Diary for My many short trips


Off to Nepal

2009-12-17

So the snow is falling outside, I finished work yesterday, packed up today and am waiting until it is time to head off to the airport for an unusual Christmas experience. My friend, Melissa, and I are going to Nepal to trek to Everest Base Camp. We fly to Kathmandu, via Doha, spend a couple of days there and then fly to Lukla where we begin our trek. From here it is 12 days of trekking to reach Everest Base Camp. By the time we get there we'll only have 50% oxygen and be experiencing night time temperatures of possibly -30. Not good for someone who doesn't like the cold!

Christmas Day will be spent trekking, eating curry and spending the night in a tea house before continuing. Along the route we get a couple of acclimatisation days and somewhere between Christmas and New Year we (hopefully) reach Base Camp at which point we turn right back round and head back to Lukla.

Once we have finished trekking we will have approximately one week remaining in which to unwind and relax slightly more! We are planning to head down to Chitwan National Park to take elephant safaris and look for Bengal Tigers and One Horned Rhinos. Hopefully the temperature will be slightly better here and we'll be able to defrost before heading back to England on the 10th.


Kathmandu - altitude 1372m

2009-12-18 to 2009-12-20

So we arrived in Nepal after approximately 20 hours of travel on buses, tubes, planes and taxis. It seems like we may have gotten out of London at the right time as the first flakes of snow were starting to fall and delays were beginning to occur. Flew into Kathmandu where we will be spending our first couple of days before heading off trekking. Nepal is a country that has never heard of heating and only has sporadic hot showers whilst Kathmandu is a city like most capitals in that part of Asia – crazy, loud and in your face. The area we were staying in, Thamel, was like a mini Ko San Road for those of you who know Bangkok. 90% of the backpackers stay in or around that area and there are many shops, restaurants and tour agencies catering to your every need. It also has a daily 6.00pm power cut that is so reliable you could set your watch by it!! This meant dinner by candle light and we thought let’s be cultural and try the set Nepali meal, not realising that this was Dal Bhat by another name and would be our dinner for a lot of coming nights. Melissa very cunningly bought with her a pedometer so that we can measure how far we have gone each day and our short evening in Kathmandu brought us the following readings:

Pedometer Readings:
Steps: 1781
Miles: 0.84
Calories: 47.72

We had heard that Nepal is a country where everyone goes to bed early and gets up early so we thought we need to fit into this. Consequently, next day we set the alarm for 8 to give us a full day. What neither of us factored in is that we are not morning people and so we snoozed and snoozed and switched it off and eventually got up at gone ten thirty! Nepal is well known for its bakeries selling all sorts of cake-y goodness and so we hit one for breakfast buying amongst other things one of the biggest chocolate brownies I’ve ever seen – it was about the size of Melissa’s head! We knew it would last a while but little did we know it would last us a week. We went off to see some temples but this means taking your life in your hands on the streets. On the smaller roads there are no pavements and so you must walk in the same place as all the traffic. They will beep you to let you know they are there but sometimes it’s coming at you from all angles as intersections have no road markings and there is a lot of swerving. We eventually made it down to Durbar Square, meaning Palace Square, full of Hindu temples. This is one of the most important places in Kathmandu as it is the home of the Kumari. She is the Living Goddess, a young girl who is selected to be the goddess until she hits puberty when a new one is selected. In order to become the goddess she must pass a lot of tests – to being with there are 7 criteria she must meet including beauty and brains and then later she must spend the night alone in a dark place. If she cries then she cannot be the chosen one as the real Goddess would not be scared. Once chosen, the Kumari lives in a Palace near her parents but is rarely seen apart from one festival a year. She wears dark eye makeup which means that the Nepali people tend to give their small girls eye liner which makes them all look a bit scary and out of an American Beauty Pageant. Whilst in the square we learnt a lot about Krishna, Vishnu, Ganesh, Shiva and Garudas and we also saw the Gods of alcohol, justice and fertility. We saw the Hippie Temple so named because in the 60’s and 70’s nearby Freak Street was the place for people to stay. Back then they were all hippies and spent the day sat on Maju Deval temple giving it its nickname.

Pedometer Readings:
Steps: 13077
Miles: 6.18
Calories: 365.96

The following day we woke up to find everything closed. All shops. All restaurants. Hotels said closed. There were even no taxis or tuk tuks which, despite being kinda peaceful, was a bit odd. It turned out that there was a strike on. We later found out that this was called by the Maoists who didn’t like the Government and who wanted to be in power. Suddenly we had the prospect of a whole day to fill with nothing open. We decided that there must at least be temples to visit and so we decided to go and visit Swayambhunath, more affectionately known as Monkey Temple because of the creatures that inhabit the area and are always seen there. It helped that this was within walking distance of Thamel. The temple is also set on the top of a hill which gives fantastic views out over the Kathmandu Valley and on clear days over to the mountains that surround the area. We managed to kill a couple of hours up there before meandering back to our hostel. Because of the lack of taxis and tuk tuks there was barely any traffic on the roads, so we mingled with hoards of people and the occasional cow instead. Back in Thamel with nothing to do we chilled out for a bit in the hotel.

That evening and it was time to meet up with our tour group for the next 2 weeks. During the meeting our tour guide, Shankar, explained to us what we could expect whilst trekking, where we were going to stay, and what sort of temperatures could be expected. The words minus 35 caused the biggest response and panic amongst most that perhaps the clothes and gear we had wouldn’t quite be suitable. No worries, we can just go and hire what we are missing in Thamel. Great idea, except everything is shut!! We were also informed that we may not be able to get any transport to the airport tomorrow as the strike was a 3 day one so we may have to walk – we hoped he was joking – and that it would be a good idea to turn vegetarian for the duration of the trip and that it would not be a good idea to put your fingers in your mouth at any point as they wouldn’t be clean and it would make you rather ill! The group is predominantly female and it turns out that on average tours with our company are 75% female – clearly guys just don’t have the ability to get to Base Camp. That evening it was dinner together as a group in the hotel restaurant which was open for guests only then back to the rooms to pack and for an early night.

Pedometer Readings:
Steps: 13851
Miles: 6.55
Calories: 406.46


Phakding - altitude 2610m

2009-12-21

So it was a very early start (4.15am) in order to head off to the airport to catch our flight to the Lukla Tenzing-Hillary airport. Luckily the threats to make us walk came to nothing. It turned out that there was a tourist bus put on by the Government from Thamel to the airport which saved our legs slightly. Once at the airport it was through the rather dubious Nepali security. Liquids are fine, no x-rays, just a quick pat down and asked repeatedly if you had a lighter. Once in the somewhat basic departure lounge (no screens) we were told that the infamous Kathmandu fog was preventing flights. Flights to Lukla are notorious for delays. You need to have good enough weather in Kathmandu to take off and good enough weather in the mountains to enable the plane to land. There used to be a sign in the domestic terminal that read “We do not fly through clouds. In Nepal they have rocks in them”! There is also no other way into Lukla save from walking. Eventually the weather cleared and we were on the first flight out to Lukla. The plane was a 20 seater, very old contraption that looked like it had had a few botch jobs along the way. Safety briefings were nonexistent as were the oxygen masks, you couldn’t stand upright in the plane and the cockpit was open so we could see through to the pilot reading his newspaper. As we were flying over mountains it was a bit of a bumpy ride and at one point the whole left side seemed to fall away but in general the half hour journey was uneventful. What no one was quite prepared for though was the runway at Lukla. Whilst everyone knows before they leave that one end is 60m higher than the other, I don’t think anyone quite computes what that means, partly because no one tells you the runway is only about 550m long, is 20m wide and has a steep 700m drop at one end. The reasoning behind this is that because of the mountains there is not enough space to have a big enough flat runway even for small 20 seater planes. So, instead they build it at an angle – this means that when landing the planes slow down quicker and so don’t crash into the mountains and when taking off they can pick up speed a lot more quickly to get them up in the air. But not to worry, the last crash was way back in October 2008! So there we are negotiating the valleys following the mountains, coming down to land, turned a sharp left and there is the runway that we need to land on at the bottom of and head uphill. Clearly the pilots have done it many a time and we executed a perfect landing.
From the airport the trekking began although only through town past Starbucks (I kid you not – we were all so disappointed) to our breakfast stop. The first day is only a short day with 3 hours trekking. This is mainly to ensure you get to Phakding before nightfall even if your plane gets delayed due to the weather. The trek was mostly downhill and we were greeted by stunning views of the mountains, valley and the Dudh Kosi river below. The temperature in the morning was freezing but once we got going and the sun came out we warmed up – trekking in t-shirts. We were also totally alone with just the occasional person or yak train to pass us by. There are no roads in the mountains – the only way to get anywhere is to walk between villages carrying your load with you on your head. And some of these loads were so impressive – we saw people with chairs on their heads or metal pipes. It put us to shame as we had porters carrying all our gear. By lunchtime we had arrived at our stop for the night, so after a spot of lunch (which took an hour to arrive – something we got used to. In fact, breakfast had to be pre ordered the night before so that it would be ready in time), we had the afternoon off. I also have gained myself a new nickname of +. The guides keep a note of our food orders and as Melissa and I are on the same bill they have labelled the bill Melissa +. The accommodation was a tea house which was standard for that part of the Himalayas. They have a communal area with a stove where meals are eaten, rooms are basic with beds and blankets, but no heating or double glazing so can get pretty cold. Toilets are quite often outside, occasionally are Western rather than Asian squat, but at that time of year when it gets well below freezing at night are frozen and either don’t flush or are a health hazard as you precariously try and balance yourself without slipping on the ice. Showers as we know them are non-existent and if you wanted one you a) have to pay and b) are provided with a bucket of hot water and told to carry on. Basically it was about to be 2 weeks without showering – guess that’s why God gave us baby wipes!! Phakding was only a very small place and so there was not a lot to do there so we mostly just chilled out, read books and played cards. After dinner round the stove, it was an early night – another feature of the trip.

Pedometer Readings:
Steps: 13988
Miles: 6.61
Calories: 381.36


Namche Bazaar - altitude 3440m

2009-12-22

So after a surprisingly warm first night in a tea house it was up for breakfast, back around the stove, and the first of many bowls of porridge. Then we set off hiking – the first 3 hours were going to be Nepali Flat i.e. little bit of up, little bit of down, little bit of flat. During this section of the trek we crossed over 6 high suspension bridges – whilst there’s no way you can fall off them they do feel a bit unnerving when there’s so many of you bouncing the bridge up and down. Lunch was followed by another hour of Nepali flat which was then followed by 2 hours steep uphill. And they mean steep. On top of that there were lots of steps which makes it feel worse. We had regular breaks (in fact, at that altitude we were having drinks breaks every 30 minutes even on flat sections) and the views below us were amazing. Regularly we passed prayer flags blowing in the wind that really helped make the picture perfect photo op. Eventually we were rewarded with a glimpse of what we were all waiting for – the peak of Everest. We could also make out Lhotse to the side of it. Once we reached the top we reached the town of Namche Bazaar. This is the biggest town along the trek and the last place in which to buy gear. As it’s also the first place we reach over 3000m it is recommended to spend time acclimatising. Dinner was a delicious Dal Bhat and out here they come all you can eat so you get topped up repeatedly.

Pedometer Readings:
Steps: 22926
Miles: 10.84
Calories: 699.25


Namche Bazaar - altitude 3440m

2009-12-23

The next day was our acclimatisation/rest day. Do not expect any rest. The best thing to do is to hike up to a higher point, spend a bit of time there and then head back down. So after our lay in until 8.00 – woohoo – it was back on with the walking boots and back up the hills! Our first stop, a short 15-20 min walk later, was an army base but that also doubled up as a viewpoint. From here we had amazing views over to Everest, Nuptse, Lhotse and Ama Dablam – widely regarded as the most beautiful of the mountains in that part of the Himalayas. Whilst here we also went to a museum talking about the people who live in the mountains, how they survive and what impact us trekkers have upon them.

From the viewpoint it was a further 250m climb up to an airstrip. Shankar told us this was the highest airstrip in the world. Given that we weren’t even above 4000m at this point I’m not entirely sure I believed him. Having been to Bolivia where there are cities significantly higher I reckon there must be airstrips there as well. Anyway, this airport is used for flights bringing supplies in and out of Kathmandu and it was clearly very basic. There was no control tower – in fact Air Traffic Control seemed to consist of one man with no technical gear. When he could see a heli-plane (who knows what the technical term was – Melissa reckoned it looked a bit like a Chinook) trying to land he just blew a whistle to clear the runway of everyone milling around on it. The highlight, however, had to be whilst they were loading up the heli-plane before it left. There was another plane in the area obviously expecting to land and as it came in the Air Traffic Control man went off running down the runway frantically waving his arms around in a don’t do it motion. The plane took the hint and circled round the valley a couple of times until the heli-plane had left and then it came back in to land.

In the afternoon, as this was our last opportunity we went off shopping for those last minute bits and pieces. Most of us were after down jackets to keep us warm in the evenings and after a bit of bartering en masse we came away looking like the Michelin man! It was also a good time, though by no means the last time, to stock up on chocolate and crisps for the journey. A handful of Mars Bars were bought to boost morale on long days. 

Pedometer Readings:
Steps: 10157
Miles: 4.8
Calories: 279.89


Tengboche - altitude 3810m

2009-12-24

So it was an interesting night’s sleep – I got woken up by Melissa sleep talking. I wish she had remembered her dream as I’d love to know how “Dead, dead” could be almost immediately followed by “It is a cool jacket, it IS a cool jacket”! After breakfast it was goodbye to Namche as we set off for Tengboche. The 3 hours before lunch were Nepali flat following the edge of the valley around the mountains. Along the route we stopped at a monument to the Sherpas and in particular Tenzing and his family. The views all the way along were truly amazing – fantastic views of Everest, Lhotse and Nuptse. The final part before lunch was downhill in order to cross the river. Once across we had a lunch break complete with a pet yak – very cute – then it was a solid 500m climb up away from the river and through a forest in order to reach Tengboche. It was about this point when we all started asking why they couldn’t just build the bridges a bit higher up and then we wouldn’t have to go so far down and back up the other side in order to cross them! This was another solid 2 hours and as we approached the end the first flakes of snow started to fall. Being Christmas Eve hopes were suddenly high that we may yet get a white Christmas. Bizarrely, every flake of snow we saw was perfectly formed – just like the ones you make at school by cutting random bits out of a piece of folded up paper.

Tengboche was a strange place. When we arrived we saw no one – neither locals nor trekkers and the place looked a bit like a ghost town. There appeared to not be more than about 10 buildings but there was a huge monastery. This is one of the most important monasteries on the whole of Nepal and they let people in during prayers to watch. So we went and sat in the monastery and watched the monks chant and pray. Now there is no heating in here either but the monks had hot drinks and blankets. We had no shoes (they had to be left outside) and no extra warmth so we were freezing cold and consequently very uncomfortable and stuck there for an hour as we figured it would probably be rude to leave halfway through. When we eventually got out we all legged it back to the tea house to pull up a chair next to the stove. Dinner gave us our first taste of a dish which apparently helps with altitude – garlic soup. Oh yes, a whole bowl full of garlic. So now, not only were we not showering but we were eating garlic soup. We were going to stink! I’m also not sure it does do anything for altitude, maybe it’s just psychological like being told when going on primary school coach trips to sit on a sheet of newspaper to avoid being travel sick but who knows. As neither Melissa or I wanted a full bowl we decided to share one and we also had Sherpa stew. This seemed to contain left overs from various other meals so we has all sorts of veg and potatoes in a broth like sauce. It could almost have been a big bowl of vegetarian roast dinner complete with gravy! 

Pedometer Readings:
Steps: 21594
Miles: 10.21
Calories: 667.97


Dingboche - altitude 4410m

2009-12-25

It was such a cold night’s sleep – well below zero in the room – and we didn’t get blankets. When we looked out of the window there was a thin layer of snow on the ground. Given that today was Christmas Day we came to the only possible conclusion that the snow must have fallen in the early hours of that morning which therefore meant we’d had a white Christmas. The trekking that day began with a gentle downhill section down to the river. We walked past many frozen rivers and waterfalls which were a very impressive sight. Once we crossed the river it was more Nepali flat before a break for lunch. After lunch it was up hill but despite gaining around 600m in altitude it was not a very steep and seemed an easy afternoon. In fact, we were all quite surprised when we arrived in Dingboche as it had been a relatively easy day. We got in quite early so had most of the afternoon off to chill out and enjoy the Christmas decorations that were being put up in the tea house. We also thought that as it was Christmas we’d treat ourselves to something that wasn’t rice, lentils, noodles or potatoes. I settled on veg cheese pizza which seemed to have a slightly curry base which was unusual. Spent the evening playing lots of card games and generally letting our hair down and even treated ourselves to a late night – nearly 9.30pm!

Pedometer Readings:
Steps: 19043
Miles: 9
Calories: 659.91


Dingboche - altitude 4410m

2009-12-26

Decided to treat ourselves to a breakfast that wasn’t porridge this morning so went for beans and egg on toast. Clearly not Heinz beans as they tasted like someone had added ketchup to the sauce so it was a bit sickly but still a nice change. Today was another acclimatisation day and the plan was to climb Nangkar Tshang, more commonly known amongst our group as Bitch Hill. The top of the hill is 5100m which is the height we were due to reach in 2 nights time and so if we made it, would be good practice. It was a very steep hill and so it was very hard work. Shankar had told us that we could go halfway and then turn back if we wanted, but in a case of mind over body, despite aching like hell, we all continued for 3 hours all the way to the top. The views were amazing – we could see all the glaciers and mountains for miles and miles. We could also see the path we were going to take the next day. Coming back down we ended up absolutely covered in dust – nice when there’s no showering! We had the afternoon off so spent more time chilling out and playing cards. That evening was back on the sensible food – Dal Bhat and garlic soup. There were no pedometer readings today as Melissa forgot to take it with her.


Lobuche - altitude 4910m

2009-12-27

Had a brilliant night’s sleep which was refreshing. We’ve all taken to filling a water bottle with hot water in the evening and using it as a hot water bottle overnight so we are not so cold anymore. It was back on the porridge for breakfast then we set off for Lobuche – our final night’s stop before reaching Base Camp. The first half hour was back up the hill we climbed yesterday but then we went back down the other side for a couple of hours of Nepali flat. After a short break it was back on the steep uphill section for 45 mins. At the top of the hill there is a memorial to those who have died on Everest. One of these is for a Sherpa who spent 21 hours at the summit purely so he could set a record (most people don’t spend much more than 5 or 10 mins due to the lack of oxygen). He succeeded in getting the record but died on his way back down. From the memorial it was another hour of Nepali flat alongside a frozen river before arriving in Lobuche. We had lunch here then went out to climb a nearby hill. From the top of the hill we could see the peak of Kala Patthar, the Khumbu Glacier and Base Camp itself. Due to an early start the next day we had an early night.

Pedometer Readings:
Step: 20395
Miles: 9.64
Calories: 592.35


Gorak Shep - altitude 5140m

2009-12-28

It was a 6.00am breakfast in order for what was to be a very long day. It was a 2 hour walk to Gorak Shep the closest town to Base Camp. Here we had an early lunch then we set off for the point we had all come to make – Everest Base Camp. From Gorak Shep it was approx. 2 and a half hours of Nepali flat but which gained us a 200m rise in altitude. As we approached we were above Base Camp and so it was downhill followed by scrambling over large rocks. Eventually we all made it to Base Camp – the whole group made it which was quite an achievement as it meant no one had been struck down severely by altitude sickness or had gotten injured. In most groups there’s at least one person who either has to turn back or has to stop and not make it so we were all deservedly proud. Base Camp itself has little there. We were at the old Base Camp rather than the new one and so even if we had been there in peak season there wouldn’t have been much to see. In days gone by if you were there at the right time you would see tents of those heading off/back. One thing you will never see from Base Camp however, is Everest. The peak is not visible. However, you do get amazing views of the Khumbu Glacier and surrounding mountains. The camp also has a monument of prayer flags that someone has very helpfully put a sign on complete with altitude so it’s the perfect spot to have a photo. Base Camp is at 5364m and only has about 50% oxygen and so we were all knackered and the walk back, despite being mainly downhill, was tough going. My legs felt like they were going to give way at any time. Back at the tea house in Gorak Shep and it was a well earned sit down. In the evening and I went out to watch sunset. From the tea house we could see Everest, Lhotse and Nuptse and so the sunset left less and less of the mountains illuminated until just the peak of Everest was left, then that was gone too. It was pretty amazing.

Unfortunately, the pedometer is no more. Melissa went to the toilet, shall we say al fresco, and knocked it off into a pile of someone’s poo and so did not fancy retrieving it. No more readings sadly and right before we made the end but such as life.


Pheriche - altitude 4240m

2009-12-29

By this stage we were all knackered and we now knew we were on the journey home which meant there was no end goal. Thankfully, the way back is much quicker partly because we are going downhill and partly because we don’t need to acclimatise. In fact, to get to this stage had taken us 8 days but to get back to Lukla would take just 4. It could still have been done much quicker however – every couple of years there is a race from Base Camp to Namche (our stop tomorrow night) and the winners do it in just 4 hours. So setting off we had 2 hours to Lobuche where we stopped for about an hour so that one of our group could hire a horse. Unfortunately she had hurt her knee climbing up and she was struggling to walk downhill without being in excruciating pain so she had to hire some 4 legged help! From here it was another one hour of Nepali flat to the memorials followed by a steep downhill section – not sure how much fun that would have been on a horse – then another one hour of Nepali flat. At this point we arrived into Pheriche so we had lunch in the tea house then had the afternoon off. Melissa and I took a short walk (because we felt we hadn’t done enough of that recently) and found a rock to sit on, enjoy the afternoon sunshine and relax. We felt like we were in the TV ad where people are straining to enjoy the last few moments of sunshine by going higher and higher but eventually the sun left us, at which point it gets cold very quick, so we went back to the tea house and the comfort of the warm stove.


Namche Bazaar - altitude 3440m

2009-12-30

We had a very long day ahead of us in order to get all the way back to Namche Bazaar. This was a change to the advertised itinerary but it meant that we could have short days allowing us to enjoy New Years Eve a bit more. Therefore, we left before the sun had gotten over the mountain which meant it was freezing cold. We all had layers and layers on but I really thought my fingers were going to drop off at one point they were so cold. Eventually the sun came over the top of the mountains and we started to defrost. After beginning with Nepali flat we then had an uphill section into Tengboche. Here we were supposed to be stopping for a lunch break but the bakery was closed and so we had to continue on for another hour on a very steep downhill section before we could get lunch. It’s amazing how quickly we all forget things – despite having to climb that very hill just a few days before none of us could really remember it that clearly and we were all so surprised that we’d done it as it seemed to go on forever and at quite an angle. The final 3 hours trekking that day was Nepali flat into Namche back along the edge of the valley with more fantastic views of the mountains.

Once we arrived in Namche we got a surprise. For the first time that trip we were to get rooms with attached bathrooms. It’s amazing how excited we all got and then how crushed we became when they told us that there was no hot water and if we wanted a shower we still had to pay for it and it would come as a bowl full of water. However, it was nice to not have to go outside on the slippery surfaces just to go to the toilet. By this point we were picking dinner items based on curiosity or what we liked rather than what would be good for trekking and so Melissa and I decided to treat ourselves to fries, potato momo’s and pasta with tomato sauce and yak cheese. (We later found out that technically you can’t get yak cheese as the yak is male and the female nak produces the cheese but nak cheese just doesn’t have the same ring to it!). Momo’s are a rather delicious Tibetan food that is a bit like a filled dumpling and can be deep fried or steamed. 

Following dinner 4 of us girls and the 2 guides decided to hit the local pool bar for a spot of relaxation. Now our pool playing skills aren’t great but when you are the only people in the bar it doesn’t really matter. One local guy stuck his head round the door, saw us and promptly left which didn’t really bother us. However, half an hour later he came back with “all of Namche’s eligible bachelors”. Er, okay. Suddenly we have a big crowd watching us play pool rather badly. So at the end of our game we thought let’s quietly retire away from the pool table but suddenly we are being asked if we wanted to play doubles with the locals. “Didn’t you notice it just took us 40 minutes to complete a game?” we ask. Totally ignoring us we get the response “whose partner do you want to be – you choose”. So, we all got to play pool with the locals and I’m pleased to say I did sink the winning shots in my match after lulling them into a false sense of security that I was really bad at the beginning of the match – or something like that! Once we finally got away from them we dug out a few Christmas CD’s we found behind the bar to put on and had a bit of a dance. Midway through the evening it started to snow and complete with the Christmas Tree in the bar it really felt Christmassy albeit a few days late! All in all, it was a very good but random night that ended at the incredibly late hour of 10.30 – woohoo, party on!


Phakding - altitude 2610m

2009-12-31

Despite the festivities of the night before we decided to have an early start. Not because we were heading off trekking early but because the 4 of us had decided to visit a bakery before breakfast. As I mentioned bakeries in Nepal are renowned for their cakes and pastries and the ones in Namche are supposed to be the best for miles – obviously the fact that there is very limited civilisation for miles also helps! So anyway, the 4 of us went to a little bakery in town, dodging the pool players from last night, and shared 4 delightful pastries and hot chocolates. Although it had stopped snowing it had clearly snowed very heavily overnight and there was a good 20cm of snow on the ground so walking round town became something of a trudge. After our bakery breakfast it was back to the tea house for second breakfast. Tea houses have an arrangement whereby if you eat meals there then the bed is free, if you don’t eat meals you have to pay around NR2000 a night (£20) so although we’d eaten dinner we thought we should probably have breakfast as well but we had planned this all straight after dinner (when breakfast orders are traditionally taken) and so had ordered the cheapest items.

Upon leaving Namche we had to go steep downhill for what was supposed to be an hour or so but due to the snow it took around 3 hours. Now what is it about snow that turns even the most grown up, mature person into a child again? There were snowball fights left, right and centre, sometimes just amongst ourselves, sometimes involving the locals – I think you get extra points for hitting a tourist – and everyone was bashing the trees to make the snow fall off the branches just as others were walking underneath. Was good fun and only a couple of times did anyone end up on their arse on the ground. Once we got to the bottom we stopped for lunch then it was a further couple of hours into Phakding – so much for a short 3 hour day! Once we arrived in Phakding we went back to the tea house we spent our first night in and as it was New Years Eve we decided to let our hair down again – last night was merely the warm up. A couple of beers with dinner did the trick and with no one paying any attention to their diet anymore it was fried goodness all round – chips, momo’s, spring rolls etc. I have also managed to get my nickname changed from +. The guides have never quite been able to pronounce Melissa’s name correctly and what started out along the lines of Malissia, then became Malaysha, which was then noted as sounding like Malaysia and so Melissa got herself a new nickname. Suddenly I became Thailand, as it goes with Melissa, and I got rid of +. Later that evening the party got going and we were all playing silly games like charades – always fun in a multi-lingual setting – and singing and dancing. Our porters joined us as did other porters and trekkers from other tea houses as we were clearly the place to be in Phakding! I would like to think that by 2.00am when we finally called it a night we had perfected Nepali dancing and even knew when to dance and when not to. According to our assistant guide Rabin, women can only dance when the girl is singing, if the guy is singing then we must just worship the man – he my just have been making that up though!!


Lukla - altitude 2860m

2010-01-01

So, this was our final day of trekking and was just going to be 3 hours but mainly uphill. We had to gain 300m in elevation. Most of the snow was gone by this point so we didn’t get delayed too much. This meant we were in by lunchtime giving us the afternoon to watch planes take off down the wonky runway and to avoid Starbucks although a couple of people did go in just to see if it was genuine or a really good fake – it was real. It also meant we could head off and go buy Pringles as a treat for making it. The afternoon was spent in the bar of our tea house as it was doing Happy Hour with 241 cocktails! Dinner that evening gave us a chance to say thanks and goodbye to our porters who we were only going to see again one more time when they took our bags to the airport in the morning. We also had our first meat for a fortnight as we had yak steak. Apparently yaks are not killed for meat they are only eaten when they have “fallen off the cliff”. I reckon that if people are hungry yaks somehow “fall” off the cliff carelessly! After dinner is was back to the bar for last night drinks.


Kathmandu - altitude 1372m

2010-01-02 to 2010-01-03

Having left Melissa in the bar late last night with the girls I spent the first 20 mins after waking up finding out exactly what I’d missed. The main part was that Melissa had her camera stolen which had resulted in the police being called out and her not getting to bed until gone 5.00am – therefore the 6.30am alarm call wasn’t appreciated. It then wasn’t great news to hear that the flight was going to be delayed as the Kathmandu fog was affecting visibility. Luckily, there were plenty of phone calls going on between Kathmandu and the Lukla tea house which meant that we weren’t going to have to wait at the airport as we would be told as soon as the first plane finally left. Finally, at 11, that call came and so we walked up to the airport where this time security was much more hassle. We were split into male and female but because there were 5 planes coming in at the same time (despite only being 4 bays for the planes to unload) there were so many people trying to get through and our hand luggage got fully searched and my pack of aspirin caused problems as the security agent was convinced they were cigarettes. Ours was the 5th plane in but because of the lack of space it had to wait at the end of the runway and unload and reload there. The plane had come from Kathmandu full of Japanese people who all looked so confused when they stepped out of the plane like they had no idea where they were or what they were doing there. They also looked somewhat unprepared for trekking so it may have been an interesting couple of weeks for them. Once they finally got off the plane – the confusion meant it took them such a long time – we all piled on ready for takeoff. Because of the gradient of the runway the take off felt a bit like being on a rollercoaster – the downhill was so fast followed by a sharp uphill. The flight seemed quite bumpy – more so than the way out – and just outside of Kathmandu we had to circle round as the other 4 planes that had left were due in before us. However, unlike normal flights that circle in a large area these little planes circle in the smallest possible space which means that you are constantly at an angle and after not too long it starts to feel a bit queasy. Eventually though we got to land past, for some reason we couldn’t fathom, a UN helicopter.

The strike was over and so we got transport back into Thamel and back to our hotel. Here we were all anxiously awaiting hot showers. However, since we figured we couldn’t all have hot ones at the same time a group of us went off for lunch. When we got back we had our hot showers only to find that they were freezing cold – not fun at all. We were so owed a hot shower. That evening, as it was our final night together, we went out for a group dinner to a restaurant called Rum Doodle – named after the book by W Bowman. This is quite a famous restaurant as all Everest parties eat there either those going to Base Camp or those actually summiting. In fact, famous summiteers such as Edmund Hillary and Rob Hall have both eaten there. For the tour groups that come in the owners give you giant yeti feet to graffiti on and then they pin them to the wall for everyone to see. We could see some yellowing feet back to 1990 and I reckon there would have been far older ones there as well, but they have run out of space and so the new ones have to go on top of the old ones. In fact, Hillary is supposed to have completed one that is on the wall somewhere. As this was our final night it was goodbye to both Rabin and Shankar – 2 excellent guides despite their repeated cheating at cards.

The next day and we had to go find the tourist police so that Melissa could report her camera stolen – the police in Lukla having advised her to do it here as it was a bigger city. The police were an odd bunch – they absolutely grilled Melissa and clearly didn’t believe her. However, we had to go and take a copy of her passport and visa for their records and when we returned they were suddenly much friendlier and chatty with one guy even asking Melissa if she could help him find a girlfriend as he could never meet anyone to settle down with! Back in Thamel and we went shopping for new, clean clothes for the coming week as nowhere was doing short length laundry due to power cuts and we had just booked ourselves a trip down to Chitwan for the next four days.


Chitwan - Day 1

2010-01-04

We had decided we wanted to spend a large part of the remainder of our time in Chitwan National Park, down near the Indian border. Being at low level we had heard that this would be nice and warm – in the mid twenties. We also wanted to go and see Bengal Tigers and One Horned Rhinos and ride an elephant. We had booked ourselves a 4 day, 3 night package that included an elephant safari, jeep safari, walking safari as well as bird watching and trips to an elephant sanctuary. In order to get there we had to take a 5-7 hour bus journey to a small town called Sauraha on the edge of the park. We caught the tourist bus at 7.00am (there really is no such thing as a lay-in in this country) and then got caught up in some serious traffic as we went downhill. The one advantage of this was that it meant that we weren’t flying round tight corners, on blind bends with narrow roads and steep drops over the side. Large parts of the journey were incredibly bumpy and we were being thrown about left, right and centre, hitting our knees on the chair in front and at times almost hitting the ceiling. The funny part about all this was that Melissa managed to sleep her way through it, much to the amusement of some of the other people on board.

Once we got to Sauraha we had lunch – a delightful mushroom soup (great for 2 mushroom haters) – and a burger of some description – we think veggie but it was hard to tell! The burgers come slightly different to home as it comes between 2 slices of thin bread rather than a in a bun, served with chips and ketchup in a mouldy bottle! After lunch we went on a short walk around the local village which is a Tharu community. The Tharu used to live in the park and have a natural resistance to malaria. However, after the Government did a big anti-malarial programme in the 60’s and eradicated malaria, others moved in and the local Tharu’s got moved on, communities got smaller and eventually there were only a couple of pockets of Tharu’s left. This village now try and retain some of their traditional ways and culture for tourists to see and learn about. The houses were made of mud and sticks and there was very little transport. Transportation was generally by animal or on a bicycle. We also walked over to see the nearby elephants. All behind them fires were being burnt. This was to keep them warm in the cold evenings. It was about this point that we realised that temperatures of mid twenties really wasn’t going to happen. Clearly whoever had said that had lied – damn you Lonely Planet. This meant we were about to go another few days without a shower as the ones in the lodge were solar powered. Whilst it was warmer than some of what we experienced at Everest it really wasn’t going to be warm enough to get out our summer tops, but at least we had suitable clothing should it get really cold!. We then went down to the river to watch sunset. The river is the only dividing line between the village and the national park, contains a few crocs and on occasion has been known to have wild animals from the park cross it. The Army patrol the banks though – partly to check park passes but partly to ensure there are no wayward animals in town. It was far too cloudy so sunset was a no go and we ended up heading back to the guest house. Dinner was buffet style with all the other guests and was really nice – rice, noodles, potatoes, cabbage, sweet and sour meat (possibly chicken but hard to tell, too many bones), plus cucumber and tomato. It was all you can eat so we had second and thirds. After dinner, we had the expected power cut, so it’s not just Kathmandu but it was 2 hours later which meant that everything had to be done by head torch. Comfortingly, the power cut happened every night so it was just what we were expecting.


Chitwan - Day 2

2010-01-05

Up at 6.30am for another great meal – omelette, potato, baked beans (not Heinz) and toast with jelly – literally. The first activity that day was to take a dug out canoe down the Rapti River. The canoe only just stayed afloat with the water level barely an inch from the top. We were sat on the smallest chairs, the size of the ones you get at a nursery school, and there was nowhere to put your legs. Comfy! We spent about 40 mins in the canoe during which time we saw Kingfishers, Herons and Lovebirds – these are birds that stay with the same partner their entire lives and when one of them dies the other usually dies very soon afterwards. At the end of the boat ride we got off in the National Park and started our walking safari. First of all, the rules of walking the park and what to do if we see wild animals. There are 3 animals to consider – tiger, rhino and sloth bear. If you see a rhino then:

1. Climb up a tree to a height of more than 2m so the rhino can’t reach
2. Hide behind a tree – rhino eyesight is very bad
3. Run in a zig zag motion – this confuses the rhino
4. Drop an item e.g. a hat on the ground. Their sense of smell is very good so they will find the item and fight with it. 

If you see a sloth bear then the guides will beat it back with their sticks. There was no mention of what to do if we saw a tiger! The walking started very close to the riverbank and slowly wound it’s inside the park then back to the river further downstream. We saw plenty of flora and fauna including plants that could be used in medicine and “forest killer” – a parasite that is taking over the jungle, swamping everything in its way and killing everything it. In fact, the park authorities have been taking to experts in the UK to try and find a way to get rid of it as everything they have tried so far, including burning it, has not worked. During the walk we saw tiger claw prints on a tree and a red cotton bug beetle. We went and sat in a lookout for a while and when we came down the guides found a jungle chilli that monkey eat. We got to taste it and it wasn’t that great – had a bit of a kick to it. At no point did we see any animals during the walk and we couldn’t decide if that was a good thing or a bad thing.

We went back for lunch which included the most delicious apple fritters we’d ever tasted. After lunch we set off on our jeep safari – whilst it was slightly uncomfortable it was far better than the bus! The jeep had to stick to dedicated pathways and in the beginning we saw no animals apart from deer and monkeys. At one point we came to an inland lake and here we saw some marsh muggers. Halfway through the safari we arrived at Kasari where there are breeding facilities for Gharials and a caged Bengal tiger. The cage was made of single wooden planks spaced about an inch or 2 apart. This meant that you could get some excellent photos if you put your lens in the gap. Word of advice though – don’t bend down and eyeball a tiger for too long as eventually it will pounce at you as Melissa found out. Luckily the cage protected her! The gharials look like something out of Ice Age 2 because of their really long noses. On the way back we saw some Egrets and a few more Marsh Muggers.

After a dal bhat dinner – we thought we’d seen the last of these – we went off to see the Tharu cultural programme. This was in the village hall and was compeered by a man with the weirdest English accent – we couldn’t quite figure out where he’d picked it up from. The programme consisted of stick dances which were very impressive, a peacock dance which was not bad and a cross dressing dance which was just odd.


Chitwan - Day 3

2010-01-06

We finally got a lay in today – until 7.00!! Still got jelly as part of breakfast – it’s actually not too bad once you are used to it. Then we were off on our elephant safari. We were seated in a wooden basket on the elephant back with 2 others and for a while it was almost more uncomfortable than the bus but then the mahout got Melissa to move across for balance and suddenly I had a whole load more room to sit in. For a while we again only saw deer despite going through really thick undergrowth, being hit by branches. Suddenly all the other mahouts started shouting and our elephant went from a slow plod to a slightly faster plod and we came out into a clearing where we saw 2 rhinos. We followed them for a bit through some more thick undergrowth and out into another clearing but then our time was up and we had to head back. We then headed down to the river to see elephant bathing time which involved them getting a good scrub, a good soaking and them soaking a few tourists for good measure. The sun has finally come out and whilst it was not mid twenties we finally managed to get into t-shirts.

We went back for lunch which was the same as the first day – pah, mushroom soup – then we had a couple of hours spare. Then it was on a bike, along incredibly bumpy non paved roads which took a lot of concentration not to fall off, along to the elephant breeding centre. The centre is home to the first pair of elephant twins ever born in Nepal. Sadly, they were chained up and the food was put so far away from them that they could only just reach it. On the bike ride back we saw sunset at various points but by the time we got to the river which is the best spot we had missed it. That evening it was dal bhat for dinner again followed, by special request from us, by apple fritters – they were just as good as we remembered!!


Kathmandu

2010-01-07 to 2010-01-10

Next day and it was back to dodgy weather as we were greeted by some serious dew and mist. That morning we went off bird watching which we didn’t think would be very successful because of the weather. However, in the hour we were out we did manage to see bushchat, shrike, jungle babbler, oriole, minor and a kingfisher with a fish in its mouth. Back at the lodge and it was time to head back to the bus station to head back to Kathmandu. It meant that we had to 11 people in the jeep to the bus station. The jeep was only fitted out for about 8, but we crammed 8 in the back, 2 in the front and one guy hanging off the side as we sped along the road. Only in Asia!! The bus journey was fairly uneventful – 7 and a half hours – not too bouncy and we only got stuck in one traffic jam but that did result in the bus driver turning off the engine for quite a prolonged period. Back in Kathmandu, it was as we left it complete with 6.00 blackout and crazy drivers.

Next day we thought we might finally manage a hot shower – Melissa went in first and tells me yes, we have hot water. But, by the time I got in there she had used up all the hot water and so I had another cold shower. With just 2 days left we thought it was time to head out into the Kathmandu valley and see the sights. Today’s stop was Patan, where there was another Durbar Square. This was the old town of Nepal and was again full of temples and from a rooftop cafe overlooking the square it was a great view. In the afternoon we spent some time shopping in Thamel before deciding to spend the evening being a little bit cultural. We went to a Newari restaurant that served traditional food and put on an entertainment show with traditional dancing. Starter was popcorn, quite a popular starter over here, potatoes and soup. Main course was basically dal bhat but quite a fancy one, then desert was a really delicious yoghurt. Since it was a set menu we decided to chance it and ask for more popcorn and desert and we got exactly that but in bigger supply. The dancing was a bit odd but it was nice to actually do something a little bit cultural.

On our final full day we still didn’t get a lay in but we did get breakfast on the 12th floor of a restaurant with views out over the whole of Thamel. I did however get a hot shower which was probably the best shower I’ve ever had! We then finished off our shopping before treating ourselves to an ayurvedic massage. A full 90 mins for just £10, not a bad bit of bartering when the advertised price was £12 for one hour. In the afternoon, we went out to Pashupatinath but it would have cost us far too much to get in especially when we wouldn’t have been allowed in to many of the temples as they are not open to non Hindus. Instead, we walked from here to Bouddha (Bodhnath) which was a Tibetan stupa. We got there just before sunset which was great because it was the time when the whole community comes out and starts walking around the stupa. It was a cross between a religious and a social event. Talking to the taxi driver on the way back and we found out that there was due to be another strike tomorrow which would mean problems getting to the airport.

Turns out that the Government bus was running again so we made it to the airport 90 mins before our flight. Or so we thought. Turns out we both had the time wrong for the flight and it was actually 30 mins earlier than we thought. We still had plenty of time despite everyone trying telling us to hurry and despite not being able to find an English language immigration form for departures. When we did leave we got some amazing views of the mountains. When we arrived we were on the wrong side of the plane but upon leaving we were the only people in the back row and the cabin crew let us switch sides as we saw fit even with the seatbelt sign on. We had just 40 mins to make the change in Doha which we made fairly comfortably and before we realised it we were back landing at Heathrow and the holiday was over.


Summary

2010-01-11

On our bus journey back from Chitwan, Melissa and I played hangman with a Nepalese theme and I thought the words were quite apt in summarising this trip:

To give you a few of my favourite stats about this trip:


Raring to go

2010-09-15

So 9 months after returning from Nepal and it's time to head off again, this time to China. I am flying out to Hong Kong, a place I absolutely loved the first time I was there. From there it is over the border into mainland China and firstly into the Guillin province and the town of Yangshuo. From there I head to Yichang to catch a three day boat trip along the Yangtze, past the Three Gorges Dam. At the end of the boat trip it's over to Chengdu, home of the Giant Panda. I'm hoping to cuddle one the same way I got to cuddle a koala in Australia but I'm aware that it's probably not going to happen. Next stop is Xian and the Terracotta Warriors before my final stop in Beijing and a walk along The Great Wall.

I've basically done no packing of any sort so far. Three nights before I flew I was at the football, two nights before and I was playing netball, meaning that the only packing I do will be done the night before I leave. I only hope I don't suddenly realise I need to buy anything else it will be a mad dash at the airport. I did manage to pop out at lunch today and get some money so at least that's one less thing to worry about.

I'm flying out via Helsinki (plus Stockholm on the way out) which may seem a little odd but when it's over £150 cheaper than the next cheapest flight it makes sense. I am arriving back at Heathrow on the 6th at 7.00pm so when I return to work at 9.00am the next day I'm fairly certain I'm going to need a holiday!!


Hong Kong

2010-09-17 to 2010-09-19

So, it was off to Heathrow in order to catch the first of my 3 flights to get from London to Hong Kong and I almost lost my bag before I started. The BA check in lady asked me where my final destination was and since I'd checked in for all 3 flights via the BA website (only the first was BA, the other 2 were Finnair) I figured that HK would be my final destination. After much umming and ahhing and questions she finally realised that I wasn't flying direct and therefore not to check my bags right through. She then chastised me for saying HK was my final destination then asked me how far I would like my bags checked. I asked if I could get them through to HK and she said oh course, no problem! And BA wonder why people are switching to other airlines. Anyway, after changing at Stockholm and Helsinki I eventually made it through to HK convinced my bags would be lost somewhere along the line (they were last time I checked bags on BA), but luckily they made it all the way through and I was free to begin my holiday.

The weather in HK was a bit of a shock. Having left a cold London, via an even colder Stockholm and Helsinki, HK was hot and very, VERY humid. It is rainy season and typhoons were expected. Made my way over to my hostel on Hong Kong Island and after a quick change of clothes I went out to explore the city I loved so much the first time I was here. I was somewhat worried that I wouldn't like HK as much the second time around but fortunately I still enjoyed it. Having done most of the big tourist sights the first time around I decided to chill out for the day and a half that I was there and just pick those ones that I enjoyed the most. This meant that I spent the first afternoon wandering around, down to the harbour, caught the Star Ferry across to Kowloon where I sat at the harbour watching the boats and waiting for the Sound and Light show. Yes, it's cheesy, but you can't go to HK and not go (every time you visit HK apparently).

The next day I decided to hit the Peak since the weather wasn't too bad. There was a race going on which seemed to be a corporate challenge for people to run up the peak - rather them than me in that humidity and with that hill. Once back at the bottom of the peak, and haivng switched hotels to the tour meeting hotel, I took a long walk along Nathan Road, through Kowloon Park and past the Tin Hau Temple. That evening we had our pre briefing for our tour which involved meeting our tour guide Janssen and the rest of the group, most of whom seemed to be Aussies (think it was only 50% but everywhere you looked there seemed to be one!!). That evening I went out for dinner with a couple of the girls and ate far too much, which I sense could be a recurring theme of this holiday, then went to the Night Market to see what souvenirs we could haggle for.


Yangshuo

2010-09-20 to 2010-09-23

So the next morning we caught taxis down to the Hydrofoil terminal in order to catch our boat into mainland China, the third largest country in the world, with a population of over 1.3bn people, all of whom seem to be in a rush to get somewhere and have no problems barging you out of the way in order to get there. The locals are constantly spitting everywhere, are loud especially when on mobile phones and the kids do not wear nappies, instead they have slits in their trousers that they can wee and poop out of when necessary. It's not very hygienic!!! Unlike the rest of Asia, they aren't noticeably small and they are fascinated by Westerners, constantly staring at you and having no shame in walking right up to you in order to take your photo. At first it's quite funny but boy does it get annoying. I have even seen them want to touch people's hair!

First stop upon entering China was a lunch stop in Guangzhou. Food here in some ways is very different to back home, but in other ways is very similar. It is still cooked in a lot of fat that is left swimming on your plate after eating but more often than not the dishes that were dishes that I have never seen on a Chinese in London and there were certainly no prawn crackers or fortune cookies!! Mealtimes involve having group meals, so Janssen would order 10 or so different dishes for us and we would then share them once they arrived. A Lazy Susan in the centre of the table proved very handy. In good old Asian style the dishes come as and when they are ready and they do not wait until the whole order is ready before bringing out the food. Then, in good old British style, the meal is washed down with a large beer! And you get change from a fiver for the whole thing! Delicious.

Whilst we were having lunch the rain was pouring down, mainly due to Typhoon Fanapi that was battering the Taiwan, the East Coast of China and predicted to hit Hong Kong tomorrow. After our late lunch and with a break in the rain, it was a quick dash over to the train station in order to catch our overnight train to Guilin. The station was pure craziness. Outside the station were throngs and throngs of people all trying to get in creating massive queues everywhere, although I use that term lightly as the Chinese certainly don't know how to queue like us Brits do! The queues led through to security, as all bags must be x-rayed and every person must pass through a security archway before being allowed entry into the station. From what I could tell though it didn't seem to matter what you had on you as no one paid any attention to beeping archways or seemed to care what the x-ray machine was showing. Once through into the station it was up to the waiting room until about 40mins before the train departs and then a mad rush over to the train. For those in 3rd class who only have hard seats it is very important to be first on the train as you can not only ensure that you get the seat of your choice but also that you get a seat at all. For those of us with berths we had a guaranteed bed so it was not such a rush. Our carriage was not at all what I was expecting. The berths consisted to two 3 tier berths open to the carriage with a small aisle running the length of the carriage next to the berths. These aisles had a few tables with seats either side of them but if sat in them there wasn't much space for people to walk along the carriage. The luggage rack runs along the roof of the carriage. At one end of the carriage is a hot water tap for your noodles and at the other end is the dreaded toilet. Squat toilets are bad enough at the best of times but when you are on a moving vehicle they are far worse and when you are on a moving vehicle and the toilets aren't getting cleaned and the locals can't aim on target, well the ability to not breathe is an advantage and bottles of antibacterial hand wash are required!!! Food trolleys go up and down the train although there is a buffet car in the middle of the train but you are advised to bring your own food, hence the noodles hot water tap. And at 10pm, on the dot, the lights go out and it's time to sleep!

That first night and sleep was hard to come by. There’s always people walking up and down the corridor, going to the toilet, snoring, getting on and off the train. Anyway, some 8 hours after the lights have gone off and they are rather abruptly put back on again and suddenly it’s a race to see who can get to the toilet first and therefore avoid queuing and any unpleasantness. From Guilin station we had a minibus to take us down to Yangshuo. This is a small town that is very popular with both Western and Chinese tourist mainly due to the amazing scenery. The whole area is full of limestone karsts with two rivers running through – the Li River and the Lijiang River. Conveniently it is also well known as the only place in China to have a lot of English so it was kind of a gentle introduction to China. The centre of town is pedestrianised and the surrounding areas are perfect for exploring by either boat or bike. So that is what we did. After a late breakfast we went off exploring town (in the rain). That afternoon, still in the rain, we took a boat trip along the Lijiang River. The boats held up to 4 people each but what could have been a peaceful trip was ruined by the Outboard Motor on the boat! We spent a couple of hours on the river, along the route seeing water buffalo and cormorants.

After dinner near the river bank we went back on the water for a spot of cormorant fishing. Now anyone who has seen the HSBC advert knows that cormorant fishing involves a serene, tranquil atmosphere and a bird that gently swoops down from the boat, catches the fish and calmly deposits the fish into a bucket on the fisherman boat. Right? Wrong! In reality, it’s as manic as anything else in China, with about 10 birds diving under the water, fighting for fish. Most they ate but occasionally, after snagging a big one, the fisherman would ring the bird round the legs with a rope, drag it out of the water whereby the fish would be extricated from their mouths. They’d then be thrown back into the river by their neck.

Next day, still raining, we were up early to go and hire bikes. Cycling anywhere in Asia is a pretty hair-raising experience. Road rules are somewhat different to the Western world. For one, if you are in a car, you beep people to let them know you are overtaking them; meaning that cycling along there’d be a beep aimed at you every few minutes or more. Consequently the first job was to check the brakes worked which eventually they did. It seems that road positioning goes as follows: pedestrians on the edge, then foreign cyclists, local cyclists, mopeds, motorbikes then finally other vehicles. Eventually we turned onto quieter roads and cycled about 5km through the countryside. We reached the Li River where we decided to go bamboo rafting. This time, there was no motor and so it was much more peaceful. There were, however, small rapids that needed negotiating. Considering that the boat was nothing more than a few bamboo planks tied together this was a slightly worrying prospect. However, once we saw the rapids we realised that they shouldn’t cause too many problems. For one the rapids were no more than a couple of feet high and the boats floated back up to the surface fairly easily. You did however have to get your feet up before you went down the rapids otherwise you got somewhat wet feet. Turns out on the first rapid I wasn’t quite quick enough! Cue incredibly wet feet to go with the rest of wet me. Once off the boat it was back on the bikes that had been transported separately and another couple of km cycle until we reached Moon Rock, a great big rock with a hole in the middle which looks like a moon. Due to the wet weather (and wet feet) no one really wanted to stick around too long so we had lunch, took a few photos then cycled all the way to town along the motorway. Well, it wasn’t actually a motorway but that’s what our guide called it, somewhat scaring us, until he figured out why everyone was staring at him and he corrected himself to highway. Still not a great prospect but as it was only a main road and it was direct it really wasn’t so bad. That evening, for dinner, I tried snails stuffed with pork and mint which were surprisingly delicious.

On our final morning in Yangshuo I decided to have an hour of that typical Chinese pastime – Tai Chi. One hour of learning a few moves and finding my inner self. We also got shown a few basic combat moves. After Tai Chi it was off to a cooking class. First stop was the market where we saw all sorts of veg and spices to buy as well as various types of animal, live or dead. It was also the first time we saw any evidence of the infamous dog. We saw half a carcass hanging up; clearly there had been a few people there before us who had been quite partial to it. After some time in the market we went back to the kitchen and began preparing the ingredients for our 3 dishes – Dumplings, Beer Fish and Gong Bao Chicken. After preparation the first dish we made was the dumplings as these were to be taken away to be steamed. They were stuffed with a pork sausage, carrot and chive filling and I think we all managed to make at least a couple that looked like proper dumplings. Whilst they were steaming we started on the Beer Fish. This is a Yangshuo specialty and whilst the fish used can vary, we used catfish. After making it we got to eat it whilst it was still hot. The chunks of fish still had some bones in it which wasn’t great but it generally an edible meal. We then made the second dish, the Gong Bao chicken, which was stir fried chicken with peanuts and vegetables and was delicious. Will definitely be making that one again! After class, we had a few more hours of wandering around town then it was back on a bus to the train station in Guilin and back on an overnight train. This time I ended up right on the top bunk which was interesting but we came slightly better prepared and with some alcohol to help us sleep.


Yangtze River

2010-09-24 to 2010-09-27

Our train from Guilin arrived into Wuhan around 7.00am the next day and from here we still had another 4.5 hour trip by bus to the town of Yichang. It was on this journey that I came across some of my favourite stationary toilets of the trip so far. There were 5 toilets in a row with just a ½m high wall in between each one of them for privacy. As I walked in I was greeted by 5 very uncomfortable looking Westerners and suddenly I decided I really didn’t need to go that badly and that I could wait. The worst bit was that people hanging around outside, stretching their legs from the bus, could basically see right in as well! Arriving in Yichang, we came across a typical small Chinese town, small in relative terms only. High rises are still the order of the day. There are no major tourist sites in the town itself, however, due to the location on the town on the Yangtze River it is a good overnight stop for those wishing to take boat trips along the Yangtze or take trips out to the Three Gorges Dam. We went and took a short walk along the banks of the Yangtze, seeing what could have been a very impressive temple or possibly could have been the most impressive set of public toilets ever!

Next day we weren’t due on the boat until 10pm so we had the whole day to amuse ourselves. This meant we finally got to have a lay in!! In the afternoon we took off to see the Three Gorges Dam, a particularly fine, albeit controversial, feat of engineering. The Dam consists of a flood defence as well as a large scale set of locks for boats to use who need to pass up and down the river. Creation of the Dam, however, meant the flooding of many of the surrounding villages and meant that the Three Gorges themselves, which we would be sailing along the next couple of days, had halved in size. We spent some time at the Dam then continued onto the dock in order to catch our boat. We were staying on a domestic boat rather than on a tourist boat but we were in first class. What this meant was queue jumping at check in and beds rather than bunks although these beds were at an angle as the floor was sloping down towards the window. The bathroom was interesting though. We still had a squat toilet and more worryingly the shower was directly over the toilet. The boat itself also contained a restaurant, sun deck and the all important karaoke room. There was also a “super-market” on board where the all important beer could be bought. First port of call upon leaving was to head up to the karaoke room which became our evening’s entertainment every night, although they closed at 11 and left us sitting in the lobby with our beers.

So after our first night on the wonky beds we had a gentle, easy, late wakeup call when, at 5.45am, loud music was blasted into the cabin via the PA system along with a screeching Chinese lady telling us what I can only assume was “breakfast is now being served” and went on for a full 15 minutes. By 7 we had been offloaded onto a much smaller boat to go and get close up to one of the Gorges. We went along the Shennong Stream, home to the Tujia people who have a habit of putting coffins in gaps high up in the limestone, though no one could explain to us why. After about an hour and a half of sailing along the stream we reached the small settlement of Badong. Here we transferred into even smaller boats which were rowed by locals. The locals are farmers by day but they also do a good line in taking tourists along the river. 2 decades ago and they would use the boats to transport goods along the stream, but clothes would chafe and hurt them so they did it naked. Since 1995 when goods turned into people they have begun wearing clothes. For some reason we our rowers seemed to be in a race but against no one in particular as we raced along the river overtaking all the boats that started before us. We turned off the Shennong Stream into a small tributary where the locals got out and pulled the boat along the banks by tying ropes around their waist. They turned us around and we headed back to our boat (with them rowing once the water got too deep), but this time at a far more leisurely pace. We even got treated to a traditional song from our guide and the main oarsman. We stopped once more at a cultural show which consisted of some singing, a knife juggler who kept on dropping knives and a sketch show using a member of the audience in what we assume was a traditional wedding ceremony (no one could be too sure since the show was only in Cantonese). It involved the audience members giving their new “wives” money, before carrying them round on their backs! 5 minutes before the show ended all the Chinese people got up and left the room leaving just the Westerners sat there looking somewhat bemused and feeling like we’d missed something. From what we could gather they just wanted a head start back to the boat!

Back on the main boat we sailed through the remaining 2 gorges – the Wu Gorge and the Qutang Gorge. The scenery was very impressive but considering that the building of the dam flooded half of the gorge it did make you wonder how much more impressive the scenery would have been before construction. Around dinner time the boat stopped again, for people who wanted to visit a nearby temple but instead we all went to dinner. As we left after dinner we were treated to a firework display from the banks. I don’t think it was for us but it’s nice to think that it was!!

Next day and the 5.45am alarm call we were all dreading didn’t materialise meaning something of a lay in. At 10 we disembarked the boat and transferred by private bus to the town of Chongqing. It seems that all the locals on the bus were shouting very loudly into their mobile phones deafening us which then caused much laughter amongst the locals watching our bemused faces. It was quite fun to guess what they were saying. We basically mapped the conversation along the lines of someone who wanted to get pizza take out that night as they were fed up of Chinese take away! Arriving in Chongqing mid afternoon, we had a couple of hours to freshen up – it’s fair to say given the positioning of the shower, very few were had on the boat. That evening we went out for a hotpot. This is a local Sichuan delicacy and nothing like any of us were expecting. We all thought it would be something along the lines of a stew but actually you got lots of raw veg and meat which you put into your sauce that was cooking in front of you and once it was cooked, took it out and ate it. The reason for it being called a hotpot is that the sauce comes laden with chilli’s. So many chilli’s. However, you did get a small dish of sesame oil, optionally seasoned with garlic, which you could dip your food in. This coating of oil not only took the heat out of the food but also coated your mouth so you weren’t left with no feeling. That evening we found what that far had seem undiscoverable – an Irish bar. They really do get everywhere!!


Chengdu

2010-09-28 to 2010-09-30

From Chongqing, it was 5 hours on another public bus over to Chengdu, and thankfully this time it passed fairly uneventfully and with no conversations about pizza take out!! We arrived mid afternoon and had a bit of time to explore the city. As ever the City is crazy, but this is to be expected since the City is the 5th most populous in China and growing ever rapidly. In the evening we went to see the Sichuan Opera. This consisted of many different sketches including singing, dancing, puppetry, comedy routines, hand puppets and face changing where masks are changed in an instant, so fast that you do not notice it. Outside the Opera House we even witnessed a traffic accident which, considering that after many, many months travelling in various different places of Asia with crazy, mental traffic I’d never seen before, was an unusual Asian first. Thankfully all parties walked away without little more than a busted ankle and a dent.

The next morning, back on the early starts and we caught a public bus over to Leshan, a small town that is home to the world’s largest Buddha. The Buddha is 71m tall, and his ears alone are 7m and each big toe is 8.5m long. You enter the site at the top of the Buddha but can walk down to the bottom, however this means joining a long queue of locals who were staring at us and couldn’t understand that we didn’t want to have our photos taken. There was also so much pushing and shoving, it seemed like half of China had descended on Leshan. Eventually we got to the bottom of the cliff face and could stare back up at the Buddha which made us feel like the tiny little Lilliputians in Gulliver’s Travels. Once we’d finished fighting the crowds there was still a few other temples and waterfalls on site that we could visit before the 2½ hour bus ride back to Chengdu. Back in town and we had the evening to ourselves so 4 went for a wander around town and actually managed to find a second Irish bar in 3 days!

On our final day in Chengdu we got to do one of the “big three”. Ask most people who go to China, and anyone who was on my tour, what were the three things they wanted to do most and you’ll get, in any order, The Great Wall, The Terracotta Warriors and today’s trip – Pandas. We went to the Panda Breeding Centre, or as we nicknamed it, Panda World. The Centre contains many different enclosures of pandas, some black and white, some red, some young, some old, some even brand newborn. We spent a good 3 hours there even catching feeding time, which was very fun to see, and also caught a video all about the centre and the work it does. There was also an area where you could go to have photos taken with a panda on your lap which would have been amazing except for the £100 price tag which none of us could justify.

That afternoon and we had more time to ourselves to explore since our train wasn’t until much later. We went out to the Wenshou Temple and spent some time exploring the grounds including a very impressive library, stacked top to toe with mini Buddha’s. We had lunch and then did a spot of shopping in the market next door before walking back into the centre of town past another accident. This time it involved the flimsy bamboo scaffolding that props up most building works in China and it had collapsed in a big heap on the pavement and had clearly hit a woman on the way down as she had blood pouring down her face. It must have been a fairly recent collapse as they were still checking to see if anyone was trapped (it didn’t appear so) and we passed the ambulance a short while later. In the centre of town we sat in Tianfu Square watching Chinese life as it passed us by and saw the giant statue of Chairman Mao. Eventually we had to head to the station for another delightful overnight train, this time with the added bonus of it being the night before a week long public holiday and consequently most of China seemed to be on the move and so everywhere was incredibly busy and full of people (more so than usual anyway!).


Xian

2010-10-01 to 2010-10-02

We spent our third night on the train and I probably got the least sleep of any due to the incredibly loud snorer in the bunk across from me. Delightful! For the first time we actually had morning on board the train as we weren’t due into Xian until lunchtime. I spent most of it looking out of the window at the fog/pollution (according to the Government and consequently the locals it’s fog, to any Westerner it’s clearly pollution). The journey spent a lot of time high up in the mountains, before eventually arriving at Xian at 1.00pm. Due to the public holiday there was a massive scramble for the limited taxis meaning we had to wait at the station for another hour before we could get going. We made it out to explore around 4pm heading first to the Bell Tower and then to the Drum Tower. The towers were there to get those working the City Walls know when it was time to open or close the gates as the bells were rung in the Bell Tower to signify that it was time to open them in the morning whilst the Drum was rung in the Drum Tower in the evening to signify that it was time to close the gates. From the Towers we then headed out to the City Walls which are 14km all the way around and have ramparts every 120m or so. Originally there were only 4 gates – North, South, East and West and each of these has 3 towers protecting it – although more gates have been created in recent times to allow locals more entrance routes into the City. We entered into the South Gate and walked round to the West Gate and as it got dark whilst we were up there we got to see the City and the Walls by night. All Towers were lit up looking very beautiful. Leaving the walls we went back into the main part of town and headed for the Muslim Quarter. There were so many people around; the place was nuts and such a shock from the calm and sereneness of the wall.

The next morning and we woke up to see something of a Chinese rarity – the sun. We had a clear blue sky, no clouds and the sun was shining. It was a lovely sight. We transferred to the sight of the Terracotta Warriors. The warriors guard the tomb of the First Qin Emperor and date from around 210BC. It is believed they were there to protect the Emperor as he arrived in the afterlife. No one knew they existed until their discovery in the mid 70’s. A farmer was digging a well on his land when he came across some ancient artefacts. He informed the Chinese Government who paid him 18Yuan (£1.80) for his discovery. However, when the archaeologists started digging they came across the pits full of the Warriors. The farmer never got any further recompense but he does spend his days at the site signing copies of his book for tourists. There have been 3 pits found, containing around 10,000 warriors. No two of the warriors have the same face they are all made to be unique. The main pit, Pit 1, contains around 8,000 warriors in 11 corridors about 3m wide. Each of these corridors is over 200m long. There were 5 different types of warrior – the warrior (standing with a top knot on the right), officer (standing with a double top knot), general (standing with a square top knot), archer (kneeling with a top knot on the left) and emperor (standing with a square top knot and a sword). There are also horsemen with their horses. After Pit 1 it was on to Pits 2 & 3. There are fewer warriors here, and many of them are in need of a bit of TLC as they are missing heads or limbs due to the excavation work which is still ongoing in these pits. There were also display boards showing pictures of some of the warriors when they were first found as they had many colours on them. After leaving the pits we went into the museum where they had an example of a warrior and a chariot being drawn by 4 horses to view. They also had a giant warrior as used in the Beijing Olympics opening ceremony. From the Warriors it was back to the station for our final overnight train ride of the holiday.


Beijing

2010-10-03 to 2010-10-06

With our final night on the train and we finally nailed exactly how to sleep – 50% alcohol first. That way it was enough to knock you out but not enough liquid that you had to go to the toilet in the night!! We arrived at 6.30pm, and headed straight for a breakfast buffet. Then it was off to the Forbidden City, home to the Chinese Emperors until 1908, plus his wife and up to 300 concubines. Once the Emperor died, his childless concubines were sometimes buried alive. The City was off limits to the public for over 500 years but has finally opened up in recent times as a museum. The City is home to gardens, temples, living quarters as well as halls for coronations and banquets. Next stop was Tiananmen Square, the world’s largest open public space. It can hold up to half a million people inside it. However, to get into the square you need to go through security checks first and the queues are massive. The square is surrounded by museums on the East and West, by the Forbidden City to the North and by Chairman Mao’s mausoleum on the South side. There is not much in the square itself although there were plenty of flower displays, but in true Chinese style all plants remain in their pots rather than being put in a bed.

For lunch we found ourselves a lovely little cafe with a waitress who couldn’t stop giggling at us but the food was delicious and it ended up being our favourite place to eat in Beijing so we went every day we were in Beijing. The afternoon we headed out to the Temple of Heaven. There were lots of people there but it wasn’t quite as manic as the other sights we’d seen that day which was nice and as it was set in a park we could just wander through some open green space which we hadn’t been able to do much of up until then. As we only had a couple of days left in China it was time to go and buy some souvenirs. The first market was rubbish but we found a second market that had 7 floors with all sorts of clothes, accessories and souvenirs so we spent plenty of time browsing and haggling there.

The next day and we went to see our final “Big 3” sight – the Great Wall. We went to a section called Mutianyu which was about an hour and a half bus ride out of Beijing. The wall was amazing and definitely my highlight of the trip. The day was sunny with clear blue skies so would have made for the perfect postcard shot if it wasn’t for the number of other tourists about (the public holiday was still in full swing). The section of wall we went to is 3km long with 26 Ming dynasty watchtowers. There is a cable car up and down but we decided to walk up to the wall instead, a brisk 20 min walk up the side of the mountain. From on the wall you can see out across the countryside and along the wall in either direction but thankfully you can’t see the Subway sandwich shop at the bottom. We spent a full 3 hours just walking along sections of the wall, from tower to tower. Some parts were flat whilst other sections were incredibly steep but from the higher vantage points along the wall the views were incredible. That night was our final night on tour so we had a big group meal although most people were hanging around for at least one extra day so it wasn’t really goodbye.

The next day, my final day in Beijing, we were no longer officially on tour and so were free to do as we pleased. That meant absolutely no 6.00am starts, not even a 7.00am start. Instead we treated ourselves to a lay in and got up at 8.00!! We caught a taxi off to the Summer Palace, which is where the emperor would take his summers to get out of the heat of Beijing. Anglo-French troops stormed the Palace in the 1850’s but the then emperors’ wife had it restored and despite further disrepair in the 1940’s the Palace has had a major overhaul and is now one of the most popular tourist attraction in Beijing receiving up to 10,000 visitors a day. The whole site is set on a huge lake in the middle of the grounds which is a good 3miles to walk all the way around it. Stopping in and climbing the temples can be a good way to get a bird’s eye view of the grounds. One of the more impressive temples was the Tower of the Fragrance of the Buddha although this had clearly benefitted from restoration work. The grounds are also home to the world’s longest covered walkway, at 728m. From the temple we headed over to the Olympic Park, stopping for lunch at TGI Fridays which we justified as phase 1 of our declimatisation process from China back to the Western World. At the park, we thought we’d have to settle for photos of the Bird’s Nest and that would be it but it turned out we were allowed into the stadium and we were free to wander around as we pleased. We even witnessed a ½ hour cultural show including dancing and martial arts. The sound system that accompanied the show and you can only imagine what kind of atmosphere it could have generated during the games themselves. Once we left the stadium we spent a short while in the rest of the park before heading back to our favourite restaurant for dinner and to say goodbye to the giggling waitresses!

The next morning it was a very early start to ensure that the dodgy Chinese traffic didn’t delay me getting to the airport. It’s normally a 1 hour journey, so I thought I should allow 2 as it was rush hour, yet somehow I made it there in 30mins! After 11 hours in the air, 6 hours in various airports, 20mins circling over my house and more than 22 ½ hours after getting up I walked back through my front door and the end of yet another amazing holiday.


Summary

2010-10-07

So, as is tradition for me when I finish these trips here are my stats from this trip:

Number of days: 19
Number of flights to get from London to Hong Kong: 3
Number of flights to get from Beijing to London: 2
Number of overnight trains taken: 4
Decent night’s sleep on overnight trains: 1
Times I ate dog: 0 (sadly, it was far too expensive every time I found it on a menu)
Tour group size: 10
Nationalities represented on tour: 6 (British, Australian, America, Swiss, Romanian and Chinese)
Different towns spent night in: 7
Average price of a meal: ¥30 (£3)
Average price of a beer: ¥10(£1)
Meals served with knife and fork rather than chopsticks: 0
Dodgy squat toilets seen: too many
Number of people at tourist sites during public holiday: billions (in a country of 1.3bn, not necessarily an exaggeration)
Days of rain: 12
Days of sun: 5


Trip number 3

2011-08-04

Yup, I'm back!! Just when you thought you'd got rid of me, my next trip is approaching fast. It's another 3 week extravaganza, doing anything but relaxing.

So, what is the plan. Well I'm off to Kenya and Tanzania to go animal watching, hiking and chilling. To be honest, that all makes it sound rather easier than I'm sure it will be. The truth is that this could possibly be one of the hardest things I've ever done! I'm back joining forces with Melissa - you'll remember her as the girl obsessed with toilets in Nepal! Anyway, in less than a week we are off flying into Nairobi, where we have a day to ourselves before going on safari into the Masai Mara. Here, we hope, the migration will be in full swing and we will find ourselves surrounded by wildebeest, risking life and limb (literally) whilst crossing rivers. We're hoping to hit the Big 5 - I missed out on a leopard when I was in South Africa. I'm also hoping this feels more realistic than Kruger,which had paved roads and you could drive your own car in. I want to be in a 4WD, over bumpy ground with lions walking right past the truck! We have also booked ourselves on an early morning champagne breakfast hot air balloon ride. This is definitely an indulgent treat but I've always wanted to go up in a balloon and what better way than by flying over the aforementioned packs of wildebeest.

After this safari we leave Kenya and cross the border into Tanzania, where we are off on another safari into the Serengeti and Ngorongoro crater. I've been told you can always see animals here even when the migration is in full swing in the Mara (for those not in the know, the animals migrate from the Serengeti into the Mara at this time of year, then back again in Winter), but hopefully without the same crowds. The Ngorongoro crater is part of the East African Rift Valley and is a large volcanic caldera, which is believed to have had some form of life living within it for over 3 million years.

These 2 trips will take us 10 days into our holiday but then comes the biggie. Quite literally. We are planning to climb to the roof of Africa, the highest point on the continent, Uhuru Peak on Mt Kilimanjaro. Now, for those thinking, "but Hannah, you've done Everest Base Camp, this will be a walk in the park", let me give you some facts. EBC is 5,364m above sea level, Kili is 5,895 asl. The trek to EBC takes 2 weeks, with Kili you are up and down inside 1 week. And most importantly, there is no 1.00am start during EBC as there is on Kili. Climbing Kili however, does give you the opportunity to trek through many different vegetative types, from rain forest at the bottom, through grasslands, before reaching the glaciers near the summit. There are also many routes up the mountain and we have chosen the Rongai route which starts near the Kenyan border. It's a camping route, but it does come down on the other side, meaning we have have climbed right over the top of the mountain!

Finally, in order to rest and relax after that exhaustion, we are flying to Zanzibar island for 3 days of chilling on the beach, hopefully getting a massage and generally recuperating before returning home on 31st August. All in all a very busy holiday, but hopefully a very fun one with lots of stories to tell at the end of it.


Nairobi, Lake Naivasha

2011-08-10 to 2011-08-12

So, left home on Day 1 to go and meet Melissa with a slight feeling of trepidation. Not because of the impending walk up a big hill, more because I was worried that by the time I came home my house would have been burnt to smithereens by the delightful rioters, whose fires I had watched from my bedroom window just 2 nights earlier. Due to Melissa’s slight trepidation of the tube, I had agreed to meet her at Victoria Bus Station and we’d get the tube to Heathrow together. The obligatory pre holiday drink was served by a barman who, upon learning we were going to Kenya, jumped up and down excitedly and asked if we were going to see the giraffes. Needless to say we downed the rest of our drinks, beat a hasty retreat and headed over to the gate. Our flight to Nairobi went via a midnight stop in Doha – if they think they can host a World Cup there, considering it’s 38 degrees at midnight, they’re very much mistaken. They kept on feeding us across the 2 flights – something we’d come to have a lot more of in the coming weeks. Upon arrival at Nairobi there was no sign of our airport pick up so we got a regular taxi. The streets were a nightmare. It took us over an hour to go just 15km – I could almost run it in that time! After a short sleep we went out to explore the city nicknamed Nairobbery, leaving all our valuables safely locked up at the hostels first. There were no real tourist sites in Nairobi, but we just wandered round the streets, stopping only for a short lunch in a small cafe. Melissa decided to try the local delicacy – Ugali, a hard, solid substance made from boiled grains and flour, set hard and served up in slabs. It’s incredibly tasteless but sworn by by the locals. For Melissa, however, a couple of mouthfuls were enough. Thankfully the dinner provided at the hostel was much tastier!

Early next morning, we set out on the first day of our Masai Mara safari, on a big yellow truck. Safari being the Swahili word for journey. We left Nairobi heading for Lake Naivasha, stopping en route at a lookout over the Rift Valley. The Valley stretches some 6000km along a crack in the Earth’s crust from the Dead Sea to Mozambique and was formed over 8 million years ago. Along the valley are numerous volcanoes, mostly extinct, such as Mount Kilimanjaro. Unfortunately, it was quite cloudy and so we couldn’t see that far! Upon arrival at Lake Naivasha we headed straight out to Elsamere House, home to the famous conservationist Joy Adamson. She wrote the book Born Free and devoted her life to looking after animals, including the lion cub Elsa, up until her murder by one of her housekeepers. We spent some time in her house and grounds, where wild animals are sometimes found, usually hippos from the nearby lake. In the afternoon we got up close and personal to these hippos on a boat cruise on the lake itself. Also out on the lake were plenty of pelicans, kingfishers, cormorants and fish eagles.


