. I am currently in Cartagena which is a lovely town. It is large 1.1 million people living here. I am staying in the Old Town which dates back to the 1600’s and is walled by a huge stone wall. It is full of lovely balconies, nice flowers and cobble stone streets, a great place to roam around in this heat.

I spent four nights in Taganga a little fishing village of 5000 people prior to this and hung out on the beach. It rained one day I was there so I spent two and half hours swimming in the sea as it was warmer to stay in the water and really what else was there to do. I had a $2.50 massage on the beach the nice day and had a great shrimp cocktail delivered to my towel by a guy selling shrimp snacks from a cooler for $5. These Colombian girls befriended me and were having them so they let me try their “beach meat” instead of “street meat” and I liked it so I got my own Styrofoam cup full of shrimp and sauce and two soda crackers to go with it and presto. I didn’t get sick either.

In transit between Taganga and Cartagena the minivan/bus I was on had a little bit of a drama and the four hour road trip turned into six hours. It was a tourist minivan that cost $21 and was supposed to be locked at all times. It wasn’t however and when we were driving slowly through some flooded streets from all the rain we heard the back door open and shut and in that split second a bag was stolen from the back of the van. An older Colombian couple had their bag taken and it contained all of their documents. They were not pleased. We stopped two police officers that were close by but basically they said it was gone. The people were really mad because like I said they had basically paid a huge price for the security of a locked vehicle and didn’t get it.

Cartagena has the reputation of being the prettiest city in Colombia or South America and it sure is. It is a lovely place to stay. There are huge all inclusive places on the coast and hostels the like. The Old City and the wall are incredible. It is interesting to see the poverty and wealth right next door to each other.

Last night I went out with a few people from the hostel and we ended up at a pub on top of the wall looking out at the sea on two sides, big hotels on the other and the Old City on the other side. It was magical and as we came upon it the one guy had an interesting comment. There is corruption at work here with a pub being placed right on top of the wall. I thought it was interesting. You have to remember this wall is centuries old and then to place a bar on top of it just doesn’t seem right. But like I said a magical setting.

Here is the link for photos from Taganga and Cartagena Colombia. PS Cartagena was a port stop for those fans of the Love Boat.

Click on this link for photos from Taganga and Cartagena Colombia

The Cloud Forest in Nanegalito and Quito Ecuador

Wednesday May 18, 2011: Well she was an early start this morning. Not that the last week hasn’t been early each morning starting around 6am, but today it was 4am. There were seven of us left from our boat who decided that we would not sleep in on our last official day together but that we would get up early and drive to the Cloud Forest in Nanegalito Ecuador. A two and a half hour drive from Quito. It was great though. There were no clouds for us today though, which made for wonderful views of the surrounding volcanoes and mountains. The drive there was interesting. You have got to love the Hyundai minivan that took the seven of us plus the driver and guide and it actually had other seats and could have accommodated 12 people, four rows of three.

In the cloud forest we were able to bird watch. I have to say I really am not a birder, but they are cool to check out and there were tons of them and the sounds were excellent. I thoroughly enjoyed the vibrating sounds of the hummingbird’s wings. There were great hikes there through extremely thick vegetation a rainforest or jungle like natural setting. You know what? You can tell I am not a birder by my lack of camera lenses and the fact that my camera is not over two feet long.
Did you know that Ecuador has over 4650 different kinds of orchids? Also I think I forgot to tell you about when I landed in the airport and was coming through customs. I stopped twice and smelt two huge bouquet of roses and then after I did it and did the ah sounds after doing it I realized the old cheesy saying that we are to stop and smell the roses and that is exactly what I did.

We also saw a village today that exists inside a volcanic crater that was pretty neat to see. The crater has a diameter of 8km and is lush with vegetation.
My body is having a hard time adjusting to being back on land. I woke up in the middle of the night and felt like I was walking on a lean still. It is probably a combination of the boat and the altitude. So I feel a bit dizzy and off balance and so do the others. We would share our ailments and the others would say yes I am feeling that way too, or we would bend over too quickly and have a head rush and a woozy spell.

Thursday May 19, 2011: Well today has been an interesting day on a couple of fronts. I am in Quito Ecuador which is located 2850m above sea level so I am suffering a bit today from Altitude sickness. It really has interesting effects on your body. I woke up with a nasty headache and tingling lips and fingers. The tingling lips are the craziest sensation. I think because I flew in from sea level and didn’t have the gradual incline like in the bus that is why I have been affected this time.

