Traveling for Good – A Trek in Romania
I have pondered may a-times how lucky I am that I can travel to places around the world mostly for personal reasons and sometimes even for business. I, like many others, are blessed with the opportunities possible in this day and age to make long distance travel possible. In 14 hrs I can be in Seoul should I choose. 50 yrs ago, maybe a lot less years ago, that trip would have taken much longer to do. And on and on I could go about how good we have it.
And then I realized that I can do these trips not only because the world is smaller and technology facilitates many things. I can travel because where I was born and where I live have afforded me opportunities to be in a good enough situation to travel, something many people in other less developed countries may never have. But I go further the more I think about it: even if I didn’t have the werewithal to be able to travel, I still don’t have to worry about many basic things. Malaria is not a threat in my country. Water safety is not a concern (usually, anyway). There is good medicine accessible within a mile or so from where I live. Etc.
Many people in this world have to worry about such things. Forget about whether they would have the werewithal to travel abroad – they have to worry about the basics that you and I, dear reader, more than likely will never have to worry about. Yes, we do have issues too but not at the scale of what a good portion of our fellow human beings have to worry about.
It is with that in mind that I decided to do a trek to help some folks who may have a lot less of the basics than most of us. A friend of mine founded an organization a few years ago that organizes treks in support of orphanages around the world. They have gone to base camp in Everest, to the top of Kilimanjaro, done the Camino in Spain, hiked to Machu Picchu, etc. This July they are organizing a “lite” trek in the mountains of Romania - the Transylvanian Alps - and I have decided to join them for the first time! The organization is called Trekking for Kids and you can read about them at www.trekkingforkids.org. The trek will begin and end in Brasov in central Romania, an area with well-known beauty and famous (or infamous as the case may be) for Bran’s Castle that inspired the Dracula story (I even hate to mention it but had to!).
Trekkers raise funds that directly fund the projects that will be done for the targeted orphanage (capital improvements, sustainability-oriented projects, etc.). Not only do we fundraise for the orphanage but we will pitch in with sweat equity while at the orphanage as well as just be with the children.
I am thrilled to be undertaking this challenge. It is a lite trek but that is 4 days in a row of hiking and I have not done more than one day ever… My longest hike was over 20 yrs ago… So I will share a little between now and July about preparations for the trek and then share with you the experience once the trek is done. I am hoping my troublesome knee will cooperate as it has been acting up the last 3 years. But I hope it all works out for the best first and foremost for the kids in that orphanage in Brasov, Romania!
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If you’d like to support the orphanage projects via Trekking for Kids via my trek, go to their site, click on “Donate” on the top right, go to the “Select Trek or Fund” box and select “Romania 2012″, and then (don’t forget!), select me as the Trekker you are supporting! (If you prefer to pay by check, please email me so I can get the form to you which will also provide you with your tax receipt.)
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The Spark That Triggered My Wanderlust
I have been blessed with the opportunity to travel by work and through my own means. The zeal for discovery began when I was about 7-8 years old and I started collecting stamps. Seeing stamps from many places that were so far away in distance and in reachability (pre- airline deregulation days!), created in me a desire to see those places myself. “Who was that guy on stamps marked Jugoslavia?” “Posta Romina is not about Rome?” “Where the heck is Suomi because it is in no map I have laid my hands on?!” I didn’t really believe I would get to see most of these places. Because of the times and the lack of financial means, I was not surrounded by a “traveling culture”.
I am not sure exactly when I started collecting stamps but the crucial moment was the summer of my 8th year when I spent a few weeks in Miami visiting my grandmother, uncle and aunt. My uncle had collected stamps as a kid for a little bit and I discovered his old and slightly battered stamp album from about 20 yrs before on the floor of his bedroom closet.
He gifted it to me and it was like the most awesome thing I had ever been given until that point in my life. I remember being so happy and they all enjoying seeing me so happy. I also benefited from my Mom’s sacrifice to give me “small” funds over the years to acquire some stamps (and this was a real sacrifice in a household with very limited means). Many relatives would save stamps for me (yes, those were the days when people STILL wrote to each other on paper!). Finally, my Dad, who worked at a data center Citibank had in Puerto Rico, would take me to the room where they received payments from people from all over the Caribbean basin (PR was the payment processing center) so that as the machine cut open the envelopes and pulled out the contents, I could go through the box where the envelopes would end up to start retrieving stamps! It was fascinating stuff (now you know what we kids did before all these fancy video systems, smartphones, etc.).
Well, many moons later, I contemplate the map of where I have been (in blue or red below; red means I have lived there, blue that I have visited, and green are places high on my priority list to visit!) and think of how that small seed planted at a young age has resulted in this awesome journey I have been on to see what this world!
I pay it forward by bringing coins or small bills from the places I travel and give to children of family and friends – because you never know what you may spark in a child by exposing them to the bigger world out there!
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Check out my hommage to stamps in my Twitter page wallpaper: https://twitter.com/#!/ilivetotravel
I Know Now Why Rome Is the Eternal City
Rome is eternal. That much has been said before about it. But it keeps proving true over and over.
I just went for my third time, this time for the longest visit yet (about 6 days). I never seem to get to a spot anywhere near “I feel like I know this place”. I keep discovering new areas of town, new “must see’s”, new dishes, etc. It will take me an eternity to master Rome – and the money that goes along with that eternity! (Funding, anyone? Angel investor, I like to go to the Vatican in case that sways you.) Rome is eternal indeed…
Rome Has History and I Have History with Rome
Though I had been there twice before, each visit had been for about 3 days each. Both included Papal audiences as the Pope had changed inter-visit and I had to check out the new guy. Oh, and when I mean check out, I mean up close. I was not down with the masses that time. I was up by the stage. But I digress. And that already has been written up around here -> http://ilivetotravel.wordpress.com/2009/02/28/front-row-tickets-to-a-papal-audience-feels-good-to-be-an-ip/. This is about my 2012 visit, not my 2006 visit.
In any case, I had seen some of the key sights of Rome (the Forum, the Colosseum, St. Peter’s all the way to the top and all the way to the bottom at the Scavi, etc.). But I STILL knew I had some key sites and sights I had not been able to get to. Most shocking of all the missing sites was the Sistine Chapel. It became my number one target for this trip.
Laser-Focused Objective. Make that “Objectives”
Laser-like focus on the Sistine Chapel became a little less focused when friends coming on the trip raised the idea of getting to Pompeii. Scope creep! What I warn my clients about in my day job. But, heck I had been to Italy now 2 times and I had never made it south of Rome. And Pompeii… Images from all the history classes in school flashing like a neon sign in my head… Well, how could that be left out… But surely these two plus maybe a couple of churches and, of course, the Pantheon – how could I forget, I had never seen it either. OK, so now I had a definitive focused list of places I did want to see this time. The rest of the visit open for whatever…
And so the trip began on my way to reducing time-to-eternal, ETC (estimate to completion), shortening of the list of things to still do in Rome… and the trip ended with enough left over to ensure another return. A fourth…
Ski Gear – from Hell?