Masai Mara, Nairobi

2011-08-13 to 2011-08-15

Next morning and it was a 5.00am start, something that would become a theme for the trip. We packed up our tents and left Lake Naivasha. After 3 hours driving we stopped at the small town of Narok in order to buy supplies and following that it was another 3 hours down to the entrance to the Masai Mara. The roads on the second part of the journey were rather pot-holed, with some so big you could “drown a 1 year old” as our guide, Wycliff, warned us. Very soon after our arrival in the Mara we began to see plenty of wildebeest. During July and August, there are literally millions of Wildebeest migrating from the Serengeti to the Mara, an area just the size of Northern Ireland, looking for greener grass, in what is often referred to as the “Greatest Show on Earth”. Designated the eighth wonder of the world, the wildebeest migration is an impressive spectacle and arguably the most impressive natural event in the world. The wildebeest have to cross 2 major rivers, where predators, mainly crocodiles, lions and hyenas, lie in wait to pounce and take off the weakest in the pack. These rivers, if the roads are passable, can be some of the best places to watch the wildlife surviving in their natural environment. Unfortunately, we couldn’t get down to the rivers as the roads were flooded and too dangerous for our truck. We did, however, in addition to the Wildebeest, still manage to see plenty of zebras, elephants, hyenas, impalas, Thompsons Gazelles, topi, buffalo, warthogs, jackals and vultures.

We were kept awake during the night by some strange noises in the camp, which we later found out to be elephants. The camp itself was within the National Park and with no barriers to stop the wildlife walking in, just a handful of Maasai Warriors to protect us. To the extent, in fact, that we were not supposed to even go to the toilets in the night without a Maasai warrior to protect us! Consequently, no one went to the toilet in the night! Next morning we were up at 4.30 and luckily the nighttime’s rain had stopped. After packing up the tent in the dark again, we left the rest of the group and drove to the Mara launch site for hot air balloons. It was an extravagance but one which we thought we should treat ourselves to. You don’t often get to go up in a hot air balloon and where better to do it than in the Masai Mara, over the hoards of migrating wildebeest? The balloon flew just before sunrise, giving us the best chance of viewing wildlife, varying heights to give us both panoramic shots of the whole area and the feeling of floating barely above the treetops, so close to the animals you wanted to reach out and touch them. Seeing large groups of animals from above, in the kind of sweeping shots one expects to see on Planet Earth, was quite a spectacular sight. Occasionally the sound of the gas firing up the balloon scared the animals but normally we were able to float harmlessly above the animals without disturbing them. From above we saw thousands more wildebeest, giraffe, Thompson gazelle, Grant gazelle, hyena, zebra, secretary birds, warthogs and ostriches. Upon landing, the balloon tilted over backwards, quite common, and so we had to crawl out on our backs. This is fine, unless you do what Melissa did, and put your hand down to balance yourself and rest it in a pile of animal poo! After landing we got have a champagne breakfast. Bottomless champagne. At 8 in the morning. It was going to be a good day! Breakfast was quite literally in the middle of the park, open to any wildlife walking in and disturbing us, this time without the guard of the Maasai warriors. After breakfast we got a game drive and our guide was superb. Whatever animals we asked for we got. “Elephants please”. 5 minutes later “here are some elephants”. “Some lions now please”. 10 mins later “here’s a lion”. “Can we have a cheetah next?” “Here’s a cheetah”. “Leopard?” “Haha, no”. No leopards to be seen that day. That was one guide who well and truly earned his tip. We met back up with the truck and the rest of the group and continued on with the game drive. We saw lots more lions, quite a few half eaten wildebeest carcasses (usually being eaten by either vultures or hyenas), more giraffe and some buffalo. Upon leaving the park we stopped at a Maasai village. The Maasai people generally don’t like having their photos taken, to the extent where they will throw thing at trucks if they spot people taking photos out of the windows, but at the village is an exception. We were treated to 2 dances from the Maasai men – the second of which was a traditional jumping dance. The higher the Maasai men can jump the more wives they are allowed to take. Back in the day, however, before they could marry any women they had to prove they were a real man by going out and killing a lion. These days, due to new laws passed by the Kenyan Government, they are no longer allowed to kill lions and must pay a dowry of 12 cows instead. Seems a much easier deal to me! After the men, the women danced for us and then we were shown how the Maasai make fire. Embarrassingly for them, they managed to make a lot of smoke but no actual flames, apparently as the wood was too wet following the previous night’s rain! The night was spent in a hotel in Narok, meaning no tents and proper showers!

Next morning we had another 4.30am start with nothing to do but to head back to Nairobi. En route we stopped at the Giraffe Sanctuary where we got to hand feed the giraffe. They were very friendly provided you had food in your hands, otherwise if you got to close they’d go to head butt you! Opposite the centre was a Nature walk, complete with its own resident psychotic giraffe and a Pumba (that’s warthog to you and me, slightly worrying though when you mishear and think they tell you there is a puma inside). Next stop was the animal orphanage, or foster home as Melissa liked to call it. They only really looked after baby elephants apart from one blind rhino. The elephants were being fed whilst we were there and were happily bathing in lots and lots of red dust. Back in Nairobi we had the afternoon off, then headed out in the evening to Carnivores restaurant. The restaurant is famous in African backpacking circles and is an All You Can Eat meat spectacular. Various different meats are brought to your table until you indicate, via a flag, that you don’t want anymore. The restaurant has suffered slightly following changes to Kenyan law and many of the original meats served up have been taken off the menu such as zebra and hartebeest. However, they still serve camel (rather chewy), ostrich (not bad) and crocodile (tastes like chicken) along with the regular meats such as chicken, lamb or beef. The day ended at midnight, far later than the 8-9pm bedtimes we’d been having up until that point.


Arusha, Serengeti, Ngorongoro, Arusha, Moshi

2011-08-16 to 2011-08-20

Our final morning in Kenya was greeted with a lay in until 5.50am! Whoop. We fought with the Nairobi traffic before heading out on the road down to the border with Tanzania. A very straight forward border crossing was followed by long, straight, dusty roads. On good days there are views of Mt Kilimanjaro, but we had hazy weather and consequently no views. The next morning we set out on our second safari, down to the Serengeti and Ngorongoro Crater. The Serengeti is the same National Park as the Masai Mara just renamed as it’s across the border. It is a much larger park than the Mara, 15000 sq km v 1500 sq km. The park sits just on the edge of the Ngorongoro Conservation Area which covers an area of over 8000 sq km and includes the Ngorongoro Crater and the Olduvai Gorge. Those of a religious disposition may wish to look away now as the Gorge is most famous for the numerous fossils that have been found there. In 1972, hominid (human like) footprints were found at Laetoli, just south of the Gorge. The footprints are 3.75m years old and, according to scientists, confirm the evolution of humans over time and therefore smash the theory of God creating man. Due to the historic nature and archaeological significance of these footprints they are not open to public viewing. Other fossils, such as a 1.8m year old ape like skull, have also been found in the Gorge. Our first day out of Arusha we entered the Ngorongoro Conservation Area and stopped at a lookout over the Ngorongoro Crater. The views, although a little hazy, were phenomenal. We continued to travel through the Conservation Area, eventually arriving at the entrance to the Serengeti National Park. The Serengeti, known locally as the Endless Plains, stretch on for as the eye can see, but this treeless landscape, punctuated only by the occasional rocks, yet to be eroded down like the rest of the plains. Despite this there are plenty of animals to be seen around and in the short game drive we had that evening, we saw ostriches, hyenas, elephants, giraffes, zebra, bat eared foxes and hippos. Camp that night was again in the middle of the park, with no protection from the wild animals!

The next morning, we had possibly our best game drive of the trip. We saw lots of lions, in packs, giraffes, bat eared foxes, zebras, gazelles, impalas, warthogs, wildebeest, buffalo, stork, jackals, dik diks, cheetahs and, after much searching, the ever elusive leopard. We also stopped at a hippo pool and saw lots of hippos and crocs. These hippos are not quite the big, fat, cumbersome creatures they first appear. They are in fact the biggest killer of humans by a wild animal and can make one hell of a racket. On our way out of the park we also saw lots of elephants. That afternoon we left the park, and drove to a campsite situated above the Ngorongoro Crater. The Crater was formed following a huge volcanic eruption which caused the volcano to collapse in on itself and form a caldera. This caldera is 20km wide, making it one of the largest in the world, with steep sides from the top down to the base of grasslands, forests and salt lakes.

The final morning of this part of the trip was spent down in the Ngorongoro Crater. All the Big 5 live in the Crater and we were very hopeful to see a rhino, being the only one of the Big 5 we had not seen so far. Alas, it was not to be. We saw a large pride of lions, buffalos striding across the plain and a leopard far out in the distance, rolling around on the ground at the edge of a lake. During a drive through a section of the forest, we turned a corner and met a large, solitary elephant. A very quick reverse was in order to let the elephant get to the water of a nearby stream. We sat and watched it for a while and then it headed back along the road. We followed it up the road, when it suddenly turned sharply and stared at us. Its ears came forward and the elephant gave us its best “don’t f*ck with me” look and as we slammed on the brakes, no one dared move for fear of the elephant charging us. Luckily, the stroppy beast decided to leave us alone and we got out of that section of forest fairly sharpish. We spent a bit more time in the Crater and then headed up, out of the Conservation area and back to Arusha. This was our final night with the truck and so we had a big group BBQ to say our goodbyes.

Leaving Arusha, we took a shuttle the short distance to Moshi, a small town located at the base of Mount Kilimanjaro and the base for trips up the mountain. We had a pre departure meeting, plus a slight panic when we realised that, unlike other trekking trips we’d been on, a duffel bag wasn’t provided as standard and so we didn’t have anything to put our possessions in the for porters to carry. Luckily, we were able to rent one solving that dilemma.


Kilimanjaro - Simba Camp - Altitude 2600m

2011-08-21

So, the first morning of the trek we were awoken at 5am by the sounds of the Call to Prayer from the Mosque in Moshi. Got back to sleep, but were then awoken by the bells of the nearby church and the sounds of the church choir at 7am. Clearly, this is a very religious town! At 8.30 we left out hotel and travelled by minivan around the base of the mountain. Due to the cloud we could still not the summit, or even part of the mountain, leading to doubts that maybe in fact the mountain didn’t really exist and instead the whole “highest peak in Africa” thing was in fact a big hoax! We had chosen to climb the Rongai route. We’d picked this one because it was said to have lower crowds, decent scenery and not be too taxing. The more we read on it after booking, it became apparent that this was possibly the easiest route up the mountain. The route starts from the Northern side of the mountain, just a few miles from the Kenyan border, at an altitude of 1,950m. At the gate we had to complete formalities, signing into the log book and whilst we were doing this we watched hundreds of porters milling around, weighing bags. The authorities closely monitor how much the porters can carry and their bags must be weighed before they leave the gate. On Day 1 they have a maximum of 20kgs, but this weight goes down each day as food gets eaten and therefore less needs to be carried. Although we didn’t officially meet them until camp, we had a team of 7 to support the 2 of us. 4 porters, 1 stomach engineer (that’s cook to you and me), 1 assistant guide Edward and 1 main guide Seleman/Adam.

We left the gate whilst the porters were finishing off their formalities and Melissa and I, plus Adam, began trekking. First question, obviously, had to be why does our guide have 2 names! It turns out he was born to a single Mum, who being Muslim, gave him the Muslim name Seleman. When he was 14, he met his Dad and African culture states that the father owns the child. His Dad, being a Christian, did not like his name and so gave him the Christian name Adam. Mount Kilimanjaro is the highest mountain in Africa, one of the highest volcanoes in the world and is the highest freestanding mountain in the world. It is a dormant volcano, formed along part of the Rift Valley. The mountain is also home to many different ecosystems, from farmlands and forests near the bottom, rising up through moorlands, alpine deserts and finally glaciers. On Day 1, we saw the farmlands, pine forests and natural rainforests. These trees are home to monkeys, both Blue Monkeys and Black and White Colobus Monkeys. Upon entering the rainforest we stopped for a short lunch break before carrying on to camp. We did 3 hours walking in total, then we arrived at Simba Camp. Simba means lion in Swahili and the camp is so named because, apparently, they do occasionally get lions walking through the camp. And buffalo. Oh good! The porters not only carried all our bags for us, they also set up camp for us. So our tent was already pitched, a mess tent was provided for dinner, and hot water was produced so that we could wash our very dusty hands and faces.

After a short break whilst we investigated the toilets – squatters, long drop, Melissa’s favourite – we headed out on an acclimatisation walk. There are two general rules on the mountain, both their to aid acclimatisation. The first is Pole Pole (slowly slowly), indicating speed of walking, the other is Walk High, Sleep Low. In other words, spend part of the day at a higher altitude than camp as this will help your body adapt and you’ll sleep better. We only did a short walk, 20-30 mins, taking us up a couple of hundred meters. Altitude doesn’t really kick in until you get above 3000m so for the first night we shouldn’t suffer any side effects. After our walk we returned for tea. This consisted of popcorn and biscuits long with hot drinks, during which time we had to monitor our heart rate and blood oxygen levels. Not 1 hour later we then had dinner. 3 courses and very filling. Very peppery food though, more so than either of us would have chosen given the choice. After dinner we had a briefing for the next day and then it was time for bed. This meant we were in bed by about 8pm!

Heart Rate 95 (Melissa 84), Blood Oxygen Level 92 (Melissa 92)


Kilimanjaro - Second Cave - Altitude 3450m

2011-08-22

Next morning, we were up at half 6, in order to get dressed and begin putting sleeping bags and liners away. Bed tea (hot drinks in bed) was served at 7 and we got a bowl of hot water at 7.15. Then by 7.30 breakfast was served. We started hiking at half 8 and didn’t have to worry about putting the tents down as the porters did that as well. Given that we’d had to erect and take down our own tents on safari, having people to do it for us made us feel rather like Princesses! The morning’s walk was going to take us up almost 900m and as we left camp we saw what it was we’d be waiting for. A clear view to the top of Kili, complete with snowy top, back dropped by a clear blue sky. It does exist. However, happiness at seeing it was suddenly overtaken by the realisation that it was a blooming long way still to go. The route took us through heather and moorland during which time we had a couple of breaks, then just before camp we stopped at a cave originally entitled “First Cave”. Short photo op was had here, before continuing onto camp, known as “Second Cave”.

Here we met a large number of the Tanzanian army. As the final part of their training they must climb Kili, but they only have 3 days in which to do it. 2 days up and 1 day down. This is particularly hard as it gives you very little time to acclimatise. Standard medical advice says that once you are above 3000m you shouldn’t increase altitude by more than 300m a day. Due to the location of the camp sites on the mountain, we generally had to increase between 700-900m a day, but in order for the army to get up inside 2 days, they would have to increase altitude by almost 2000m a day. This can have very bad side effects, including headaches, nausea, vomiting, loss of appetite and inability to sleep. To make matters worse, the army were not allowed to sleep in tents and had to keep their boots on at night as well. There were sergeants out on the route making sure all rules were adhered to, and inflicting punishment on those who broke the rules. Dropping litter meant getting sent back to pick it all up and other punishments included sit ups and push ups. Lunch was taken at camp, another 3 course spectacular, then we had a few hours to ourselves before our acclimatisation walk. The walk took us up another 200m, then we came back for afternoon tea. Before dinner we joined the guides in their tent, discussing differences in British and Tanzanian culture. After our dinner, we went back to their tent and continued our discussion, whilst they ate their dinner of ugali. Luckily, we’d had a more Western based dinner rather than the local fare.

Heart Rate 95 (Melissa 78), Blood Oxygen Level 90 (Melissa 93)


Kilimanjaro - Third Cave - Altitude 3900m

2011-08-23

The night’s sleep wasn’t that great as the night-time temperature was getting colder. That left me in the not the greatest mood as we set out, but the views that morning were spectacular which really helped. We were well above the cloud level and so below us we could see fluffy, white, cotton wool balls, whilst ahead of us we could still clearly see the summit of Kili and to the side the twin peak of Mawenzi. It was a very short walk today, through more heather and moorland, and after a couple of hours we arrived at camp, called Third Cave, around 11. We had an early lunch, then took a siesta before heading out on an acclimatisation walk with Edward. During that time, we left Adam with the task of writing out lots of Swahili for us to learn. Up until this point we knew nothing more than jambo (hello), pole pole (slowly slowly) and poa kichizi kama ndizi (cool, crazy like a banana – apparently the response when someone asks you how you are). We were expecting nothing more than numbers 1 – 10 and days of the week, but in addition we animals, food, greetings, camping equipment, a popular song about Kilimanjaro and an explanation about the meanings of the different colours of the Tanzanian flag. Bed was at 8 again with more clothes and with the hope of a better night’s sleep.

Heart Rate 96 (Melissa 71), Blood Oxygen Level 93 (Melissa 90)


Kilimanjaro - Kibo Hut - Altitude 4700m

2011-08-24

Thankfully slept much better which, given what was fast approaching, was a relief. We had around a 4 hour walk, through alpine desert, gaining 800m in altitude in the process, although there was only a gradual incline so it wasn’t too stressful a walk. We had a few stops en route for drinks and for Melissa to go and wee behind rocks. We arrived at Kibo Camp, the largest campsite we had come across so far. The busiest route up the mountain, the Marangu route, meets with the Rongai route at Kibo meaning we had about double the number of people present. On the Marangu route, trekkers stay in huts rather than camping so the site had large huts as well as tent areas. As we arrived at the camp a large gust of wind blew in, swirling viciously and it picked up many of the tents, including one large mess tent and blew them way up into the air. They flew round in a large circle in the air before being hauled back down to earth by some frantic porters. The whole situation left us feeling a little nervous whenever the wind picked up whilst we were in either our tent or the mess tent. We had lunch and were given our summit briefing including, most importantly, how much clothing to wear. We were left under no illusions as to how hard it was going to be. The afternoon was spent in our tent, resting and trying to sleep. We could hear hail outside which was not welcome. It was going to be cold enough as it was without the added bonus of any form of precipitation. We may have dozed a little, but basically we spent the whole time awake. We had dinner at half 5, then it was back to the tent for more sleep and rest.

Heart Rate 90 (Melissa 75), Blood Oxygen Level 85 (Melissa 84)


Kilimanjaro - Horombo Hut - Altitude 3720m

2011-08-25

This entry should probably start under yesterday’s date as technically, that’s when it started. The alarm went off at 10.45pm for our toughest day. Bed tea at 11 was followed by breakfast at 11.15 ready for a midnight departure. Given the time and the altitude it was rather cold (approx minus 15) and so it was essential that we were dressed for the occasion. Therefore, the following items were all worn, from bottom upwards – 2 pairs of socks, base trousers, hiking trousers, waterproof trousers, base top, long sleeved hiking top, fleece jumper, lined coat, down jacket, balaclava, neck warmer, hat and 2 pairs of gloves. Looked a little like the Michelin man! We started hiking, knowing that the first part was going to be the hardest. From camp we could see the steep face of the mountain in front of us, and once we reached the top of that we knew we were only going to be at Gilman’s Point, 200m lower and 2 hours short of our final destination Uhuru Peak. However, it that had to be conquered first. The first half of the walk to Gilman’s was a series of switchbacks up scree. There are many reason given as to why you leave at midnight, the scree will be frozen, the ice at the top won’t have melted much by the time you come down, to ensure you have enough time to get up and down. However, I am firmly of the belief it’s so you can’t look up at any point and see just how much further there is to go. The guides can tell you what they like and you have no choice but to believe them! By around 2 we had reached a small cave where we stopped for a drinks break and to remove some of the layers as we were roasting and didn’t fancy being the first people to faint whilst doing the middle of the night summit attempt! For a while I thought the cave was Hans Meyer cave which would signify half way up the mountain in altitude terms. However, we soon reached Williams Point, the 5000m mark and I realised that was wishful thinking. In order to keep spirits up all the guides were singing, acapella style. It was largely in Swahili, but still was a distraction from the job at hand. Eventually the switchbacks did lead to the cave where we took another short drinks break. One of the biggest problems about hiking at that time is that you can’t stop for very long to rest as you cool down so quickly and get cold. So, you just keep on plodding on, Pole Pole. The route back down below us was littered by pinpricks of light, from each trekkers head torch, looking like a line of miners heading off to work. To the right, we could see lights of small Kenyan towns near the border.

We may have reached the halfway point altitude wise but the second half would be steeper. We were so tired at this point, we’d had no sleep and it was the middle of the night, that the guides decided to split us up. I carried on with Adam and Melissa walked with Edward. The switchbacks continued, to the left, the right, the left, the right, it was endless monotony. Suddenly the switchbacks finished and out of nowhere (at least in the dark) we had arrived at Jamaica Rocks, a series of large boulders covered in scree that had to be scrambled over. These were tough going and we had an hour of it. They stopped briefly, during which time we were back on the switchbacks, then they continued again although this time minus the scree. After 5 long hours, we reached the top and arrived at Gilman’s Point, at an altitude of 5681m, shortly followed by Melissa and Edward. If you time it right, you can spend some time here watching the sunrise but we were too early and sunrise was too far off for us to wait for it. Instead we began the 3 hour round trip to Uhuru Peak, the highest point in Africa. Luckily, this only meant an increase of 200m and so it was fairly easy going and relatively flat. The route was round the edge of the crater rim and during the walk the sun began to rise to the left of us. We passed Stella Point, the glacier near the summit, which is receding at such a speed that, if current rates continue, will be totally gone by 2020. Finally, at 7.00am, a most welcome sight, the summit of Uhuru Peak which, at 5895m, is the highest point in Africa. There were quite a few people up there although, thankfully, we had managed to beat the majority. There was a large number of the army up there, having reached the summit in 2 days and facing the prospect of going the whole way back down that day, and many of them seemed to be in a bad way. Adam gave out a few nausea tablets to those looking the worst! We were lucky as we had met an Australian in the Serengeti who had recently climbed the mountain and had given us her leftover Diamox. These tablets are taken to negate the effects of altitude, although side effects can include needing the loo a lot and tingling in the extremities. Luckily we only got the tingling, avoiding late night, dark toilet breaks. You are allowed 20 mins at the top, but any longer is deemed too dangerous when you haven’t acclimatised properly. We spent the time taking many, many photos of ourselves, the crater and the view. Then it was time to leave. With words of encouragement to those still on their way up, it was back the way we came, only much quicker. Back to Gilman’s Point, then over the damn rocks, and down the scree.

It only took 2 hours down meaning a total of 9 hours walking and it wasn’t even 10am! Down at the camp we got to collapse in our tent for an hour before an early lunch. However, by this point altitude and tiredness had gotten the better of us and our appetites has disappeared, so we packed up camp and began to head down the mountain. We came down the opposite side of the mountain, meaning we had literally walked over the top of it! The route down was the Marangu route, also known as the Coca-Cola route. It is the most popular route with trekkers staying in huts rather than camping (unless you are coming down the Rongai route, in which case you still camp). It took us 3 hours to get down to Horombo hut, where we were breaking up the journey, meaning 9 hours walking in total. Considering they warn you the day would be 11-15 hours, we did pretty good. We got afternoon tea before dinner, but luckily there was no need for acclimatisation walks on the way down. Eventually, at 8pm, after pulling an all nighter for the first time in goodness knows how long, we got our first bit of sleep in 38 hours.

Heart Rate 106 (Melissa 89), Blood Oxygen Level 92 (Melissa 93)


Moshi - Altitude 850m

2011-08-26

Our last day on the mountain treated us to an early 6am start. We did however get an extra sausage for breakfast, it’s just a shame we didn’t like the sausages! Breakfast was followed by the tipping ceremony. This is where the crew sang the “Kilimanjaro song” for us after which we got to address the crew, tell them how wonderful they were and present them with their tips. For the chef and the porters, this was the last time we would see them. Adam and Edward were to hike with us today, but our bags would be waiting for us at the bottom with the porters gone. The descent would take us down approximately 2000m, particularly jarring on the knees. We started above the cloud, walking through heather and moorland, before passing through the clouds and coming out below them into natural rainforest, where we encountered our first bit of rain. We took lunch at an overnight camp for those coming up the mountain, then carried on through the rainforest, passing a blue monkey. We got back to the Marangu gate just after half 1, where we said our goodbyes to Adam and Edward, and were transferred back to Moshi for a well deserved shower and a sleep in a proper bed.


Zanizbar

2011-08-27 to 2011-08-30

Our final morning on mainland Tanzania, we got a transfer to Kilimanjaro International Airport. It’s really not as grand as it sounds! We caught a small propeller plane over to the spice island of Zanzibar. The views as we came into land were amazing – small coral patches scattered out over the ocean. Technically, Zanzibar is the name for the whole archipelago and the island we were staying on is Unguja, but everyone refers to Zanzibar as the main island. We were staying at the North end of the island, in a small village called Nungwi. It was going to take us around an hour to transfer there from the airport. En route, we stopped at a spice tour. Zanzibar, until very recently, was independent of Tanzania and was a big player in the slave trade and the export of spices. Although the spices no longer dominate the economy (90% of people on Zanzibar work in tourism), there are still many spice plantations dotted around the island that you can visit to learn about the spices and see what they look like before they arrive in your kitchen. We saw black pepper, tiny pineapples, red bananas, vanilla, cinnamon, cloves, lemon, cardamom, lemongrass, jack fruit, nutmeg and lipstick tree. This is a tree whose fruit produces a vivid dark red paste that you could paint on yourself. One of the guides then scaled a coconut tree and cut down 2 coconuts for us to drink the milk.

Following the spice tour, we drove the rest of the way up the island to Nungwi, where we were greeted by white sands and clear blues seas. Just like the photos and just what we needed following our Kili trek. Our accommodation was a small bungalow, with veranda, just 30 seconds walk from the beach, next to a swimming pool. First stop, after dumping our stuff, was of course to hit the beach, find a bar and have ourselves a cold beer. The evening was spent watching the sunset and then having dinner of fresh prawns and fresh fish.

The next day was so very, very busy! We got up and had breakfast served to us on our veranda – lots of fresh fruit, bread, eggs and juice. Then we had a hectic morning of lazing around the pool, relaxing, taking a dip and reading. Such hard work. Mid afternoon, we took a stroll along the beach and had a cocktail, followed shortly by dinner. Back at the room we played some cards. It was truly a very knackering day!

The next morning, missing those ridiculously early starts, we got up at half 5 and headed down to the beach. The sun was just coming up and we got some amazing photos. Being right at the North tip of the island meant we could clearly see both sunset and sunrise. There were lots of little fishing dhows along the beach and at around 7 they started coming ashore and bringing the morning’s catch with them. The first few were bringing what we thought to be decent sized fish with them. However, these were followed by marlin so big that in one case it took 10 men to drag it up the beach and put the smaller fish to shame! At the top of this section of beach was a small hut which operated as an auction house and where the fish were sold, presumably to owners of the beachfront restaurants. The whole setup was quite an impressive sight. Back at the hotel, we breakfasted then had a short nap to compensate for the early start. Then it was back to the pool to continue with the reading and relaxing. After lunch we took a slow walk up the beach to a turtle sanctuary, home to lot of green sea turtles. We spent some time with them and got to hold some baby turtles. The evening followed a similar fashion to the other nights, in that we had a beer followed by a fresh fish dinner at a beachside restaurant.

Our final day of holiday saw us having another early start! This time after breakfast we caught a shuttle back down the island and stopped off in Stone Town where we were going to do a short walking tour. The area is known as Old Town to the locals but as Stone Town to tourists and is a maze of narrow passageways, famous (apparently) for its doors. It is also where Queen front man Freddie Mercury was born and lived until he was 8 although no one knows for sure which house was his. The tour started at the site of the old Slave market. All that remains are the holdings cells as the rest of the site has been converted in part to a hostel and in part to an Anglican cathedral, which includes a crucifix dedicated to David Livingstone and is in fact made out of the wood of the tree that Livingstone’s heart was buried under. We walked round the streets, stopping to admire the doors. They are based on Indian doors and have many large spikes in them. These spikes are there to protect from charging elephants. We also saw Jaws Corner, where men come to set the world to rights, and the Old Fort. We had lunch in a small restaurant on the seafront and then it was time to say goodbye to Zanzibar, goodbye to Tanzania and goodbye to Africa as we flew from Zanzibar to Dar es Salaam to Doha and finally back to London.


Summary

2011-08-31

To summarise my trip, here are the all important stats:

Number of days – 21

Flights taken – 6

Number of nights spent in tents – 13

Number of nights spent in a hotel – 6

Nights spent in the middle of a game reserve with barely any protection – 2

Number of Big 5 seen – 4

Times we accepted drugs off strangers – 1 (Diamox)

Times we gave drugs to strangers – 1 (Diamox)

Size of crew for the 2 of us up Kili – 7

Altitude Reached – 5895m above sea level

Ave daily calories consumed on Kili – a few thousand!

Times eaten peppery cucumber soup – 4 (it wasn’t great the first time)

Dogs seen on mountain that could have made us famous – 1

Items of clothing worn on summit night – 15

Dust eaten/taken home with us – far too much

Blisters – 0

Mossie Bites – 7

Drenchings from freak wave – 1 (but only Melissa)

Showers Taken – 6

Days without a drop of rain – 9 


A hunt for the Northern Lights

2011-12-09

It was only a very last minute decision to write this holiday up in my blog. It's not one of my standard three week jaunts, being just 8 days but given that this holiday was built around a desire to go see the Northern Lights I thought I'd add it in. After all, a holiday based on the number one item on your bucket list surely deserves to be put up in lights!

So, the basic premise for this holiday is an initial flight to Bergen, for a day exploring the fjords. From here we will take the Hurtigruten coastal ferry up the coast for 2 nights, to Trondheim. A quick flight above the Arctic Circle, will see us land in Tromso, land of polar nights and (hopefully) Northern Lights.

We are not quite sure what to expect with the lights - whilst knowing that they will be nothing like what you see on Frozen Planet, it's hard to know what they will be like. How much is camera trickery and how much is an amazing natural phenomenon. Hopefully, it will be more of the latter than the former.

The "we" in all this is myself and my good friend Melissa, of Nepal and Kili fame, possibly the only person I know who would be prepared to spend their holiday time in potentially below freezing temperatures!


Bergen, Fjords

2011-12-11 to 2011-12-12

Arrived in Bergen after dark and headed into the city centre to our hostel. We took a walk around the Bryggen area of town – lots of wonky, wooden, coloured buildings. It was rather cold which doesn’t bode too well for heading further North. Before heading back to the hostel we stopped for dinner and got our first glimpse of the rather exorbitant prices we could expect to pay during the week. For a portion of fajitas we paid over £25 with another £8-9 for less than a pint of beer.

The next morning, we went out early to try and find a bakery to buy some breakfast. Nothing was open yet so we ended up in a 7-11 buying a ham and cheese toastie. We were booked on a tour out to see the fjords and so we had to head to the station for the first leg, a train to Voss. The train left at half 8 and so it was still dark in Bergen, with the sun slowly coming up as we hit the countryside. After an hour we arrived in Voss and could play in the snow whilst connecting onto our bus to Gudvangen. Here we had to wait for our boat which was going to take us on our trip through the fjords. Whilst we were waiting we got to watch a French TV crew filming for German TV about the fjords – take after take after take. Who says TV is glamorous? The boat took us out initially into the Nærøyfjorden and the whole way we were cutting through the ice. It was only thin ice but it was fun to pretend we were on an ice breaker heading to Antarctica. We passed through small towns such as Nærøy and Dyrdal where the only access is by boat – there are no roads for cars. After an hour we turned out of Nærøyfjorden and into Sognefjord. Here we did not have to break so much ice in order to pass through but the final stretch of the journey through Aurlandsfjorden was back to playing ice breaker. After 2 hours on the water, during which time we had watched the snow fall, we arrived in Flåm home to the famous Flåm railway. We had an hour to amuse ourselves here, including the railway museum, before our train left. The train rises 865m up to the town of Myrdal over just 20km. This makes it one of the steepest railways in the world, with tunnels in the mountain where it’s just too steep to carry on the same route. About half way up the route was the Kjosfossen waterfall where we stopped for 5 minutes for a photo stop. Once we reached Myrdal, we changed trains again and connected onto a train back to Bergen. By the time we got back to Bergen it was dark again and so we never saw Bergen by daylight! Back in town we collected our large backpacks which we had left in the luggage lockers at the station during the day. We walked down to the Hurtigruten Coastal Ferry terminal which was to be our transport for the next couple of days.


Hurtigruten, Trondheim

2011-12-13 to 2011-12-14

The Hurtigruten Coastal Ferry is a Norwegian institution. The boat travels between Bergen and Kirkenes daily taking 7 days and stops at various small towns and villages along the way. Many of these villages rely on the boat for supplies and the tourists that the boat brings in. At each port you can stop, get off and explore the town. At the smaller ports there is just 30 minutes or so but at the larger ports you can be given 3 or more hours. There is a strict departure time though so make sure you are back in time!! Melissa and I had a two bed cabin with a window, which meant I had to pull my bed out of the wall and Melissa had to flip the sofa to get her bed. We had a small bathroom and a wardrobe for our clothes, which we didn’t use. Due to time constraints we weren’t taking the ferry all the way to Kirkenes but instead we were heading to Trondheim which was 2 nights, but 1 day journey away. After boarding and having a nose around at the two hot tubs, restaurant, cafe and multiple bars we decided it was time for food. The restaurant being expensive even for Norway we opted for the cafe and had beautiful fish and chips – the chips being seasoned with something delicious although I couldn’t tell you what!! We went and had a celebratory drink in one of the bars whilst listening to some interesting musical entertainment by a pair who kept missing the word “door” out of the classic “Knocking on Heavens Door”. At half 10 we sailed away from Bergen and headed North.

Despite stopping a couple of times during the night at various ports, we slept right through and woke up at 8 where we were out on open water and so it was a little bumpy. We had breakfast then headed back to our cabin where we fell asleep again, mainly because it was still dark! We forced ourselves out of bed around 11 by which time we had returned to the inland fjord waters which were much calmer. Around midday we arrived in the small town of Alesund, where we had 3 hours to amuse ourselves. The town is famous for its art deco architecture and we decided the best way to see it would be to climb to the top of Fjellstua mountain. The way up was rather icy given the weather conditions, but we slipped and slid up 418 steps until we reached the top. At the top we had views out over the town, the sea and the surrounding mountains. Upon returning to the bottom we spent some time walking round town, then stopped for a hot chocolate and cake before returning to the boat. We had a few more hours of sailing before arriving into the small town of Molde. There was very little to do in Molde and as we were only docked for an hour we took a walk down the main high street and back before re-boarding the boat. After dinner in the cafe again we had a chilled evening during which I dyed Melissa’s hair for her – not an easy job given the size of the bathroom!! We made one further stop that evening in Kristiansund, but it was late and so we decided to see the town from inside our cabin!!

The next morning we arrived in Trondheim early but we did not have to leave the boat until just before it left port at around midday. We did decide to start early as we had lots we wanted to do starting, of course, by filling up on our buffet breakfast. Upon leaving the boat we headed into the centre of Trondheim – a half hour walk if you go the correct route, longer if you go in circles! We left our bags at the train station and walked into town. It was quite a small town despite it being the third most populous in the country. We visited Stiftsgarden, home to the Royal Residence in Trondheim, the Nidaros Cathedral with the Archbishops Residence, the Bryggen warehouses and then up another steep, slippery hill to the Kristiansten Fort. Once again we had views out over the whole town and the surrounding hills. Back down in town we hit the shops, had a drink and visited a Christmas market. Then it was time to return to the train station, in order to catch a train to the airport. En route, we stopped in the small village of Hell and actually, Hell’s not that bad!! That evening, we flew from Trondheim up to Tromso for the final, and hopefully most exciting, part of our journey.


Tromso - Snow shoeing and Huskies

2011-12-15 to 2011-12-16

That evening we flew up to Tromso, way above the Arctic Circle and land of the Polar Night. This meant we weren’t expecting to see any daylight for the 4 days we were going to be there. However, we weren’t too sure whether that would be total darkness the whole time. As it turned out between about 10 – 1 we were greeted with a sort of bluish haze, normally associated with dawn, which lit up the sky enough to see but not so much that street lights could be turned off. Whilst this far North we were also hoping to see the Northern Lights, this being the peak of an 11 year cycle and predicted to be really strong. However, there is no guarantee of sightings, it all depends on cloud cover, artificial light and various other factors. Hit and miss it most certainly is!! We also prepared ourselves for some extremely cold temperatures. Average temperatures in December are below 0, and the record December high is less than 10 degrees. That evening we ordered take away pizza and dyed my hair in a slightly bigger bathroom!!

Our first morning we headed into town where we were collected by a tour company for the first of the many Winter excursions we had planned. We were taken out about half an hour from town to a centre in the mountains, overlooking the town, where we were to spend the next day and a half. The primary purpose was as a husky dog centre, but numerous other activities were available. We were starting with snow shoeing. This is like hiking with a pair of short skies on. Once we’d gotten used to the technique it was actually quite fun. We were told the route to take then sent off on our own with the promise that if we weren’t back by half 1 (3 hours later) they would call us to make sure we weren’t lost since it would be getting dark by then!! Being the intrepid explorers that we are, and given the absolute lack of experience of snow shoeing, we decided the best thing to do would be leave the advised route and find our own way. This meant we went out “hiking” through snow that was knee deep, over uneven ground and narrowly avoiding falling into streams that we couldn’t see due to the amount of snow! It was all good fun, though somewhat knackering, but we had some stunning views, even if they were constantly interrupted by the barking of the huskies echoing off the mountains. After an hour and a half we made it back to the centre for a warming cup of tea and a rather large slice of amazing chocolate cake!

In the afternoon we were taken to see the husky puppies. The pups were about 6 months old and so consequently were quite big and very hyperactive. They would jump all over anyone that went within their enclosure which was not much fun when they’ve been running round the pen all day with dog shit on the floor. We had a few hours to ourselves that afternoon, with another slice of cake, then we were shown to our lavvu. A lavvu is a traditional Sami (the local indigenous people) dwelling, often called a tent although not a tent in the camping sense. Shaped like a wigwam, often with a fire in the middle for warmth, and decorated with reindeer skins, the lavvu was where we were going to be sleeping that night. They had kindly decorated it with Christmas decorations as well, and we had a small window to look out over the mountains and down to the sea. In the evening, others arrived for some husky dog riding and also to use the centres’ terrace for a spot of Northern Lights searching. Unfortunately, it was not to be the night. There were about 10 of us looking in all directions but it was too cloudy and we could see nothing. For dinner we were served Bidos – reindeer stew – and a slice of chocolate cake. The reindeer was delicious, a bit like beef, served with vegetables. They also make a broth out of the juices which was very tasty as well. We had a spot more light searching that evening but at midnight we gave up hope and returned to our lavvu in an attempt to defrost and sleep.

The lavvu was a tad chilly during the night but we did manage to sleep, wrapped up in more reindeer skins that left hair all over everything we owned! In the morning, we were served breakfast, then got to go off on our husky ride. We were in a sled being pulled by 8 dogs and being controlled by a musher. We were out for an hour with the dogs occasionally pulling us at such an angle that we almost tipped out! It was all good fun, apart from when the dogs at the back of the pulling team, and consequently right in front of us, did a couple of big, fat, very smelly poos. We were at the front of about 10 sleighs so I think we had the best views through the freshest snow. The barking of the dogs was again incredibly loud and at times sounded like they were howling like wolves. After the husky ride we were served lunch. Again we had reindeer but this time it was served in a creamy mushroom sauce, with mash potato. Once the mushrooms were removed it was delicious. We also got our 4th piece of chocolate cake inside 24 hours!! We were taken back into town where we got our first chance to explore. We went to the Polaria – the polar Museum – which had a couple of exhibits about the Arctic and Polar Regions. We also saw the seal training. We went back to the hotel and after a spot of food, we headed down to the beach where we finally got a glimpse of what we had been searching for. The Northern Lights. They were very faint, with a slight greenish tinge and very wispy. They didn’t stick around for long but we now knew that if we didn’t get a better view we had at least seen them. It was a very successful evening, celebrated with a hot chocolate at the hotel!!


Tromso - Reindeers, Lights and Mountains

2011-12-17 to 2011-12-19

After a very successful night we treated ourselves to a lay in at the hotel. After checking out we went to explore the town properly. In the centre is a lovely wooden church close to a statue of Norway’s most famous son – Roald Amundsen. We walked down to the waterfront and around the wharf. Stopped for lunch in a pub then walked over the bridge to the Polar Cathedral. There was a concert rehearsal going on so we were not allowed in for half an hour. We had a walk round as it was interesting to see the town centre from over the water. Back in the centre of town we went to get our coach for our next excursion. It was a 75 minute drive before arriving at a little hut where we were kitted out in full length all in one extra warm jumpsuits and fur lined boots. We then went to meet our guide and our reindeer as we were about to go reindeer sledding. Our guide was a native Sami. The Sami’s are the local, indigenous people who herd the reindeer and live in the mountains. Our guide told us lots about the Sami culture and about the clothes he wears and how he keeps warm in the winter. He told us that that day he was wearing his summer outfit as it was only minus 15 when normally it’s minus 50! He showed us how to throw a lasso and then we were able to have a practice ourselves aiming at a set of reindeer horns. I narrowly missed but Melissa managed to get the reindeer – in an emergency I shall now be relying on her to capture dinner!!! We then jumped onto our sleds and off walked the reindeer around a field. It was a little disappointing in the end as we got one lap of the field and that was all. We’d been hoping for more like the huskies and an hour or so. We also only had one reindeer per sled so we couldn’t pretend to be Santa. We were then taken to a lavvu and explained the layout and where people slept. It was very cold and we grateful when we were taken to another lavvu where there was a roaring fire and served a couple of bowls of reindeer soup.

We were then taken to our 2 man lavvu, which was very different to our one at the husky centre. We had a proper fire in the middle which we had to keep on topping up throughout the evening. We were sleeping on the floor on top of reindeer skins, which themselves were on top of branches from Christmas Trees. We had a sauna about a 20m walk from us and we were just preparing to go there when we got a knock on the door “Come quick, the lights are really strong at the moment” and they weren’t kidding. We finally got exactly what we’d been waiting for. The Northern Lights in its full glory. Mainly greens, dancing across the sky, looking like stardust falling. So delicate yet clearly visible. It looks so different from the photos. Cameras manage to really accentuate the colour and the size of the lights, but they cannot capture the elegance and delicacy of the lights. Like grains of sand running through your fingers. At one point we were lying on our backs in the snow watching the light show. Truly amazing. After an hour or so they had faded away and so, feeling really rather very proud of ourselves, we headed back to our lavvu, changed into borrowed dressing gowns, topped the look off with the fur lined boots and our down jackets and plodded over to the sauna trying desperately to ensure that in the darkness we didn’t slip on the icy parts! It was a very strange sight!! Although we didn’t spend long in there it was the perfect Scandinavian end to a very spectacular Scandinavian sight.

The fire in our lavvu died down somewhere during the night, but we were still toasty warm. We had breakfast of fresh bread, ham and cheese – one variety of which was brown and very unique to the area. We were taken back to town where, as it was half 10 on a Sunday morning, everything was closed. We took a very slow walk back over the bridge, past the Polar Cathedral, to the Fjellheisen cable car. From the top we had amazing views out over the whole town, down past the airport, all the surrounding mountains and the water. From that height we also had a great view of the sunrise that never fully occurred and the sunset that never quite was. Considering the lack of sun, both were pretty spectacular. We walked around a lot at the top and kept falling into large snow piles which was fun. Eventually, it was time to head back to our hotel for the final time as this was our last night. The following day we packed up and headed for the airport in order to fly home, although it would still be another 24 hours before we finally saw some daylight!!!


Summary

2011-12-20

So, as it was only a short trip I’ll keep this brief.

Modes of transport used – 4

Flights taken – 4

Different airlines used – 4

Days with no daylight – 4

Towns with snow on the ground – all of them!

Nights spent in a lavvu – 2

Nights spent in a hotel – 4

Nights spent on a boat – 2

Times seen Northern Lights – 2

Number of huskies attached to our sled – 8

Number of reindeer attached to my sled – 1


About to go

2012-09-28

So, that time of year has come around again – yes I’m off on the latest stage of “Hannah’s crazy holidays”. Disappointingly for one of my colleagues, there are no mountains to be climbed this year (he can’t understand why anyone wouldn’t want to spend their holiday in Southern Spain getting drunk) and, in his words, I’m heading off into a “war zone”. To be fair, he’s not that far wrong on that point. With a trip planned for two and a half weeks to the barely stable Northern Africa/Middle East region, who knows what will happen. If all goes to plan, I’ll be spending approximately 10 days in Egypt and one week in Jordan. Having scrutinised the FCO website this morning, Jordan appears to be totally safe and only the Sinai region of Egypt is a no-go area. Hmm, we are supposed to be travelling to, and overnighting in, this region to see Mount Sinai and St Katharine’s Monastery. And even if that gets scrapped, we still need to travel across it to get down to the Red Sea which is our gateway to Jordan. I guess it’s a case of Watch This Space...

So, because of the potential security issues in the region, I’ve decided to play it safe and book a trip with G Adventures (formally known as Gap Adventures) starting in Cairo, heading down to Aswan, up the Nile to Luxor, back to Cairo, across to the previously mentioned Sinai region and down to the Red Sea before crossing into Jordan to sleep in the desert at Wadi Rum, visit Petra, head up to Madaba and swim in the Dead Sea before arriving in Amman. This trip would allow us to see both old and new wonders of the world in the form of the Pyramids and Petra. All in all, it looks like it will be a good trip and if the only down side is that I’ll have to spend 5 hours flying SqueezyJet to get home (although I shouldn’t complain too much as it’s costing £100 and it’s into Gatwick – result) it’ll be a fab holiday!


Cairo

2012-10-03 to 2012-10-05

So, apparently there are very few direct flights between London and Cairo and even less at sensible times. Having booked myself on the very reasonably timed BA flight, they proceeded to cancel it and rebook me on one that landed at midnight. Now, given that all tours have a welcome meeting on the first day at about 6, I prefer to arrive a little earlier than midnight. And flying out the night before wasn’t an option, as the flight left Heathrow at 6 and I would be in work in the City until 5. So, I had to cancel that flight and book myself on an Alitalia flight via Rome which arrived at 3 in the afternoon, but left Heathrow at 6.50am. Now there is no way of getting from Croydon to Heathrow for 5am so I decided the best bet was to spend the night in a hotel at Heathrow the night before. This meant a crazy attempt to get out of work on time, get home, change, finish the final bits of packing and get back on the train/tube in order to get to Heathrow for a fairly sensible time. In the end I made it to the hotel for 9pm so I did at least get a few hours of sleep before the alarm went off at 4.30am (little did I know that soon I’d be considering that a lay in!) We were the third flight to leave that morning and it was a fairly uneventful 2 hours before landing in Rome. Definite improvement in the weather was noticed. Rome airport was a bit of a dump and the flight to Cairo was half empty – apparently no one wants to go there at the moment. After another dull 3 hours (Alitalia don’t believe in in-flight entertainment) I had arrived in Cairo. It was empty. No queue for visas, no queue at passport control, no queue at customs and no wait at baggage control as my bag was one of the first off. It meant I was able to get myself a taxi and see the city pretty quickly.

And what a city it was. The dust, the heat, the noise, the beeping, the blatant disregard for road rules which made me very grateful to be wearing a seatbelt even if I was the only person for 5 miles in either direction on that stretch of road to be doing so. It was so reminiscent of other trips and in a way made me feel right at home. Eventually arrived at the hotel, which was down a random back street, and treated myself to a well deserved shower. At 6 that evening, we had our welcome meeting and I got to meet the rest of the tour group. We cover the full range of ages (72 down to 25) and a full spectrum of nationalities, although interestingly only ones with English as a first language. Maybe mainland Europe doesn’t think Egypt is safe yet. Our guide, Michael, took us out to dinner at a restaurant opposite the hotel although, disappointingly, there was no Egyptian food on the menu, just Western food. Is was slightly odd being in a bar where everyone is smoking so freely – at times like this you remember just how good the smoking ban is. Most of the locals were smoking Sheesha rather than tobacco so at least the smell wasn’t so bad.

During the night I was woken up by the arrival of my roommate for the next two and a half weeks, Georgia, who had arrived off a very late flight from Istanbul and only made it to the hotel at 3.15am. Unfortunately for her, I had to return the favour at 7.15 the next morning to ensure we were up and breakfasted in time for our departure. Although we had a busy day planned for Cairo we were not coming back to the hotel so all bags had to be packed and rooms checked out of. First stop was the Egyptian Museum, home to many seriously old artefacts, mummies and treasures. The museum is located really close of Tahrir Square, home of the Egyptian Revolution of 2011 and still home to the occasional protest, but all was quiet today. Sadly, you are not allowed to take photos inside the museum, in fact you have to hand your camera in before going inside. They do have a few statues in the grounds that you are allowed to photograph. In the entrance to the museum, once you’ve gone through your second metal detector of the morning, is a copy of the Rosetta Stone. The original stone is on display at the British Museum in London and was critical in finally helping historians translate hieroglyphic script after its discovery, outside Alexandria, in 1799. Inside the museum, the exhibits were split into three eras – Old, Middle and New Kingdoms and the items on display were sometimes incredibly delicate and priceless. The Old Kingdom was from 2500-2100BC, Middle was 2100-1650BC and the New Kingdom was 1650-1100BC, so not really that new!

Downstairs we learnt about the Egyptian Kings and Gods, who they were and how to recognise them etc. When we went upstairs we came across the prize exhibit of the museum. The death mask of King Tutankhamun and the contents of his tomb. King Tut was never the most famous of the Egyptian pharaohs. He ruled from 1336-1327BC and had lived a fairly insignificant life. However, this all changed thanks to Howard Carter in 1922 who stumbled across his tomb in the Valley of the Kings in Luxor. Every tomb that had been found prior to this had had its contents stolen, believed to be by local Bedouins. As King Tut hadn’t been a very important King, the tomb of King Ramses VI had been built mostly covering Tut’s tomb. This meant that it had been missed by the Bedouin people and when Carter stumbled across it years later, he found all the possessions that Tut had been buried with for his new life in the afterlife. Instant fame for Tut (and Carter). The death mask itself is made of solid gold and weighs 11kg. It would have covered the whole of the mummy’s head. The mummy was found inside three large sarcophagi, each one slightly smaller than the last, Russian doll style. Most of the jewels, carriages and trinkets found with the mummy are also on display. We spent close to 3 hours in the museum but still didn’t feel like we’d covered half of the things on display.

During the afternoon, it was time to visit Egypt’s best known tourist attraction and the only one of the original 7 wonders of the world still remaining – the Pyramids. They are located in the suburb of Giza which is a bit odd as you can see them quite clearly from the road when driving round Cairo! There are three main pyramids, each one for a different King. The largest belongs to King Cheops, the second to his son King Chephren and the smallest to King Mycerinus. They were grandfather, father and son. King Mycerinus’ pyramid is surrounded by three smaller pyramids, for each of his wives. His is also the smallest as he died before his tomb was completed and so the Pyramid had to be hastily built during the 80 day mummification period. There have never been any treasures found in any of the tombs as it’s believed that the Bedouins stole them. All three pyramids were built on the Western side of the Nile, as this was associated with the setting sun and consequently the journey to the afterlife.

From a viewpoint near the Pyramids we could see all the way out over Cairo even as far as the Step Pyramids and the Pyramid of Saqqara. Our final stop in Giza was at the Sphinx belonging to the King Chephren. Carved out of the rock, in approximately 2500BC, the Sphinx had the face of a man and the body of a lion, complete with a tail. It stands 73.5m long, 19.3m wide and 20.22m high.

When we finally left the site it was 4.30 and we all wanted lunch! We stopped at a small restaurant and were served traditional food such as falafel, before carrying on to the train station for our overnight train to Aswan. The cabins on the train were quite luxurious compared to some I’ve been on. Georgia and I had a private cabin with a sofa that turned into a 2 berth bunk. The room also had a small sink and there were toilets at the far end of the carriage. Dinner was served on the train and was a small airline style dinner consisting of fish, salad and chocolate cake.


Aswan

2012-10-06 to 2012-10-07

13 hours after we left Cairo we arrived in Aswan. Breakfast was served in our cabins and involved lots of bread! The city of Aswan is a lot less chaotic than Cairo, with noticeably less beeping of horns (although not cut out altogether)! The city is situated on the banks of the Nile, to the South of the country and is home to one of the largest engineering feats ever undertaken – the Aswan High Dam, but more on that shortly.

The train arrived around 9am and we headed straight to our hotel to freshen up. After an hour or so half of the group decided to head out and see Philea Temple, situated on Philea Island in the middle of the Nile. After the first Dam was built the Temple was underwater for 6 months of every year. With the building of the High Dam, the temple was going to be totally submerged and so, with the help of UNESCO, the temple was painstakingly moved, stone by stone, onto nearby Agilkia island, a process which took from 1972 until 1980. This is clearly a very impressive feat, but when you are there and you realise that you cannot tell that the temple had been dismantled and put back together, it becomes even more astonishing. The island was then renamed Philea Temple, sculpted to look like the previous Philea Island and then job done. All that is left of the remaining island is a black pole sticking out of the water and marking the spot. The oldest ruins date from 380BC and have many intricate carvings on them, mainly of Isis, Osiris and Horus. The temple was taken over by Christians, who defaced many of the pagan images and inscriptions were later vandalised by Muslims. We were just starting to look round the temple when an Egyptian camera crew came over and started speaking to Michael. It turned out they wanted to film us all for Egyptian TV telling all the views just how wonderful Egypt is and how safe it is. So, we all took it in turns telling everyone just how safe Egypt is and how you should come here now! We should be on YouTube soon.

That afternoon, we went off to the local bazaar to have a look around but aside from an array of spices and some female clothing, that would be deemed inappropriate here let alone in a conservative Muslim country, there didn’t seem to be that much. That evening we had a boat trip out around many of the islands in the Nile. The largest island is Elephantine Island and has a very ugly hotel being built in the middle of it but many of the other islands were very pretty. On the West Bank we saw many tombs of famous and important Aswan people including some Kings and the mausoleum Aga Khan III, who died in 1957. The boat dropped us on the West Bank and we took a couple of jeeps a short distance inland to a Nubian family home where we were due to have dinner. Dinner was served whilst we were sat on the floor and consisted of rice, pasta, chicken, vegetables and chips (possibly the last part was added for our benefit – I’m not convinced they would pass off as local food) and was very delicious. After dinner, it was back in the jeeps and across the river by boat in order to have an early night at the hotel.

The next morning we had a wake up call at 3am. Let me say that again. We had a wake up call at 3am. The reason being that we were off to see the temples of Abu Simbel. These temples are 280km south of Aswan and just 40km from the Sudan border. Because of this, the Egyptian police don’t like tourists going on their own so they provide a police escort and insist that all tourist groups go in convoy and leave Aswan at 4am. Why we couldn’t go a bit later, I don’t know, but generally I don’t like to argue with men with big guns! The drive is through the desert which I’m sure was beautiful however I, like the rest of the minivan, decided to catch up on some missed sleep. The convoy consisted of 16 minivans, 3 coaches and a handful of cars which apparently constitutes “no tourists” as in peak season, before the Revolution, there were be in excess of 100 vehicles in each of two convoys – one at 4 and one at 4.30. We arrived at the temples at 7.30am along with a few hundred other people.

The temples themselves are surrounded by Lake Nasser, a man-made lake that was created with the building of the Aswan Dam. Like Philea Temple, Abu Simbel temples also had to be moved piece by piece to avoid them being swamped by water once the Dam was created. The “new” temples were built in exactly the same condition as the old ones, even where part of the face of one the temples had fallen off and is lying at the base. The main temple is the Great Temple of King Ramses II which was built 1274 and 1244 BC and was carved out of the mountain. Outside there are 4 giant statues each one of the King. The temple was dedicated to the Sun God Ra. Inside there are many carvings including one showing how he beat the King of Syria – although in Syria there is a temple depicting the same scene but with the reverse result leading people to believe they actually called a truce but didn’t want to tell their people. The final chamber of the temple has 4 statues inside – Ramses II plus 3 Gods and on 2 days each year the first rays of sunrise falls directly onto the face of King Ramses II. This effect existed in the original temple and it was ensured that the rebuilt temple had the same effect.

The second temple on the site is dedicated to Hathor and was built by Ramses II for the favourite of his 40 wives, Nefertari (not to be confused with Nefertiti). Outside this temple are 6 large statues, 4 of him and 2 of her. Unusually, she is portrayed as the same height as him, whereas usually wives were much smaller, possibly only the height of the Kings knee. The inside of this temple was much smaller, but still had plenty of carvings on it. At 10am on the dot, the time dictated by the police, all tour groups departed the complex and the temples were plunged into desertion. The drive back involved a bit more sleeping and a drive over the old Aswan dam before arriving back at the hotel around 2pm. In the afternoon, I went for a walk around Aswan including a visit to the Coptic Cathedral which is still being built. It was rather strange as downstairs looked really plain and bare but hosted weddings, including one that afternoon, but upstairs was beautifully decorated. That evening we went for dinner on one of the many restaurant boats moored up on the Nile and managed what had so far been the impossible – to eat a meal that didn’t involve bread!


Felucca, Luxor

2012-10-08 to 2012-10-10

We managed something bordering a lay in before our Nile cruise as we didn’t need to be on the felucca until 10. A felucca is a traditional Nile sailing boat and although they are very basic, they are very relaxing with cushion laden decks for lolling on. By basic, I mean there are no amenities on board i.e. no toilets. Hmm, interesting considering we were going to spend the whole day on the boat and staying overnight. Never fear though, we were to meet up with a motor boat for lunch, dinner and overnight and this boat had toilets and a kitchen on board. The group was split into two as each boat could only hold 8 or so. The sailing was slow going as we had to travel in a zig zag motion from one back to the other. However, it was very chilled and we spent most of the journey lying back and enjoying the scenery or playing cards. The lunch stop was along the banks of the river alongside the motor boat and afterwards we were allowed a little paddle/swim in the Nile. We continued after lunch for another few hours with the only drama being trying to get under a new bridge that wasn’t high enough for the sail to fit under upright. After a few attempts we managed to get under. The boats are not allowed to sail after dark so by 6 we were moored up next to the motorboat and a pump station where we had dinner and Michael taught us some Egyptian games, that I was actually quite good at. At about 11 it was time to head back onto our feluccas, grab a blanket, lie down on the cushions and sleep under the stars.

The next morning we were up with the sunrise at half 5 and after breakfast we transferred into a minivan that met us along the banks of the river and was going to take us to Luxor via a couple of stops. The first of these stops was Kom Ombo temple. The temple was built in the Ptolemaic period (approx 180BC onwards) and is dedicated to the Falcon God Horus and the crocodile God Sobek, who was also God of Fertility. The temple had two Hypostyle halls, each one with multiple high, freestanding columns. There were also three antechambers, the final one would have been used by priests to collect offerings of food to the Gods but which, because Gods can’t eat, the priests would eat themselves. Next to the temple was a crocodile museum, with many mummified crocodiles inside and articles about the God Sobek.

The second stop en route to Luxor was at the Temple of Horus in Edfu. This temple was also built in the Ptolemaic era and was only rediscovered about 200 years ago under piles and piles of rubbish as the locals had been using the site for waste disposal! The ceiling of the temple was black, although there are only theories and no hard proof as to why. It’s possible that the early Christians had fires inside the temple when hiding out or it may have been because the locals burned their rubbish inside the temple. No-one really knows why. The temple had many side rooms, used for storing things such as jars or jewellery and unlike the other temples we have seen there was a second level although we were not allowed up there.

From Edfu, it was a 2 hour drive to Luxor, where we had the afternoon off so most people headed to the hotel rooftop where there was a swimming pool – nowhere near as luxurious as you are currently imagining! Whilst up there, we were treated to one the most spectacular sunsets I’ve ever seen. We took a walk round town before dinner, including a full loop of Luxor temple, all lit up.

The next morning half the group were up incredibly early to go hot air ballooning, whereas the rest of us only had a half 5 start – only! We walked down to the river and took a boat across, where we met up with the rest of the group and our donkeys, which were to be our mode of transport for the morning. Some of the donkeys did look a little on the thin side, but thankfully mine, who I named Mabel, wasn’t too bad. However, I had no control over Mabel but, much like when horse riding, they followed the pack. We started on a fairly main road, but then switched to a field before finishing on a quieter road. There were a couple of accidents, thankfully nothing in front of moving traffic, but Harvey took a pretty bad tumble which cut his arm up really bad. The ride ended at the entrance to the Valley of the Kings, home to many of the tombs of the Kings of Egypt. Unfortunately, once again we were not allowed to take cameras inside the site. At any time, not all of the tombs are open in an attempt to preserve them and your ticket allows entry into 3 tombs. We opted for Ramses IV, Ramses IX and Ramses I. All three had amazing colours lining the walls that had not faded yet. The sarcophagi were still in the tombs although the Mummies have been moved and placed in the Egyptian Museum. You are also able to buy an additional ticket for entrance into King Tut’s tomb. From the entrance, you can see why they missed his tomb for so long as the tomb of Ramses VI is more or less on top of it. The tomb has a replica of Tut’s sarcophagus in it but does have his genuine mummy. As he wasn’t the most famous of King’s and didn’t rule for that long, the tomb itself isn’t anywhere near as impressive as some of the other ones. It doesn’t have many paintings on the wall, though the ones that are there are mostly baboons. Tut’s fame came with the discovery of his tomb still intact and given the amount of things we saw in the Egyptian Museum it was hard to imagine everything fitting into such a small tomb!

After leaving the Valley of the Kings, we headed to the temple of Queen Hatshepsut. The temple was built by King Tutmosis II, her husband and half brother – yes, incest was rife! The temple was vandalised by King Tutmosis III who removed all references to his step-mother, whom he killed, ordering all images to be destroyed. Upon her husband’s death and with the support of the priests, Hatshepsut declared herself Queen ahead of Tutmosis III. She was often pictured in male regalia, including a beard. The temple itself was very different to the others we had seen, with 3 terraces and lots of colonnades. There were a few drawings on the walls, but the colours had largely faded. Next to Hatshepsut’s temple were the ruins of the temple of Tutmosis II and tombs belonging to all the workers who had helped to build the temple. By this time it was really very hot, as the West Bank of Luxor is one of the hottest places in the whole of Egypt. Conveniently, we now had a lunch date at a local house, although en route we had another stop at two statues dedicated to King Amenhotep III. Lunch was delicious – the most tender chicken any of us had ever tasted, beef, potatoes, rice, vegetables and salad.

After lunch, we crossed back to the East Bank of Luxor and had the afternoon to ourselves so, along with Ruth, Jess and Yvonne, I headed to Karnak Temple. This is supposedly the largest religious complex ever built and whilst I’m not sure I agree with that, it was big! It was built, modified and rebuilt over a period 1500 years and is dedicated to Amun Ra. The famous hypostyle hall has 134 columns in neat rows and is very impressive. There were many obelisks as well and some statues of Kings. For a small “donation” a guard even let us into a cordoned off area to take more photos. To one side of the temple was a small lake along with a statue of a scarab beetle – allegedly if you walk round it 8 times it was lucky. That evening, we were back on the overnight train headed to Cairo and after dinner I spent about 4 hours playing cards with the boys who, it turned out, weren’t very good losers when I kept beating them!!!


Cairo, Red Sea

2012-10-11 to 2012-10-13

Having been woken up at 6.45 for breakfast it was a bit of a pain to then see the train crawl into Cairo with very heavy use of the brakes. From the station, it was straight out to Islamic Cairo and the Walled Citadel, built by Saladin in 1176. Inside are two Mosques – one Egyptian style and one Turkish style – which can be told apart based on the size and width of their minarets. The first Mosque we went into was the Mosque of An-Nasir Mohammed, the Egyptian mosque, which was quite simple in design. The Turkish style Mosque, the mosque of Mohammed Ali (no, not that one), was far more elaborate in design and had many chandeliers on the inside. As this is such a high point of Cairo, outside of the Mosques there is a viewpoint with panoramic views of the whole City. On a clear day you can see as far as the Pyramids, but sadly there was too much haze for us. Upon leaving the Citadel, we headed to the Grand Bazaar for a spot of shopping and to try a traditional drink coconut based drink with peanuts and raisins that we all thought would be cold but was actually hot. The afternoon we had more free time so after a long winded walk to get to the supermarket that was actually at the end of our street, I crashed back in the hotel for a couple of hours.

The next day was interesting. This was the day we were supposed to be going to Mount Sinai and St Katherine’s Monastery. Michael had already told us that this part was going to have to be cut from the itinerary as they area was not safe. Instead we were going to have a 7 hour drive across Sinai Peninsula down to the Red Sea resort of Nuweiba and spend an extra night there instead. We’d leave Cairo at 6 and be on the beach by 1. At least, that was the plan. It started so well, leaving Cairo at 6 and travelling for 2 and a half hours. Then we stopped at a police checkpoint. And stayed there whilst they decided if we needed a police escort across the region. No one was too sure why we would. Was it because there were demonstrations happening again today in Tahrir Square in Cairo? Was it because we had Americans on board? There had been previous occasions when we’d been stopped at checkpoints and Michael had been asked if we had Americans on board and he’d said no so that we wouldn’t have to have an escort. Apparently Americans tourists are second only to Israeli’s in needing escorts across the Middle East. They eventually decided we should have an escort and to wait 45 minutes for one. Fine. An hour later, they told us it would be another hour. By this point they’d pulled over any other tourist bus trying to get across the region so we were thinking that maybe it wasn’t just us they had a problem with. Anyway, after another 2 hours we finally we allowed on our way, having not been allowed out of the minibus for the whole time (thank God someone had playing cards), complete with soldiers at both the front and back of the convoy.

We thought all was going well again but now we were at the mercy of the guards so after an hour we pulled into a random garage in the middle of nowhere for a toilet stop. And these were toilets that clearly never saw female visitors and therefore hadn’t been cleaned in about 10 years – eugh! We were told this would be a 15 minute stop but it soon appeared that this would actually be longer as some of the guards had gone to the nearby Mosque for the long Friday prayer. The stop turned into an hour before we were on our way again, until another toilet stop an hour later. Luckily the escort decided they had gone far enough with us by this point and we were allowed to continue the rest of the way on our own. It was still another few hours to Nuweiba by which time 8 hours of beating competitive boys at cards had started to drag. We caught up sometime and eventually arrived in Nuweiba around 4, which didn’t give us much time to hit the beach before the sun went down. The hotel we were staying at had its own private beach, away from the main town with views across the water to Saudi Arabia and had reef not far out to sea that we were told we could walk out to. It was very beautiful and had all sorts of games and water gear so there was no chance of getting bored if you didn’t fancy a day on the beach.

However, we pretty much all fancied hitting the beach and the next day this is what we did, with the exception of a couple of went off diving. After an hour or so myself and two of the other girls, Robyn and Dawnda, decided to take a walk out to the reef. We were given rubber shoes to wear, since there were patches of dead coral which can cut you, and told to walk next to the line of buoys. We had just passed the penultimate buoy when I felt a large pain in my left foot. Taking another couple of steps I soon realised that whatever had happened was making it very painful to walk on. With a bit of help from Dawnda I pulled my foot out of the water to see what was wrong and was greeted with 4 or 5 sea urchin stingers sticking out of foot, having pierced the rubber shoe. We decided I should probably head back to shore to get them removed. Part of the way back we came across a portion of dead coral that we had clambered over on the way out. Robyn suggested we swim over it to make it easier. A couple of strokes and I came across a really shallow patch which grazed my knee and then my thigh, although it turns out a graze from dead coral is actually pretty deep and by the time we got back to shore I had blood pouring down my leg.

Tempted though we were to tell people it was a shark attack the truth made more sense in order to get the correct treatment, which was vinegar for 45 minutes. And boy did that sting. The large tentacles had already come out of my foot but the tips of about 12 were still in there. Since salt water is the best thing for them, Robyn and I went back out to the reef for a spot of snorkelling although this time we took a kayak over the dead coral (and urchins) until we reached the reef. The reef was pretty cool, with lots of fish, coral and even the odd sea urchin that I stayed well away from! Back on land the sea water had helped but many tips still remained and so Robyn and Diane, aided by a pair of tweezers, began picking out the tips from my foot. A couple were really deep and so they had to remain. Dinner that night was a BBQ on the beach, a farewell dinner to Michael and to Egypt as we are off to Jordan tomorrow. Bizarrely, we had musical accompaniment from Phil Collins and Dire Straits on the big screen, filmed in the 1980’s judging by their mullets!


Aqaba, Wadi Rum

2012-10-14 to 2012-10-15

Our final morning in Egypt was spent lounging around on the beach, I decided against going anywhere near the sea! At lunchtime we left the resort and headed off into Nuweiba town centre from where we could catch a ferry to Jordan. Michael took us through immigration and customs and then handed us over into the care of the tourist police as he was allowed no further. The police very kindly escorted us in front of the locals who had been queuing for ages and put us on the bus to the ferry itself. This bus was an old, hot, sweat box that looked like it would break at any moment – so a standard Egyptian piece of road transport! We boarded the ferry and were told to put our big bags in a container and headed upstairs to find seats for the hour and a half journey. That was at half one. Two hours later and we finally left port and started sailing. As the Muslim festival of Hajj was going on at that time there were a large number of pilgrims headed over to Saudi Arabia who were on the ferry as well, since Aqaba is only 5km from the Saudi border. This meant the ferry was very busy and we were lucky to have been some of the first on and have seats. Luckily, we knew we had to hand in our passports at the Jordanian immigration point on the boat and they would be returned to us once we arrived in port. The hour and a half journey took 3 hours and upon arrival in Jordan we promptly lost an hour so it was around half 7 before we got off the boat. Again, we were taken off the boat in front of the locals, escorted by Jordanian immigration officials, and put into another bus that would take us to the Jordanian welcome hall. Bags, we were assured, would be transported separately.

After a short wait in the welcome hall, Zuhair our new guide came to greet us and reunited us with our passports but was very confused that we didn’t have our bags. He seemed to think we should have brought them off the boat with us. After a few frantic phone calls and some running up and down to the ship by Zuhair we were reunited with our bags! Finally, we could leave the port and head out into Aqaba. There was a noticeable difference with Egypt straight away – the roads were less chaotic, two lanes of traffic meant two cars side by side not 5, limited use of horns, cars that look roadworthy and generally a much cleaner town. At times it looked like a Mediterranean resort. From the road we could see the Israeli town of Eilat, twinkling in the dark. We drove to the hotel where we dumped our bags before heading out into town to be shown ATM’s, currency exchanges and finally to get some food in a restaurant.

Jordanian breakfast was incredibly similar to Egyptian breakfast so those hoping to get away from bread for a while were disappointed! We weren’t due to leave until midday so Georgia, my ever so wonderful and amazing roomie (and I really mean that and am not just saying that because she’s been complaining that I haven’t written about her enough – Hi G!) took a short walk into town to buy provisions – water and batteries mainly! When we left at midday our bus contained not just Zuhair and Anwar, our driver for the week, but also Sa’ad, our armed tourist police officer who would be accompanying us for the whole week. Apparently he and his colleague were short on work so, since we have Americans in the group, he decided to join us.

We were driving to Wadi Rum, through the desert seeing some amazing rock formations and stunning scenery. One photo point we stopped at was a set of rocks that Laurence of Arabia renamed the Seven Pillars of Wisdom. We stopped at a base camp for lunch before splitting into three jeeps and heading off road in the desert, up and down sand dunes, exploring every nook and cranny. We stopped a few times to take photos or to get up close and personal to the rocks including at some naturally formed arches that we were able to climb on top of to admire the view. We also stopped for sunset with a cup of tea. From sunset, the dark came pretty quickly so we couldn’t see anything else so we headed to our camp for the night, tucked away between some rocks. Unfortunately, our jeep had a few problems on the sand so took us a little bit longer to get there and at one point we did think we’d have to get out and push. The camp itself had a set of sleeping tents along two sides, long eating tent along the others with a fire in the middle. Toilets were a short walk away from the camp. The food had been cooked in the traditional way in a hole in the ground which was behind the main camp and produced very tender meat. We were also kept company by a few thousand stars up above us and we tried to light a couple of Chinese lanterns to float off which took their time but got going eventually. Once again, there was a lot of card playing before heading to the tents to sleep.


Petra

2012-10-16 to 2012-10-17

Had an early morning wakeup call at camp, whereby we packed up and headed the short 20 min ride back to base camp where breakfast was served. From Wadi Rum we had a 2 hour drive to Wadi Musa the town just outside of Petra, our next stop. En route, we stopped twice at lookouts. The first was the highest point in Jordan and we could see for miles all the way down into Israel. From the second lookout we could see mountains surrounding Petra but not Petra itself as it is well hidden within the mountains, leading to the “lost city”. We drove down into Wadi Musa, then out the other side en route to Little Petra. This was where the Nabataeans held a staging post for people coming to trade with them at Petra. There would have been restaurants, supplies and places to leave the camels. Still visible at the sight was the reception and restaurants, some complete with a VIP section. All buildings had noticeable Greek, Roman and Egyptian influences, believed to be in an attempt to make visitors feel welcome. There was also a Treasury style building with columns carved into the sandstone and still perfectly intact. At the far end of the site was a Siq (a naturally formed crevice in the rocks) which we could walk through. At the far end of it were steps up that took us to a viewpoint where we could see views over the rocks and the route the traders would have taken to Petra where they would have sold their wares. After, followed lunch in a local restaurant and a trip to the local supermarket to buy snacks for our day tomorrow, which will be very long since we have a 5am wakeup call and will be walking in excess of 8 hours. Because of this we had the afternoon to ourselves and we predominantly all spent it chilling in our rooms.

The next morning was the big one – what was promised to be one of THE highlights and the reason many people took the trip. A visit to Petra, voted one of the New 7 Wonders of the World in 2007. We left our hotel at 6 with the promise that we’d be the first tour group in front of the Treasury. First stop, however, was the bakery to pick up some bread to go with the snacks we’d bought the day before. Whilst food is available within the site, it is all very overpriced so Zuhair suggested we brought our own in. The Petra site is spread over 3.5km with the main highlight being the Treasury. This is what you think of when you think of Petra and it is what 95% of Petra photos will be of. However, Petra itself is a whole city complete with Roman ruins, tombs and religious buildings. No one is 100% sure of what Petra was used for. Whilst many believe it was a trading post for the Nabataeans, there is also a school of thought that it is a cemetery due to the high number of tombs present, some of them belonging to royalty. Petra was lost for around 1500 years until a Swiss explorer by the name of Jean Louis Burckhardt “found” it in 1812. Excavations are still going on to this day and many believe there is plenty still to be discovered.