You know some days when you just have a feeling something is going to happen, well today was one of those days for me. I just didn’t have the greatest vibe today. I headed out to the Old Town to see the sites with my day backpack and didn’t feel right about taking it, but I did it anyway. I had my camera in it and didn’t take it out very often as I just had this feeling I shouldn’t have my camera out in public so it stayed away for most of my walk in the area. The cab driver on the way to the Old Town had also given a warning about taking care of your camera and holding on to it tight. So I was standing out front of a park in front of the Basilica and I had liquid shit thrown on the back of me. Yep, it was a lovely aroma. I did nothing though. I felt and heard the liquid hit me and just remained in the same position not attempting to see what it was. A guy pointed to my back and the sky trying to indicate a bird did it. There were no birds in the air. Anyway I still remained calm with my hands in my pockets and didn’t move to see what was on me or attempt to take the bag off my back and kept a watch on the area and people attempting to come and wipe it off which I knew could happen, but it didn’t. Then a nice looking woman comes up to me and says “senorita banos” and points to across the street and attempts to walk me to a washroom. To which I just continue to stand there and say “no gracias.” This is their ploy to help you clean it off and rob you while they do it. I hailed down a cab and returned to the hotel where they said I was very smart and lucky to have done what I did. As soon as they saw me they said did they rob you this is what they do to rob you? I took my bag and cloths to get washed and for $5.50 it will be delivered back in three hours. So I guess that feeling I had was for real but I was alert to the fact something might happen. I will just chalk that one up to another experience I have now had.

Tomorrow morning will be another early start with a 4am cab to the airport. I am flying to Santa Marta Colombia at 6:20am. It is on the coast and the Caribbean Sea; I hope to enjoy a little rest and relaxation on the beach.

You can click on the following link for pictures from The Cloud Forest in Nanegalito Ecuador and the few I took in Quito.

Click on this link for photos from The Cloud Forest in Nanegalito and Quito Ecuador

The Amazing Galapagos Islands

Friday May 13 2011: Galapagos Islands – North Seymour Island (Happy Birthday Frances)

Highlights of my day today: Swimming with a sea lion and a shark. I was right over top of a shark and a sea lion was right beside me. What an amazing place. I love when you have no expectations and then are pleasantly surprised. That was the case for me today. I don’t know much about the Galapagos Islands and it really wasn’t a place that I thought I need to go there but upon learning more about South America I learned Galapagos is on many people’s wish list so given the opportunity to come here I took it and wow I am so happy I did. I make this statement so you know that I was oblivious to the incredible wildlife that is here. Today we snorkeled and went on a walk around North Seymour Island. I am usually not much of a bird person either, but wow the birds were huge, colourful and so close they were awesome to see. The Blue Footed Boobie being many a person’s favorite. It is mating season so we got to see lots of courting and dancing rituals. It really is just wildlife everywhere. It is hard to take it all in it is so abundant.

The boat was also circled by a large shark this evening that they said was not the friendly type so that was pretty cool to see. It was about 3m long. There is a deck that does a full circle around the boat so we were literally running around the boat pointing it out to everyone else. Yelling there it is, she it, right there.

Saturday May 14, 2011: Galapagos Islands –Rabida Island, Santiago Island and just docking off of Chinese Hat Island

Today’s quote or phrase is look out don’t step on an iguana. Santiago Island is full of huge marine iguanas that blend into the lava rock. There are also brilliant red and orange crabs that distinctly stand out against the lava rock. There literally were thousands of these big iguanas and crabs everywhere. A highlight for me today was seeing a large lobster in the water and the Galapagos Hawk. Today it was like swimming in an aquarium. There were schools of fish by the thousand and great vegetation all around.

I am able to type this now as the boat has stopped a rock’n and the anchor is down. The water was a little rough this evening with huge swells that made your stomach turn like that spot that you speed over on Lily Lake Rd to make your stomach do summersaults.

Each day consists of at least two walks and two snorkeling sessions. The experience has been fantastic and I highly recommend coming here.

Sunday May 15, 2011: China Hat and Bartolome Islands

Another amazing day today’s highlights were seeing penguins, swimming with the penguins and two sharks. Each day we take the two dingy boats from the main boat to the shore or go snorkeling from the dingy. So today we were heading to the shore and saw two penguins on a rock cliff right at the edge of the water so we went up to have a close up look. There are tons of Iguanas on the islands some are marine and can therefore dive while others are land Iguanas. There are also lots of crabs everywhere and they are a brilliant red/orange colour against the black lava rocks which is incredible. We went snorkeling on Bartolome Island and then went into the beach where it was extremely windy and it was like getting sandblasted with the sand from the beach. At the end of each excursion or activity you have to be hosed down by the captain so that species are not spread from island to island as each Island is so unique. Jean had been lying on the beach and she has really short hair and her scalp was covered in sand the captain had a trying time trying to wash that off on the back of the boat.

On Bartolome Island there is a gangplank walk that goes up to the top of the island for an incredible view over the islands. It was amazing to see. There are many volcanic craters you can see, some on land and some under water.

