Time for a look back on an amazing holiday.
It’s seems such a long time ago that we started our adventure, and now we have been home such a short time, things start to fade quickly into the past!
It’s such a long way to South America from Australia, so we decided to have a few days in Santiago, Chile, to get over any jetlag we may have had. We hadn’t planned on the “Reciprocal” fee of US$117 charged on us both for being Australians and wanting to enter Chile! Be warned 🙂
Santiago is a great town, we had been there before and it didn’t disappoint us this time either. We stayed in a hotel in Bellavista, at the base of the hill that hosts the Statue of Christ on it(San Cristobel), and this made us fairly central for the city and an easy walk to most of the interesting areas (the markets, town centre, etc). It also put us in the middle of the “Bohemian” part of town, with a lot of cafes, restaurants and “arty” type places around us. We would both recommend the area and our hotel, ”The Hotel Boutique Castill Rojo” to anyone looking for a place to stay in Santiago.
The city is very well worth a walk around and you should try to visit the Old Chilean Parliament building and gardens, it’s truly magnificent. Take time to walk the “Parque Forestal”, the very long wide parklands that stretch the length of the city in the middle of the main road, so much happens in the park. Our favourite restaurant was “Peumayen”, it served “Cuisine inspired by Native People”, delicious and a great atmosphere. If you go there you have to try the Horse, Delicious! Our favourite lunch spot was “Fuete Alemana” a café in the middle of town (on the edge of the CBD-sort of). We knew we were on a good thing when we told the people at our hotel we were going there for lunch and one of them started to rub his stomach!! J It was very antiquated inside, like it had been dropped into town from the 1960’s, but so full of atmosphere. I think we enjoyed watching the locals as much as we did the food. The order of the day was ( and has to be if you go there) Lomito Italiano and a Schop (your choice of either blanco or nior schop).
From Santiago we went to Guayaquil Ecuador. Our research had told us this town was not to be trusted, it has a VERY high crime rate, and the literature you get at the airport on arrival and at the hotel confirm all the security warnings. Having said that, we met a couple of people who had ventured out some distance from the hotel and survived! LOL Like all places, if you take care and don’t go to places that your warned against you are normally OK.
We flew from Guayaquil to The Galapagos Islands on Sunday 22 March and we started our exploration of these fabled Islands in the afternoon just after lunch.
Our first zodiac landing onto an island was like opening up “The Origin of the Species”. There was every form of wild life you’d expect to see in The Galapagos right at your toes. We saw sea-lions, Iguana, Frigates, Booby’s, Lava Lizards, etc . And that’s the way the entire cruise went, each day it was a new island and a new type of fauna. Each of the Galapagos Islands is a unique habitat and the creatures that inhabit them are in themselves unique.
I will never forget see the comical strut of a Blue Footed Booby, or masses of Sea Iguanas lounging around on rock shelves together, being able to walk up to a sea lion pup on a beach and have its mother brush past you to feed it, the sight of the Frigate birds soaring in the skies looking like something out of Jurassic Park, or having to get out of the way of sea turtles coming up for air while out snorkelling, eyeballing an Iguana from 6” away, seeing the tracks from the night before left by turtles who had come into land to lay their eggs, the list goes on, so many vivid memories of the beauty and innocence of nature.
Even though these islands have been inhabited and plundered by pirates, sealers, whalers and farmers, all the animals (except maybe for the Giant Tortoise – who retreat into their shells at any approach) show little if any fear of man. This innocence has caused many problems and extinctions over the years. Even the fish in the waters surrounding the islands are not afraid of man. We did a lot of snorkelling while we were in the Islands, and while a lot of the time the visibility was just OK, the marine creatures were almost as fascinating as the ones on land.
The Galapagos might not be high on our “Must go back to” list, but the experience is something that anyone with an inquisitive mind or mere love of nature should undertake, it’s truly an unforgettable experience to be up so close to some of the most unique creatures on the planet.