From the entrance we walked down a pathway with tombs on one side and the Djinn Blocks on the other. Nothing much is known about them other than they were huge monuments built by the Nabataeans in approximately 1AD. From here we entered the Siq. This is on a much grander scale than the one at Little Petra but is still naturally formed. It stretches for 1.5km and at times the rocks on either side are 80m high. Down either side were two water tunnels, although only one side would contain water safe for drinking. Part way along the Siq was a large stone that it is believed the Nabataeans worshipped around in a similar way to the Black Stone worshipped by Muslims in Saudi Arabia. A bit further still were worn down carvings in the rock that showed a man and his camel. This adds weight to the theory about Petra being a trading site. Further on and Zuhair pointed something out high up behind us. We all turned round and strained to look moving further and further backwards in the process. Suddenly, he laughed and turned back round so that we were facing the way we had been going. We all did the same and there, peeking through the end of the Siq, was the pinky orange sandstone belonging to our first glimpse of the Treasury. 10m further and we were out of the Siq and had a full view of the imposing Treasury. And what a site it was – if the Nabataeans wanted their visitors to be awe struck and full of wonder for them, well they would have succeeded. The building has 43m high columns carved into the rock (of which only one has been rebuilt as it had been destroyed when Petra was found) and, like Little Petra, had noticeable influences from around the world – Egyptian, Greek and Roman in most abundance. Carvings on the front of the Treasury include 1 Urn – believed to represent 1 year – 4 eagles (four seasons), 7 wine chalices (days of the week), 30 flowers (days of the month) and 365 cubes (days of year) leading some scholars to believe the building was in some way used as a calendar. There were statues on the wall with some believing they include the sons of Greek God Zeus, Egyptian Goddess Isis and Roman Goddess of fortune Tyche. The building was originally built as a tomb for King Aretas IV but the Bedouins saw the orb on the top of the building and believed treasure to be found inside. This led to the name Treasury. The Bedouins shot at the building and the bullet marks can still be seen today. Zuhair had done us good as, although a few individuals had already made it to the Treasury, we were the first tour group there meaning we could get good photos with no one else in them.

When we had finally finished at the Treasury we walked along the Outer Siq and down the Street of Facades. There were many tombs to be soon along here, some of which had the most exquisitely coloured rock on the inside. Opposite was a Roman style theatre that would seat 700 although it had been carved out the rock by the Nabataeans not the Romans. We saw three Royal tombs – the Urn tomb, the Silk tomb and the Corinthian tomb each one carved in the first Century AD. We turned onto the Colonnaded Street which was Petra City Centre and was very Roman in design. At the end of the Street was the Great Temple which was badly destroyed by the earthquake of 106AD but still has a few columns left standing, one of which has a lovely elephant sculpture on the top of it. On this street is also the only free standing structure remaining in Petra – the Qasr al-Bint – dedicated to the Gods. It was from here that we began our first hike of the day, up to Al-Deir, also known as the Monastery. Although less famous than the Treasury, we were promised that the 800 steps we would have to climb would be worth it as it was bigger than it’s more famous sister. The trail containing the steps wound its way through the valley, up and up, with very impressive views indeed. As we rounded the corner after the final set of steps we saw the building that was indeed bigger than the Treasury and, arguably, more impressive. Built as a tomb, it is believed to have been used a church in Byzantine times. Beyond the Monastery, there is another trail that takes you up to another viewpoint looking out over the entire valley and down towards Israel and Palestine. We spent some time up here before heading down and looking smugly at those people still making their way up!

After a spot of lunch, we started on hike number 2 which would take us to a viewpoint over the Treasury. The hike started behind a Byzantine church which had an impressive mosaic on the floor. We would come to see plenty more mosaics over the next couple of days. The trail took us behind the Royal tombs and through some scrubland, before coming out to a perfect view of the Treasury from above. Although the view was amazing, the one thing we all commented on was the noise and hustle and bustle that was coming from below us and it really made us appreciate how lucky we had been to have been there early in the morning before the crowds turned up. It’s not often I’ll appreciate the benefits of a 5am wakeup call. We walked back down to the church and had 45 minutes of spare time. Given that it would take us 35 minutes to get out of the site and we were knackered from all the walking we’d already done we decided to head back to the entrance. As we walked back through the Siq, the number of tour groups still pouring into the site amazed us all. It was 3.15 and aside from the Treasury, they wouldn’t have time to see anything. Zuhair called them “Jordan in a day” tourists from Israel and Egypt who get up early, visit the Dead Sea, the Treasury, drive through Wadi Rum briefly before dining in Aqaba or Amman depending on which way they are going and they only spend one day in the country. To be honest, they are missing out big time. That evening we were absolutely shattered but we made it down to Wadi Musa town centre for dinner, although with our table right on the street our dinner was constantly covered in petrol fumes. However, we’d done so much walking that we would have eaten a horse right then (or more aptly, a camel).


Madaba

2012-10-18

This morning we had the slightly more convenient start time of 8am and a drive along the Kings Highway. This stretch of land has been travelled along for more than 3000 years by people heading to the Promised Lands, people on pilgrimages’ and those using the trade routes. The road has even been mentioned in the scriptures of Islam, Judaism and Christianity. Our first stop along the route was at Shobak Castle, built in 1115 by King Baldwin to protect against the armies of Saladin. It withstood many sieges but eventually succumbed in 1189. Since then it has been restored, rebuilt and occupied by Mamluks and Ottomans. The castle was up a hill and would have commanded impressive views of the surrounding areas.

Further up the road we stopped at Karak Castle, built in 1142 and occupied by Renauld de Chartillon who liked to throw Muslims off the top of the castle for fun. After a 9 year siege the castle was eventually overrun and in 1187 it was converted to an Islamic castle. Unlike Shobak, we were able to go inside Karak castle and saw prison rooms, dining rooms, kitchens and a bakery. Both a church and a mosque were on site.

Further on we got our first glimpses of the Dead Sea. The sea is 410m below sea level and is 10 times saltier than any other sea on the planet. The sea level has dropped dramatically in the past 10 years and this was particularly noticeable when we stopped at a lookout and could see marks indicating past water levels and compared that to where it is now. We stopped at a resort along the Dead Sea where we were able to go and experience it for ourselves. The water was incredibly warm, just a few degrees below air temperature, and thankfully didn’t sting my Red Sea wounds too badly. We spent half an hour or so taking the typical “look, no hands” photos, reading magazines and so forth. It was very hard to swim in the Sea and also very hard to get out of the water. You’d find yourself floating out away from the shore and after desperately paddling with your arms to get back, due to the buoyancy, it was really hard to get your legs down in order to stand up. After a while we switched to use the normal swimming pools at the resort away from the Sea.

After 3 hours, we headed towards the town of Madaba. Madaba has one of the largest percentage Christian populations in Jordan and this is largely due to the floor of St George’s Church, which is covered in a mosaic. The mosaic is 1600 years old and is a map of Biblical cities and sites, with 157 shown in total from Egypt to Palestine, including Jerusalem, Bethlehem, Sinai, Dead Sea, Red Sea and Hebron. The mosaic is believed to contain over 2 million pieces and was lost for hundreds of years, only being excavated in the 1860s. As builders were preparing to build St George’s Church, they came across the ruins of a Byzantine church and further excavation brought the mosaic to their attention. It is the oldest map of Palestine in existence. The new church was finished in 1889 and houses the mosaic in the centre. That evening we spent in a coffee shop having a beer or two and playing cards.


Amman

2012-10-19 to 2012-10-21

The final few days of the trip saw us heading to the Jordanian capital Amman. En route, we stopped at Mount Nebo, believed to be the site of Moses’ death. There is a memorial church at the top, along with a couple of mosaics and, on a clear day, fantastic views over Jordan, the Dead Sea and into Israel – Jericho and Jerusalem. Unfortunately, there was a lot of haze and so we couldn’t see quite as far as Jerusalem. A short way from there, we stopped at a workshop supporting disabled people, who were making mosaics. Finally, around lunchtime, we arrived in Amman. We checked in to the hotel but didn’t stay long as we were soon back out and driving north to the former Roman city of Jerash.

These are some of the best preserved Roman ruins in the region, largely built in the 1st Century AD for Emperor Hadrian, although the original foundations were built by the Greeks in the 4th Century BC. Outside the city is Hadrian’s Gate, built in 129AD, which had a Corinthian’s head at both the top and bottom of the column, showing extra respect to the Emperor. Just outside the city is also a hippodrome which used to be able to seat 15,000. Entrance to the city was then through a smaller arch, the South Gate. Just inside the city is now a museum, followed by the Temple of Zeus and then the Forum. This is the Oval Plaza, shaped in such a way to make people keep walking after entering the city. This is the heart of the city and is surrounded by columns on all sides. There are over 9,000 pillars throughout the city giving rise to the nickname “the city of pillars”, of which 68 were in the Oval Plaza. During the Roman times there were between 30-35,000 pillars. Beside the Forum, is the South Theatre, an amphitheatre that currently seats 3,500 although it used to have a second tier and would then seat 5,000. To demonstrate the acoustics, there are Jordanian bagpipers who belt out music at random intervals.

Further through the city, we saw the ruins of a church, again with a large mosaic on the floor and then the Temple of Artemis. This was the most important building in the city, and consequently the largest, because the Goddess Artemis, daughter of Zeus, was the God of the city. Sadly, large parts of the city were destroyed in the large earthquake in 749. From the north of the city, we walked back down the Cardo Maximus, the colonnaded Main Street, back to the Forum and then to the entrance of the site. As this was the last night of the tour, we had our farewell dinner at a rooftop restaurant, complete with a few cheeky cocktails. The group began to split up pretty soon as some had early flights and so Georgia, Dawnda and Sube all left dinner early to get their cabs. And then, I was roommate-less. 

By the next morning, a lot of the group had left for the airport with most of the rest due to depart by lunch. This left just Robyn and I with an extra day in Amman, so we went out to see the city together. First stop was the Citadel, high up on a hill. The Citadel consisted of a Temple to Hercules, built between AD161-80 although only a few columns remain, the National Archaeological Museum, housing hundreds of artefacts and the Umayyad Palace, dating from around AD720 and consisting of a Colonnaded Street, Cistern, Basilica and a Mosque. There were also panoramic views of the whole city and from there you can clearly see just how many mosques are present. It also made for an impressive surround sound system when the Call to Prayer happens. We walked down from the Citadel, past the Roman Forum and up to Rainbow Street. This is the same street we’d had dinner on the previous night and apart from restaurants is also home to many embassies including the Saudi Embassy which had a ridiculous display of gun power outside it. It is also the street where the King was born.

Robyn wanted to buy some presents for her sons, so we took a taxi over to the main shopping area and had a look around. For a conservative Muslim country, some of the clothes and in particular the underwear on display in the shops seemed very hypocritical. We decided to walk back to the hotel, which took us around 45-60 minutes so we treated ourselves to a couple of hours rest in the afternoon. That evening, we headed out again for dinner, having asked the hotel for directions to some respectively priced places. We walked for 10 minutes following their directions and ended up back at the main shopping area, so we had clearly taken a very scenic route during the afternoon!

The next morning we were both flying home but not until the afternoon/evening so I was not impressed to be woken up by the Call to Prayer swiftly followed by a set of church bells. At least it was the last day though! Robyn and I decided to head out in a direction we hadn’t yet explored but there wasn’t really anything to look at apart from about 7 or 8 armed police cars outside a building that we couldn’t quite decide if it was a bank or a court house. It was clearly important whatever it was! Soon after, it was time to head to the airport and the end of my trip.


Summary

2012-10-22

Days away: 17
Number of countries visited: 2
Number of police escorts required: 2
Number of armed police who spent travelled with us: 1
Number of starts before 9am: most of them
Number of different forms of transport taken: 3
Number of meals, out of 51, without bread: 2
Times the Red Sea beat me up: 2
Weeks for the coral wound on my knee to full heal: 8 and still counting!
Number of Ancient Wonders of the world visited: 1
Number of New Wonders of the World visited: 1
Years of age of the oldest temple: approx 4000
Biblical sites visited: 3
Number of wonderful roommates: 1 (Hi G!)


One month to go

2013-03-09

So it feels just last week that I got back from Jordan but here I am with just one month until I head off on my latest venture. This time I'll be heading back to Southern Africa, with me old mucker Melissa, for a 3 week trip. Melissa is currently volunteering at a children's home in Cape Town and her time there ends in April so I am flying over to join her and from there we will be heading North up to Namibia, East through Botswana and end up at the mighty Victoria Falls on the Zimbabwe/Zambian border. When we fly back from Zambia, we will have managed 5 countries in just 3 weeks. A very impressive total.

So, what are we planning on this trip. Well, we are booked to travel with Nomads Africa on one of their truck tours, camping the whole way. We'll see canyons, climb sand dunes, go quad biking and climb mountains as well as going on game drives and wetland cruises and swimming in waterfall plunge pools. Hopefully, without going over the top of the falls! I feel like everything is going to plan - appointment for vaccinations and malaria pills is next week, visas can all be bought at the borders, so it's just a case of getting some money. Simples!


Cape Town

2013-04-08 to 2013-04-09

So, having done a half days work, it was time to pack up and head off to Heathrow. Flight was due to leave at 7.30, so you know you’re in trouble when it says go to gate at 7.45. When we were finally allowed to wait at the gate, we then had the pilot give us the announcement that during his pre flight checks he had noticed a fuel leak and so we couldn’t use the scheduled aircraft! (To be fair, not many people were complaining as no one really wants to fly in a plane leaking fuel). The backup plane had therefore been bought out of storage (his exact words). He then said we had been ready to begin boarding when the interconnecting door between the gate and the plane had broken and they were waiting on BAA to fix it! We were an hour and a half late before we finally managed to set off.

The rest of the flight was fairly uneventful and we even managed to make up a whole 15 minutes! Unfortunately, that doesn’t help when the airport transfer has had to leave. I was told he’d be coming back shortly by a very helpful man who then told me he’d heard of Crystal Palace because we have Wilf! Damn Man U fans get everywhere! Anyway, finally I made it into the centre of Cape Town and to the hostel where I was meeting Melissa who had arrived down from her children’s home the previous evening. Given that I had been to Cape Town before and Melissa has been there most weekends for the past 5 months, we didn’t need to do any of the touristy stuff such as climb Table Mountain or visit Robben Island. Instead, we headed down to the Waterfront for lunch and a well deserved beer, followed by a walk to the centre of town mostly to figure out where to go the next day but also because Long Street is “the” place to be in Cape Town and we wanted a smoothie! That evening, it was a chilled out night, with a few beers in the hostel bar and some pizzas ordered in!


Cederberg and Orange River

2013-04-10 to 2013-04-11

The next morning we were due to leave on our 3 week tour. We were travelling with Nomads, in a truck with a guide, a cook, a German translator and up to 24 other backpackers. The truck was leaving from the centre of town so we jumped in a minibus taxi into town and arrived at the Nomads office. There were two trucks there, both doing more or less the same route, but one camping (ours) and one doing an accommodated trip (or softies as we liked to call them). We registered, loaded up our stuff on the truck and waited. And waited. When we eventually left we were missing one passenger, who no one could get hold of, and one translator who had cancelled that morning. Given that we had a couple of non English speaking Germans in the group, it was lucky that we also had a German who could speak English and was able to translate for the first two days until the new translator turned up.

Our first stop out of Cape Town was at Table View, for amazing views back across the Bay and over to Table Mountain. Luckily, the clouds were nonexistent and so we were afforded pretty impressive views. We continued the drive North, stopping for lunch at the Bushman experience, the local tribes’ people. We continued driving North into the Cederberg Mountain range. The views were amazing and when we arrived at our incredibly fancy camp, we were surrounded by the mountains. We had a very chilled out evening, trying to learn everyone’s names!

Next morning, breakfast was due to be at 6.30 and we had to have our tents down beforehand so Melissa and I, neither of us being morning people, have these sort of things timed to perfection and set the alarm for 6.00. Everyone else decided 5.30 was more appropriate and to make lots of noise in the process which we were not best pleased about. Because of everyone’s eagerness, we left camp half an hour early, for a long day of driving. We were heading North, towards the Namibian border and only had limited stops for supplies, toilet and lunch – eaten at a picnic spot by the side of the road. The camp for the night was alongside the Orange River. The river is the border between South Africa and Namibia. We were staying on the SA side for the night and crossing over in the morning. Once again, the camp was of a very high quality, which was a nice surprise for everyone. Although, the walls to the shower block had a large gap at head height, making them only just decent. Which on its own is bad enough, but when there is a volleyball court next to the shower block, we were all very grateful that no one felt inclined for a bit of sport.

Dinner that night included a local specialty – pap. This is more or less the same as the Ugali that Melissa and I tried when we were in Kenya only of a less thick consistency which made it tastier, in my opinion. Round the fire that night, Laban, our Zimbabwean guide and Jacques, our South African cook, gave us some history about South Africa. However, they only started the history lesson in 1994 and when pushed about pre 1993 by one of the less tactful Australians in the group (the same one who repeatedly discussed the war with the Germans), things got a little awkward. Jacques explained that most South Africans don’t like to talk about that period as they are ashamed of everything to do with apartheid but the questions kept on coming. It was obvious he didn’t want to talk about the subject partly as he felt it should be left in the past, partly because of the shame and probably partly as he was white and Laban was black. It was interesting to hear but definitely uncomfortable.


Fish River & Sesriem Canyons

2013-04-12 to 2013-04-13

With breakfast not until 9 we were expecting a lay in, but with a bus full of early risers we were awake by 7.25 although stubbornly refusing to get out of bed! Overnight we had gained our German translator and so had could leave all language barriers in South Africa as we were crossing the border into Namibia.

At 825,418 sq km, Namibia is four times the size of the UK, but has a population of just 2m meaning there is a lot of nothing! The North is more densely populated than the South which is largely desert, of which we were going to see a lot. Namibia most recently gained its independence from South Africa in 1989 although the late 1890’s and early 1900’s saw the area colonised by Germany who left a noticeable mark on the country that still exists to this day in the building names in the towns and the heavily accented English spoken by many of the country’s white inhabitants.

Border formalities were happily painless and we were soon on our way through a sparse, barren desert punctuated only occasionally by a cocoa bomb tree. Roads in Namibia seem to only be paved around the main towns, which meant some very bumpy roads! We arrived at our camp at lunch time and had the afternoon chilling out around the swimming pool (campsites here are a damn site plusher than back home). Just before sunset we drove the 10km to Fish River canyon which, at 160km long, 27km wide and 550m deep is the second largest canyon in the world, behind only the Grand Canyon in the US. Bizarrely, the canyon is actually two canyons, one inside the other both formed in different ways, but don’t ask me to explain how! We took a short walk along the rim whilst watching the sunset before heading back to camp.

Next morning, we were back to the stupidly early starts for the long drive northwards to Sesriem. First stop was at Fish River, although it was somewhat lacking in water and shortly afterwards be got to see our first few wild animals – springbok, oryx, mountain zebra and a black-chested eagle. The one advantage of being on such deserted roads meant that whenever an animal was spotted, we were perfectly able to slam on the brakes and reverse up the road without worry of causing an accident. Our camp for the night was at Sesriem Canyon, a canyon on a much smaller scale to the previous days. It is just 1km long and 30m deep but we were able to hike down into it. The name Sesriem means “six” sand was given because the first settlers had to tie six ropes together to get the water out of the bottom. Today the canyon is dry for most of the year apart from a small puddle under a rock! Back out on the rim and we caught our second canyon sunset in two days. As was becoming a theme of the trip, that evening we sat round the campfire beneath a sky filled with thousands of stars, prompting one the Australians to come out with my quote of the trip: “do you have stars in Germany?”!!


Sossusvlei and Swakopmund

2013-04-14 to 2013-04-16

Without doubt our earliest start of the trip with a 4.30am alarm call, packed and on the truck by 5, although we were unable to get out of camp until 5.15 as the gate was locked! We drove into Sossusvlei, an area of red sand dunes, some up to 200m high. We were headed for Dune 45, so named because it is 45km from Sesriem – original! This particular dune was 150m tall and we were aiming for the top to watch sunrise. The changing colours of the dunes, from dark red to bright orange, with the rising sun were quite spectacular. We sat atop the dune for a while before heading back down for breakfast. As the first group through the gate we had the dune almost to ourselves and passed plenty of people heading upwards as we descended. Personally, I think they missed the best time. After breakfast, we drove another 20km into the national park towards Hidden Vlei, although the final 6km was on foot. A Vlei is a wetland area although this one is now dry and has turned into a salt pan. Once again the surrounding dunes are stunningly beautiful and vivid red in colour or black in the sand where iron is present.

By this time the temperature was well into the 40’s and we drove back out of the national park and onwards northwards. First stop, for lunch, was at the small town of Solitaire home to Scottish Moose MacIntyre and his world famous apple pie. Not sure I believed that Moose was Scottish or that the pie was famous although it was tasty. After another few hours on the road, we pulled into the Bushman’s Camp, our stop for the night and were treated to a delicious Braai (BBQ) for dinner comprising lamb chops, boerewors (sausages) and potato bake.

The next morning, we crossed the Tropic of Capricorn and made another stop at a viewpoint in the Naukluft national park. Suddenly, we were in for a treat as our bumpy, unsealed road gave way to a paved road. Never before seen so happy to see tarmac! This meant we were approaching proper civilisation, or at least what counts for it in sparsely populated Namibia. We were also fast approaching the Atlantic Ocean coastline. In fact, we were to see two towns in quick succession as they are only 30km apart. The first was Walvis Bay, known for its large flamingo population in the lagoon. We stopped to see the flamingos for around an hour, although rather sadly one flamingo decided that, with Melissa watching, it would be a good time to collapse to the ground and die. Think it may have traumatised Melissa a little although it didn’t stop her taking photos of it!

From Walvis Bay, we carried on up to Swakopmund where we were to have not only 2 nights, but also a proper bed in a hotel! Swakop has a particularly German feel about it and it is also the place to go sand boarding and quad biking as it is nicknamed the adventure sports capital of Namibia. We however, decided to take a more relaxed approach and once we had checked into the hotel, we hit the bar! That evening, Jacques the cook had the night off so we all traipsed off to a local restaurant for a group dinner before heading back to the hotel aiming for the bar, but it shuts early so we sat around chatting instead.

That next morning, we finally got a proper lay in and scraped into breakfast just 15 minutes before it was due to stop, much to the annoyance of the chef who thought he was finished for the day! After a morning laundry session where improvisation was at its finest as I made a makeshift washing line by stringing charging cords together! We were finally able to go out and see the town. With a population of 42,000 it’s not a particularly large town, but it was rather pretty with its pier, lighthouse and Atlantic coastline. We did a bit of dolphin spotting off the pier before stopping for a very delicious lunch at a shoreline restaurant – calamari caesar salad. After a short paddle in the sea, and I mean short – it was bloody freezing – we went and had a beer in a pub beer garden. Whilst it sounds like we did a lot of drinking whilst in Swakopmund, I would like to point out that there were a few local brews that we felt obliged to try!

That evening, we again went out for dinner en masse to Ocean Basket, a popular fish chain within South Africa and Namibia. During the meal one of the girls, Jenni, got hiccups so I kindly asked the waiter what the local cure was for hiccups. His response: “punch her”! I decided that since she’d done nothing to upset me this was a bit extreme, so instead we set about making her a drink that she could drink upside down. What started as a sensible idea soon became ludicrous as the eventual drink we produced was a cocktail of water, soy sauce, tomato ketchup, chilli sauce, mayonnaise, salt pepper and red and green Tabasco. It smelt like pizza but didn’t taste that great. However, it did the trick as during the hysteria of making the drink the hiccups disappeared. After dinner, some of us headed to a local bar for a couple of drinks and a few games of pool – where England beat Australia so all was good with the world!!


Spitzkoppe and Kamanjab

2013-04-17 to 2013-04-18

Our second morning in Swakopmund and we made it to breakfast slightly earlier, although the chef was still grumpy with us. We weren’t leaving until after lunch so we had the morning to ourselves, so we headed down to the pier to see if we could spot any more dolphins – we didn’t. After an early lunch, we drove the short 2.5 hours to 1728m high Spitzkoppe Mountain. The mountain is known as the Matterhorn of Africa due to its resemblance to the one in the Alps. We were spending the night bush camping, in the most basic camp we’d had up to that point. Whilst we had an actual toilet, albeit a long drop one, it was inside a bamboo hut with large gaps between each piece of bamboo. With two toilets side by side, you could practically look someone in the eye whilst you were doing your business. These toilets also had no actual door, so you had to be careful not to walk in on someone. However, the camp as a whole was very peaceful and beautiful and we took a walk up some of the surrounding rocks to watch sunset kept company by some small rock dassies. Dinner that night was a delicious bobotie – a South Africa dish of spiced mince meat topped with an egg mixture. Delicious and far better than any I’ve ever made!

Our first stop the next morning was Brandberg Mountain, the highest in Namibia at 2573m tall. We were only on the road for a few hours that morning and made it to camp in Kamanjab in time for lunch. Again, our camp was quite basic although this one did have showers even if the shower are had no door. Luckily, you couldn’t see through the walls this time! The area surrounding both Spitzkoppe and Kamanjab is known as Damaraland and is home to the indigenous Himba people. The women in particular of these tribes are known for the clay in which they cover themselves, which doubles as sun block and insect repellent, and for the way they braid their hair. Some of the group took off to get a closer look, whilst those who remained behind were on cooking duty for our fish and chip dinner, though not the sort you’d get back home, meaning I spent a good hour finely slicing potatoes to be fried and served with the grilled snoek.


Etosha and Windhoek

2013-04-19 to 2013-04-21

From Kamanjab, we were heading to Etosha National Park for some big game watching. First stop, however, was the small town of Outjo which had a rather lovely cafe selling large slices of lemon cheesecake. Well, when you’ve been up since 5.30, having cheesecake at 9am is perfectly acceptable! From Outjo, the next stop is the gate of Etosha National Park and just inside the gate is a Primary school. Can anyone truly claim their school was in a better location? Etosha park is more than 20,000 sq km and, whilst not as well known as its East African counterparts the Masai Mara and the Serengeti, it is home to 114 mammal species, 340 birds species, 16 reptile and amphibian species, 1 solitary fish species and loads of insects! The name Etosha means Great White Place of Dry Water and comes from Etosha Pan – the large, flat, saline desert that covers over 5,000 sq km. There are many waterholes in the park at which countless animals come to drink, including some next to campsites which are then floodlit after dark meaning you can sit in silence, less than 30m from wild animals whilst enjoying a cold beer – there is possibly nothing cooler!

Although we only saw 4 of the big 5 – leopard living up to its reputation as being notoriously hard to find – we saw plenty of other animals of note. Right from the gate we saw zebras, giraffes, springboks and kudu. After a lunch stop at Okaukuejo campsite, we took off on a game drive where we additionally saw elephants, black rhinos, oryx, wildebeest, lions, jackals, hyenas, impalas, hartebeests, warthogs, bustards and hornbills. We were spending the night at Halali Camp set around a small waterhole where we spent sunset watching a family of elephants and two rhinos. After a dinner of springbok with sweet and sour veg, we went back to the waterhole although animal sightings were limited.

Despite breakfast being at its usual hour of 5.30, we decided to take an opportunity to see more animals and so got up at 4 and went back to the waterhole. Unfortunately, for the hour we were there, we did not see any animals. After breakfast, we went off on a 5 hour game drive and saw more of the many animals we had seen up to that point. By 11.30 we were at Okaukuejo camp, where we were spending the night and where we were given a few hours of down time. Because of the heat at the middle of the day, animal sightings at this hour are limited and they can mostly be seen around waterholes. Since this camp had a very large waterhole next to it, we spent a large chunk of the afternoon there and a small part at the campsite swimming pool! At 3.30, with the temperature cooled off slightly, we went out on a 3 hour game drive. During this drive we saw many, many elephants along with plenty of zebras and springboks. Back at camp we had a BBQ for dinner and then were back at the waterhole where we saw hippos, giraffes and an owl.

Despite the previous days early morning waterhole disappointment, we were up an hour before breakfast again to see if we could see any animals and this time we were rewarded when an elephant turned up. After breakfast, it was time to leave the park although we did a game drive en route back to the gate. Once out of the park, we headed south, stopping briefly in Otjiwarongo before reaching the Namibian capital Windhoek around half 3.

Windhoek, despite being the capital is pretty small especially when compared to African capitals such as Nairobi and Cairo. With a population of less than a quarter of a million, the city has only existed for just over a century. We were only spending the one night in town, although we were in a hotel rather than camping. We had a couple of hours for laundry and charging before heading out to Joe’s Beer House for dinner – a legendary institution serving all types of meat previously only found on safari! I plumped for a zebra steak for dinner which was a little tough but quite tasty and also tried a little bit of kudu and oryx. There are definitely worse ways to spend your last night in a country!


Ghanzi and Maun

2013-04-22 to 2013-04-23

So, our final morning in Namibia and we were treated to a full English breakfast. Leaving Windhoek, we were headed for the border with Botswana. Having stopped for a bush toilet along the road, we almost left one member of the group behind as he’d gone wandering off and we hadn’t realised he wasn’t back. Luckily for him, we only made it about 200m down the road before the mistake was realised and we turned round and went to pick him up as he was desperately sprinting down the road after us. We carried on westwards arriving at the border just in time to have lunch. This was eaten on the Namibian side and then we crossed over into Botswana, a country of well less than 2m people, though with a size of 582,000 sq km it is not quite as large as Namibia. Top three industries in Botswana are diamonds, beef and tourism although the Government does limit the number of people allowed to enter into the National Parks. Botswana is possibly one of the only countries in this part of the world to fully understand the issue that is HIV/AIDS. In fact, not only does the Government offer free retroviral treatment for its citizens, but it was the first country anywhere in the world to do so back in 2002. It’s a policy that a lot of the rest of Africa would do well to embrace.

Our first night in Botswana was spent at a Bushmans’ Camp where, after dinner, we were treated to some traditional dancing by the local tribesmen. That night was definitely the coldest one we had experienced so far, although I think many others suffered more than me! The next morning, we crossed the Kalahari Desert heading to Maun – the gateway to the Okavango Delta. We weren’t leaving until the next day, but we arrived at the campsite just outside Maun by lunchtime so we spent a couple of hours in town buying supplies but most of the rest of the day in the campsite bar. Here we met members of another tour group who had just come back from a trip to the Delta so they told us what to expect and also introduced us to some rather interesting shots, a mixture of amarula and crème de menthe that is delicious when prepared correctly but has a tendency to curdle as I found out the hard way!


Okavango Delta

2013-04-24 to 2013-04-26

We were soon off on our 3 day 2 night Okavango Delta trip – a trip which, for me personally, I was looking forward to the most out of the whole tour. Perhaps I’ve watched one too many David Attenborough BBC Documentaries set in Africa, but the Okavango has always held this magical perception in my head and I couldn’t wait to get out there and see if it lived up to expectations. The entrance to the Okavango was a good two hour drive away from Maun and we weren’t going in our usual truck. Instead an oversized 4x4 came to pick us up but this meant we had to load it up with all our tents, mattresses, food, chairs as well as anything we wanted to take with us. Needless to say, it was rather full and we could barely fit ourselves in! Despite Botswana having recently had the rainy season the Delta was not flooded as this only occurs once the flood waters have arrived from upstream in Angola. However, there is still plenty of water here, meaning much more greenery than we’d seen during most of the rest of the trip. The Delta covers up to an area of 16,000 sq km and is at the end of the Okavango River, Africa’s third largest river at a length of 990 miles. As this is a wetland area, we obviously couldn’t take a 4WD all the way in so after two hours we arrived at a Mokoro station. A mokoro is a canoe that is traditionally made from a dug out tree although increasingly they are being made from fibreglass. Each mokoro takes two people and has a “poler” who “steers” the canoe much like a gondolier in Venice. With a group of 24 plus all our gear we must have had in the region of 17 or 18 mokoros.

The next two hours were spent floating peacefully along the channels of the Delta, stopping briefly to see some hippos in the water, before arriving at our camp for the two nights. This was a small camp, with enough room for our tents and a campfire in the middle. The toilet was a proper bush toilet – a hole in the ground, a short walk from the camp, which had to be filled with a small amount of soil after you’d been. Because of the wild animals around, we were not allowed to go to the toilet alone after dark. Instead, you had to have a “toilet buddy” who was on animal watch, although nothing was mentioned about what to do should you see any animals. Run, would be my guess! The majority of the afternoon was free time and there wasn’t really much to do so we had a kip before heading out on our walking safari. We saw some elephants at a distance as well as fresh footprints from buffalo, hyena, impala and lion – our guide said they would have been from the day before, which was slightly worrying as no one wants a lion that close to camp! We were also shown some wild sage that can be used as a mosquito repellent. We stayed out on our walk until sunset, then headed back to camp for dinner. That night was spent playing ridiculous games, such as walking from one side of camp to the other with a ball between your legs and placing it in a bowl!

Next morning, and we were up early for a morning game walk. First stop was the hippo pool and during the rest of the walk we saw, from a safe distance, giraffe, wildebeest, impala, ostrich, warthog and enough zebra to have Melissa deciding to add “ride a zebra” to her bucket list! Back at camp and we had a lovely cooked brunch before another afternoon of free time. In the evening we went on a beautiful sunset mokoro ride and we even saw some tiny frogs – about the size of your thumb nail. That night, as it was our last night, our polers treated us to some traditional dancing, with some highly amusing aspects. In return, we treated them to a very dodgy rendition of “the lion sleeps tonight” and the chicken song. Not sure how impressed they were but they did join in and dance with us!

The next day, we reloaded the mokoro and took the two hour ride back to the mokoro station where our 4WD picked us up and took us to a field big enough for a helicopter to land. The helicopter flight gave us a totally different view of the delta and a much better understanding of the size of the Delta. We were also able to see lots of animals from above, getting in closer to some more than others. Giraffes don’t scare easily so you can get close to them but elephants and crocodiles tend to flee when the helicopter gets too near. After the flight, we headed back to the campsite in Maun for lunch and then we set off for Gweta. This was largely just to cut down on the amount of travelling time we had to do the next day and it was already dark by the time we got there. The campsite is home to a 2,500 year old baobab tree as well as one of the coolest bars we’d come across so far, with chairs wrapped in cow skin and beer bottle chandeliers!


Kasane and Victoria Falls

2013-04-27 to 2013-04-29

We were fast approaching the end of our trip and this was to be our last full day in Botswana. In fact at one point during the morning’s drive we went past a signpost stating Namibia to the left, Zambia straight on and Zimbabwe to the right. Yes, the North West part of Botswana has multiple border crossings with many different countries! Our last night in the country was to be spent in Kasane, gateway to the Chobe river where we were to do a sunset cruise. The river is home to lots of animals, including a large number of hippos in the water, many families of elephants both in the water and on the banks as well as crocodiles, buffalo, snakes and impala. Out on the water for 3 hours gave us an opportunity to get up close to many of these creatures and add to the ever growing number of videos I possess of elephants doing nothing. Seriously, they do nothing!

The next morning, as it was our final morning camping, Melissa and I decided, for a laugh, to get up earlier than usual in order to be sat waiting for breakfast by the time everyone else got up. That didn’t work so well as we were still beaten by 3 tents – seriously what is wrong with these people that they get up SO early?! We were leaving Botswana and heading into country number 4 which, despite being the penultimate day, was not our final country! Unfortunately, visas are required for Zimbabwe and so we spent a good hour hanging round at immigration whilst they processed them all. The nearby border town is Victoria Falls, named after the waterfalls of the same name, which we visited that afternoon. The local name of the Falls is Mosi-oa-Tunya which translates to “The smoke that thunders” which, as we were there just after rainy season, was quite apt. The spray rising from the Falls could be seen very clearly from quite a distance away and the noise of more than 1,100 cubic metres of water plunging over the 107m drop every second was deafening. The Falls stretch for 1,737m down the Zambezi river, which itself represents the border between Zimbabwe and Zambia, through the Zambezi gorge. When compared to the other great waterfalls of the world, Niagara and Iguassu, they are the highest, second longest but with the smallest average volume. However, they are the only ones to be named as one of the new seven Natural Wonders of the World. David Livingstone was the first European to set eyes on the Falls and he named them after then Queen, Victoria. So revered is Livingstone in these parts that the border town on the Zambian side is named after him.

Our first sight of the Falls was from the viewpoints at the Western end of the gorge, just beyond a statue of Dr Livingstone. Even from the first fall, Devil’s Cataract, we could see the power with which the water was gushing downwards. As we walked along the footpath towards the Victoria Falls Bridge, we got gradually wetter and wetter as the spray from the Falls got heavier. By halfway down the path, we were totally drenched. Imagine a torrential rain storm in November when you get soaked through to your underwear and you’re halfway to imagining the state we were in! Luckily the very makeshift waterproofing we’d done on the rucksack held pretty well and cameras were kept in raincoat pockets for as long as possible. At the end of the footpath we reached the Victoria Falls Bridge which is both no man’s land between the Zimbabwean and Zambian border posts and also the spot from which to take part in one of many adrenaline sports on offer. Anyone for a bungee jump under African health and safety rules? Thought not!

When we’d finished at the Falls, we decided to take a visit to the rather famous Victoria Falls Hotel. This is the oldest hotel in the whole of Zimbabwe and has accommodated members of the Royal family including King George VI in April 1947. It was also a stop off point for the BOAC service between Southampton and Johannesburg back in the days when that trip required 5 stops! The Hotel still gives an air of sophistication and elegance and the view from the lawns stretches down to the gorge complete with views of the Bridge. Occasionally, there is even a wayward animal such as a warthog strolling through the grounds. Luckily, because it was so hot we had dried out sufficiently that when we arrived at the Hotel they didn’t throw us out for being the underclass. Instead, they welcomed us onto their back patio, gave us a table and proceeded to serve us afternoon tea. In true English style, we had sandwiches scones with jam and cream and mini cakes. There were even strawberries dipped in chocolate decorated as tuxedos! Between 5 of us, we managed to get through 3 trays and it was all rather civilised and a lovely way to spend not only a Sunday but also our last day on tour and Melissa and my last full day of holiday.

As it was our last day on tour, the whole group went out for dinner to a restaurant that was complete with Zulu dancing entertainment. Despite afternoon tea, we still found room for dinner and tucked into a dish of warthog which was delicious. The next morning, after a full English breakfast, Melissa and I went for a short walk around town before an emotional goodbye to all the new friends we’d made and headed for the border. We crossed the Bridge and entered our 5th and final country of the holiday – Zambia. Although it was a very fleeting visit as we were heading straight to Livingstone airport in order to fly home. With Melissa going to Cape Town and me to London we had to say goodbye to each other in the airport with a celebratory beer – well we had to try out the local brew in the few hours we had in the country! Flying out of Livingstone, the plane went over the Falls and the view from above was quite amazing. The river just appeared to disappear down a big crack in the earth. I had a 5 hour layover in Jo’Burg before flying back to London and straight to work from Heathrow!


Summary

2013-04-30

A few final thoughts from my trip:

Days taken: 21 
Countries visited: 5
Distance Travelled: 5614km
Countries where we spent less than 24 hours: 2
Mornings got up later than 7am: 3
Toe nails left home with: 10
Toe nails returned home with: 9.5
Different local beers tried: lots
Mossie bites: not many
Nights not in a campsite: 4 
Top temperature: 40+ degrees
Total drenchings: 1
Number of Mars Bars carried round without eating them (as per tradition): 1


Cuba Bound

2013-10-27

"4 weeks today!" That was the message I got from Georgia last night about our impending trip to Cuba. My response? "Is that all?? My goodness, and to think I've got Malaysia to fit in first!!" So yes, I am soon to be approaching a very busy November. I've got a 10 day business trip to Kuala Lumpur and less than a week after I return, I'll be back at Heathrow in order to fly off to Havana. About half an hour after I arrive, Georgia (of bestest roomie ever in Egypt fame) will arrive off a flight from Central America where she is currently travelling. We then have two weeks experiencing this unique island and seeing just how good our Spanish is!

So, do we have a plan? Well, in short no. We know that two weeks after we arrive in Havana, we have to leave Havana but how we fill those two weeks is still up for discussion. Potential suggestions include Viñales, Varadero, Cienfuegos, Trinidad and Santiago de Cuba. One of the biggest issues, and something I didn't realise until I really started researching, is just how big Cuba is. I thought it was a regular Caribbean island and therefore relatively small, but no. From Havana down to Santiago, you are looking at a 12-14 hour bus journey.

As for what we are expecting from Cuba, well if there's not old cars on every street corner, music blaring from windows and people sipping mojitos and smoking cigars in bars then I will be sorely disappointed!! In truth, I think the cars may exist but I'm not sure how accurate the other stereotypes are. Although the noises are that things are starting to change over there, I think it will be interesting to experience such a Communist country and see just how it differs from we know.


Understanding Cuba

2013-11-23 to 2013-12-08

Cuba is a very unique country that feels like it is stuck in the 1950’s – no internet (hence why I’m writing this at home 1 week after I returned), barely any mobile phones meaning large queues for payphones, whilst the horse and cart is still an acceptable, and well used, method of transport. It’s a country that lives up to its stereotypes – music blaring on every corner, old cars, cigars and lots of rum. But it’s also a country that doesn’t conform to expectations. I always think of Communist countries being cold and unwelcoming but Cuba could not be more opposite – open and very friendly. It’s a country that, on the one hand, wants to keep locals and tourists apart (a dual currency system leading to different bus companies, different shops, different restaurants for the two groups) whilst on the other hand it forces the two groups together – for the budget traveller accommodation is in Casa Particulares (spare rooms that locals rent out to tourists, also providing meals). It’s a country that still operates a rationing system for the locals, where locals create their own businesses selling pizzas out of their living rooms and where the most popular fashion item is currently the Union Jack – seen on wallets, t-shirts and more (see this BBC report for more info http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-21082793). It’s a country of contradictions and one which you’ll never fully understand after only two weeks. But, as Georgia said, “if I had to be a Communist, I’d be one in Cuba!”


Havana

2013-11-23 to 2013-11-24

Well there’s nothing like dramas to start off your holiday! With a 6.30am flight to Amsterdam I had booked myself a taxi for 3.30. It didn’t show up. When I rang them they denied all knowledge of my booking. They did however agree to send a new one. Finally made it to Heathrow and joined the ridiculously long queues at check in / bag drop. Georgia was messaging me asking me not to abandon her in Cuba. Oh, little did she know! Landed at Schipol and made a very uneventful connection onto the flight to Havana. That was the end of the drama – or so I thought. Georgia’s flight was due to land one hour after mine, but about a week before flying my flight got retimed so it would land two hours earlier. Never mind, I’d still wait at the airport for her.

Havana airport is pretty simple – no obvious arrivals board, three terminals, very few flights but lots of tour operators hanging around. So, I got quite a few strange looks in my position sat on the floor, leaning against a pillar, next to tourist information. Anyway, it was only two hours. At about the scheduled arrival time of Georgia’s flight from Cancun, I thought it probably best to check I was at the right terminal – yup, no worries. I’d gotten some money changed (Cuban Pesos can’t be bought outside of Cuba) and I’d even helped the tourist information lady with her son’s English homework.

Finally, about 6.30pm people started arriving into the terminal. Woohoo! Except, I soon realised they weren’t dressed like people who’d come from Mexico, they had too many layers on. They were dressed like people who’d come from Europe and a sneaky look at their luggage tags confirmed that this flight had come from Paris. By this point, having attracted lots of attention from the tour reps, one very lovely lady asked me which flight I was waiting for.

“Cancun”.

“Cancun? There isn’t one”.

Er, WTF? I show her the details, pointing out that yes, there very much is a flight from Cancun. She scurries off and returns 5 minutes later.

“Ah yes, the flight from Cancun arrives at 6am”.

“What do you mean?”

Then she takes me to the very well hidden arrivals board, which rather than show the scheduled arrivals, just shows what the actual next arrivals are. At the bottom is a flight from Mexico City that is delayed 12 hours.

“See that flight? When it arrives here, it then has to go back to Cancun, in order to come back here. That will then be your friend’s flight. It’s due in at 6 tomorrow morning”.

Okay, so I had no way of getting hold of Georgia to see if she had the details of the hostel we were staying in, that I had booked. Of all the countries to get stuck in this situation, we had to pick the one with no internet and very limited mobile phone network. Basically, we had no means of contacting each other at all. I had to hope that in 12 hours time she would magically appear at the hostel.

So, slightly apprehensively I caught a taxi to Central Havana and to our hostel where I had to explain to the very confused owners how I had “lost” my friend and how she would, hopefully, be appearing tomorrow. Then I went up to the roof terrace to meet some other backpackers and relay the story again of how I had lost Georgia. As most of these people had been in Cuba for a couple of weeks they were able to confirm comprehensively how I had absolutely no way of getting in contact with her. What I really needed was a strong cocktail and thankfully, this being Cuba, there were plenty of rum based cocktails to take my mind off the drama of the day and send to a nice sleep.

At 7am, I woke up as the door to my dorm opened and in entered Georgia!  Phew, that was a relief – she had indeed had a 12 hour delay, been put up in a hotel in Cancun but had finally made it to Cuba and to Havana. I let her have a few hours sleep then it was out to explore Havana, a city we’d heard so much about.

Our first stop was the Malecon, an iconic coastal road and possibly the most famous road in the whole of Cuba. The road in its entirety runs for about 8km but we only walked a couple of km, before arriving at the Plaza de Armas. Havana is unique in that unlike most Latin American cities, it has 4 main plazas. We visited two of them today, the second being Plaza de la Catedral, and everywhere we went we heard music and saw dancing. The small back roads are covered in pot holes and there are old cars at every turn.

We wanted lunch so we stopped at a small pizza place. You see these all over Cuba – families who have set up businesses selling pizzas out of their living rooms for the bargain price of about 50p. Cooked to order and very tasty! After our lunch break, we walked over to the Plaza de la Revolucion (not one of the main plazas) but where many of the main political rallies take place. In fact, Fidel & subsequently Raul Castro have addressed Cubans on more than one occasion from the Plaza. The main centre point is a 109m high memorial to Jose Marti and on the opposite site of the plaza are two murals – one of Camilo Cienfuegos and one of Che Guevara.

From here, we walked back down to the Malecon via the Hotel Nacional and a very delicious ice cream parlour where the queues literally went round the block (these were the queues to pay in the local currency. As we were paying in the tourist currency, our queues were non-existent and we had an ice cream in our hands inside 5 minutes). Back on the Malecon, we headed back to the hostel for a well deserved rest and some dinner.


Viñales

2013-11-25 to 2013-11-26

We were determined to spend our time in Cuba exploring the island rather than spending it in a resort. Our first stop was Viñales, to the West of Havana in the Piñar Del Rio province. We had been told that we either needed to buy the tickets the day before we wanted to travel, or we could go to the bus station one hour early and buy them then. We went for the latter and so at 7.45am we arrived at the Viazul bus terminal to catch the 9.00am bus to Viñales. The problem, however, is that the bus was already full. Only a minor inconvenience as we were shortly approached by a German couple Julia and Ben (very German names) who were also headed to Viñales and who wanted to share a taxi. They already had a taxi driver lined up, a price agreed for only a couple of Convertibles more than the bus, they just needed to fill the car. So by 8.00am we were en route to Viñales, which meant we arrived there by 10.00am a whole 2 and a half hours before the bus did!

First things first, we decided to arrange our transport down to Cienfuegos in the South so that we wouldn’t miss the bus again. But in the same room as the bus counter was the Cuba Taxi stand and we soon found we’d booked a place in a taxi collectivo (share taxi) down to Cienfuegos in two days time. The very lovely lady who booked our taxi also rang round some local Casas and found us somewhere to stay so we got ourselves an en suite room at the lovely Villa Mayi y Fernandito with our very lovely host Mayi. The room was one of two at the side of the house, with its own private entrance, and it had two double beds in it with a private bathroom. We also had the option of getting dinner and breakfast cooked for us and served on the small table outside our room.

Once we had registered, it was out to explore this small town and the surrounding countryside. Viñales is famous for its beautiful scenery – limestone karsts called Mogotes cover the region, which is best explored either on foot or on horse. We had opted to explore on foot today and on horse tomorrow. We walked the 3km or so up to Hotel Los Jazmines from where are the most famous views of Viñales. The hotel car park overlooked a number of large Mogotes and made for an excellent viewpoint. We sat and had a drink at the next door Paladar before the long walk back. That evening, we had dinner at our Casa – salad, soup, pork with rice and sweet potato, fruit salad and crisps.

After our fried egg and bread with mango jam breakfast the next morning, we were going off horse riding with our guide Donito and my horse Chucka Chucka. Normally, these trips are for 4 hours but neither Georgia nor I fancied that long on a horse so we opted for a two hour trip. The countryside was very peaceful and Donito was explaining the surrounding plantations and what was growing in them – maize, oranges, bananas, pineapples, mangoes and, most importantly, tobacco. Rows and rows of tobacco plants, in plantation after plantation. The majority of tobacco in Cuba is grown in the Viñales area and with the popularity of Cuban cigars, this makes these plantations incredibly important to the economy. We stopped at a tobacco farm and went into the drying house where we were told about the cigar making process, watched a cigar being rolled and were even given a free cigar to smoke. This cigar was “natural” meaning it had no nicotine in it, but still Georgia and I (both non smokers) struggled to finish it.

Back in town, we walked the 4 km to the Mural de la Prehistoria. Now, I hadn’t read the information properly and so I assumed it was a mural from pre historic times. How wrong I was. In fact, it was a mural depicting life from pre historic times until now, created in 1961 on order of Fidel Castro. It includes snails, dinosaurs, sea monsters and humans but with horrifically bright, in your face colours. From here, we caught the hop on, hop off bus back into town and out the other side to Cueva de San Miguel. This is a small cave that you can walk through following the paths of old African slaves, before being spat out into a restaurant. We caught the bus back into town and back to our Casa.

That evening for dinner, we followed a recommendation of the German couple in our room and went to a local restaurant in the back streets of Viñales. We walked in and sat down, then the waiter walked over and told us “no tenemos comida” [we don’t have any food]. Hmm, I’d heard stories of restaurants not having food, but I took them to be exaggerated. It appears not. We went to a different restaurant where, thankfully, we were able to order a risotto and a paella for dinner – normally, you can always rely on rice in Cuba!!


Cienfuegos

2013-11-27 to 2013-11-29

I was kept awake for a large part of the night by the most ridiculous storm raging outside – heavy rain, loud thunder and bright flashes of lightning. At 6.30, when we got up, we discovered the storm had knocked out the power so we had to dress in the dark. After an early breakfast, we said goodbye to Mayi and got in our share taxi to Cienfuegos. The journey took 6 hours during we time, much to Georgia’s amusement, we had a short break just outside of the town of Australia! Our collectivo had 6 people in it, one of whom, Méabh, had booked into the same Casa as us. This time we were staying with Pepe and Isabelle who had a lovely Casa with 5 rooms, all entered through the main door and through the living room. Our rooms were the first down the corridor, whilst at the end was a small dining area and upstairs was a rooftop terrace with views on a good day out over the whole of Cienfuegos. Sadly, it was still raining when we arrived and me being me, hadn’t packed for anything other than sun, so I got somewhat wet!! Never mind!

First priority was to find lunch, during which time the rain had stopped, and once that was sorted we went off exploring. We started in the main square, Parque José Martí. The town is described as being the Paris of Cuba and is full of French architecture. The Palacio de Gobierno took up one side of the square, with the Teatro Tomás Terry on the opposite side. The Cathedral was on a third side of the square whilst the fourth had a small Arco de Triunfo (yup, that’s an Arc de Triomphe!) In the middle was a statue to the main man himself, José Martí. The rain had stopped for a bit so we walked to the coast and looked out towards Punta Gorda. As the rain started again, we headed back to the Casa where we had dinner – as is becoming standard we were served far more food than we could have possibly ever eaten. Bean soup, rice, grilled chicken, salad, potatoes and dessert. We then spent a few more hours chatting and discussing Cuba.

Now, in my many years of backpacking, I have considered myself fortunate not to be kept awake in a dorm by others amorous nocturnal activities. Well, this luck has now been broken – not by Georgia I hasten to add, but by the couple in the room next to ours (the walls were thin). Anyway, once we managed to get back to sleep, I slept through the night. Georgia, however, had come down with a rather bad case of food poisoning and was up most of the night. By the next morning, things had calmed down for her, but understandably she didn’t want to do much more than stay in bed. This meant Méabh and I had breakfast alone, then went back into the centre to see what was going on. The rain had stopped but it was still grey and overcast. We came across a small market and bought a few souvenirs before Méabh had to leave as she had a bus to catch.

By the afternoon, Georgia was feeling a bit more adventurous and decided she wanted some fresh air, so we took a very slow walk down to Punta Gorda. This is supposedly the high class part of Cienfuegos where all the posh gentry folk lived. To be honest, to our untrained eyes, it looked very similar to the other parts of Cienfuegos. But it was a nice walk along the coast and it remained dry.

The following day, Georgia was feeling slightly better, which was a bonus since we were booked on a trip to El Nicho Falls. We met up with the rest of our tour group at Hotel La Union where we were divided into two buses, one for English speakers and one for French speakers. Our bus, therefore, consisted of 5 Danish people and 1 German girl, Sandra, who very kindly let me share her umbrella since it was pissing down with rain again! The drive to the National Park where the falls were took an hour and a half along very bumpy, pot holed roads, passing some lovely countryside and some very small villages. Upon arrival at the entrance we were given a welcome drink – what better to do at 10am than to drink a very strong cocktail! We then went off on a 2km walk around the Falls, seeing lakes, viewpoints and various waterfalls including El Nicho which was 20m high. We had the option of swimming in the pool at the bottom of the lake but due to the rain and the subsequent cold weather (cold by Cuban standards, not British!) we passed up the offer. Lunch was served to us in the National Park restaurant – more rice, beans and fried chicken – it’s getting a little bit repetitive!

We had another 1.5 hour drive back to Cienfuegos before having the evening to ourselves. The rain had ceased so Georgia and I, plus Sandra, went to a bar in the main square for a couple of cocktails and to watch the dance class that was going on next door! We were going to continue on to a nightclub for their Cabaret night but when we got there it was still closed and the opening time had been pushed back so we decided to call it a night instead. On the walk back to the Casa I discovered just how perilous the Cuban pavements can be as I stubbed my toe on something sticking out of the pavement which caused a large, deep cut in my toe and my flip-flop to be covered in blood!


Trinidad

2013-11-30 to 2013-12-04

The Lonely Planet describes Trinidad as “soporific”, a word which, I admit, I had to look up to understand. However, I think this is a pretty apt description. It is a town that is well and truly stuck in time. If Cuba is stuck in the 1950’s, then Trinidad must be stuck in about the 1850’s. A sleepy, small centre with cobbled streets and the highest proportion of horse and carts we had seen in Cuba.

The route there from Cienfuegos was again in a taxi – meaning all the bus timetables I had helpfully printed out were looking more and more pointless. The taxi had been arranged by a Casa and it had also been agreed that we would make a stop en route at Laguna Guanaroca, to see the bird life there. Our guide, who could best be described as bat-shit crazy, had a slight obsession with pointing out the ants. “Look, there’s one. And another one. Ooh, have you seen this one?”!  We climbed a lookout and could see way out among all the lands and down to the lake (the sun having finally reappeared). Once at the lake, we went out on a boat in order to get up closer to the flamingos. The colour of the birds – the pink and black – against the blue of the skies was quite a sight.

Once we arrived in Trinidad, we were staying at the Casa of Señor Ruben and his family, a very charismatic man who liked the sound of his own voice. He was, however, very helpful to us. We had arrived early afternoon, so we had the remainder of that day to go and explore. The Plaza Mayor is the main square within Trinidad and the focal point of the whole town. There is a Cathedral on one side and museums on the others. All the surrounding side streets contain small souvenir shops, restaurants or museums. Despite the small size of the place, it didn’t feel overrun with tourists which was a relief, although the “Jinteros” – the touts – were a little bit aggressive at times. Dinner at the Casa was once again the size of 3 meals – soup, rice, chicken, salted plantain and salad.

The next morning was one of those really tough days that you dread when you are travelling. We drove the 12km out to Playa Ancon, where we sat on the beach, relaxing, swam in the turquoise, bath-water temperature sea and generally chilled out all day. It was truly beautiful and a delightful way to spend the midpoint of our trip.

After such a relaxing day, it was time to spend another day doing a lot of travels. We were going to visit Santa Clara, where the revolution of Cuba began and where Che Guevara is revered more so than anywhere else on this island. Consequently, the whole town is a shrine to the man with multiple statues and monuments. The drive was 2 hours through the Sierra del Escambray mountain range and along some very pot-holed roads. Eventually we arrived at the Monumento Ernesto Che Guevara – this is the main monument and contains one large plinth with a statue of Che on top of it, and 4 smaller plinths with various quotations on them. One plinth even contained a whole letter from Fidel to Che, the contents of which I will need to get my Spanish teacher to help me translate.

We drove across town aiming for the Monumento a la Toma del Tren Blindado, though our taxi driver (who we think must have been a friend of Ruben’s) had to stop to keep asking for directions! This monument represents the spot where Guevara and his Guerrilla friends derailed a train, fought and won a battle against Batista ousting him from power and consequently putting Fidel into power. In order to derail the train, they used a bulldozer which can still be seen at the monument site. A little bit further down the road, we saw the Estatua Che y Niño, a rather delicate statue showing Che with a small child on his shoulder. The statue had some intricate carvings on it including 38 people carved into Che’s belt to represent those who died alongside Che in the Bolivian uprising. A little further along the road was the Lomo de Caparo lookout, on top of a hill looking out over the entire town. It was a two hour drive back to Trinidad in time for dinner.

The next morning we went to the Museo Histórical Municipal, not to visit the museum but rather to see the views from the rooftop over all the city and the surrounding areas. We had perfect views of the Plaza Mayor, out to the Ancon peninsula and the surrounding Sierra del Escambray. We bumped into Sandra again in the Plaza and made plans for dinner, then we headed back to Playa Ancon for the afternoon. In the evening, we met back up with Sandra and headed to a Paladar for dinner that had been recommended by the German couple in the taxi to Viñales. The restaurant was in a courtyard of a small home, complete with porcelain decorations and live musicians. It was a rather quaint venue, perfectly befitting the town of its location.

Our final full day in Trinidad and Ruben talked us into going to visit an amazing waterfall out in Parque El Cubano. The usual route is to ride a horse out but we had decided that the 2 hours in Viñales was enough horse riding for us so we had asked if we could take a horse and carriage ride instead. He duly obliged in finding us a carriage to take us out to the Falls. It felt rather like luxury until we hit the cobbles and then the potholes and then it felt rather uncomfy! We then turned onto some farm land and it soon became apparent that this route was not meant for carriages. Nevertheless, we got to the entrance to the park where we then had a 15 minute walk to the actual waterfall. Once there, we were a little disappointed. The waterfall wasn’t really worth the drama of getting there. It wasn’t much more than a trickle and although it had a lovely setting dropping into a pool in a cave but we couldn’t help feeling a little cheated by the whole experience!


Havana

2013-12-05 to 2013-12-07

After our final morning in Trinidad, we caught a Collectivo taxi to Havana, meaning not a single public bus had we taken in Cuba! The taxi drove back to Cienfuegos where we joined the Highway and headed back to the Capital. The journey only took a few hours but felt much longer due to our drivers’ love of Marc Anthony power ballads! We were staying back at the hostel where our Cuban adventure had begun almost two weeks earlier.

We had enough time to do some exploration that afternoon so we went to the remaining two Plazas that we hadn’t already seen – Plaza de San Francisco de Asis and Plaza Vieja. The former was home to a large cathedral, whilst the latter was home to possibly my favourite statue in the whole of Cuba – a naked woman riding a cockerel holding a giant fork! We took a slow walk back along the Malecon before returning to our hostel for dinner. We ate up on the roof terrace with lots of new arrivals, sharing stories and giving them much advice as to what to make of this slightly crazy country.

The next morning, we had arranged to meet Sandra so we headed off to the Museo de la Revolucion. The museum was very interesting, though obviously rather one-sided. I lost track of the number of times Fidel was referred to as the Saviour of Cuba! When we left the museum, we said goodbye to Sandra for the final time as she was heading back to Germany. We still had 24 hours or so, so we hired an old American car for an hour and drove around the city. This is definitely the way to see Havana. It took us slightly further out than we were able to get on foot, which included a stop at the beautiful little Rio Almendares. We asked our driver to end the tour across the water at the Forteleza de San Carlos de la Cabaña – a fort we had been admiring from the Malecon every day in Cuba. Unfortunately, the fort was shut for a private function, so we walked over to the next door castle instead, where Georgia did some shopping for souvenirs. We bought another bargain 50p pizza for a late lunch, before heading back to the hostel. Later that evening a group of us went to sit on the Malecon to watch sunset.

Our final morning, Georgia and I headed down to the Museo de la Ciudad. To be honest, we were expecting more from it, but they did let us in for free which we’re not sure they should’ve done. Georgia’s flight was quite a few hours before mine, too much so for me to hand around at the airport, so she caught a taxi to the airport whilst I sat on the Malecon for a few hours to reflect on this incredible country, before following G to the airport a few hours later.


Summary

2013-12-08

The usual summary on Cuba takes a slight twist this time with some fun Cuban facts thrown in as well (thanks to my trusty Lonely Planet for most of these).

Days in Cuba: 14

Cities visited: 5

Buses planned to take: 4

Buses actually taken: 0

Taxis taken between cities instead: 4

Days chilling on a beach: 2

Number of crumbling buildings in Havana: Thousands, if not millions

Old car taxis available: hundreds

Amount of Wifi: None, literally

Amount of internet: Getting there slowly, mainly dial-up

Meals not involving rice or beans: 0

Number of days when lunch was skipped due to size of breakfast and dinner: 12

In December 1946 the Mafia convened the biggest ever get-together of North American mobsters in Havana’s Hotel Nacional, under the pretence that they were going to a Frank Sinatra concert

Che Guevara – whose father’s family name was Guevara Lynch – can trace his Celtic roots back to a Patrick Lynch, born in Galway in Ireland  1715, who emigrated to Buenos Aires in 1749.

Habana Vieja is one of the most crowded quarters in Latin America with over 70,000 people living in an area of just 4.5 sq km.

Cuba had 70,000 qualified doctors. The whole of Africa has only 50,000.

Cuban tobacco and cigar exports net approximately CUC$200m annually, but every year 6000 Cubans die from smoking-related illnesses.


I'll Never Do It Again

2014-09-02

Yup, that's the acronym for my next destination - India. Whether or not this turns out to be true remains to be seen but India is certainly a place where travellers experience a culture shock like no other. They also say that all the other travelling you do is just to prepare you for India. So, here's hoping that the 68 countries I've already been to will hold me in good stead for the trip of all trips!

Now, for those of you who've already had a look at the map, you will have noticed that I'm not taking the most direct route to India. In fact, I appear to be going somewhat out of the way. Via Tokyo. In Japan. There is, however, a good reason for this. I have an old school friend getting married and the timing of the wedding fitted in quite nicely with the time of year that I wanted to be in India and so I figured why not? London to Delhi via 48 hours in Tokyo! What state that'll leave me in by the time I step off a plane in Delhi we can only guess. I did decide to get a direct flight as all cheaper, indirect flights arrive around 1am and I didn't fancy being a solo female traveller arriving at Delhi airport at that hour. So, I have a nice direct flight arriving around 5pm instead. Sadly, these flights didn't go every day so I could go on the Sunday, the day after the wedding, or wait until the Wednesday. Given that I've already been to Japan, I went for Sunday.

So, what about once I've landed? Well, I spend two nights in Delhi before heading off on the world famous train system. Conveniently, I have a friend at home who has a family member who runs a travel agency in Delhi and so she put me in contact with him and he has arranged all my trains for me. Handy! So, I head north to Amritsar, home of the Golden Temple and the crazy India / Pakistan border closing ceremony. From here, I head to McLeod Ganj, home of Tibetans in exile including the most famous of all - the Dalai Lama. I will then head to Rishikesh, on the banks of India's most famous river - the Ganges - and the place made most famous by the Beatles when they stayed at one of the ashrams. Both these last two places are in the mountains and hopefully will be a gentler introduction to India.

Then it's time to hit the real madness. I head down to Rajasthan. First stop is Agra, home to probably the most famous sight in the whole country - the Taj Mahal - the only one of the New 7 Wonders of the World I have yet to see. My final three stops are the three most famous towns in Rajasthan - Jaipur, the pink city, Udaipur, the romantic city, and Jodhpur, the blue city. After a crazy 3 weeks, it's back to Delhi for one last day before heading home, probably in desperate need of a holiday!!!


Delhi

2014-09-28 to 2014-09-29

Slightly hung-over. Half asleep and somewhat jetlagged. 3rd time zone in 4 days. Definitely the way everyone should arrive in the colourful, noisy, craziness that is India. The virtual slap to your face as you exit the airport to be greeted by beeping horns, dust and cows in the road will awaken even the sleepiest of senses.

The previous 48 hours had been spent in Tokyo, in a whirlwind of snails, sake, free miso from random Japanese men, potential prostitutes and, most importantly, a good friend’s wedding. I arrived in Delhi after an 8 hour flight from Japan to touch down into 36 degree heat at 5pm in the afternoon. I’d pre-ordered an airport transfer to my hotel which was based in the Paharganj area of Delhi, popular with backpackers both for its proximity to New Delhi train station but also for its range of tourist facilities such as travel agencies and budget restaurants. In some ways, it was like a crazier version of Thamel in Kathmandu. By the time I’d reached the hotel and sorted myself out, the tiredness had taken over so I had an early night and hit the sack.

The next morning and I was awake relatively early, by my standards! Conveniently, I had arranged to collect my pre booked train tickets that morning which meant I was then all set for 3 weeks of madness. To start with, I had a full day in Delhi. The number 1 tourist attraction in Delhi is the Red Fort, which is conveniently closed on Mondays. This meant it would have to wait until I returned to Delhi at the end of my trip. Instead, I decided to break myself in relatively gently and head towards Connaught Place. The journey here was on the swanky Delhi metro system which was beautifully air conditioned and efficiently speedy. The front carriage on each train is reserved just for women. Given some of the stories about women’s safety in India, this is a good move on their part although on the couple of occasions I jumped on a different carriage as the train was about to leave I never felt unsafe.

Connaught Place is the heart of Colonial Delhi and is named after King George V’s paternal uncle, Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught and Strathearn. The centre is a circular park surrounded by white buildings that are now mostly up market shops and restaurants. From here, I jumped back on the metro and headed to the Parliament. This is in a nice, peaceful part of Delhi, set back from the main road, surrounded by gardens but with views all the way down to India Gate. There wasn’t a lot of security around the buildings, which seemed odd since you had to pass through body searches just to get on the metro. One policeman even invited me to go closer to the building although after one step forward he then said “enough”!

Lunch was my first proper Indian curry and I quickly learnt that if you order rice with your meal rather than a naan, you don’t half get looked at weirdly! After lunch, it was back on the metro where I headed to JLN Stadium stop. This stop is right by the stadium that hosted, amongst others, the 2010 Commonwealth Games. However, I wanted it as it was a 15 min walk from Humayun’s Tomb. The tomb was built between 1565 - 72 by Hamida Banu Begum, the widow of Emperor Humayun. It stands on a platform of 12,000m2 and reaches a height of 47m. There are Persian influences throughout the building as Begum was herself Persian. The building mixes red sandstone with white marble and follows the rules of Islamic geometry. The tomb itself contains over 100 graves, earning the nickname “Dormitory of the Mughals”. This was where the last Mughal Emperor took refuge before being captured and exiled by British rule in 1857. The site is also home to Isa Khan’s tomb that was built 2 decades earlier and is hexagonal in shape.


Amritsar

2014-09-30 to 2014-10-01

With over 23m people on a train on any given day, Indian railways is the life blood of the country. The extensive network consists of around 6900 stations making it the largest and busiest in the world whilst the 1.5m workers employed makes Indian Railways the largest utility employer on earth. And I was about to become one of these statistics!

My first experience of a train in India was from New Delhi station to Amritsar in Punjab state in the north of the country. I was booked on an AC Chair Class seat on the 7.20am 12029 Swarna Shatabdi Express due in to Amritsar at 13.40 and covering a distance of 448km. Not really knowing what kind of madness the station would be, I arrived at the station 1 hour early. Luckily, it was fairly straight forward. The large departure board in both English and Hindi told me it would be platform 1 and then there were electronic boards on the platform confirming train name and number. Whereas in the UK you would reference your train by departure/arrival time, in India it’s all about train name and number. The electronic boards on the platform also tell you where each carriage is going to stop making finding your pre booked seat a lot easier. The Shatabdi Express trains are unique in that they only run during the daytime and so they only have chair class carriages and they also provide you with a lot of food. From the moment the train pulled out of New Delhi station, the carriage attendants kept us very well fed and watered with everything from chai, bottles of water, snacks and a proper hot breakfast – curry obviously! Other than that, it was time to stare out of the window and watch the Indian countryside go by.

The train arrived in Amritsar a little late and suddenly it was back into the madness of a big city. Amritsar is in the north western corner of the Indian Punjab state. The 1947 partition of India had divided Punjab with part remaining in India and part forming part of the new Pakistan. The state is home to a large majority of the Indian Sikh population and also one of the Sikh religions most revered shrines – the Golden Temple. The city is also just 30km from the Pakistan border and trips to the border are recommended, even for those not crossing into Pakistan, to witness the border closing ceremony. My hotel offered a tour that would take you to the border and the temple and, conveniently, it was departing about an hour after I checked in. I joined up with this tour and immediately met Beth and Amelia, two northern lasses who were soon to become my travelling buddies for the next few days.

Our first stop was the Mata Temple, a Hindu temple supposedly credited with fertility improving powers. It was a labyrinth of corridors and stairs taking you past Hindu Gods, Buddha statues as well as into the mouths of lions and through tunnels so small you have to crawl. It’s truly bizarre and almost has a Disneyland feel about it at times. From here, we drove to the Wagah-Atari border, or the India-Pakistan border to those uninitiated to the names of the border towns. Cars park about 1km away from where you walk to the border dodging boys trying to paint an Indian flag on your arm, hawkers selling water and flags and ensuring that, as a Westerner, you get channelled into the correct VIP section. Yup, Westerners get seats in the VIP Gallery, the second most important seating area just next to the actual VIP’s who sit in the VIP Seats. Ordinary Indians have to sit in the remaining area, furthest away from the gate. What you then witness, goes beyond anything you can truly imagine just from reading about it. The warm up begins with children being given an Indian flag and running to the border and back with it, before moving on to Bollywood dancing accompanied by blaring music. Then the real action begins. A contest to see who can shout for the longest without taking a breath, followed by quick marching, high stepping to the border finishing in a display of machoism at the opposing guard on the Pakistani side. This was repeated for about half an hour by various different guards before all stood for the lowering of the flags and the border gate was swung shut. Given the tension between the two countries and the nationalistic pride evidently on display, it was all very good natured and rather choreographed. It finished as the sun was setting meaning that we were heading to the Golden Temple to see it lit up at night.

Before entering the temple, everyone (male and female) must hand over their shoes, cover their heads and wash their feet. The temple is situated in the middle of Amrit Sarovar, or Pool of Nectar, from which the city also takes its name. The pool is then surrounded by a marble walkway where you can sit and relax. The pool is said to have healing properties and pilgrims come from all over the world to bathe within its waters. The lower half of the Temple is made of marble, whilst the upper part is adorned with gold panels and topped with a dome gilded with 750kg of gold. Sitting by the pool was a very serene experience.

The next morning, the girls and I decided to head back to the Golden Temple area although our first stop was Jallianwala Bagh – a memorial to those killed by the British in the massacre of 1919. On 13th April 1919, more than 5000 Indians were protesting against at the Bagh against the new Rowlatt Act when the British Army opened fire for 10 minutes. Official figures from the British Government state that 370 people were killed and 1200 wounded but others put the figures far higher. What is known is that the Army were firing on people who were ultimately pinned into an enclosed space with no easy way out. The General in charge was congratulated by the British Government but the backlash from the Indian people, led by Gandhi, had a large hand in Indian Independence. Bullet holes are still visible in the wall at the memorial along with a large well that people jumped into to try and escape harm but who then drowned. An Eternal Flame burns near the entrance.

Next, it was back to the Temple, to see it in daylight. Whilst it was still impressive, I think we all agreed that it was better at night! Whilst walking round the edge we were stopped very often by people asking for photos with us, including those who didn’t have their own camera and who asked us to take a photo on our cameras! At no point did we ever get to the bottom of why people want photos with random white strangers. One group we got chatting to also consisted of young children who asked us to join them to chat. We spent about 15 minutes talking to them before getting told off by a group of Sikh musicians who were trying to perform and apparently we were being too loud. The Temple has its own dining hall whereby, according to Sikh principles, anyone who wants can turn up and be given food. It’s estimated that the dining hall feeds 60,000 – 80,000 pilgrims per day, all for free. The organisation that goes into the food preparation and the washing up was immense as you got to witness it whilst walking to the dining room. The meal was simple but tasty – naan, lentils, curry and what tasted like rice pudding, but there was no time to relax. The entire process operates on a sort of conveyor belt system meaning we were in and out of the dining hall in less than 15 minutes!


McLeod Ganj

2014-10-02 to 2014-10-04

In October 1950, Chinese troops invaded Tibet, a state currently being led by the 14th Dalai Lama. By 1951 Lhasa, the capital fell to Chinese troops. China claims it was trying to free Tibetans and improve their way of life but by 1959 the Dalai Lama was fleeing across the Himalayas to India where he was granted asylum and now resides in Upper Dharamshala, also known as McLeod Ganj. Every year, hundreds of Tibetans attempt the same journey and now there are more than 130,000 refugees living outside their homeland with around 80,000 of them residing in or around Dharamshala. Meanwhile, the issue surrounding the “ownership” of Tibet continues with debates worldwide.

To get from Amritsar to McLeod Ganj is a simple process of a 3 hour journey to Pathankot, followed by a 4 hour journey to Dharamshala, then a 30 min journey to McLeod. Each bus as crazy as the next, with more people crammed per seat than normal, and windy roads heading higher and higher into the mountains. The town is named after David McLeod, the Lieutenant-Governor of Punjab in the 1850’s, and was nothing more than a sleepy backwater until the Dalai Lama arrived. When I arrived, with Beth and Amelia, the final bus taking about an hour longer than expected, it seemed like everyone was on the streets. We quickly found out that not only was the Dalai Lama in town and he was due to give teachings 5 days from then but that there had just been a peaceful protest against Chinese rule of Tibet.

Obviously, the main thing to do in McLeod is to visit the Dalai Lama at his Tsuglagkhang Complex residence. The first stop upon entering is the Tibet Museum, giving a history of Tibet, Dharamshala and the Dalai Lama as well as the plans for the future. The Dalai Lama has openly stated that when he reincarnates, he will not come back in a country that is occupied by China. Meanwhile China have stated that they will assist in the search for the new Dalai Lama and that any appointment will have to be approved by them. I can’t help thinking that when the time comes the two sides will disagree somewhat!

We then headed to the main Kalachakra Temple, where cameras and mobile phones are not allowed. We sat for a while in the main hall surrounded by monks and other devotees, drinking another rice pudding flavoured drink before walking round the hundreds of prayer wheels. On leaving the temple, we entered the Namgyal Gompa where monks were debating with school children. Whilst we had no idea what was being said, you knew when each individual made a point as it was accompanied with a large clap and a theatrical stomp of the foot. We headed back into the centre of the town, where we explored the main Chorten as well as each of the main roads – of which there are approximately 5 – it’s not a big town! The evening was spent in the bar next door to our hotel discussing plans for the next few days. I had originally planned for about 5 days in McLeod but I appeared to have seriously overestimated the amount of activities I could do there. Meanwhile the girls were heading on to Manali the next day and invited me to join them.