Imagine… 10,000 years from now. Civilization has disappeared. Climate change eliminate snowfall. And some visitors come to the planet to find many items humans had used. Many will make sense, others will only make sense if they see videos/pictures, and yet others will never, ever, make sense to them.
I just used some of those items that may never, ever, make sense. I went skiing.
Oh, skiing is an awesome thrill: the challenge, the scenery, the speed, the almost-falls, the feeling of the air in the face, etc. I LOVE skiing. But I HATE ski gear. I don’t hate it when I look at it at a store. I don’t hate it when I see others wearing it. I hate it when I have to deal with my own.
Which psycopath determined that one ought to compress one’s calves into a piece of hard plastic (or whatever boots are made of!)? Or made the boots so incomprehensibly difficult to put on? Or made those snap locks so painfully hard to snap? And what tyrant designed the first ski park such that you have to walk carrying a sh–load of gear across steps and areas with lots of people to watch one stumble or strugggle? Who was the brilliant engineer who designed skis to be so long that a small turn of the body as you carry them can destroy a small building or knock out an innocent?
Yes, I love skiing. I REALLY do. But I do suffer through dealing with all that gear. As my friend and skiing guardian angel said, maybe there ought to be the equivalent of a pool-boy/girl or personal butler for skiing, carrying your gear, putting it on for you, and carrying you to the actual lift? Just a thought…
How I Used to Share with Family and Friends during My Trips Pre-Blog!
Before the days of this blog, I would send periodic emails to family and friends about my travel. At first it was report that I’d made it to wherever and then I started adding some of the things I was seeing for no real reason other than I wanted to tell someone about anything interesting I saw from the trivial to the significant. What follows is the email I sent soon after arriving in Tanzania in 2007… Enjoy!
Hello, hope everyone is well. I have been now about 4 days in Tanzania for my work trip. After the long journey here, it is nice to be “settled” into a normal day-to-day living schedule though the first few days I kept waking up way too early for sanity (4 AM, 5 AM, etc.). Today, I slept past the desired wake up time. I think that is a good thing.
So what is my workday like? I start with a FULL breakfast at the hotel since lunch will not be until 1 PM, at the earliest, and since we start at the office at 8 AM. There is nothing in the vicinity of the office where you can buy any snack or other food, so I must load up at the hotel before coming over. No vending machines either. I fear hunger almost as much as I fear critters so I am proactive 
The work location is what looks like an old house, big for the standards of Tanzania but smaller than the McMansions in Atlanta. Being an old house, rooms are small and I imagine some rooms where broken up into offices at some point too. Each little office has its own window A/C unit to keep people cooled. I was actually surprised they had these in every office but I am VERY glad for many reasons. I sit with the IT manager who has technical equipment in her office so her A/C unit works especially well to keep everything cool. I will miss her next week when she will not be at work since her office has to be kept locked due to the equipment and I will not be able to enter it…
Lunch is cooked on site by some ladies they hire to cook lunch for the office. Apparently everyone chips in like a subscription type of scheme because there is nowhere to eat around here. Visitors pay 2,000 shillings for lunch which sounds like a lot but it is less than $2. A bargain for a full plate of rice, a couple of small pieces of meat, beans or vegetables, and some fresh fruit. Around 530 PM we go back to the hotel. We are able to go out if we want but it means a taxi ride as there is nothing near the hotel (it is not near the city center).
Tanzania, unlike other countries where we do work, is quite safe so we are not required to stay in the hotel for our safety. I have heard stories of other countries where once you get to the hotel you must stay in per security standards. Transportation to and from work is provided by the local office, so we don’t have to worry about catching a cab, etc. That is a nice thing.
In the hotel I can get free wireless Internet access, unlike the US where we are squeezed to pay for that in most hotels. However, some nights the Internet connection is down which may have nothing to do with the hotel. That may not be atypical in many of the countries we work in from what I hear. Infrastructure (power, water, etc.) can be rather fragile. I have not experienced power outages in the hotel which is nice because it keeps the A/C on! (I am, I have to say, a little needy that way though I would survive without it if I had no choice which may happen when I travel outside of the big city.)
Alright, this has become quite a long email so I will begin to wrap up. My plans for the next few days are to travel to a town called Mwanza in the NW of the country to visit the field work Saturday and Monday (here is a link to my hotel there http://64.91.230.207/accomdation.html). From there, I get a small break on Sunday to visit the Serengeti National Park (hopefully) (this is where I may stay outside of the park http://www.spekebay.com/). I will return to Dar on Tuesday and probably head out to visit the field in Zanzibar.
Finally, I return to Dar and visit some of the field work done in the urban area here. We do a lot of work here related to health, education and national resource management (I was ignorant about this last area and now I am very curious to see the work we do; there is a strong correlation with national resource development like mining, forestry, etc. and poverty; the former when not managed tends to impact those who live in those areas rather strongly and negatively).
OK, now I will stop.
Musings of a Frequent Traveler Point Chaser
A friend confessed to me a couple of months ago that he had become a mile/point whore with airlines and hotels. I laughed because I related to what he was saying though perhaps my interest wasn’t to the level of obsession as may have been the case with him. That is, until I started thinking…
I normally do care about my points and stick to one or two programs to ensure my miles accumulate properly. I also keep an eye out for special offers, rare as they may be, to get extra points. But with my friend’s comment I started thinking “what else could I do? have I maximized what can I do without going overboard?”
Airline Credit Card
I had always wondered whether getting an airline credit card was worth it. Especially since my Costco AMEX gives me cashback which is considerable given my business travel is charged through it. Cash on hand is better than points with a company that could change award levels, could go bankrupt, etc. So the questions that had been triggered by my friend the point whore intersected earlier this year with my desire to retain top elite status (Diamond) with my hometown airline (Delta). I have had that status since 2010 and thought earning it for 2014 would be cool, especially since simple math told me I would easily attain the level below Diamond (Platinum).
So on I went with research that I normally find tedious. Delta offered several AMEX types so I started by figuring out which would yield the Medallion Qualifying Miles (MQMs) that I may need to top off my actually flown MQMs this year to reach 125,000 MQMs (the Diamond requirement). I then had to understand if the spend required on the card to earn those MQMs was realistic given my normal spend. After determining if that worked out (it did for the Platinum card), I had to see if the fee was worth it. It definitely seemed a reasonable fee given all the MQMs and non-MQMs I would receive plus the earning of the desired elite status. So, on I went with getting the new card.
I also learned in the process that having this card was yet another factor that could help me move up in regular and upgrade standby/wait lists. You would think this should not be much of a factor since as a Diamond and Million Miler I should be towards the top of the list. Most of the time that is true but nothing stings more at the gate before a flight to see you were the first or second person to miss out getting the upgrade! So for as much as it may help, I figured that was another bonus about the airline card. At least tête-a-tête with another Diamond Million Miler, the card could give me the edge if they didn’t have one. (I wish I knew the pecking order of factors leading to the placement on these lists!) Of course, what may be getting me some times is the fare basis paid for the coach ticket since I do have to follow the rules on fares purchased for my business travel. But I figured I have done all I could now, save travel more to maximize my MQMs and getting extra miles for free travel!