Monday May 16, 2011: South Plazas and Santa Fe Islands

Well the best snorkeling was saved for last. I haven’t mentioned much about the fish, but the fish schools are massive and the colours incredible. The snorkeling is spectacular. We went to South Plazas Island by dingy into a beach full of sea lions and saw huge sea turtles as we were coming in and a couple of groups of Eagle Rays mating at the surface. The turquoise water here was beautiful. We went for a walk on the island and me in my typical gracefulness fell into the water trying to get back into the dingy and soaked my running shoes that were in my hands and my cloths. Luckily my camera was in a waterproof bag and Jean was carrying it. But I did go into the shallow water where all the sea lions were and I could only imagine what was in that water, gross. Oh well, all in good fun and not a problem. We went snorkeling further out in the bay after the mishap and two sea lions came swimming head first into me. It was really cool. We chased huge sea turtles all over the bay, spotting them in different parts and hurriedly swimming over to see them. Then we saw the rays which were so cool. It was awesome.

The crew had a little cocktail party for us as it was the last official night on board for part of the group which was also a good time. Then in the evening we went into Puerto Ayora for a look around town. It was crazy to be back in civilization and society. I had the spins in town. It was interesting because I didn’t suffer from the spins when we would go onto an island for a walk but in and out of the shops and the overhead lighting, spins. Not a pleasant feeling so headed back to the boat by a water taxi and all was well again. I am getting good use out of my Gravol pills as the boat has been a rocking but I can say I didn’t actually get sick which is a bonus.

Tuesday May 17, 2011: Santa Fe Island, Puerto Ayora and Baltra Island

I don’t think I mentioned that there were 16 people on the boat and you share the cabin with a roommate. We had bunk beds and there were eight cabins for us. There was also separate living quarters for the crew which consisted of eight men from the Galapagos Islands and they were excellent at their job and extremely jovial.

The last excursion was a trip to the Darwin Research Station with another early start our visit started at 7am and we had to get there from the boat. The Research Station was really neat. Tons of huge tortoises were there. We got to see Lonesome George the last of his saddle back species. They are trying to mate him with similar species but have had no luck. As it turns out they had him with a hybrid female tortoise for years that could not reproduce. He has two new wives and they are hoping for success in this July’s mating season.

There were also huge dome shell tortoises there too. They were really neat to check out. It would be interesting to see all of the different research studies that are going on there and how many people are employed there.

It was an amazing experience living on the water, walking twice a day on different islands, snorkeling twice a day, eating like a queen and having an excellent, nonthrowing up experience. Ah the life. The Galapagos Islands were amazing and I feel like it was just a drop in the bucket for a future visit.

Check out the amazing and numerous pictures at the following link.

Click on this link for many photos from The Galapagos Islands in Ecuador

Visiting the Equator in Ecuador

The blog site was down and then I was on a boat in the Galapagos Islands so here is the post from May 12 2011: This is a picture noting my success at balancing an egg on top of a nail at the Equator. I received a certificate and everything; two as a matter of fact because I was able do it twice. Today I visited the Equator and it was really fun. I went with two women from my Galapagos group. We took the local bus out the Equator for 40 cents and had a blast on the bus. There are forever people getting on and selling stuff. My favorite was the ice cream guy with his 25 cent cones. It was an easy adventure with two bus changes and no problems. There are people selling $45 US tours, I think ours was great with 80 cents spent on transport and $6 spent to climb the tower and visit two museums at the “center of the world” as they like to call it.

At the one museum we got to try different experiments. One was the spinning water test. In the northern and southern hemispheres the water spins as it goes down the drain and right on the equator the water goes straight down the drain with no clockwise or counterclockwise movement. It was cool to just move a portable sink 1m each way off the equator to test this. Then we did the balance an egg on a nail in which I was the only one able to do it and I did it twice. Then there was the sobriety test. You have to close your eyes and try to the walk the line. The forces pulling your body and making you wobble feel incredible.

You have also got your discrepancies with where the actual line is and then lots of different photo opportunities with different things in the background along the line. You have your GPS equator line and your tourist equator line. There were also lots of school groups at the equator, what a cool class trip, sign me up.

Well it is an early 5:30am start tomorrow with an early morning flight to catch the boat to the Galapagos Islands. So I should get packing.

Check out the cool photos from the “middle of the world” at the following link.

Click on this link for photos from the middle of the world, or the Equator

PS Ecuadorian chocolate is to die for. Oh I am in heaven.

Quito Ecuador

Well I have just arrived in Ecuador after a couple of days in transit and what a drive it was from the airport. I witnessed a poor motorcyclist being thrown from his motorcycle after the car ahead of us hit him. I instantly jumped out the vehicle to help him and could see his scared eyes but was told it was dangerous get back in and other people were running over to him. We drove on up the road to aid in blocking in the vehicle that hit him with another motorcycle and remained there until the police came at which point the driver tried to deny that he hit him. An interesting start to the next leg of the journey. Luckily the motorcyclist had a helmet and gear on so I hope he will be ok. He was on the job as he was a delivery motorcyclist, probably delivering someone’s dinner.