That next morning, I decided that Manali would be the best option. However, we were going to be getting a night bus and so we still had a day to kill first. We walked to the town of Bhagsu about 2km away. Here they have a temple with a swimming pool just in front of it, sadly just for male swimmers! Another 1.5km further on, along a winding path, we reached the Bhagsu waterfall. Here we chilled for half an hour, enjoying the views along the valley. On the way back, we stopped at a café for cake and I enjoyed the most amazing piece of chocolate mousse cake ever. I ate many delicious meals in India, but this was by far and away the best. That night it was goodbye to the Dalai Lama and onwards on our first overnight bus of the trip.


Manali

2014-10-05 to 2014-10-07

At 2,050m and nestled amongst the Dhauladhar and Pir Panjal Ranges, Manali is a backpackers haven and a chance to get away from crazy Indian cities and enjoy stunning mountain vistas instead. Manali and the surrounds are a ‘V’ shape with New Manali at the base of the ‘V’, Old Manali to the west and Vashisht to the east. Connecting all three is the Beas River, a 470km long river connecting the Rohtang Pass through Amritsar and on into Pakistan. We were based in Old Manali at a guesthouse, in an orchard, with perfect views of the nearby peaks.

As our bus had arrived at 5am, we spent some time catching up on well-deserved sleep before heading out to explore. The first stop was the Manu Maharishi Temple, before heading downhill to Hadimba Temple. Here we joined a queue of people waiting to go in, not really knowing what to expect. Inside was nothing apart from a ledge that everyone was bending down under and giving money. When it was my turn, I bent down under the ledge, put my R10 in the pot, and waited a respectful moment before turning to leave. I was then told to stroke the feet in front of me. I totally hadn’t seen these before and thankfully they belonged to a statue rather than a person. I stroked the feet twice, was given a red bindi (dot) on my forehead, collected some free food (which tasted a lot like dry rice krispies) and left the temple. Once Beth and Amelia were outside of the temple, they were none the wiser as to what had just happened either!! A little down the road was the tree temple to Ghatotkach, Hadimba’s son. We visited a Tibetan gompa in New Manali and watched the local children play cricket before heading back up the hill to Old Manali.

The next morning we headed over to Vashisht with the intention of finding a yoga class. Unfortunately, there weren’t any happening so instead we did a 30 min hike to a waterfall where we sat for an hour with beautiful views back down the valley. The afternoon was largely interrupted by a large storm watched from the shelter of our guesthouse balcony.

We wanted to go and visit the Rohtang Pass, up at 4,114m, but unfortunately on the next day the road was undergoing maintenance by the Army. Instead, we headed up to Solang Nullah, a destination popular with those looking to do sports. With none of us brave enough to take on an Indian paraglide, we instead took the gondola up to 3,200m for better views of the surrounding peaks. The weather turned on us whilst we were up there so we headed back down to Manali and back to the beautiful sunshine!


Shimla

2014-10-08 to 2014-10-09

The state capital of Himachal Pradesh, where I’d spent the last week, is the city of Shimla. The city was nothing more than a forest until Scot Charles Kennedy built a summer home in 1822. By 1864 Shimla had developed into the official summer capital of the Raj, from where the Brits ruled over a quarter of the world. Due to the altitude of 2,205m Shimla would get an influx of government officials every summer until 1939 to get away from the heat of the lower regions of India. Shimla is now the premier hill station of the country attracting a mix of backpackers, honeymooners and Indian holiday makers. From being unplanned in Manali, it made sense to head 10 hours south to Shimla, before carrying on back onto my planned itinerary.

The layout of Shimla is somewhat unusual as it’s built into a hill but, conveniently, there is a lift built into the hill to take you between the lower and upper levels. Inconveniently, the bus station is a distance out of town so the three of us had to jump in a taxi to take us to the lift. Once on the upper level, we set out trying to find a hotel whilst being followed by the usual array of touts assuring us they “weren’t following” us. 15 mins uphill walking and we finally found a hotel with available rooms, even if it was going to mean 3 in a bed! The rooftop restaurant was like a very large greenhouse although it only had 2 tables at one end and then was totally empty the rest.

I only had the one full day in Shimla as I was getting the overnight bus back to Delhi. We started the day with a pre breakfast hike up to Jakhu Temple, also known as the Monkey Temple. There are two reasons for this – the temple is dedicated to the Hindu God Hanuman who is a monkey but also because of the resident rhesus macaques that hang around trying to steal things from the visitors. They particularly liked to guard the door of the temple, preventing us from entering despite words of encouragement from the workers. When it comes to fighting a monkey, I will try and avoid that scenario! Back down in town we headed over to Viceregal Lodge, described by my Lonely Planet as a cross between the Tower of London and Hogwarts. Today the lodge is used as an Institute of Advanced Study but originally this building was used by the British Viceroy as his summer house. In one of the rooms was the very table that the partition of India was mapped at. Next door was a bird park, which I won’t say was lacking but we walked around twice and were still out of less than 5 minutes after entering!

The three of us girls had a final dinner together in an Indian restaurant that refused to serve Indian food until after 7pm and as we were there at 6pm we would have to have Chinese, Tibetan or Italian! I then had to say a sad farewell to Beth and Amelia, my wonderful travelling buddies, as they were heading to Rishikesh whilst I was off to Agra via an overnight bus to Delhi. Just when you think you have the measure of the country, it goes and throws up another quirk and so it was that my Deluxe overnight bus to the capital picked up not from a bus station but from the side of the road on a bend halfway down the hill!


Agra

2014-10-10 to 2014-10-11

Ask anyone what the number 1 tourist attraction in India is and you will get the same answer 99% of the time. As one of the New 7 Wonders of the World, it is in fact one of the top tourist attractions and most beautiful buildings in the world. Yes, it was time for me to visit the Taj Mahal.

Built by Shah Jahan as a memorial for his third, and favourite, wife Mumtaz Mahal, who died in childbirth whilst giving birth to their 14th child in 1631. Construction of the Taj began the next year, though it was not completed until 1653. Not long after it was finished, Shah Jahan was overthrown by his son, Aurangzeb, and was imprisoned in Agra Fort where he could only stare at his creation from the window in his cell. When he died in 1666, his body was transported along the Yamuna River and buried underneath the Taj, alongside that of his wife. Around 20,000 people from India and Central Asia worked on the site alongside specialists from Europe building the monument which is made from white marble inlaid with semi-precious stones. It is regarded as one of the finest examples of Mughal architecture, combining Indian, Persian, Islamic and Turkish styles. The base is a large cube approximately 55m long on each side, each connected by a vaulted archway. Each corner of the tomb has a minaret more than 40m high. The dome on top is around 35m high which is about the same length as the base and all-round the exterior are quotations from the Qur’an. From wherever you stand in the complex, the symmetry is incredible. Around the base is a garden, also symmetrical, including the famous reflection pool. Inside the Taj are the tombs of both Mumtaz and Shah Jahan.

These days the Taj is a working mosque, meaning it is shut on Fridays to anyone not attending prayers. Conveniently, I spent Friday travelling to the town of Agra, meaning that I was visiting on a Saturday. A 5.30am alarm call meant that I was in the queue for the Taj before 6am. The aim was to see sunrise at the Taj but it turns out that the gates don’t open until sunrise so by the time you clear security, the sun is already up. Regardless, the Taj lives up to all the hype – it is stunning in the flesh. You can, and I did, just spend time sitting in the grounds and staring at the building.

After leaving the Taj, I went back to the hotel for breakfast, then it was off to explore Agra’s other attractions. First stop was Agra Fort. This is the most important Fort in India and was home to the Great Mughals who lived and ruled the country from within. The first mention of a Fort was in 1080 but the current building was built between 1565 – 1573. The Fort has a semi-circular plan and lies parallel to the river. The walls are over 20m high and measure 2.5km in circumference. The Fort is almost more of a mini city with its mosques, public halls, courtyards and prisons. Deaths and coronations occurred in the Fort whilst the British used it as a garrison. Even today, much of the Fort is off limits as it is used by the Indian Army. The Fort is largely made of red sandstone but the mosques in particular contain the same marble as seen at the Taj.

From here, we headed to Itimad-ud-Daulah, also known as the Baby Taj. This is the tomb of Mirza Ghiyas Beg and is wife Asmat Begum and was built by their daughter Nur Jahan between 1622 and 1628. It is smaller than the Taj Mahal but is made from the same white marble sat on a red plinth. The tomb is in a garden with a lotus tank and has the same symmetrical design. As it was built before the Taj Mahal, it is often believed that the design of the Taj was based on these tombs.

Our final stop was at Mehtab Bagh, which is a small park on the opposite banks of the Yamuna River. From here, you get views back across the river to the Taj Mahal and is a popular spot for sunset. The gardens of the park are actually aligned with those in the Taj complex. I spent about an hour here slowly watching the sunset before my time in Agra came to a close.


Jaipur

2014-10-12 to 2014-10-13

Rajasthan has been home to the Rajput warriors for over 1000 years. These warriors were great fighters, fighting even against the odds, and once there was no hope left for them they would perform a mass suicide – the men would ride out to battle to face the enemy, whilst the women and children would throw themselves on a funeral pyre. During the time of British rule, the Rajput’s aligned themselves with the ruling British Raj, allowing their states to keep independence but once India became independent it was increasingly hard for them to remain so. The states combined to become the larger, all-encompassing Rajasthan which eventually joined the newly independent India.

Rajasthan does get a large proportion of all tourism in India (either domestic or international) thanks to its forts, palaces and lake cities. There are so many places to choose from here, it’s hard to know where to visit and where to miss. In fact, if you polled 100 backpackers you’d get an equal split as to which is the best city. I had opted to visit three cities – Jaipur, the pink city, Udaipur, the romantic city, and Jodhpur, the blue city.

Jaipur is named after Jai Singh, a warrior astronomer and is the capital of modern day Rajasthan. The Old City, surrounded by high city walls, is why the city gets the nickname “the pink city”. In 1876, Maharajah Ram Singh had the entire city painted pink to welcome the then Prince of Wales (later King Edward VII). The law is now such that the residents are required to preserve the façade and the colouring.

I had hired a tuk tuk driver for the day and he was possibly the worst driver I had, which is an impressive feat. He neither avoided, nor slowed down for pot holes and he was constantly looking left and right whilst driving. This may sound like the sign of a good driver but most seem to have a 6th sense awareness of where traffic is around them and don’t need to look around. Having a driver who actually looked around, suddenly made the whole experience a little unnerving!

My first stop was the beautiful Hawa Mahal (Wind Palace). It was built to allow the ladies of court the ability to watch the processions on the streets without having to leave the building or show themselves. The building is made from pink sandstone, constructed like a honeycomb beehive, with small portholes, each made of stained glass. There are 5 floors in the building, the top 3 are just one room and there is a large courtyard at the back of the building.

Next stop was the 35m high Iswari Minar Swarga Sal minaret for a bird’s eye view of the city, before heading on to the City Palace. Here there were many museums and courtyards to view, then I headed next door to Jantar Mantar. At first look, this appears to be a large number of rather odd sculptures. However, it was actually built by Jai Singh due to his love of astrology and is, in fact, a set of astronomical instruments. Singh built 5 of these all over India, but this is the best preserved, and largest, of all. Everything from sun dials to depictions of the zodiac are present here. It does make you wish you understood astronomy and the heavens a little better to fully appreciate what you are seeing. One of the sundials can tell you the time to within 2 seconds and astrologers still use the site to calculate auspicious dates for festivals and celebrations.

My next stop was the Royal Gaitor or the Royal Cenotaph. This is the final resting place of many kings including Jai Singh II, Maharajah Pratap Singh and Madho Singh II. All the tombs are made from marble, similar to that on the Taj, although the marble varied from Indian marble to Italian marble. The largest of these tombs have roofs supported by 20 carved pillars.

I was then headed 11km out of town to the magnificent Amber Fort. The Fort is atop a large hill and consists of a Royal Palace and 4 separate, distinct courtyards. The first, as you enter the fort is Jaleb Chowk (Main Courtyard). From here are steps taking you up to the second courtyard which has the Diwan-i-Am (Hall of Public Audience) along one side. The third courtyard is surrounded by the Maharajah’s apartments including the mirrored Jai Mandir (Hall of Victory). The final courtyard, on your way out of the Fort, is surrounded by the ladies quarters. Each chamber is independent but open on to a common corridor. This meant the Maharajah could visit his wives and concubines after dark without the others finding out!

That evening was to be my first overnight train of the trip. The train arrived a little late and so I spent about 2 hours sitting at Jaipur train station watching the full spectre of station life – cramming into non reserved carriages, jumping on and off whilst the train was in motion, both on the way in and out of the station, security hitting people with batons who were blocking doors and not letting others on, jumping through windows to secure the best seats and vendors selling everything the long distance traveller could ever want through windows.


Udaipur

2014-10-14 to 2014-10-15

Udaipur was founded in 1568 by Maharana Udai Singh II and was the capital of the Rajput kingdom, Mewar now within south central Rajasthan. The former royal family still have a lot of influence within the city and have pushed the tourist drive in recent years. The city is frequently referred to as the most romantic city in India, first called this by Colonel James Tod of the East India Company in 1829, due to its location alongside Lake Pichola surrounded by Aravelli Hills. The lake itself is 4km long by 3km wide, but is shallow and has Palaces both around and on the lake. One takes up an entire island in the lake and only allows visitors who are paying guests. For most people these days, Udaipur is best known for its mentions in Rudyard Kipling’s The Jungle Book (albeit under the name Oodeypore) and for its use in the James Bond film Octopussy.

I had arrived on the overnight train and was at my guesthouse by 7am so I grabbed a couple of hours more sleep then headed up to the restaurant, on the roof, with stunning views overlooking the lake. Here I met Fran, Hannah and Lara who had all arrived late the night before. We headed out to explore, crossing the narrow Daiji footbridge, to the busier side of the lake. First stop was the City Palace, a museum with a collection of unrelated rooms and where the cost to bring your camera in was double the initial entry fee. Lara and Fran got caught taking a sneaky photo on their mobiles and were promptly escorted out of the Palace and made to pay the additional fee. The various rooms included exhibitions on the war, a room full of maps and our favourite room – full of random souvenirs including a certificate from Trip Advisor rating the city and the glasses worn by Sir Ben Kingsley whilst filming Ghandi!

Leaving the museum, we took a boat trip out on the lake Pichola. The trip took us past the ghats (steps or landing on a river used for a variety of things including bathing and laundry), past the Lake Palace – the hotel which occupies an island all to itself – then on to Jag Mandir. Here there is another hotel, but one that is not so strict about visitors. However, given the prices at the bar, we decided to just sit and look at the view rather than indulge. We did bump into Faye and Tom, who Hannah and Fran had met in Jodhpur and who we agreed to meet for dinner. We took a boat back to land and went for an ice cream, meeting some of the boys from the guesthouse. That evening, the group of now 9 of us went for cocktails and dinner at a lovely restaurant on the lakeside. Here we got to watch the sunset over the water, with the lights twinkling behind us. It may have been one of my pricier dinners but the setting made it worth it.

The next morning, the 4 of us girls headed out for breakfast and then for a spot of shopping. Somewhere along the way, we managed to lose Lara, so Fran, Hannah and I had a Mars bar milkshake whilst playing cards on the water’s edge. The afternoon we went for massages – a nice deep tissue for me to get rid of some of those aches and pains from Indian buses and trains. That evening, we had lost two of the boys from last night, but kept Guido and we’d also gained Jil and we went to a cultural music and dance show. It started off with some dancing and a bit of singing and was then followed by a woman dancing with pots on her head. She started with 3, but kept on adding until she had 11 on there. It was all rather impressive, even if they did come off very easily giving the impression that they weren’t that heavy. That evening, we had a farewell dinner as we were all headed in different directions the next day, at the restaurant on the roof of Jai Wana Haveli. Again, it was a slightly pricier restaurant but we had views overlooking the whole lake and the town.


Jodhpur

2014-10-16 to 2014-10-17

From wherever you stand in the city of Jodhpur, you are very aware of the gigantic Mehrangarh Fort watching over you from high above town. The fort was first built in 1459 by the Rathore leader Rao Jodha and around it grew the city of Jodhpur. The city has the nickname of “the blue city”, as all the houses are painted blue. Traditionally, just the Brahmin’s painted their houses blue, but these days more or less everyone does! The centre of the city is a hubbub of noise and commotion, centred around the clock tower and the market surrounding it.

Jodhpur is also the second largest town in Rajasthan and a popular next stop after Udaipur. Sadly, there are no trains doing the route, so instead I was on an early morning bus. First bus I’d seen in this format. Regular chairs as expected but above them bunks for people who wanted to pay more and lie flat! Mostly, though, they were full of families with multiple people in the space of one! The trip went through the Aravalli Mountains before heading on to the flat on the final way into town. It was a 7 hour journey and I was sat on the back seat of the bus with two Scottish lads, Rory and Tom. The bus arrived not so much at a bus station, more at the side of the road, so the 3 of us jumped into a tuk tuk to the clock tower, then went to find our hotel. The hotel had some steep stairs, not great for climbing up with a backpack on your back (even worse for going down with a backpack on your back) but once on the rooftop terrace, it had the most amazing view over town and out to the fort. A lovely place for a beer over dinner!

The next morning, the three of us explored the Mehrangarh Fort. The entry ticket came with a free audio guide which was handy given its size. The fort is 120m above the city, with battlements from 6 to 36m high and is still run by the Jodhpur Royal family. At the top of the slope to the main entrance, there was a gate complete with spikes to stop elephants charging and just beyond that were handprints on the walls from wives and concubines on their way to perform the mass suicide following the death of their husbands. As seen in other Forts, there were multiple courtyards connecting the various parts of the Fort. There was also a museum containing textiles, carriages and armoury from the reign of the various Mughal emperors. The Fort even had its own resident opium mixer, for anyone interested! The gardens of the Fort even have its own Flying Fox circuit over a lake behind the Fort.

Our next stop was Jaswant Thada, a white marble memorial to Maharaja Jaswant Singh II, built in 1899. The monument is in small gardens, slightly raised up from a lake just a short 10 minute walk from Mehrangarh. Still at the same elevation, you still have views over the whole city. Back down in town, we wandered round the markets by the clock tower, where Tom got pickpocketed but thankfully only lost a couple of hundred rupees and no bank cards. Early that evening, I said goodbye to the boys who went off to do the Flying Fox circuit whilst I headed to the station, for my final overnight journey, even bagging myself a free motorbike ride to the station from a very kind local!


Delhi

2014-10-18 to 2014-10-19

Home to 16.7 million people, Delhi is a melting pot of old and new, Indian and British Colonial. A city has been present in this location since the 12th century but excavations have proved human habitation for over 3000 years. In 1911, the British moved the capital of India from Calcutta to Delhi and the city was renamed to “New Delhi” in 1927. A whole host of architectural changes followed including new administrative and governmental buildings. After gaining independence, Delhi remained the capital and for me, after travelling for three weeks, Delhi became my final stop.

By this point it was only a few days before Divali and it seemed that the whole of Delhi was going a little money crazy. Rickshaw drivers were trying to pull scams and changing prices whilst it was getting harder and harder to haggle prices down. After I wasn’t able to get there on my first day in Delhi, this time I went to the Red Fort. Having just come from the amazing Forts of Rajasthan, this Fort may have been a little bit of an anti-climax. The fort was built by Shah Jahan (him of Taj Mahal fame) between 1638 and 1648 but he never fully lived here as his son imprisoned him in Agra Fort before he got a chance. The fort was converted to an Army barracks by the British and now looks like a person’s home with gardens, mosques and hammams. The fortress walls are 18m high and protect monuments made of red sandstone and white marble inlaid with precious jewels. After two hours here it was back to Pahar Ganj, for a farewell dinner to India before heading to the airport the next morning and returning to London.


Summary

2014-10-20

Days in India: 22

Distance travelled: 3,207km

Train taken: 4

Night trains: 2

Hours spent on trains: 33

Buses taken: 7

Night buses: 2

Hours spent on buses: 35

Cities visited: 9

Forts visited: 4

Population: 1.21bn

Number of curries served with rice: 1

Number of curries served with naan: all bar 1


Country number 70

2015-03-06

Quicker than you can say "new year, new holiday destination", March has rolled around and Hannah is back off on her travels again!! This time it's off to Burma (Myanmar) which, as the heading suggests, will be the 70th country that I visit. It's a country that I've been wanting to visit since it reopened its doors to tourists a few years back. Home to numerous temples, pagodas, monks, hill stations and pythons (!), I'm imagining Burma as Thailand was back before it became inundated with 18 year old Brits on their gap year. However, I do need to remember that they prefer to go by the name Myanmar rather than the old British colonial name of Burma and, like that, one of their main cities is now Yangon and not Rangoon.

So, I have decided to treat myself during these two weeks and do a tour with G Adventures. This trip starts in Yangon and then heads to the Golden Rock. We then fly up to Mandalay, wheere one assumes there is a "Road to...", before cruising down the Irrawaddy River to Bagan and its very high concentration of temples. We visit the hill station of Kalaw before relaxing at Inle Lake with their one legged fisherman. From here we fly back to Yangon and the trip ends. I then return to the UK just in time for Easter and, very unlike me, with a long weekend still ahead of me so another 3 days before I have to go back to work!


Yangon, Golden Rock

2015-03-21 to 2015-03-23

Between 2010 and 2014 the number of tourists entering Myanmar has more than tripled, although with a little over 3m tourists last year, this figure is still way down on Myanmar’s neighbouring countries. With touchdown in Yangon, I was to become one of the estimated 4.5m tourists to enter the country in 2015.

Whilst no longer the capital – Nay Pyi Taw, a city with 8 line highways but no cars (check out the Top Gear special for a drag race through the centre of the city), has that honour – Yangon is still the largest and most important city in the country. However, it doesn’t have quite the same craziness that you find in many Asian capitals. The city was green and well kept, rules of the road were largely adhered to, no beeping of horns and not a motorbike in sight. This turned out to be one of the quirks of Yangon traffic – bikes are actually banned in the centre, although they are allowed across the river on the Dalah side. Yangon does have notorious traffic jams – in fact, it took me over an hour to drive the 12miles from the airport to my hotel. There used to be a large tax on cars meaning only the rich could afford to buy one. Then the tax was abolished and now everyone can afford one. However, the road infrastructure was not improved to keep up with the influx of vehicles, leading to delays everywhere. After about 30 mins of driving, I also realised why the drive seemed so odd. In the 1970’s the Government, in an attempt to distance itself from former British rule, switched the side of the road that cars drive on, from left to right. However, most of the cars are old and so the steering wheel is found on the right hand side of the car, the opposite side to where you would expect.

There may not be an excessive number of tourists within Myanmar but I did know someone living there – my friend Gilli, who I first met during my Cape Town to Victoria Falls trip. So who better then to give me a guided tour of the city on my first day? We walked down to the river, where our first stop was a favourite restaurant of Gilli’s for a long overdue beer and some lunch including tea leaf salad, a Burmese specialty. We took a walk through Yangon’s various communities including Chinatown and Little India before reaching Central Square, home to Independence Monument, Sule Pagoda, a mosque, a Baptist church and the Town Hall. By this point I had been awake for over 24 hours so a sugar break in the form of ice cream was required.

Part two of the tour then began as we headed back down to the river and took a ferry across to Dalah. Gilli had warned me there wasn’t much over this side and she wasn’t kidding. A dirt track led away from the ferry terminal, down which was a small market and a small temple. And not much else. After a short visit this side of the river we crossed back over the river and before we knew it, the time had come to say goodbye to Gilli and go and meet my new friends for the next 2 weeks, along with our tour guide Pai. The remainder of the evening was spent getting to know my new friends and eating noodles at a local restaurant before finally hitting the sack after 33.5 hours straight of being awake!!

Shwedagon Pagoda is Yangon’s most popular site and is also one of Buddhism’s most sacred places. The gold stupa is 325ft high, adorned with 27 metric tonnes of gold leaf and is believed to encase 8 hairs from Buddha, although no-one is allowed in anymore to check! According to legend there has been a stupa on the site for over 2600 years although archaeologists claim the site was built between the 6th – 10th centuries. The site has suffered earthquake damage on multiple occasions whilst the British occupied the site off and on between 1824 – 1929 and probably didn’t look after the Pagoda as well as they could have done! We approached from the Southern end and circumnavigated the Pagoda in a clockwise direction. There were many other smaller temples and statues to admire as well as an art gallery. Around the stupa there were 8 planetary posts – one for each day of the week (Wednesday is divided into morning and evening) – each one with a small Buddha. If you were born on the day of that post, you went and poured three cups of water over the Buddha for good luck. We also saw many processions for boys who were heading off to the Monastery to become monks.

Soon, it was time to leave Yangon and head to Mt Kyaiktiyo, a town 4 hours’ drive to the north east. This mountain is home to the Golden Rock, a precariously placed boulder, high above the town of Kinpun. From the town to the rock, transport comes in the form of local Burmese trucks, with narrow benches, crammed with as many people as you can fit on a row, then add a couple more! The road up the hill was 7 winding miles, with the odd pot hole thrown in. The rock is balanced on a well-placed hair from Buddha – in previous years there was a much bigger gap between rock and plinth, large enough for a chick, now it is just the hairs width. At the base of the rock, pilgrims are allowed to go and place gold leaf, however this is just the male pilgrims as female pilgrims are considered bad luck. We stayed at the site to watch the sunset, then retreated to our mountain top hotel.

An early start the next morning was an attempt to see sunrise but due to the very low cloud level we went back to bed for an hour instead! After breakfast, we had to drive the 7 miles back down the winding, pot holed road, before transferring back to Yangon. En route we stopped in Bago, first at the Shwemawdaw Paya, then at the Shwethalyaung Buddha, a giant 180ft long reclining Buddha. Three long days of travel ended with a flight to one of many former capitals, Mandalay.


Mandalay

2015-03-24 to 2015-03-25

In the last 300 years alone, Myanmar has had changed capital city more over 12 times. Many times the capital would revert back to a former capital after only a couple of years. For a large part of this time, these capitals were in the Mandalay region and for 26 years it was in Mandalay itself. Each new King would move the capital and in 1857, King Mindon decided to build a new city at the foot of Mandalay Hill where, according to legend, Buddha had previously visited in an earlier incarnation. Today, Mandalay Palace sits in the middle of the city, overlooked by Mandalay Hill. The city is unique for a large city in that it does not have a bus system. Instead you are much more like to find the locals getting around on a bike.

Our first stop was the 760ft high Mandalay Hill itself. At the top is a temple, from where there are amazing views over the region and also a statue of San Dha Mukhi. This was an ogress who severed her breast and gave it to Buddha. He was so impressed with her offering that he reincarnated her as a King.

After descending we went to see the World’s Largest Book. Contrary to what you are probably thinking, it does not contain any paper but instead each page is written on a marble slab, each slab then encased in a stupa, lined up next to each other, row after row. The text on the 729 slabs contain pages from the Tripitaka (the Buddhist religious text). If a person decided to read them all, spending 8 hours a day doing so, it would take him over a year to finish the book. At the centre of the stupas is the Kuthodaw Pagoda, a beautiful golden building built in the reign of King Mindon.

Our next stop was a beautifully intricate teak monastery, Shwenandaw Kyaung. Decorated with many stunning carvings, the building used to be inside the Royal Palace complex and was where King Mindon died. His successor, King Thibaw, had the building moved outside the complex as he couldn’t handle Mindon’s ghost!

Our final stop, on a very busy day, was accessed via a relaxing one hour boat ride on the Ayeyarwady River to the village of Mingun. The main attraction here is the Unfinished Pagoda. Built by King Bodawpaya in 1790, it was stopped midway after an astrologer told the King that if he built any higher then his kingdom would fall. An earthquake in 1838 caused extensive damage, including the large cracks that you can see today, whilst a further earthquake in 2010 caused more structural damage and now you are prohibited from climbing to the top. Also, in the village is the largest ringable bell in the world - it’s very low to the ground but there’s enough space to crawl underneath and stand inside it!! The final stop in Mingun was Hsinbyume Paya, a white pagoda shaped to represent the Mt Meru, the mountain in the middle of Buddhism.

We had another busy day the next day as we explored more of Mandalay and the surrounding areas. First of all we visited Mahamuni Paya, home to a 13ft Buddha, that once again women were not allowed to get to close to whilst men were allowed to go right up and add gold leaf to the base. The Buddha is believed to be over 2000 years old.

We were en route to our next stop when we randomly stumbled across a festival taking place by the lake in Amarapura, another former capital. Pai went off to find out what was going on and came back to tell us it was cow racing. Unfortunately the racing had finished but he persuaded the organisers to put on another race just for our benefit. Each cart had two cows attached to the front of it and they raced down a track about 100m long although from the demo race we saw the track did not seem large enough to have two carts side by side to actually race!

We visited a working monastery, although it was somewhat lacking in monks and then stopped at a Chinese temple before arriving at Sagaing Hill. Sagaing was most recently the capital in the mid 1700’s and kept the title for just 5 years during the reign of King Naungdawgyi. Our visit here was to ascend Sagaing Hill, dotted with golden pagodas and temples. At the top are two large attractions – Umin Thounzeh, meaning 30 caves, and home to 45 Buddhas – and Pon Nya Shin Paya.

Our final stop in Mandalay was probably most people’s favourite and also one of the most popular in the region. We returned to Amarapura and drove to the U Bein Bridge – the world’s longest teak footbridge. The bridge stretches for approximately 1 mile over Lake Taungthaman, both over the water and the grass and vegetable patches. There are no sides to the bridge but it is wide enough for 3 or 4 people to walk side by side. The teak planks and 1086 poles holding them up have barely been replaced since the bridge was first built. We stayed as the sun was starting to set, soaking up the atmosphere as tourists and locals alike took walks from the Western side, to the Eastern side and back again.


Bagan

2015-03-26 to 2015-03-28

Between the 11th to 13th centuries, Bagan underwent a construction boom with more than 4000 temples built in an area of approximately 26 square miles. Earthquakes have ruined a number of them but 2217 remain. The temples that remain are in various stages of reconstruction and some are garishly decorated with fairy lights at night.

To reach Bagan, we took a 12 hour boat ride down the mighty Ayeyarwady River. It was a relaxing journey even if the scenery got a little repetitive. For the majority of the trip there were very limited signs of life, just the occasional cow or farmer.

There are many different ways to explore Bagan, but we settled for just three of them. First up, we spent a day exploring by bus, driving between the different sites spread out between Old Bagan, New Bagan and Nyaung U. To gain an idea of the scale of the plains, our first visit was to Pyathada Paya, built during the end part of the 13th century, which we were able to climb to the top and get incredible panoramas. Also up there was a film crew, shooting what appeared to be a Spanish version of The Amazing Race. After a brief photo stops at Sulamani Pahto, also known as the Crowning Jewel, and Dhammayangyi Pahto, filled with bad karma due to its somewhat dubious history. It was built by King Narathu to atone for his sins, as he’d already killed his father and brother plus one of his wives. He also gave strict instructions about the construction and cut the arms off of workers who failed to live up to his meticulous standards. The temple of Shwezigon Paya had similarities to the Shwedagon Pagoda, not least the giant golden stupa in the centre. Our final two stops before lunch were Wetkyi-In-Gubyaukgyi with beautiful frescos inside although a German collector removed a number of the panels on which the frescos were painted, followed by Htilominlo Pahto, marking the spot where King Nantaungmya was chosen, by a leaning umbrella of all things, to rule over his 5 brothers.

After a spot of lunch, we visited Ananda Pahto, one of the best preserved of all the temples but also adorned with fairy lights after dusk. One of the earliest built of all the temples, inside there is a ring which had 4 different posed 9m high standing Buddha’s. Directly opposite was Thatbyinnyu Pahto which unlike all the other temples was white in colour. Our penultimate stop was at Gubyaukgyi, also with a number of painted frescos inside. The final stop for sunset was atop a brick monastery, but sadly the sunset wasn’t all that great.

Our second day in Bagan, we tried out two more forms of transport. First up, and by far the earliest start of the morning, was a 1 hour hot air balloon ride over the plains. We were picked up in a beat up old bus and driven down to the launch site. Once the balloons were inflated we soared over the plains, skimming the tops of temples or as high as 900ft up for the ultimate panorama. After landing, right next to a temple no less, we were treated to a champagne breakfast before being taken back to our hotel a little tipsy despite it not even being 8am!

By 10am, we were on our third form of transport for the town – two wheels. The bikes we hired weren’t in the best condition but it meant we were able to get up close to the temples whilst negotiating dirt tracks and sandy paths. In places the sand was very deep and we got a little bogged down whilst cycling. But in the end, we managed a couple of hours of cycling in 40 degree heat before retiring to the hotel pool.


Kalaw

2015-03-29 to 2015-03-30

The Burmese language is very round in nature, as opposed to the rectangular nature of letters in most languages including English. Traditionally the Burmese people wrote on palm leaves which have horizontal grooves. Because of this, they had to adapt their letter style to work on the leaves and consequently, the Burmese writing became curved. It’s amazing what you learn at 7am whilst stopped at a toddy palm farm to see how rum is fermented!

Our next stop that morning was at Mt Popa, a favourite place for nat (spirits that either protect or harm humans) worship. The hill is a 2,418 ft high volcano rising high amongst otherwise fairly flat ground. Atop is a temple accessed by 777 steps. We stopped at a view point for the hill, before approaching the main hill itself. The majority of the 777 steps have to be climbed bare foot, but the steps are covered from the elements. It has to be said that whilst the viewpoint was lovely, once we got to the top of the hill and the temple itself, we couldn’t help feeling a little underwhelmed.

Our destination that evening was the former British hill station of Kalaw. The houses in the town definitely had a British influence and this was the first place where we saw an abundance of churches, a nod to its past life. We also came across one of the most random bars I’ve ever known – two rows of seats down either narrow side of the bar, only 3 drinks served (rum sours, gin sours or whiskey sours) which all tasted the same and locals with a  guitar singing what sounded to our untrained ears like the same song over and over!

The main reason for visiting Kalaw is to go trekking as this is one of the few places where tourists are allowed to trek overnight without Government permission. Whilst we weren’t going overnight, we were going trekking in the hills and amongst the surrounding villages. The route took us between nearby villages, home to the ethnic Palaung people, and through their farmland. We passed fields of garlic, meadows of onions and rivers of cabbages. In the villages were sacks of tea laid out to dry in the sun. Back in town we took a closer look at some of the colonial houses plus the local train service!


Inle Lake, Yangon

2015-03-31 to 2015-04-02

What do you get if you combine marshes, villages on stilts, freshwater, one legged rowers and wetlands? Well, you get Inle Lake – one of Burma’s most popular tourist attractions. Located in the Shan state, one of Burma’s more secretive states where a large part is off limits to tourists, this 13.5 mile by 7 mile stretch of water is visited by pretty much every visitor who comes to the country.

Our route there took us first to the caves of Pindaya, a natural limestone cavern home to over 8,000 Buddha statues. These Buddha’s are made out of a variety of materials, from marble, teak, cement or alabaster, are a mixture of sizes and have been donated by pilgrims all over the world. The cave has a series of passageways, each one covered head to toe with Buddha from floor to ceiling and lit up with artificial lighting. We even found a small mediation chamber to crawl into!

Once we’d arrived in Nyaungshwe, the main accommodation area for Inle Lake, it was all about getting out on the lake. We divided up into 4 man boats and were taken out for a full day on the water. It was a relaxing way to travel apart from the din from the engine on each boat. At various points on the lake, we passed the local Intha fishermen. These men are famously known as “one-legged rowers” not because they only have one leg, but because of their unique style of rowing which uses just the one leg. This then frees up both their hands to use with the nets to catch the fish.

There are a number of temples and pagodas on the lake and our first visit was to Nga Hpe Kyaung, also known as the Jumping Cat Monastery. Cats were trained to jump through hoops, although the temple is now better known for its collection of old Buddha’s. Another famous temple is Phaung Daw Oo Paya, home to five Buddha’s. The Buddha’s used to tour the lake but in approximately 1965 the boat carrying them capsized and only four could be recovered. The following morning, the fifth Buddha had miraculously reappeared and was sitting in the temple, with a small damp patch on its head. It was decided that this Buddha was special and shouldn’t leave the temple again. Therefore, only the other four tour the lake these days. We spent the majority of the day floating amongst the reeds, in between the stilt raised houses experiencing lake life at its finest. Our lunch stop was even a restaurant that was also a Burmese cat sanctuary and a fish aquarium!

The final leg of our trip was taken via a small propellered airplane back to Yangon. Here my roomie Christina and I took a wander around town stopping at the beautiful St Mary Cathedral, before heading to the Sky Bar for views from the 20th floor plus a spot of ice cream! Pai gave us all a short walking tour of the downtown area and its colonial buildings including a stop at the Strand Hotel, built by the Sarkies brothers who also built Raffles Hotel in Singapore. We had our final group dinner before our 2 week trip came to an end.


Summary

2015-04-03

A mini summary of my trip, plus a few useless facts!

Days Taken: 14

Miles covered: 1841

Internal flights: 2

Forms of transport used: 4 – plane, boat, bus, balloon

Number of people on tour: 15

Buddha’s seen: 8000+

Temples seen: 2217+

Average Temperature: 38 degrees

Mars Bars Eaten: 2

The limestone Padah-Lin Caves in western Shan State contain paintings that could be over 13,000 years old.

One of the biggest meteor showers in modern history filled Burma’s sky in 1885. Locals saw it as an omen of the end of their kingdom.

The 1988 demonstrations were sparked by a students’ fight at the Rangoon Institute of Technology (RIOT)!!

Bright red robes are usually reserved for novice monks under 15, darker colours for older, fully ordained monks.


Returning to South America

2015-11-01

One of my biggest regrets from the my last visit to South America was not making it all the way down to the bottom, to Patagonia. I was worried that I didn't have enough time so I am going to right that wrong and head back to South America in order to visit some of the southernmost places on the planet. Yes, that's right - I'm returning to two countries I've already visited!! For those of you who don't have the same geography brain that I do, Patagonia is a region that can be found spread across the far end of Argentina and Chile and has most recently been in the news as the area that the Top Gear team got chased out of in their most recent Christmas special but I think the least said about that the better! 

To fit as much as possible into a 3 week holiday I will once again be joining a group tour with G Adventures. The trip begins in Buenos Aires, the capital of Argentina after a very conveniently timed flight from London which means I can still watch the football in the afternoon before heading to the airport. I arrive in BA on the Sunday morning before a flight Monday morning down to Bariloche, in the Argentinian Lake District, the gateway to Patagonia. I have actually visited Bariloche before, as this was as far south as I made it last time and it was a place that I loved so I am excited to visit and see if it is as good as I remember. From here, we'll cross into Chile to the town of Puerto Varas. Another internal flight takes us down to the gateway to the Torres Del Paine national park, where we will go on a 4 day excursion hiking the 'W' circuit. This is a famous hike amongst towers of granite, lakes and glaciers. 

Then it's back into Argentina to visit the famous El Calafate glacier, one of the few glaciers in the world that is deemed to be advancing i.e. growing rather than shrinking. Another internal flight takes us to the worlds southernmost city - Ushuaia - also known as the end of the world. The only place further south from here is Antarctica, and during the summer months there are a number of cruise ships departing for this final frontier, a very tempting proposition! I should get to spend some time with penguins for what will probably not be the first time on the trip. Our final flight returns us back to Buenos Aires where my tour ends. 

However, to make the most of my time in South America, I am then going to make a small side trip to Mendoza before returning home. I had considered taking the boat across the Rio de la Plata and visiting Montevideo in Uruguay but I'm just not sure my passport would have coped with 10 passport stamps, even the 6 it's getting is stretching the amount of space left. And then there's the wine. Mendoza is in the middle of Argentina's wine region and a wine tasting tour is most definitely required. This means two further internal flights to get there and back before flying home from BA, via Madrid, returning just a few days before Christmas. 


Buenos Aires

2015-11-28 to 2015-11-29

Sometimes in life the stars just align for you and everything comes together with perfect timing. The day I left for my trip felt a little like that and it wasn’t really even travel related!! My flight was scheduled to depart at a little after 10pm which gave me the whole Saturday free. Which meant I didn’t have to give away my Palace season ticket, much to the disappointment of my friend who gets my ticket. What followed was a thumping 5-1 victory and the perfect send off on my holiday!!

19 hours after the final whistle blew and I had landed in Buenos Aires, capital of Argentina. This was still only 9am and so I had a full day to reacquaint myself with the city I first visited in 2008. First stop was the colourful Caminito Street in the La Boca region of town. La Boca is home to one of Argentina’s best football teams – Boca Juniors – although they weren’t playing that day. At the other end of the cultural scale, Caminito Street is famous for tango shows and general tango memorabilia being sold in all the small souvenir shops.

From here, it was back to the centre to join a walking tour for a bit of history of the city. I had noticed on my first visit how the city had a very European feel and it turns out that this was completely intentional. It wasn’t just to remind visitors and locals of places abroad, it was actively to differentiate itself from the rest of South America. As you walk round the city, you can see influences from Spain, Italy and more.

That evening, it was time to meet up with the rest of the tour group and our guide Natasha before heading out for a group dinner which, obviously, had to be a beautiful Argentine steak! 


Bariloche

2015-11-30 to 2015-12-01

Set in Parque Nacional Nahuel Huapi, on the banks of the lake of the same name and surrounded by snow-capped mountains the town of Bariloche is the entry point to Argentine Patagonia. This northernmost part of Patagonia is more commonly known as the Lake District due to its abundance of beautiful, glacier fed lakes. I had previously visited Bariloche on my last visit to Argentina in 2008 and had enjoyed it immensely so was looking forward to my return and it didn’t disappoint. It was exactly as I remember, with weather almost as perfect. Unlike last time when I’d spent 24 hours on a bus to get here form Buenos Aires, this time it was much quicker with a 2 hour flight.

We had landed by lunchtime and so had plenty of time to explore and investigate the best way to spend our time. The first afternoon a few of us took a minibus out to Llao Llao National Park to explore. The first stop was Cerro Campanario, which can be accessed by a cable car to the top. From the top we had the most stunning views of the surrounding areas and could see exactly how many small islands were in the lake, all backed by mountains. Further on into the park, we saw Llao Llao hotel and church which has housed many a famous person over the years. Within the park we also saw the fungus that the park gets its name from. It is a mushroom that each year the tree grows around, which over time leads to what looks like a large wart on the tree but is, in fact, perfectly harmless to the tree.

The next morning was to be a little more active, with a day’s hike near to Mount Tronador. The mountain straddles the Chilean-Argentine border and sits at a height of 3,470m. The mountain also contains 8 glaciers including the black glacier Ventisquero Negro. It was a 2 hour drive from Bariloche to Pampa Linda alongside Lago Mascardi from where the days hike began. It was only a short walk to Ventisquero Negro, a glacier that is disappearing so fast that they think in 30-40 years’ time it will be gone, a theme common to many of the world’s glaciers. A glacier is formed through layers and layers of falling snow all compacting together and often there is a lake at the base of the glacier full of ice melt water, which tends to be a beautiful turquoise colour due to the minerals in the water. The black colour of Ventisquero Negro is due to the dirt and sediment collected in the glaciers accumulation zone.

The mountain has 5 “fingers” and the glacier was located in the gap between two of them. We then walked down one of the neighbouring channels towards a large area of waterfalls. The hike was described as “Patagonian flat”, which is very similar to “Nepali flat” i.e. little bit up, little bit down, little bit flat. After 2 hours we arrived at the waterfalls and had lunch whilst watching some of the ice crumbling and rock falls. A two hour walk back to the start point was followed by the drive back to Bariloche. 


Puerto Varas

2015-12-02 to 2015-12-03

Situated on the shores of Lago Llanquihue (pronounced Yan-KEY-way) with a backdrop of the perfectly conical Volcan Osorno and Volcan Calbuco, Puerto Varas has a German influence as it was founded by German immigrants. In 1853, the Chilean government was three years into a colonization scheme where they were positively encouraging Europeans to relocate to southern Chile and create new towns. By the end of the year, Puerto Varas had 212 families living there.

We arrived on the first day of summer, after a bus across the border from Bariloche, meaning that the locals were all out on the beach and swimming in the lake. There was a little haze and so the volcanoes weren’t too clear. We had an early dinner and then were going to sit on the beach and wait for sunset but at that time of year the sun doesn’t set until quite late and we got bored of waiting!

On the 1st May 2015, Volcan Calbuco erupted for the third time in eight days (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-32544075) covering everything in the surrounding areas in a layer of ash. On our second day, we were going hiking on the sides of Volcan Osorno which prior to the eruption would have meant walking on gravel and stones. Instead, it felt as though we were walking in sand for the entire day. Sadly, the first day of summer was not followed by the second day of summer and so we had some cloud and rain at the start of the hike.

The first 2km of the hike were gradually uphill until we reached a height of 1,065m, from where we had views behind to the peak of Osorno, slowly emerging from the clouds, and down to the Lago Todos Los Santos. From the viewpoint, it was largely downhill towards the lake, at times able to run down the very sandy hills. After a full 16km of hiking, we reached the Petrohué River, where a local fisherman came and picked us up and took us across the water to his house for a late lunch. Here we were given fresh fish caught that morning out of the lake and although there was some debate about whether it was salmon or trout it was absolutely delicious. After our lunch, we went back across the lake from where there was a minibus waiting to take us back into Puerto Varas, where we could enjoy a long rest followed by dinner in town. 


Punta Arenas and Puerto Natales

2015-12-04 to 2015-12-05

“This flight has a lot of turbulence” are not words you want to see printed in your trip notes prior to boarding your second internal flight of the trip. The reason is that it flies over the Patagonian Ice Field. This, as we would be told repeatedly, is the third largest ice field in the world after Antarctica and Greenland. As it turned out, the flight had absolutely no turbulence whatsoever and somehow I nailed the Emergency Exit row window seat on what was one of the clearest days in the region and we had stunning views of the Ice Field, mountains, lakes, glaciers and an amazing view of Mount Fitzroy which we were due to see close up in a few days’ time. Give me more flights like that!!

Our flight took us from Puerto Montt, a few km south of Puerto Varas, to Punta Arenas on the straits of Magellan. The city is the capital of Chile’s southernmost region Magallanes and Antarctica Chilena and was founded initially as a penal colony but grew in importance after it was discovered that you could get from the Pacific to the Atlantic through the Magellenic Straits, negating the need to go around Cape Horn. This also make Punta Arenas the bottom point of mainland South America, anything further south technically being on islands.

We were only using Punta Arenas as a base for one night before heading a little north to the town of Puerto Natales. Unfortunately for us, half of the roads in Punta Arenas were closed the morning we were leaving due to a marathon which made getting to the bus station tricky and getting the bus out of town even trickier! Anyway, we eventually made it into Puerto Natales which is the gateway to the Torres Del Paine national park, the most popular trekking spot in Chile. The town is also famous for being the spot where the remains of a milodon were found in 1892 (this is basically a giant sloth that was extinct more than 5000 years ago!) and the milodon has become the official symbol of the town.

The town is situated on the shores of the Seno Última Esperanza (or Sound of Last Hope) named by Juan Ladrilleros in 1557 when he was trying to find a passage from east to west and had given up all hope of ever finding the Atlantic. After a few hours hiring equipment, a pre departure meeting and ensuring that we were all sorted for our 4 day hike ahead of us, we went down to the shores of the lake at dusk. 


Torres Del Paine

2015-12-06 to 2015-12-09

With over 150,000 visitors per year, the Torres Del Paine national park is one of the most popular trekking destinations in Chile. It has been described as the Jewel of Patagonia and is a UNESCO World Biosphere Reserve. The name Paine means blue in the native Tehuelche language and is an apt description given the colour of the lakes and, sometimes, the sky. The most popular trekking routes is the “W” trek, a multi-day trek allowing you to see The Towers, The Horns, the French Glacier and many lakes. This is usually done in a 4 day, 3 night trip and gets its name due to the shape of the trekking path. The full circuit connects one end of the “W” to the other through the back of the park or alternatively either end of the “W” is accessibly be transport for those who only want to do a day hike. There are regular refugios along the way with either campsites or bunks and all serve hot meals and alcohol and can provide box lunches for you to take on your way.

We were doing the “W”, from right to left so our first day began being dropped off at Las Torres Hotel, where the rich people stay! The first two hours were a steady uphill climbing with Lago Nordernskjöld below us. After a short lunch break we continued for another hour and a half of Patagonian flat through Patagonian forest. The final hour was across much steeper moraine that used to belong to a glacier and required scrambling over boulders. We were aiming for the Base of Towers, three huge granite peaks that make up the Paine Massif. We could see the top of them clearly for most of the hike but when we finally arrived at the Mirador Las Torres, we found that there was a beautiful turquoise lake at the base. The Patagonian weather can be notoriously unpredictable and fast changing but we were very lucky that we had almost perfect weather. Blue skies, sun but quite a bit of wind. The granite mountains behind us had waterfalls running down them and we could see right up and down the valley. Sadly we couldn’t stay here forever and had to make the 4 hour trek back to where we began where we would be camping. The campsite was a private camp, just used by our tour operator which had a backdrop of the Paine massif. Our host Madre Maria had prepared us a feast, which we thought was all laid out on the table when we arrived. It turned out that this food was just the pre-starter meal and once we had munched through that, she then brought out started, mains and dessert. This was all washed down by multiple bottles of wine. Our accommodation that night was in small two man tents, tied strongly to the ground which was lucky as the notorious Patagonian winds had picked up and battered the tents all night with gusts of up to 100kmph.

The next morning, we were to have an easier trek to Los Cuernos (the horns). The trek took us alongside Lago Nordenskjöld, named after the Swede who first mapped the topology of the area. This lake is also fed by glacier water and so is a lovely turquoise colour, due to the minerals. These glacier fed lakes and rivers are the only ones in the park with water that you cannot drink. Usually we were filling our water bottles from all the little rivers and streams we came across, which turned out to be the freshest, coldest water many of us had ever drunk. The whole day was Patagonian flat and we arrived at our camp for the second night around 4. The camp was situated at the base of the horns, another large chunk of granite dominating the landscape, on the shores of the lake. Our accommodation that night was in two small bunk houses at a campsite that also served us a three course dinner and sold alcohol. By this point the weather had changed slightly and was drizzling with a lot of clouds whilst the wind were still fairly strong.

Morning three began with a 2 hour walk to the Italian camp, a basic wild campsite. During this walk we came across some of the strongest winds yet including a 100kmph gust whilst we were on a clifftop that knocked me off my feet! From the Italian camp, we hiked down the middle of the “W” towards the French glacier. The final hour to the viewpoint was up some very narrow, steep, slippery rocks. We were also dealing with rain and by the time we reached our goal, the French glacier lookout, it was hailing. This meant we didn’t spend that long at the lookout and so didn’t witness any of the frequent rock falls that we might have expected. We returned back to the Italian camp and carried on walking alongside Lago Skottsberg for another 2.5 hours. During much of this hike we witnessed the damage caused by forest fires. The most recent fires were in 2005, when a Czech backpacker accidentally started a fire that burned for 10 days destroying 155km2 of the park, and in 2011 when an Israeli backpacker accidentally destroyed 176km2 of the park in a fire that burnt for about a month. In both cases, the respective governments offered help and money to restore the area, however, there were still many burnt out trees from the most recent fire. The final part of the days trek brought us to Lago Pehoé, where that night’s camp was complete with its own upstairs bar which was widely appreciated. Again, the campsite provided a three course dinner but this time we were back in tents rather than cabins. The wind was battering the tents in the night once again but we were all so tired that we slept very well.

When we awoke in the morning, the wind was still howling and the rain was driving, but we had the final part of the “W” to finish which was a hike to Lago Grey and the lookout to the Grey glacier. Because of the weather, I spent the first part of the hike with my head down just following the boots of the person in front of me and not seeing any of the scenery, which was largely covered in cloud anyway. By the time we reached the Los Patos Lagoon it had cleared up slightly and half an hour later we reached a viewpoint over Lago Grey where we could even see icebergs in the lake below. Because of the weather we didn’t have time to make it to the glacier lookout as we had to return to the campsite from where we could catch a catamaran across Lake Pehoé where a bus would take us back to Puerto Natales and the end of our adventure. 


El Calafate

2015-12-10 to 2015-12-11

The town of El Calafate is nestled on the edges of Los Glaciares National Park, the gateway to the most famous glacier in the region – Perito Moreno. The park is the second largest in Argentina and has been declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. There are a number of glaciers within the park which is named after Francisco Moreno an Argentine explorer who first discovered many places in Patagonia and who was instrumental in ensuring that part of Patagonia remained Argentine land rather than Chilean during their border dispute.

There is little going on in the town itself, it is more of a tourist base and a place to do errands. It is also an excellent place to buy anything that contains the Calafate berry. It is said that those who eat this fruit will always return to Patagonia. It was only a few hours bus ride across the border from Puerto Natales before we reached El Calafate where we spent the afternoon doing various errands that needed doing after our trek.

The following morning, we were due to leave and head towards El Chalten but not first before taking a trip to the National Park. It was an hour and a half drive to the entrance of the park along the shores of Lago Argentina, a lake fed by the glacier waters. A short drive into the park and we got our first glimpse of the glacier, which seemed to stretch on for miles. In reality, it did! The glacier is some 250 km2 and 30km (19m) in length. The ice above the water was 80m high and there is another 100m under the water. As it was only just coming out of winter, the glacier reached to the very edge of the lake, in effect cutting the lake in two. In summer, it melts enough to have a passage of water between the glacier and the land. It is also one of the only glaciers in the world that is not receding and is in a state of equilibrium.

There is a boardwalk from the visitors’ centre that enables you to see the glacier from various different angles and heights. The ever changing Patagonian weather showed its hand during this walk as we went from rain, to snow, to sun during the walk. We could also hear more than one occasion when there was obviously an ice crumble. After the boardwalk, we took a boat ride up to the edge of the glacier. From here we could see the cracks in the ice from much closer. At the base of one part of the ice was an ice cave and we could see that there were a few crumbles happening within the cave. With very little warning, there was suddenly a large crack and the entire column above the ice cave came crashing down and the cave was gone. Instead, there was just a new column of blue ice – the blue shows that the ice has not been exposed to oxygen, over time it changes to white. It was quite impressive to watch the cave collapse as you really have no idea that these are coming.

After all this excitement, we returned to El Calafate where we collected our bags and jumped in our bus transfer over to El Chalten, where we arrived late in the afternoon. 


El Chaltén

2015-12-12 to 2015-12-13

Some 4 hours’ drive north into Los Glaciares National Park is the small town of El Chaltén. Originally built in 1985 to help maintain Argentinian land in the border dispute with Chile, it has a population of 300 in off peak but this swells during peak season due to 40,000 visiting tourists. The main draw is the trekking and climbing options available in and around Cerro Torre and Cerro Fitzroy. The name Chaltén means “Smoking Mountain” in the local Tehuelche language, because Mount Fitzroy was always seen circled with clouds and usually still is (aside from the incredibly clear day we flew over it). The mountain itself is named after the captain of The Beagle, the ship in which Darwin sailed around South America.

We woke up on our first morning in El Chaltén to low clouds which massively obscured the view of Fitzroy from the town. With our fingers crossed that it would clear, we set out on a 20km round trip to a viewpoint of the mountain and surrounding lakes. The start point of the trail was very near the hotel and the first 2km was uphill to Lago Capri, where we had a short rest before the cold got to us all and we kept on moving. The next 7km were Patagonian flat and were actually relatively flat. The final 1km was over moraine and scree, with some huge boulders, similar to day 1 on the Torres trek. We zig-zagged our way to the top where it was snowing and the views of Fitzroy were obscured. We could still see Laguna de Los Tres and Laguna Sucia (Dirty Lake) named because the sides of the lake are dirty. They really put some thought into that one!!

After lunch at the lake, we started the long trek back down, where the weather was starting to clear but still not enough to see the mountains. It was a great trek, but it was rather disappointing not to get the views we all wanted. Dinner that night was at a very cool microbrewery, not what you’d usually expect to find in a town with a fixed population of 300!

We woke up the next morning to see much clearer skies and we could finally see Fitzroy from town. No time to redo the trek though, as I was off to the Viedma Glacier to do a walk on the glacier itself. We drove 30 mins to a wharf on Lake Viedma, then spent an hour sailing across the lake to a “natural port”. This basically meant some rocks we could scramble onto from the boat! A short walk across the rocks took us to the edge of the ice, where we were given crampons and a crash course in how to walk in them. The walk itself was relatively straightforward – a few ice steps were built on the slopes but largely it was relatively flat. We got to look down some very deep, narrow crevices whilst clinging to the guides to ensure we didn’t fall! Towards the end of the trek, the guides busted out a bottle of Tia Maria and, using freshly cut ice from the glacier, served us all a drink on top of the glacier. Our final stop was inside an ice cave which was an amazing experience although it was slightly worrying how badly it was leaking considering the amount of ice that could potentially come crashing down on top of us!

We transferred back to the boat, then to the bus for the dive back to town. On the way back, we had incredible views of Mount Fitzroy and the surrounding mountains right in front of us and after a while the bus driver got sick of the constant camera clicking and pulled over so we could get out and take photos!!

Once back in town, it was time to head back to El Calafate with a brief stop at La Leona. This used to just be an estancia (cattle ranch) but got (in)famous after a visit from Robert Leroy Parker, Harry Alonzo Longabaugh and Etta Place, better known as Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (and his girlfriend). Shortly after robbing the Bank of London in Rio Gallegos, the group hung out at the estancia for a month before moving on. 


Ushuaia

2015-12-14 to 2015-12-15

Affectionately termed “Fin Del Mundo” or “The End of the World”, Ushuaia is the southernmost city in the world. This is slightly debated by Chile, whose town of Puerto Williams is across the Beagle Channel from Ushuaia, but given the latter’s population is just a little over 2,250, they really are pushing the boundaries of the word “city”. Ushuaia is situated within the province of Tierra Del Fuego, with the Martial mountains to the north and the Beagle Channel to the south. Being as far south as it is, Ushuaia is the most popular departure point for those heading to Antarctica, sadly not us!

We flew in from El Chaltén, sadly without quite the same views as our last flight, but still with good views of the mountains as we were landing. Everyone’s number one priority was to head to the Visitor’s Centre, where you can get a free “End of the World” stamp in your passport!

We were here to do lots of animal viewing, the first of which was over to the Harberton Estancia where we visited the penguins. The colony here is a mixture of Magellanic and Gentoo penguins along with 3 visiting King penguins. The Magellanic penguins are nest builders, whilst the Gentoo are burrow diggers but they all live happily side by side on the same beach. We spent an hour hanging out on the beach with the penguins and their babies before heading back to the main estancia to visit the rather odd museum – one small room with a few skeletons, yet apparently we needed a guide!

That afternoon, our second animal experience saw us doing a Beagle Channel cruise during which time we saw plenty of cormorants and sea lions. We also saw the “famous” End of the World Lighthouse, the image of which is used on many things relating to Ushuaia. However, the problem is that the lighthouse we saw wasn’t actually “the” lighthouse, it’s just the closest one to the city meaning it’s the easiest to get to and therefore easy to lie to the tourists about! 


Buenos Aires, Mendoza

2015-12-16 to 2015-12-19

If there is one thing that epitomises Buenos Aires, it is the dark, sultry sounds of Tango. Believed to originate in the city in the 1880’s, you can hear the music, watch a show or see an impromptu lesson on many corners of the city. In the evening, shows are put on in a number of theatres. On our return to Buenos Aires, a number of us took a trip to watch a show complete with excellent three course dinner plus wine. The show charted tango through the decades from the 1950’s to today and was a superb introduction to the style of dance.

This concluded the Patagonia trip, 3 weeks travelling through an area of stunning natural beauty, that most of us could only gaze on in awe. However, my holiday was not over. I had booked two nights in Mendoza, the heart of the wine region, for a spot of wine tasting and it would only be a simple 2 hour flight to get there. Ha! What happened next is definitely a first for me, which is quite impressive after 10+ years of travel.

To make the most of my time, I was booked on the 6.30am flight which meant a 4.30am alarm and a 4.45am transfer to the airport. Checked in, cleared security and at the correct time began boarding the buses that would take us to the plane – so far so good. However, after standing on the bus for 10 minutes a member of ground crew kicked us off and back up to the gate. Announcements were only in Spanish but I managed to pick up that boarding would now be at 7.45am. That’s annoying. At 7.45am, they told us that boarding would be at 8.15am, then they just stopped giving updates. At this point, I was still none the wiser as to what was the problem. One thing Americans get bad rep for is talking SO loudly. However, being able to hear people talking in English at the other side of the gate suddenly had its advantages and I went over to ask them if they had a clue what was going on. They believed there was a strike going on and by this point there was at least one other flight expecting to be boarding from our gate and getting told no. Whilst talking to one of the Americans, David, it transpired that he had been on the bus in front of me, had made it to the plane, the stewards were beckoning them up the stairs but the driver wouldn’t open the doors and then drove them back to the gate. At 9am, there was another (Spanish) announcement that neither David nor myself could figure out but was kindly translated for us by another passenger stating that the Mendoza flight was cancelled and we were to go and speak to check in and get rebooked on a later flight. My first ever cancelled flight – whoop L.

Now, after this announcement the majority of passengers were still standing at the gate, arguing with the ground staff so David and I made a hasty retreat back down to Departures to find any remaining seats. Consequently, we were near the front of the queue for the sales desk, where the lovely English speaking woman told us she couldn’t get us on a flight until the 19th – the day of my return flight to London. Clearly this was no use to me. Her advice was to cancel the LAN Air flights and run down to Aerolineas Argentina and see if they had any seats as the strike was a baggage handler strike and was only affecting LAN. Once again, we were near the front of this queue and got booked on to the 14.40 flight to Mendoza. Problem half solved. Now to figure out where our baggage had gotten to. Back to LAN who had piles and piles of bags by their check in desks. Ours had gone further through the system as they’d been waiting to be put on the plane so the only place to reclaim them was at baggage reclaim. Okay – never walked into baggage claim from this side before! Turns out the security guy on the door didn’t actually care and didn’t even look at the remains of our boarding pass. He let us in and after 5 more minutes locating the correct carousel, we were reunited with our bags. At this stage, it was 10.30am, I’d been up for 6 hours and had another 2 hours before we could check in for the next flight. So, what do you do when you have time to kill in an airport? You drink beer, obviously! A beer and an empanada later, we were feeling rather smug whilst watching the chaos unfold as more flights got cancelled, queues to rebook got longer and tempers got shorter. At 12.30pm, we went to check in (again), this time a little more successfully as we got on the plane and actually took off!! When we finally arrived in Mendoza it was 5pm, so just the 8.5 hours late, said goodbye to David and headed to the hostel. I had planned to spend the first of my two days in Mendoza exploring the city but that was largely out so walked round the main plaza before returning to the hostel who were doing a free wine tasting that evening, a prelude to tomorrow’s big event!!

The next morning I had pre-booked a wine tasting tour along with Colleen, who had been on my Patagonia trip and who, luckily for her, had flown the previous afternoon and had largely avoided the worst of the plane dramas. The tour was to stop at 4 wineries and would include at least 4 tastings at each, snacks and at the final winery a 5 course meal, each course paired with a different wine. Mendoza is Argentina’s premier wine growing region and it’s most famous export is the Malbec although others grapes, both white and red, are also produced. The first winery was Familia Cassone, run by a very eccentric man named Fed and then at the second winery, Pulente Estates, we met his wife! Pulente provided a different cheese for each wine – I think it’s the only time I’ve ever enjoyed blue cheese. Our third winery, Caelum, grow their own pistachios on site and so they accompanied the wines. The final winery Ruca Malen came with an amazing 5 course meal – mozzarella, cauliflower emulsion, cured meats, steak and raspberry ice cream. A few bottles were purchased, both for personal consumption and also for presents. All the wineries are surrounded by snow-capped mountains and all told it was the perfect way to end 3 weeks in South America.

Back in town that evening and Colleen and I had a part farewell, part fingers crossed nothing goes wrong tomorrow drink before calling it a night. It was definitely with trepidation that I arrived at the airport the following morning for my 6.30am flight back to Buenos Aires, knowing that with a connection at 2pm, I couldn’t afford to get delayed. Luckily these flights were all working on time and I got back to BA no problems, in order to change airports and start the long return journey back to London. 


Summary

2015-12-20

A few useless facts for you from my holiday:

Days taken: 21

Countries visited: 2

Border crossings once in South America: 3

Internal flights taken: 6

Emergency Exit window seats nailed: 2

Cancelled flights: 1

Miles travelled: 6,928

Steak dinners: 3

Glasses of Argentinian red wine: plenty

Nights spent camping: 3

Days with snow: 3

Days with rain: 2


Well Done Us!!

2016-04-23

Well Done Us!! The regular exclamation of Melissa and myself and one we plan to be using a lot more in the coming weeks. Yes, episode 6 of Melissa and Hannah's Great Adventures is due to commence in less than 4 weeks. So, after Nepal, Kenya/Tanzania, Norway, St Lucia and Namibia/Botswana what's next? Well, this time we are back in Asia and visiting Borneo, the third largest island in the world after Greenland and New Guinea. 

Borneo is made up of three countries - Malaysia, Brunei and Indonesia. Given the size of the island, we knew we wouldn't be able to see it all and immediately eliminated the Indonesian part. With further investigation, Brunei got eliminated as did the Western Malaysian province of Sarawak. Consequently, we are only visiting the eastern Malaysian state of Sabah. However, this state still packs a punch in terms of attractions.

We arrive in Kota Kinabalu and the next morning immediately fly across the state to Sandakan, where we will visit the Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation centre and the Sun Bear Conservation centre. Then we transfer to the Kinabatangan River where a river cruise should give us plenty of opportunities for animal spotting. After a couple of days here, we move on again to the Danum Valley, an area deep in the rainforest. Again, we spend a couple of days animal spotting and exploring what the rainforest has to offer. 

From here, we fly back to Kota Kinabalu where we take on the challenge of the island's highest peak - Mount Kinabalu. It may only be a 2D1N trip, but it's not one to be taken lightly. As with when we climbed Kili, we aim to be at the summit for sunrise which means leaving base camp in the middle of the night when we are both half asleep. After this exertion, we will need a bit of R&R so we are headed to Gaya Island for 3 nights of beach time. 

At this point, our time on Borneo has come to an end and it is time to head home. However, we still have another mini adventure before reaching Europe. The cheapest flights to Borneo were via South Korea but with a 7 hour layover on the way home. Conveniently the train from the airport into the centre of Seoul only takes 45 minutes and since we don't need a visa, we are going to spend our layover time exploring another new city. I've been given some advice and a potential walking route round the city from a colleague and so a mini exploration is in order before finally flying back to London. 

Well Done Us indeed!! 


Sepilok, Kinabatangan

2016-05-19 to 2016-05-22

Borneo. A land of orangutans, carnivorous plants, pygmy animals and giant flowers. A land of rainforest so imposing you struggle to breathe. A land where the world’s largest flora has its habitat alongside the smallest species of types of fauna. And a land where I only managed a total of 6 hours sleep in my first 48 hours!

Why? Well, some of it was self-inflicted and some of it was down to what we had planned. Our trip to Borneo was punctuated with a stopover in Seoul, a city we would get to explore more of on our return leg. Instead, we spent 4 hours in the airport, often named as the best airport for a long connection. The airport has “rest and relax” zones – areas with cultural displays, massages and overpriced bars. The culture is not restricted to these areas though, as we were walking through the main departure area we caught the “procession of the King and Queen”, reflecting life in a previous era. The flight on from here to Kota Kinabalu was delayed by 1hr 15, which meant that rather than arriving at midnight, we were arriving at 1.15am. Luckily, immigration and baggage reclaim were quick and our hotel transfer was still waiting for us. We exited the airport smack into the humid night air and were whisked to our nearby hotel. By the time we’d checked in and showered, we didn’t hit the sack until gone 2am.

And the next day, our alarm went off at 5am as we had to leave at 5.30am, to head back to the airport and catch an early flight east to the town of Sandakan. We had fantastic views of Mount Kinabalu on the way past, a sight we’d be getting up close and personal with later on in the trip. Flight landed at 7.30am where we were met by our guide Leo and transferred over to the Sepilok orangutan rehabilitation centre. This is home to Borneo’s favourite primate, where orphaned and injured animals are looked after potentially from birth until they are released into the wild. There are 5 stages of rehabilitation: 1 – quarantine, 2 – indoor nursery, 3 – outdoor nursery, 4 – independence in the sanctuary, 5 – release into the wild. Stages 1 and 2 are not open to the public. However the outdoor nursery can be viewed from behind glass whilst the rest of the sanctuary is relatively open to the public, with boardwalks to take you through the forest and viewing platforms near to the feeding areas. Physical contact with the orangutans is not permitted and you should aim to keep a minimum of 3m between yourself and any animal. Despite all this, there is no guarantee that you will actually see any animals as “this is a rehabilitation centre not a zoo”. With the number of times you are told this, you do get a sense that the centre is proud on the days that the tourists leave disappointed. Your best opportunities to see the creatures are at the outdoor nursery and at the feeding stations. Feedings only happen twice a day, as they are trying to encourage the primates to search out their own food as they would in the wild. Unfortunately, the animals weren’t being their most sociable whilst we were there. Only on youngster came to the outdoor nursery, and then only briefly, and only a few adults were at the feeding session. However, one of these adults was a mum with a young baby and then as we were leaving the feeding area, an adolescent male strutted down the boardwalk, right past us.

On leaving the orangutans, we headed across the road to the Sun Bear Conservation Centre. These are the world’s smallest bears and are named due to the yellow/orange “collar” under the neck. Incredibly, each of these markings are as unique as a human fingerprint. The bears have long claws which enables them to climb high trees and build nests high up. This sanctuary is much smaller than its neighbour with just the two small viewing stations and a semi-circular walkway connecting the two. Unlike the orangutans who were swinging their way through the forest, the sun bears were largely all lying on the ground panting rapidly as if they were not used to the weather!!

Upon leaving the two sanctuaries, we headed back towards the centre of Sandakan and then to the coastline, from where we caught a motor boat that was to speed us a short way round the coast and then head down the Kinabatangan River. This river stretches for 560km and is the longest in Sabah. A chocolatey brown colour, the river winds from the coast all the way deep into the rainforest. The river is home to an abundance of wildlife, all of which we were on a mission to find, but first stop was the lodge where we’d be spending the night for a lunch stop. Around 4, we headed out onto the river in a small boat to see what animals we could find. We saw proboscis monkeys, macaques, herons, eagles and, briefly, a baby crocodile. There were rumours of a family of pygmy elephants, but none were forthcoming. We stayed out on the river to watch sunset and on the way home stopped at a tree, home to fireflies. At night, when the flies are all lit up, the tree looks like it is covered in fairy lights and consequently, is nicknamed the “Christmas Tree”. However, as there was a full moon it meant that even after dark there was quite a lot of light so we didn’t see as many fireflies as we’d like. After dinner, during which the staff had us all up and dancing to celebrate two of our group who were on their honeymoon, we went for a night walk around the lodge’s boardwalk. Here we spotted an owl, a very poisonous snake and a small leopard like cat. Back at the lodge and a quick word with our guide confirmed that the TV would be showing this year’s FA Cup Final, starting at 12.30am! How could I not?!

Having watched 90 mins of football, it was then 2.30am and knowing that I had to be up at 6am, I decided that I had to go to bed especially since there was no guarantee that the match would be decided in extra time and wouldn’t go to penalties. With hindsight, I think I made the right call!! So, after 3.5 hours sleep, I was up again even making myself a strong, sweet, black coffee to help me with the complete lack of sleep I’d had the last few days. It was disgusting! The first boat ride of the morning, took us out to Oxbow Lake where we saw a number of animals – mangrove cat snake, egret, red eared kingfisher, pied hornbill, collared kingfisher, stork billed kingfisher, purple heron and a lesser agitan, but still no elephants. The lake itself was full of water hyacinths, which were beautiful. After two hours, we headed back to camp for breakfast served in the jungle behind the lodge, surrounded by monkeys, watching our every move in the hope we’d leave our food unattended, and Junior, the resident wild boar. With some free time after breakfast, Melissa and I took ourselves off round the boardwalk and up to the bird watching towers.

By 11am, we were back in the boats and taken a small way upstream to a tree plantation site. This is run in conjunction with the small village opposite the lodge, who grow and cultivate the saplings and then we plant them. In return, the lodge helps the village financially, with schooling and, in peak season, gets temporary staff from the village. We were then taken to the village for lunch and a tour. After lunch, it was back on the boat and a trip further downstream towards our second lodge of the trip. En route, we finally saw the elusive pygmy elephant. This elephant is the smallest of the elephant family, although is still a decent size. The group was a decent size and was clearly a family as it included a male, females and children. Further on we saw some rhinoceros hornbill and buffalo.

We arrived at our second lodge and pretty soon were back on the river, heading to the Menanggul tributary. This river was much narrower than the Kinabatangan with taller trees on the banks giving a much more enclosed feeling of being up with the wildlife. There were loads of proboscis monkeys and macaques in these trees including one who was at the top of a dead tree, bouncing around on the branch with such ferocity that the branch came crashing down into the river not far from our boat. We also managed to find a crested serpent eagle, blue eared kingfisher, storm stork, monitor lizard and oriental pied hornbill.

Back at the lodge, we had been given traditional clothing to wear to dinner – a sarong – and so were given a quick demonstration on how to tie them up appropriately so that they didn’t fall down! We were then shown a 20 minute documentary about the proboscis monkey, after which I was finally able to get my first 8 hour sleep in 4 days! 


Danum Valley

2016-05-23 to 2016-05-24

There are 440 sq km of rainforest in central Sabah that are pristine, primary rainforest. This area is also known as Danum Valley and is thick, undeveloped, arboreal heaven. The rainforest here is approximately 100million years old and has never been logged. It is home to all sorts of wildlife – from monkeys to elephants to deer to birds to insects. Because there is such thick trees, there are limited accommodation options. We were staying at the luxurious Borneo Rainforest Lodge, where Wills and Kate stayed during their visit to Malaysia in 2012! It was outside our usual budget but well worth it to be this far into the jungle.

From Kinabatangan, we took a 2 hour transfer to the town of Lahad Datu and then another 2 hours transfer to Danum Valley, the majority of which was classed as a “free massage” due to the unpaved roads. All meals are included and served buffet style on an open veranda overlooking the river. As soon as we arrived it was lunchtime and afterwards we were given a free 10 minute welcome head and neck massage. At 3.30, we met our guide Adrian and went off on our rainforest introduction walk. The forest closest to the lodge contained a number of large, 300 year old trees including some with buttress roots – those that are shallow and do not penetrate deep into the soil – and some trees being suffocated by vines. Within 10 minutes, the heavens opened and we had to return to the lodge as it’s not deemed safe to stay under the canopy of the trees with such forceful rain due to the fear to falling branches. Unfortunately, the rest of the walk got cancelled due to the weather but after a couple of hours the weather cleared and we were able to sit on our balcony and listen to the sound of the cicadas. They were incredibly loud which means there are no other animals around as they are silent when there are. At 6.30pm, we set out on a night safari in an open topped truck. Once again, within 10 minutes it was raining – guess the clue is in the name RAINforest – and we had to turn back to the lodge. On the way back, we did see a Lesser Mousedeer so it wasn’t completely wasted. The rain didn’t stop so we had dinner, then retired back to our room.