How about with Hotels?
I did give a thought to hotel credit cards but, for me, there seems to be little difference that I care about between, say, a Gold and a Platinum level. Again, I say that I care about because there are differences; it is just that it may be for things that I don’t need (I don’t do a lot of last minute travel, for example) or don’t care enough for. I also don’t want to have more credit cards than absolutely needed so it was either an airline one or a hotel one. My drivers for doing all this lined up more with the airline points so there you go!
I do monitor hotel special offers as they offer an easy (if you travel enough) way to score major points but if you are not paying attention, you may miss them since they are not automatic (similar to the rare airline special offers) – you have to “register” to earn them. I like Marriott’s typical offer of stay X nights in Y months and get ZZ,000 extra points. In 2010 when I spent most of the year in a Marriott in Chile, I made a killing with those deals – I got the max points every time which was far from chump-change! Now, I still get points but not the max every time since I may not be traveling every week in questions. Again, an easy way to get extra points.
What’s in a Word?
I originally had thought about ending the title of this entry with “Hoarder” instead of “Chaser” but hoarding implies collecting and never using which is FAR from yours truly so I decided that would paint a different reality. In 2011, I used over 600K airline miles to travel with family. Point hoarder I am not! Points are to be used and, if you have plenty, to share with those you want to travel with.
There are many other techniques and tips about maximizing points earning beyond those I have mentioned. Of course, plenty of boards and websites out there where good ideas and discussions happen (e.g., http://www.flyertalk.com/). But still interested in hearing about your “point chasing” goals and strategies!
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Steve Jobs, Technology and Travel
Steve Jobs’ passing should come as no surprise. We are all going to die someday. What seems is so different about his is that it is about someone who in the span of sort of 30-35 years brought about a revolution in how technology fits into our lives. Or better said, of how our lives are enabled by the technology around us.
Let’s not overstate it (e.g., he didn’t invent microwaves, cable TV, remote controls, cell phone technology). Yet, nothing in technology has become so ubiquitous and so TRANSFORMATIVE as the personal computer and the derivative devices that made him so iconic (iPad, iPod, iPhone). Yes, the microwave transformed a potential kitchen slave into a cooking-slacker. No small contribution there and this writer is especially thankful.
Yet, the technology that we now live with and cannot live without – and which a generation ALREADY ALIVE will not understand how the world operated without it – was brought forth by innovation and a wave of creativity that Steve Jobs helped unleash.
The power of technology to transform our lives is evident to all of us and we can all think about how it has made our lives easier. I think about how travel has been made so much easier because of how technology has revolutionized just about every aspect of our lives…
Back in 1991 I was sent to Chile to work for a few months. Some of the ways I had to operate and live were so much harder due to being abroad.
- Back then ATMs existed but the international network either did not exist or did not exist in Chile. I could not withdraw money for my daily life as I would use in the U.S. Now security and communications technology make this a no-brainer. In fact, sometimes I may not need cash or a credit card but could use my device!
- To call the U.S. and speak with family was prohibitively expensive, at the tune of $2/min. Forget about calling friends. I remember one of the most expensive calls was calling my grandmother in Miami. We talked for about an hour. Looking back it was money very well spent as it would be one of the last times I ever talked to her. Now? Goodness, first, international LD is not that expensive; callback schemes make it even cheaper. Skype has made it even free if you have the right connection! And, let’s not forget – I can be walking around town and talk to someone. Back then maybe a cordless phone in the apartment was the extent of the freedom (we forget even these small details!).
- Expensive phone calls took care of staying in touch via live voice but surely a quick mass email, no? No. It was snail mail or nothing. I did write a few letters – I had to keep in touch with my Mom, sister, grandmother, Father, relatives, etc. But who wants to sit down and write a letter on paper? Back then I was used to it as I wrote to my grandmother usually once or twice a month but when I was in another country, making new friends, exploring in my early 20s, who wanted to sit down and write a letter by hand?? Use MS Word you say? It did not exist in our work PCs (in Chile OR in the US). Now we can SMS from our phones, email from any Internet kiosk or handheld, tweet every thought anywhere as we move about, etc.
- I explored a bit of Chile and loved Santiago. Sharing that with friends? Mailing post cards to my closest friends was the extent of it and some did not arrive. No posting tweets about the sight I am currently looking at, nor blogging about the discoveries I was making. Much less anyone clicking Like or leaving a comment to let me know they got it, they liked it, and that I was not forgotten!
- As I explored, I loved taking pictures of everything and anything that struck my fancy. That meant buying film, developing it, throwing away many pix, realizing some pix did not turn out how I wanted & regretting the lost chance, and then I had to carry TONS of pix back to the States when I returned. My family and friends, if they ever saw them, had to wait until I saw them in person to see my pix. And how many sessions of show-and-tell did I really want to do anyway? My friends in Chile (which included other expats from the U.S. and Argentina) also took a lot of pix and we all wanted copies of each others’ pix. I remember a session we had one night at my apt where everyone brought their pix and negatives and every marked which pix they wanted a copy of so then they could be made. And everyone paid for their copies. Think of the logistics! Today? God, so simple: the moment you take the pic you know if you have what you want; load them in Flickr, Facebook, whatever, and your family and friends can see what you are exploring; having them uploaded, other friends who traveled with you can get their own copies made and no work for you. SO SIMPLE!
- Even how we research, book, and manage our travel is so much easier and user-friendly. First, we have the Internet to do reseach with whether it’d be travel sites, Twitter, etc. Before it was just books. Second, we can price shop from the comfort of our couch and do it at our pace, etc without being forced to go to a travel agency. Third, we can book/modify/cancel at the click of a mouse. Fourth, we can use tools like TripIt and Kayak’s MyTrips to keep track of it all! Before, it was once you get the paper ticket, hold on to it carefully, put it all in one place, and maybe write down by hand the specifics of your itinerary.
- In a new town and all of a sudden out of ideas of where to eat or what are good places? Before, you were limited to the local info or the travel book which could be dated. Today? Jump on TripAdvisor and check out the latest reviews and contribute your own. Not sure where the restaurant is? Click on the address and find it on a map that is telling you exactly where you are as well.
I am glad I have been alive to see these improvements which have greatly enabled me to enjoy my travels even more.
So Steve Jobs (or his company) may not have invented all these things but he was a catalyst for bringing computing power and technology into the consumer’s hands – literally. His influence has shaped our world and helped improved how we live. He and other innovators and creators have transformed the world during my lifetime through technology. He was the most visible of these and, as the icon of this technology revolution, he will be missed. RIP.