From the Galapagos we ventured onto Cuba, with many question marks in our minds, we really didn’t know what to expect when we got there, other than Old Americans Cars in a communist state. Cuba is a shadow of its former self. Travelling around you can see that in days gone by, this country had enormous wealth. But since (or maybe before) the 1958 revolution the country and its infrastructure have gone into decline. Havana itself is undergoing a rebuild, with a lot of money and work being put into the old part of Havana to resurrect it before it crumbles. There are parts of Havana, we were told, that during heavy rains people are warned to stay out of certain buildings as they may collapse. The hotel we stayed in was like a Time Warp, frozen in the 1930’s with all the splendour of the Art Deco period, even some of the staff may have been thawed out from the same time!! We visited other cities, Santa Clara and Trinidad as well. Both held great significance in The Revolution and both had magnificent well preserved buildings from the prosperous days of Cuba. Amazing old mansions from the heady days of the sugar barons, beautiful old world theatres where some of the worlds greatest performers had appeared, left-over reminders of the days of slavery and how unkind/brutal man can be. There are reminders everywhere of the past rulers of this country, with French, Spanish and British architecture and names all through the country. Even down to the partial annexure of the south end of the island by the USA, we have all heard about Guantanamo Bay! But it could be argued that the history behind it is even more repressive than recent events there.
Cuba was more of an education that a holiday. There is so much to learn out the place. It is steeped in history, both past and near present. It is the only country I know that has a two currency system of its own. A National Peso and a Convertible Peso (used by tourists, and sort after by the nationals). The National Peso is used by the locals to by “staples”, (think rice, flour, sugar, basic clothes, rum, tobacco products, etc primarily from Russia) and the Convertible Peso (or CUC) is used to buy ”Luxuries”, meat, vegetables, etc. Their diet seems very bland with few, if any spices and condiments used in their cooking. The history of the Revolution is very complex, with the likes of Castro and Che being subordinates to the actual leaders and minds behind the revolution. Yes, Cuba is full of old 1950/60’samerican cars, most of which are used as taxis, and most of which breakdown very regularly. Similar to the old soviet era Lada cars that are also everywhere. Away from the bustle of Havana, Cuba is set in a time gone by, with the horse and cart being a favoured means of transport, much of the farming is done with horse drawn ploughs.
You can’t go to Cuba without picking up a lot of information about The Revolution. The 1958 Revolution that is, not to be confused with earlier ones! I was surprised to learn that Castro was not the Leader of the Revolution, indeed, he was just one of the Generals, along with Che Guevara. The brains behind the strategy and political Manoeuvring was Manuel Urrutia. He became the first President of Cuba after the revolution, but resigned after only 6 months due to major disagreements with Castro. Castro didn’t show his communist bent until he had been in the Presidency for about a year.
We have come away from Cuba with a greater understanding of the other sides version of two of the most significant world events of the 1960’s that centred on Cuba, The Bay of Pigs Invasion and the Cuban Missile Crisis. How world events look so different, yet very similar through different eyes. We experienced similar understandings when we visited Vietnam. History is really different depending on which hill you view it from.
Next stop was Mexico, a country we accidently discovered. Due to the requirements of having to get into the USA via an intermediatory country (you can’t go straight from Cuba into the USA due to the political differences between them). But what an amazing eye opening accident it turned out to be. Mexico City is a wonder. So many grand old buildings and history dripping from every corner. Built on a lake and surrounding swamp land, the huge old historic stone buildings that make up Mexico City’s old quarter, are slowly sinking. Think of the Leaning Tower of Pisa, and put it into a City wide scale. So many huge buildings have sunk into the ground, causing differences measured in meters from one end of a building to the other. It is a huge problem for the city, but is being constantly addressed to try and save the old buildings.
We both enjoyed the history of Mexico and spent an unusually long time for us (we are normally in and out of museums in under an hour) in many old buildings and museums throughout our tour of Mexico. The new Anthropological Museum in Mexico City was amazing. It gives you such a great appreciation of the diverse cultures and peoples that have prospered in this country over the centuries. And it gave us a greater appreciation of the Archaeological sites we visited during our travels.