The next morning we were up for a 6.30 start with Adrian to head up to the canopy walkway. Unfortunately, this used to be 5 canopies but since the earthquake some are not deemed safe and so we were only allowed to walk along two of them. They are fixed high up near the tops of the trees to give you a bird’s eye view over the jungle. The haze in the jungle did give the whole experience a rather ethereal beauty but also prevented us spotting much living movement with our one solitary wildlife viewing being a crested eagle. After breakfast, we were to go on a hike up the hill, across the river from the lodge. This route is affectionately known as the Coffincliff trail, as the indigenous Kadazandusan tribe buried their dead near the top. They believed that the higher up they buried the bodies, the closer you were to heaven and so the better for the soul. The hike was 3km up to a viewpoint and en route we saw a number of insects and birds such as the flat headed millipede, large soldier and worker ants, a blue throated bee eater, red squirrel, yellow bellied bulbul and a crested raptor. Upon reaching the burial site, we could see holes in the cliff where coffins would be placed and alongside was a small coffin and some exposed bones. A little way further up, we reached the viewpoint with stunning views over the whole valley, including the lodge, the river and the rainforest. We stayed at the top for around a quarter of an hour and then had the long walk back down with a side stop at the Jacuzzi Pools for a fish massage. Unlike at home where the fish are very small, here they were much larger and it was rather unpleasant!

After lunch, we headed out again into the forest, this time on the Segama Trail. The forest was still incredibly humid, despite all the rain and the air felt incredibly close. The trail took us through various parts of the rainforest where we spotted orangutan nests, a wood nymph butterfly and the tiger and brown varieties of leech. It was okay though as we had our leech socks on so we would not be “donating blood” to the little buggers today! On the final section back to the lodge, we found a group of red leaf monkeys and two fireback pheasants. An early dinner was followed by a night walk, where we saw some treefrogs, a flying snake (thankfully on terra firma) and a wood cockroach. 


Mount Kinabalu

2016-05-25 to 2016-05-27

At 4,095m, the highest point in Borneo is the ironically names Low’s Peak, the summit of Mount Kinabalu. The peak is named after Sir Hugh Low, the British colonial secretary who has the first recorded summit of the mountain in 1851, although it is widely accepted that local tribesmen made the summit first. The name Kinabalu comes from the local Kadazandusan tribes word “Aki Nabalu” meaning “the revered place of the dead”. These tribespeople believe that spirits inhabit the mountain and previously ceremonies used to take place to appease the spirits prior to summit attempts. These days the ceremonies are not required but upsetting the spirits still has dire consequences, the last time this happened was in 2015 when a group of backpackers took nude photos and caused an earthquake (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-33058692). This earthquake closed the mountain for almost 6 months, whilst the trail was checked for safety and, in one area, rebuilt on a separate route. The mountain itself contains a number of geographical topographies from the rainforest at the base to the granite rock face at the summit. Incredibly, the mountain grows by approximately 5mm in height each year. On a clear day, you can see the Philippines from the top of Low’s Peak, the closest point of which is a little more than 200km away.

The mountain, as the name suggests, is back near Kota Kinabalu – the other side of the island to Danum Valley. This meant a long day of travel but first a final jungle walk in the hope of seeing a wild orangutan. Sadly, this wasn’t to be but we did find some wild gibbons. During the two hour transfer back to Lahad Datu, we passed a couple of Barking Dogs and a Monitor Lizard but worryingly I had to get the driver to stop the car as I felt sick. With fingers crossed it was a case of car sickness, we continued back to the town to Lahad Datu from where we were back to Kota Kinabalu. The airport in Lahad Datu has to rank as one of the smallest I’ve ever been in. One check in desk, security you weren’t allowed to pass through until 30 mins before the flight was due to take off and a tiny departure area. It was a short 45 min flight back to KK, where we had a short lunch break then continued on to Kinabalu National Park. Aside from being home to the mountain, Kinabalu National Park is a Unesco World Heritage Site supporting a wide range of flora and fauna with over half the species growing above 900m being unique to the area. The most interesting of these include the Nepenthes Villosa carnivorous plants and the Rafflesia, the largest flower in the world, alongside the far more banal orchid and rhododendron. The park has a number of lodging options available as well as a restaurant and shop. The main entrance also contains important information for those who are going to climb the mountain.

The next morning, I still wasn’t feeling great, but popped a couple of pills in the hope that some medicine would sort me out. We headed to the entrance, had breakfast, stored our large bags and found our guide for the next two days, Jamie. Then it was a short bus ride to Timpohon Gate where the trek began in earnest. One thing you get told repeatedly about climbing Kinabalu is that “every step is uphill” so it was something of a surprise to find that the first 20m away from the gate were down steps followed by a short period of flat. Then it was uphill, mainly on steps. Steps, after steps, after steps. Every 0.5km, there is a marker and at approximately the same place there is a small shelter where you can take a breather or have a toilet stop. It is only a distance of 6km to the evening’s rest stop, a distance I can easily run in well under an hour, but it takes the average trekker 4-6 hours to complete this distance. The first hour I found particularly tough, but then either the medicine kicked in or my body went into preservation mode and I started to perk up. Because the start of the hike is through rainforest, it was very humid and we were sweating within minutes. After 4km, we stopped at Layang-Layang hut for lunch. Finally at 2pm, after 5.5 hours of hiking we reached the overnight accommodation of Laban Rata. This is where all trekkers stay and provides dormitory accommodation and food. We were expecting a large dorm, but instead found ourselves in a small 4 bed dorm. We treated ourselves to some pringles whilst waiting for our early dinner then it was off to bed with lights out at 5.40. Thankfully, the sunsets around 6pm which aided in getting some sleep.

Nothing is going to stop it being dark when the alarm goes off at 1.30am though! We had a light breakfast, after which I promptly went and threw up which meant I was doing that morning’s climb with no energy stores and a feeling of running on empty. Melissa had a bag of haribo with her and the occasional fried egg just about kept me going along with a number of stops. The majority of people leave for the summit between 2.30 and 3.00 and so there is a procession of climbers, each with a head lamp, making its way slowly up the mountain. It is only another 2km to cover, with an altitude gain of approximately 832m, and the first km had a number of those pesky stairs again. At this point, there is a checkpoint after which the vegetation has completely disappeared and you are greeted with sheer granite rock face. This can be very smooth at times, which means that the authorities have fixed a white rope onto the face and you need to use this to haul yourself up the side. It’s hard going even for those who are feeling fit and healthy!

We were aiming to be at the summit for sunrise, but due to my slower than average pace, when the sun peaked its head out at about 5.45am we were still 200m short of the summit. This may not sound a lot but consider that this final part is a number of large boulders to clamber over and can take half an hour on its own. We therefore settled in on a large flat ledge to watch sunrise over Borneo, with a stunning view and very few crowds. We could see on the summit that there was a number of people and so decided that actually, we were in the better place. Once the sun was up, we negotiated the final set of boulders before being able to proudly stand atop not just the highest point on the island of Borneo, but also the highest point between the island of Papua New Guinea and the Himalayas.

After a short while at the summit, it was time to head back down where we learnt a number of things. Firstly, the large boulders were harder to go down than up. Secondly, the rope on the sheer granite cliff face was harder to go down than up. Thirdly, there didn’t seem to be as many stairs on the way down as the way up. Fourthly, because of the pressure on your knees and legs, it’s probably harder to go down than up! We arrived back to Laban Rata at 8.30am where, I threw up again but then was able to go and eat a small amount of second breakfast. It was a long old slog all the way back to Timpohon Gate where we had completely forgotten about the steps we would have to climb up. It seemed particularly cruel. We arrived back at 1.40 which meant we had time for a small lunch before the 2 hour transfer over to KK, during which time our legs seized up and we could barely walk, which meant dinner was a picnic in bed (or bednic as we nicknamed it) before a well-deserved shower and an early night. 


Kota Kinabalu, Gaya Island

2016-05-28 to 2016-05-30

In 1882, the British North Borneo Company set up a trading settlement on Gaya Island. It was destroyed in 1898 and rebuilt on the mainland in 1899, named Jesselton in honour of Sir Charles Jessel, a manager of the Chartered Company. Later on, this settlement was rename as Kota Kinabalu, or KK to the locals. After WWII destroyed the Sabah capital of Sandakan, the British ruling government decided to make KK the capital city. The war greatly damaged the town and left just two buildings standing, one of which was the Atkinson Clock Tower, the first place we visited on our one morning in KK. Named after FG Atkinson, who died of malaria at 28, this wooden clock tower was built in 1905 and is possibly the only tourist attraction in KK. There is a hill, with an observation pavilion we could climb, but neither of us fancied that as we were struggling to walk properly and stairs were a nightmare! Instead we went and wandered round the market then went and found a coffee shop and enjoyed the air conditioning.

Soon, it was time to head to the jetty and catch a boat over to the Tunku Abdul Rahman National Park. This park, of which two thirds is water, is also the location of 5 islands, the largest of which, and our home for the next three nights, is the aforementioned Gaya Island. Here we had booked into a nice resort with infinity pool, small beach, coral reefs, water based activities, Marine Ecology Research Centre and hiking trails for those feeling active. We weren’t. We were planning lots of pool time! The rooms were small bungalows on stilts over the water, either facing the lagoon or the mangroves. Upon arrival, we were upgraded to a bungalow with steps taking us down directly into the sea. Taking a short walk round the resort, we could see many different species of fish, plenty of birds and even one wild boar. We also took a walk round the MERC building where they were breeding giant clams.

The bar provided a free drink each night and so we would visit there before dinner, which was taken in one of two restaurants. The first night we tried the Macac restaurant which advertised itself as “Western fusion food with a distinctly Malaysian twist” whilst the second night we visited the Alu-Alu restaurant serving Chinese seafood dishes. All seafood was live in tanks at the entrance to the restaurant which meant you could specifically pick your dinner, a slightly intimidating prospect for two people who like seafood but are out of their depth when presented with it swimming in front of them!! The final night we went back to what we knew and stuck with the Macac restaurant.

The rest of the time we spent chilling at the pool, sitting on our private balcony or, on one occasion, taking a kayak out around the lagoon. Our final night coincided with the Sabah Harvest Festival. The Almighty Creator saw that his people were starving and so he sacrificed his only daughter, Huminodun, and her body parts were scattered all over the land. Out of the soil grew rice and every year the local Kadazandusan tribe celebrate this with a two day festival including the drinking of Liang, a rice wine and the drinking of particular foods. To celebrate, the bar, alongside its usual free drink, were providing everyone with a sample of Liang as well as a small portion of drunken chicken soup and a marinated raw fish, similar to ceviche. 


Tip of Borneo, Seoul

2016-05-31 to 2016-06-01

The northernmost point of Borneo, known as Tanjung Simpang Mengayau or Tip of Borneo in English, marks the point where the South China Sea meets the Sulu Sea. It is believe the Ferdinand Magellen spent 42 days here during his circumnavigation of the world from 1519-1522 performing repairs on his ship. Legend also states that this tip was a favourite landing place for pirates.

Our visit wasn’t to be quite so exciting! Our flight home was at 1.00am and so we had an entire day to fill and the latest Gaya Island would drop us back on the mainland was 11.00am. So we decided to take a daytrip to fill our time. Unfortunately, this meant catching a boat at 6.00am where we then had to wait 75 mins for our tour guide to arrive. We had been provided with a packed breakfast though, so we filled the time. The drive would be 3hours, but it was punctuated with stops en route.

The first was at a village which made honey. We saw the bees and learnt how the honey was removed from the hives without any form of beekeeping suit for protection. Our next stop was at a village which made gongs. These gongs ranged in size and were especially popular around big celebrations. The final village we stopped at was to see traditional longhouses. These have been described as an entire village under one (long) roof. They consist of multiple houses, with a kitchen and bedroom, but with communal areas for socialising and eating. They can range in length from a few units to 10 or 15 units. If a child marries, it is common for a new unit to be added to the end so that they remain part of the community. In this area of Borneo, these longhouses belonged to the Rungus tribe and are predominantly made from Bamboo but are increasingly being modernised both in building technique and amenities. The final part of the drive took us up to the tip of Borneo, where there was a beautiful 1km strip of golden sand – the first proper beach we’d come across. We were able to walk the entire length of the beach and dip our feet in the sea before heading back to KK and our flight home.

Slept reasonably well on the flight, arriving in Seoul around 7am. We headed straight to the transit tour desk, hoping to be able to get on the 5 hour tour. We were in luck and so cleared immigration and went to our meeting point in the arrivals lounge. The tour included free transport into the city along with entry into our first sight, Gyeongbok Palace. It was originally built in 1395 and was the former home to the Royal family. The complex had many similarities to the Forbidden City in Beijing with its series of rooms laid out across a sprawling area, with separate rooms for the King – we even saw his bedroom – his wife and his concubines.

The next stop was the Insadong Street, famous for its arts and crafts and also where we were to have an early lunch. We had selected the bibimbap, a rice based dish combined with a mixture of vegetables, sauces and a fried egg and was delicious. With a bit of free time before we had to leave we were able to take a look in the shops on the street and also chill in the nearby Tapgol Park. Soon, it was back on the bus and back to the airport to fly the rest of the way home. 


Summary

2016-06-02

The final stats and figures from my trip:

Days taken: 12

Hours spent in Seoul: 11

Total hours slept in first 2 nights: 6

Highest elevation reached: 4,095m

FA Cup Finals watched: 1

FA Cup Finals won: 0 :-(

Mars Bars eaten (tradition): 2

Mars Bars brought home (tradition): 1

Days before I could walk properly after descending Kinabalu: 6

Level of humidity for most of trip: ridiculous

Leech bites: 0

Wild orangutans seen: 0

Mossie bites: 3 


The product of a crazy lunch and a bored afternoon!

2016-08-03

What do you get when two good friends have a curry over lunch and a bored Friday afternoon doing no work? Well, you end up with the two of them booking a long weekend in Oman, that’s what! You what, I hear you ask?! Well, back in March my work friend Christina and I went to the curry house next door to our office for lunch. At this point, I had 3 days annual leave to be taken before the end of Q1 and was asking her for suggestions of how I should use it, since I don’t believe in just taking time off and spending it at home. At that point, the conversation went something like this:

Christina: You should go to Oman

Me: What? Why?

Christina: Well I bet you’ve never been there before

Me: True, but I need to know a bit more about it first

Being a Friday, and no one really does much work on a Friday afternoon, we went back to the office and continued the conversation over instant messenger. Before the afternoon was out, we discovered that Oman actually sounded quite interesting and soon Christina had talked me into going and I had convinced Christina to join me!

So, over the long August bank holiday weekend, the two of us are off to explore Oman, and get a bit of sun. When I googled the weather before booking it said that average temperatures are around 30 degrees. Excellent, I thought. Last week, when I had a look at the actual temperature, it was 47 degrees! Thankfully, it has cooled down again since and is now around the 30 degrees again. As we are both keen to maximise holiday time, we are flying from work on the Wednesday night, arriving Thursday morning and are in Oman until the Monday night, when we fly back to London, arriving on Tuesday morning and heading straight to the office. We’ve both done this before although for me so are hoping we are pros at the whole “working straight off the plane” thing!

Whilst googling Oman that Friday afternoon, we found a plethora of sights to visit, from forts, to canyons, to turtles, to sinkholes, to desert. Given our 5 day timeframe, we settled on spending the Thursday arrival day and Monday departure day exploring Muscat and chilling on the beach. Friday we are heading towards the Ras Al Jinz turtle reserve via a couple of wadi’s (valleys, sometimes with water). We arrive at the beach, where turtles come ashore to lay eggs, and where we will be camping overnight nearby. After a night of turtle watching we return to Muscat on Saturday via the town of Sur and the Bimmah sinkhole. Then on the Sunday, we are off to Jebel Shams, a mountain range containing a large canyon, via the 350 year old Nizwa Fort. All told, a very busy, long weekend. 


Muscat, Wadi Shab, Ras al-Hadd

2016-08-25 to 2016-08-26

Most people when I mentioned I was heading to Oman, asked if there was anything there aside from desert. It turns out that, especially if you don’t head too far inland, there’s plenty there. If you take the main road out of the capital Muscat, towards the south-east, you reach the small town of Ras al-Hadd, where the Oman Sea meets the Arabian Sea. On the way you pass a number of amazing natural features before ending up at a fantastic spot for a wildlife encounter. With just 5 days in Oman, we were using our time wisely and had booked some tours before leaving home. The first was to take us down this particular road.

We arrived in Muscat on time and made a speedy exit off the plane, bought our visas and cleared immigration. Before we knew it, we’d arrived at our hotel, been upgraded and were sat on our balcony overlooking the pool slowly toasting in 46 degree heat! The afternoon was split between the hotel’s private beach and the pool/pool bar before heading to a nearby restaurant for dinner. Bizarrely, it was set in the “jungle”, in the middle of the city, surrounded by dinosaurs!

The next morning, we were up early to meet our guide Juma at 8.00am. He arrived sporting the local clothing of a dish-dash and kuma (informal hat). We drove for an hour and a half before arriving at our first spot – Wadi Shab. A wadi is a valley, sometimes dry, sometimes with water, sometimes both depending on the season. Due to the water, the banks of wadi’s are often surrounded by green plants and bushes. Wadi Shab was no exception, with turquoise water surrounded by lush vegetation backed by steep cliff walls. We took a short boat ride across the water to the hiking path, from where we followed the edge of the water scrambling over boulders and avoiding thorny branches.

After 40 mins, we reached the end of the path but this was not the end of the adventure. We then switched to the water, being careful on the very slippery rocks and part walked, part swam further down the valley. At the end, we entered a submerged cave, lit by a few holes in the roof. After 30 mins in the pool, we retraced our steps back to the car. The whole excursion taking approximately 3 hours.

We had lunch in a local restaurant in the nearby town of Tiwi before continuing our journey on to Ras al-Hadd. This is home to a turtle colony who come ashore in the evening to lay their eggs. We would be using the facilities of a house belonging to Juma’s friend Salam, but spending the night sleeping on the beach. Firstly, Salam took us out on his boat, in an attempt to catch dinner but sadly Christina and my fishing skills were limited to we had to ask another fishing boat nicely if we could have one of their fish! We then switched from the choppier Arabian Sea into the calmer Oman Sea where we could see lots of turtles and Christina was even able to snorkel with them.

The evening was spent cooking the fish for dinner under the Milky Way before heading to the water edge to see if any turtles were ashore. None were but we got to see, and dance in, fluorescent plankton at the water’s edge. In an attempt to find turtles, we headed a short drive up to Ras al-Jinz, where there is a large turtle colony. On the drive into the colony we had to stop the car as there were a number of babies on the path, heading in the wrong direction as they follow bright lights. We rescued a large number of babies and deposited them in a bowl of water at the entrance. On the beach itself, we found many large holes complete with turtles laying eggs, holes being dug by expectant turtles and track marks from where the turtles had dragged themselves up and down out of the water. It was amazing to witness but eventually we had to leave and return to our beach to get some rest. 


Wadi Tiwi, Bimmah Sinkhole, Muscat

2016-08-27

The return journey from Ras al-Hadd was just as spectacular. It was an early start as the sun rose at 5am and it quickly got hot meaning sleeping was out of the question. After breakfast, we drove to the town of Sur where we visited a dhow factory – these are large wooden boats still made by hand. Our next stop was a viewpoint over the former capital of Qalhat, of which little remains aside from a mausoleum. From this building there is an underground passage to take a person away from the city.

Our next stop was back in the town of Tiwi, this time at Wadi Tiwi. From the turning off the highway, we had a 40 minute, steep uphill drive along single lane 4WD tracks. At the end, we left the car and had a 10 minute scramble down the hill to reach the water. This wadi had numerous pools, with the deeper ones lower down. This meant even more scrambling along narrow ledges to reach the bottom where we were greeted with a waterfall. Once again, it was absolutely stunning.

We then had to carefully negotiate our way back out of the wadi and back to the car, where we had to drive down the valley, this time via a brief stop at one of the villages where Juma pointed out his mother’s house. The final stop was at the Hawiyat Najm sinkhole, near the village of Bimmah. Local legend says that this hole was formed when meteorites fell to earth and the name translates as “The Falling Star”. But scientific research says that the hole was formed naturally when part of the rock layer dissolved and collapsed. The hole, approximately 40m by 20m, can reach depths of 30m and is filled with the same turquoise water that we had seen in the wadi’s. There are steps down to the water for those who wish to swim in it, but the best views were certainly from above.

Soon, it was time to return to Muscat, but Juma kindly gave us a tour of the city on the way back. We stopped at the Shangri-La Hotel, a very upmarket place and therefore completely unsuitable for us!! We spent some time in Old Muscat, at the Sultan’s Palace (Al-Alam Palace) guarded on either side by the Al-Jalali Fort and the Al-Mirani Fort. Both were built in the 1580’s during the Portuguese occupation of Oman. A little further on, we drove along the Mutrah Corniche, the main port area within Muscat. For those arriving on a cruise liner, this is where they will dock. Today, there was only the Sultan’s private yacht in the marina. The main attraction on the corniche is the Souq. This is a market with shops selling a mixture of souvenirs, spices, silver and textiles. We finally arrived back at the hotel, where we said goodbye to Juma, our excellent guide. 


Nizwa, Jebel Shams, Muscat

2016-08-28 to 2016-08-29

The Hajar mountain range stretches the entire length of the Omani Sea coastline. The Eastern Hajar run from Muscat down to Ras al-Hadd inland from the main highway we had spent most of the last two days on. Meanwhile, the Western Hajar head north west from Muscat up towards the border with the UAE. The highest mountain is Jebel Shams which overlooks the Wadi Ghul Canyon.

Our day started with a 2 hour drive to the historic town of Nizwa. Back in the 6th and 7th centuries, Nizwa was the capital of Oman and attracts tourists these days due to the sights within the city and the access to the mountains. Our first stop in the city was the Souq, this time with a much larger food and drink portion where we tried the local delicacy, Halwa, a sweet, sticky, sugary substance.

We then moved on to Nizwa Fort. The fort was built in the 1650’s by an Imam and was of big strategic importance. From the top, there are views out over the city, towards the mountains, over the Souq and of the hundreds of date plantations.

An hour’s drive further up into the mountains and we arrived at Jebel Shams, which translates as Mountain of the Sun and sits at 3075m. Not only is this the highest mountain in the Western Hajar, it is also the highest mountain in Oman. Consequently, it is noticeably cooler at the summit – just the 30 degrees rather than 46 degrees! The Grand Canyon of Arabia, as Wadi Ghul is locally known, drops down some 900m and winds its way through the valley. We took a walk along the ridge and peered over the edge in many places as there are no railings. It was so peaceful up there, you couldn’t hear a sound. Sadly, it was soon time to head back to Muscat.

The next morning, we again had an early start as the hotel provides a free shuttle at 8.30am to the Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque. The Mosque was commissioned by the Sultan Qaboos to celebrate his 30th year of reign and was built by a British company after the Sultan decided he liked their design the best. There are two main halls, one for the women and one for the men. Both have floors and walls made of Italian marble, but a roof of Burmese wood. The rest of the Mosque complex, outside the main halls, is also made from marble. The women’s hall is smaller as women have the “privilege” to pray from home whilst “looking after the sick children, or doing the housework”. Meanwhile, men are obliged to pray at the Mosque. The men’s hall contains what was once the largest carpet in the world and the largest chandelier in the world, however, these have now been overtaken by Mosques in Abu Dhabi and Dubai respectively.

After leaving the Mosque, we got the hotel shuttle to drop us at the Royal Opera House. After a few false attempts at finding the entrance, we went inside and had a short tour of the building. Once again, we saw Italian marble floors and walls and Burmese wooden ceilings. The stage has retractable wings and the seating is also retractable and can be increased from the standard 1100 seats. Each seat is also equipped with a small screen showing subtitles in English, Arabic or the original language.

Our final adventure in Muscat was to get a Big Bus Tour around the greater Muscat area. This took us around Ruwi, Qurm, Old Muscat and ended in Mutrah. The tour takes 2 hours due to the size of the city and at the end we ate a lovely lunch on the Corniche before heading back to the hotel for an afternoon in the pool and an evening flight home. 


Summary

2016-08-30

A short summary for a short trip.

Days taken: 5

Star rating of our hotel: 5

Nights spent in hotel: 3

Nights spent on beach: 1

Hottest daytime temperature reached: 46

Lowest daytime temperature reached: 30


Gross National Happiness

2016-09-07

Just like that, less than two weeks after returning from Oman, I’m packing to head off again. This time, it’s a slightly longer trip with slightly more planning. It’s somewhere I’ve wanted to visit for a few years – my love of Nepal and the mountains has always made this an intriguing destination – and planning has been taking place since the start of the year. I‘m off to Bhutan.

However, it’s not a destination that’s easy to get to. The two airlines that fly into Bhutan have no agreements with any other airlines and only fly to a handful of destinations in Asia. This means you cannot rock up at Heathrow and check your bag all the way through to Paro. Instead, you can only go so far before clearing immigration, collecting your bags and re-checking in. Add to this the airport in Paro is a visual landing airport meaning pilots have to take off and land using their eyesight rather than using their instruments. This means flights can only take place in daylight and are frequently delayed due to the weather. Flights have also been known to take off early if bad weather is coming. For these reasons, you are advised to allow at least 24 hours either side of your Paro flights. So, allowing for all this my route to Bhutan is along these lines – fly London to Bangkok via Doha. One night in Bangkok. Fly Bangkok to Paro. On the way home, I then fly Paro to Bangkok. Two nights in Bangkok. Fly Bangkok to Doha. Two nights in Doha. Fly Doha to London. Complicated? Not half!

But this is only half the story. Bhutan, rather than measure progress based on GDP, base it on Gross National Happiness. They focus on quality of life and cultural heritage rather than economics. Consequently, they don’t want to be overrun with tourists and so believe in “High Value, Low Impact Tourism”. So, they set a minimum amount that must be spent by tourists of $250 per day. This covers accommodation, transport, food, guides and entry fees. They also insist that you must be on a guided trip or they won’t issue a visa. So, I am back travelling with G Adventures on a 10 day trip exploring Bhutan, combining some hiking alongside cultural visits and hopefully some spectacular views of the mountains.

As for the remaining few days of the trip, I have decided to use my stopover in Bangkok to take a Thai cooking course, as who doesn’t love Thai food?! Finally, my flight home required a change of plane in Doha, somewhere whose airport I have visited many a time but never actually left, so I decided now was the time to actually see a little of Qatar and have two nights here before finally arriving back in London, 15 days after I leave. 


Paro, Tigers Nest Monastery

2016-09-11 to 2016-09-15

Paro is a small town, with a population of 15,000 people, that you can walk from one end to the other in less than 30 mins at a slow pace. Why then, is it the home to Bhutan’s only international airport? Well, it comes down to the landscape. Bhutan is made up of many valleys, in between high mountains and to land a plane, you need to have a wide valley. There are only two valleys that are large enough to land a plane, one in Paro and one in Bumthang. As the valley in Paro is larger, it gets the international airport, Bumthang gets a domestic airport. However, the altitude (2,280m) and the surrounding high mountains, up to 5,500m, still make landing a challenge. The final descent requires the pilot to navigate the plane around the mountains, banking to the left and then to the right, meaning there are only 8 pilots in the world qualified to land here.

I arrived in Paro, via a 30 min stop in Kolkata, and was greeted at the airport by my guide for the next 10 days Tobgay, henceforth known as TopGear, who immediately took us for lunch. This was our first glimpse of the local cuisine, usually served buffet style, and generally consisted of rice, either chicken or beef, vegetables, potatoes and chilli cheese. Bhutanese food is traditionally spicy but it tends to get tempered slightly for the Western palate, aside from the chilli cheese which is as hot as the name suggests. In the afternoon, we were able to explore Paro and even got a glimpse of the Queen Mother who drove past us with a convoy of cars.

Our first full day of exploring started with a trip to the Dumtse Lhakhang monastery where a lama turned a 7 headed fox to stone in order to stop the spread of leprosy. Inside the monastery were three levels representing hell, earth and heaven. Unfortunately, due to a power outage we weren’t allowed up the stairs to the other levels and had to remain in “hell”. From here, we drove to the National Museum, which due to damage during the 2011 Sikkim earthquake, is currently located in the neighbouring building, a former watchtower. The museum consists of a number of exhibits from masks to the natural environment. Located at the top of a hill, the museum afforded excellent views out over the valley, across the town and all the way down to the airport.

From here we headed to Rinpung Dzong, also known as Paro Dzong, of which half is an active monastery and the other half is the home of local government buildings. The dzong was built in 1644by Guru Rinpoche, one of the most important figures in Bhutanese history and religion, he is credited with converting the country to Buddhism. The dzong is located on a hillside overlooking Nyamai Zam, a traditional wooden bridge and the oldest bridge in Bhutan. After lunch, we went for a short hike in the pouring rain, as preparation for tomorrow. The hike took us through the Paro countryside, behind the town, and conveniently ended up right next to our hotel, where we could dry out and warm back up.

The next morning, it was an early start as we set off on our two day trek. We drove to a monastery about 30 mins out of town at a height of 2,700m. From here, we took a very muddy path up, up, up, slowly emerging from the cloud to give excellent views of the town and airport. The path took us through forests of oaks past remote monasteries. After 5 hours of steady climbing, we reached the campsite, at 3,900m, where we were served lunch. The campsite was in an open field, overlooking the valley, with further hills behind us. Each tent was for two people and contained a double bed, thick mattress with big fluffy duvet – no seriously! We had a chilled afternoon, chatting, reading and drinking whiskey and watched a cloudy sunset.

After breakfast, we set off again, this time predominantly heading downhill, still through the forest and past a couple more monasteries. A short way further on and we reached the number 1 attraction in Bhutan – Taktshang Goemba or Tigers Nest Monastery. The monastery is set on the edge of a cliff, some 900m above the valley floor. Guru Rinpoche arrived at the site with his Nepalese consort and his Tibetan consort. The Tibetan consort converted herself into a Tiger and was able to subdue a demon that was in the spot. The Guru then meditated in a cave here for three months. In 1998, a fire destroyed a large part of the monastery and meant a number of relics were lost. From a viewpoint of the monastery, there is 400 steps down and 200 back up the other side to reach the entrance of the monastery from where we were able to look inside even seeing the “tiger’s lair”, the cave where the tiger lived.

On leaving the monastery, we still had to hike back down to the bottom of the mountain, a 2 hour walk on muddy, stony paths avoiding horses that like to take their own route. We reached the car park at the base and were able to sit down and relax whilst we drove to the capital Thimphu, via a very old suspension bridge. 


Thimphu, Gangtey

2016-09-16 to 2016-09-17

With a population of 95,000, Thimphu is a very small capital, the third highest capital in the world by altitude (2,320m) and the only capital without any traffic lights. In fact, when the government installed a set, the residents complained and so the white gloved traffic policeman was returned to his position in the middle of the road, directing traffic in a very balletic method. Although, bizarrely, he does this from the middle of a roundabout which functions perfectly well as a roundabout when he’s not there. He is also probably the most photographed sight in the capital!

Our visit to Thimphu began with a trip to the Memorial Chorten, built in 1974 in tribute to the third King. It is a popular place for workers to leave their elderly parents for the day whilst they go to work, before collecting them after the day is done. Meanwhile, the parents get a social element as they hang out with all their friends for the day. We then headed to a textile workshop where the traditional dress is painstakingly handmade on a loom. An outfit made of cotton can take a day, whilst one made of silk can take over a week. We then drove up a hill overlooking the town to the site of Buddha Dordenma. The Buddha is 169ft tall, looking down over the valley and can be seen from pretty much anywhere in town. The Buddha’s third eye is a huge diamond.

We then headed to the mini-zoo, so named because it hardly has any animals, just the 4 in fact. But it is home to the national animal, the takin, which has the body of a cow and the head of a goat. It’s quite an odd looking thing. The remaining three enclosures contained mountain goats, barking deer and Tibetan antelope but the total number of animals seen could be counted on your fingers! On the way back into town, we stopped at a viewpoint overlooking the royal palace. We all assumed that the largest building we could see was the Palace, when in fact it was a much smaller one hidden away by trees, but with a large golf course next door. The first building was actually home to the head of religion’s offices as well as some of the King’s offices.

After lunch, we visited a paper making factory followed by the School for 13 Crafts where talented students study traditional crafts such carving, embroidery or clay making. We then made a much anticipated stop at the post office, where you can buy valid postage stamps with your face on them!! With a bit of free time in the afternoon, a few of us headed into town to look round the shops and witness the balletic white gloved traffic cop close up. After dinner, we decided to visit a local karaoke joint although clearly in Bhutan karaoke means something completely different to over here. Instead of singing, there was a girl on stage dancing to Bhutanese songs, although she didn’t seem to be enjoying it and had a slightly dead behind the eyes look. Apparently, you can pay money to request a song for her to dance to. Er, no thanks!

We left Gangtey the next day on a “free massage” road i.e. it isn’t paved and expect potholes. The road wound steadily up and up, until we reached the Dochu La pass at 3,040m. At the top of the pass are 108 chortens, built to atone for deaths whilst having to expel some Indian people back to India to face arrest. The King at the time repeatedly asked them to leave and they repeatedly agreed to but never went. He didn’t want to force them but relations with India were in danger of turning sour and Bhutan relies heavily on India for trade routes so he had to send the army to force them out. Some soldiers lost their lives and the King built the chorten to make up for this. Driving down the other side of the pass, we arrived in Punakha, where we would return the next day but for now was just our lunch stop. We then had another 3 hour drive up to the Lowa La pass at 3,360m from where we could descend a short distance to arrive in Gangtey. Gang meaning Hill and Tey meaning Top means they didn’t put much thought into the name! We visited the monastery, which was built in the 17th century but had a complete refurb in the last few years, before heading to our farmhouse which would be our accommodation for the night. It was simple with no running water and only squat toilets but was kept nice and warm thanks to a wood burner in the middle of the main communal room. We did question why it was called a farmhouse when there was no farm but apparently the chickens “had gone shopping”!


Punakha, Haa

2016-09-18 to 2016-09-20

Bhutan has an obsession with phalluses. You see them everywhere, painted on the sides of buildings, in souvenir shops and they all belong to one man – the Divine Madman. Born in Tibet, Drupka Kunley used outrageous and sexual methods to help people lose their preconceptions. He is also credited with being the person who created the takin by sticking the head of a goat on the body of a cow. His sexual exploits are legendary and once subdued the demoness of Dochu La with his “magic thunderbolt of wisdom”. His cousin built a temple in his honour in the former capital of Punakha.

The capital for 300 years, only moving to Thimphu in the mid 1950’s, Punakha sits at the junction of two rivers, the Mo Chhu (Mother River) and the Pho Chhu (Father River). It’s much lower altitude also means that it is much warmer and so its dzong is home to the Head of Religion’s winter residence. The first King was crowned in Punakha and even the current King underwent a ceremony here before his official, public coronation in the capital.

We arrived in Punakha via a 3 hour journey back along a part of the free massage road only this time, due to heavy rain overnight, there had been a couple of landslides, one so bad we got out and walked along whilst the van edged along slowly free of the majority of its weight. Because of the geology along the roads, further rock falls were expected and we soon passed the Bhutanese Army on their way to help out.

Once we had arrived in Punakha and had lunch, we headed to Chimi Lhakhang, the previously mentioned temple dedicated to the Divine Madman and his magic thunderbolt of wisdom. The temple is sought out by women looking to conceive as it is believed a visit can boost fertility. As the day was a festival, there was a number of people at the temple eating and celebrating. A group of monks were playing darts, a group of children played football whilst their mums were singing traditional songs. 

We then drove to Punakha Dzong, situated right at the confluence of the Mother and Father Rivers, which gave an already beautiful building a magnificent setting. Guru Rinpoche prophesied the building of the dzong when he stated that a person named Namgyal would arrive at a hill that looked like an elephant. When he arrived in Punakha, he built a dzong at the tip of the sleeping elephant’s trunk. Our final stop in Punakha was the largest suspension bridge before heading for our hotel for a well-deserved dinner.

The following day, we were back on the road heading up to, and then down from, Dochu La pass – in case you hadn’t figured it yet, due to the mountains there aren’t that many road options in Bhutan! We arrived back in Thimphu and drove out the other side, stopping for a picnic lunch whilst overlooking a former prison. When we arrived in Haa, we visited the monastery, built in the 7th century, before stopping in town to buy some prayer flags for the next day.

Our final full day in Bhutan, began with an early start and a drive to the Chelela Pass which, at 3,989m, is the highest pass in Bhutan. Here we hung our prayer flags in giant string then set out on a 3 hour hike down through beautiful forest to reach the Kila Nunnery but thankfully, given the altitude, was predominantly downhill. Once we got to the Nunnery, we met some of the nuns and donated some clothes we no longer required. At the end of the hike, we were treated to another roadside picnic lunch before carrying on to Paro, where we spent some time souvenir shopping.

In the evening, TopGear took us out for a surprise at a nearby farm. Here we were treated to an evening of traditional dancing by a local dance group which included many traditional costumes as well as the kind of masks usually seen on festival days. Back at the hotel, the bar was in full karaoke session – this time the version of karaoke we were much more used to – so we had some final night beers and a little party. 


Bangkok, Doha

2016-09-21 to 2016-09-25

One of the best things about travelling is meeting new people. Sometimes, however, you get to meet old friends in a new location, as was my plan in Bangkok. I had flown to Bangkok from Paro, arriving late afternoon with another full day ahead of me. I had planned to take a Thai cooking course in the morning and then meet my friend Alice in the afternoon. As with all best laid plans, it didn’t quite go as expected.

I woke up to a message from Alice saying that due to a drunk passenger, her flight had been delayed at Gatwick whilst the police were called and that consequently, she’d missed her connection in Dubai. This meant that rather than arriving around midday, she’d be arriving around 7. I left the hotel and went down to the sky train stop, where I travelled to Chong Nonsi station to meet the rest of my class. Once there, they split us into smaller groups and I set off with 7 other people and our teacher two stops further down the line to where our class would be cooking.

Once off the train, we headed to the market where our teacher, a small, charismatic man, showed us the local produce. We then moved to the building where we were to cook and things got interesting. Our first task was to make coconut milk. This involved adding water to coconut flecks and then squeezing the water out. The first liquid that comes out is coconut cream. Then you add more water and repeat the process, the resulting liquid from this second process is the coconut milk. Whilst we were doing this, our teacher took a phone call which resulted in him yelling at some of the other staff members “put the vegetables in the bag, it’s not that hard”.

We moved upstairs to the kitchen, where the teacher left us to speak to the staff. We could hear more yelling followed by “get out, go home”. Then another member of staff came into the kitchen, apologised and said that the class could no longer continue because the teacher wasn’t in a good mood to teach and it was “because of the refugees”. He then proceeded to tell us that some of the other staff were Sri Lankan refugees and “we all know what refugees are like. We all know about the refugee problem”. Cue many confused looks in the room and awkward silences. He told us we could book another class which would then be free as we could tell them that our previous class was “cancelled due to the refugee problem”. Just like that we were kicked out the building without really knowing our way back to the sky train station.

Given that we were supposed to be making 5 courses, I hadn’t had any breakfast and it was still only 10 in the morning, so I returned to my hotel and sat by the rooftop pool and a couple of hours before heading out to get some lunch. The rest of the afternoon was sat up by the pool until I finally heard from Alice that her flight had arrived. I jumped in a taxi and headed for the area near the Khao San Road, where she was staying and found her, and her boyfriend Darren, having a beer outside their hotel. We had a wander down the street, before stopping for a pad Thai and a beer. Unfortunately, by this point it was late and I had an early start the next day so I bade Alice and Darren farewell on their year long trip around Asia and headed back to my hotel.

The final stop on the multi country trip back to London was a stopover in Doha, Qatar. As an airport that I’ve transited in many times, I decided it was time to leave the airport and see what the city had to offer. The short answer was not a lot! As I’d arrived right in the middle of the day, where temperatures were a humid mid 40’s, I relaxed a little in my hotel before venturing out around 4, down to the Corniche where many of the city’s migrant population were relaxing under the shade of the trees admiring the city skyline across the bay. That evening I headed to the Souq (market), with a combination of shops and restaurants and found a nice little Turkish restaurant for dinner.

On my full day in Doha I had planned to get up early, stay out for a few hours, head back to the hotel during the hottest part of the day before heading out again in the evening. I’d met a few people who’d been to Doha and when asked what I should do, all of them replied with the Museum of Islamic Art, so this was my idea for the morning. However, a quick look at the website showed that it didn’t open until midday, so I decided to amend my original plan, have a lay in instead and not leave the hotel until midday. The museum was designed by the same architect that built the pyramid at the Louvre and is heavily influenced by Islamic themes and patterns. The square shaped building is a striking feature of the Corniche at all hours of the day. The exhibitions inside were mostly Islamic influenced although there were additional exhibitions looking at the terracotta warriors and another on Mohammed Ali. Was able to kill a few hours here, before taking a wander around more of Doha including the Doha Sports Stadium which, I assume, is not being used for the World Cup as it was very dilapidated. My final evening was watching the Palace game on TV in my room whilst having a bednic! 


Summary

2016-09-26

A few facts and figures from my trip

Nights: 14

Countries visited: 3, 1 twice

Flights taken: 6

Highest altitude: 3,989m

Highest temperature: 44 degrees

The national flag of Bhutan is divided diagonally into two halves. The upper yellow half signifies the secular power and authority of the King. The lower orange half signifies the practice of religion and the power of Buddhism. The dragon represents “Druk”, the local name of the country whilst the white colour represents purity.

The national sport of Bhutan is archery and is one of the only sports in which Bhutan competes in the Olympics.

The national emblem of Bhutan is a circle that projects a double diamond thunderbolt placed above the lotus.

The national bird of Bhutan is the raven.

The national animal of Bhutan is the takin.

The national flower of Bhutan is the blue poppy.

The national tree of Bhutan is the cypress. 

Bhutan has only had 5 Kings, as hereditary succession only began with the first Kings reign in 1907. 


A last minute decision

2016-11-02

A slow day at work saw me researching potential holiday destinations for next year when I remembered that I still had 6.5 days annual leave to use this calendar year. Suddenly my focus had to change to where I could spend a week in the next couple of months. Taking advice from some good friends and I was suddenly investigating Iceland. Before I knew it, I had booked flights to Reykjavik (a city I’ve only recently learnt how to spell) three weeks from then.

What did I previously know about Iceland? Well, the Blue Lagoon. Waterfalls. And that was about it. Transport was also proving to be an issue. Public transport is minimal to say the least in winter and I didn’t fancy hiring a car and driving on the snow and ice on the wrong side of the road. Luckily, internal flights still operate as do day trips in super jeeps.

So, as well as my flights, I have also booked myself a couple of internal flights and some day trip to the main points. This means that whilst based in Reykjavik, I have one day doing the “Golden Circle” – a loop that consists of þingvellir, Geysir and Gullfoss – and one day exploring southern Iceland as far as Jökulsárlón glacier lagoon plus Seljalandsfoss and Skógafoss. I then fly north to Akureyri, the country’s second largest town and from here I will also be visiting Dettifoss, Lake Mývatn with its thermal pools and Goðafoss. I will then return to Reykjavik in order to fly home. At some point I will visit the Blue Lagoon, most likely on my return to the capital before I leave. All in all, an excellent last minute holiday! 


Reykjavik

2016-11-13

The world’s most northerly capital city at 64 degrees north and a former Danish settlement, Reykjavik is home to two thirds of Iceland’s 330,000 population. This is a country that has to deal with over 1m visitors annually, a number that is rapidly rising. Back in 2010, less than half that number were visiting Iceland’s shores but then two things pushed the country into the spotlight. First, the 2010 ash cloud caused by Eyjafjallajökull volcano (no, I still don’t know how to pronounce it) which closed a large part of European airspace brought Iceland unexpectedly to the world’s attention. Off the back of this, the Icelandic tourist board were quick to start promoting the country, curiosities arose and visitors began to arrive. Secondly, word got out that Iceland’s natural, untouched environment would make for a good backdrop in TV and films and before you knew it James Bond, The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, Game of Thrones and many more were showcasing Iceland for the entire world to see and quicker than you can say “you know nothing, Jon Snow” tourist numbers skyrocketed. What had begun as just a summer influx, soon became a winter influx as well, with tourists citing the Northern Lights as a reason to visit.

My visit began with a 3.30 alarm call, so that I could get the 4.26 train to Gatwick, ready for my EasyJet flight to Reykjavik. By 10.30 I had landed at Keflavik airport and was on a bus to the centre of Reykjavik. From the bus terminal, I walked to my hostel taking in a quick stop at the Hallgrimskirkja, where I would return later. Once I’d left my bag at the hostel, I took a wander down to the coast and walked along toward Harpa Concert Hall, by which time it was fully hammering it down. In Iceland they say “if you don’t like the weather, wait 5 minutes” in reference to the ever changing conditions and so I thought I’d try this out and dived into Harpa to use the facilities. By the time I came out, the sun was shining!

After a quick bite for lunch, I headed to the 871±2 Viking museum. The museum occupies the site where a Viking longhouse was found during excavation in the early 2000’s whilst the name comes from the estimated date of some volcanic material found beneath the longhouse. I then returned to Hallgrimskirkja, via Tjörnin – a large lake with ducks, swans and geese situated right in the centre of town. Hallgrimskirkja is a white concrete church that, as it’s situated on top of a hill, dominates the skyline, with the intention of going up into the tower but there was such a long queue, reaching halfway down the aisle in fact, that after a quick look round the inside, I decided a better use of my time would be a visit to the Penis Museum! 

The Iceland Phallological Museum is, much to my colleagues delight, one of the most popular attractions in Reykjavik with most of its visitors being foreigners and over 60% are women. The museum houses a large collection of penises (over 280 I fact) from the 1.7m whale penis through to the sole human specimen – although another 4 men have promised their penises to the museum upon their death.

Surprisingly, it didn’t get dark until gone 5pm and so I watched sunset whilst eating an early dinner of meat soup and a hot chocolate, something that would become a recurring theme over the week as I attempted to warm up and then took an evening walk through the town before heading back to the hostel for the night. 


Golden Circle

2016-11-14

One of the top day trips from Reykjavik is the Golden Circle – a circular route that visits three famous sights. Each of these sights showcases a different element that makes Iceland so unique, from roaring waterfall, to hot springs, to tectonic plates. Most tours of the area will add in one or two other sights as well and make a full day outing. I had booked a tour of the area through the hostel I was staying in, but two days before I left home the tour got cancelled due to a lack of a guide and so I spent my Friday lunchtime at work searching out, and booking, a new tour. Thankfully, as it is such a popular trip, there were plenty of options and I soon had another trip lined up.

We left Reykjavik at 9am, when it was still pitch black and as we drove out the city, the sun slowly started to rise revealing snow covered fields. Our first stop was at the small town of Hveragerði, which is situated right on top of the fault line between the two tectonic plates that cause Iceland to be what it is today. The North American plate and the Eurasian plate cut right through the centre of Iceland and are a divergent boundary meaning they are pulling away from each other at a rate of 2cm per year. This makes for quite a noticeable gap as well as a lot of seismic activity. In 2008 an earthquake measuring 6.3 on the Richter scale hit the town which caused a number of injuries but the only loss of life was to local sheep. In a local shopping centre you can see part of the fissure between the two plates.

From here, we drove to the volcano crater at Kerið, a large 6,500 year old crater with a lake in the centre. Bizarrely, Björk once played a concert in the middle of the lake. The caldera of the volcano is still completely intact and is approximately 55m deep, 170m wide and 270m across. The sides of the caldera are noticeably a shade of red, a common theme of volcanic rock in the area.

Our next stop was at Faxi waterfall, a single tier waterfall which has a set of lava steps at the side, built there to help the salmon when they are trying to swim upstream. Driving a little longer we reached Gullfoss, a double layered waterfall meaning Golden Waterfall. It drops 32m and on sunny days rainbows are plentiful. Visitors started arriving in 1875, but in the 1920’s a British engineering company wanted to dam the river, destroying the falls, for a hydroelectric project. The owner refused but the company managed to sneakily get permission behind his back. His daughter protested and threatened to throw herself into the waterfall if the project went ahead. Whether it was this threat or not, the project did not go ahead and the falls escaped destruction. Today the falls are a nature reserve and have been donated to the nation.

A short drive from Gullfoss, and you arrive at a point where hot water bubbles from the surface of the earth and dramatically shoots its way into the air – Geysir. The Great Geysir has been active for 800 years and once shot 80m in the air but unfortunately rarely erupts these days. Fortunately, next to the Great Geysir is Strokkur Geysir which erupts every 5-8 minutes, although only to heights of 15-30m. Around the whole area are a number of other small pools bubbling away and emitting large bursts of steam. This was to be our lunch stop, meaning we had plenty of time to watch Strokkur erupt more than once.

Our final stop, was the ancient parliament of Þingvellir, also an area where the crack in the tectonic plates is very visible. The Vikings created the world’s first democratic parliament and the meetings were conducted outdoors in the Þingvellir valley. All important decisions were argued out here, new laws were created and even the religion of Iceland was decided here. The annual meeting was also a great social event attracting many traders. In more recent times, a small farmhouse and one of Iceland’s first churches have been built here and the former is now used as the Prime Minister’s summer residence. The path from the visitors centre down towards the farmhouse takes you through a great rock walls which are, in fact, the two tectonic plates.

Before long, it was time to head back to Reykjavik for a cheap dinner and an overpriced pint (approx. £10!). 


Southern Iceland

2016-11-15

The south coast of Iceland is a mix of waterfalls, black sand beaches, glaciers and volcanoes, including the infamous Eyjafjallajökull volcano. Back in 2010, the volcano erupted but released ash of such fine particles that the IATA were worried the ash would get into the airplane engines and cause havoc and so a large part of European airspace was shut at various points during April.

My trip that morning left when it was even earlier and even darker than the previous day. We drove for some 150km before our first stop at Skogafoss, a 62m high waterfall that is towered over by Eyjafjallajökull. Local legend states that one of the first settlers Þrasi hid a chest of gold in the waterfall but despite attempts to recover the gold, it remains hidden. As we were leaving the waterfall, it began to hail. Large, chunks of hail. Although, this being Iceland, it had passed within 5 minutes.

We continued to drive around the coast, under the shadow of Eyjafjallajökull, with a brief stop for lunch, before arriving at Jökulsárlón glacier lagoon. Here, right beside the main road, is a beautiful blue lagoon, full of icebergs opposite a beach, also covered in icebergs. The lake used to be part of the Breiðamerkurjökull glacier, but the edge of the glacier is now some 1.5km away from the ocean and covers an area of about 18km2. The sun had shown its face and reflected off the icebergs as we made our way to our amphibious boat, which took us along the edge of the lake before heading into the water and floated around the icebergs, from a safe distance as only 10% of the iceberg is seen above water. Whilst out on the boat we were shown a freshly cut piece of 1000 year old ice, then cut into even smaller chunks which we were able to eat. Best tasting ice I’ve had! Once back on shore, we were able to walk round the lagoon and down to the beach to see the icebergs getting battered by the waves from the Atlantic Ocean.

We then had a long drive back to Reykjavik, punctuated by a stop just outside Vik so that driver could have a break and then another stop at Seljalandsfoss waterfall. The water here drops 60m and originates in a glacier on Eyjafjallajökull. Behind the waterfall is a small cave that visitors can walk to. However, by the time we got there it was after dark and although the waterfall is floodlit, walking behind it was out of the question. We finally arrived back in Reykjavik after a long, but beautiful day. 


Akureyri

2016-11-16 to 2016-11-17

With a population of less than 20,000 and a centre that you can walk round in 10 minutes, Akureyri doesn’t scream second city, but this it is! It’s location at the head of Eyjafjörður (a fjord) and is surrounded by snowy mountains. It’s also in the north of the island but in winter there’s a lack of public transport crossing the island. This meant I had to fly up there. Reykjavik’s domestic airport is just behind the main bus terminal and as well as serving destinations around the country, it also serves Greenland and the Faroe Islands – tempting!

The flight was only 30 mins and flew over the top of the mountains in the middle of Iceland. When we landed we were greeted by heavy snow with a large covering on the ground. My accommodation was right in the centre of town, so after leaving my bag I went exploring. First stop was Akureyrarkirkja – the local church – situated up a hill and looking down over the town and the water. I then went all the way down to the water’s edge, before heading back into town and finding a small restaurant with amazing chicken wings for lunch. The sun sets a little earlier here, where the light was very reminiscent of my visit to Tromso. In the evening, I took a walk round town stopping for a hot chocolate.

The next day was dominated by the weather. Before leaving home, I had booked a trip that would take me to Góðafoss waterfall, Lake Mývatn, the natural hot baths and Dettifoss waterfall. However, I’d been advised earlier in the week that due to a bad weather forecast, it wouldn’t be possible to go to Dettifoss. So I was switched onto an alternative trip that would visit the other 3 places. My guide that morning picked everyone up and we started driving out of town towards Góðafoss but as we got out of town the snow got heavier and heavier. We were soon heading up towards the first of three mountain passes that we would have to traverse. Within minutes, we could only see a few metres in front of the van due to the snow. At this point, even our local Icelandic guide said that the weather was too bad to continue and so we had to turn back to Akureyri.

Within an hour of leaving the hostel, I was back there contemplating how to spend a day in a town that I had comprehensively covered the previous day. Mostly, I spent it reading in the bar of the hostel, popping out for lunch and then again mid-afternoon although this time I got so battered by the snow storm that had picked up again that I gave up pretty quickly. As it didn’t improve in the evening, I had dinner in the hostel bar, along with a couple of beers of course! 


Blue Lagoon

2016-11-18

With balmy temperatures of 38 degrees, the thermal baths of the Blue Lagoon are quite a treat in the freezing weather. Fed by water from the nearby geothermal power plant, the lagoon is rich in minerals and believed to cure a number of skin conditions and other ailments. The lagoon is situated in the middle of nowhere, quite a way out of Reykjavik, closer to the international airport instead. But, due to its popularity, there are plenty of buses to get you there. Not from Akureyri however.

My final full day in Iceland saw me flying back to Reykjavik although we were late taking off as the inbound flight was delayed whilst trying to land due to a lack of visibility. Whilst I appreciate the honesty, not sure that’s the most encouraging statement to hear. It did eventually land and we were soon off on our way back across the island via a rather bumpy flight.

Bookings are recommended at the Blue Lagoon due to its popularity and I had some time to kill before mine so I went back to Hallgrimskirkja in the centre of town and climbed up the bell tower for views over the city. Given the ferocity of the wind at the top of the tower, I did spend longer queueing for the lift than I actually spent at the top!

Back down at ground level and it was time to head to the bus station to go to the Blue Lagoon. It’s quite an organised process from check in to changing rooms to lagoon, but nowhere is there a bigger noticeable difference in cultures than in a communal changing room. Those woman waiting for a cubicle to change, those who were awkwardly trying to get into swim wear whilst wearing a towel and those who couldn’t give a sh*t just what parts of naked flesh were on display! It did create an element of chaos. Once changed and all belongings in a locker, bathers are requested to first take a shower. Then you brave the outdoor elements, hang up your towel (or bathrobe if you’ve paid a bit more) and run in your bikini into the lagoon. The water is a very soothing, welcome temperature, although your head definitely feels left out as it is above water in approximately minus 1 degrees. This also means that once your hair is wet, it freezes pretty quickly. As does the free silica face mask that you are given making it not quite as comfortable to wear as it’s perhaps meant to be.

The lagoon has its own outdoor bar if you wish to have a drink and also has a number of lifeguards on duty. Given the temperatures that they have to stand around in, it is no surprise that they look a bit like the Michelin Man with their huge puffy jackets, hoods up, hats on, thick gloves and warm shoes. Quite what happens when they are called in to action I’m not sure – either they have to lose some layers first or they must be very strong swimmers not to drown with all the layers? Having said that, I can’t imagine they are needed that often. The lagoon never gets above shoulder height and as you move around you notice that some areas are definitely warmer than others. These areas are usually nearer the spots where the water emerges from the earth.

After a good two hour soak and face massage, I was shrivelled like a prune and it was time for a quick bite to eat and then to leave. My last night in Iceland was spent in a guesthouse near the bus station as I needed to be on the 3am bus the next morning in order to get me to the airport in time for my 6am flight home. 


Summary

2016-11-19

Another brief summary of a brief trip

Days taken: 6

Maximum Temperature: 38 degrees (Blue Lagoon)

Maximum Air Temperature: about 5 degrees

Minimum Temperature: minus 4

Waterfalls seen: 4

Day trips cancelled: 2

Different weather conditions experienced in one day: lost count!

Regularity with which I heard an American voice: every minute, they are overrunning Iceland!

Flights taken: 4 (2 international, 2 domestic)

Price of a beer: approx. £10

Price of a dorm bed in a hostel: approx. £30

Trolls seen: 0, sadly


Sri Lanka

2017-02-16

After my 6 holidays last year, I think I may need to rein it in a bit this year but only after I’ve been on my first holiday of course!! This winter, after getting fed up of the cold, I decided to book a fairly last minute trip to Sri Lanka. Not only is it last minute, but it’s a return of sorts to my roots. I’m back to the days of basic backpacking – nothing really booked in advance, just winging it and seeing what happens. So far, I have return flights to Colombo along with 1.5 nights’ accommodation booked. Why 1.5? Well, I land at 3.45 in the morning, so have had to book that night so that I can crash when I land but because I booked a place owned by a friend of a friend of a friend, they’re giving me that night for free.

So despite having nothing booked, I do have provisional plans. My first “night” is spent in Negombo, near the airport before heading down to the capital Colombo the next day, where I also have one night booked. From here, I think I will head to the cultural triangle and spend a few days exploring the old cities. Then it’s into the hills, visiting tea plantations and colonial British hill stations before ending up with a few days relaxation on the beaches. At some point, I will stop at a national park and see some elephants but I think there are a few options to choose from on this point. Halfway through my trip it is also my birthday but where I will be I cannot say!

From all that I’ve read, buses are really easy although occasionally busy but having dealt with Southern trains the last year that shouldn’t be an issue and there are also trains on certain routes. In fact, the line through the hills is often described as the most beautiful train line in the country. We shall see on that front. 


Negombo

2017-02-18 to 2017-02-19

A teardrop? Or a pearl? The two main ways people describe Sri Lanka, located off the bottom of India in the Indian Ocean. A country that has suffered through decades of civil war and through terrible destruction following the Boxing Day Tsunami in 2004. In 2009, after 30 years, the civil war finally came to an end and tourism, which had always been existing in the south, began to boom. Around 1.2m visitors came in 2015, a 5% increase on 2014, and this number looks set to continue rising. All these tourists arrive at Bandaranaike International Airport in Colombo which, confusingly, isn’t actually in Colombo but in Negombo, a small beach town, about a 45 minute drive away. A lot of flights also arrive in the middle of the night, making Negombo the much more appealing first destination than trekking to the capital.

I was due to arrive at 3.45am and so had booked into a hostel that had an airport pick up. Easy. Except I had made one fatal mistake. I didn’t print out the address of the hostel in case anything went wrong with the airport pick up. Which it did. In that it didn’t arrive. The hostel had given me instructions – where to go when leaving the airport, a phone number to ring to get the tuk tuk driver to collect me, and then a meeting point to meet the tuk tuk driver. I left the airport, rang the number, but no one answered. I rang again. Still no one answered. At 4.30am, I have little patience. I went to the taxi stand, figuring I’d rather be at the hostel via a more expensive taxi than the cheaper tuk tuk, gave them the name of the hostel, but they’d never heard of it. He asked his mate. Nope, not a clue. So, we set off to drive round the streets of Negombo to find my hostel.

It was never found.

At 6am, I called it and told the driver to find me anywhere I could get some sleep. Problem is, these are all guesthouses rather than big hotels with a 24 hour reception. So nowhere is open. They do, however, have signposts outside them with phone numbers on. So the taxi driver starting ringing each one in turn until he found someone who would answer, who, luckily, had a spare room, opened up and let me in. At this point, I would have slept pretty much anywhere but thankfully it was a decent room and I could get my head down for a few hours.

When I woke up, I went out for a little to explore. I also had a decision to make. Technically, I was booked into a hostel in Colombo the following night, which would mean having to catch a bus to take me to the capital. But, this was the sister hostel of the one that had just screwed me over and, as I hadn’t paid any money to make the reservation, I was feeling disinclined to honour the booking. So I decided to stay in Negombo for an extra night and head on from there. As it is so close to the airport, it does have fairly good transport links for exploring the island.

The town of Negombo is a couple of kms away from the beach area where I was, but that was fine as I only wanted to relax. So I found some food, rice and curry, the staple of the Sri Lankan diet, then hit the beach. Whilst it may not have been as beautiful as the ones on the south coast that I was hoping to visit later, it certainly had its charms over London! By the evening, I found myself a small restaurant serving fresh fish for dinner and had a very well deserved beer to take away any feelings of trepidation that the only plans I had made for Sri Lanka had gone wrong and was now about to travel with no plans made! 


The Cultural Triangle

2017-02-20 to 2017-02-21

The centre of Sri Lanka is a mixture of former capitals, palatial ruins and temples most of which are centuries old and in various states of disrepair. The area is known as the cultural triangle and stretches from Anuradhapura and Mihintale in the north down to Matale in the south. With so many sights to see, unless you’re on an unlimited amount of time, it’s almost impossible to visit them all and so you have to carefully select which ones to go and see. For me, I had decided to use the city of Dambulla as a base and then additionally visit Sigiriya and Polonnaruwa. These are all relatively close together, meaning I could hire a tuk tuk for the day in order to get around.

After the unusual arrival of the day before, I woke up in Negombo after a full night’s sleep feeling very refreshed but also like I couldn’t open my eye properly. A quick look in the mirror confirmed that, despite sleeping under a mosquito net, one of the little buggers had bitten me during the night, just under the eye, and it had swollen up. Cue sunglasses on all day! Additionally, I had to figure out how I was going to move on since I had originally planned to get a train from Colombo but was no longer in Colombo.

So after breakfast, I headed to the bus station where I was able to catch a bus for 2 hours to the town of Kurunegala with its very loud, very chaotic bus station. From here, I transferred off the small, air conditioned minivan and onto a “natural air-con” proper bus! Lights flashing inside the bus, music blaring from the TV and windows wide open with the world and his wife hopping on and off at various points. Another two hours later, I arrived in the centre of Dambulla. Within quarter of an hour, I had found a small, family run guesthouse in a little village just off the main road but so much more peaceful with such a helpful owner. I had a couple of hours to relax in the guesthouse garden, before my newly found tuk tuk driver friend, Surinderjit, returned to take me to the cave temples.

The temples are up on top of a hill, within 5 separate caves. It was used as a monastery in the 3rd century BC and the complex is around 2000m2. You enter the complex at the base of the hill and walk up to the entrance of the caves, where you leave your shoes and then find yourself hopping across the very hot ground to get inside the caves. The first cave, Dewraja Viharaya, contains six Buddha statues and one god statue. This includes a 15m long reclining Buddha. My favourite cave, cave 2, Maharaja Viharaya, is the largest of the caves measuring 52m from east to west and 23m from the entrance to the back of the cave. There are a total of 56 Buddha statues in this cave, of which 39 are sitting, 16 are standing and 1 is sleeping.

Cave 3, Maha Aluth Viharaya, was converted in 1747 by King Keerthi Sri Rajasingha. There are another 57 Buddha statues in this cave, 42 standing, 14 sitting and 1 sleeping. There is also a statue of the king near the door. Cave 4, Pashchima Viharaya, was the first of the caves to be built and contains 21 statues, 2 of which are standing, the rest are seated. Cave 5 is the newest, only being built in 1891 and contains another 11 Buddha statues, 5 each standing and sitting and the final one sleeping. Most of the caves had paintings on the walls/ceilings depicting Buddha whilst the whole site is full of monkeys and there are incredible views from the top across the fields, over to Sigiriya, with a large gold pagoda at the base of the hill. From here, Surinderjit drove me back to my guesthouse before picking me up and hour later to take me into town to get dinner at a small diner where I had my first kottu – a traditional meal of roti, chicken, cabbage, carrot, leek, garlic and onion all chopped up into small slices and served with a spicy chicken gravy.

The next morning and it was an early start at 6am followed by a huge breakfast – 2 string hoppers, 2 samosas, 2 fried eggs, 2 egg, tomato and onion toasted sandwiches, 4 slices of toast, a plate of tomato and onion, 3 slices of melon, a mango, 2 teabags and a bottle of water. Needless to say, I did not eat it all. Surinderjit arrived at 7.00 and we left for Sigiriya. It was a 20 min drive and the first view close up elicited a thought of “I’ve got to climb THAT?” or slightly ruder words to that effect. Sigiriya dates back over 7000 years though the mountain monastery only appeared in the 3rd century BC. King Kasyapa built the garden city and palace in 477-495AD, the remains of which are still apparent today. It is believed that Kasyapa killed his own father, King Dhatusena, and then usurped the throne from his brother who was the rightful heir. He then decided he wanted an impenetrable new palace and built on Sigiriya. After Kasyapa’s death, the site became a monastery again until the 14th century when it was abandoned. The ruins were only rediscovered in 1898 and excavated in 1907.

Upon entering the site, you first have to walk through the gardens, a mixture of water gardens, boulder gardens and terraced gardens, and up some rock steps to an initial viewpoint. From here, you have a clear view of the metal grille and spiral staircase that you next have to take. At the top of the spiral staircase are a set of frescos – a series of paintings of large breasted women – possibly believed to be Tara, one of the most important figures in Tantric Buddhism. Back down the adjacent spiral staircase (they are so narrow that they are one way), and you walk along the mirror wall, once polished so much that the King could see his reflection and supposedly adorned with graffiti from the 6th to 14th century. The mirror wall comes out next to the Lions Paws, from which Sigiriya gained its other name, Lion Rock. In the 5th century, a huge, brick lion sat on the rock and the final ascent began with a staircase between the paws and into the lion’s mouth. The lion itself has long since disappeared but the paws were found in 1898 during excavations. Up the final set of stairs, a combination of stone and metal, and finally I came out on the summit.

The summit of Sigiriya stretches for 1.6 hectares and once contained the monastery and later the palace. Today, all that remains are a few foundation rocks and what seemed to be a swimming pool, but was most likely used for water storage. However, the views are fairly spectacular. Given how flat the central region of Sri Lanka is, you can literally see for miles and miles across the plains and the forest canopy. After plenty of time soaking up the views, it’s time to head back down the staircase to the lion’s paws. From here, it is an alternative route back down via the Cobra Hood Cave, a rocky outcrop shaped like, you guessed it, a cobra’s hood. The exit is full of souvenir stands but soon I was out into the car park where I found Surinderjit and we trundled off for the second stop of the day, Polonnaruwa.

Polonnaruwa was a Royal capital about 800 years ago and remained that way for 300 years. Even today, there are still the remains of hundreds of ancient temples, statues and stupas. We arrived in the Old Town and headed to the Museum, which gave a detailed account of the history of Polonnaruwa before heading out to the Island Garden. The ruins are spread into small groups near a huge lake, with the first set at the Island Garden and then further sets at the Royal Palace Group and the Quadrangle. The Quadrangle contained some stunning temples with frescos and some impeccably well-kept carvings. To the north of the Quadrangle, and my final stop, were some of the most impressive, including the white stupa of Kiri Vihara, the very impressive Lankatilaka before ending at Gal Vihara with its three large Buddha statues. It was then time for the long drive back to Dambulla, with a stop in town for dinner and another chicken kottu! 


Kandy, Nuwara Eliya

2017-02-22 to 2017-02-24

Responsible for more than one million jobs (that’s 5% of the entire population), the tea industry is incredibly important to Sri Lanka. The island itself is the fourth largest tea producing nation in the world, although tea was only begun to be grown when coffee failed, with an annual value of over $1.5bn. The drink is the second most popular in the world, after water, and more tea is consumed daily than every other drink put together! So, when in Sri Lanka, you have to drink tea even if you don’t like it. Actually you don’t, but when you arrive at a guesthouse and they automatically give you a cup of black tea, it’s rude to say no. One of the best places for tea is up in the hills, an area where the Brits came and very much left their mark (and their tea).

The entry point to Hill Country is through Sri Lanka’s second city, Kandy. Despite sounding sweet, it’s basically just a big city with a lake in the middle. I arrived there off a direct bus from Dambulla, found myself a guesthouse, then went out to explore. By explore, read walk around the lake. On one side is the Temple of the Tooth which is home to one of Buddha’s teeth, although you’re not actually allowed to see the tooth. The lake is artificial, takes about 30 mins to walk all the way round, and is ringed by a main road the whole way meaning it’s quite noisy. At the western end is the centre of town with shops, restaurants, bus station and train station.

The train station was my stop the next day. After taking just buses so far, I was to hop on a train that promised me views of tea plantations and rolling countryside. I arrived at the station slightly perturbed by the length of queue to buy a ticket. As I hadn’t known my exact dates, I hadn’t pre-booked a ticket. This meant travelling in the unreserved class where seats were on a first come first served basis. On this train, there were no seats available and once we had all squeezed on, there was barely any standing room left. It was a bit like my daily commute. The windows were wide open but were too low for a standing person to get a good view. So for 4 hours, I rode the rails through the hills, squashed in like a sardine, before arriving at Nanu Oya, the station of use for Nuwara Eliya.

Nuwara Eliya is also known as Little England. It was the preferred hill station for the colonising Brits to escape to in the summer heat. And due to the altitude and cooler climate, quickly became a hot spot for growing tea. Whilst the post office does have a rather British feel to it and you can find red letter boxes dotted about town, generally the town bares very little resemblance to England. The centre of town contains a large park, Victoria Park, whilst on the edge of town there is a racecourse and a lake. I passed most of my first afternoon sat in Victoria Park being very well entertained by local school children. They would walk past in large groups and eventually one would work up the courage to say “hello”. Once you’d said hello back, it was like the floodgates opened and suddenly they all had the courage to say hello and they all wanted a personal hello back. Then it moved on to “how are you”, “where you from”, “how old are you” and so forth. Eventually, they would decide to leave, or the teachers would make them leave, and they would all say goodbye. Then one would want a high five and suddenly they all wanted a high five. This went on and on with lots of different groups of school children. At one point, I had an entire class of some 60 children, plus their teachers, surrounding me asking questions and generally just staring at me. After a couple of hours, I managed to escape and headed down to the lake via a scout jamboree in the neighbouring field.

The next morning, I decided to do a bit of hiking. There were two hikes listed in my guidebook, both climbing the nearby hills. The first hike was up Signal Tree Hill which involved walking round the race course then taking a right hand road and heading upwards past numerous guesthouses. Suddenly, the path finished at a hotel, which didn’t seem right, so I went back down a little and asked someone who said yes, I could go to the top of the hill. So, I went back up but couldn’t see any path beyond the hotel. Went back down again, found the same lady, who then pointed out an obscure track around the side of the hotel, which would then climb through the tea plantations and woods. More than once, I thought I must be on the wrong path as it was so overgrown but I kept on going and eventually came out on the top of the hill. A little way further round, next to a communications tower, I found a viewpoint from which there were spectacular vistas over the town, the lake, the racecourse and the hills on the other side of town. I had passed no one on the way up and given the state of the path, I doubt many people ever go to the top, but it meant that it was so peaceful – just me and the birds.

After a while I had to head back down to town from where I decided to do my second hike, up Pidurutalagala, the tallest mountain in Sri Lanka. I followed the path but again came to a stop when it ran out, this time at a building site. This time, however, I was told I could not go any further so I had to return to town from where I went walking round some of the nearby streets admiring the old colonial buildings and the golf courses. As I got back into town, I realised that I had forgotten to put on any sun cream that morning which meant I was quite badly burnt. 


Ella, Bundala

2017-02-25 to 2017-03-01

Within the hills, there is a small little backpacker haven looking very little like the rest of Sri Lanka. A small hill station where you can hike in the morning, get a massage in the afternoon and watch some live music in the evening. This place is called Ella. Once again, the best way to get here is on the train. There are three trains a day – a slow, third class only train at 9.30, then two faster, second and third class trains later on in the day. I had decided to try the earliest train, in the hopes it wouldn’t be as busy as my train from a few days earlier.

My tuk tuk dropped me at Nanu Oya station, where there certainly wasn’t as many people waiting. However the train, which arrived 45 minutes late at 10.15, only had three carriages. So we all piled on and once again I was standing. However, the train had arrived with a lot of locals who were getting off at the intermediate stations. Which meant that after about half an hour, I had a seat. We arrived in Ella around 2, where the entire train emptied and all the tourists were met by large numbers of touts. Here I met Peter who had a room in his guesthouse, just off the main road. Driving there, I got my first view of Ella – one street, side by side restaurants, western food on offer in most and so few locals. By night, everything was lit up in neon and there was an abundance of music, some live, playing Western backpacker classics such as Bob Marley or The Beatles, blaring out onto the street. Not usually favourite thing. But the views, the views were spectacular. From just beyond the main street, you could see down the Ella Gap, with Little Adam’s Peak on one side and Ella Rock on the other. Even on a cloudy day, the view was astonishing.

The next day was my birthday and I had decided to do one of the hikes. There are two main ones to choose from, up either Little Adam’s Peak or up Ella Rock. I decided to do the easier Little Adam’s Peak and save Ella Rock for the next day. Little Adam’s Peak is named after Adam’s Peak a few miles away which is a site of pilgrimage for many as it’s believed to be the place where Adam first set foot on earth after being cast out of heaven and where Buddha left a footprint as he went up to heaven. The real Adam’s Peak is a tough hike whereas Little Adam’s Peak is a much easier hike. The path began just up beyond my guesthouse and, like all the best Sri Lankan hikes, passes through a tea plantation. It was also much easier to find than my experiences in Nuwara Eliya. It was a slow, steady, winding path until the final section which was a number of steps. But soon I was out on top from where there were stunning views down the Ella Gap and across the valley to Ella Rock on the other side. There were a series of three peaks and the final one was particularly tough to reach, following a steep downhill section. I spent quite a while at the top enjoying the views, before heading back down stopping for a coconut en route. Back in town, I had a relaxing afternoon doing some shopping and wandering up and down various roads finding better and better views of the Ella Gap. In the late afternoon, Peter had booked me a massage and was going to drive me down at 4. But he had gone out and didn’t reappear until 4.40. Once we got to the massage parlour, my slot had gone and I couldn’t get in until 5.30. I then had a 75 minute full oil massage, which was very relaxing.

The following day I was going to hike Ella Rock. This is a much tougher hike and also the trail is less well marked. This meant I needed a guide. Peter said he’d find me one and whisked me off in his tuk tuk down to town and asked around and then, hey presto, I had a guide. My guide told me we were going to take the shortcut which then involved walking down the valley a long way. This confused me since we were ultimately aiming for the top of a hill, so how was going down a shortcut. Then I saw it. Hundreds and hundreds of steps. Up, up, up, up, up. We cut through some more tea plantations and some other overgrown areas before joining up with the usual path. This was a bit flatter to begin with but then began a steady uphill through the forest, with some scrambling at steeper sections. We finally reached the peak, where the views down the Gap were even more incredible than yesterday. We could see right over Ella, across to Little Adam’s Peak and right down the Gap. We took the more usual route back down which included walking along the railway track for 45 minutes. This is particularly fun when a train comes along the track towards you, at which point we had to dive into a siding until it had passed. Back in town and I had a lovely rice and curry lunch which was 4 different curries (bean, plantain, potato and dahl), pickles, mango chutney, rice, plantain chips and poppadums, before a very chilled afternoon.