Travel Musings – On the List for a Future Trip to Patagonia
Reminiscing about my trip to Patagonia and the southern tip of the Americas, I think about what I didn’t get to see… Somehow, 7 months later, Patagonia’s grasp on my mind and my spirit is still very strong. I don’t know if it is the remoteness, the “unspoiltness” (though there is tourism there), the closer-to-how-it-used-be, or just a magnificent nature landscape. But Patagonia has got hold of me. I long to return. I’d thought I’d write down those things I would have liked to have time for in case I can go back again – then all I would have to do is look up this entry and, voilá, my travel plans are ready! And perhaps help a fellow traveler or dream-of-traveler…
Towards the top of the list is that I never actually made it to Tierra del Fuego proper. I thought I was going to TdF by going to Punta Arenas but it turns out TdF is the island across the Straits of Magellan from Punta Arenas and my itinerary had me going NORTH and SOUTH of Punta Arenas but not EAST… Now, I am not sure what I would have seen there that would have been worth the trip but, definitely, I would have liked to explore it. (The thought that I went SOUTH of Pta Arenas but didn’t make it to TdF is somehow mindboggling, n’est-ce pas?)
In TdF, Ushuaia would have been the thing I wanted to see the most. A few travelers told me that it was way more beautiful than Punta Arenas and I can imagine that it would be as Punta Arenas as a town was not necessarily scenic nor quaint for the most part.
While I got to navigate a fjord near Puerto Natales and saw plenty of lakes and a couple of glaciers, I would have liked to go further west and north of the area navigating fjords up the Chilean coast. THAT would be a dream. Going to TdF would be about checking it off. Going to Ushuaia would be special. But spending time up and down all those fjords… well, that would be like something.
And, while at it, a cruise through the southern/eastern side of the Straits of Magellan all the way down to Cabo de Hornos would have been a cool thing to do – but taking some dramamine along as I hear the waters can be quite choppy (and that may be soft-pedaling the water conditions from the stories other travelers told me…). Lowest in my priorities for this return trip but worth noting.
Finally, I would go back to the nice hotel in between Puerto Natales and Cerro Castillo called Hotel Posada 3 Pasos (http://www.hotel3pasos.cl check it out but don’t DARE tell folks about it!!) and spend a few days in the quiet and the beauty that now I understand to be the essence of Patagonia. This would be my TOP priority if I go back…
View from the grounds of Hotel 3 Pasos
Where Have I Been? My Countries Visited Map
So here is my countries-visited map as of today… Filling out a part of the map seems a possible criteria to determine my next set of destinations. Well, I would not pick probably based on that but it sure is tempting!
For example, Ireland and Portugal would close up a good part of Europe. Guatemala, El Salvador and Costa Rica would close up Central America – and so close to home! South America looks more daunting with the 3 “Guianas/Guyanas” and Venezuela being part of what is left… Africa, well filling out a part of the map quickly would not be possible. But the map shows that perhaps I need to put some red in western Africa… I also see a big pocket in southern Asia where I need to paint red…
I seem to have been hitting the Balkan area in the last 2 years by serendipity really: a wedding in Bulgaria, a wedding party in Greece, hopping from Italy to nearby Croatia, Bosnia & Herzegovina, and Montenegro, and -soon- a hike in Romania for an orphanage. I think God wants me to cover the Balkans so I may add Serbia or Moldova when I head to Romania! (I realize I am stretching the definition of the Balkan peninsula!)
In the end, it will boil down to when I can travel, the local season (for example, Greenland in January would not be my choice), cost, possibility of traveling with someone, etc. I love the uncertainty because all options are open!
As of May 2012 : (added Caribbean islands and Balkan countries)
So, 13 Months Later, What Would I Suggest to See in Chile?
Having traveled a but through Chile (though, admittedly, I missed some places I hear are worth exploring like Valdivia), I thought I’d share what I would consider a good itinerary for those with time (but not boundless time either). I will either expand on some of the items below in other entries or they have been covered already in entries I already made (true for the Atacama and Patagonia bits).
View in the Atacama Desert in the Valle de la Luna
Chile offers a wide range of landscapes due to the fact that it runs a long way in the latitude dimension, therefore, the climates along the country vary significantly. The presence of the Andes clearly has a major effect in the climate as well as provides a great backdrop to many of the places you should see (heck, sometimes it is not just the backdrop but part of what you will explore).
A trip to Chile typically starts of in Santiago, its capital, though one can enter the country from any of the neighbouring countries in places like the Atacama, Pucon, the lake district, or Patagonia.
A good itinerary would cover:
- San Pedro de Atacama and nearby sites (4-7 days)
- Pucón and the Villarica area (3-6 days)
- Patagonia/Tierra del Fuego including Torres del Paine, fjords, glaciers, etc. (8-10 days)
- Santiago (a city is a city is a city but I find it worth exploring) (2-4 days)
- Valparaíso (add on Viña and its beaches but they don’t rank up there in my book) (2 days)
- Puerto Montt, the Lake District, and Chiloé (4-7 days)
- Mendoza (OK, this is Argentina but it is almost on Chile and easier to get to from Santiago than from anywhere else!) (2-3 days)
Readers, please feel free to add or provide other perspectives. I, by no means, saw EVERYTHING Chile has to offer!
NOTE: First timers in Chile have to pay an entry fee if they are from certain countries (not many) of which the U.S. is one. BEFORE you get to the inmigration line, make sure you go to the line to pay this entry fee. Usually, there is airport staff asking for country of origin at the end of the escalators – they can direct you where you need to go.
Going with Serendipity over “Comfort”
The agency that helped me organize my trip down south to Patagonia created a suggested itinerary based on what I wanted to see. In their itinerary, they had me staying 3 nights in Puerto Natales and 1 night in a place sort of in the middle of nowhere. I would stay at that place the second night of the 4 nights. I wrote to the agency asking for the rationale behind this as I would certainly prefer being in one place so I could unpack once, pack one especially in a year where I think I spent 10% of my time unpacking and packing already…
The answer was sort of OK. It was that the morning after staying in this place for one night I would save 20 mins in the ride over to see the Perito Moreno glacier in Argentina. Oh, and 20 mins the night before as I would get dropped off before the bus got to Puerto Natales. In other words, a total of 40 mins savings by staying further north of Puerto Natales since my travels around that night were north as well. I decided to not argue it as they better knew the lay of the land than myself.
I chose right. Though I was up there to see the well-known sites and sights, I was not aware that I was about to discover a place that for me would showcase some of the best in the beauty of the Chilean Patagonia as well as just a plain and simple quiet setting – something well needed after the last few weeks…
The Hotel Posada 3 Pasos (http://www.hotel3pasos.cl/) is located on a site where there has been a hotel for most of the time that part of the country has been colonized. Of course, the structure has changed a few times since then. But once one has traveled in the area, one can see that a trail or road likely always existed once the land was colonized and that the location of this place of lodging was well chosen as a place to stop, eat, and sleep. The employees told me that many visitors stop on the drive from El Calafate to Puerto Natales or Punta Arenas simply to dine (the food was great! anything with the “vazca” sauce is well worth trying!).
The hotel seen from across the road
Beyond the beauty and quiet of the setting, I have to say the breakfast was also quite worthy of mention! The bakery type of items and the jams were all home made and simply exquisite. I certainly could not eat half of what was offered!