I added more pictures to the last Easter Island photos so if you are not sick of statues and want to see some more there are more there.

Click on this link for lots of photos from Rapa Nui, Easter Island

I am starting a boat tour to the Galapagos Islands in the next couple of days so stay tuned for those experiences.

Also who knew Ecuador uses American money as their currency? Not I but that is interesting. So off I will go to the ATM tomorrow and get some good old American cash and then take a couple of local busses that should cost me less than a dollar in total to the equator.

More Easter Island

Easter Island (Rapa Nui) is incredible. I know that is what I keep saying, but it is. There are about 5000 people who live on the island and all in the undeveloped town. Which I told you has one main street a couple of blocks in length. Yesterday I toured all around the island and the coast is just open fields and coastline. There are no houses out there and this prime real estate, I know it always comes back to real estate is just out there for the wild horses and cattle to graze on. I was told there is only electricity and water in the town.

Today I took a taxi inland to Ahu Akivi, a site where seven statues are. It is the only place where the statues face the water. I took the taxi there and then wanted to walk the coastline back to town. Unheard of (with the locals) everyone wanted to make sure I was ok to walk back and I kept getting asked at sites along the way if I would like a ride back to town, lovely and very nice of the people to ask, but I just wanted a little exercise, fresh air and the beautiful coastal view. I got it. About a six or eight kilometer hike. I think most people are rushed for days on the island and rent a car, scooter or driver. I have lots of time and that was my plan for the day, walk the coast. On the way back to town I passed the dive shop and signed myself up for a dive tomorrow morning, then maybe the beach.

Click on the following link for tons of pictures from Easter Island, also known as Rapa Nui.

PS: It is seven bucks a kilo to get your laundry done here typically I would weigh in with five kilos but luckily now I don't need my warm cloths washed (as it is hot here) and only had one kilo. Just a price point for you.

Click on this link for more photos of Easter Island

Easter Island

Easter Island is incredible. Coming here was a big wish for me so to be here is awesome. It is a small island 3800 km off the coast of Chile with one main street and everything shipped in. It has red dirt and beautiful coastal walks. I hiked up to a volcano on my own, a five hour around trip expedition with incredible views and a good workout. It did rain so that red dirt turned into mud and covered my shoes and legs. The temperature averages about 75 degrees here so the rain was refreshing. I was caught in a downpour a couple of times yesterday and overnight it poured rain. I wish I had dad’s rain gauge to calculate how much actually fell. So today is a catch up day and a day of staying out of the continuous rain. I cannot complain this is my first day of rain and it looks like it is braking just in time to grab something to eat.
It is low season so there are not many people around even though the plane was full coming over and it was a large plane. At the top of the volcano there is a National Park and a neat “Birdman ceremonial village” to visit. I ran into two people once I made it to the top of the volcano. The serenity is incredible here.
Now Easter Island and it’s Moai (statues) that is why I am here. They are incredible, huge things all along the coast. They are so cool. Here is a taste of the ones just around where I am staying. Stay tuned for more to come.
Click on this link for some of the photos from Easter Island

Machu Picchu Peru and Area

Wow Machu Picchu what an incredible place. The sites are amazing and those Inca people were so talented. It is hard to believe that they created these sites in the 1300’s. The engineering and mathematics behind it, let alone the man power, sheer strength and ability, mind baffling. What they are building over here today is nowhere near the quality of these buildings. Machu Picchu is huge and on top of a mountain. The hiking was incredible the views amazing and sheer drop offs spectacular. I can see now why they scan your passport and get all your info from you before when you buy your ticket in the event that you don’t come out they know who went missing, not that they would find you if you went over the cliff the growth is dense but there are trails that you have to sign in and out of. There is an incredible amount of people coming each day to see Machu Picchu but it was not over crowded, it is massive and most of the tour groups are there only until 2pm and I stayed until 5pm when it closed.

Cuzco is also a great town. It is the starting point of a visit to Machu Picchu. It itself has tons to check out and is a World Heritage site. The Cathedrals woodworking, frescos and oil paintings were spectacular. In the Cathedral they have a portrait of the last supper and it is famous for its offering of guinea pig, yup Charlie their last meal was guinea pig. It is also on every menu in the area, it and alpaca, so while you were having turkey or ham for Easter I was having alpaca.

I also visited the Sacred Valley which includes other little villages boasting an Inca Ruin or two. I tell you those Inca’s were incredible. I especially liked their terraces built into the side of the mountains for crop growth.

Agua Caliente, (The town of Hot Water) was a great town to stay in too. The town has one main street lined with restaurants and massage parlors looking for your business. So after a big day of hiking and walking I hit the massage parlor for a $15hour long massage followed by a trip to the hot springs for a soothing soak in the water for $4 and if you didn’t bring your suit, no need to worry, you can rent one for a dollar.