My final morning in Ella, I had asked Peter for breakfast at 8.30 so that I could catch the 9.30 bus to Bundala. When I saw Peter at 8.20, he gave me my morning tea but then began doing housework. At 8.45, I asked him where my breakfast was and it suddenly became apparent that he had forgotten breakfast, but then he promised it would be ready in half an hour and disappeared off in his tuk tuk. However, he was good to his word and half an hour later breakfast appeared but there was no chance of the 9.30 bus. The next bus to Matara was at 11, which I made with plenty of time to spare. I boarded the bus and told the ticket man that I only want to go as far as Bundala. He tells me I need to change at the next town, which seems strange as I know it’s on the main road to Matara. Anyway, we reach Wellawaya and I jump off at the bus station where the ticket man asks me again where I’m going and again I tell him Bundala. He points to another bus, but then someone else points back at the bus I’ve just got off. My original ticket man looks confused then asks me to show him where I’m going, so I get out my Lonely Planet and show him Bundala at which point he decides his bus will take me there after all, so I hop back on the same bus! Around 1pm, he tells me we really have reached my stop, the bus drops me at the side of the road and pulls away, leaving me alone and on a main highway in the middle of nowhere. Thankfully, it is my stop and there is a guesthouse 100m down. There were a handful of other guests who would be coming out on safari with me tomorrow and we were served a delicious rice and curry dinner before an early night.

It rained heavily during the night, but was dry when I awoke at 5.30. By 6, there were 4 of us loaded into a jeep and heading out into Bundala National Park. The park is predominantly wetlands and marshes which makes it popular for birdlife but there is also a herd of elephants living there. During our first couple of hours, we saw a number of birds including eagles, bee-eaters, wading birds and a lot of peacocks. We reached the coast where we were able to get out of our jeeps and stretch our legs but then it began to rain. Heavily. We took shelter back in the jeep but had to head for the exit meaning we weren’t able to see any elephants. Back at the guesthouse, we had breakfast then decided when we should leave as it was still raining heavily. Around 11, it had eased a little so I made a mad dash for the bus stop and flagged down a bus to Matara, where I was able to change bus for Mirissa. The rain had stopped by then but it was still grey and overcast. However, I was able to sit on the beach until it got dark when I went to one of the many beachside restaurants that had freshly caught fish outside. I picked the specific red snapper that I wanted to eat, got a cocktail and waited whilst the cooked my chosen fish. 


The South Coast

2017-03-02 to 2017-03-04

Before the Brits arrived in Sri Lanka, the island was colonised by both the Dutch and the Portuguese. The first arrivals, the Portuguese in 1505, were actually heading to the Maldives when they were blown of course and ended up in Galle. After they had colonised large parts of the island, they were still fighting with the remainder and so they built a large fort, which was later extended by the Dutch after their arrival in 1640. The fort still stands today and withstood the 2004 tsunami, which badly hit Sri Lanka’s south coast. The new town of Galle was massively damaged but the solid walls of the Fort protected a large part of the old town and the good drainage installed by the Dutch meant that floodwaters drained quickly and efficiently into the sewers.

The weather forecast for my time on the south coast was Sri Lanka showed a lot of rain, so when I woke up on my first morning in Mirissa to glorious sunshine, I decided that I should get on the beach as quick as possible. So I spent the entire morning on the beach, slowly toasting, and dipping in the sea. I had a break for a couple of hours over the middle of the day but the sun showed no sign of disappearing, so I then spent a few more hours in the afternoon on the beach. By the time I returned to my guesthouse at 4 for a shower, I was a particularly lovely shade of red in some very unusual places. I went back to the beach in time for a lovely sunset and then back to one of the beachfront restaurants to hand choose a butterfish for dinner.

Around 10 the next day, I set off on a bus for Galle, arriving at my guesthouse about 11.30. I had opted to stay inside the Fort Walls, and first order was to walk around them. At the northern end of the walls, you look right over onto the Galle International Cricket Ground, but no match was taking place. Further round are a number of Dutch churches, where I jumped off the walls to find some lunch. Back on the walls, I passed on old hospital, a beach, a mosque and the lighthouse. After I’d done a complete loop, I sat and watched a group of school girls have a dance class, dancing along to Abba amongst other things! I wandered up and down the lanes, a unique look back into a world 400 years ago. Sat and watched the sunset again, before finding a little restaurant for dinner.

The next morning, I had decided to catch the train up to Colombo. I was up at 8 and wandering round inside the fort looking for breakfast, but most places were not yet open. Eventually, I found a cute little place to get some eggs and toast. At the train station, I bought my ticket for Colombo and this time managed to get a seat at the first attempt. The train went up the coast, past beautiful beaches and small inlet bays with palm trees on both sides. This section of track is also the site of the world’s worst ever train disaster, when a packed commuter train was washed away by the tsunami with the loss of over 1200 lives. Two and a half hours later, we arrived in Colombo where I left my bag in the cloakroom and had a few hours to explore. I spent most of the time around the Fort area of Colombo, near the coast before catching a bus to the airport and heading home. 


Summary

2017-03-05

A few facts and figures:

Days: 14

Trains taken: 3

Buses taken: 6

Days with rain: 1

UNESCO sites visited: 3

Birthdays celebrated: 1

Hills climbed: 3

Mars bars eaten: 1 (it is tradition after all)

Mosquito bites on the eye: 2


To the Canary Islands, then keep going

2018-06-06

One of the issues with going on holiday to obscure destinations, is that I often have to spend time explaining where in the world the place is! My latest holiday is no exception, as I am heading to Cape Verde – islands off the coast of Senegal in West Africa. Or, as I have been explaining to many people, go to the Canary Islands, then keep going.

Cape Verde is an archipelago of 10 islands, 5 islets and a bunch of rocks sticking out of the Atlantic. Only 9 of the islands are inhabited and even they are scattered over an area of approximately 58,000km2 with about 400km separating the furthest two. It is therefore no surprise that there is a mixture of terrains and environments within these islands. One contains a volcano, one a salt flat, some are hilly, some are incredibly flat, some have beautiful beaches, some have no beaches, some islands are best accessed by plane, others by boat. For a total land area of just over 4,000km2 there is a huge amount of diversity.

Melissa and I (yup, she’s back) have picked three to explore. Two by choice and one by necessity. We have a week and luckily TAP Portugal fly to a few of the islands meaning we can fly in and out of different islands. Therefore, we fly into São Vicente and head to the town of Mindelo for the night. This is known as the cultural capital of Cape Verde, but more importantly, for us, it’s where we can get a boat across to Santo Antão, one of the islands with no airport due to unsafe cross winds. We are spending 3 nights here, where we will do some hiking. The island has numerous hikes you can do ranging in length and toughness. The two I have suggested to Melissa are day hikes, with enough challenge to work up a sweat but not so much that we can’t move at the end of it. These hikes are still up for debate, as she has yet to read anything I’ve sent her on the topic!!! We then head back on the boat to Mindelo for the night, before taking a short flight across to the island of Sal. This island contains a large salt flat (no surprise to anyone who speaks Portuguese or Spanish) and also contains some beautiful beaches and so we will spend our last few days chilling out in a resort getting some R&R. A week after we arrive, we will be returning to London. 


Mindelo, Santo Antão

2018-06-16 to 2018-06-17

June 2004. Ibiza. Probably the last time I pulled an all-nighter. I was 22 then and much more able to deal with a lack of sleep. June 2018, due to a stupidly early flight, I pulled another all-nighter. Kinda. Having spent the Friday at a wedding, I got home at 12.30 in the morning, changed, picked up my bag and headed up the station to get a train and night tube to Heathrow. I finally arrived at the airport at 3.15, followed half an hour later by Melissa, arriving off her National Express and off we went into Departures ready for our 6am Saturday morning flight, the first flight of the day from Heathrow T2. We flew to Lisbon, where we had a 45 min connection time, which meant we had to go straight to the new gate, where we got a disapproving look from the ground staff there for being one of the last people to board, until she realised we had only just landed.

Arrival in Cape Verde was completely painless apart from the airport having a lack of currency exchange facilities, not helpful when you the local currency is closed (meaning it can’t be bought outside Cape Verde). Luckily, Euros are fairly widely accepted and so, with no banks open until Monday, we were able to pay. Unluckily, the official exchange rate of €1 = 110 CVE (Cape Verdean Escudos) is only really used by banks but all restaurants etc. charge you at €1 = 100 CVE meaning you lose out slightly.

A couple of hundred years ago, São Vicente was an important stop in the Atlantic. It was an important refuelling point for transatlantic ships, the fourth greatest in the world at one point, and the site for a submarine cable to allow telecommunications across the Atlantic. However, global changes such as the opening of the Suez Canal and technological advances around communications cables and ships being able to hold enough fuel for a journey eventually diminished São Vicente’s standing in the world. Today, São Vicente holds barely any significance on a global scale, although with growth and an influx of money towards tourism there is hope for the island.

We got our first view of the island on the 15 minute drive from the airport to the capital Mindelo. The land was fairly sparse, with some hills but nothing in the way of settlements. It seemed very dry and dusty. Soon we arrived in the largest town on the island. This is where 70,000 of the islands 80,000 inhabitants live. As well as being São Vicente’s capital, it is deemed its cultural capital and also the cultural capital of the whole of Cape Verde. It is also the place to head to if you want to a late night with live music. I couldn’t even tell you the last time I pulled two all-nighters in a row and certainly wasn’t about to start trying now! We opted for a more casual time.

We checked into the hotel and were given a welcome drink of ponche. Don’t ask me what was in it, some kind of grogue but it tasted strong and burnt as it went down! We set out to explore this town, heading through the centre and down to the sea. There didn’t seem to be much going on, so we went round to the port where we bought a ferry ticket for the next day. On the way back we stopped at a bar for drinks and some bruschetta, before stopping in a supermarket for more drinks and snacks – a large number of which were consumed on the hotel rooftop whilst watching one very keen guest go through quite an intense exercise regime. We decided to have an early dinner, so that we could have an early night and whilst walking to town found ourselves caught up in a drum procession of approximately 50 drummers. Quite a noise they managed to make. Our dinner restaurant was a seafood restaurant right on the water’s edge, which had the most amazing chocolate mousse for dessert, which we ended up craving the entire rest of the trip!

There are a number of ferry services between the islands in Cape Verde but the only reliable ones are those to the islands with no airport. Due to strong cross winds, Santo Antão is one of those islands and the only way to get there is a 1 hour ferry from Mindelo. There are four ferries each day, two in the morning and two in the afternoon. We had opted for the second ferry, at 8am, which meant a 6.30 start and a breakfast bag from the hotel rather than an actual sit down breakfast. We had planned to eat it on the boat, but when the crew started handing out sick bags before we’d even cast off, and when we saw the locals taking these bags, we decided breakfast could wait until we were on terra firma! The crossing can get rough as we are crossing the Atlantic Ocean but thankfully no sick bags were used that morning. The hour crossing was followed by a full half hour trying to reverse park the boat into the port at Santo Antão. In, out, line up slightly different, try again. Now, I’m no sailing expert but I would have expected the captain to moor the ship far quicker than that.

Santo Antão is the second largest of the Cape Verde islands and also the second highest, although it only has a population of 50,000. It is known as the “trekking island”. If you want to walk, go to Santo Antão. It has mountains and ribeiras (valleys), it is green and lush in the centre but brown and dusty on the edges. It has villages that are only accessible by walking, cut off from roads and hanging precariously from cliff edges. Its highest points in the centre allow you to see all the way down to the coast and over to São Vicente.

We had arrived at Porto Novo on the south-east side of the island and were staying in Ponta do Sol at the northernmost tip. We had two options from the port – expensive taxi or much cheaper aluguer. This is a small minibus that travels on a fixed route but is collectivo style, so it’s not just you in it. We opted for the collectivo, although it ended up with just the two of us and one other person. The road took us around the coast where we could see more of this crazy landscape. The road alternated between the top of cliffs to adjacent to beaches, often carved between two high rock faces, showing large amounts of erosion, sometimes with small piles of rocks next to the road where rock falls have occurred.

By the time we reached Ponta do Sol 60 mins later, we were the only people in our aluguer, so our driver dropped us at the front door of the hotel, rather than at the aluguer stop. Here we were finally able to eat our breakfast! We took a walk around this very small town – town hall, church, supermarket, bank and that was about it. We stopped at the supermarket in order to get supplies for our trekking over the next two days, before heading back to the hotel for a siesta. Although, the town is the northernmost point of the island, it is on a peninsula and our hotel was on the western side of the town. This meant that when we decided to eat dinner in a restaurant just a couple of doors along the road from our hotel, we were overlooking the sea and had a perfect sunset view. The restaurant also had live music which made for a rather lovely, relaxing evening ahead of our much more active day tomorrow. 


The Coastal Hike - an accidental 8.5 hour hike!

2018-06-18

There are long days when you get up early or go to bed late or have a lot on. And then there are long days because of a cockerel and an accidental long hike. The cockerel belonged to the house next to our hotel and became our sworn enemy within our three days staying there. It would start its racket before 5am (one day it started at 1.30am) caring not that no buildings had double glazing or sound-proofing. We eventually got up at 7.30 swearing to have roast chicken for dinner one night and had a lovely breakfast at 8. Our first priority was to find a bank so that we could finally get our hands on some local currency. Then we were off to hike.

We had studied the guidebook the previous evening and decided that the two hikes we wanted to do were the coastal hike and the Paul crater hike. We would do the coastal hike first, as the crater hike is steep and can leave you with either aching legs or knees, depending on which way you go. Despite the hills in the centre of the island, we had naively assumed that the coastal hike would be predominantly flat, some undulation but nothing too major. Therefore, Melissa had the great idea to combine it with another hike so that we could work up a sweat. The guidebook showed another hike that would end in the same town of Chã de Igreja that the coastal hike began and this seemed like a sensible idea. The book also told us that the coastal hike would take 5 hours and that their writer was a fit male in his mid 50’s. Great, we thought. We are two fit females in our mid 30’s so the timings would be about the same. The other hike was 5.5 hours so we figured that would be too long to do. The notes suggested cutting out a large amount of the hike by starting at the town of Boca das Ambas Ribeiras. Great, we had made ourselves a hike that would take 6-6.5 hours. Hmm, we should have read the notes a bit more closely!

Conveniently, there was an aluguer hanging around outside our hotel and so we hopped in and headed off to the town of Boca das Ambas Ribeiras. The driver, Alberto, spoke no English but fluent French, which we could both speak more of than Portuguese (although Melissa did have to keep telling me off for accidentally speaking Spanish). We went back on the same route out of town that we had come in on the previous day as far as Ribeira Grande, where we then turned inland and into the Ribeira itself, also called Ribeira Grande. The road was dusty and heading steadily uphill, passing a large aqueduct before arriving at Boca das Ambas Ribeiras. This directly translates as Mouth of Both Valleys as the main ribeira meets the smaller Ribeira dos Caibros. Here we jumped out to begin the walk, with a point from Alberto in the correct direction. We could see a path in the distance heading up some very high mountains and it was this path that we were to be taking. Up, up, up. There was limited shade and the sun was scorching even though it wasn’t yet 11am. The path wound round the edge of the mountain but steadily upwards, with the valley stretching out behind us. In places there was a knee high drystone wall, but in other places nothing, to protect from a 500m sheer drop. After an hour and a half we had made the rim of the mountain at 830m from where, over the ridge, we could see down to the sea on the west coast of the island. And we were already behind on the timings.

The downhill took us another hour, through the village of Selada do Mocho, dropping all the way down to the base of the ribeira, where we were surrounded on both sides by steep cliffs. The ribeira would lead all the way to the coast but halfway along, on a small promontory, was the town of Chã de Igreja. To finish the first hike we were supposed to enter the town, but the first part of the second hike was the leave the town and head into the ribeira so we walked past the turning to the town and continued in the ribeira until we reached the coast, near the small fishing village of Cruzinha. As we left the village, we found a shady spot where we stopped for lunch – tuna sandwiches all round! The remainder of the walk would hug the coastline all the way back to our hotel in Ponta do Sol. This was the part we expected to be relatively flat and we soon found out how wrong we were. The path would go from the beach, wind its way to the top of a cliff, then head all the way back down to the beach and start again. In many parts, the path looked as if it was cut into the cliff and there was even less shade than before.

It was another 2+ hours before we fell into the village of Forminguinhas, stopping at the first building we came to that said it sold cold drinks. Whilst we had had enough water to get us to this stage, an ice cold Fanta was calling both our names and we could also buy another bottle of water to get us back to Ponta do Sol. The lovely lady owner then proceeded to tell us that we still had another two hours to go which crushed our spirits a little. 20 mins from here and we could see the small village of Corvo, both of these villages can only be reached by walking as there is absolutely no road access. We could see that Corvo was inland a little in one of the folds of the mountain and that the cliffs on the far side of the village were higher than the ones we were currently on. This lead to a lot of praying that we didn’t have to go down to sea level and back up again, followed by a lot of swearing when we realised that we did. The village itself wasn’t even the bottom and once we started to ascend we were kept entertained by signs showing the stages of the crucifixion. We finally stumbled into the village of Fontainhas, where the village clings to the cliff edge, with sheer drops to the base of the ribeira instead of back gardens. It was quite a spectacular sight. The final 40 minutes took us back into Ponta do Sol, after 8.5 hours of solid walking up and down the cliffs.

By the time we got back to the hotel, we barely had the energy to collapse onto our beds but managed to have a shower and head to a local restaurant for dinner before falling asleep rather rapidly.


Cova de Paul hike - just where did we go?

2018-06-19

Most hikes on Santo Antão take you into, up or along a ribeira. Whilst we did a small amount of one yesterday, today we were heading into one of the greenest. The hike to Cova de Paul is one of the most popular as it winds its way up from the coast all the way to a crater at a height of 1,176m. You can either go up or start at the top and work your way down and our book had told us that heading upwards would take 4.5 hours, according to an unfit mid 30’s woman. So we opted to head upwards, although after our exertions of yesterday, we thought we’d take a shorter option and start at the town of Boca de Figueiral, which should take approximately 45 mins off the journey.

We found Alberto hanging around outside our hotel again and so we jumped into his aluguer. To get there we had to back along the coastal road towards Porto Novo, turning off at the town of Cidade das Pombas also known as Paul, where we headed inland, past the village of Eito before arriving at Boca de Figueiral. We even arranged for him to pick us up again at the other end as the crater was near a road but no village so it could take a while for an aluguer to pass.

We could instantly see that this was the greenest part of the island that we had seen so far. Clearly this ribeira had a water source somewhere as there was so many different shades of green from the grass, to the trees, to the plants growing in gardens and along the roads. We could also see the high hills surrounding on us three sides and knew that the top of one of them would be where we were headed. Our route took us off the main road, through fields, passing the Casa das Ilhas guesthouse before re-emerging on the main road at the village of Passagem. We then carried on through the villages of Chã João Vaz, Cabo de Ribeira, where we stopped for a refreshing Fanta, and Chã Manuel dos Santos. As we got higher and higher, the view back down the valley became more and more impressive.

According to the guidebook, we would carry on past Chã Manuel and then “follow the finely crafted cobble path” so it came as no surprise to us when the road ran out just after Chã Manuel and became a cobbled path. Up, up, up it went, getting steeper and steeper with each switchback. The top of the hills had disappeared under the cloud that we could see was getting lower and lower and after an hour and a half on this path, we stopped for lunch – more tuna sandwiches! By this point, we shouldn’t have had more than 30-45 minutes left before we popped out at the crater so we continued on, through the cloud layer for another 2 hours! Finally, with some relief, we arrived at the top of the hill and popped out onto a road that encircled the crater.

To be honest, the crater was not as either of us had imagined. We had both imagined a completely circular caldera type crater, but what we were looking at was semi-circular with the front part collapsed and leading straight down to the sea. In fact, we could see all the way down to Porto Novo and even across the water to São Vicente. According to our trusty guide, we shouldn’t be able to do this until we had exited the crater on the other side. This was a source of confusion. Additionally, supposedly, we could walk either way around the crater and end up at the entrance, from where we were standing this didn’t seem quite possible. We took the road to the right, mostly because the book had said this was the shorter route and would take us half an hour. By this point, it was half an hour until we were meant to be meeting Alberto. Supposedly, the route would take us down into the crater but our road took us around the rim instead. After half an hour we could see that the routes right and left were never going to meet up again anytime soon and we really started to worry. Having another quick look at the map and we managed to reassure ourselves that we were in the right place. After all, we had followed the guidebook so we must be. At this point, the road bared round to the right and as we did, we could see that we met back up with the main road and just in the distance we could see an aluguer. That must be Alberto! Relieved that we had taken the correct path, we headed off towards the aluguer.

I could see an information board over on the right about the crater so we wandered over to read about it and when we got there, we saw, behind it, a perfectly round, caldera shaped crater! We could see a path through the middle of the crater and an entry point into the crater on the far side. But what this confirmed to us, was that where we had been was most definitely not the crater. And if we had turned left when we reached the top of the hill, on the assumption that both directions met up at the other side, goodness only knows where we would have ended up. Probably down at Porto Novo but only after another 4 hours. Luckily, the aluguer did belong to Alberto, but our French wasn’t good enough to ask him where the hell we had gone wrong and how we ended up in the wrong place. Having looked at maps since, we think maybe we should have turned off the main road shortly after our Fanta stop, but even so we aren’t completely sure! What we did grasp from the map, is that the hill we went up was approximately 200m higher than the one we should have gone up, which meant that our journey took a lot longer than the expected 4 hours.

Alberto drove us back along the old mountain route. This used to be the only way from Porto Novo to Riberia Grande until they built the coast road. It is quite a spectacular drive. We stopped for 10 mins at one photo point, where the road went along the top of two ribeiras – Ribeira Grande was on the right and Ribeira da Torre was on the left. We were 1200m above sea level and either side of us was an almost sheer vertical drop down to sea level. It was quite incredible.

We finally made it back to Ponta do Sol and crashed in the restaurant next door to our hotel. It was a mark of just how knackered we were that we were both so disappointed that we couldn’t get our favourite refreshing Fanta and had to settle for coke and sprite instead. We eventually struggled back to the hotel for a shower, before dinner and another early night!


Mindelo, Santa Maria

2018-06-20 to 2018-06-23

As the most barren of the islands, Sal provides a completely different landscape to that which we had just been experiencing. In fact, there is a small hill near the airport that you can see from Santa Maria, some 10 miles away. The hill is only a few hundred metres high! There is nothing to block that view – the ground is flat as anything and there are no trees or shrubs of any kind. The island instead is known for its miles and miles of beaches, along with water sports due to the wind.

Our journey from Santo Antão to Sal took two days. The first of which saw us take the afternoon ferry back from Porto Novo to Mindelo. The journey was rougher than the way out but thankfully once again the sick bags were not needed. We had a chilled evening first finding a bar for a drink, then heading for some food.

The next morning we were up fairly early in order to get to the airport for our internal flight. As the airline is only small, the website is fairly basic and so only in Spanish and Portuguese. Therefore I had enlisted the help of my Spanish teacher in order to book the flights! The plane was a small 2x2 across propellered thing, entry only from the back, tiny hand luggage specifications as there was barely any overhead locker space. The flight was 45 mins, fairly uneventful, but lots of cloud, before landing at Sal airport.

As we were using Sal as a base for some well-deserved rest after our hiking, we headed to the main beach area in the south of the island – Santa Maria. Here are numerous all-inclusive resorts, a slight turn from our usual style of accommodation, all on the beachfront. Our hotel turned out to be very popular with Italians and even had some Italian reps working there and throughout the day we would be offered all sorts of games and activities, all of which would be politely declined.

Our room was at the far end of the resort, looking out onto the beach, furthest away from reception, the restaurant and the late night bar. Three meals a day were included, usually with an Italian feel to them, apart from Friday dinner which was “Cape Verde night” and the offering was local food and much more in line with what we had seen the remainder of the week.

We were here for two nights and most of our time was spent eating, sleeping, reading or chilling around the pool. One day we walked from the hotel, along the beach until we reached the main part of Santa Maria town. Here were the usual array of tourist touts, souvenir stands etc. something we hadn’t come across on the other islands. Tourism has definitely taken a bigger hold on Sal than on either São Vicente or Santo Antão. And not always the good things that come with tourism. For the first time this trip, we found ourselves having to barter down some extortionate prices in the market and reject offers to look at people’s souvenir stands. The beach was very nice, but lined with resort after resort, nearly all of them all-inclusive. There were a few bars and restaurants but options would be limited if you were travelling independently.

The final day we took a walk outside the front of the hotel. The town was desolate, largely under construction, both in terms of new resorts and half-built local houses, and a million miles away from beach front view. It’s obvious that the large foreign run hotels, don’t put any money back into the local community. We spent the rest of the day in the usual format, chilling and reading, before a late transfer to the airport and an overnight flight back to London via Lisbon.


Summary

2018-06-24

The usual summary of my trip:

Days: 8

Islands visited: 3

Different accommodations: 4

Ferries taken: 2

Internal flights: 1

Hikes taken: 2

Hikes completed in the expected manner: 0

Mars bars eaten: 2

Fanta’s drunk: many, each on as delicious as the last

Average price of a meal on Sal: CVE0 (all inclusive)


Tibet - Take 2

2018-09-26

About this time last year, I was busy planning for a two week trip to Tibet. I needed a new backpack, had to look into visa requirements and figure out what the temperature was going to be and what to pack. Then, whilst googling some of these things, I found out that the Chinese Government had decided to close Tibet to foreigners during the time that I was supposed to be there. This meant that with less than a month before I was due to fly, my trip got cancelled. Suddenly I was left with no Tibetan holiday, an ongoing argument with the travel insurance company and two weeks of spare annual leave. The latter got sorted reasonably quickly, as you’d expect, I eventually got my money back but Tibet was going to have to be rescheduled for a year later.

Fast forward a year and once again I am looking into visa requirements and deciding what to pack. And I am now closer to my departure date than before, so fingers crossed nothing will be cancelled this year. From what I could gather it had been due to the Communist Party having a conference in Beijing, but I never really did get to the bottom of it.

Anyway, moving on to this year, I have found myself a new travel partner – the bf, James. He’s not done quite as much travelling as I have, in fact, this will be his first time out of Europe and his first long haul flights, but he’s keen and I’ve somewhat thrown him in at the deep end! Three new countries (for him, only two new for me) and some serious altitude to handle.

Our trip takes us from Gatwick (thanks Emirates) to Dubai where, due to a cancelled flight, we now have a 13 hour layover and on to Kathmandu. We have booked tickets for the Burj Khalifa and a hotel so are set for Dubai. Once in Nepal, we are joining up with a G Adventures tour group, as the Chinese insist that all foreign tourists are part of a tour or they don’t issue them a visa. After a few days in Nepal, we fly to Lhasa where we spend 9 days visiting monasteries, lakes and mountains including trips to Potala Palace and Everest Base Camp. We then fly back to Kathmandu where the trip ends and we return, with just the 5 hours in Dubai, to London.


Dubai, Kathmandu, Panauti

2018-10-13 to 2018-10-16

At 828m high, the Burj Khalifa is so tall that you can watch the sunset twice. Once from the base, then travel in the 10 m/s lifts up to the top of the tower and watch the sun set again. It’s that kind of ridiculous statistic that makes me want to visit when I end up with a 13 hour layover in Dubai. Having had our initial flight cancelled and been put on a much later one instead, we knew we were heading up the tower. The timings only just worked for us though. Entry to the tower is on a timed ticket and with a flight that was due to land at 8pm and last entry being at 10pm, that didn’t give us many choices. Luckily, the flight was on time and there was no queue at immigration which meant that we even had time to go and check in at the hotel first.

We had bought the “At the top” tickets which meant that we could go up the 148th floor, the highest viewing platform in the world, though at 555m, it’s still only 2/3 of the way up the building. Here, we were plied with juice and sweets before heading outside to an outdoor viewing platform. It was crazy to see how far above the other buildings we were and from that height, at night, we were left wondering if Dubai had any culture left or if the whole city had turned into a display of “look how much money we have”.

From the 148th floor, we headed down to the 125th floor, at 456m high, and the highest point that the basic entry point gets you. Here, there were interactive displays which showed you what the city used to look like about 30 years ago and the difference was astounding. Mostly desert with the occasional building of just a few storeys high. Our final viewing platform was the 124th floor, which again had an outside area, before it was time to leave and head back to the hotel for a well-earned night’s sleep.

The next morning we were up early and back at the airport, this time in the budget terminal as we were flying FlyDubai, the budget arm of the rather lovely Emirates who we had flown with yesterday. No entertainment, only some people got a meal (not sure how they worked that out, but we got one) and limited leg room. However, the views for the final hour more than made up for it. I had carefully selected our seats so that we would be on the correct side of the plane for Himalayan views and they did not disappoint. Snow-capped peaks, against a blue backdrop with just the occasional cloud – stunning.

We landed in Kathmandu around 3.30pm and then we queued. And queued. And queued. For a country that is so heavily reliant on tourism, they really need to work out their immigration system. Most people need a visa, but this can be bought on arrival. There are three parts to this – paperwork, money, stamp. The paperwork part can be done on machines in the immigration hall, but there aren’t enough machines for the number of people. You can also complete this up to two weeks before arrival online, which we had opted to do. You then need to go to a different desk to pay for your visa and get a receipt to show the immigration official. Two people completing a painfully slow process was not enough. Once you’ve paid, you can then go and join a queue to actually clear immigration, but make sure you have completed your arrival card else you’ll be turned away. We saw many people get to the front of this final queue only to be told they’d missed a step. This took us more than an hour to get stamped into the country, then we headed to baggage reclaim to find that there was a security clearance to get through first. It claimed to be on the lookout for metal, but they weren’t being too thorough. Once we finally made it into reclaim, the bags had been there so long that someone had removed them all from the carousel and dumped them on the floor so we had to search our way round them.

We finally cleared customs, pre-paid for a taxi and were on our way into town. But there was traffic. And lots of it. So that was also a very slow moving process but an introduction for James to the craziness that is large parts of Asia, with the beeping and the dust and the lack of road rules. Our hotel was in the main backpacker area of Thamel, which was only 5km away, but it was 5.40pm before we arrived at the hotel, where we found our welcome meeting had already started so we had to quickly check in, dump our bags and head to the meeting to meet the rest of the group and begin the paperwork for the Tibet visa. The form was the same one as for a main Chinese visa and came with very strict requirements for accompanying photos – ears must be showing, no jewellery, no lipstick. All our forms and our passports had to be submitted to the embassy together in order to get the group visa for Tibet.

Once all form filling had been completed, we were able to head out for a group meal and get to know everyone. The group was a mixture of ages and nationalities including, surprisingly, one Norwegian. The Chinese government were known for not letting Norwegians into Tibet in retaliation for Norway awarding the Nobel Peace Prize to a jailed Chinese activist, who supported a free Tibet. Our Norwegian had heard that China had relaxed its complete ban but no one was sure if he’d be allowed in.

Whilst the visa forms were being processed, we had two full days in Nepal. The first of these was in Kathmandu and we headed out the next morning on a tour of the local area. First stop was the market, which was bustling as it was the start of a big Hindu festival, and we were also shown some very important sites such as the big screen that Nepali’s used to watch the World Cup! We could see some buildings that were still suffering earthquake damage from the 2015 earthquake but nowhere was this more apparent than when we arrived in Durbar Square.

The earthquake hit in April 2015, registering 7.8 on the Richter scale and killing nearly 9,000 people. There was a major earthquake, registering 7.3 on the Richter scale in May 2015 followed minutes later by a 6.3 magnitude aftershock, these causing more deaths. Between them, they caused major damage in Nepal, including the destruction of century’s old UNESCO buildings in Kathmandu and the valley, along with avalanches in the Himalayas with one hitting Base Camp which was full, due to it coinciding with summit season.

This being my second trip to Nepal, I had previously visited Durbar Square in 2010 (see earlier blog posts) and seen it in all its glory. This time around, I could see the full extent of the destruction. It was devastating. There were whole buildings that had been reduced to a pile of bricks, half the square was cordoned off and the buildings that did remain standing had large cracks in them. You’d like to hope that nothing has been repaired as the government were focussing on getting people’s houses back in one piece, but in truth I think there just isn’t enough money to go around.

After our visit to the Square, our next stop was to Sasane – Sisterhood of Survivors, a project sponsored by G Adventures. The project was founded to help rehabilitate and educate survivors of human trafficking. The project runs 4 programs, 2 aimed at helping victims and 2 awareness/outreach programs working in areas most vulnerable to help prevent exploitation in the first place. Human trafficking is the second largest crime in terms of worth ($150bn), ahead of drugs but behind weapons/arms. Two thirds of that money comes from the sexual exploitation of women. Once rescued, the survivors are fed, provided with medical attention and given counselling. Those who have a high school education are trained as paralegals, to give them marketable job skills and to help in the fight against trafficking. Those with minimal education are brought into the Sisterhood of Survivors program, a tourist venture running momo making classes and educating tourists on the harsh realities of human trafficking. These girls are taught English as well as presentation, cooking and leadership skills. This was where we had come.

Before lunch, we were given a momo making workshop. Momo’s are traditional Tibetan/Nepali dumplings that can be either steamed or fried. The momo’s clearly take some practice since ours looked nowhere near as good as the experts! But it was all good fun. Whilst they were being steamed, we were given lunch and shown a presentation about the project and trafficking, before our momo’s were returned and eaten.

That afternoon, we had free time so I took James to one of my favourite places from my last visit – Monkey Temple, also known as Swayambhunath Temple. The temple is up on a hill and has a number of monkeys keeping a close eye on anyone who heads up to it. The temple consists of a main stupa as well as some smaller temples and shrines and is of great importance to Buddhists. From the temple, there are sweeping views over all of Kathmandu, down to the airport, the hills and into the valley.

The next day, we were getting out of Kathmandu and heading to the town of Panauti. Here the local women have set up a community homestay project where locals would give beds to tourists in order to give them a taste of Nepali life. Local food, local customs and perhaps even cooking lessons. To get there, we would hike the 11km from Sanga. The hike, which started late due to major traffic leaving Kathmandu on account of the festival, took us along the rim of the Kathmandu valley, walking on the ridge of hills which gave us amazing views including the largest statue of Shiva in the world.

Once we arrived in Panauti, we were welcomed to the village by the women, given a welcome drink (which turned out to be coke!) and then sent off in two’s and three’s with our host mum. James and I, along with one of the Aussies in our group Nathan, were to stay with Parvati and her family. She took us to her house, showed us our rooms (Nathan’s included a giant teddy bear which James and I didn’t get!) and then gave us lunch. In the afternoon, we were given a tour of the town. Many of the temples were built in the 14th century and had survived the earthquakes. One of the temples, Indreshwar Temple, is one of the largest and tallest pagoda style temples in Nepal, originally built in 1294 making it the oldest surviving temple of Nepal. As we were walking around town, we stumbled onto a festival with masked performers.

Back at the house and Parvati showed us how to roll a chapatti for dinner, though I don’t think she was too impressed with my effort. In the evening, Parvati and her friend helped me put on a traditional sari and then we headed to the community centre where some of the local girls performed some traditional dances for us. This was followed by some western music and dancing until 9 when it was lights out and back to the house for the night.


Lhasa

2018-10-17 to 2018-10-19

Situated at 3647m above sea level, Lhasa is the capital of the Tibetan Autonomous Region and once the home of the Dalai Lama. It contains many of the most important religious buildings within Tibet and was our first glimpse into this beautiful, yet heavily watched land.

To get from Nepal to Lhasa, there is the small matter of some of the largest mountains on the planet – the Himalayas. There is a road, the Friendship Highway which stretches from Shanghai to Kathmandu over these vast mountains, but it got ruined in the earthquake and is currently not open to tourists. Therefore, our only option was to fly into Lhasa on the only international route into the country. At this stage, we had no idea if we, and especially our Norwegian, had been granted our visas so it was with some trepidation that we said goodbye to our Nepali mum Parvati and headed to Kathmandu airport to await word from the embassy. Finally word came. The whole group had been granted entry into Tibet.

The flight was an hour and a half with stunning views from both sides of the plane although the best seats were on the left hand side, which James scored, but I did not. Because we were on a group visa, we all had to arrive at immigration not just together but in a line in the same order as our names were on the piece of paper. Once through immigration, we reached customs where we had been warned that luggage can be thoroughly searched, looking for Lonely Planet guidebooks or anything that contains a photo of the Dalai Lama. As it was, we went straight through with no searches. And finally, we made it into Tibet and drove 45 mins from the airport to our hotel in the centre of Lhasa.

We were spending 3 nights here to help with the acclimatisation and so we were keeping it simple the first night. Also, given that the whole of China is on one time zone, suited to Beijing, Tibet was 2 hour 15 ahead of Nepal and it was suddenly evening. So we had a dinner next to the hotel, where I tried my first yak in the form of yak stew, and where James was given a scarf, crown and very large birthday cake. It was a sponge cake, decorated with cream and fruit. Fruit including tomatoes which was a bit odd but it was shared round between everyone and there was even some left over! We went for a short walk around the area and wanted to go into Barkhor Square but we didn’t have our passports on us and so were turned away from the security checkpoint by the overzealous Chinese police. It was our first taste of what was to come a lot over the next week or so.

The first morning in Lhasa corresponded with a lot of sore heads as the altitude began to get the better of people, but the best way to combat it is water and fresh air. So after breakfast, passports in hand, we returned to Barkhor Square and this time were allowed in. Barkhor Square has been the scene of many protests against the Chinese and so is now surrounded by large groups of police, complete with fire extinguishers (to prevent self-immolations), and rooftop surveillance. The square is ringed by shops but in the centre is Jokhang Temple. The temple is the most sacred in the whole of Tibet and in front of it were many pilgrims prostrating themselves. It was founded by Songtsen Gampo and was built in 652, although enlarged many times over the years, the most recent renovations were done in 1610 by the fifth Dalai Lama. The temple is now a UNESCO World Heritage site. Many of the pilgrims were making offerings of butter milk to the various statues in the temple. Inside the temple were many small rooms, but the queues and the fighting to get into these rooms meant that we didn’t bother with many of them. In the middle of the temple, were three large Buddha’s – past, present and future with future being recognisable by the stupa on his head. We went upstairs and saw more Buddha statues along with pictures of the kings. Out on the roof we saw an area where the Dalai Lama used to give talks.

We had some time so we did a circuit of Barkhor Square, in a clockwise direction as anti-clockwise is deemed bad luck. There was one building that contained many candles, all lit by butter lamps. We left the square to head to a nearby restaurant for lunch – more momo’s.

After lunch, we caught a local bus up to Sera Monastery. Once again we saw many Buddha statues and on one of them we could place our heads. There was a monk monitoring the queue here and after each western man placed their heads, he gave them a smack on the bum. Luckily, he left the women alone. The main reason for visiting was to see the monks debating. Each morning they have lessons and then in the afternoon, the debate what they have learnt in twos and threes. A more senior monk would walk round and make notes. Each point was made with a dramatic clap of the hands.

That evening, after dinner, we took a walk along to Potala Palace to see it all lit up at night. There aren’t many buildings that look better in the flesh than in photos, but this was definitely one of them. In places, the building didn’t look real, almost like a painting and the lines of the staircase were really sharp. It was a truly stunning building.

The next morning was our final full day in Lhasa and by this stage we were starting to be fully acclimatised to the altitude. Our first visit was to Anitsangkung Nunnery, where we could watch the nuns sitting round and chanting. We also visited their workshop where they made prayer wheels. After an early lunch, we headed off to the big one – Potala Palace. We navigated more security and passport checks, but we were soon in the huge complex.

The Palace is made up of three buildings – the red palace, the white palace and the yellow palace. Between them they contain over 1000 rooms. Work began initially in 1645 on the white palace and in 1649 the fifth Dalai Lama moved into the building. It was then the home to every Dalai Lama since, up till the 14th became exiled from Tibet. Our first stop was at the base of the complex in the Treasury, home to many fine artefacts including thangka’s (a painting on silk). We then had to walk up many, many steps until we reached the main courtyard. Beyond here, we were not allowed to take any photos and our time inside would be limited to 50 minutes. This meant we were only able to visit one room in the white palace, the rest in the red palace.

The building contained many statues of Buddha as well as pictures of Dalai Lama. Some of the rooms were the Dalai Lama’s private quarters and we also saw the tombs of the previous Dalai Lama’s. The largest tomb belonged to Lama number 5, as he was responsible for not just building the Palace but also uniting Tibet and reigning over the period when Tibet was at its most powerful. Lama number 6’s remains are unknown. It is believed he died in Mongolia and its possible his remains were destroyed during the Cultural Revolution but no one knows for sure. Some of the tombs are relatively small, Lama number 8 died when he was only 12 years old, but all are covered in gold. Unsurprisingly, Lama number 5’s tomb has the most gold at 3700 kilos. We left the palace and headed down to a couple of viewpoints, one to see the palace at an angle and one in front of the palace where we had been last night.


Gyantse, Xegar

2018-10-20 to 2018-10-21

Tibet contains 4 holy lakes, one of which is the dazzling Yamdrok Tso, situated at a height of 4500m above sea level. This would be quite the drive from Lhasa, travelling over three high passes before overnighting in the town of Gyantse, once considered to be Tibet’s third most important city. Our journey would take us out of Lhasa, taking the entire day, even though our destination was only 162 miles away. The scenery was so incredible that we would stop multiple times to drink in the views.

The first stop was at Yarlong Tsangpo, the largest river in Tibet and one which eventually flows into the Brahmaputra in India. We continued on and over our first pass of the day – Khampa La pass at 4498m asl. From here we could see down to Yamdrok Tso, shimmering in the sunlight, backed by the snow-capped mountains, topped out by Nyangchen Khangsar which stands at 7138m asl. Although the sun was shining, the height ensured that it was rather cold and it was also rather breezy, but the views more than compensated for this. We drove down 200m or so to the edge of the lake, where we could take many more photos as well as posing with yaks or Tibetan Mastiffs for those who were so inclined.

We stopped for lunch, before carrying on with a number of stops to view the Keralung Mountains at 6600m asl, before arriving at the Kharola Pass, at 5000m asl. From here, we were also able to view the glacier of the same name which topped out at 7191m asl. Our final stop was at man-made Manak Lake, created when a dam was built nearby, near to Simu-la pass at 4280 m asl. Here prayer flags fluttered in the winds, whilst the lake sat serenely in between many large hills.

After 9 hours, and countless photos, we arrived into Gyantse. We had no plans for the evening, except a group dinner and then a quick peek at Gyantse Fort, all lit up at night. The fort had once played a vital role during a British invasion in 1904.

The next morning we awoke to see that half of the town was flooded, most likely due to a burst water main in the night. This made driving tricky and required us to take a couple of circuitous routes in order to get to Pelkor Chode and Gyantse Kumbum. The two buildings are next to each other with the Chode being built in 1418 and the Kumbum some 9 years later. The Chode is basically a monastery, home to approximately 80 monks, and shared between three different denominations of Buddhist monks.

The word Kumbum literally translates to 100,000 images, a large number of them were Buddha. It consists of 6 circular floors that you can visit, but when we were there one of the floors was being re-laid and we could listen to the workers beating their poles in unison and in time to the song they were singing. From the top floor, we also had views all over Gyantse.

We drove on to Shigatse, Tibet’s second city, where we had only a lunch break, as we would be returning later on in the trip, then followed a full afternoon of driving, punctuated only by a stop at a tsampa mill. This is a flour like substance that is very popular and forms a base of many meals. We also reached the highest point of our trip, Gyatso-la pass, at 5200m asl. The wind here was ferocious and the temperature incredibly cold, but we finally arrived in Xegar, where we would be spending the night and where, to our delight, we found we had electric blankets on the bed. However, this was slightly tempered by finding out that we would not have hot water!


Rombuk, Shigatse

2018-10-22 to 2018-10-24

Standing at a height of 8848m asl, the summit of Mt Everest is the highest point on the planet. Although, if you are Chinese, you only believe the summit to be 8844m as they measure to the rock face, whilst everyone else measures the snow on top as well. Either way, it’s a long way up. For the second time in my life, I was visiting one of Everest’s Base Camps, although this time I would be able to see the mountain from camp.

Our day started with another police checkpoint, as we turned off the Friendship Highway and headed up, up, up to the Kya Wu Lha pass at 5798m asl. From the top were incredible views of the Himalayas, including five 8000m+ mountains – Everest (8848m), Lhotse (8516m), Makalu (8486m), Chou (8201m) and Shisapangma (8027m). Unlike from the Nepal side, we had a clear view of Everest, uninterrupted by other mountains. From Nepal, Lhotse sits in front of Everest, largely blocking the view.

We drove down the other side of the pass and to the small village of Rombuk. Here there was the highest monastery in the world and this would be our accommodation for the night. It was basic, with small dorms – one male, one female. The female dorm had two standalone single beds and then another three beds pushed together that would have to sleep 4 people. Each bed had an electric blanket which was once again welcome as there was no heating and the walls were thin. We shared a common area where meals were served and which also had a stove in the middle for heat. The toilet block was… interesting. Squatters, to be expected, but just a hole in the ground and with no door on them. There were four squatters in a line, facing the main door, with a waist high wall dividing them which meant that when you entered the room, you could see everyone and what they were doing. Added to this they were long drop compostable toilets, only they don’t compost very well in those cold temperatures and so there was some waste protruding upwards and out of the hole in the floor. However, it was only one night!

And the views were amazing, we could literally see Everest from the bedroom window. And it was closer to this magnificent beast that we were to head after lunch, with a short 2km walk. Unlike Nepal where you trek for 2 weeks to reach Base Camp, the Chinese have built a road and you could drive the entire way if you wanted! The walk mostly went along the road and was relatively flat and soon we arrived at a collection of tents. These are there all year round, although only occupied when summit attempts are taking place in May. We spent some time taking photos here before walking back to our monastery.

Considering the sleeping arrangements and the temperatures well below zero, I slept surprisingly well. The electric blanket definitely helped! We rose before sunrise, in an attempt to watch sunrise over Everest, but it was far too cold to stay out for long and we were there too early, so we retired into the warm for breakfast. For most of today’s drive we would be retracing our steps from the last two days. We headed back up and down the Kya Wu Lha pass and continued, almost without stopping, to Xegar. Here we stopped for lunch in a Chinese restaurant. Then we carried on to the town of Shigatse, Tibet’s second largest city and our home for the next two nights. For the first time in Tibet, there was alcohol consumed at dinner, as we were finally heading down in altitude rather than up.

The next day we had a full day exploring Shigatse and we were taken to the Tashi Lhunpo Monastery, which is one of the six largest in all of Tibet and which also contains the largest Future Buddha in the world at 26m. The monastery was built by the 1st Dalai Lama and is the traditional home of the Panchen Lama. Inside, once again it was rather busy with a lot of pushing and shoving to get in to see the Buddha’s.

When we left the monastery, we completed a kora (pilgrimage) of the temple by walking all the way around the outside, in a clockwise direction of course! James managed to make friends with some goats whilst we were doing it. In the afternoon, we headed to a nearby market but unfortunately it was only selling boring, functional things and therefore wasn’t that exciting. In the evening, we had dinner, followed by an early night due to our early start the next day.


Lhasa, Kathmandu

2018-10-25 to 2018-10-27

Opened in 2014, the Shigatse to Lhasa railway is an extension of the incredibly ambitious Qīnghǎi to Tibet railway with altitudes ranging from 3600-4000m. Taking just 3 hours, it is a much quicker route to the capital than the 7 hour drive. However, it only leaves early in the morning, so at 6am we were leaving the hotel for the 20 minute drive to the station. After many security checks to enter the station, we finally were allowed to board the train and at 7.50am we were leaving the station on time. The trip took us across the Tibetan plateau, as the sun rose and by the time we arrived in Lhasa, we could see that it had snowed on the surrounding mountains and there was a light flurry in the air.

Upon trying to exit the station, we once again had to show passports and as a group were taken to a police area for further questions towards our guides. Then we caught a local bus back to the hotel, where we were able to check in and rest for a couple of hours.

For lunch, James and I headed to a small restaurant where we ordered Bobi’s. These are a similar style to fajitas, with a tortilla filled with strips of cucumber, carrot and meat. It was very tasty. We then spent the afternoon wandering around the city some more, back into Barkhor Square before heading to the Muslim quarter and the shopping district. We had a celebratory last night in Lhasa back at Dunya’s restaurant next door to the hotel.

The next morning we were flying back to Kathmandu. We arrived at the airport late and were some of the last to check in, then there were issues when people had packed batteries into their hold luggage, which then had to be repacked. The flight was delayed by an hour and when we landed we found that some of the group had been upgraded to business class, whilst I was sat next to a man who had booked a second seat for his soda machine. It took the cabin crew at least 15 mins to strap the box in as it took up so much room and I’m not sure what I was supposed to do in an emergency as I’m not sure I could have gotten out.

Thankfully, we had a pleasant flight back to Kathmandu, with just a small amount of turbulence as we came in to land. We transferred to the hotel where we had the afternoon free, so we took a walk round Thamel, looking in the shops to get some ideas for what we wanted to buy. In the evening, for our final group meal, we went to a restaurant in a 300 year old building, complete with local music and dancing.

Our final morning saw us finally have a lay in before heading out for breakfast. We then headed to the Garden of Dreams, close to our hotel, which was a tranquil area complete with lawns and fountains. We had one final meal, then it was time to head to the airport, where our flight was delayed again whilst many people fiddled around with the engine, took it apart, climbed inside, then declared the plane safe to fly! We flew to Dubai, where we had 4 hours, then flew on to London.


Summary

2018-10-28

Summary

A final few facts from our trip:

Days – 15

Countries – 3

Number of flights taken – 6

Number of trains taken – 1

Highest mountain seen (Nepali measurement) – Everest 8848m

Highest mountain seen (Chinese measurement) – Everest 8844m

Highest building seen – Burj Khalifa 828m

Dal bhat’s eaten – many

Nights with an electric blanket – 2

Places without wifi – 0

Example websites blocked in Tibet – facebook, twitter, google, BBC

Example websites available in Tibet – hotmail, bing, Wikipedia, premierleague.com


3 countries, 2 weeks, 1 holiday

2019-03-01

Pizza. Pasta. Pasta. Pizza. Brexit. Prosecco. Pizza. Pasta. Pasta. Pizza.

In summary, how the two weeks I am spending in Italy will pan out. Copious amounts of food, the small matter of leaving the EU, then more copious amounts of food. Diet? What diet?

The plans for this trip started out from just a plan for a long weekend in Florence, somewhere I’ve wanted to go for a while. This grew into visiting Pisa and Tuscany too, then I decided to add in San Marino, Pompeii and Rome, somewhere I’ve visited for a day at a time from a cruise ship but never a prolonged period. By this point, I knew the trip was at least 10 days, then James came along and started adding in his ideas which included Venice, Herculaneum and the Ferrari museum and suddenly we had more places than we could even fit into a two week holiday! We knew something had to give and it was either a whole city or it was a night in each of at least 3 places. We eventually decided to drop Venice and save it for a long weekend (although that is now turning into at least a week with trips to the Lakes too).

Conveniently, I won a pair of return flights on the BA European network at work and they could be used open-jaw, so we are flying into Bologna and out of Rome. We wanted to fly out of Naples, but there weren’t any reward seats available on the day we required. From Bologna, we are taking a day trip out to Maranello and Modena to visit Ferrari museums and Luciana Pavarotti’s old house, then we head to the third smallest European microstate – San Marino, built atop a hill and completely encircled by Italy. Then it’s a trip to Florence, with side trips to Pisa and Tuscany, followed by Sorrento from where we can get our fill of Vesuvius destroyed towns, then back to the capital including a visit to Europe’s smallest microstate – the Vatican City. Predominantly, we are travelling by train, with a handful of buses thrown in and one car in order to explore Tuscany. Unfortunately, we timed the car very wrong indeed and so need to hire it on the 30th March i.e. the day after Britain leaves the EU, completely invalidating our drivers licences in the process and rendering us unable to drive in Italy*. (*accurate at the time of writing when no deal has been agreed). To get round this, we will need to buy International Driving Permits, although we are leaving this till closer to departure day just in case a deal is agreed and our existing licences become valid again.

Our final hurdle will be ensuring that we haven’t become illegal immigrants whilst in Italy and are able to fly back to the UK and into whatever mess is currently ensuing here.


Bologna

2019-03-23 to 2019-03-24

There is a small area of land, just west of Bologna, known as Motor Valley. Here some of the world’s finest cars, including Ferrari, Lamborghini, Ducati and Maserati, are manufactured and tested. Consequently, there are also a number of museums dedicated to these super cars. Our two nights in Bologna wasn’t so much to see Bologna, but to get up close to some of these cars. Obviously, a tasty spaghetti bolognese wouldn’t go amiss either, although you’ll upset the locals if you call it that.

Our flight to Bologna took us over the Alps, Lake Garda and Verona with beautifully clear skies and we landed to a nice 22 degrees. Being the weekend, the centre of the city is pedestrianised and the good weather meant there was a throng of people hanging out. Numbers were also inflated by a large number of kilt wearing Scots, using the town as a base for their football match against San Marino the following day.

The city itself is awash with terracotta, porticoed buildings giving it a very grandiose feel. Our first priority after arriving was to find lunch. Luckily, we stumbled across a food festival in one of the buildings on the main square and soon we were munching on arancini balls and ciabattas. We then headed back out to the square, dominated by the Basilica di San Petronio behind which was a very rickety lift which took us up to the top of the church for views over the city and the nearby Emilia-Romagna region.

For dinner, I was determined to have an authentic spaghetti bolognese. Here it is known as Ragù and is served over tagliatelle. It is not known how ragù became Spag Bol in the rest of the world, but it is believed to have happened after WWII as many soldiers returned home after passing through Italy.

The next morning it was time to go and find some very expensive cars. I had limited James to one day of fancy cars and he had selected Ferrari as the one to focus on. There are two museums dedicated to Ferrari – one in Modena, a short train ride from Bologna and one in Maranello, much harder to get to. We had therefore decided to book onto the Discover Ferrari and Pavarotti Land tour which provides transport to both museums as well as Pavarotti’s house and a couple of other stops along the way. It was definitely the most efficient way of travelling between all these places.

We were due to be picked up at 9am, but had a slight misadventure to the start of the morning, when we went to the train station rather than the bus station, though luckily they are not that far apart and we realised our mistake pretty quick, but then couldn’t find the main pedestrian entrance to the bus station so ended up walking all the way round and in via the main bus exit! But by 9am we were on our way, with the first stop being at Museo della Salumeria, the only museum in Italy dedicated to charcuterie. We saw how the ham was stored, cut and tied and then we were given a couple of samples.

Museum number two was our first Ferrari museum – Museo Ferrari Maranello. Of the two Ferrari museums, this one was more focused on the car, its inception and progression into Formula 1. There was a temporary exhibition dedicated to Michael Schumacher and his achievements within F1 whilst driving with Ferrari. I lost track of the number of versions of the car that we saw – there were many. From outside the museum, we could hear the sounds of a Ferrari being put through its paces at the nearby test track.

From here, we drove to the Museo Enzo Ferrari in Modena, which was more focussed on the man himself as the museum was based in the house in which Enzo grew up and next door was his father’s old workshop. There were even more cars to admire here alongside exhibits showing the evolution of the engine.  

Our penultimate stop was at Cantina Gavioli e Museo del vino, a Lambrusco producing factory. The factory was sponsored by the Giacobazzi family who have been synonymous with Lambrusco in the region, whilst branching out into sport through sponsorship of Gilles Villeneuve in the late 70’s, to Ferrari and later on to cycling. Lambrusco has suffered recently due to Prosecco’s marketing strategy making it the “in fashion” drink. We were given a tour of the factory, shown some more fast cars then given some samples of Lambrusco to try – one white and two red, which were delicious.

Finally, we headed on to Casa di Luciana Pavarotti – the maestro’s home before his death in 2007. The house has now been turned into a museum, showcasing everything from his piano and famous tuxedo, to his awards and his fan mail. Finally, it was time to head back to Bologna where, since we had pasta the previous night, we decided it was definitely pizza time and went off in search of a pizzeria, eventually finding one in a small side street. My delicious pizza had prosciutto and burrata on it. Mmm.


San Marino

2019-03-25

At 61 km2, San Marino is the fifth smallest country in the world, the oldest surviving sovereign state in the world and the oldest republic in the world having been founded in AD301. The country is one of only three enclave countries whilst the capital, also known as San Marino, is UNESCO listed. It has its own football team, albeit one that is more known for losing than for any success and we were heading there for one night. The country sits atop Mount Titano and the only public transport in is a bus from the Italian town of Rimini.

Having, thankfully, managed to not time our overnight stay on the same night at the Sammarinese were hosting the Scots in the football, we caught the train from Bologna to Rimini to see many kilt clad, slightly sunburnt Scots waiting for trains away from Rimini back to Bologna. Leaving the station, we went to find the correct bus stop. Luckily, we had time till the once an hour bus as it took us a few attempts to find the correct stop and buy tickets. Once on the bus, we wound our way towards, and then up, a massive hill.

The bus dropped us in a Piazza with some seriously impressive views westward over the hills and back into Emilia-Romagna province. We had to walk the remaining 10 mins to our hotel where, from our balcony, the views were even better. Looking for lunch, we stopped at a café that looked eastward, back the way we had come, across San Marino, back into Italy to Rimini and over the Adriatic Sea. With the sun beating down on us, it was a beautiful spot.

Then it was off to see San Marino. The most well-known sites, and even on the flag, are the three towers. Tower 1, Torre Guiata, was built in the 11th century and has mostly been used as a prison, even as recently as 1975. Tower 2, Torre Cesta, is a museum with a display of weaponry. The third tower is not open to the public. Both Tower 1 and Tower 2 have ramparts and walls that you can walk round and both have spectacular views in every direction.

We then headed back to our hotel where we watched a stunning sunset from our balcony, then it was time to go and find dinner. We knew we were not there in peak season but this was much harder than we had envisioned. We left the hotel and there was no one on the streets. Many people do visit San Marino as a day trip from Rimini or Bologna, but we assumed some would stay overnight and we had seen a few Scots still hanging around.

There was a restaurant opposite our hotel that we liked the look of but, despite, the “Open” sign on the door appeared to have no staff inside. So we went for a walk around town stopping at Piazzale di Liberta, Parliament and the Basilica. We passed no one. Literally. No tourists and no locals. It was like a bad horror movie. We got back to our hotel after 15mins and could then see a member of staff in the restaurant opposite so we went in there for dinner. Inside, there was a man doing what appeared to be a professional photo shoot of his meals, we never did figure out for what reason. He had ordered a large amount of food and each time a new plate came out, he would spend 5 minutes on lighting, then took a number of photos before returning to his table, with a female companion, to eat it. The staff kept joining him to talk and eat and he seemed to know them well. Aside from them, we were the only other people in there and with all the attention on the photographer, it meant service for the two of us was very slow. Slowly, we managed to get our food and eat it and even the bill didn’t appear until we went and stood with coats on right by the till. All in all, it was an odd night, in an otherwise lovely country.


Florence, Pisa and Lucca

2019-03-26 to 2019-03-29

Florence. The very name evokes images of art, history, romance. The home of David, the Ponto Vecchio, Michelangelo and Medici all backed by rolling Tuscan countryside. And the very city that inspired this two week trip. Finally I was going to get up close to it.

But first there was the small matter of leaving San Marino and overnight it seemed to have snowed. We woke up to see snow covering all the surrounding hills as well as the entire city. At breakfast that morning, we also learnt that we were one of only two occupied rooms in the hotel the previous evening which, perhaps, goes some way to explaining why there was no one else around at dinner.

We had some time to kill before our bus so we took another walk around town, stopping at the tourist information centre where we got tourist visas in our passports. Once it was time to leave, we took the bus back to Rimini where we bought some lunch, then caught a train back to Bologna. Here we transferred onto the super-fast Frecciarossa high speed train onwards to Florence. Sadly, the majority of this journey was in tunnels so we barely got to see any of the surrounding countryside.

When we first arrived in Florence, it became apparent that we weren’t going to be the only tourists here. There were hordes of them. In large groups, in small groups, in long queues to get into buildings or just walking the streets.

After checking in, we went for an explore, starting at the Duomo – the main focal point of the city. There were long queues as the entrance to the church itself, the Cupola (dome) and the Campanile (bell tower). The building was quite spectacular – a green, white and pink façade with a red domed roof.

We kept walking and arrived at the Piazza della Signoria which contained Fontana de Nettuno and the Palacio Vecchio, which had a fake version of David in front of it. Running off the Piazza towards the Arno River was the Uffizi gallery outside of which were statues of many well-known figures such as Leonardo Da Vinci or Galileo. Once we reached the river, we could see the Ponto Vecchio, lined with jewellery shops.

We returned to the Piazza, stopping for a hot drink then continued walking over the Ponto Vecchio and towards Palazzo Pitti. Here we found a cute little restaurant for dinner, with incredibly friendly staff and stuffed ourselves with a meat and cheese platter, ravioli and the most incredible cheesecake I’ve ever eaten. It soon became apparent how good this restaurant was when a German couple entered who had eaten there the previous night. The lovely meal was rounded off with a free shot of limoncello before we returned to the hotel, walking past the Duomo all lit up as it was dark and possibly looking even more impressive than in daylight.

The next morning, we had tickets to visit the Galleria dell’Accademia, one of two major art galleries in the city. It is also home to Michelangelo’s most famous sculpture – David. His setting under a well-lit domed roof gives him a sense of awe which is not diminished close up. It was carved from a single block of marble adding to the sense of wonder. The museum also contains a number of other statues and works of art, mostly religious paintings.

We left the museum and headed to Piazza Santa Cruce, which had another large church in it, then crossed the Ponte Alla Grazie and walked up to the Piazza Michelangelo. This is the main viewpoint for sweeping panoramas over Florence and the surrounding mountains. After lunch we treated ourselves to a long overdue first gelato of the trip. Spent some more time wandering around town before heading back to the hotel for a rest and then out to the market area, where we found a restaurant for dinner.

The next day, we were taking a day trip out into other well-known cities in Tuscany. The first stop was Pisa – a city once known for its maritime power but now known for a wonky building. We took the train from Florence SMN station to Pisa Centrale, where we decided to walk across town to the Piazza dei Miracoli. We could have changed trains and gone one stop to a slight closer station but we figured we may as well see more than just the Tower.

The Piazza dei Miracoli contains both the Leaning Tower and Cathedral as well as a statue of a fallen angel, museum, shop and bag storage. The bag storage was for people, like us, who have tickets to go up the tower. You are only really allowed to take a camera/phone up with you. All bags must remain on the ground. The lean is quite noticeable from ground level – from some angles, it looks like the Tower is peeking out from behind the cathedral to say hello. When going up the Tower, you must climb steps up a winding staircase. These steps were noticeably steeper on one side of the Tower than the other but you finally arrive at the top, where you can see over the whole Piazza, all of Pisa and the surrounding countryside. The bells at the top are held in position to stop the lean from causing them to make noise, although we were there at 12 when the bells were allowed to chime.

We descended and visited the Cathedral before heading to a restaurant for lunch with a nice Tower view. We then headed to find the nearer train station and caught a train to the town of Lucca. The old town is surrounded by 12m high, 4.2km long walls built in the 16th and 17th century. We walked all the way round the walls, admiring the views from both inside and outside. Eventually, we caught the train back to Florence, arriving back around 6.30 and decided to head to the restaurant from the first night, where we also saw the German couple again, back for their 3rd night (at least).

On our final day in Florence, we had late morning tickets into the Uffizi gallery. This gallery is home to a very large collection of Renaissance art, donated to the city by the Medici family, along with busts of emperors and other famous people. We ate lunch nearby then had a chilled afternoon before heading out for our final dinner in the city. Not to be undone by the Germans we headed back to our favourite restaurant, Nostrale – opposite Palazzo Pitti, for the third time. We were welcomed like family, got our third huge slice of delicious cheesecake and once we told them it was our last night they offered us a second shot of limoncello. I told them only if they would join us, there was one other couple in the restaurant and before you know it 7 of us were downing limoncello like there was no tomorrow! It was a lovely night.


San Gimignano, Tuscany

2019-03-30

In the videogame Assassins Creed II, players get to pretend to be Ezio, a man attempting to avenge the death of this father and brothers. Following in his father and uncle’s footsteps, Ezio becomes an assassin and travels all over Italy killing the men responsible for framing and arranging his father’s death. This takes Ezio all over Italy, including Venice and Florence.

Whilst walking round Florence, James was telling me about a place in Italy full of towers where he had been Ezio and run up and down the towers and even jumped off some. He had thought it was somewhere near Florence. I had been reading the Lonely Planet and seen mention of a place near Florence, famous for its towers – San Gimignano. It didn’t take long to piece together that San Gimignano was also a place that Ezio visits in Assassins Creed II.

We were hiring a car on what was supposed to be the first day of a brand new post Brexit world and so had gotten International Drivers Licences to cover us. In the end, a delayed Brexit meant that our regular EU licences would suffice. With no plans for the car apart from where we were overnighting, we soon found ourselves heading in the direction of San Gimignano. The town was lovely, with views of rolling Tuscan countryside in every direction surrounding it. The historic centre is filled with 14 towers, down from the original 72 that graced the skyline. Building a tower was something of a status symbol and families always tried to build one slightly taller than their neighbours. In 1348, plague wiped out much of the population and weakened the economy to such an extent that the town eventually submitted to Florence.

We passed a lovely couple of hours there, including a porchetta sandwich served direct from the pig! But it was time to move on and we continued for another 40 mins through the stunning countryside until we reached the town of Castellina in Chianti. Just outside the town was our accommodation for the night, situated down a rough track with no neighbours but outstanding views.

We arrived and couldn’t see anyone at the reception or anywhere in the hotel for that matter. On a hunch I looked in the box outside the main gate labelled “late check ins” and inside was an envelope with my name on and inside that the key to our room and a note saying no one would be there till the morning. We parked the car, found our room and then it dawned on us that there was no restaurant and no one to ask about food. The wifi was very sketchy but eventually we located the nearest supermarket – 3k away back in the town. We drove back to town and bought the ingredients for a bednic – a picnic in bed – and then passed a very chilled evening playing cards whilst snacking.


Sorrento, Pompeii and Herculaneum

2019-03-31 to 2019-04-02

In October AD79, mount Vesuvius erupted sending a cloud of gas some 21miles up into the sky, ejecting ash at 1.5 million tonnes per second and releasing 100,000 times the thermal energy of the Hiroshima-Nagasaki bombs. Unsurprisingly, the ash and subsequent lava and mudflows utterly obliterated a number of Roman settlements, most famously Pompeii and Herculaneum, killing all who lived there. Today, Vesuvius is still deemed one of the most dangerous volcanoes in the world mainly because of the 3 million people who live nearby.

For exploring these two destroyed cities, the best idea is to base yourself in one of the towns on the Bay of Naples, usually either Naples itself or Sorrento. We went for the latter, which required a long day of travelling.

We checked out of the Tuscany hotel and drove back to Florence, then spent the best part of half an hour trying to find a petrol station that was open on a Sunday. After returning the car, we headed to the train station and caught the high speed train to Naples, where we switched to the Circumvesuviana train to Sorrento. By the time we arrived, we had time for a short rest before wandering round town and finding somewhere to eat.

The next morning and we went off to explore the first of the two destroyed cities – Pompeii. For this, we jumped back on the Circumvesuviana for half an hour and it dropped us more or less at the entrance. The site was huge and some areas were closed for renovations. We started at the museum, which contained artefacts found on site as well as replicas of the city.

Pompeii had been struck by an earthquake in AD62, from which it had not fully recovered, after which many people had been evacuated and by the time of the eruption had not returned. However, some 2000 people are still believed to have died. As the buildings had been buried and therefore preserved by the eruption, they are still there now and you are able to stick a head in them and get a taste of life 2000 years ago.

The city has a main road down the middle, with plenty of small side roads off it. We saw houses, temples, shops, a brothel and the amphitheatre. This was where gladiators used to fight in front of some 20,000 spectators. The brothel had rather suggestive paintings on the wall, still visible and un-faded. The houses were predominantly only one storey high, but many still had impressive mosaic tiling on the floors.

The next day we were heading to Herculaneum to compare the two sites but when we turned up at the station, we found that there was a train strike and the next train wasn’t until 1.35pm and would only run until 5 that afternoon. This rather put a spanner in the works. Not to be defeated though, we headed down to the Port of Sorrento and caught a ferry across the bay to Naples. We disembarked at the Castello Nuevo and then walked across town to the Piazza Garibaldi from where we could pick up the train, which by this point was late enough to be running. Conveniently, Naples is also closer to Herculaneum than Sorrento so we had shaved a significant amount off the journey time.

When we finally arrived on a packed train to Ercolano station and got to the ruins of Herculaneum we found a much smaller site, but a much better preserved one. The houses here had two or even three storeys and well preserved coloured frescos. The edge of the site also used to be the coast and so when the eruption hit, hundreds of people headed there in the hope of rescue but were overwhelmed by the fumes and died. Their skeletons were found in the 1980’s and replicas are still there today showing them huddling together, waiting helplessly. The city is also home to thermal baths, some of the best preserved in existence. When we left the site we managed to get the penultimate train returning to Sorrento that afternoon before they all closed down again.


Rome, Vatican City

2019-04-03 to 2019-04-07

According to Roman mythology, Romulus and Remus were two twins who were suckled by a she-wolf. They decided to found a city but, after an argument, Romulus killed his brother named the new city after himself. The image of two babies suckling a she-wolf is seen throughout the city, on crests and other imagery. Since its founding, Rome has played a major role in world affairs from the Roman Empire, the world’s first superpower, influencing language, architecture, law and philosophy, to the religious power of the Pope, originally known as the Bishop of Rome.

For us, our road to Rome was a one hour train journey from Sorrento to Naples, followed by another hour long journey to Rome. There was some slight confusion on the latter as train as our tickets stated we were in coach 6B, but the train did not have a 6B. So we sat in coach 6, but when the ticket check lady came round she told us that coach 6B had become coach 11, so we were in the wrong seats. She then told us it didn’t matter where we sat as we were only going one stop, but that we couldn’t sit in 6 as that was Premium and we had only paid Standard. The only difference being leather seats rather than material seats. So we moved to coach 7 and continued the journey.

On arrival in Rome, we walked to our hotel which definitely had some quirky decorations. The owner there told us that he had rooms available in that site, which had private bathrooms although they were not en suite, or he had a room available at an alternative location, 2 minutes from the Colosseum, that had en suite bathrooms. We chose the latter, so jumped in a taxi to the new place and checked in. It was at this point that he told us that we’d have to change rooms after 2 nights as we had a room suitable for 4 and there was a party of 4 checking in in two days’ time. Eventually, we were able to settle in then head out for lunch. We walked down past the various Forums, before stopping for lunch at Piazza Venezia. We then headed to an AS Roma store, to get kitted out for the evening’s activities.

We went to visit the Trevi Fountains, which was swamped in crowds – five or six deep in front of the fountain – so we tried the Spanish Steps instead but that was also heaving with people. After a break back to the hotel to change, we went back out beyond the Trevi Fountains and Spanish Steps up to the Piazza del Popolo and into the Flaminio district. At the far end of the this district, across the river, is the Stadio Olimpico – home to the Italian football team, Italian rugby team, Italian national athletics, Lazio and AS Roma. Additionally, it hosts the Coppa Italia final, hosted the 1990 World Cup final and has hosted four European Cups, most recently 2009.

We were here to watch AS Roma versus Fiorentina. We stopped for a panini and a beer outside the stadium, then headed inside after at least 2 ID checks and 5 searches. The stadium had decent views but because of the athletics track around the edge of the pitch, we were quite far back. Our seats were in the block next to the ultras, who were chanting and waving flags the entire match. We also seemed to be surrounded by a lot of other tourists. The match ended 2-2 which was probably a fair result. We then walked about an hour back to hotel, via the Spanish Steps and Trevi Fountain, both of which were still heaving with tourists.

The next day and it was another busy one. After breakfast we headed over to the Vatican City – country number three on this trip. Our first stop were the Vatican Museums, where we had booked an entry which gave us priority entrance. Inside, we think were a number of religious works of art, as well as artefacts from all over the world, however it was so busy that we could barely see anything. After a while we gave up and took the shortcut to the Sistine Chapel, hoping for more breathing room here. But it was not to be and it was just as busy in there. We admired the ceiling for a short while before relocating to the museum cafeteria, where there finally was space to think. It had started raining, which limited queues outside St Peter’s Basilica which meant we only had to queue for 45 minutes rather than the estimated two hours. The church itself was a huge shell with plenty of adornments but also plenty of empty space. The domed roof was huge and impressive from both underneath and outside. We also made a visit to the Grotto, where all Popes are buried. On the way back to the hotel we stopped for a hot drink and slice of cake near to the Vatican. As the heavy rain continued we ate dinner next to the hotel before chilling in the hotel.

Day three in Rome and we were spending it in Ancient Rome. We decided to leave the Colosseum until the afternoon, in the hope of lower crowds and shorted queues. We started at the Circus Maximus, an ancient Roman chariot racing stadium. It was the first stadium in Ancient Rome and the largest as it could hold 120,000 people. Although the shape of the stadium can still be seen, the site is now little more than a huge roundabout!

We then went to Palantine Hill, where you can get a combi ticket with entry to Colosseum, but supposedly has the shorter queues. After 1 hour 15 queueing, we finally got to the ticket desk. Here we bought our ticket and they gave us a timed entry to the Colosseum, just 75 minutes later. This meant that we only had an hour at the site before we had to leave. We also found out after entering that the Roman Forum was also at the same site at Palantine Hill, whereas we had thought it a different entry ticket. Palantine Hill and the Roman Forum were huge sites that contained many ruins of temples, basilicas, houses and public spaces. It is also believed that Palantine Hill is where Romulus killed Remus.

From here, it was a short walk to the Colosseum where we still had to queue for 15 mins but soon were wandering around both the upper and lower levels. The upper level was the most impressive, containing two different museums and spectacular views down into the basement of the Colosseum. On the upper level, you can also do a full circumference, whereas on the lower level only approximately half the arena is available to you. The Colosseum was built due to the wishes of three consecutive emperors from 69 – 96 AD and was inaugurated in 80AD. The centre of the arena used to contain a wooden floor where all the games took place. The seating area could hold 40,000 – 70,000 spectators who were seated according to their social status, with those of a lower status at the highest point and furthest away from the action.

On leaving the Colosseum, we stopped for a quick bite before a rest at the hotel for our weary feet. That evening we headed to the area of Trastevere, across the river Tiber, for a look around. It is the old working class area of town, characterised by narrow, cobbled streets. We found a restaurant for dinner that was so popular it frequently had long queues outside of it.