Finally, I have to say the staff that day was very friendly and wanting to make sure my stay was comfortable and relaxing. I thank them for that!
I have realized over time that sometimes it is better to let things happen rather than have them all planned. This experience drove the point home. Certainly my research would likely lead me to choices that better match what I am looking for in a trip. However, it is impossible for research to uncover it all and leaving space for the random discoveries is just as important. Lesson well learned. I may even get back to Patagonia just to stay at this place but this time for a few days of R&R!
A Year On… A Final Trip to Chile
It will almost be a year to the day since I traveled to Chile for the first time in 18 yrs. I was expecting an infrequent trip there in the year to follow due to work but a couple of months in, the game changed and I got to practically be based in Santiago for most of 2010. The surprise was pleasant for the most part, except I had not planned to live far from home for so long, even if I did get to come home for long weekends at least twice every month. Now, I have one more trip down to Chile of a few weeks before this chapter of my life closes…
It is important to note that I had wanted to stay in Chile back then. I enjoyed it so much. But without too much on my resume yet, 24 yrs of age (meaning “too green”), and no easy way to figure things out (no Internet!), I just went back to the U.S. when the project ended.
Seeing Santiago after 18 years was a strange experience. I was able to recognize places from my life those 3 months around 1990-91 (my apt building, work, Brannigan’s on calle Suecia, the McDs by Parque Arauco, and the old parts of town among others). But, of course, 18 yrs in a good economic climate bring about lots of change. I recall back then a skyline littered with cranes of high rises being built. Well, by now, I am happy to report they finished the buildings… and then some! Sanhattan did not exist when I was there – not in its current form, at least. The area around Parque Arauco and Parque Arauco itself have been developed beyond recognition. I got to re-connect with friends from those days there and while their lives of course had changed, the friends were pretty much as I remembered them (physically and personality-wise).
I got to sample numerous excellent restaurants from a list built up by recommendations from a couple of choice people who clearly know food. I have hit just about every recommendation except for some. By now, with 3 weeks left in my assignment, I am more interested in eating at my favorite places than discovering new ones. Tiramisu and Cuero Vaca (http://www.cuerovaca.cl/) rank up there in my book (good eats!). I will be eating there again for sure! [Check out this review of Tiramisu at the NYT: http://tinyurl.com/2fcbum7]
Of course, I got to be in Chile on or around key events in its national history: the earthquake of February 27, the national elections that made history, the trapped miners, the bicentennial, and the national soccer team making it to the 2nd round in the World Cup. Wow, what timing, don’t you agree??
I got to sample the Atacama desert, hop over the Andes to Mendoza, and explore more of Valparaíso. Hopefully, before I return, I will also get to see Tierra del Fuego and the key sights down there – Torres del Paine, the Magellan Strait, the Perito Moreno glacier, and a few other sights. Places left to see or see again include Valdivia, Puerto Montt, Puerto Varas and neighboring towns along the area, and the lakes crossing of the Andes to reach Bariloche. Had work stretched into January, I would have been able to add them to my “itinerary”. But with work wrapping up mid-December, I only had time for one destination before coming home for Christmas. So I think I chose well with the trip to Tierra del Fuego.
Now, I need to focus on the hardest week of work in the whole year, then stabilize things before I move on. I am thankful God granted me the opportunity to return to a land that I love and to have made it for a long stint so that I got to internalize it all. Now, I am ready to leave Chile behind knowing I can always come “home” but ready to focus on my life in my real home…
How Ashes Changed my Vacation – Who Knew They Could!
Well, my trip to Europe was to be a few days in Bulgaria attending a wedding and then a quick jump to Copenhagen. Bulgaria happened. Denmark did not. Ashes were to blame.
I arrived in Europe at Frankfurt where I was meeting up with my cousin and then traveling together to Sofia, Bulgaria. Right before we boarded our flight that Thursday, the flight next to us which was going to Berlin got cancelled due to volcanic ash. I remember thinking “volcanic ash? that’s weird.” A friend emailed me that I seem to escape chaotic situations (like the Chile earthquake by a day or so) since I made it to my destination before the airspace closures – I knew he had just jinxed me unknowingly!
As the weekend progressed, we kept hearing the news about the volcanic ash and the airspaces closing. We started beginning to think that our Tuesday departure was not going to happen. We enjoyed the wedding events on the weekend and we even took a daytrip on Monday (more on those things in a separate post). But when we finally got to the apartment on Monday, we checked with the airlines and our worst fears got confirmed and our flights were cancelled. Our flights got re-scheduled for Thursday. In my case, my new flights were still taking me to Copenhagen via Munich. However, the news kept talking about how Denmark was right in the path of the volcanic ash even after other countries were expected to re-open their airspaces. So, I started working on a new plan to fly out on Thursday but via a more southernly connection spot to Atlanta. I knew there were direct flights from Sofia to Barcelona, Madrid, Athens, Istanbul, and Rome. I could book a one way ticket to one of those cities and then get Delta to switch my return flight accordingly. However, another option was to keep my flight to Copenhagen via Munich but stop in Munich since from there I could also catch a Delta flight or was close enough to other cities (Prague, Zurich, Vienna) if Delta could not get me out from Munich soon enough. I was calling Delta several times a day and I kept getting quoted the 28th or 29th as the earliest they could squeeze me into some flight. That was not good enough as it was a week away. I managed to get the 25th from Madrid but I did not snatch it and when I called 20 minutes later, it was gone…
The biggest challenge for someone in my situation (which was not the worst by far compared to what others went through) was trying to decide which way to go with things. If I did not go to Copenhagen or at least to Munich with my itinerary, I would lose the unused portion of my Lufthansa ticket. If I didn’t make it to Copenhagen, my hotel booking would not be refundable (I had gotten it with miles not actually paying but it was nevertheless non-refundable). However, I wasn’t willing to get into Denmark (if I could even fly in) only to risk its airspace getting shutdown on further eruptions’ ashes… I also needed to be sure my cousin had a good plan to since she didn’t like the idea of staying behind in Sofia on her own or of staying in an unknown European city by herself (I, on the other hand, was not too troubled should I find myself in that situation). This all complicated deciding what I should go for…
Finally, I seemed to score. Delta could get me on a flight to Atlanta from Rome today (Thursday the 22nd). I knew I could get a $150 ticket from Sofia to Rome with a 2 hr connection in Rome so I went for it.
Tonight, I write from Atlanta, having “gotten out” of Europe with not many scars, outside of half a ticket lost with Lufthansa and miles lost on the Copenhagen hotel (I am still going to try get that refunded… no harm, no foul!). My flight from Rome had a number of empty seats making me wonder how bad was it really?
In the end, my vacation got cut short one day but, on the upside, I ended up with two more days in Bulgaria. Since I may not make it back there any time soon, I am glad I did get those couple of days.
P.S. – On my last day in Bulgaria, I kept hearing on the news how IATA was accusing European governments of being too serious with the airspace closures. I was aghast that the airline industry feels that making money is more important than our safety. Since the impact of the ashes was not well understood, I for one was certainly glad the governments were cautious on this since, APPARENTLY, we could not rely on the airlines to do the safe thing.