Here is the link for the photos, enjoy.
Click on this link for photos from Machu Picchu, The Sacred Valley, Cuzco and The Area

Lake Titicaca, Puno Peru

Happy Easter from the rabbit I saw in the most desolate area of Bolivia and Happy Birthday to you Dad, Dennis and Aunt Anne. Sending you love and birthday wishes from Peru.

I have spent Easter Weekend at Lake Titicaca. Yup, I spelt that correctly and it sounds like it is spelt, so I had to come to this area to see what it is all about. Well it is another lovely area. I am now in Peru in the town of Puno which is on Lake Titicaca. I arrived on Good Friday and was able to witness a Good Friday procession. The statues used in the procession were interesting. My favorite was the last one of I believe Mary all in black and it was neat because it was only carried and surrounded by women.

I took a boat trip out to a couple of the islands on Lake Titicaca, (Uros and Taquile). The first one was really cool. It was a series of floating islands where a couple of hundred people live. Every two weeks they have to cover it with new reeds to keep it from rotting.

South America countries have really kept their traditions. When you visit these places the people are not dressed in their old traditional garb to entertain you, but are dressed that way because that is who they are. Women wear bowler hats with long dark braids in their hair and poufy skirts. On the second island I visited (Taquile) the men wear toques of solid red if they are married and red and white if they are single. The men knit the hats and women weave belts for them to wear. Each year the woman makes her husband a new belt and each year it has a different symbol added to it so it tells the family history, births, deaths, good harvests etc, really interesting. So the girls sell the tourists bracelets but it is really for them to practice their weaving skills so by the time they are an adult they can strive to make their husband a good belt. So nieces and nephews you are getting “practice” bracelets.

I made it to mass from Easter Sunday. It was a lovely church full of white flowers everywhere. I was surprised there were not too many people there and I was the only foreigner, but they did have lots of masses throughout the morning. Anyway at “peace time” the woman beside me gave me a hug and a kiss, not a handshake. I said my little thank you pray as for some reason I was up really early this morning and double checked with the hostel staff to see how much my bill was, as I needed money from the ATM. Upon doing this the woman called to confirm my bus ticket for the next day to find out that the busses would not be running for two days as there will be road blocks on Monday and Tuesday. She said I could get to Cuzco today or Wednesday. I said I needed to leave today as I fly from Cuzco on Sunday and would like as many days as possible for Machu Picchu and the area. She made some calls and got me on to a night bus that will leave tonight at 10pm hopefully missing the road blocks. I got the second last seat out of Puno, so I said my little prayer of thanks at church this morning. It was really random that we found out this was happening. I tried to get out Bolivia and their road blocks to avoid lost time and now it is happening again. This time it is because the government wants to set off bombs for testing and the miners don’t want them to do it as it will cause environmental damage. So they are protesting.

Here are the photos from Lake Titicaca, Puno, Peru.
Click on this link for photos from Lake Titicaca, Puno, Peru

Four Day Salt Flat Tour Bolivia and tons of photos

Day 1: Today I started a four day Salt Flat Tour from Tupiza to Uyuni in Bolivia. Wow! There are seven of us in an old Toyota Land cruiser with bald tires. We have a driver/Spanish speaking guide, good thing the Mexican girl can translate for us, actually I understood a lot of what he was saying and a cook. She offered up a great picnic lunch in a field of lamas today and a great dinner. The other five of us include a French couple, the Mexican girl, Anne from England and myself. We left Harry today in Tupiza, he was going to do a two day horse trek. The landscape is incredible and it has been for the last couple of weeks. Around each corner it is different. Today we traveled by dirt road about 100km’s and it took eight hours. The views were spectacular. We climbed to 4550m above sea level and I (touch wood) do not have altitude sickness, nor the others in our group.

On the drive we passed through barren land and vast open spaces, no cities, just lamas, donkeys and an ostrich to be seen. We arrived in a little village with one block of houses and a school. This is where we are spending the night in San Antonio de Lipez. The village is full of children with lovely smiles and not a care in the world. They don’t care that there is dirt on their cloths, that their shoes don’t have soles, but they can offer you a smile and a fun time. As the sun was setting on the snowcapped mountain in the background I played catch using a tennis ball with three young girls. While we were playing there was another little gaffer keeping himself quite amused by wheeling a bicycle tire through my legs. The simple things in life are free, isn’t that what they say.

The people of Bolivia have incredible faces. They wear bowler hats with long black braids in their hair, wool skirts and either have their possessions strapped around them with a piece of cloth or a baby. They are very old fashioned looking and they are everywhere, in the cities, villages or in the hills with a whip swatting lamas to go in the right direction.