On our final full day in Rome, we headed first to the Pantheon, an old church built by Emperor Hadrian in approximately 126 AD. It’s a circular building under a large concrete domed roof, with a large opening in the centre. We carried on to Piazza Navona, where we found a small museum all about the stadium that used to be on the same site and which the Piazza was built on top of. At this stage, there is only one small corner excavated.

From here, we crossed the Tiber again and visited the Castel Sant’Angelo. This was originally a Mausoleum to Hadrian, then was fortified and connected to St Peter’s Basilica by a number of various popes to become a full castle. The views from the top were pretty special, across the whole of Rome from the Vatican to the Stadio Olimpico to Ancient Rome and the Colosseum. After a panini lunch alongside the river, we spent the afternoon in an Irish bar watching the football – Newcastle v Palace, or in other words James’s team v my team. I’m glad to say I came away the happier. After dinner, we took in a few night time views of Ancient Rome all lit up.

Our final day was only a short day with the majority of the area around us closed due to the Rome Marathon that was starting and finishing by the Colosseum. We watched a little of the elite finishers, plus the club runners before having the most amazing hot chocolate, which appeared to be quite literally melted chocolate, before heading to the airport and returning home.


Summary

2019-04-08

Number of countries – 3

Days – 16

Different overnight places – 6

Number of tourists in San Marino at night – 2 (us)

Number of nights eating at the same restaurant in Florence – ¾

Dinners without pizza or pasta – 0

Intercity trains taken – 5

Age of oldest building visited – 2000 years plus

Cities visited destroyed by Mt Vesuvius – 2

Return trips already planned – 1


A Baltic Adventure

2019-06-09

When you look at a map which has marked off the countries I’ve visited, there are some noticeable areas where I’ve not been at all. One of these is Eastern Europe. I could do a road trip from Estonia down to Albania and tick off the majority of them. In an attempt to slightly right this wrong, I am spending a week visiting three of these countries, with my long term travel partner, Melissa.

We initially looked at the Baltics – Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, but she has already been to Tallinn and didn’t fancy returning, so we started looking at what was south of Lithuania – Belarus. Then we realised that Belarus has relaxed its visa requirements meaning we could go visa-free and suddenly a plan began to take shape. Consequently, we are heading to Minsk for 3 nights, Vilnius for 2 nights and Riga for 3 nights.

Unfortunately, there are no direct flights to Minsk on the day we wanted to go so we are connecting via Amsterdam, but this gives Melissa the chance to fly from Birmingham and not have to moan to me that she has to fly from London again. I am, of course, still flying from London. We will meet in Amsterdam at 8am before catching the same flight to Minsk. As part of the terms of the visa free travel, we need to fly in and out of Minsk airport, so although there is a two hour train to Vilnius, we must instead catch a 30 min flight there. From Vilnius we will get a 4.5 hour bus to Riga from where we can fly directly back to Luton.

We booked the flights and then started looking at accommodation and we were rather surprised to find that the majority of hotels were already fully booked. We then decided to Google what was going on in Minsk that week and were pleasantly surprised to find that the European Games were being hosted there. (http://www.european-games.org/2019-minsk/) This means that there will be 50 nations participating in 15 sports over 10 days. We would be arriving in the city on the first full day of competition. Suddenly our 3 nights there didn’t seem enough!

We had a quick look at some very competitive ticket prices – less than £10 for a whole day’s action and have bought ourselves tickets for two events – badminton and aerobic gymnastics/trampolining – at a combined cost of £14. We plan to spend at least half a day here, sometime exploring Minsk and possibly even taking a day trip out to a UNESCO site. For Vilnius and Riga we have no plans yet, though Melissa through her work contacts has manged to score us some free 5*accommodation, so kudos to her on that. By the time we’ve finished, there’ll be less of a gap on my maps.


Minsk, Mir

2019-06-22 to 2019-06-24

The 2019 European Games, the second edition of the Games, were being held in Minsk between 21st to 30th June. The first Games were held in Baku in 2015, whilst the third Games will be held in Krakow in 2023. Whilst they may not be as well-known as the Olympics or World Championships, they feature 200 events in 15 sports with around 4000 athletes from 50 countries.

With a 6am flight from Heathrow, I had spent the previous night sat on a chair at Heathrow in order to avoid a 2am departure from home. A rather disorganised check in at 4 which gave me plenty of time to hang to the observation deck and watch the early morning, long haul flight arrivals. When I landed in Amsterdam, I had a message from Melissa telling me she had found an Irish bar and was waiting for me there. Here we had breakfast and a gossip before boarding our second flight to Minsk.

Immigration was a breeze. Visa rules had been relaxed further that meant that if you had a ticket for the Games you could just show it to the immigration officer and you were in. Once we were in Arrivals we were even given a free ice cream. Changed some money since the Belarusian Ruble is a closed currency, found a bus and then we were off to the City. First impressions we good – wide avenues and pavements, lots of open, green spaces and some nice new buildings. Very stereotypically, we were expecting lots of Soviet style buildings. We found our apartment, which was very centrally located, then it was time to find some dinner. We ate in a nearby restaurant, sampling some local food – potato pancakes and a stew with regular pancakes. It was all very tasty. Stopped by a local supermarket for some supplies for breakfast, then headed back to the apartment for some sleep.

The next morning, we had a fairly early start, getting up at 7. Since we had a full day with no plans, we decided to use Sunday as the day to do a day trip. Having investigated public transport, we were sure we could get to the town of Mir, but we weren’t sure how to get back. By going on Sunday, we wouldn’t miss any of our sports if we got stuck. We headed to the bus station, past the KGB building, Lenin Square and the City Gates. We boarded the 8.30 bus and after an hour and a half we pulled up in the small town of Mir.

Mir Castle Complex is a UNESCO World Heritage Site that was built in the 16th century. The castle consists of five towers surrounding a courtyard and has had refits and extensions over the years. Initially it was lived in by the Ilyinich dynasty then by the Radziwiłł family, one of whom married Chlodwig, Prince of Hohenlohe-Schillingsfürst, a German chancellor and Prince of Prussia. From here it was sold to the Bialynia clan until the Second World War when the German forces used the castle as a ghetto for the Jewish population prior to their murders. All told, it has had quite the history.

The castle now houses a number of works of art in its various rooms, has a chapel on site and ramparts that can be walked around. Next to the castle is a small lake, quite popular with the locals for fishing.

After a couple of hours at the castle and grounds, we returned to the bus station to figure out how to get back. There was a timetable (written solely in Belarusian) off which we believed there to be a 12.30 and a 1.30 bus to Minsk. When we got to the bus station at midday there was no one in the ticket office so we sat outside in the sun until it opened. Then we joined the queue, but no one was buying tickets. A couple of people would head to the front and ask the woman there something that sounded like it included Minsk in the conversation, then they would leave looking frustrated. At one time, someone went straight to the front of the queue and bought a ticket to somewhere. With our best sign language, we checked with the woman in front that we needed to be in the queue for Minsk, which she confirmed. A little late the bus arrived and the woman behind the counter started selling tickets. At this point, a couple of people tried to push in front of us, we think trying to say they’d been there longer, although not in the queue. When we got to the front of the queue, the woman had stopped selling tickets and appeared to be pointing outside. So we went out to the bus and hung by the front door. The driver got on and a couple of people were paying him direct so we did that, then found out there were not enough seats. As the bus pulled away, we were standing in the aisle. Then another man without a seat, beckoned to Melissa to go and sit on the ledge behind the driver, alongside him and I found a seat on the stairwell, by the door. It was an hour and a half, with no view, on an uncomfy seat, but at least I wasn’t standing. I even managed to doze a little.

About 2.30, we got back to Minsk and got our first real look at Minsk and its sites. We passed Dinamo stadium, that clearly had some sports going on, we think Athletics, then stumbled on a section of closed roads, which quickly became apparent as part of the Men’s cycling road race. We continued walking up to Gorky Park, where we found another section of the road race so sat watching the peloton go past a couple of times, a little more stretched out the second time. We headed on to Victory Square, with a huge obelisk, Victory Monument, slap bang in the middle. The obelisk is 45m tall and dedicated to the soldiers who fought during the Nazi occupation of the city.

We walked past the Bolshoi Opera and Ballet House towards Trinity Hill, the oldest part of the city. Situated on the banks of the river, this is the closest Minsk has to an “Old Town”, it is also the entry point to the small Island of Tears, with a memorial to those soldiers who lost their lives as part of the USSR’s war with Afghanistan.

Across the river, we could hear music and see smoke coming from what appeared to be a fan park. We crossed the river to find out and indeed it was. Here we could have a couple of beers, eat some drakniki (potato pancake with sour cream) and soak up the sun whilst being entertained by Belarusian bands and a Fencing display. We also noticed a surprisingly large number of people walking round with a small Union Jack flag, despite most, if not all, not being British. When we finally left the fan park, we found ourselves in a Great British festival, organised by the embassy, complete with Union Jack bunting, a red phone box, a JCB display and people dressed up as Harry Potter characters. There were a number of food and drink stands, although they were not overly British.

The next day, we spent the morning exploring more of Minsk, although we had to deal with more road closures for what we think were cycling time trial practice. First up was a fantastic mural that was above a KFC. We never did learn what the mural was about or why it was above KFC, but it was impressive. We saw two separate cathedrals, first up St Peter and St Paul and then St Simon and St Elena, which was in Lenin Square. We walked past a castle, which seemed to be more of a prison now before heading up some quiet back streets.

We returned to the apartment for lunch, then headed off for the European games. First up was an hour walk to the Falcon club, past the Belarusian Patriotic War Museum. Here we watched 3 hours of badminton including GB beat Denmark in the women’s doubles, with the pairing who went on the win the silver medal. We left the badminton and walked another 20 mins to Minsk Arena, complete with another fan park. Inside we were watching trampolining (men doubles and women’s individual) and mixed double aerobic gymnastics, which was similar to dancing in sequins. By 9 it had all finished and, since we didn’t fancy the 1.5 hour walk back to town, we jumped on a special Games bus that we thought was headed back to yesterday’s fan park. However, it soon turned off and started heading round the ring road around Minsk. Eventually, I asked a couple of Games volunteers if they spoke English and where the bus was going. They took us under their wings, told us where to get off the bus (conveniently the same stop as them), took us to the Metro, bought us our tickets and got the Metro with us, until our stop. When we exited the station, we were right by the place we’d eaten dinner at the first night, so we knew exactly where we were and how to get back to our apartment for our final night.


Vilnius, Trakai

2019-06-25 to 2019-06-26

According to legend, Vilnius was founded in the 1320’s when Grand Duke Gediminas dreamt of an iron wolf howling with the voice of 100 wolves. However, the city had already been in existence for 1000 years. By the end of the 16th century, Vilnius was one of the largest cities in Eastern Europe. Prior to WWII, it was one of the largest Jewish centres in Europe, leading to the nickname “Jerusalem of the North” first coined by Napoleon.

We had wanted to head overland to Vilnius, as the train from Minsk takes just two hours. However, due to the requirements surrounding visa free access, we had to fly out of Minsk. This meant a 5.30 rise, 6.00 taxi, 8.20 flight and we were in Vilnius airport by 9.00 in the morning. We caught a bus to the entrance of the Old Town, left our bags at the hotel, then went out exploring. Although it was around 10 by this point, the streets were deserted and it felt like we had the place to ourselves. The streets were cobbled, largely pedestrianised and full of churches, bakeries and baroque style buildings.

Our first priority was breakfast, so we stopped in a small bakery for a croissant and a drink, then carried on towards Cathedral Square. Here was the main city Cathedral, fairly demure by world Cathedral standards and a separate bell tower. It stood in the same square but a little away from the Cathedral and at first glance seemed almost like a lighthouse. We headed over to Gediminas Hill, named after the Grand Duke, and went up to the top where there was a castle/tower which had great views over the city.

We headed back to the hotel to check in before going for lunch in a building that seemed to be part hotel, part restaurant, part Indonesian embassy. There were similarities with the Belarusian foods, being largely potato based. We ate potato pancakes (similar to drakniki), potatoes stuffed with meat and cabbage rolls before continuing our exploration of the Old Town.

St Anne’s church, small and white, next door to St Bernadine’s church, large and red were next before arriving at St Bernadine’s park where we stopped for an ice cream. After a short siesta, we went out for dinner in a nearby restaurant that had a small selection of Lithuanian tapas. We chose chorizo con pan and bacon wrapped stuffed dates, accompanying a bowl of mussels.

The next morning we were taking another day trip to a 600+ year old castle. Situated on an island, in the town of Trakai, just 28km from the capital. There are a number of trains to Trakai, but inconveniently there was a train at 8.16 and the next one wasn’t until 11.30. So we had to go for the earlier one and forgo a lay in. From the station, we could either walk through the town or around the lake. Given that it wasn’t yet 9 and the castle didn’t open till 10, we took the lake option. The path was secluded and shaded and skirted the edge of Lake Luka, then Lake Galvé and took us around 45 mins. Dotted alongside the lake were a number of houses either with boats or easy access to the lakeside beach.

The castle itself was red brick, almost fairy-tale like on an island in the middle of Lake Galvé and was a former home of Grand Duke Gediminas, who probably made the town of Trakai his capital. Access was via a walkway and a second island off the main peninsula. The castle now is a museum showcasing art, trinkets, galleries, halls and incredible views. Near the walkway were a number of restaurants so we had an early lunch, including a traditional pasty of the Karaite people who migrated here from Crimea in the 1300’s. It looked a lot like a Cornish pasty, but with slightly more meat in the filling and less veggies.

We walked back through town, seeing all the wooden houses and churches. Back at the station we almost missed the train, but some speed walking saw us get on board with just a few seconds to spare. Also helped by the ticket office not being open and being able to buy a ticket on the train. Back in town, we went to find some cake and coffee, then we headed to the hotel to try out the swimming pool and hot tub. Whilst it sounded grand, the pool was so small it only took about 4 strokes to get from side to the other. Our final evening, meant trying out more local food – a potato pie alongside a meat platter washed down with a bottle of wine.


Riga, Jūrmala

2019-06-27 to 2019-06-30

The largest city in the Baltic States, home to one tenth of the entire Baltic population and also the home to the first ever decorated Christmas Tree, Riga sits alongside the Daugava River and is dominated by Gothic spires.

It would be our final stop of our week long exploration of Eastern Europe. We travelled from Vilnius in a bus, that was very comfortable and had TV screens for each seat. Sadly, they did not come with head phones, but I managed to watch 9 back to back episodes of Friends, subtitled. When we arrived in Riga, we were greeted with rain and high winds, so we headed straight to the hotel and hung out there for a few hours until it had passed, then we went out to see the Old Town. Made it as far as Cathedral Dome Square, when it started raining again, so we dove into a bar and treated ourselves to hot cocktails – mine including the local delicacy, Balsam, and Melissa’s a rum based drink. We were eventually able to carry on our explorations, which was mainly finding somewhere for dinner and then finding a supermarket and buying some beers to drink in the room whilst watching films on TV.

The next morning, the sun had reappeared. We had breakfast, then headed off to the beach. The nearby resort of Jūrmala is home to 32km of white sandy beach, connecting 14 townships. We caught a train to the middle of the area and the town of Majori. From the station, it was an easy 5 min walk to the beach. It was a little windy on the c0ast and as neither of us are really beach people, we instead used our time to walk along the beach for a few km’s. At one point, we moved from the beach and into the forest just behind it and walked there. Eventually, we turned around and headed back the way we had come. We could see lots of beach bars, none of which were open but once we got back to where we started and went a little beyond, we then found a couple that were open. We popped into one for a couple of beers and a BBQ lunch, which was being cooked on the patio. We walked back into the town of Majori and down the main high street, a mixture of fancy and dilapidated houses. We walked as far as the next station, where we then caught the train back to Riga. In town, we stopped in another bar for a drink or two. For dinner we ended up in a restaurant with live music, although half the other diners seemed to be groupies for the band.

Our final full day was a little cloudy again, with the odd smattering of rain. To begin with, we headed away from the Old Town with our first stop being the Russian Orthodox Cathedral. As is the way, it was very elaborate. Then we went to the Quiet Centre. This is an area of town known for the Art Nouveau buildings that exist there. From here, we went onto one of the bridges that spans the Daugava River for views of the Rigan skyline. Next to the bridge is Riga Castle, the official residence of the Latvian President. From here, we stumbled across the Blackheads Museum. Built in 1344 as a fraternity home for German merchants, the original house was destroyed in 1948. However, the blueprints were found and an exact replica was built on the site at the start of this century. The house was known for wild parties and on Christmas Eve in 1510, a group of drunken residents, hauled a large pine tree to the house, covered it in flowers, then burned it to the ground. One part of this caught on and became tradition for them and eventually spread round the world. Now, there is a plaque outside the house marking the spot of the first ever decorated Christmas tree.

For lunch, we stopped in a local café to try soup in a bowl, a common menu item in this country, but this seemed the right weather for it. We then went to see Three Brothers – three colourful houses, the oldest over 600 years old, lined up in a row. They have tiny windows as property taxes in the middle ages were based on window size. Near the houses was a small café, so we popped in for a drink and some cake! We returned to the hotel for a short break, before heading out to dinner, once again with a live band for entertainment. This time, minus the groupies.

Our final morning with glorious sunshine once again, we headed first to the Opera House. It is situated in a park opposite our hotel, which also has the Freedom Monument and a canal winding through it. Outside the Opera House is a statue of a former mayor of Riga. Scottish by birth, George Armistead was Riga’s mayor during some very prosperous years in 1901 – 1912. He was mayor during the construction of many of the Art Nouveau buildings, an art museum, the introduction of the tram, the Central market and the water system. The statue was built in his honour and was unveiled by Queen Elizabeth II in 2006. We carried on to the Central Market, home to products from meat and fish to electronics and souvenirs. We then headed back to the Old Town to climb the tower of St Peter’s Cathedral, for a bird’s eye view of the city. After a light lunch, we went for an hour long boat ride along the canal and river. Once that had finished, we had just enough time for some more cake before heading to the airport and the plane home.


Summary

2019-07-01

Days: 9

Countries: 3

Cities visited (including daytrips): 6

Different sports watched live: 4

Flights taken: 4

Buses taken: 3

Trains taken: 4

Meals containing potato and/or dumplings: most

Different local beers tried: easily into double figures

Days with rain: 2

Days with glorious sunshine: 7


A Silk Road Adventure

2019-09-01

The Silk Road was a network of trade route connecting the East and the West for 3000 years until the 18th century. It allowed goods to be bought and sold, especially the lucrative silk after which the route takes is name. China had a monopoly on silk but it was heavily desired in Europe so in return the West would sell horses, ivory, furs and jade to the Chinese. Religion also made its way along the road as well as ideas such as science, philosophy and technologies such as paper and gun powder. The plague also spread along the road. The overland Silk Road stretched from Xian to Istanbul, a distance of 4000 miles, however maritime routes included Indonesia, India, the Arabian Peninsula and ended in Venice. The route began to decline after Vasco de Gama discovered a route around the Cape of Good Hope as sea travel was faster.

A caravan was a group of camels and traders, usually consisting of 5-12 camels tied together that could travel up to 30 miles per day. Situated about 30 miles apart were caravanserai’s, large guesthouses with resting places for animals and storerooms for goods.

Due to the Silk Road, many cities flourished during this time, such as Xian (China), Kashgar (China), Bukhara (Uzbekistan) and Merv (Turkmenistan). UNESCO have now designated a large part of the route as a World Heritage Site.

Why am I telling you this? Well, due to a large part of Central Asia opening up over the last few years, I am taking my first visit to the region. As it would take the average caravan 240 days to traverse the route, I am obviously not doing the full route. Instead, focusing on two countries in the region. Uzbekistan and Tajikistan.

Taking James with me, we are flying into Tashkent, arriving approx. 1am. After a few hours sleep and a shower, we will investigate the city before catching the 8.30pm overnight train to Khiva. One night in Khiva, before another train to the city of Bukhara where we will spend 3 nights. From here we are taking one of the new, Spanish built, high speed trains to Samarkand for 2 nights – a city synonymous with the Silk Road. We then catch another high speed train back to Tashkent where the first part of our adventure ends.  

Tajikistan does not have the same level of public transport, so here we have hired a car and driver. From Tashkent, we need to get a taxi to the border, cross over and then meet our driver. Our first night is in Khujand, followed by a night in Istaravshan. From here we head into the Fann Mountains, visiting the Seven Lakes, before ending up with 2 nights in Dushanbe, the capital.

We fly home via Istanbul where we have built in a 23 hour layover. I have visited the city before, but this will be a first time for James, the Hagia Sophia featuring high on his wish list. Then, after two weeks, we fly back to Gatwick.


Tashkent

2019-09-07 to 2019-09-08

In 2017, Uzbekistan welcomed 2.69m tourists, a number which had doubled to 4.4m during the first 9 months of 2018 with plans to increase this number to 9m by 2026. Approximately only 1000 of these visitors are British. Compare that to the 9m Brits who visit Spain each year and it’s fair to say that there aren’t many Brits heading to Tashkent, the capital. A large earthquake destroyed huge chunks of the city, which were then rebuilt in the brutalist Soviet style. The highlight of which is Hotel Uzbekistan. Many people slate the hotel, which used to have bugs in each room planted by the KGB, but I won’t hear a bad word against the place as it saved our bacon.

We flew Turkish Airlines from Gatwick to Tashkent via Istanbul, landing in Uzbekistan around 1am. We had heard many horror stories about the hours it could take to get out of the airport and the relentless hounding from the hordes of taxi drivers. We had heard that Uzbek officers search all electronic items for pornographic material (not an issue, just time consuming) and all medicines for any prohibited ingredients (many of which are perfectly legal in this country). As it turned out, immigration was a breeze, we were able to go through the green channel at customs as we had no medicines to declare and within half an hour we were out of the airport, straight past the hordes of taxi drivers and into the car of our pre-arranged hotel pickup.

We arrived at the hotel and were in bed before 2am, so although an 8.30 start the next day wasn’t early, it did mean we were still short of sleep. We showered, ate breakfast and then checked out where we asked the guy at reception where we could get some local money. The Uzbek Som (UZS) is a closed currency and so we couldn’t get any in advance and hadn’t seen a currency exchange at the airport. The receptionist helpfully informed us that we could change USD at the banks. I checked with him that they would be open on a Sunday and he said “no”. So that put the kibosh on that! We asked him what we could do to get money, were there ATM’s or exchange places and were told “no, no”. He checked the hotel money, but since the rooms are paid for in USD, there was barely any Som. He checked with the next door hotel but they had no money either. Eventually, he gave us about $20 worth of Som out of his own wallet and said we’d sort it out later on that day, as we had to return to pick up our bags.

We left the hotel and headed out to explore. Many of the main streets were wide avenues but with not many cars on them, possibly because it was Sunday. After about 10 mins walking, we stumbled onto a square with a couple of statues of astronauts on it and we quickly realised this was the entrance to the Kosmonavtlar metro station. Tashkent metro is known to have stations in a similar vein to those in Moscow i.e. incredibly elaborate and photo worthy, but we wouldn’t be going down into the station just yet.

We carried on to Amir Temur Square. Temur is widely regarded as one of the world’s greatest military leaders, especially in Uzbekistan where he was largely based and had his capital city. In the centre of the square is a large statue of the man himself, backed by the aforementioned Hotel Uzbekistan. It really is something to behold, but what that something is we are not quite sure. It is a beige coloured, rounded building with bars in front of all the windows. On a brainwave, we thought our best hope of local currency was a fancy hotel, which this still is, so we went inside where we found a conversion machine. Put in your USD and in return it gives you UZS. Suddenly, we were much relieved as we had our own money to do with as we pleased! Thank goodness for the Hotel Uzbekistan.

We left the hotel and headed towards the train station. En route, we found a small restaurant where we stopped for lunch. They spoke no English, we spoke no Uzbek and basically no Russian but, thanks to a picture menu, we managed to order ourselves two dumpling soup dishes, bread and chai for lunch. This was also our first view of Uzbek bread. Usually circular in shape, every region has different bread made of different dough types, with different designs embedded into it. From here, we carried on to the Railway Museum, home to many old soviet locomotives which could be clambered on and into. They were absolutely huge, many with wheels that were bigger than James, who himself is more than 6ft.

By this point, it was time to investigate the metro stations. From the main Tashkent train station metro, we headed to Chorsu, home to the country’s most famous bazaar. Under a green domed roof, you can buy all sorts of food inside the market as well as other everyday essentials. For us, we went for some bread and water! Whilst returning to the hotel, we got off at Kosmonavtlar station, widely regarded as the best decorated metro station. Shades of blue and portraits of various astronauts kept us occupied for a while whilst we tried to identify them. The station also seemed to be a popular stop for tour groups and guides. Until about a year ago, you were not permitted to take photos on the metro or of the stations, but thanks to the current President’s mission to relax the country, clicking away is now perfectly allowed. And all of this costs the pair of us less than 25p per journey. Bargain!

We returned to the hotel, where we were able to easily reimburse the receptionist the money he had lent us and relax for an hour or so. Then we were back on the metro, followed by a 20 min walk to Tashkent South train station from where we were departing on our overnight train to Khiva. There are three classes of cabin: 3rd class full of bunks but no privacy, 2nd class with 4 person enclosed cabins and 1st class with two person lockable cabins. We had treated ourselves to first class as it wasn’t that expensive and we knew we would be knackered and so wanted the best possible opportunity to get a decent night’s sleep. At one end of the cabin, was a toilet. At the other end was our carriage manager and a hot water machine. We left bang on time at 8.30, ate some snacks we had brought for the journey, made up the beds and crashed for the night.


Khiva

2019-09-09

According to legend, Khiva was founded by one of Noah’s sons, when he found a well here. For a while, the town was on a side branch of the Silk Road. However, once Timur had finished off the nearby town of Konye-Urgench then Khiva began to prosper. It ran a busy slave market of mostly Turkmen slaves involving some barbaric cruelty. These days it is one of Uzbekistan’s Big 3 stops – a city preserved within walls, with four entrance gates to the north, south, east and west of the city.

Two years ago when I first started planning for this trip, Khiva was very inaccessible. No train station, no bus station. The closest of each was located in Urgench, some 35km away. However, in those two years the train line has been extended to Khiva and a brand new station built along with a new train line across the desert to Bukhara, saving on a 7-8 hour bumpy shared taxi ride. The line is also in the process of being electrified for use by the high speed trains but for now we had to settle for old Soviet trains.

I slept fairly well on our overnight train, waking just a couple of times. By morning, we were in the middle of the desert – sand everywhere we could see. It was another 3 hours until we arrived in Khiva, where conveniently the new station is only a short walk from the east gate of Ichon Kala – the name given to the walled inner city of Khiva and an UNESCO World Heritage Site. Inside are numerous medressa’s, Islamic schools now used as museums, and minarets. We had to pay entry into the city but the ticket would also give us entry into all the sites within the city too.

Our first priority was to find our accommodation. We had booked a B&B inside the city walls and when we arrived it appeared we had booked an entire suite. We had a bedroom, bathroom, kitchen and huge living area. We took a shower then headed out to see the city, via a stop for some lunch. I had dill noodles with a stew on top whilst James had a sort of flat dumpling, whilst we shared a basket of bread. We also ordered a Fanta each and were given a full 1.5l bottle, something that would become a theme throughout the trip.

When we left the restaurant we went first to the Islom-Hoja Minaret. At 57m tall, it is the highest minaret in Khiva, built only in 1910. To get to the top, we had to climb approximately 120 steps, up a spiral staircase where the steps were steep and uneven, to the top. From the small observation point at the top, we could see over the whole of Ichon Kala, down to the train station and so far to the south, we reckon it would have been Turkmenistan. The climb down was much harder due to the height of the steps.

At the bottom, we went next door into the Islom-Hoja Medressa which is now the Museum of Applied Arts. The exhibits inside were example of traditional wood and metalwork plus textiles although nothing seemed to be more than 200 years old, a bit odd when the city itself was over 2000 years old.

We next headed to the Kalta Minor Minaret. This is a fat, stumpy minaret that was begun in 1851 by Mohammed Amin Khan who wanted a minaret so tall he would be able to see all the way to Bukhara. However, the Khan died in 1855 and so the minaret was not finished, contributing to its rather stumpy look. It is a striking feature, as the blue of the tiling contrasts to the yellowy, sandy look of most of the rest of the city.

During some more explorations of the city, we saw numerous medressa’s that have been turned into fancy looking hotels and then we went into another one that has become the Museum of History. After walking a little around the city walls we arrived back at our hotel where we chilled for a couple of hours, then headed out for dinner. We found a small restaurant with a good, outdoor terrace looking over the city and in particular Kalta Minor minaret. The dinner ended with a free shot of very strong vodka, then we headed off round the city again as both the minarets and a few of the medressa’s were lit up.


Bukhara

2019-09-10 to 2019-09-12

In 1839, Colonel Charles Stoddart arrived in Bukhara to reassure the Emir of Bukhara about Britain’s invasion of Afghanistan. However, he arrived with no gifts and with a letter from the Governor General of India and not from Queen Victoria. The egotistical Emir considered the Queen his equal and was affronted. To make matters worse, Stoddart violated local protocol by riding up to the Ark, the Emir’s residence, rather than walking. The Emir had him thrown into jail, where he spent most of his time in the “bug pit”, full of all sorts of rodents and creatures.

In 1841, Captain Arthur Conolly arrive to try to secure Stoddart’s release. But the Emir believed him to be part of a British plot with the Khan’s of Khiva and Kokand and so threw him in jail too. Soon the British were retreating from Kabul and the Emir had not received a reply to his letter to Queen Victoria and so he believed that Britain was a second rate power. On 24 June 1842, Stoddart and Conolly were marched out from their cells, made to dig their own graves and were then beheaded.

Despite outrage back in Britain, the government let the matter go. Friends and family of the men raised the money to send a clergyman named Joseph Wolff to Bukhara to verify what had happened. He himself only escaped death as the Emir found him hilarious dressed up in his full clerical regalia. There are many lessons we can learn from this – always bring a present, walk to the front door and, if in doubt, wear clergyman clothes!

Bukhara is often dubbed as Central Asia’s holiest city, with over 140 protected buildings, many of which have stood for centuries. The city used to consist of a network of canals and stone pools, where stagnant water meant that plague was a common problem. The majority of these have long since disappeared with just Lyabi Hauz remaining at the centre of the city.

We arrived in Bukhara after a 6 hour train journey on the new line from Khiva. The majority of the journey had given us views of desert as we skirted around the Turkmenistan border. We arrived in Bukhara and were collected by a free pick up from our hotel. Once we got to the hotel, they told us that due to sickness of a previous guest, our room was not yet vacated and so we would need to spend a night in a different hotel. Once this was all sorted, we were able to sort ourselves out and then got out for a slow wander around town. For the first time this trip, we were spending multiple nights in the same town and so we had no rush. We saw numerous Medressa’s that we would explore closer over the coming days and also a small bazaar. For dinner, we found a restaurant that had a rooftop terrace so we could sit and watch the sunset. They also kindly provided blankets as the temperature dropped sharply once the sun had gone down.

The next morning, we first had to move back to the hotel we were supposed to be in, where we also got our first proper breakfast of the trip. We then went first to Lyabi Hauz, which now is surrounded on three sides by cafes and also has plastic camels in tribute to the caravans that used to plough the Silk Road. Next to the camels is a statue of Hoja Nasruddin, a semi-mythical “wise fool” who would tell teaching tales around the world. Behind Nasruddin, is the Nadir Divanbegi Medressa, built as a caravanserai but the Khan thought it better suited as a Medressa.

We then went beyond the small bazaar towards the Kalon Minaret and Mosque. These are in a square along with the Mir-i-Arab Medressa. As a square, it was spectacular. The Kalon Minaret was built in 1127 and at the time was probably the tallest building in Central Asia. It is 47m high with 10m foundations that can withstand earthquakes. It had 14 bands, each different, including a band of blue tiles at the top, the first use of such tiles that are now commonplace across the Silk Road. According to legend, Arslan Khan had a quarrel with an imman and killed him. In a dream that night the imman told him to lay his head where no one would tread. Thus Khan built a tower. When Chinggis Khan was ransacking his way through the region, it is said he was so dumbfounded by the beauty of the minaret that he spared it from being destroyed. It is also known as the Tower of Death because criminals would be executed by being thrown from the top.

The Kalon Mosque was built by Chinggis Khan in the 16th century. It is big enough to hold 10,000 worshippers but was used as warehouse in Soviet times, reopening as a place of worship in 1991. Opposite is Mir-i-Arab Medressa, named after a 16th century sheikh from Yemen. Inside you can only get as far as the foyer as it is still a working school. However, you can enter the Mosque which has a large courtyard with buildings on all four sides. One side is looking particularly treacherous and like it might collapse at any moment and has been roped off. All buildings were decorated with intricate designs and it was a stunning place to sit and watch the world passing by.

From here, we headed to the infamous Ark, which is now largely a museum, with a series of exhibits, as well as a mosque. It was built around the 5th century and was most recently used as a fortress until 1920 when it was bombed by the Russians. Around the outside of the Ark are large walls of about 16-20m high which enclose an area of almost 4 hectares. The walls contain bulges every 20m or so, to help protect against invaders.

We left the Ark and stopped at a restaurant opposite for lunch. There were a large number of locals in there so we were optimistic of a good meal, but the service was so shoddy, the food was very average and we spent half the meal being attacked by an over-inflated wasp. From here, we went to the Tower of Bukhara, formerly Shukhov water tower, which has been restored as a tourist attraction with very slow lift and viewing platform. From the top, we had clear views across the Ark and to the centre of Bukhara, the Kalon minaret, mosque and Mir-i-Arab. That evening, we had dinner at a restaurant next to Lyabi Hauz, complete with local live music.

The following morning, we were both feeling a little under the weather and so decided to take it easy. The morning we headed to Chor Minor, which literally translates to “4 minarets”. It was formerly the gatehouse to a long-gone Medressa built in 1807. The minarets are more of small towers than actual minarets one of which has a staircase to the roof. The building looks rather quaint, but inside was just a souvenir shop and they were charging for access to the roof. We headed to the bazaar for a spot of shopping then returned to the hotel for a quiet afternoon resting. In the evening, we decided to go and see the Ark and Kalon minaret lit up and bought ourselves an ice lolly for dinner. Back at the hotel, they offered beer, wine and cognac free of charge so we took a beer each deciding that the alcohol would kill whatever little bug we had picked up. 


Samarkand, Tashkent

2019-09-13 to 2019-09-15

Nothing is as evocative on the Silk Road as the name Samarkand. Loved by Timur and a centre for Islamic study, the city is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world and has taken on a mythical status in Western imagination. Samarkand was a popular trading centre before being sacked by Chinggis Khan in 1220 but refound itself and was named capital by Timur in 1370 and over the next 35 years it became a cultural and economic centre. When ruled by Timur’s grandson Ulugbek, the city also became an intellectual centre too.

We were heading to Samarkand in the afternoon, so had a morning free. We were feeling much better and so studied the guidebook to see what else we wanted to see before leaving Bukhara. We wanted to visit the Ulugbek Medressa, the oldest in Central Asia and the one that all other Medressa’s were based on. When we got there, we realised that we had in fact already seen it on the first day but as every map we had seen had it located in slightly different places, we had not realised.

From here, we went to Zindon – the prison associated with the Ark and home to the bug pit that Stoddart and Conolly were held in. The prison was much smaller than we had expected, with just 4 rooms. Most would have held prisoners who had only stolen bread, but the bug pit had the two most famous prisoners. It was small and underneath one of the rooms – we could only peer in from above. There would have been no windows, with the only light coming from above.

That afternoon, we were off to Samarkand on the relatively new, Spanish built, high speed Afrosiyob train. It was super comfy, with oodles of leg room and covered the 256km in an hour and a half instead of the 5 hours previously. When we arrived in Samarkand we caught a taxi to our hotel, where we did some laundry and then headed out for dinner. For the first time this trip, we were able to try Plov – the traditional rice based dish, similar to Pilau. On our walk back to the hotel, we could see the top of the Registan, Samarkand’s, and Uzbekistan’s, most famous Silk Road building.

The next morning, after a brief money exchange stop, we headed to the Gur-e-Amir Mausoleum. Timur himself lies here, as well as two sons and two grandsons, including Ulugbek, plus a few of Timur’s favourite teachers. Supposedly, Timur had this Mausoleum built for his grandson and a separate one in Shakhrisabz but when he died suddenly of pneumonia in Kazakhstan, the passes back to Shakhrisabz were snowed in and so he was interred in Samarkand instead.

According to legend, there is an inscription on Timur’s grave stating that “whoever opens this will be defeated by an enemy more fearsome than I”. In 1941, a Soviet anthropologist opened the tomb and confirmed that Timur was lame in his right leg and that Ulugbek was beheaded. The next day, 22nd June, Hitler attacked the Soviet Union. The inside of the Mausoleum was intricately beautiful, with a domed roof above the 9 markers of the tombs, covered in gold.

From here, we walked past the Rukhobod Mausoluem towards the Registan. The word Registan refers to the square in which stands three Medressa’s. Each one distinctly unique from the other two. Ulugbek Medressa is the oldest and is on the left as you look at the Registan, finished in 1420 and is said to have been a place to learn maths, theology, astronomy and philosophy. In the middle is Tilla-Kari Medressa, completed in 1660, who’s ceiling is flat but the design is tapered to look like domed from the inside. On the right as you look at them is Sher Dor Medressa, completed in 1636 and decorated with lions, flouting Islamic rules against the depiction of live animals.

You could go inside all three Medressa’s, which all had a courtyard inside them. From the courtyard, you could access small rooms inside the Medressa, presumably rooms once used for teaching but now just used for selling souvenirs. It was a little disappointing and made the Medressa’s feel overrun with touts. Inside Ulugbek, there was also a small staircase that took you up onto the first floor with views over the whole courtyard.

In the afternoon, we visited the Siob bazaar, to see what was being sold – largely fruit and veg, plus some electronics and clothing. For dinner, our hotel had recommended us a restaurant that did shashlik and given us directions to that restaurant. Unfortunately, we did not have a name. After 25 mins walking down the road they told us, we gave up and returned to the centre and ate in the same restaurant as the previous night. After dinner, we went back to the Registan to see it all lit up. It was definitely even prettier in the dark.

On our final full day in Uzbekistan, we went first to the museum of Afrosiab, the site of the original town of Samarkand. Next to the museum is some scrubland, where the buildings used to sit, but it is hard to make anything out now. On the walk back into the new town, we passed a Jewish cemetery and a mausoleum to former president (dictator) Kharimov. He died in 2016 and it was his successor who has opened up the country to tourists. Round the corner from his mausoleum was Shah-i-Zinda – a whole host of mausoleums built by Amir Timur for his family. All were decorated in blue tiles which shimmered in the sunlight. It is also thought to contain the grave of Qusam ibn-Abbas, a cousin of the Prophet Mohammed who is said to have brought Islam to the region.

We stopped for lunch, then headed into Bibi Khanym Mosque. Legend says that Bibi Khanym, Timur’s wife, ordered the Mosque to be built as a surprise for him but the architect fell in love with her and refused the job unless he could give her a kiss. The kiss left a mark, after which Timur executed the architect and ordered all women to wear a veil so as not to tempt men. These days, the mosque is largely in a state of disrepair. The main mosque is in front of you as you enter but there are two smaller mosques on either side, one of which has been restored.

We returned to the hotel in order to catch a taxi to the station. Here we caught the Afrosiyob train for two and a quarter hours back to Tashkent. We were given snacks for the journey as it was over dinner time and when we arrived back in Tashkent, we walked to our hotel where we crashed for the night.


Khujand, Penjakent

2019-09-16 to 2019-09-17

They say that 93% of Tajikistan is mountainous and that more than half of the country is above 3000m. The majority of these peaks can be found near the Afghan border in the Pamirs. This is supposedly one of the most beautiful road trips in the world. But you need at least 2 weeks, a four wheel drive and a lot of patience. Slightly closer to Uzbekistan, are the Fann Mountains, not as high but still stunningly beautiful and punctuated with lakes. I had wanted to see some of the natural beauty of Central Asia alongside the man-made beauty and so we had planned to spend the second part of our trip in Tajikistan.

However, Tajikistan is not as set up for tourism as Uzbekistan is. No buses, no trains and definitely no high speed trains! So we had used a local travel agent (the same one who got us our Uzbek train tickets) and they had arranged a car with a driver for us, who would meet us at the border.

From Tashkent, we caught a taxi to the border and said goodbye to one of only two doubly landlocked countries in the world (the other being Liechtenstein). We had been told that the drive would take two hours and to allow one hour for border formalities. As it happened, the drive took one and a half hours, whilst the formalities took us less than 30 minutes. This meant that we were in Tajikistan one hour earlier than planned! Luckily, our car was already waiting for us, with both a driver and a guide. I had somewhat assumed they would be the same person. The guide was Syed and the driver was a gentleman with a name we were never able to pronounce, let alone spell, and who didn’t speak any English.

Our stop that night was the town of Khujand, Tajikistan’s second city, and capital of the province of Sugd. Formerly known as Leninabad, it is over 2,500 years old. We arrived at our hotel by midday and found we basically had a four roomed suite – bedroom, bathroom, kitchen and living area. After dumping our bags, we headed to out for lunch. We found that the food was similar to Uzbekistan, unsurprisingly. Meals were based around soup, salad and shashlik with a basket of bread. The bread wasn’t quite as unique as Uzbek bread, but was still worth plenty of photos.

After lunch, we headed first to the bank in order to change some money. We were then going to head to the National History Museum, but being a Monday it was closed. Instead we visited the Kamil Khujand Park next door, which stretched down to the river and which contained a large statue of Kamil Khojandi, a Persian poet born in the area and loved across the country. It also contained a cable car across the river, but it was turned off and not in use. We then visited the small Masjidi Jame Mosque, most notable for the number of pigeons outside, being chased by many small children, followed by the Panjshanbe bazaar opposite. This literally translates to Thursday bazaar as the market used to only be open on Thursdays.

After a rest back at the hotel, we headed out for dinner. In what would become a theme, our driver did not join us for any meals, preferring instead to sit on a separate table on his own. Our guide would order with us, but disappear off to check on him once or twice during the meal. After dinner, we were driven back to the park where the cable car was now working. Apparently it is too hot to operate it during the day so it is only open from 6-9am and from 7pm to midnight when it is cooler. The journey across the river took a full 25 which, given the proximity of the nearest bridge, was possibly longer than walking. It dropped us in Somoni Park, on the north bank of the river. The park used to be called Lenin Park and have a huge statue of Lenin, but this has now been discreetly moved to another location and replaced with a statue of Ismail Somoni, the founder of Tajikistan, then renamed Somoni Park. The park also contains a number of intricate mosaics depicting cultural and historical events. One of the mosaics bore a striking resemblance to Romulus and Remus suckling from the she-wolf in Roman mythology. Eventually, we returned to the hotel and called it a night.

Our first stop the next morning was to head to the Sugd Historical Museum that we had missed out on yesterday. The museum is built inside the walls of the former citadel and contains lots of information about Alexander the Great who built a city here.

From here, we were leaving Khujand. Originally, our itinerary had us overnighting in Istaravshan, before a long drive the next day to the Fann Mountains. Syed recommended changing that and overnighting in Penjakent which was much closer to the mountains. We were happy with this and so our morning drive took us to Istaravshan, where we drove past the former citadel of Mug Teppe, before visiting Hauz-i-Sangin Mosque and Abdullatif Sultan Medressa. Our final stop in the city was the local bazaar and before lunch we were done with the town and very grateful to have taken Syed’s advice.

We drove for another 30 mins before stopping for lunch at a roadside café. From here we were heading deep into the mountains, surrounding us on both sides. The road spent a lot of time clinging to the cliff edge. We also went through a number of tunnels, none of which were the infamous Anzob tunnel, which we would pass through in a couple of days, but the longest of which was a full 5km.

After 3 hours, we arrived in Penjakent, chilled at the hotel for a bit then went out for dinner. I had the most delicious chicken with cheese meal that was big enough to feed a family. Then we returned to the hotel, where we think we were the only guests but which had, apparently, been full the previous night. Not sure if that made us lucky or unlucky! 


Haf Kul

2019-09-18

According to Tajik legend, there was once a smith who had 7 beautiful daughters. The local governor saw the youngest daughter and instantly fell in love. He wanted to marry her and the father agreed, but the daughter was not happy. She insisted she would only marry him if he built her the most beautiful gold palace, a palace she was convinced could not be built. However, inspired by his love for her, the governor built the palace inside 40 days. The daughter realised that she now had to marry him and on her wedding day, in her wedding dress, she threw herself from the palace to her death. Mizhgon Lake appeared in that place. Her sisters sat down and began to cry and their tears each formed a lake. This created a chain of 7 beautiful lakes.

We left our hotel in Penjakent and headed to the bazaar and then to the Rudaki Historical museum. Abu Abdullah Rudaki is often described as the father of Persian poetry and his poems are loved across the whole country. The museum contains a selection of items found in the area and as nearby Sarazm, as well as an interesting collection of taxidermy. Our next stop was the site of Ancient Penjakent, high on a hill that overlooked modern Penjakent. Not much is left of what was already there as even that which has been excavated has been ravaged by the rain and snow. Ancient Penjakent was a bustling town in the 5th to 8th centuries, one of the most cosmopolitan cities on the Silk Road. The frescoes that remain here, once in a palace but now in the small museum, show dancing girls in bright colours.

After an early lunch, we set off for Haf Kul. The names literally translates to seven lakes and is a string of lakes of beautifully coloured lakes, surrounded by mountains. En route we passed a number of mines, including a gold mine before ending up on unpaved roads and being thrown around somewhat in our car. The chain of lakes stretched for around 20km, with the elevation of each lake higher than the last. The first lake is at 1,598m all the way to lake seven which is at 2,400m asl. All the lakes are linked together with a small stream from one to the next and they vary in colour due to the mineral content in the lake.

The first lake, Mizhgon, is a deep blue colour and the darkest of all the lakes. Lake two, Soya, translates to Shade and is turquoise in colour. Hushyor, the name of lake three, translates to vigilant due to the number of poisonous snakes in the area, which thankfully we didn’t see. It is blue. The fourth lake, Nofin, translates to middle, for obvious reasons! This is the second longest lake from end to end, stretching 2km with a width of 400m and is a greenish colour. The fifth lake, Khurdak, is the smallest lake and also one of the clearest. It is quite shallow so you can see the bottom for some distance. Lake six, Marguzor, also gives its name to the chain, which is sometimes known as the Marguzor lakes. This is the biggest, is 4.5km in length and is a bright blue colour. It is also the deepest lake reaching depths of 45m. The final lake, Hazorchashma, means one thousand springs due to the large number of springs and streams which feed into it. It is also the only lake which you cannot reach by road. Instead, you must hike from the 6th lake, a round trip of an hour. Again, it is a very clear lake and shallow at the edges. For me, the 7th lake was my favourite.

We walked back to lake six, where we then drove down to lake four. Here, is a small network of homestays and one would be our accommodation for the night. The food was simple, but plentiful and tasty. It was super quiet in the evening, with no outside noise or interference. And once it got dark, the sky was lit up with thousands of stars. We could clearly see the Milky Way and James did his best attempt at star spotting, although largely unsuccessfully.


Iskanderkul, Dushanbe

2019-09-19 to 2019-09-20

Formerly known as Stalinabad and now named “Monday” after the Monday bazaar, the capital of Tajikistan is Dushanbe. It is still only a small city, with less than a million inhabitants, and was a small village until the 1920’s. During the last 100 years, Dushanbe has seen a lot from the arrival of the railroad, being made capital of Soviet Tajik, huge numbers of immigrants during and after WWII and riots following the collapse of the Soviet Union. Nowadays, the city’s wide avenues and mountain vistas give an altogether more peaceful demeanour.

We awoke in our tranquil settings and had a porridge breakfast before heading off back past lakes 4 to 1 and down the very bumpy track for an hour and a half to the main road. From here, it was back on the tarmac until we reached the Khujand – Dushanbe road and we turned towards the latter.

After lunch at a roadside café, we turned off the main road and onto another unpaved road for 45 minutes until we reached Iskanderkul Lake. It was absolutely stunning, possibly better than any of yesterday’s lakes. It is named after Alexander the Great – Iskander meaning Alexander and Kul meaning Lake. The lake is glacier formed with incredibly clear water and once again was backed by mountains. Nearby was a small waterfall that we visited briefly but was seemingly overrun by people trying to do an Instagram photoshoot.

We headed the 45 mins back to the main road and then set about on the 3 hour journey into Dushanbe. En route, we passed through the infamous Anzob Tunnel. The tunnel requires some explanation. With the number of mountains, there are often times that the road passes through a tunnel. Most of these tunnels are basic but largely safe. The Anzob Tunnel, however, has gained its nickname as the “tunnel of death” due to being a 5km long, pot-holed, un-lit, badly ventilated death trap. There would be metal spikes sticking out of the sides, which you couldn’t see and there was a layer of liquid on the floor that made it slippery. Basically, if you had an accident in there the chances were you weren’t making it out alive. Even if you survived the initial crash and even if you managed to walk from your vehicle to the tunnel edge without being hit by another vehicle, the chances are that the toxic air would actually kill you.

But in the last few years, they renovated it. The pot-holes are mostly gone along with the slippery base. The ventilation has been slightly improved and the first 2.5km has been lit. Barely. And there are still no lane markings. So in we went, with some trepidation not entirely sure what to expect. The first half isn’t too bad although the lights don’t really give much help. But by the second half it is literally pitch black in the tunnel. Vehicles are in various states of roadworthiness and so headlights and brake lights are of varying degrees. The best technique is almost to tailgate someone through the tunnel and follow their brake lights. Unfortunately, the people who entered in front of us were going much faster and soon we could no longer see their brake lights. So we continued in pure darkness, punctuated occasionally by headlights coming the other way. I don’t know how many times our driver had been through that tunnel before but he didn’t seem as terrified by it all as us.

You would assume that in this state of utter inability to see, overtaking would be an obvious no. You would be wrong. We were overtaken a few times by people going faster than us. Towards the end of the tunnel we were being tailgated by another car and both of us were being overtaken by crazy people. With maybe about a km to go, we saw two sets of headlights coming towards us. Two cars travelling in the opposite direction, one overtaking the other. The first car finished the overtaking with some space to go but then suddenly there was another car overtaking that must have finished overtaking and gotten back onto its side of the road with only millimetres to go and only after a sharp braking by our driver. Absolutely crazy driving. Luckily, we were soon out of the hellhole and declined the opportunity to have a “we survived the Anzob Tunnel” photo!

The rest of the journey passed without incident and we arrived in Dushanbe and went straight for dinner. We then headed to the hotel, where they had lost our booking but Syed got it resolved fairly quickly and we could settle down for a decent night’s sleep.

The next morning, our last full day in Tajikistan, we had breakfast then headed out for a city tour. Our first stop was the Museum of Antiquities which contained many items found throughout Tajikistan, including the Princess of Sarazm and a Buddha, believed to date from 500AD, and dug up from Ajina Teppe in the 60’s. The Soviets then cut it into 92 pieces in order to transport it.

We visited the Central Mosque, the old mosque in the city. There is a new one being built on the other side of the river that dominated the view from our hotel room but this older one was stunning if small. We then visited the bazaar. The original Monday bazaar from which the city got its name has been moved to a new location indoors and now operates every day. It was much more organised than the other bazaars we’d visited with specific sections for each area – fruit and veg, meat, clothes, spices etc.

We then visited three parks that were side by side. The first had a large statue of Ismail Somoni outside of it, whilst the second was named after Rudaki and had fountains down the middle of it. The final park, Flagpole Park, contains the world’s second highest flag. The pole is 160m high with a 60 x 30m flag and was built to commemorate 20 years of independence. When it was built, it was the highest flagpole in the world but since then Baku has built one 5m higher and taken the title.

We stopped for lunch next to the river, before heading to the palace in the afternoon. It’s not an actual palace, more of a conference centre with cinema but is called the palace. We got to see the inside of 4 very impressive rooms, closed to the public, that are usually used for Government meetings or banquets. All had chandeliers and exquisitely made furniture. Wood and marble everywhere. Even the anteroom was a floor to ceiling mirrored room with the flags of 6 Asian countries embedded in. The rooms would certainly make an impression on any visiting dignitaries. The final room on the ground floor could be hired out by the public and was being set up for a wedding the next day.

Our final stop was the Museum of Instruments, which was a little odd to say the least. It was basically in some guy’s house and he had two rooms decorated with instruments he had found from all over the world. He gave us a demo of some of the more traditional Tajik ones. That evening we had our final dinner with Syed and, as per every other meal, our driver declined the offer to sit with us and sat on his own at a neighbouring table.


Istanbul

2019-09-21 to 2019-09-22

The meeting point of East and West, with a portion of the city in both Europe and Asia, Istanbul is one of the top 10 most visited cities in the world. Our flight back from Dushanbe was due to connect in Istanbul and we had built in a 23 hour layover so that we would have some time to explore.

Our flight was early morning, so we were up at 2am and left the hotel at 2.30 to head to the airport, where we said goodbye to Syed and our driver. Our flight was delayed by an hour but we were eventually on our way. We arrived in Istanbul, where we caught a taxi from the airport to our hotel. Istanbul has built a new airport this year, which is much further away from the city. Our taxi then got stuck in traffic and so it took us about an hour and a half to get through it. Once at the hotel, we could have a quick shower, before heading out to explore. The first priority was lunch, pide (a pizza type dish) and kebab followed by baklava then we went to the bazaar. We got slightly lost en route but found an entrance and then wandered around all the stalls, happily getting lost once inside.

From the bazaar, we headed to the Blue Mosque, officially known as Sultan Ahmed Mosque, but given its moniker due to the blue tiles on the inside walls. The Mosque is undergoing some renovations and is still a working Mosque, so is closed during Prayer times. There were large queues to get in and we found some people being very disrespectful once inside. Apparently getting a good photo for your Instagram feed is more important than respecting the rules around wearing a head covering or not putting your shoes on inside.

From the Blue Mosque, we headed over to the Hagia Sophia. Built as a Greek Orthodox church, later converted to a Ottoman Mosque and now used as a museum. Again there were some renovations going on inside plus large queues but we were able to get inside and admire the incredible decorations and mosaics under high ceilings.

We returned to the hotel for an hour to sort out our bags, then went off to find dinner near the hotel. Lots of hummus and cacik with pitta plus more kebabs.

The next morning we had another early start, but a much quicker 20 min transfer to the airport. The flight was on time but once we landed at Gatwick, we sat on the tarmac for 40 mins waiting for another airline to push back from the gate so that we could deplane. Finally we got inside the terminal where immigration was a breeze but baggage became a nightmare. Most of the bags came off but there was 10-15 of us still waiting. Eventually someone went to ask where our bags were and was told 5 mins. That came and went. Another person was told that our bags were waiting for us just by the carousel but that they needed someone to place them on it. After an hour of waiting it became my turn to go and ask what was going on and I was told that maybe there was an issue with the place and maybe our bags must have been in the second hold, and maybe they couldn’t get the door to that hold open and possibly our bags were still on the plane. In other words, baggage services didn’t have a clue. We waited some more then someone checked the departures board and realised that the plane had already departed to head back to Istanbul. So all 15 of us went en masse to the baggage services area to ask what the hell was going on. They told us they now had the bags in their possession and they would be on the carousel in 5 mins. After 10 mins, the first bag suddenly appeared, cue massive cheers from us and strange looks from the neighbouring carousels. 2.5 hours after wheels hit the tarmac and, frankly, 2 hours after I could have been home and we were finally able to leave the airport and head home.


Summary

2019-09-23

Days: 16

Countries visited: 3

Planes: 4

Trains: 4

Automobiles: 1 (excluding taxis)

Silk Road cities visited: 4

Lakes visited: 8

Inches of Uzbek Som when converting $50: 2

Meals involving bread: All of them

Variations of design on the bread: Many


A Covid-19 Holiday

2020-08-25

Back in January, James and I booked ourselves a lovely fortnight in Greece over Easter. A week on the mainland, followed by a week on Crete. Marvellous. Well, as we all know, 2020 has been an interesting year. The original holiday was cancelled about three weeks before we were due to leave and we postponed it to September. We considered going in June instead, but decided we’d give things a few months longer to settle down and get back to normal. Oh, how naïve we were!

Anyway, with four days to go, it seems that we might actually get further than walking distance from our house for only the second time in six months. We have spent 6 months working from home, heading only to the small Tesco Express for food, or to the park for exercise. We did manage to move house just two weeks ago which has made trying to pack, when we haven’t yet fully unpacked, quite a challenge.

Right now, a holiday is just what the Doctor ordered. A bit of sun, sea, relaxation, good food and exploration. We fly at 6am from Gatwick to Thessaloniki in northern Greece. We have completed our PLF forms giving all our information for Track and Trace purposes. From here, we pick up a hire car. We will visit Meteora, Delphi and Olympia before arriving in Athens on Wednesday. We are hoping that tourist numbers will be well down and we may get to see some of the major sites without the crowds. After a few nights in Athens, we will take the overnight ferry to Heraklion, where we will stay for almost a week, exploring the island. Then we will return to Gatwick, hopefully without the need to quarantine for two weeks but given the speed everything is changing, anything is possible.


Holidaying in a pandemic

2020-08-29 to 2020-09-12

“So, what was it like? Was it worth it?” The most commonly asked question since returning from holiday. And they don’t mean Greece. Holidaying in a pandemic is a new experience for all of us and no one really knows what to expect until they have done it. So what was it like? And was it worth it? Well I can only speak from my experience flying with EasyJet from London Gatwick to Greece.

Our flight was at 5.55am which meant a taxi from home to the airport at 3.30am. From the moment we locked our front door, to the moment we close the hotel door on arrival at our hotel in Thessaloniki, we wore masks. Close to 8 hours. Everyone in the airport was wearing a mask. Everyone on the plane had to wear a mask from passengers to cabin crew. We had to take it off briefly at immigration upon arrival, but that was for all of 3 seconds before we put it back on. During the safety briefing we were reminded that we had to wear masks at all times. There was also an added line in the briefing, when talking about oxygen masks telling people to “remove their face mask or covering before putting on the oxygen mask”.

There was additional paperwork to complete at for entry into both Greece and the UK. The Passenger Locator Form (PLF) is compulsory for most countries at the moment. It assists the authorities with Track and Trace and also tells them where you will be isolating, if there is a mandatory period. The PLF for Greece is one per household and was checked before boarding the plane at Gatwick and also between immigration and baggage reclaim in Thessaloniki. This is also where they may randomly select passengers for a covid test, but we did not have to. The PLF for the UK is one per adult and can only be filled out in the 48 hours before arrival into the UK. It was not checked before boarding and no one checked it at Gatwick. Given that the rules on self-isolating changed whilst we were away meaning that we would have to quarantine for two weeks upon arrival in the UK, I found this very unexpected. I also do not expect anyone to actually check up on us to ensure that we are self-isolating.

Out and about in Greece, we noticed differences between the mainland and Crete. In the country as a whole, it is compulsory to wear a mask when going inside a building, for example a shop, museum or a hotel. However, on the mainland very few people were wearing them outdoors, whereas on Crete almost everyone was wearing one outdoors as well. Obviously you are allowed to remove your mask if eating or drinking indoors. Most restaurants would have hand gel on the tables for patrons to use and all waiting staff were wearing masks or face visors. Generally speaking, people were very good at maintaining social distancing. Masks are also mandatory on public transport, whether that is the metro in Athens, or a ferry between islands. If you are taking a ferry, you will again have to fill in a health screening form to assist in the event of Track and Trace.

For us arriving in Greece, we were not obligated to quarantine. Obviously, this is subject to change at any time, as is any quarantine on return to the UK. In fact, these requirements changed on us whilst we were away. Halfway through our trip, and about 8 hours after we arrived on Crete, the UK government announced that arrivals from Crete would have to quarantine for two weeks upon entry. This was not altogether unexpected and we had discussed this scenario before leaving home. Since we both work from home this was not too much of an inconvenience and so we had agreed we would always finish the holiday.

Hotel buffet breakfasts have had to change the way they work. No longer can you wander up and down and serve yourself. Mostly, the food would be behind a glass screen and you would tell a member of hotel staff what you would like. They would then fill your plate and hand it to you. Whilst you were able to ask for whatever you wanted and go back as many times as you wanted, it certainly makes you feel a little more self-conscious about what you are eating especially if, like me, you usually take far more than you probably need and mix things that most people would think odd. My breakfasts on this trip were certainly more boring than I would usually have on holiday!

Finally, the number of other tourists changed depending on where we were. For the first few days, we were inland on mainland Greece, visiting Meteora, Delphi and Olympia. Here, we were often the only tourists at the sites and, I suspect on one occasion, the only guests in the hotel. Given the popularity of these sites, it was something special. We sat at the stadium at Delphi listening to the cicadas, with no one else around. Usually at that time of year, there would be tour groups galore, blocking paths, creating queues and making noise. The narrow winding roads around Meteora are often blocked by tour buses and cars, causing gridlock. We passed just two or three cars. Whilst at Olympia, we could walk into a deserted stadium and pretend we were athletes, competing in the original Olympic Games, making our own crowd noises. And this was in the middle of the day. Upon arrival in Athens, there was a noticeable increase in the number of tourists. I suspect it was still nowhere near the usual numbers for this time of year, but substantially more than we had previously encountered. We climbed the Acropolis at 8am, due to the heat, but still had to share the view at the top with plenty of others. It was a similar situation on Crete – less tourists than usual, but still a decent number.

So what was the conclusion? Well, I guess that comes down to personal situation and preference. If you are happy complying with local regulations on masks and risking having to quarantine on your return, then in return you will be given many of the well-known sites with significantly reduced tourist numbers. For me personally, I am glad we went. It has been a long, weird year and I needed the change of scenery and the ability to forget, albeit temporarily, everything else that is going on. In small doses, it felt like normality. And that, for me, made it so worthwhile.


Thessaloniki, Meteora

2020-08-29 to 2020-08-30

About 60 million years ago, tectonic movements pushed the seabed upwards, creating a high plateau with many fault lines in the layers of rock. Over time, weathering by winds, water and extreme temperatures have created huge towers of rock that sit high above the flat terrain below. The name of this phenomenon, Meteora, comes from the Greek meteros meaning “suspended in the air”.

From the 11th century, hermit monks lived in caves around Meteora. By the 14th century, the Byzantine Empire’s reign in Greece was being threatened by the Turks and the monks, seeking safe havens, began building monasteries on top of the rock pillars. They were reached by climbing removable ladders, which could be raised when feeling vulnerable, making the monasteries isolated and an ideal retreat. There were originally 24 monasteries, though only 6 are left and still functioning today, four housing men, each one with less than 10 residents, whilst the other two house women, with a total of approximately 40 nuns. In the early 1920’s access was improved with steps hewn into the rock. Our route to Meteora aimed to be a lot simpler than removable ladders or rock hewn steps but first the small issue of flying in a pandemic.

We had booked a taxi to Gatwick at 3.30am, leaving home in the pouring rain. On arrival at Gatwick, we noticed just how much quieter it was. The entire south terminal was closed with all flights departing from the north terminal. The tarmac around the south terminal resembled more of a plane park than a working airport. Inside the airport were numerous social distancing measures including stickers on the floor, hand gel and everybody, staff and passengers, wearing masks. The coffee shops were open as normal, as was Boots albeit with a ludicrously long queue, so we were able to get breakfast. At the gate, we were checked that we had the correct paperwork for landing in Greece – a Passenger Locator Form (PLF) used for Track and Trace purposes – then we boarded the plane by row numbers. For what was possibly the first time ever, we even got to use the jet bridge to board the plane. I can only assume that was to limit the need for everyone holding the same handrail as they went up the steps to get on the plane. My highlight of the flight had to be the small addition in the safety briefing reminding people to remove their face masks before attempting to fit their oxygen mask. You just know some people would have to be told that!

Arrival in Thessaloniki was fairly straightforward. We disembarked row by row, with everyone remaining in their seats until the row in front was moving off the plane. It was probably the most calm and orderly manner I’ve ever seen a plane disembark. Perhaps we could keep that going forward?! Our PLF was checked once again in Thessaloniki airport and then we were out and into the bright sunshine. The first job – find the car hire. We knew from our paperwork that we had to meet someone and be taken to the office, but it didn’t say where to meet them. We followed signs for Car Hire, but they were all different companies, though they were able to direct us to the meeting point outside the airport. Once here, we saw many resort greeters but no car people. We asked again and someone said our guy had briefly returned to the office with a full vanload of customers and would be back. We sat down and waited 20 mins until he returned, when he took us back to the office and we were able to fill in the paperwork and get our car. The drive into Thessaloniki was only another 15 mins, and we parked up outside the hotel whilst unloading, before taking the car to a nearby parking lot.

Thessaloniki is the second biggest city in Greece, on the waterfront at the northwest corner of the Aegean Sea. We were mostly using it as a convenient place to fly into and pick up a car. However, we decided to stay one night due to the early start time that morning. Upon depositing the car in parking, the next priority was food. Luckily our hotel was in an area with lots of restaurants and we swiftly found a restaurant and tucked into tzatziki, pita bread and souvlaki. By this point, the combination of an early start, good food and 38 degrees meant it was siesta time! After a couple of hours sleep, we went out to explore. From the hotel, we took a walk long the sea front towards the White Tower – a former prison and torture chamber and also Thessaloniki’s most famous site. It is believed that the tower was known as the Tower of Blood until a prisoner painted it in exchange for their freedom. A bit further on we saw a statue of Alexander the Great, the region’s most famous son and an umbrella sculpture. We headed back towards the hotel, stopping briefly in Aristotle Square. Dinner was washed down with a beer and our second free dessert of the day, before we crashed in our room.

The next morning, we aimed to be on the road around 9-9.30, but it took a while to get out of bed. We breakfasted and got the car from parking, finally hitting the road around 11am. Although Meteora was our final destination that day, we planned to stop en route to get good views of Mount Olympus – home of the Greek Gods and Greece’s highest mountain. The peak of Olympus is often shrouded in fog, but we had a perfectly clear day. As we drove down the highway, we could see it right in front of us. We turned off the highway and into the small town of Litochoro, a base for those climbing Olympus. Whilst we weren’t planning that, it gave us the opportunity to stretch our legs, and gaze at the mountain whilst eating the first of many ice creams! The town itself had an alpine feel to it and from the centre of town we could see Olympus up the hill and the sea down the hill.

We carried on for another two hours, before reaching the town of Kalambaka, where we took a small winding road that went uphill and behind the rock pillars. At this time of year, the road would usually be heaving but we saw only a handful of other cars and no tour buses due to covid. Once up behind the monasteries, we stopped at a viewpoint near Agios Stefanos (St Stephen’s), where we could clearly see the monastery perched atop a pillar of rock, with a flat plain approximately 600m below. You could tell how cut off from civilisation the monks could have made themselves when they wanted. Nearby was Agia Trias, featured in the James Bond film You Only Live Once. A little further down the road, was an observation deck with a sweeping panorama of the area. Then we went towards Megalo Meteoro and Varlaam, both down a side road. Back on the main road, we headed down past Roussanou and Agios Nikolaos Anapafsas towards the small town of Kastraki. From every view we got an incredible idea of just how precarious the monasteries are. It won’t take much more weathering and erosion before the monasteries can no longer be used.

Down in town, we found our hotel and checked in. Even in the town, you could see rock pillars all around you, it was quite an incredible landscape. The small town, centred around a church in the town square, is clearly very heavily reliant on tourism. As we stopped to eat dinner, we could hear the waiter telling some of the other patrons how footfall was down significantly this year. He seemed very positive though, even suggesting that the break from tourism was good for the locals to give them all a chance to recharge. For the second night, we got a free dessert plus free ouzo, then we waddled back to the hotel!


Thermopylae, Delphi

2020-08-31

The Oracle was the most important person in ancient Greece. The person who was consulted about all important decisions, who dispensed advice and provided solutions to end difficult situations. The Oracle in Ancient Greece was the Pythia, the high priestess at the Temple of Apollo in Delphi. The God Apollo would speak through the oracle, who was always an elderly peasant woman, who would enter a trance like state, allowing Apollo to possess her spirit. Realistically, the Temple of Apollo was situated over a chasm that spewed noxious fumes. These fumes would go to the Pythia’s head and cause the trance-like stupor. The ravings were then translated by priests to whoever had asked the question.

The site of Delphi was decided by Zeus. He sent two eagles to fly from the east and the west and the point where they crossed was Delphi. Zeus thereby decided that this was the centre of the world. These days, we know Delphi as being located in Central Greece and set on the edge of Mount Parnassus. It was also our destination for night two of our trip.

We managed to get moving a little earlier and were on the road just after 9.30, heading south for two hours. Our first stop was at the monument at Thermopylae. The area is home to a battle made famous in the 2007 Gerard Butler film 300. The modern day site of the battle ground is a substantial distance away from the water, but in the year 480 BC, this was the coastline. In the approximately 2500 years since, sedimentary deposits have moved the coastline. The name Thermopylae means Hot Gates, and the area used to be a narrow coastal pass, maybe only 100m wide. In 480 BC, the Persians, led by Xerxes, were invading Greece. According to ancient sources, they numbered more than a million, but it is widely believed that number to be exaggerated. The Greek defence was led by King Leonidas of Sparta and consisted of 5000-7000, depending on ancient source.

The Greeks defended from the narrow pass, thus giving them a tactical advantage. On day 1 of the battle, Xerxes lost many men attacking through the channel. The Greeks barely lost any. On day 2, the same thing occurred. That evening, a Greek defector spoke to Xerxes and informed him of a mountain goat path that would take his army to behind the Greeks, thus encircling them. By using this pass, Xerxes was able to defeat the Greeks. Leonidas, just prior to the battle is believed to have uttered the words “come and take them” as a response to Xerxes demands for their surrender of arms. These words are now the motto at the top of the emblem of the Greek army.

These days, there is a monument to Leonidas at the battle site, as well as a visitor’s centre, where we treated ourselves to an ice cream and cold drink. From here, it was another one hour on the road, through the mountains to Delphi. The town of Delphi is just a couple of roads, with lots of hotels and restaurants on them. In normal times, the roads would have been crowded with coaches but these are not normal times and there were very few tourists in town. In fact, we may have been the only guests in our hotel.

As we arrived in the middle of the day, we spent a couple of hours chilling in our hotel. Our room had a balcony which overlooked a huge gorge, down which we could see all the way down to the Gulf of Corinth. At 4, we went out with the first stop being the Archaeological Museum. The museum contains many of the artefacts found at the site, as well as some frescoes that used to adorn the Temple. By 5, we headed onto the main archaeological site.

A path lead from the main entrance up past the Treasury, up a hill and past the Omphalos – the naval that Zeus deemed to be the centre of the world. We reached the Temple of Zeus, where the Oracle would make their proclamations. Behind the Temple was a Theatre that could seat 5000 people. Apollo is the God of Music and so music and drama contests would take place in the theatre. Beyond the theatre, at the very top of the hill, was a stadium. Here, the Pythion games were held every 4 years and were second in significance only to the games in Olympia. These games included drama events held in the theatre. The stadium was approximately 180m, which was known as a stade or stadion and the most prestigious event was the running race from one end to the other. The English word stadium is derived from the word stadion. As we sat and had a breather at the stadium, we were completely alone apart from the sounds of the cicadas mating call.

We left the site and headed back to the hotel, before going out in search of dinner. Whilst we had a nice dinner, unfortunately so did the hungry mosquitoes who used me as their meal. After we returned to the hotel for the night, we counted some 25 different bites on my legs, whereas James appeared to have escaped with none. 


Ancient Olympia

2020-09-01

The Olympic Games – probably the most famous sporting event in the world. 206 nations competed at the last games, which is more than there are countries on Earth! Between the last two games (one summer and one winter), more than 14,000 athletes participated in over 400 events in 35 different sports. Most people are aware that the origins of the games is in Greece, at the town of Olympia. Indeed, this is where the Olympic Torch is lit ahead of each games. Olympia was also home to a large statue of Zeus, later named one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. The site of Olympia is largely ruins today, but you can still see the stadium and the Temple of Zeus.

Situated on the Peloponnese, Olympia is a three hour drive from Delphi. It was a straight drive with no stop offs, down out of the mountains to the coast, then along the coast road until the Rio-Andirio Bridge, crossing the Gulf of Patra and taking you onto the Peloponnese. From here, we continued to stick to the coast before turning inland and arriving in Olympia around 1pm. Once again, there were very few guests in the hotel, where we crashed for a couple of hours. The TV in the hotel had a one hour film about the site at Olympia that I tried to watch but ending up falling asleep instead!

There are three main attractions in Olympia – the archaeological museum, the archaeological site and the museum of the games in antiquities. Around 3.30pm, we headed out to the first of these – the archaeological museum. Here they housed the artefacts found on the site along with diagrams showing how the site looked in its heyday.

A few hundred metres down the road was the entrance to the archaeological site. The Olympic Games took place here every 4 years from 776BC through till the reign of Theodosius I in 393AD. He was trying to impose Christianity on the country whereas the games were all about worshipping the Gods, specifically Zeus. During the games, an Olympic truce was enacted which meant that a cease fire was passed between all waring nations. This meant competitors could travel to the games in safety. Only freeborn Greek men could compete, meaning no slaves or women. The victors of the various events would be honoured and their feats chronicled for future generations.

Upon entering the site, the first thing you see is the gymnasium. At the centre is the Temple of Zeus, where the giant statue of the God was carved and stood. As you head to the east, you reach the temple of Hera, which includes the spot where the Olympic flame is lit even to this day. A little further on, we reached the entrance tunnel to the main stadium. There were very few people on the site and no one at the stadium, so as we walked down the tunnel we could make our own pretend cheers for us as competitors! We did decide it was too hot to actually run round the stadium.

We spent some time exploring the rest of the site, before heading over to the third stop – the history of the games in antiquities. This museum included details of the events that were put on for boys, and a parallel set of games that were held for young women in honour of Hera, the goddess of women.

That evening, after dinner, we had to make a trip to a pharmacy to sort out the growing issue we were having with mosquitoes. My bites had all swollen up, whereas James had found two clusters on his ankle from Delphi that had swollen and were weeping. I think the lack of tourists in this part of Greece was making the mosquitoes very hungry indeed!


Mycenae, Corinth, Athens

2020-09-02 to 2020-09-06

Named after the Goddess of War, Athena, the Greek capital has seen wars, sieges and the Olympics. Twice. The city has warred with the Spartans, been conquered by Alexander the Great and rebuilt itself multiple times. These days, it is most well known for its archaeological treasures and good food.

Our journey to Athens began with an early morning start from Olympia, crossing the Peloponnese and arriving at Mycenae right in the middle of the day. The ruins were set on top a large hill, with large amounts of the surrounding land looking scorched as if it has recently been burnt in a fire. Mycenae was once the most powerful kingdom in Greece, until its decline, as part of the Bronze Age collapse, around 1200BC. According to legend, the city was founded by Perseus, one of the sons of Zeus. One of the most famous Kings of Mycenae was Agamemnon, leader of the Greek forces during the Trojan War. Behind the hill, were two larger hills whilst in front of the site were impressive views all down the valley. It would have been a very secure location. There site also contained a small museum with artefacts found at the site.