My Return to Santiago Post-Earthquake
I left Santiago the Thursday before the incredible events of that Saturday morning in late February. As I woke up that Saturday morning at home, I looked at my Blackberry and I had a news alert about an 8.8 earthquake in Chile. My heart stopped. I had just left there. I have friends and co-workers there. Immediately I turned on the TV to hear about what had happened. Was Santiago heavily impacted? Were my friends OK? I also set up shop with my laptop getting Chilean local TV (thank you Internet). Between the US-based news network and the local Chilean one on my PC, I had a good amount of info coming in. I sat like that for the majority of that Saturday taking every bit of info in. (I was exhausted and over-stimulated by the end of the day.)
I slowly gathered that Santiago had mostly been spared, though heavily shaken. I learned about the destruction in Concepción, Talcahuano and other places that I have not visited. I heard about the tsunami and I heard the news clip of the Chilean President saying “there was no tsunami concerns” (this info she was given, she didn’t make it up). Eventually, I finally began to hear from friends and co-workers. Everyone seemed to be fine. But, in a way, they were not. Most seemed very shaken (figuratively). Aftershocks continued to happen, some of them didn’t feel safe in the buildings they were at, water and power cuts were going on, etc.
My ex-pat co-workers finally were gotten out of the country a few days later via a chartered flight to Buenos Aires. The stories of the shaking they experienced that night were pretty incredible and scary. The shaking lasted anywhere between 3 and 4 minutes. Some could not stay standing up during it. The worst, I am told, was the noise while the shaking was happening…
So, after some weeks of travel freeze, we were allowed to go back to Chile by our company. I wanted to go and see everyone but I was not sure how I would feel when aftershocks occurred. We landed in Santiago and, as expected, the jetway was not operable so we deplaned the old-fashioned way and were taken by bus to the immigration area. You could see the damage to the false ceiling and things like that. Once we cleared customs, we had to walk to a tent area on the parking lot to get to the taxi area. The taxi area had been moved partly due to the collapse of a pedestrian bridge in the departures area right above where taxis normally wait on line for arrivals.
Driving into the city to go to the hotel, I did not notice damage. Once at the hotel, some damage was still in evidence in the atrium glass ceiling. Upon closer inspection I could see small cracks in different parts of the building. But, it did not seem there had been much damage (I should say, by the time I arrived). Once I went towards the city center, where the offices are, the damage was more visible as that is an older part of town that probably predates building codes that kept many Chileans alive through the earthquake and the many subsequent aftershocks. A lot of the plaster outside of buildings had cracked or fallen, including in our own building. In some cases, walls bulged or cracked. At work, the cracks were quite evident all through the building. Saddest of all was seeing the damage to the church on the Plaza Yungay near our favorite “sanguïchería” (Chilean-style sandwich sandwich shop). The cracks are everywhere and especially near the base of the belltower. It is not a magnificent church, just an old local church that I find charming.
Quake Damage near Work
In the 2 weeks I spent there I felt one aftershock, though there had been a few. They were all small so probably the reason I didn’t feel them – but the locals did. Invariably at different moments, people would ask “did you feel it?” And I would go “feel what?” “La réplica” (the aftershock). The only one I felt (a reasonable 4.5) I felt only because a co-worker I was with said “can you feel it? it is shaking” as he pointed as his computer flat-screen monitor. I told him “that’s because I am writing on your desk and moving it some”. He then pointed to the window blinds, surely not impacted by my writing movements, and yes, they were moving. It lasted like 30 seconds and was not much of anything but it was a reminder, once more, of the recent events. I realized that the locals having gone through that incredible earthquake have now a heightened sensitivity that I, not having been there, do not have. The stories of the weeks after the earthquake were about the constant aftershocks, many of them not trivial, like the one I felt. I remember being in calls with folks in Chile in the 3 weeks after the quake and at random times, they would go “hold on, it is shaking”. Some times they would resume talking, sometimes they would say, “we are leaving the room, it is a strong one”.
I left Chile yesterday. Firstly, I hope Chile is spared more quakes other than the small aftershocks. Actually, I hope they are spared even those. They have had enough. Secondly, I hope Chileans recognize that their seriousness about code and having responsible governments has paid off in saved lives, in lower damage and repairs needed, and it mental peace about their safety. Thirdly, I am glad I did not go through the 8.8 as I don’t know how I would have handled it. And finally, I can’t wait to get back to such an awesome place and hope that those who have not been to Chile and explored its beauty still try do so and don’t let fear of tremors keep them from going…
What Makes All the Difference on a Business Trip…
I am sitting on the 22nd floor of my hotel room in Santiago wanting to catch up on my writing and talk about my trip to Valparaiso, Chile, catch up on earthquake impacts to a trip to the lake district, and other discoveries about Santiago. But I’m too distracted. Too distracted with work. With getting to the U.S. for most weekends and hurrying through keeping in touch with those I love back home. With planning a vacation with a cousin to Bulgaria and Denmark with a 1-day trip to say hi to a friend in Sweden.
But what is compeling me to sit in front of the PC for yet another 1/2 hour is wanting to talk about those people who are strangers to you for the most part but who make your time away from home -at a hotel in another city other than your home- get as close to “real” as you get when on business trips.
I normally haven’t had my own access to the “special” lounge at my regular Santiago hotel (Marriott) but get access normally by going with colleagues who do have access. Of course, after this week, I get access on my own right because of reaching the 50 stays in one calendar year. Anyway, through past visits, we have met some of the staff at this special lounge. Some are strict about the rules that say at 830 PM the wine and other liquor is retired from access. And then there are those employees who seem to get that we all don’t just come to another country on business because we work 9 to 5 and have the luxury to get back to the hotel between 630-830PM to enjoy the special treats…
Those employees who realize that the key to great customer service is about making us, the weary travelers, have a sense that we can get that one (or two…) free glasses of wine at a lounge so we can sorta feel maybe we could be at home. Don’t get me wrong, I still have sat in the lobby and paid for drinks when able to go to the special lounge at the “right” hours – the scene at the lobby can be quite interesting. So I am not just after a free drink or two or three or… But going to the lounge does also give you contact with other human beings who recognize you and through the small talk make you feel you are not just a stranger, a number, a credit card at this hotel.
So, to these folks I say, salud. You are doing an awesome job and I hope your employer, Marriott, realizes that you are doing more to retain my loyalty than even the ability to use my points gets them. Emilio, Katherine, Baruk: may your employer realize the value you are to them and I wish you the best. Thanks for helping us feel not totally away from a place like home. You guys are piola.
2009 in “Review”
Well, 2009 is almost in the books and who would have told me at this same point in 2008 all that I would do in 2009! On the less glamorous side, sinus surgery and losing my job. Yep, I wouldn’t have imagined both. But, on the more exciting side of things, I certainly had even less of an idea that Iwould get to see the land of John Paul II (Poland), the mythical (at least for those of us far from it) land down under (Australia), the majestic islands in the far south Pacific (New Zealand), the mountains and beauty of the granite state (New Hampshire), and 18 years later a country I loved when I lived there (Chile). I also did get to visit more familiar places like Tampa, DC, Panama, NYC, and Denver but most of those were in my plans already.