It is a little chilly tonight, I have had to put on my long johns and I have my toque out in case I need it tonight. You can be so hot during the day, the sun is intense here, but yet at night it can go down close to zero. We have an early start tomorrow, 4:30 am so I will sign off.

Day 2: It was an early start like I said 4:30am. It is crazy when your clothing for the day changes so many times. I started the day in long johns, a toque and mitts and by midday was in a swimsuit and then in between going from sweater to t-shirt and a skort to pants.

Today we learned we are the envy of the other tour groups with our 1997 Toyota Land Cruiser. You spend the night in a communal building with your group of five sharing a basic room, no showers, hot water and questionable electricity. At one of the sites we got talking to some fellows who said oh yes you guys are in the good vehicle with back windows that slide open and power windows that work. An added bonus is that the windows are tinted and keep some of the intense sun out. There older version does not have tinted windows or windows that go down, so they are roasting.
My tour is fantastic. They all get questionable reviews and it is a crap shoot as to who you choose to go with. It is basically the same tour and cost, but some have better vehicles, drivers, food etc. All of the mentioned are great with our company. The food is actually fantastic. I am having the most cooked vegetables I have had weeks and it is all sitting well and the altitude is only bringing on a minor headache which is easily treated.

So today we saw geysers spewing out the lovely sulfur odor. Beautiful mountains and a green lake that is green do to the lead and arsenic that are in it, volcanoes, hot springs, bogs and were at 5000m.

Day3: Well it is evening now and as I sit here clean from the hot shower I was able to have after two days of dust from the desert I listen to the military practice across the street. At this point they are chanting or singing some song. I figure we should be good and safe in this town as our accommodation tonight is a hostel and it is directly across from the military housing and zone where there is a guard on the corner. Tonight we are staying in Uyuni.

Well today we saw tons of flamingos. It was incredible they were in the lagoons. There was a lot more red rock. We saw a funeral procession in the middle of nowhere. I do not know how far they had to walk behind the body which was carried on a flatbed truck. For three days we have been in this vast land where we have maybe seen accommodation for a hundred people in total. There is nothing out there, but panoramic views at every turn.

So last night was a little chilly. It was rumored to have been -18 degrees C. I slept in my long johns, pants, socks, two shirts, my toque, neck warm and mitts. I was warm though and had a great night’s sleep. The room had electricity for a couple of hours in the evening, no form of heat or hot water, but comfy beds.
It will be another early morning tomorrow as we head out to make sunrise over the salt flats and therefore will be getting up between 4 and 4:30am.

Day 4: I believe I should really start taking pictures of toilets and washrooms around the world. Over the last four days we have had to use “mother nature’s” bathrooms and I have to say that is way better than the one I had to pay to use today.
Today I literally had to go from sun hat to toque. It is boiling hot in the sun and freezing cold in the shade. Layering is the way to go here.
So today was the end all and be all for the Salt Flat Tour. We went to the Salar de Uyuni, or the Salt flats of Uyuni. It was very cool. The area is huge and looks like it is covered in snow, but it is salt. The locals harvest it for table salt and other uses. It is interesting to think that we are driving over it and walking on it and it will end up in someone’s mouth. It is the end of the wet season here so we had to drive through a foot of water in parts. In a month it will be all dried up and there will be no water around. They make piles of the salt to dry it out and it is cool to see them harvesting it with shovels and old dump trucks, then you should see where they dry it. I haven’t said yet how primitive Bolivia is. I cannot capture it in a picture but wow does it have a long way to go as far as progression is concerned, or it will be interesting to see how long they can sustain their quality of life. I don’t want to dis it, I am not, it is incredible, but it is neat to see how unorganized and old the country is. Internet is not an option and if it is it might as well not be. But I don’t really even want to go to talk about the internet. If you are an electrician you would be cringing over here. Bare wires and tape holding things together and then only having electricity for a few hours a day is the way in many a place we stayed. Agua Caliente (hot water) I think not. I have had that before in other countries but they were hot destinations and in Bolivia the temperature goes to below zero.

In the middle of the Salt Flats there is a Salt Hotel. The Lonely Planet says to not stay there as it was built illegally and its waist is going right into the Salt Flats. So we show up at this place and I have to say I was expecting a posh place, but the walls are made out of salt and the roof has tarps on it that are kept down with tires. That is where we had our picnic breakfast as we were at the Salt Flats for sunrise. No one stays there anymore but the tour groups go inside and use the facilities for a place to serve up food.

I forgot to mention there was one ATM machine in Uyuni. At any given time there is a lineup of at least five tourists waiting out front to use it and your taking your chances on whether it is working or not. In Tupiza where I actually booked my tour there are no ATM machines and it is a tourist town with lots of activities that require cash. The Lonely Planet warns you to get cash before arriving here as there is not an ATM so when we were walking the town we saw one and thought the Lonely Planet is wrong. We asked the tour company about it and they said oh no you cannot use it, It is only for local cards and will keep foreign ones. Good thing we didn’t give it a try.