We enjoyed the food of Mexico, especially when we got to have authentic local foods that the locals ate. So much flavour and colour. We have a lot to learn about making a good/great salsa!! We both love trying the specialty foods from the different countries and regions within the countries we visit. This time was no different and we got to try cooked Cactus, Grasshoppers (cooked in garlic and lime juice) and my favourite Cactus Caterpillar Larvae (basically 20mm maggots!), a delicate nutty flavour, yum 🙂
Then there are the traditions, like in San Miguel where we saw 4 wedding parties dancing through the streets proclaiming their marriage, led by brass bands a colourful donkey and all the guests, the huge Easter Parade through the streets with worshippers carrying massive crosses and effigies.
We also visited many ancient ruin sites, akin to the sites of ancient Rome. My favourite was the site of the Pyramids of the Sun and the Moon. Amazing in scale and layout, you could easily imagine what is might have been like when it was the centre of a thriving civilisation.
Onwards and upwards, next stop was the USA.
We flew to New Orleans (“Nawlins” to the locals), where we met up with old friends John and Georgiana, and had 4 days of Jazz and history and Jazz. Our hotel was one street back from Bourbon St, and so gave us easy access to the city’s main drawcard. But we ventured much wider than just the Bourbon/Royal Street precinct. We walked the breadth of the town, from the Warehouse/Arts district to the French Quarter and even out to their Basketball Stadium. WE even got our very first Typhoon warning text!!!
Yes, while we were in town we got to see the game of the season, with the New Orleans Pelicans playing the San Antonio Spurs for places in the play-offs. It was an amazing experience, made all the better with the home team winning and making the play-offs. So much fun being part of it.
New Orleans and Jazz, a bit like bread and butter, one isn’t the same without the other. And there is Jazz everywhere. The street buskers were amazing, but I guess they have to be if they are going to make a living busking in this city, the competition is so strong. The Jazz clubs are all packed at night and the music just gets better. We didn’t get to try all the food we wanted to but made a good dent in it, and all the local foods we tried were great. For simplicity we loved the Pulled Pork Po’boys for lunch, delicious. I still can’t understand the fascination and popularity of the local donut, a powder sugar coated creation called a Beignet. There is a famous shop in Nawlins called Café du Monde, where all they serve to eat is these Beignets, and it is always packed to standing room only, with hundreds of people devouring these over sweet “deep fried buns”. But when in Rome, 🙂
Next stop was Minneapolis. To visit John and Georgiana’s family and see their new granddaughter. We had a great time catching up with everyone, it is so special being welcomed into this large family again. They really are our USA family. John and Georgiana took us around to a few more local attractions and braved the unseasonably brisk weather with us. It’s is spring there, but we got snow and rain and hail and sunshine, all in the one day, did I mention we also almost got frost bite!! That wind-chill is a bitch!!
We then all flew to Las Vegas We stayed at The Aria, pretty well central on ”The Strip”. We spent most of our time in Vegas just walking through the many casinos, taking in all the attractions and fanciful décor. Must see attractions are the Bellagio Water and Sound show, a walk through the roman village in Caesars Palace, the canals in The Venetian and the skyline façade of New York New York. We saw a show at Caesars Palace, Absinthe. It was amazing, a mix of acrobatics, comedy and Burlesque, go if you ever get a chance to see it, you won’t be disappointed. All our time in Vegas and we have just realized that we didn’t have a bet while we were there!! Not a high priority apparently! 🙂
We then hired a car and drove to the Grand Canyon via the Hoover Dam and a section of the old Route 66.
Hoover Dam is an amazing structure and should be seen from both on top of the dam wall and from the “new” bypass bridge that gives an amazing overview of the dam and the lake it forms.
There are lots of little towns that were on the famous old Route 66, that have been by-passed by the newer highways and are making a go of themselves by taking on a retro image of the heady gas guzzling / rock’n’rollin’ days of yesterday. Great for a rest stop and a bit of nostalgia.