So I sit here during Christmas Day wondering which places will I get to see in 2010 for the first time and what will I discover in more familiar places… I can’t wait to find out! Could it be the year I see the Holy Land? Or check out Iceland? Perhaps visit southern Chile and the lake district? Or finishing off “Western” Europe by seeing Portugal and Ireland?? Or, why not, go to Australia again and explore other parts of the continent? SO much to see, so little time and money!
Thanks 2009, and good riddance in way. 2010, bring it on!
Fast Forward Santiago, Really Fast
I arrived in Santiago de Chile this morning to a different airport and entrance fees than in 1991. Why charge an entrance fee of $132 is beyond me (yeah, yeah reciprocity; that’s what you call it when you don’t want to admit you are just as capitalistic as everyone else…). And why not have it a surcharge on the price of the plane ticket and make me stand in another line after landing is WAY beyond me. I thought Chile was more modern than that. Maybe it is indeed a piece of Europe in South America after all… After standing in line for about 20 minutes, at least I was able to use a credit card to pay – of course, in the line I had to listen to cheery, chatty tourists from my own country yap away when all I wanted was silence to slowly wake up (no coffee in me yet)…
It was neat to see a friend I had not seen in about 15 years who then drove me into the city proper on a highway I did not recognize. We didn’t have to go through the city streets in order to make it to the opposite end of town where I used to live the 3 months I lived in Santiago way back or where he now lives. A nice highway running by the river is a welcome change. And, boy, was there change in store! While Santiago was to me quite livable a city back in 1991 and not lacking in terms of places to go, eat, and shop, today’s Santiago is a much more modern and livable place than I remember. Fast forward indeed 18 years!
I barely recognized parts of town that used to be my stomping grounds. Yes, that is to be expected after 18 years but there was so little that actually was like I remembered to leave me floored. Parts of town like Sanhattan and El Bosque are way more developed than they used to be by the building of centers of business. Parque Arauco is similar inside but a whole new invention outside (though I recognize the McD’s I used to eat at after playing racquetball!).
Busy Av. Providencia was barely recognizable too! Storefronts and restaurants of course change even just a few years apart. A pedestrian alley here and a residential street there did look very familiar but so much has changed… The building I used to work in is there (the company is not), the building I used to live in is there (though no longer an apart-hotel). Sections of town like Bellavista or Calle Suecia are still there and still retain an air of what I remembered – whew!
All in all, the residential areas that I used to know still have that quiet air around them. The people are still interesting but not obnoxious. After eating at Eladio’s in Calle Pio Nono in Bellavista, I can say the food is: still excellent. And after a good bottle, I can say the wine: still good. I still would not mind living here after all this growth and change!
But the one constant that truly tells me I have come back is the mountains at the edge of the city. Those mountains with the snowcapped tops that used to greet me every morning when I would wake up are still there and like will be there way after I am gone. I have come “home” after all.
Back to Chile
It has been a while since I write on the blog. It has been a busy time as I have been on job search. But, that period is coming to an end and, lo and behold, my next job will start with a business trip to Chile.
Lo and behold for many reasons. One, though the job is in the States, my first day will take place visiting the Chilean operations of the company. Two, I could only have dreamt that my next job had an international angle to it but it turns out it produces that angle from the get-go. And three, I worked in Chile back in 1991 greatly enjoying the place, the lifestyle, and the people and, yet, I never got to go back (I did try). It has been a long 18 years and I finally get to fulfill the desire to go back. Will El Tallarin Gordo still serve as good a meal as it did back then (I do know it exists still thanks to the Internet)? Does Pollo al Coñac still exist in Lo Barnechea? Will I get to visit Los Dominicos again to make some purchases of Chilean arts and crafts? Does the Pizza Hut near the offices where I worked still exist? Does Coppola still serve wonderful ice cream? (notice most of these are about food!)
I do not have to wonder about re-connecting with my friends as we managed to re-connect after that odd period between 1991 and the late 90s bridging over the period when people did not have emails or laptops to the new highly connected world of today with email, Facebook, Skype, etc. I will get to see my friends and, by now, their kids. I also hope to do at least a quick drive-about the old hangouts for memories’ sake. Always healthy for me.
I do expect Santiago to be totally transformed. I was there in the aftermath of Pinochet as Chile was beginning to come of age after the close of 2 decades of Pinochet. Chile was under a construction boom at the time and I hear that boom kept on going years after I left. What was new then (e.g., the Hyatt) will be rather old by now.
I long to eat palta York. Drink a Chilean pisco sour. Eat one of those Chilean sandwiches whose main ingredient is mayonnaise, then the bread, and then a filet of pork. Oh, and Chilean wine, of course. I long to see the amazing Andes, which greeted me every morning when I woke up as my bedroom faced these magnificent mountains and I left my curtains open at night so I could have them be the first thing I saw every morning…
With these random thoughts I wrap up this entry. I will certainly write more once I am there and share my observations and reflections of a city likely transformed since I last saw it. Yet, I hope I will feel as if I were going back home after a long exile…
If anyone has recommendations of good places to eat these days from hole-in-the-walls to nicer places, please share. Though I won’t be able to spend time sightseeing per se, drop your suggestions on that too as it may help others! Vamos po’!
Random Observations during Trip to Australia and New Zealand
As I used to do when my writing was in email form to friends and family, I am going to share some of the random things I observed that caught my attention. These are not earth-shattering observations or anything that is better or worse in the places I visited than what I am used to, just things that caught my eye. I always find it interesting to hear what others find curious so I will share what I found curious… Hope no one takes offense!
- I arrive in Sydney, my first main stop in the trip. After surviving the strict customs and health things they do at the airport, I leave the secured zone and what is the first thing I see? Krispy Kreme. Don’t get me wrong, nothing wrong at ALL with a KK doughnut. But I travel halfway around the world and the first thing I see is an outlet of a doughnut chain founded in the southeastern U.S. where I live!
- Alright, I get past KK (without stopping), handle a few things (ATM, buying SIM card, etc.) and eventually get to my friends’ place (a train and a metro ride away – plus a short hike). I shower, unpack somethings, and venture out to combat jet lag. But first, let me load up on caffeine! I look around and there are coffee shops EVERYWHERE! I did not know Aussies were so into coffee. Not that it should surprise me, coffee is good but there were coffee shops not just in every corner but in between corners and multiple ones at almost every corner. Wow. That’s a serious devotion of coffee.