An incredible four days and a must see if you are in South America. The hospitality shown to us by our driver/guide (Santos) and cook (Eli) was incredible, lovely people, great sites, and an interesting country with incredible vast lands.

Now the bus out there was another story, oh my god. The trip from Uyuni to La Paz took 10 hours to go 536km on a night bus and I have never been on such a terrible ride in all of my life. My back still aches and I am in need of a massage. The Road for FIVE AND A HALF HOURS was like and accordion or washboard and was incredibly bumpy. Think of those massage chairs they have a home that you can sit in and now think of the deluxe one and put the thing on turbo and multiple it my a 100, that is how the ride was. The seat was vibrating like nothing I have ever felt and this went on for FIVE AND A HALF HOURS! I literally thought at one point my insides are going to come right out of me through my private parts (sorry but the feeling was like nothing else) and the sound of all the banging in the bus was so loud. I really thought we were going to break an axel or tire rod, or the side was going to fall off the thing. The totally body vibration was unbearable thank god that is over and I hope to never experience that again. The teacher blockades and strikes are over and so we were not held up with that which was nice.

Now for tons of photos, DON’T MISS THERE ARE TWO LINKS FOR PHOTOS, one is the Bolivian Boarder Crossing and the other is the Four Day Salt Flat Tour.

Click on the link for The Bolivian Boarder Crossing

Click on the link for tons of photos from The Four Day Salt Flats Tour

Bolivia Boarder Crossing

I have arrived in Bolivia. All is well and it was a really easy and uneventful boarder crossing and drive to where we are staying. I am with Anne and Harry at this point. There is always talk amongst the travelers about Bolivia. Some hate it, some love it, some are afraid of it. Anyway our trip yesterday was great. We took the bus from Tilcara Argentina to the boarder town of La Quinta. Once we were there we hoped in a taxi for a $1 to get us to the boarder. Crossing was easy. I expected to have to pay $75 US to get in, but didn’t have to. Maybe it is only if you fly into the country? We are not sure. Once we were through the boarder crossing we walked straight into a Cambio, where you change your money. No problems there and we caught a taxi to the train station to go on to Tupiza. The train only runs certain days of the week so we stayed an extra day in Tilcara to be able to catch it. Not an issue thought I probably would have stayed another night anyway, but long story a little shorter. We get in this cab to take us to the train station in a broken Spanish conversation the cabby says he can drive us to Tupiza. So we look at each other, we all have a good vibe about the guy and say, yeah ok, what the hell. So we tell him we need to eat and he takes us to the place to eat and we are on the road, an hour before the train is “scheduled” to leave. The train takes close to three hours and we were able to drive there in an hour and a half. He was a cautious driver and we even had seatbelts. At one point we had to stop and wait as in numerous spots the road was under construction but it was fine. They had just blasted a new tunnel and were clearing the rubble, so that was neat to drive through.

We arrived at a great hotel that had rooms for three so that is what we had booked. The place even has a pool, it is luxury for $7 each a night. Who said Bolivia was a hard place to travel? Well I will touch wood as the next four days are going to be an overland Jeep excursion to the Salt Flats at high altitude, so here is hoping it goes smoothly and that I don’t get altitude sickness. I may be out of contact potentially for a week but at the end I should have a gazillion photos to upload. So here is the news and again the buzz with people, some afraid others are fine. The boarder was closed the other day between Bolivia and Argentina, we learned this after we crossed that it was the day before we crossed. There are protests throughout the country and guess who are protesting? The teachers, they are looking for a 15% pay raise. So people are talking about riots etc. some are just moving on as normal and others are trying to get out quickly. I will leave it up in the air.

The next four days are on this tour through the salt flats and then I can cross into Chile to go to Peru or go through Bolivia and cross into Peru. Basically I need to move a little quicker now as I fly out of Peru to Easter Island on May 1 and have to see Machu Pichu before that. Here’s hoping those teachers aren’t too rowdy.

Sorry I cann't get my photos to upload.

The seven colour hills, Purmamarca Argentina.

Argentina is such a lovely place. It is so easy to get around the people, food and sites are fantastic. I am loving my time in Argentina. I love when you intend to spend a night in an area and it turns into a week. That is what happened in Salta. Thank god I didn’t move on, I would have missed some tranquil places in Cafayete, Cachi, Tilcara and Purmamarca, each have incredible landscapes. They are just my kind of places, little towns with great character.

I was able to do a great three kilometer walk around Purmamarca. It is where the seven colour hills are. Amazing colours that change as the sunlight hits the mountain, or hills. You might be sick of the rock photos but it is just amazing everywhere you turn there is something different and amazing to see. Hope some of those panoramic photos might give you a better perception.