The Grand Canyon, what can you say, IT’S HUGE!!!! Like so many attractions in the USA it is best seen from a distance to get the whole majesty of it The weather wasn’t that kind to us while we were there. It was cloudy and cold, with a few spots of rain. Consequently, we went to see the sunset, only to have it covered in cloud and the colours of the canyons hidden from us. A bit disappointing but we did get to see a different section of the Canyon, just maybe not at its best. Sunrise, now that was a whole new ballgame. Getting up around 4am on a day when they were expecting up to half an inch of snow was no mean feat!! We rugged up as best we could, the girls taking blankets off our beds, and got a couple of shuttle buses to our viewing area. On the way numerous intrepid (no MAD) hikers were dropped off to take a hike down to the canyon floor, and maybe back up. It was freezing. Sleety weather!! Sunrise was a much better event than the sunset. While there was a lot of cloud around it just framed the sunrise rather than obliterate it. It was magical watching the shafts of sunlight dawn the new day over the Canyon and the Canyon glow under the rays.
After breakfast we packed and headed off along the Canyon South road to take in more viewing points and eventually head down to Sedona.
Sedona, the Red Earth City. This city is surrounded by huge red earth rocks. They are amazing both in colour and form. Without them I doubt if Sedona would be the tourist town it is. We spent a few days sightseeing in and around the rocks, taking in several hikes and bushwalks. A beautiful town. We met up here with Georgie’s brother John and his wife Yvette. They had offered to guide us through the next portion of our visit. We so much appreciated their generosity and we clicked instantly with them. They are both warm quirky souls, that we gladly call friends.
We then took the Rim Road to Pinetops. It is a road built in the late 1800’s along the edge of a cliff with a 1000ft drop to a valley below. It was a rough (very bumpy dirt road in places) but beautiful drive. We stopped for lunch in the middle of the forest and had some time to enjoy the peace.
Pinetops was a place to stay, not a destination in itself. But from there we explored the upper parts of the Apache trail, visiting Fort Apache and some old Indian ruins. The fort was a bit disappointing, I was expecting an old wooden fort (I think I may have watched too many cowboy and Indian movies as a kid!) and it seemed to concentrate too much on white history rather than the Indian side of things. Although the Indian Museum there was fascinating.
We left Pinetops heading for Phoenix and took the lower end of the Aapche taril, a dirt road that winds its way through some amazing Arizonan landscapes, desert, mountains, cactus, ghost towns, old stage coach towns, it had everything! An amazing drive that we highly recommend.
At the end of the drive was some amazing friends. We had dinner with Claire and Ed, a couple we met a few years ago on an Alaskan Cruise. They opened their home to us all and welcomed us with open arms. They gave us a delicious dinner and then brought out a birthday cake for Deb. Such a surprise and delight. We spent too short a time with them, catching up on what we had all been doing, and then had to say good bye. I know we will meet again, and we look forward to renewing our friendship.
Here we said good bye to our travel buddies and old friends John and Georgie (I wonder where we will meet up again, not if but when! 🙂 ) and John & Yvette.
Our journey took us onto Los Angeles. We stayed at the Georgian Hotel in Santa Monica, another old world hotel. Santa Monica is such a great place, the beach and pier at our doorstep, Venice and Muscle Beach just down the road, and downtown LA not too far away.
We did a day tour of the city, making sure we saw all there was to see that you could do on one day. We did the Walk of the Stars, the Hollywood sign, the Chinese Theatre, The Disney Theatre, Sunset Strip, Rodeo Drive, the Hollywood burbs, the Griffith Park Observatory, the Farmers Markets, etc. A big and very enjoyable day. We spent the next couple of days relaxing around Santa Monica.
Finally it was time to go. On the flight home Deb was fussed over by our flight attendant, Jo, who made a point of making sure she celebrated her birthday all the way home. Champagne as soon as we sat down on board and more as we flew. J Deb almost missed her birthday, the 4th May. We boarded the plane just before midnight on the 3rd and a few hours later crossed the International Date Line and into the 5th, and I think she slept most of her birthday.
Besides a hiccup on the very last leg of our journey home, we missed a connecting flight; everything on the holiday went amazingly well. While we might not want to go back to anywhere we have been, we enjoyed it all, it was a very different sort of holiday. Thanks to everyone who has been on the trip with us, both in person and via our blog, we have really enjoyed your company.
Our next trip is in July, a family cruise. Until then …. 🙂
If you want to keep up to fate with our travels and blog, please use the email notification service I have set up, it is very easy to use and seems to work very well. Cheers all.
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