- So I pick one coffee shop – a hard thing to do with so many around. I ask for a coffee. I get a blank stare. I repeat myself. The young woman has an accent (eastern European, perhaps) so I assume my own accented English is too new to her ears. I repeat my request “a coffee, please”. She asks if cappuccino, latte, or flat white. I didn’t want either of the first two and the third option sounded like a cup of milk – just white, flat white, only milk. I say no I just want coffee. It occurs to me that perhaps I needed to explain that I meant coffee with nothing else. I get a blank stare. Eventually, the other clerk joins us and I repeat the last statement. I succeed in getting black coffee. I wasn’t sure what the deal was but, heck, I got my black coffee. Only to discover it was horrible. And then it dawns on me: perhaps black coffee here is not as good as say, PR, France, Italy, hence they must always add some amount of milk and/or foam. Got it. But I still didn’t know how I should have asked for black coffee… Nor did I get what a flat white was… (until later).
- It is not “how are you doing?” but “how are you going?”. At first, I wanted to say by bus or by train until I caught on.
- In a many places I went to eat, you order up at the bar and then sit down and they will bring your food. The cool thing about this is that you can pay when you order so after you are done eating, you just get up and go. In some places that felt normal but in others that were more like restaurants, I lfelt like I was bolting without paying, except I had already paid. I like this approach as it saves time since you don’t have to play that game of “I am ready for the check”, then wait to get it, then lay down $ or credit card, and wait for it to be picked up, etc.
- There are these “stores” called TAB in Australia. I wasn’t quite sure what they were and my friends explained they are sports betting places. Mind you, not glitzy or big like casinos (they have those too) but like small stores. And they can be quite a common sight in Sydney and Melbourne – one every couple of blocks? (an exaggeration on my part but it felt like that!)
- Air travel is a breeze here. Not sure if that is good or bad but for domestic flights, just show up 30 minutes beforehand. Security doesn’t even require shoes off. My belt and shoes set off most US airports’ machines. Not here. Nada.
- Driving: in some places, it felt like these were the best drivers in the world and, in others, pretty bad. No locations shall be named…
- The times I ordered salads, not once did I see regular plain lettuce. I love these countries!
- More than a couple of times, I think I was fed some mis-information by eager-to-share-knowledge guides. Like Lake Taupo being the largest lake in the southern hemisphere. It IS the largest freshwater lake in Oceania (616 km2) but that is a far cry from Lake Victoria (69,485 km2)… Another was the “world’s longest bridge” somewhere between Dunedin and Christchurch… I didn’t buy either of these claims but I wonder how many I “bought”! Now, I am sure Dunedin DOES have the world’s steepest street (it is so according to the Guinness Book of Records, I checked).
- Constant references to something being the x-most in the southern hemisphere. It felt like everything wanted to claim something. Best example: the Christchurch airport signs telling the travelers that the company that runs the airport was the 1st airport company in the southern hemisphere to become carbon neutral. I was wondering when we were landing…
- Rainfall in the north island is measured in inches but in the west part of the south island, it is measured in meters! (I am raising this not because they used different measurement systems when giving me these data points but because it points to the significant difference in rainfall amount.)
- Train restrooms were clean (as opposed to those in many other countries I have been to).
- Power outlets have a small switch immediately next to them to turn them on. If you don’t realize this, that electric razor you are trying to charge up won’t be doing anything the next morning!
- Upon arriving at a motel or B&B, the person at reception ALWAYS offered me milk. It took me a while to develop a solid theory on why (outside of “they just love drinking milk here perhaps”): since it was winter and the rooms had electric kettles, maybe it was in case I wanted tea/milk or coffee/milk?
- Many places had windows with 2 positions for closing the window. One was to entirely shut it but the other was to leave a slight crack open yet have the window locked. It was hard to see that the windows were slightly ajar. At first, I wondered why motel rooms had a draft… I figured it out on my own, thank you very much.
- Every motel or B&B I stayed at had towel warmers. I loved that since it was very cold.
- Airlines had a bit of an obsession that the safety card in the seatback pocket must always be the first thing in the pocket. Before landing, flight attendants requested this and/or would fix it for you if they noticed the items in the pocket were not in the right order…
- Public restrooms in every town’s central area! And easy to find!
Planning a trip to Australia & New Zealand
I find myself with the benefit of extra time where I can make a trip somewhere for 3 or 4 weeks and I have set my sights on Australia and New Zealand. I have friends in a couple of towns in Australia so it seemed maybe a good time to head down. Also I have always cringed at trying to visit on 2 week vacation as it is far for me and costly!
The first question is what of all that there is to see should I plan to see and will the amount of time I have be sufficient.
The second question is how that potential list of destinations matches with my friends’ schedules.
Finally, the logistical matters for the solo part of the my trip take center stage for my last question. For example, I hear NZ is best handled driving but, as I would be there on my own, I don’t feel I want to handle driving. So I have to figure out what options do I have to get to explore NZ in a different manner. I am searching through various blogs and websites as well as posting questions on twitter (@ilivetotravel) to see what may be possible. I am a fan of wines so I have been wondering if tying seeing the country while visiting its wine regions may be a good way to marry both interests. Are there operators that provide those types of tours and on a short enough itinerary to fit my overall itinerary?
I found a great site (www.tourism.org.nz) that breaks up the two main NZ islands into regions and then provides descriptions of each region with their “must see” attractions. I am finding it a great way to study where I may want to focus my limited time in NZ. A week is not enough, I am told, for NZ but my time constraints do not allow much room for more.
In terms of Australia, my visits to Sydney and Melbourne will be the anchor of the trip as I want to see my friends. However, places like Tasmania and Uluru are high on my list. I would also love to explore wine country and the Kimberlies and see places like Perth and Darwin. But there may not be enough time for it all so, in the end, I suspect my final itinerary will depend on what works out best from a scheduling and cost standpoint.
One snag on my plans was that it seems I will not be able to use my Delta/Skyteam frequent flyer miles to get there. I had enough accumulated over time for even a first class ticket and I had been saving the miles for this trip. However, Skyteam does not have many ways to get me down under and the only ways they have (Singapore Airlines and Korean Airlines) do not work for my schedule. However, I have to say that I found very cheap fares from LA for about $1100 including my travel between NZ and Australia. By the way, Qantas and Air New Zealand have fantastic features on their websites for planning multi-city itineraries. Kudos!
I hope my next entry contains more solid details as I am 3 weeks away from my potential departure!
Open to suggestions about what are “must see” destinations or ways to see NZ without driving?
About
Part of the fun of traveling, besides the travel itself, is the experiences that happen along the way. Getting hopelessly lost in eastern France, getting stuck in a public restroom in Versailles, finding a tucked away neighborhood park in touristy Venice, being tossed into a stranger’s car in the Sinai peninsula, discovering the most mouth-watering wines in Mendoza, etc. all enhance the travel experience.
I have a passion for travel and seek to share the experiences and sights with others via this blog. And I hope it also gives others ideas of places to go or dream about going to someday! Other passions include dark chocolate and red wine – for the record!
Follow me on twitter @ilivetotravel or in Facebook www.facebook.com/ilivetotravel and drop me a note about your own travels any time – I love discovering new jewels for future travel opportunities!
My friend Chris, who also loves to travel, and others contribute on occasion to this blog to share their own experiences!