So I met a guy Harry yesterday and as fate would have it we would have met on my scheduled Antarctica trip that I had to cancel. We were to be on the same boat, same dates and company. Interesting how we would now meet up in Northern Argentina as we each head to Bolivia. Kind of cool how random things happen. He loved his Antarctica trip. it is neat to talk to someone who has been there. So we gained another travel companion for a few days at least.

Click on the link for photos from The Seven Colour Hills in Purmamarca Argentina

Road trip between Salta and Cachi Argentina

Good morning. I don’t know how successful I am going to be at typing this as I am on a bus which seems to not have any shocks and I am wondering if my breakfast is going to stay down as we bounce, bounce along. It is just a four hour trip today. It is kind of surreal though. I am sitting right at the front of the bus on the second level and because I can type without looking at the keyboard. I am just watching the beautiful scenery go by. It is kind of neat to be so productive (getting the blog caught up) and relaxed at the same time. No WIFI on the bus, that just seemed to be in Uruguay so I will write this now and post it later on.

I had another incredible day yesterday. The scenery in the Salta province is incredible. Esteban was Anne and my guide for the last two days. Anne is my new friend from England. On day two of our drives to check out the area we were the only ones in the car and therefore had a private tour. It was great. I knew it was going to be a fantastic day as we were driving through the green mountains with the tunes cranked rocking out to it’s a beautiful day by U2. At work they play music some mornings to get the kids moving to class and I love when it is this song, for me it is a great song to start the day with, so when it came on and we were driving through that beautiful landscape I couldn’t help but smile.

The landscape between the two days was so different and yet they are so close. One day was red mountains and the second day was green mountains. The way the sun was hitting the one area in the afternoon made the mountains look like they were covered in plush velvet and I just wanted to reach out and pet it. You know how I am with petting things being the tactile person I am.

Oh god, just a little pause and a prayer. We just came across carnage on the highway. There we two bodies spewed over two lanes of the highway going in the other direction. It must have just happened. Sorry for those families losses.

I am now a little distracted. We saw tons of cacti yesterday and at times there were cacti in the foreground and snow on the Andes in the background. We saw a condor which was really neat. Esteban has been trying to take a picture of one for three years so he was really excited about seeing it too. It was close to the road and it was huge. It looks almost like a big wooden bird. We watched it and its baby’s for awhile and then it took off in flight. They have a 10 foot wing span. We also saw wild donkeys that are prey for pumas and guanacos (they are kind of like a deer and an alpaca). We actually pulled over the car because we could see a tarantula crossing the road and didn’t want to hit it.

The people around here are also quite lovely. The hostel I was staying at in Salta had incredible staff. Each day was someone different but each one of them was extremely helpful. Traveling with no phone sometimes leads to a bit of a hassle but these people were always offering their phones and making calls for me. When I was trying to arrange the car to go around the area and Anne was staying in a different hostel they made the calls and arranged it for us. Then they called her hostel for me so I could tell her we were good to go etc. Anyway little things make me happy, right. Then this morning when I was checking out the guy who checked me in saw me and instantly said “Sarah, how are you? Where were you yesterday I worked from 8 – 7 and I didn’t see you, where did you go?”All this service for $12 a night and they also had the best breakfast, included. Today I had two eggs and each day there was fresh fruit out all day for your taking. A typical South American breakfast is white bread, which they had brown, dulce de leche, a carmel sauce which they are obsessed with and a croissant. Oh yeah and I got hot chocolate made with milk whenever I wanted it. All included in that $12 fee. Now it is no four star place, a six bed dorm room and not the greatest bathrooms, I definitely needed my shower shoes, but a great showerhead with pressure, which is sometimes hard to find and therefore sometimes it’s hard to get that shampoo out of my hair or the soap off your body for that reason.

Again lots of photos were taken some of them are quite cheesy as were we playing around to maybe make the shots a little bit more interesting for you.

One of my favorite things to see, Grace will make fun of me because it is red, but it was a field of drying chilies it was incredible to see this field of red.

Anne has an I-phone and can take panoramic view photos so I copied a few of her pictures on the bus today. They are really neat to see. Did I tell you this guy in Buenos Aires had an I-phone with him and he had an app on it that translated for him? He held the phone over a menu and it translated the print from Spanish to English. Oh how travelling is changing.

We arrived in Tilcara this afternoon; it reminds me of the wild, Wild West. It is a little town with a mix of authentic locals and backpackers in a hot dusty 20 square block area. It is a beautiful location though among the mountains and such a nice vibe to it.

We arrived at the hostel to suppose to be having a twin room but the room was rebooked by its previous occupants. So they gave us a two bedroom room with a bathroom and balcony that can sleep six for the same price of $11 each a night. I walked onto the private balcony that looks out onto the mountains and went ok this is cool. I can chill out and read and write on this for awhile.

Here is the link for the photos from Cachi Argentina.
Click on the link for photos from the drive from Salta to Cachi Argentina