To get from Mycenae to Athens, we had to cross over the Corinth canal. A canal was originally begun by Emperor Nero in the first century AD but failed. A more successful attempt was begun in the 19th century by the French and completed in 1893. The canal is 6km long but only 23m wide and is cut through sheer rock, leading to 90m high vertical sides. It is a very impressive sight. We pulled off the main highway, parking in the town of Corinth, close to a canal viewpoint, where we could watch the boats and also the bungee jumpers!

We were dropping off our hire car at Athens airport, rather than negotiating local traffic in town. However, the car hire office was not all that easy to find and we ended up driving round the airport twice after missing different turnings. From the airport, we caught the metro back into Athens and headed to the hotel – the first one up to this point that we would spend multiple nights in. It was immediately obvious that Athens hadn’t suffered from a lack of tourists as much as the rest of the country appeared to have been. Our dinner was in a restaurant not far from the hotel, which had a great meal and also gave us a free beer, mastika and ouzo each.

Our first full day in Athens and we treated ourselves to a lay in, before heading to breakfast at 10.30. Our first priority that day was to collect our ferry tickets as the office would be shut at the weekend. We walked up there, past Athens Cathedral and through the main shopping district. Once we had the tickets, we continued to the National Archaeological Museum. The museum contained many artefacts from archaeological sites all around the country, including Mycenae and Knossos. On our way back, we stopped for an ice cream and a look at Hadrian’s Library. For dinner that evening, I tried a traditional Pastitsio – a kind of Greek lasagne. It has penne pasta on the base, a layer of minced beef and a later of cheese sauce, but without being as tasty as a lasagne!

The next morning, we were up at 6am and at breakfast by 7am. With good reason. Given the heat, we decided that we should scale the Acropolis as soon as it opened at 8am. There was no queue and very few people in there. We had a good two hours on the hill, seeing the Temple of Dionysius, the Parthenon with the Temple of Athena, and the Theatre of Herodus Atticus. The views from the top were all over the whole of Athens, down to the port of Piraeus and up to the hills that surround the city. By the time we left the Acropolis, numbers had increased and there were a fair few people on the hill, but almost certainly less than would usually be seen at that time of year. Our entrance ticket to the Acropolis, also gave us entry into a number of other sites, so we started with the Roman Agora and Temple of the Winds, then the Ancient Agora. The Agora was initially a place of commerce, politics and social activity, dating back over 2000 years. Today, there are mostly ruins with Temples and Churches amongst them.

Due to the early start and a large amount of walking, we treated ourselves to an ice cream whilst returning to the hotel for some downtime. Later in the afternoon, we went to the Acropolis Museum. This contained many exhibits that had been found on the hill, as well as five of the six caryatids, from the porch of the Erechtheion (a temple on the north side of the Acropolis). The sixth caryatids was removed by Lord Elgin and now resides, controversially, in the British Museum in London. That evening for dinner, we tried Sheftalia – a Cypriot dish of minced lamb, pork and chicken – served with potatoes and a rose chutney, washed down with free wine and a free, double, ouzo.

Our penultimate day saw us heading east from the hotel, with the first stop at Hadrian’s Arch, followed by the Temple of Olympian Zeus. At its finest, approx. 2AD, the temple was considered the largest in Greece and had 104 columns. However, it fell into disrepair in approx. 267AD and was reduced to ruins. Today, just 16 of the columns remain. From the temple we headed to the Panathenaic Stadium. This is the site of the first modern Olympic Games in 1896 and also the site of the 2004 Olympic Archery competition, plus the finish line for the 2004 Marathon. The stadium contained fancy seating for the King and Queen, slightly less fancy seating for Pierre de Coubertin, and boring seating for everyone else! Down a small tunnel is a museum dedicated to the modern games, including an advertising poster from each games and a “petal” from the London 2012 Olympic cauldron. From here, we took a walk through the National Gardens, towards Parliament.

The last day saw us take a trip to the main Olympic stadium complex to the north of the city. The complex contained a velodrome, swimming pool, basketball court and the main stadium, which is also home to both AEK Athens and Panathinaikos football clubs. We couldn’t go into any of the arena, but it seemed to be a popular place for running and cycling in the complex itself. We then decided it was time to head to the coast. We caught the metro down to Karaiskakis Stadium, home of Olympiacos FC, from where we planned to catch the tram to a beach. However, when we got to the tram stop there seemed to be a lack of trams. We thought we’d walk a little way, then realised that the tram lines had been dug up and that this section of line wasn’t running. We kept on walking and eventually came across a park, complete with observation desk and view up and down the coast. From here, we could walk to a different tram line and crossed our fingers that this one was running, which it was! This took us back to town, where we could have an early dinner of gyros in a pita.

Back at the hotel, we collected our bags and waited for our taxi. He took us down to Piraeus, where we could board the Blue Horizon boat. The boat was a cheap man’s cruise liner, with restaurant, bar, swimming pool and bar and lots of cabins. We had booked an outside cabin, so that we had a window. At 9pm, the boat left Piraeus and headed into the blackness of the open sea. We went to bed.


Crete

2020-09-07 to 2020-09-12

The fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea and the largest of the Greek islands, Crete was our destination for the final week. The island has been inhabited for at least 130,000 years, with notable civilizations including the Minoans, Mycenaean, Byzantines, Venetians and Ottomans. In fact, Crete only became a part of Greece in 1913. The largest city, and capital, is Heraklion. This was where our overnight ferry would arrive and where we were basing ourselves for the week.

The ferry arrived just after 6am. It was barely light but still quite warm. We had arranged a car hire from the port to be collected at 7am and, following the instructions, made our way to the main terminal building. Here, everything was shut and there was one generic car hire desk rather than one per company. Tired and confused we decided to head to the hotel, check in, dump our bags, then return and figure it out. The hotel was only a short walk away and due to a lack of guests in covid times, the room was available and we could get straight in. We dumped our bags, chilled for a 15 mins, then headed back down to the port to see if we could figure out where our car was. There was still nothing open and no one around. We had a phone number on our paperwork and rang it, but no one answered. At this point, we decided to ring the Travel Counsellors 24 hour helpline in the UK, they made some calls then rang us back with another number to try. This eventually got us through to someone who claimed they had been there for an hour earlier waiting for us! Eventually we realised that they were driving the car from the airport, 15 mins away, and didn’t have a desk at the port, they would just turn up at the requested time. It was all rather confusing. Anyway, we got our car and promptly drove it to a garage to park it for the rest of the day!

We went out in search of breakfast and found a nice café in a small square. From here it was only a short walk to the centre of town. It was Venetian style – pedestrianised, with narrow passageways leading to large squares. We walked round the centre, admiring the numerous churches and fountains, then went down to the coast and walked a short way. After a siesta, we headed back into town for dinner – more gyros and Greek salad. From the coast that evening, we could see the ferries leaving port, heading back to Piraeus.

The next morning, after breakfast, we headed to the Archaeological Museum which contained many exhibits from Knossos as well as many other ancient civilisations. We spent approximately 2 hours here before leaving to explore more of the town. The centre is ringed in by Venetian walls, so we walked a large part of these. Along the way, we saw the National Stadium and the grave of the man who wrote Zorba the Greek – the book, not the film based on the book, and not the composer of the music associated with the film. The walls took us all the way from the Archaeological Museum to the sea front, from where we chilled during the hottest part of the day. As evening was approaching, we took a walk along the harbour walls. We could see them from our hotel room and thought they weren’t that long, but they turned out to be a full 2km in each direction and from the end we were almost level with the airport! For dinner, we found a small seafood restaurant, which came with a free dessert of ice cream, watermelon, biscuit and a very strong Raki.

The following day we thought it time to use our hire car, so after breakfast we set off south of town for 20 mins until we reached the site of Knossos Palace. This was the capital of Minoan Crete, some 4000 years ago, and was excavated in the early 20th century. At its peak, the city would have been home to some 100,000 people. According to legend, King Minos prayed to the sea God Poseidon for help in ruling Crete. Poseidon sent a snow-white bull that Minos was to sacrifice in Poseidon’s honour, but Minos decided the bull was too beautiful and made a lesser sacrifice instead. Enraged, Poseidon made Minos’s wife fall in love with the bull and had a craftsman make a hollow wooden cow in which she climbed so that she could mate with the bull. She fell pregnant and the Minotaur – part man, part bull – was born. King Minos had a labyrinth built at Knossos to house the Minotaur, so that he could not escape. On some of the frescoes that still exist at the site, you can see images of a bull. Part of the site was closed due to covid, but we were able to get a good feel for the place and see the Throne Room and some of the major frescoes. From here, we took the scenic route back towards town, stopping east of the airport at a beach, from where we could have a little swim whilst watching places land.

The next morning, we took a drive out east to the town of Elounda, from where we caught a ferry across the harbour to the island of Spinalonga. Founded by the Venetians as a fortress, it was used in the early-mid 1900’s as a leper colony. Today, the island is nothing but a tourist attraction but both histories of the island are noticeable. The side nearest the mainland has the ruins of abandoned houses, hospitals and churches. On the far side are the walls and lookouts of the fortress. We were only allowed to spend 1 hour 20 on the island, before returning to the mainland. Here we spent a few hours on the beach, enjoying the warm waters and sheltered position, backed by mountains. On return to Heraklion, we had a share platter for dinner of more than 10 meze items – stuffed vine leaves, tzatziki, fava, beetroot, spinach, dakos, moussaka, pastitsio, gemista, chicken gyros, pork souvlaki, lamb souvlaki and chocolate mousse dessert.

Our final full day was a chilled affair. We headed to the Koules Fortress, on the harbour walls. It was small, but gave a detailed history including its construction by the Arabs in the 9th century, Venetian occupation and use in the sieges against and strengthening of Candia (later Heraklion). From the top, we could see a German cruise liner heading into port, though we never established if it had paying passengers on board or not.

The last morning saw us check out and drop the car at the airport before the long journey home.


Summary

2020-09-13

Days of holiday: 15

Different overnight stops on the mainland: 5

Different overnight stops on the islands: 1

Overnights on ferries: 1

Weeks quarantining on arrival: 0

Weeks quarantining on return: 2

Number of other tourists at Delphi: <10

Number of other tourists at Olympia: <20

Dinners where at least one of us had gyros: 15

Times we drank ouzo: 4

Times we liked ouzo: 0

Times we drank raki: 1

Times we liked raki: 0

Maximum number of mosquito bites in one night: 25


Whisky, deep fried Mars Bars and the Loch Ness Monster

2022-08-19

How to stereotype Scotland in one sentence! I’m sure the Whisky and Nessie wouldn’t offend, but I’m less sure about the deep fried Mars Bar. A few years ago, James and I visited Edinburgh for his birthday and did a tour in the Scotch Whisky Experience (highly recommended even for those who don’t like whisky). Part of the tour consisted of a video explaining the five different whisky producing regions of Scotland and was accompanied by drone shots of the land – epic Glens and white sandy beaches, all on beautiful sunny days. The video was shown on a cinema sized screen and by the end we were convinced that it must have been paid for by the Scottish Tourist Board. When it was over, we looked at each other and said “we need to go exploring the Highlands and Islands one day”.

Well, that day has come. Due to my work holiday year running from October – September, I found myself with two weeks needing to be taken before the end of the September. We already have a fairly epic holiday booked in for November, so thought maybe we should do something domestic with these two weeks, forgetting just how expensive the UK can be for a holiday. By the time we realised, we had already planned an incredible two week road trip around Scotland. So we went for it anyway.

We are taking the Caledonian Sleeper up to Inverness, from where we will pick up a hire car and spend our first night monster hunting on the banks of Loch Ness. From here, we head across to Skye, before heading back to the mainland for an attempt at climbing the highest peak in the UK. Then back to the islands – first Mull, then Islay – before a couple of nights at Loch Lomond and finally ending in Stirling. From here we hope to get a train home, although at time of writing the train tickets are not yet on sale, despite it only being in 4 weeks’ time! Somehow, we will make it back, probably laden with whisky, shortbread and a few more lbs around the waistline!


Loch Ness

2022-09-02 to 2022-09-03

Nessie is one of the most famous mythical monsters in the world, or is she? Perhaps she is real, after all there are plenty of people who will claim adamantly to have seen her. There have even been alleged photographs. There is only one way to find out – go search the loch for yourself!

Although Loch Ness was due to be our first night in Scotland, this wouldn’t be until the Saturday and we were leaving home on the Friday. First, we had to take the Caledonian Sleeper train to the Highlands. This fantastic night train leave Euston at 9.15pm, splits into three en route and arrives in the Highlands the next morning, either at Fort William, Aberdeen or Inverness. Our destination was the latter.

We arrived at Euston in plenty of time and passed the next hour in the first class lounge. We boarded the train at 8.30pm and headed first for our cabin. The corridors were incredibly narrow and there wasn’t much space for luggage in the cabin, but there was plenty of freebies in the room – including toiletries and chocolate! The ensuite bathroom had a toilet and shower, although you had to put the lid down on the toilet and hide the loo roll if you wanted to use the shower. It was a particularly ‘cosy’.

Following advice from a good friend, after dumping our bags we headed straight to the Club Car to get a seat, book in for breakfast the following morning and order dinner. Just as the train was leaving the Greater London environs, we were tucking into haggis, tatties and neeps and cock a leekie chicken, washed down with local beer and whisky. To finish, we had the Clootie McToot’s Dumpling – a kind of warm fruit cake covered in custard. By the time we retired back to our cabin around 10.30pm, we were stuffed full.

The night’s sleep wasn’t the greatest, the constant movement of the train meant I woke up a few times but when we got up at 6.30am we peaked out the windows and were deep in the Cairngorms. Plus it was raining. We contemplated just how Scottish the weather would be over the next two weeks whilst we ate our traditional Scottish breakfast – lorne sausage, black pudding, bacon, tomato, bread and a potato/veggie muffin. We weren’t entirely sure what was in it, but it was delicious.

Although the train had a number of scheduled drop offs, it only actually stopped at the ones that people wanted to get off at. Therefore, we didn’t stop at many of them and were running about 40 mins ahead of schedule – unheard of for a British train! We pulled into Inverness and were allowed some time to finish packing before disembarking the train. Thankfully the rain had stopped by this point.

We departed the station and walked over to the car hire office to pick up our wheels for the next 2 weeks. Once paperwork was completed, we jumped in the car and immediately left Inverness! The main road ran alongside the Caledonian Canal and River Ness, towards Loch Ness. When we reached Dochgarroch Lock, we turned off. As it was still only just gone 9am, we knew it was far too early to check in to our hotel and the lock is the starting point for boat trips on the Loch, so we thought we’d pop in and see when the next one was going. We were in luck, as it was leaving at 9.30am. We bought our tickets and boarded for a 2 hour trip hunting Nessie.

As we headed along the Canal, we were given a crash course in Gaelic – Loch meaning “lake” is fairly well known. Inver means “mouth”, so Inverness translates to “Mouth of the River Ness”. The first Loch we came to was Loch Dochfour, meaning “cold drinking water”, which had a small disused lighthouse at the top, now a property rental, before heading into Loch Ness. We also learnt some facts and figures regarding the area. Loch Ness sits on The Great Glen, which follows a fault line all the way from Inverness to Fort William. At its deepest, the Loch is 230m deep, which is deeper than the North Sea, and makes it the second deepest Loch in Scotland. At a length of 23miles and a width of 2miles it is the second largest Scottish loch by surface area, but due to the depth it is the largest by volume in the UK. In fact, the loch contains more water than all the lakes in England and Wales combined!

The Loch never freezes over and in winter is a balmy 6 degrees. In summer, it is a refreshing 6 degrees. And due the peat levels in the area, the water is very dark and murky meaning you can barely see any distance through it. This darkness has helped grow the myth around Nessie, as it’s impossible for divers to see underwater and search for her.

Reports of a creature in the loch first came to the world’s attention in 1933, although this is not the first recorded sighting. That came back in 565 by an Irish Monk. Nessie then remained quiet for over 1000 years before resurfacing in the late 1800’s and reaching global fame in the 1900’s. Reports describe her as long necked, with one or more humps. Any reported sightings are largely believed to actually be seals, tree logs or just a trick of the light in the waves. Most of the famous photos of Nessie are now proven to be hoaxes. Sadly, during our boat trip we saw no monsters.

There are a number of castles and grand houses on the banks of the Loch, the most famous being Urquhart Castle. Due to its position halfway along a long, straight Loch, there is a definitive strategic advantage to having control of the castle as it meant you have control of the whole area. The castle dates from the 13th-16th centuries but these days it is ruined. Our boat sailed as far as the castle, before turning round and heading back to the lock.

Back on the road, we continued past the small hamlet of Drumnadrochit and onto Urquhart Castle. Having not got off the boat earlier, we were keen to get up close and personal. Although now ruined, we were still able to explore the tower and understand the layout of the grounds, from kitchen to great hall to doocot (dovecot). We could also head down to the small beach area and test the Loch water to see if it was indeed 6 degrees. It certainly felt colder than I would want to swim in!

We returned to Drumnadrochit, where we could check in to our hotel. We went to a small local café for some food, then went to the Loch Ness Exhibition. This museum takes you through all the viewpoints and theories with regards to Nessie. It explains how she could survive, if she were there as well as explaining the geological history of the area and its ecosystem and debunking most of the photos taken of her.

On return to the hotel, we were able to chill out for a bit. The hotel was an Inn with a pub and restaurant beneath the rooms. We ate dinner in the restaurant that evening, before collapsing in bed after a long day.


Skye

2022-09-04 to 2022-09-05

Situated to the north west of Scotland, in the Inner Hebrides, the Isle of Skye is one of the top places on people’s Scotland bucket list, alongside Edinburgh and Loch Ness. The dramatic cliffs, quaint lochside villages and historic castles attracts over 650,000 visitors a year, somewhat topping up the local population of 10,000 people. We were about to add ourselves to these numbers, as we experienced the first island on our Highlands and Islands trip.

We left the hotel after breakfast, following the road alongside the Loch, before turning away and heading through tall pine trees before skirting the edges of Loch Cluanie. Here we also got our first experience of midges, as a couple of the little critters came to say hello whilst we were parked up taking photos. We swiftly moved on and followed the road beyond Loch Cluanie and onto Loch Duich. At the far end of Loch Duich, where it meets Loch Aish and Loch Long, stands Eilean Donan Castle.

The Castle was originally built in the 13th century and became the stronghold of Clan Mackenzie and Clan MacRae. But during the Jacobite rebellion of the 18th century it was bombarded and destroyed. The present day castle was built in the 1930’s. The name “Eilean” means Island and the Donan comes from the name of the priest who first established a church on the island. The church no longer exists.

The location of the castle is incredibly picturesque and you can easily lose a couple of hours there exploring the building and admiring the views. And we did! Eventually we left and carried on towards Skye, taking the bridge over the water and on to the island. Here, we discovered that Skye was very good at advertising parking spots and these parking spots inevitably came with a gorgeous location. So we would see a sign, pull in, take some photos, jump back in the car and repeat the same process 2 minutes up the road. The map told us it would only take about 30 minutes to get to our hotel, but the reality was it took about 2 hours!!

Along the way, we jumped out at Loch Ainort, Eas a ‘Bhradain – a waterfall, and Allt Mhic Mhoriein. In the middle of the island, we reached the small village of Sligachan. The town is backed by the Cuillin Mountains, including one perfectly formed conical mountain. There is also a monument to Collie and Mackenzie, two climbers who were the first to summit many of the peaks of the Cuillin.

We finally made it to our hotel (another Inn) in the small village of Carbost and after checking in walked down the road to the village’s main attraction – the Talisker Distillery. Here we had booked onto a tasting, which was led by a lady originally from Carshalton, just down the road from us in South London. The tasting consisted of three different whiskies – the 10yr, Skye and Storm. Each whisky was accompanied by visuals and sounds of Skye. The word Whisky comes from the Gaelic “uisge beatha” which means “water of life”. And to officially be a Scottish whisky the product must be made in Scotland, from barley, a minimum of 40% alcohol and aged for a minimum of 3 years and 1 day. If I’m honest, all three whiskies tasted very similar!!

At the end of the tasting, and after a few purchases in the shop, we headed back to the Inn, where we sat in the bar area, outside in the sun, next to the loch, relaxing with a drink before heading inside for some live music whilst we ate dinner.

The next day, we went off exploring the island and realised that it is not possible to take a bad photo on Skye. You point your camera, click and you have an epic photo! The morning rain disappeared over breakfast, to be replaced by clear blue skies and non-stop sun. We headed north following the previous day’s plan of jumping out at any and all viewpoints, including some views across to the Outer Hebrides.

Our first planned stop was at the former fort of Dùn Beag (meaning Small Fort), believed to date from around 1,900 – 2,300 years ago. It was set up upon a steep slope with a commanding view of the surrounding countryside. We climbed the slope to the fort, circular in shape, with high stone walls, made of two layers that you could walk in between. There is not much left of the fort now – mostly just the stones showing the outer shape. Excavations were performed in the early 1900’s which found a number of artefacts from across the ages, which has given historians clues about the builders and inhabitants.

We continued north to Dunvegan Castle, home of the MacLeod clan. It was probably originally built in the 13th century, although the current building was largely built in the 19th century and overlooks Loch Dunvegan. As well as the main building, there are extensive gardens including the water garden, walled gardens and round gardens. Nearby to Dunvegan is the small village of Duirinish which has a standing stone. We were interested in this until we saw that the stone had only been erected in 2000! Instead we visited the small ruined church of St Mary’s.

We headed east towards the Trotternish Peninsula, where we found some of Skye’s most spectacular scenery along with some of the most interesting cases of driving. Beyond the town of Uig, we turned off the main, double tracked road and onto a single tracked one with passing places. At the Western end of this road, we had no drama. About halfway along, we reached the car park for The Quiraing. Because we were driving uphill, we couldn’t see the scenery until after we had parked and gotten out of the car. When we were finally able to stop and admire it, we were speechless. A landslip created an elevated plateau with pinnacles of rock towering above. To one side of us we had a sheer rock face, to the other we had a dramatic drop as the road hugged the edge of the cliff down to the sea. Photos cannot do the place justice. The landslip is still moving and so the roads in the area have to be repaired every year. Once we had dragged ourselves away from The Quiraing, we had to take the road down to the coast. It was still single track with passing places but also had hairpin bends. The biggest issue however were the other drivers. Some maybe didn’t know how to use passing places, some perhaps would panic and, by default we assume, head to the wrong side of the road to try and get out of the way. We saw numerous people having to pass each other on the wrong side of the road.

Driving down the east coast of the island, and back on double tracked roads, we paused again at a number of viewpoints including Lealt Falls. We stopped for longer at The Old Man of Storr, a 50m high basalt pinnacle, situated in front of another rocky hill.

We continued on down to the town of Portree, Skye’s main town, for a little wander around the town before returning to Carbost and our hotel. Here, we dined in the pub again, this time eating a seriously delicious trout dinner, with garlicky vegetables and horseradish mash.


Fort William

2022-09-06 to 2022-09-08

Standing at 4,411ft, Ben Nevis is the highest mountain in both Scotland and the UK. It is also the highest point in any direction for 459 miles. At its base, is the town of Fort William, the second largest settlement in the Highlands and a major base for outdoor activities and shopping whilst being a good stopover for those heading to/from the Islands.

We were leaving Skye after a couple of stunning days, this time via the ferry to Mallaig rather than the bridge. This would bring us further south, from where we could head to Fort William for a few days. The ferry from Armadale took 30 mins, across calm waters, and soon we were back on the move again. It was a straight road to Fort William, which would only take an hour if no stops were made. Not our style!!

Our first stop wasn’t long after leaving Mallaig, when we stopped at The Princes Cairn. This is on the banks of Loch Nan Uamh and marks the spot where Bonnie Prince Charlie left Scotland, heading for France in 1746, after the failed Jacobite rising of the year before.

We continued on past Loch Ailort and Loch Eilt before arriving at the small town of Glenfinnan, now world famous thanks to its viaduct’s appearance in a certain wizarding franchise. Twice a day, a steam train chugs across the viaduct, travelling between Fort William and Mallaig. We arrived in Glenfinnan around 3.10pm and a quick google told us that the train would have passed through about 10 minutes previously. Never mind, we weren’t all that bothered about the steam train, just wanted to view the viaduct so headed into the park to join the hundreds of other tourists. About 10 mins later, we hear a toot-toot and see the steam train approaching. It turns out google is wrong and the train’s return journey crosses the viaduct at 3.20pm. The viaduct was built between 1897-1901 to cross the River Finnan, as a part of the West Highland Line. The viaduct is curved and has 21 arches that cross the river 100 feet up. This single track line is the longest concrete railway bridge in Scotland and is used daily by Scotrail for a regular passenger train and also by The Jacobite steam train on a more tourist oriented trip. It became most famous after appearing in Harry Potter as part of the route that the Hogwarts Express takes between Platform 9 ¾ at Kings Cross and Hogwarts school.

Near the viaduct is an exhibition explaining the history of the area along with Bonnie Prince Charlie and the Jacobite rising. Meanwhile, across the road from the viaduct, is Loch Shiel and the Glenfinnan Monument. The monument is a tribute to the Highlanders who fought in the 1745 Jacobite rising. Bonnie Prince Charlie had rowed up Loch Shiel with a small band of supporters to meet Clan chiefs and their men who would help in his quest to return his father to the throne. Loch Shiel is the 4th longest loch in Scotland and, although the sun had disappeared that afternoon, looked utterly spectacular in the broody weather.

Once we finally dragged ourselves away from the views, we continued on to Fort William, where we could check into our hotel room, which was a stuffy 27 degrees with a window that barely opened and temperature controls that didn’t work at all. At this point, the heavens opened and the idea of going into the town centre for dinner did not appeal and so we headed to the restaurant next door instead.

The next morning we decided to have an explore of the town, mainly to see if there was actually a fort in Fort William. It turns out that there used to be, at the top of Loch Linnhe, built in the 17th century. During the Jacobite rising, the fort was placed under siege by Jacobite soldiers. After their defeat, the fort continued to be used by troops. It was sold in 1864 and converted into houses and gardens. However, in 1889 a compulsory purchase order handed the land to the railway. Nowadays, whilst a small portion of the land the fort was on is open, the majority is buried under the train station and a car park.

We then went exploring the local area. First up was a visit to Neptune’s Staircase. This is a series of locks on the Caledonian Canal, taking boats up 19m high in 90 minutes. With 8 locks, it is the largest staircase lock flight in Scotland. From here, we visited the Commando Memorial, commemorating the WWII Commandos who trained in the area and carried out raids in German occupied Europe. From the memorial, there are views across the Highlands and of Ben Nevis.

From here, we took the road northeast towards the southern end of Loch Ness, past Loch Lochy and with the plan of stopping at Invergarry Castle, except that we missed the turning, so decided to stop on the way back. The road then passed Loch Oich, where we stopped at the Bridge of Oich – which was once an engineering marvel when it was designed using the taper principle, making it effectively a double cantilevered bridge.

Finally, we reached Fort Augustus, at the southern end of Loch Ness. Here were another flight of locks, bringing the Caledonian Canal into the Loch. We bought an ice cream to eat whilst watching the upper locks being flooded in order to refill the lower ones. We also visited the viewpoint, taking one last opportunity to search for the elusive Nessie.

On the return to Fort William, we found the turning for Invergarry Castle and stopped in for a brief look at the ruined castle. Once the home of the Clan MacDonell, a powerful branch of Clan Donald, it is now fenced off and looking in imminent danger of collapse. Back in Fort William, we headed into the centre for dinner only to find that everywhere was full and queueing for a table was a necessity. We got ourselves on a waitlist at a pub, so we could at least have a drink whilst we waited for a table.

Our final full day in Fort William, we thought we should do some “outdoor activities”. We decided against climbing Ben Nevis, but chose to do something at the base instead. So we drove to the visitors centre, situated along Glen Nevis, from where we first did an easy 30 min return hike along the edge of River Ness, at the base of the mountain. We had a good view of all the “ants” heading up the mountain. Leaving the visitors centre, we drove further down the Glen, stopping at Lower Falls before continuing to the end of the road where there was a car park. From here, there was a 30 min one way hike, along a rocky path overlooking the river, which eventually opened up into a wide, open field. At the other side, we could see Steall Falls. We sat on the banks of the river overlooking the Falls, contemplating whether or not we would cross a 3 rope bridge to get even closer to the Falls. The bridge had one rope for your feet and one for each hand and in the end we decided against it.

We returned to Fort William in the early afternoon, a little too early for dinner and so we went to the pub to try a few local beers (me) and some whisky (James). It was whilst here we heard the news that the Queen had died, just across the other side of Scotland. We ate dinner in the pub, before taking an evening stroll alongside the Loch on the way back to the hotel.


Mull

2022-09-09 to 2022-09-11

According to legend, Irish giant Finn MacCool and Scottish giant Benadonner lived at either end of an ancient causeway, built by MacCool. Benadonner challenged MacCool to a fight and headed to Ireland. MacCool realises that Benadonner is much larger from him and so his wife disguises him as a baby. When Benadonner sees the size of the “baby”, he panics about how big the father must be and so he flees back to Scotland, ripping up the causeway in the process, so that MacCool could not follow. One end of this causeway is at the appropriately named Giants Causeway in Northern Ireland, the other end is at Fingal’s Cave on the Isle of Staffa.

Leaving Fort William behind, we headed south along the shores of the Loch Linnhe and briefly to Loch Leven. Here we stopped at Glencoe, site of a massacre back in 1692 when members of Clan MacDonald were killed by Government forces. It was much more tranquil for us, with just a couple of deer munching on grass at the side of the loch. From here, we headed back to Loch Linnhe where the road took us all the way to Oban.

From Oban, it was a short 30 min ferry across to Mull. On arrival, our first stop was at Castle Duart, near the ferry terminal, the home of Clan MacLean. When we arrived, the lady at the ticket booth told us they were shortly expecting a large tour group, which we didn’t think too much of, even when we walked past three very well dressed men at the main entrance. The castle was built in the 13th century and dramatically restored about 100 years ago when it was basically ruined. As we were exploring an upstairs room, we saw the lady from the ticket booth again, who told us the tour group were about to come up the stairs to where we were. Then the bagpipes started. It quickly became apparent that the three men we had passed on entry were a bagpiper, the Clan Chief Sir Lachlan MacLean and another guide. The tour group were taken off to a private room for drinks, so we could continue on our way. In the waters in front of the castle exists a shipwreck, from a 1600’s Cromwellian task force.

We left the castle and headed to Tobermory, the main town on the island and where we were staying. Surprisingly to us, the main road from the ferry terminal to Tobermory was not double track the whole way. Instead, whilst the first part was, but the second 10 miles was single track with passing places only returning to two lanes upon entry to Tobermory. We found our B&B, parked up and headed down to the harbour to find dinner in a local pub, next door to the distillery and watch the sun set.

The next morning, we headed back down to the harbour ready for our boat trip to Staffa and Fingal’s Cave. The sun was shining and there was not a cloud in the sky – it was the perfect weather for being out on the water. We left Mull and headed around the north of the island towards Staffa. Along the way we were joined by dolphins, happily playing alongside the boat. The staff also informed us of a minke whale in the distance but unfortunately we were not able to get close enough to see it. We also witnessed gannets diving for food, from a great height they would dive directly down into the water. After an hour or so, we arrived at the Treshnish Isles. At the height of summer, the Isles are full of puffins and other seabirds, but by September they have all moved on, so the boats sail through them but do not stop. We did see some seals lounging around on the rocks. The boat continued on to Staffa, where we moored up and were able to get off and onto the island. From the top of the island we were able to see across to Mull, Iona and Ulva. But it was the cave that most were there to see.

To get to the entrance from where the boat dropped us off, we had to cross the hexagonal basalt columns, around the side of the island. The cave itself had a path no more than 1m wide, with a sheer drop on one side and a wall on the other. The only rail was affixed to the cave wall, which made passing others a little hairy. Within the cave, the acoustics were impressive, although we were unable to go all that far in. The composer Mendelssohn visited the cave in 1829, and immediately came up with the first part of his overture The Hebrides. We were able to spend just over an hour on the island before the boat took us back to Tobermory.

Once returned, we had a snack then headed to Tobermory Distillery, for a tour. The tour took us all through the distillery, showing the different areas from the maltings to fermenting, the stills to the casks. At the end, we were given two whiskies to try, both made at the distillery but branded under different names – Ledaig (peated) and Tobermory (non peated). That evening, we sat on the sea front eating fish and chips from a small van and watched the sunset.

Our final full day on the island and we decided to go exploring a little. Starting with the shops along Tobermory bay. But, because it was a Sunday, we had to wait until 11 for them to open, so sat on a bench overlooking the harbour next to a church. Once we had finished shopping, we got the car and discovered that there just aren’t any two lane roads on Mull. Everything is single lane, with passing places. Our first stop was the Isle of Mull cheese, on the estate of Glengorm Castle.

Leaving the estate and heading west, we stopped at the Kilmore Standing Stones. There are 5 stones at 2.5m long, although only 3 are still standing, which sit on a hill overlooking the village of Dervaig. Further west, we reached the coast at the village of Calgary – from where the Canadian version takes its name. Here is a beautiful white sand beach, backed by green hills, and freezing cold sea water! We got ourselves an ice cream to eat on the beach whilst sitting and admiring the view.

When we eventually tore ourselves away, we returned to Tobermory for dinner. We went to the pub where I had the most amazing burger – pork and apple patty, caramelised red onion chutney and goats cheese. It is the burger against which all future burgers will be judged! After a couple of drinks, we returned to the B&B.


Islay

2022-09-12 to 2022-09-14

Scottish whisky comes from 5 main regions – Lowlands, Highlands, Speyside, Campbeltown and Islay. For me, the uninitiated, they all taste the same, apart from one. Islay. The whiskies of Islay are famed for their peat taste. It smells, and tastes like, drinking a bog! These are some of James’s favourite whiskies and so a trip to the island of Islay was high up his Scottish wish list. It’s not the easiest of the Scottish islands to get to – a two hour ferry from the mainland. And we weren’t on the mainland.

Our journey to Islay from Mull was a long day. It began leaving Tobermory, heading back to the ferry terminal. En route, we stopped at the Aros waterfall, a short way outside of Tobermory. The crossing back to Oban was a straightforward 30 mins then we were back on our way heading south.

We paused briefly in Arduaine, at a viewpoint overlooking Loch Melfort. We stopped for longer at Carnasserie Castle, built in the 1560’s by the first protestant Bishop of the Isles. Although his place of residence, the Bishop mostly used the castle to show off his wealth when hosting others. Today, it is largely in ruins, although you can go up the five flights of the tower for incredible views over Kilmartin Glen.

We drove on to the small village of Kilmartin, where we stopped for lunch. Given how long our day was going to be, we wanted to break up our day more than we had done any other day, when we often ate nothing more than a snack for lunch. Arriving at the Kilmartin Hotel, we were just in time for final lunch orders, and ended up treating ourselves to two courses. The table next to us were being read the dessert specials just as we were finishing our main – one of which was a white chocolate and raspberry cheesecake, James’s favourite, of which there were only two slices left. James suddenly looked panicked that they would order both slices and the relief was obvious when they only ordered one. He instantly signalled the waitress to ensure he could order the second one!!

Kilmartin Glen has one of the highest concentrations of prehistoric sites in Scotland – from Cairns to Henges, Standing Stones and rock carvings. Within a 6 mile radius of the Kilmartin village, there are more than 800 ancient monuments, of which 150 are prehistoric, including over 25 Standing Stone sites and 100 rock carvings. We did not have time to explore them all, but visited a small grouping that were near the village.

The Nether Largie Standing Stones are five stones, lined up as an X, that line up with the moon rises and settings on particular dates. They are approximately 3,200 years old. Next door is Temple Wood, the home of two 5,000 year old stone circles. The southern circle contains 13 standing stones about 12m in diameter. The northern circle is slightly smaller. The final site is Nether Largie South Cairn, a tomb built 5,500-5,600 years ago. These days, it doesn’t look much more than a circle pile of rocks on the ground, but in the past numerous graves and artefacts from important people has been found there.

A few miles south of Kilmartin, is the ancient Dunadd hill fort. This was the seat of power for Kings of the ancient Dál Riata kingdom – a Gaelic kingdom which encompassed the northwest of Scotland and the northeast of Ireland from 498 – 850 AD. All the surrounding area is flat ground, but in the middle of it is a hill and atop the hill are the ruins of Dunadd. Kings were inaugurated at the top and as recently as the 1500’s royal proclamations were read from the summit. Near the summit is a footprint, approx. size 6, where the Kings would place their foot whilst they were being crowned. The Stone of Destiny, now at Edinburgh Castle, may also have originally been here.

From here, we drove along the banks of Loch Fyne, all the way to Kennacraig, which was the ferry terminal for our two hour crossing to Islay. The journey was pleasant, with an on-board dining area allowing us to get a bite for dinner, with the final stretch heading up the channel between Islay and Jura, an even more remote island. We arrived at Port Askaig, in the north east of the island and drove the 30 minutes across the island to get to Port Ellen in the south of the island. By the time we arrived it was pitch black, but thankfully the road was double track all the way.

Our accommodation during our stay was a small pod, in the gardens of a larger house. It had a small kitchen area, toilet/shower area slightly larger than the sleeper train but not much and a double bed. The views looked out across the water where the closest land, 30 miles away as the crow flies and consequently out of sight, was Northern Ireland. We were met by the owner of the pod who showed us all the quirks plus hidden storage space and gave us a dram of whisky. Then, as we were both knackered, it was off to bed.

As we were staying in a pod rather than a hotel, this meant that we had to sort breakfast for ourselves in the morning. This meant a short walk down to the coop in the centre of Port Ellen. From our pod, we were directly on the Three Distilleries Path. This is a 5km path from Port Ellen, along the coast taking in three of the major distilleries of Islay – Laphroaig, Lagavulin and Ardbeg. We were spending our first day at Laphroaig. We were booked on a 90 min tasting in Warehouse 1. This session consisted of three drams of whisky, direct from the cask – the first a 7 year old in a virgin oak cask, the second a 17 year old in a bourbon cask and the third a 15 year old in a sherry cask. Each cask had a different method of extracting and produced whiskies of different colours and flavours. For me, the sherry cask whisky was the best, having a sweet aftertaste rather than the burning sensation I found with the bourbon cask. As they were direct from the cask, they were all that bit stronger, above 50%. Our guide also demonstrated a novel way of smelling the whisky – by pouring a couple of drops onto your hands, rubbing them to get rid of the alcohol and then bringing the hands to your face and inhaling. We also learnt that adding a drop of water to your whisky isn’t necessarily a bad thing. The water causes a chemical reaction which changes the flavour of the whisky. Some taste better after the water, some do not. Therefore, with any new whisky it is recommended to try it both ways on the first tasting. Once we had finished tasting all the whiskies, we were able to draw some whisky from the barrel ourselves, in order to fill a 200ml bottle. As every barrel produces a slightly different whisky, our bottles are very limited edition.

A couple of years ago, my sister bought James a bottle of Laphroaig for Christmas. When you purchase a bottle, it comes with the title deeds to a small plot of land on the Laphroaig estate. This land is opposite the main entrance. After we had finished the tastings, we borrowed some wellies and headed out into the field so that James could find “his plot”. In it, he placed a Union Jack flag and posed for a couple of photos. As payment of ground rent, he received a miniature bottle of signature Laphroaig. That evening, we had a relaxing evening back at the pod, with dinner and some games.

The next morning we headed to the end of the Three Distilleries Path, to the Ardbeg Distillery. We had nothing booked here and all the tours and tastings were fully booked up. However, all distilleries have a bar area and serve whisky there. So, after a spot of lunch in the distillery courtyard, we headed to the bar and got a flight of whiskies to share, plus tasting notes. It’s quite something when the notes mention that the nose of the whisky is creosote!

Heading back along the path, we stopped at the very ruined Dunyvaig Castle, once a naval base of the Lord of the Isles. It is right on the shore edge, looking back at Lagavulin Distillery. The final of the three distilleries, we arrived at Lagavulin a little early for our tasting, so we headed to the bar for a hot chocolate and a piece of cake. The hot chocolate was basically melted chocolate in a cup. The tasting consisted of four whiskies, one of which was cask strength. For me, these weren’t as tasty as the Ardbeg ones. We returned to our pod, after approx. 7.5 drams, feeling very happy with the world!


Loch Lomond, Stirling

2022-09-15 to 2022-09-18

At 36.4km long and between 1-8km wide, Loch Lomond is the largest lake in Great Britain by surface area. It is also the second largest in the Great Britain, based on water volume, after Loch Ness after probably the second most famous after Loch Ness as well. It is situated on the Highland Boundary Fault, traditionally seen as the boundary between the Highlands and the Lowlands. It would be one of our final stops on our Scottish adventure.

We woke up on our last morning on Islay to find a text message saying that our ferry was no longer going from the ferry port 5 min drive away, but would be departing from the one 35 min drive away. Cue a mad panic to get out the door and on our way. When we arrived at the new ferry terminal, it quickly became apparent that the departure time had changed too, something that was not on the text message! By 10.30 we had departed, an hour or so later than planned and were on the mainland two hours later. Our drive took us back up Loch Fyne, which we followed all the way to Inveraray.

Here we paused our journey so that we could visit Inveraray Castle. It was built in a Gothic style, with many turrets and was once used for filming the Christmas edition of Downton Abbey. The road carried on through the spectacular Glen Croe, before winding down to the western shores of Loch Lomond. We were staying on the eastern shores, so we got to see a fair bit of the lake as we rounded the base of it, before heading back up the other side to Balmaha.

Our accommodation for two nights was at an Inn, who offered a whisky experience. You got the room, a distillery tour, two flights at the bar and £30 off dinner. We had just enough time to check in and dump our bags before we headed back out to the Glengoyne Distillery. This was the first distillery we visited that wasn’t within walking distance which meant James, as the only named driver on the rental car agreement, would have to take a “drivers pack” home from the distillery rather than drink his samples on site. This distillery seemed to have a lot of different rules to the others we had visited. For instance, due to health and safety, we were not allowed to take any photos inside. A restriction no one else had placed on us. The two whiskies for sampling were a 12 year old and an 18 year old, of which the latter was definitely better. And also a lot more expensive, so none was bought.

We returned to the hotel, where we had dinner then moved through to the bar area for our flights – each one consisting of three whiskies. After a quick conversation with the barman about which distilleries we had already tried in Scotland, we settled on a flight of Loch Lomond whisky and a flight of Auchentoshan. Both James and I were in agreement that the Auchentoshan were preferable.

The whisky had slightly caught up with us the next morning and we were both in need of bacon and fresh air. Luckily, breakfast provided one and the area around the hotel provided the other. Next door to the hotel is a small park and a little further is a viewpoint out onto the loch. Beyond the viewpoint was a path uphill to another viewpoint over the Loch. The top of the hill was the former site of Craigie Fort, an old Celtic fort. There is nothing left of the fort today, but the views across Loch Lomond in one direction and to Ben Lomond in the other direction, was amazing. We came back down and headed to the visitor centre opposite our hotel to look at the information for the area. Behind the centre is another small hike, called the Millennium Forest. On a good day, you might see red squirrels in the forest, but there were none this day.

At the end of the walk, we returned to hotel and went to the coffee shop just in front. The hotel brew their own coffee as well as make their own cake and ice cream, so we sat in the sun eating and drinking and generally just relaxing. Taking the car, we drove a little further up the eastern side of the Loch, stopping at Milarrochy Beach. This was a lovely place to stop and sit, watching the water in the warm sun. Further up, the road ended at Rowardennan, also the start point for climbing Ben Lomond. However, there wasn’t much else here so we went back down the road, beyond Balmaha and drove to Aberfoyle. This small town had a good variety of outdoor shops and we were able to but some final gifts and souvenirs. Returning to Balmaha, we had a drink the in the pub in the last of the days sun, before dinner.

The next day was our final full day. As we were checking out of the Inn, the lady on reception gave us some good advice for our final stop, Stirling, including a good restaurant for dinner. It was only a short drive, approx. 30 mins from the Loch. On the way into town, we stopped at the Wallace Monument. This 67m tower sits stop Abbey Craig, just to the north of Stirling, and commemorates William Wallace. The hill is the site of Wallace’s HQ ahead of the battle of Stirling Bridge. We had to climb the hill in order to get to the base of the Tower, then climb another 246 steps to get to the top. The views were pretty epic from the top, across the whole city, the castle and some old battle grounds.

Leaving the Monument, we returned the hire car, then headed to our hotel where we left our bags as it was too early to check in and headed on foot to Stirling Castle. Stirling Castle has a long, battle weary history since its construction in the early 12th century. It has been at the forefront of many of the wars between the Scots and the English. It was said that if you controlled Stirling Castle, you controlled Scotland. It has been the home to many Scottish Kings and Queens and has military links to the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders regiment. It is easy to spend a good few hours here, exploring the Royal Palace, chapels, kitchens and ramparts.

That evening, for dinner, we headed to the restaurant recommended at check out that morning. It was a burger and hot dog joint. James chose a dog, I had my second awesome burger of the holiday – whilst not quite as good as the one in Tobermory, it was nevertheless excellent – chicken burger, crispy bacon, guacamole, salad, beef tomato, halloumi and sweet chilli sauce. A fitting final dinner to an excellent holiday.

The next morning and we had to fight the trains to get home. A few weeks before we left, return train tickets were still not on sale. We realised that was due to engineering works between Edinburgh and Newcastle, meaning that the route from Stirling to London was being diverted via Glasgow and down the west coast line. Due to Avanti West Coast being an absolute sh*tshow, they only put tickets on sale a few days ahead of travel. There seemed to be no other option from Stirling, but we realised that there were still direct trains from Edinburgh with LNER, largely using the East coast line, but diverted between Edinburgh and Newcastle via Carlisle. So, before leaving we had booked a train from Stirling to Edinburgh, then a second one from there to London. It was long, but it seemed less hassle than the west coast. Then the Queen died. Apparently, engineering works cannot happen after a monarch’s death, out of respect. So about a week before we came home, all the timetables changed again, and trains were using the usual route from Edinburgh, via Newcastle to London. Which meant we got put on a different train to London, which would give us a 2 hour wait in Edinburgh station. So we had to cancel that and rebook on a train that left Edinburgh shortly after we arrived in from Stirling. So much hassle. Luckily, on the day all went fairly smoothly. The biggest issue being that we now had 7 bags to take home rather than the 3 we brought with us. But we made it from Stirling to Edinburgh, changed to Kings Cross, waddled across the road to St Pancras where we could get a train to Purley, which then had a 20 min wait for the final connection to Caterham. So we gave up at that point and got a taxi!


Summary

2022-09-19

Summary

The usual random collection of stats and figures to round off my holiday.

Length of trip: 16 Days

Nights on sleeper train: 1

Different overnight locations (excl. train): 7

Trips on the water: 6

Approximate mileage driven: more than 500

Islands visited: 3

Lochs seen: loads!

Drams of whisky drunk: 20.5 (I think, more for James)

Haggis meals: 1

Deep fried Mars Bars eaten: 0, sadly

Midges seen: very few

Days with some sunshine: All of them!!

Days with some rain: Only a few

Monarchs dying during holiday: 1

Bags left home with: 3

Bags left Scotland with: 7


Antarctica - the ultimate, epic, bucket list adventure

2022-11-18

It’s been 18 years in the making, a warm up of 90+ countries that included every other continent. But the one missing continent – the big, white one – is finally being visited. Booked approximately 2 years ago, I’m finally off to Antarctica. And I’m not going alone. Amongst others, James is coming, long term travel buddy Melissa is coming, Cheryl, who I originally met in China, is coming and others.

We are all doing different things before arriving at the boat. James and I are spending 3 nights in Buenos Aires, before flying down to Ushuaia for two nights, where we will meet the others, plus anyone else on our trip. The boat leaves Ushuaia and undertakes a two day crossing of the Drake Passage before arriving at the Antarctic Peninsula. We spend three days on the eastern side, before spending four nights on the western side. Then a two day crossing back to Ushuaia, where we head to Montevideo for a couple of nights, then back to BA to fly home.

Whilst in Antarctica, we will spend time with animal viewings – there should be plenty of penguins and seals and hopefully some sea lions and killer whales. We get onto the land for snow shoeing and hiking, we take to the water for day paddling (similar to kayaking) and we even get to spend one night camping on the ice. All in all an epic adventure.


Buenos Aires

2022-11-25 to 2022-11-28

With 4 Copa Libertadores, 1 Intercontinental cup, 1 Supercopa Sudamericana, 1 Copa Sudamericana, 3 Recopa Sudamericana, 1 Copa Interamericana, 1 Sugura Bank Championship, 5 Campeonato Rioplatense, 1 Tie Cup and 51 top division titles, Club Atlético River Plate are by far and away the most successful football club in Argentina, probably South America and up there on the World stage. Their stadium, Estadio Mâs Monumental, is the largest stadium in Argentina and the home of the, now three time World Cup winners, Argentina National Football Team.

Football is such a huge part of Argentine culture that their shock at losing to Saudi Arabia in the first group game of the 2022 Qatar World Cup was still tangible when we arrived. Whilst we all know now that this story has a happy ending for Argentina, there was tension and nervous glances at every TV screen throughout Buenos Aires during every match, no matter who was playing.

Our flight to BA was a long 16.5 hours, complete with a 1.5 hour stop in Sao Paulo to drop off some passengers and pick up some others. When booking the flight, Premium Economy was only £100 more than Economy so, given the length of flight, we decided to splurge. This meant we had slightly more leg room than usual, larger seats, a much smaller cabin and welcome drinks upon boarding. We settled in for our long, overnight flight, eventually arriving in BA slightly ahead of schedule. Our first task after clearing immigration and customs was to find some money. We were hoping for a money change, but none could be found so we ended up withdrawing from an ATM.

We jumped in a taxi to our hotel, where we could leave the bags but not check in and then went out exploring the local area. The hotel was in the central area of the city, near the main shopping street. We wandered up and down that before settling into a small café, for coffee and cheesecake. By the time we’d finished we were able to go and check in and freshen up. We then had to find somewhere to watch the football, with Argentina about to kick off against Mexico. Thankfully, Argentina won 2-0 and there were lots of happy faces on the streets post-match. We bought ourselves a bag full of empanadas and turned in for an early night.

With a good night’s sleep behind us, the next day we went exploring in a bit more depth. First up, we stumbled across a street festival celebrating Latin American food and culture. This finished by Plaza de Mayo, the square right in front of the Casa Rosada Palace. This is the president’s office and also contains the balcony where Evita gave her famous speech. In the Plaza, there are numerous statues including one whose base had recently been adorned with small rocks. Given the dates on the rocks, we assumed this statue had been turned into one commemorating the victims of covid.

Behind the Palace, we walked to the water’s edge and along the edge of the Puerto Madero port area. Here we saw the 140 year old Argentine Navy Antarctic ship Uruguay. Now a museum, it was built in Birkenhead, was a gun ship and a science vessel but most famously rescued Otto Nordensköld and the Swedish Antarctic Expedition party from Antarctica, when their ship the Antarctic was destroyed by ice.

Heading back away from the water, we went to Avenida 9 de Julio, the widest street in the world. It spans 110m and has 16 lanes of traffic and occupies an entire city block. It is home to Teatro Colon, the city’s main opera house and the Obelisco, built to commemorate 400 years of Buenos Aires and now the focal point of the city, especially when celebrating World Cup wins! Our final stop was Palacio Congreso, the seat of the Argentine Congress.

That evening, we went out for steak dinner and cocktails, at a restaurant close to our hotel.

The next morning it was time to dig deeper into Argentine football culture by visiting the Estadio Mâs Monumental. This meant taking the metro to the north of the city. On paper, this seemed a simple task. The reality, however… We headed into our nearest station and asked the lady at the ticket desk for two tickets. She told us that she didn’t have any cards left, then walked us to the barriers and let us through. We were a bit confused at this point as to whether she was letting us get on the metro for free, or telling us to go to the ticket barrier at the other end of the station and buy a ticket there.

The metro station was the meeting point of three lines and the one we needed was the furthest away. As we are honest people, we walked to our line and up to the ticket barriers and explained to the staff member in broken Spanish what had happened at the other end. He let us through the barrier and pointed us in the direction of another ticket desk. The man here then told us that we had to go upstairs to buy a card. So we went upstairs and found ourselves back on the streets, slightly confused. Across the road was a Tourist Office so we went there to ask for the card and the lady there said she had them but the computer was still turning on, so we had to wait.

Once the computer was working, she asked me for a passport and I told her I didn’t have it on me but had a drivers licence. She said as long as it had a photo that was fine. So I handed it over, she looked at it, then said they didn’t take it. But then she began to process our cards, whilst still muttering that they didn’t take drivers licences as ID! Eventually she handed over an oyster type card, called Sube and told us that we needed to add some money on it in the station. Back into the station to the ticket office, which was now unoccupied. We found a machine instead and were finally able to add some money to the card, proceed back through the barriers and board a metro!

We took the train all the way to the end of the line, from where it was a 20 min walk through a very nice, leafy neighbourhood – not the usual neighbourhoods for football clubs. The stadium has a capacity of just over 70,000 and hosts the Argentine rugby team as well as numerous concerts, including earlier that month a record breaking 10 nights by Coldplay.

The stadium contains a museum and entry also gets you onto a stadium tour. The museum began with a history of the clubs successes, by decade. It was noticeable how even in the “lean” decades, there were still a decent number of trophies won. The museum culminated in a very impressive trophy room. The stadium tour took us from the museum across to the stadium, where we went up the stairs to the top tier. The stadium had no roof, more than half the tier was terracing with no railings and a long drop down to the tier below. It would be absolute carnage after a last minute winner against your fiercest rivals.

Leaving the stadium, it was 20 minutes back to the metro, where we headed to the Recoleta district. First up, was a break to watch the latest World Cup match, between Brazil and Switzerland. There were a couple of bars on a street corner showing the match, with mostly Brazilian fans watching from the table and chairs on the street. The two bars had TV’s facing the street but one of the TV’s had about a minute lag compared to the other. Our best view was of the one that was behind which made for an interesting watching experience as you’d hear reaction from the tables to our left and a minute later, when you saw the same bit of play, you knew exactly whether it would lead to a goal or not. The match finished 1-0 to Brazil, although if you were in the distance, you could be forgiven for thinking that it finished 2-0 with the goals very close together!

From the bar, it was a short walk to the Recoleta Cemetery. The cemetery has been described as one of the most beautiful in the world and has over 4500 vaults, all above ground. It is the final resting place of numerous eminent Argentine’s such as Eva Peron (but not her husband), Argentine presidents and even some Nobel Prize winners. Anybody who is anybody wants to be buried here. Our day rounded off with another empanada dinner before returning to the hotel.


Ushuaia

2022-11-29 to 2022-12-01

In the late 19th century, as part of efforts to help establish Argentine sovereignty over the Tierra Del Fuego region, a penal colony was built. The prisoners themselves then helped build the city of Ushuaia, the southernmost city in the world. In order to transport freight between the city and the penal colony, the prisoners also built a railroad – the Southern Fuegian Railroad. This railroad ran until 1952, 5 years after the prison closed. These days, the railway has been reborn as a tourist train known as Tren Del Fin Del Mundo – the End of the World train.

We woke up in Buenos Aires to a text message from Aerolineas Argentina saying that our flight had been retimed. This was basically code for it was delayed. But we still had to get to the airport at the right time. We sat in departures watching the football for two hours before our flight finally began boarding. Because Ushuaia is the southern tip of Argentina, it is close to 1,500 miles away from Buenos Aires, the equivalent of London to either Tromsø or Marrakesh, it is a solid 3.5 hour flight. You also substantially change weather between take off and arrival. We left BA in 30 degrees and arrived in Ushuaia in single digits.

Of the 6 of us travelling to Antarctica, James and I were the last to arrive in Ushuaia, so once we arrived at our hotel, we quickly messaged the others to see what they were up to and soon we were off to find dinner with Cheryl. We ended up in a small diner, serving steak and copious amounts of beer. Melissa, Rosie and Matt joined us later on and a wonderful evening was had before returning to our hotel around midnight.

The next morning, after a breakfast overlooking the whole town thanks to our hotel being up a hill and the breakfast room being on the top floor, we checked out and went off to explore Ushuaia. The town has a main street complete with shops and cafes, with side streets coming off it. Running parallel to it, next to the water is the main road in and out of the area. The shops, as the area is quite cut off, had some outlandish prices in their outdoor departments. Everywhere you look are “reminders” that the Falkland Islands, or Islas Malvinas, are Argentinian. The full name of the province is “Province of Tierra Del Fuego, Antarctica and South Atlantic Islands”. This final part is referring to both the Falklands and South Georgia, both of which Argentina claim. Every map of the province includes both these sets of islands on it.

After a walk down the main shopping street and down to the water’s edge, we reached the Plaza Islas Malvinas – containing a memorial to those who lost their lives in the Falklands War. There are also numerous photos taken during the conflict by an Argentine photographer with the troops on the islands. Further along the coast, back towards the centre, we found the main port complete with a shipwreck and the End of the World sign, great for cheesy photo ops. This is also the port we will would also be departing from the next day.

Returning to the main shopping street, we found a nice, little café with big portions of cake for lunch before returning to our hotel in order to collect baggage and transfer to a different hotel, halfway up the hill overlooking the town. This new hotel was the official start point of our trip to Antarctica, where we would be meeting our boat mates and spending the night. Once here, we had to check in with Intrepid and sign a form to say we’d returned a negative covid test within the last 72 hours.

As we were so far away from the centre of town, we watched that afternoon’s Argentina vs Poland World Cup group game in the hotel. Once again, Argentina won 2-0 and the country breathed a sigh of relief that they had qualified out of the group stages. This would be the last match we would see until the semi-finals. We spent the rest of the evening chilling in the bar and doing the final packing for our epic adventure the next day.

However, we weren’t boarding the boat until mid-afternoon, so in the morning we had arranged a trip to Tierra Del Fuego National Park, via the Tren Del Fin Del Mundo. We were expecting to be picked up at 8, so were breakfasted and checked out by then, but our guide didn’t arrive until 9.20!

We were taken to the train station, a few km out of town. Here we boarded a small steam train, which travelled extremely slowly. During the journey, we were given information about the construction of the railway, the town and the prison. We made a short stop at Estacion Macarena, site of a small waterfall. The track then continued alongside the Rio Pipo and past a Tree Cemetery. Prisoners used to cut down trees to supply the town with firewood for over 50 years and now there is a whole area of stumps (trees not exceeding 50cm). Finally, the train arrived at the Tierra Del Fuego station inside the national park where we met back up with our guide and bus.

We were taken further into the park, to three separate viewpoints. The first was Lago Lapataia, which is also the end point of the Pan-American Highway, the road which runs all the way from Prudhoe Bay in Alaska, down to the southern tip of Argentina (minus a small break in the notoriously dangerous Darien Gap). The second viewpoint was at Alakush Lake, also known as Roca Lake, which was incredibly windy and cold.

The final stop was at Ensenada Bay, with views over the Beagle Channel and which is also home to the southernmost post office in the Americas. We hastily wrote some postcards and got our passports stamped with a small penguin stamp before we had to leave. We returned to town, where we had a quick bite to eat then headed to the port in order to board our boat for Antarctica.

That initial first evening was quite boring. We had a mandatory lifeboat drill, a briefing regarding the boat and key staff then a buffet dinner. We left port around 9pm, had a solid explore of the boat, then retired to our cabin.


Life on the Boat

2022-12-02

It was to be our home, entertainment and restaurant, for two weeks, but what was it actually like on board the Ocean Endeavour?

In many ways, the ship was like a regular cruise ship, albeit much smaller. There were cabins of different sizes spread across 4 decks, a restaurant, a lounge/bar, a library, a small shop and plenty of outside space including a swimming pool and hot tub. However, there were extra facilities such as the Mud Room and plenty of information boards containing maps and animal sightings. The ship operated an ‘open Bridge’ policy, whereby most of the time the Bridge was open and you were allowed in to talk to the captain, animal watch from the front or just marvel at the equipment. Obviously, the Bridge would close during difficult navigations or if a local pilot was aboard.

Our cabin was a twin room on deck 4. On entry, there was a small living space directly in front, with sofa, TV and some storage. Directly on the right was a bathroom. The cabin was divided into two and the second section, to the left, was the sleeping area containing twin beds, another TV, more storage and another bathroom. Each bathroom contained a toilet, a sink and a shower. Why we had two we weren’t sure, but there were a number of cabins that had two.

The TV had just 8 channels:

1 – the plan for the day

2 – Frozen Planet, all episodes on repeat

3 – Frozen Planet 2, all episodes on repeat

4 – a documentary about a year in Antarctica at the US Antarctic station, on repeat

5 – films, of various quality

6 – a live stream of the Lounge

7 – a map, showing our current location

8 – films, of various quality

All meals were served in the restaurant. Breakfast was buffet style, containing both hot food and continental style dishes. Lunch was also buffet, but three courses, if you wanted. Dinner was usually A La Carte, and contained three courses. On sea days, there would also be afternoon tea available in the library – sandwiches plus scones, cream and jam. And at all times, there was tea, coffee and hot chocolate available in the library alongside 2, sometimes 3, cookie jars.

So what was day to day life on board the ship actually like? Well, each day was fairly structured but there were slight differences depending on whether we were at sea all day or doing landings. There’d be a wake-up call into the cabin around 6.30am with breakfast usually served from 7.00 – 8.30. Activities, either landings or talks, would begin around 9.00 and continue until around 11.30. Lunch would be served from 12.00 – 1.30pm. Afternoon activities began around 2.00 and carried on until 5.00 ish. On sea days, afternoon tea would be served from 3.30-4.30. We would have a recap and briefing from about 6.15 – 7.00 each evening, then dinner would be from 7.00 – 8.30. Occasionally, there would be an evening activity from 8.30, but these were not every day.

On the sea days, there was an extensive education programme. This contained talks from the expedition crew on a variety of topics. The crew consisted of animal experts, historians, geologists and scientists so the talks were always informative and varied and often lasted 30-45 mins, meaning more than one could take place in each session.

There were also a number of science projects taking place on board the ship, mostly under the banner of Citizen Science. These projects were conducting a seabird survey, monitoring clouds, identifying whales and collecting water samples to analyse krill levels. Additionally, there was a team onboard searching for colossal squid. Only a handful of colossal squid have ever been captured and never alive, so a lot is unknown about the creature. The team of 4 were using the time we were doing landings to lower an underwater camera on a baited line to see what was beneath the surface of the water. This was their first ever attempt, so they weren’t expecting to find anything but were mostly testing the equipment in different depths of water.

There was a very limited wifi on board. It could be purchased at exorbitant prices, but there was no guarantee it would be working. In fact, on at least 3 days there were signs at reception saying that the internet was down. However, there was enough throughout the trip that the football scores were getting through and being announced at the nightly briefing.

The ship also had a special guest on board – an Australian naturalist called Adam Spencer. He was introduced to those who didn’t know him as “Australia’s answer to David Attenborough”, which brought a lot of head shaking from the Brits on board. He is also a comedian and radio presenter so was often compering a number of events on board, from Q&A sessions with the expedition crew, quiz nights and even a wedding.

When we did leave the ship on excursions, either landings or zodiac cruises, a number of procedures had to be followed. We have been put into 4 Mud Room groups and we’d be called down one group at a time to get dressed for the excursion. Waterproof layers, muck boots and life jackets were a must. We’d leave the Mud Room, head down the stairs to Deck 3, where there was an exit to the zodiacs – small, inflatable ships, seating 10. We had to go through a bucket of biosecure liquid, to help remove any non-native bacteria from anything that would make contact with the ground. We then would be scanned out and could board a zodiac. When re-boarding the ship, the same process was followed in reverse. The biosecure liquid is in accordance with IAATO (International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators) guidelines.

In terms of where our landings were, there are IAATO rules surrounding this. There are a number of approved landing spots within Antarctica and each one can only have one ship visiting in either the morning or afternoon. The Expedition Leader is responsible for booking their ship into the spot using an app. Once a ship is booked in, another ship cannot go to that spot at that time. They could, however, make contact with the other ship and attempt to negotiate. This means that every landing we did we had the spot to ourselves, limiting the human impact on both the land and the animals. Only on two occasions did we see other ships, fleetingly and in the distance.

Once ashore, only your feet are allowed to touch any land. You cannot sit or lie down. Any bags you are carrying must remain off the floor. If you needed to take layers off, it would require getting at least one other person to help you by holding items of clothing and bags until you were sorted. You had to remain at least 5m from animals at all times and obviously they had right of way. You also could not crouch down either to better look at the animals or to attempt to get a better photo. When in zodiacs, they had to remain even further back from animals, especially whales. The suggested distance from icebergs was twice the length of the above water portion, in the event that one suddenly flipped.


Drake Passage

2022-12-03

At approximately 14.2m km², Antarctica is neither the largest nor the smallest continent. However, it is easily the least populated and the coldest. Only around 1,000 people over winter in Antarctica, with numbers swelling to 4,000 in the summer. The highest ever recorded temperature is 19 degrees C and the coldest is -89 degrees C. Once the core of the supercontinent Gondwanaland, Antarctica is today surrounded by the southern ocean and is technically a desert covered in snow and ice. But 270 million years ago the land would have been covered in tundra and forest. Some of the rock formations we would see on this trip had been formed over millions of years and within the last 40 years, the first dinosaur fossils have been found. It is the least visited continent, but one for the highly adventurous.

However, to get there you have to cross the notorious Drake Passage. Named after Sir Francis Drake, it is considered one of the most treacherous voyages for ships to make. Off the bottom of Tierra Del Fuego, it is the meeting point of the southwestern part of the Atlantic Ocean, the southeastern part of the Pacific Ocean, plus the Southern Ocean. Currents at that latitude meet no landmass, winds can pick up and waves can top 40 feet (12m). It has been referred to as “The most powerful convergence of seas”.

Our first day aboard the Ocean Endeavour and we woke up to what was deemed a fairly flat Drake Passage. However, you could definitely feel the movement and I felt quite queasy until the meds kicked in. So queasy in fact, that I decided it wise to skip breakfast and sit out in the fresh air. Our first educational talk of the voyage was about penguins, which I felt well enough to attend and then had perked up enough for a small amount of lunch. The afternoon was a mix of chilling, wandering around on deck and talks before dinner. By this point the wind had picked up a fair bit and unfortunately we were given a table right at the front of the dining room which was also the front of the boat and, consequently, most affected by the movement. So we had a very quick dinner before returning to the library which was much less affected by the movement. It had gotten so bad that the captain had ordered the outside area to be closed. However, this was still deemed a ‘good Drake’. It was also to be the worst we experienced. At 9pm, we had a briefing about our night’s camping, after which we headed to bed.

The next day was much calmer. First up after breakfast was a mandatory IAATO and zodiac briefing. This included rules around what to do when ashore, interacting with animals and the safe way to transfer between boat and zodiac. After this, it was back to animal hunting on deck. There was talk of whales in the distance, but I couldn’t spot any. After lunch, we had another mandatory session that involved the expedition crew looking over any clothes that would be warn ashore, checking for anything that might be a biosecurity hazard. This involved removing bits of fluff from Velcro and checking inside hems for loose grit. That afternoon, there was an announcement of whales and this time there were humpback whales very clearly visible, blowing and breaching, only a short way from the ship. Our early evening talk was from the expedition historian, who has over-wintered in Antarctica twice – once accidentally after the plane coming to get him (and others) was unable to land due to bad weather. He ended up staying on the Argentine base. He spoke about the heroic age of exploration, which ended when Shackleton died. We also had a talk from the Kolossal Squid team about their work and equipment. Finally, we had a briefing about tomorrow’s plans – we are starting on the Western side of the peninsula in the Gerlache Strait. They were expecting plenty of fresh snow on the ground as the western side of the peninsula has had more than usual this year and we had been having snow on and off all day. Finally, it was dinner then to bed with a feeling similar to a child on Christmas Eve!


Day 1 - Danco and Cuverville Islands

2022-12-04

Plan:      AM: Neko Harbour

              PM: Danco Island

Actual:   AM: Danco Island - 64°44’ S, 62°37’ W

              PM: Cuverville Island - 64°41’ S, 62°38’ W

Waking up on the first morning in Antarctica, we had a taste of how flexible you have to be down here. The ship had attempted to get to Neko Harbour in the night but had come up against too much sea ice to pass through. Therefore, plans had to change and our first stop of the day was our original afternoon stop – Danco Island. After breakfast, we headed to the Mud Room to begin prepping for going ashore. No one was quite sure how many layers was enough and how many was not enough / too many. It was a trial and error sort of day. Like most, I deemed it better to err on the side of wearing too many. It’s much easier to take a layer off and carry it in a bag than add one you don’t have with you! Therefore, I was dressed as follows:

Feet – two pairs of Merino wool socks, muck boots

Legs – base layer, fleece lined trousers, waterproof trousers

Body – base layer, fleece lined long sleeved t-shirt, fleece, puffer jacket, waterproof coat, life jacket

Extras – muff, hat, gloves

Movement was somewhat restricted but it was toasty warm whilst queuing to get off the main ship and onto the zodiac to head ashore. Only 100 passengers are allowed on land at any one landing site at a time, but as the boat wasn’t full and there were often people out kayaking, this wasn’t an issue. We were always under 100. On the days when it was too windy to kayak and all 120 wanted to go ashore, they would send half the group ashore whilst half cruised, then switch. On this first day, all could go ashore, with optional zodiac cruise afterwards if there was time.

As we boarded the zodiac, we were able to get our first full 360° view of where the boat was anchored. We were in the middle of an inlet, with huge snowy rocks on either side, icebergs floating in the water and penguins porpoising next to us. It was picture perfect Antarctica. Danco Island is approximately 1 mile long at the southern end of the Errera Channel. First sighted by the Belgian Antarctic Expedition in February 1898 and named after Lieut. Emile Danco, the geophysicist of the expedition, who died on board the Belgica on the 5th June 1899. In 1955 a British Antarctic Base was built on the island, which remained in use until 1959 and was removed in 2004. There are approximately 1600 breeding pairs of Gentoo penguins, found between the beach where we landed and the summit of the islands, some 180m up.

The zodiac dropped us at the small rocky beach, which had a few Gentoo and one Adelie penguins. Steps had been cut in the ice to get us off the beach and a path had been marked out in the snow so that we could walk up the hill for better views of the surroundings and the penguin colony. It became apparent very quickly that we had all overdressed and layers were quickly being shed. Many of the Gentoo penguins were courting and mating, so we could hear them “trumpeting” as part of the ritual a male penguin uses to attract a female. Gentoo’s like to nest on rocks, so the heavy snow covering that had hit the western side of the peninsula was hindering the penguin’s ability to lay their lay their eggs.

From the top of the hill, the ship looked tiny in the distance, flanked by large snowy hills, surrounded by icebergs. As we headed along the path cut for us, we often had to stop to allow penguins to cross. Some jumped across the gap, some down into the gap and back up the other side and some just jumped down and used our path to get where they wanted to go.

After 60-90 minutes ashore, we headed back down to the beach, gave our boots a good scrub to remove any guano or bacteria on them, then did a zodiac cruise around the icebergs. Up close, you can see exactly how much of the iceberg is below the water line thanks to the clearness of the water. The blue colour of the fresh ice on the ‘bergs was such a contrast to the white. There were some Weddell seals lounging on a rock alongside a number of snowy sheathbills. We returned to the ship very happy with our first session in Antarctica.

However, it had become apparent that neither James nor my sunglasses were really up to scratch with all the blinding white snow, so we both had to take a trip to the ship shop in order to buy some very nice, but very expensive, new sunglasses.

That afternoon, having already visited our planned afternoon stop, we headed to a new stop – Cuverville Island. Cuverville is also situated in the Errera Channel and was discovered by the same Belgian Antarctic Expedition in February 1898. It was named after Jean Marie Armand Cavelier du Cuverville, a vice-admiral in the French Navy. The island is dome shaped, about 200m high and is home to one of the largest Gentoo penguin colonies in the area with several thousand pairs.

Again, the zodiac took us up to a beach from where we could climb ashore and see the penguins. We were also able to head up a small hill for more excellent views of the bay and icebergs. This was followed by another zodiac cruise, around the icebergs, where again we saw Weddell seals and, this time, an iceberg flipping. The icebergs felt much larger here and closer together – you were never quite sure what you would see as you rounded a corner. There were some arches within the ‘bergs, but sadly it is not safe to take the zodiacs through them.

Back on the ship and the Polar Plunges took place. This is for those people who wish to jump off the side of the ship, into freezing cold water, to say they’d done it. We passed. But watched with a nice warming drink.


Day 2 - Foyn Harbour and Portal Point

2022-12-05

Plan:      AM: Foyn Harbour

              PM: Portal Point

              Evening: Camping

Actual:   AM: Foyn Harbour - 64°33’ S, 62°01’ W

              PM: Portal Point - 64°30’ S, 61°46’ W

              Evening: Camping

Originally built in Liverpool, the Governoven now sits, partially submerged in Foyn Harbour in Antarctica after being deliberately run aground. It was used as a whaling factory ship by the Norwegians and was capable of holding over 22,000 gallons of oil. As the 1915 whaling season came to an end, the crew held a celebratory party. During that party, a lamp was knocked off a table and the ship caught fire. Due to the oil on board, the fire grew out of control and the captain had no choice but to run the ship aground, saving all 85 crew, but losing the oil and the ship. The crew were rescued by another whaling ship. The wreck of the Governoven is visible in Foyn Harbour, where it is now listed as a historic site, not to be touched, moved or damaged. It’s kind of odd in a way as if a ship were to run aground now and sink, there would be a massive operation to move it and clean up, but anything currently there is left alone and listed as historic.

Foyn Harbour lies between Nansen and Enterprise Islands in Wilhelmina Bay, off the west coast of Graham Land. It was named by whalers after the whaling factory ship Svend Foyn, moored here between 1921-22. It was our morning location, one where we would just be doing zodiac cruises. Once again, the cruise took us amongst lots of beautiful icebergs, white and blue, with amazingly clear water. Apart from the icebergs, the main highlight in the bay was the wreck of the Governoven.

As you can tell, the area is popular with whales and we were lucky enough to see one breaching three times, not too far from the zodiac. One of the most unexpected things about Antarctica is the absence of “normal” things, such as sound or smell. It was so peaceful, you could hear ice cracking or animals splashing in the water. You don’t really notice that there is no smell until you get back. I had expected to smell guano – when I visited a penguin colony in Cape Town, the guano absolutely stank – but in Antarctica, this was noticeably absent.

We returned to the ship after the morning’s excursion for a hot drink and lunch, whilst the ship moved on to our afternoon spot. This was Portal Point. Portal Point is located at the entrance of Charlotte Bay on the north-eastern tip of Reclus Peninsula. In 1956, a hut was built by the British Antarctic Survey on the point, from which a route to the plateau was established. The point became known as the gateway to the route. In 1957, Wally Herbert and a team of three others, sledged from Hope Bay, some 5,000km (3,000 miles) away to Portal Point. The four men overwintered in the hut in order to survey the area. The hut was occupied until 1958 and in 1997 it was relocated to a museum in Stanley, Falkland Islands.

This spot would be a mix of landing and zodiac cruising. As one of the first groups to the mud room, we went ashore first and spent about an hour there. There were a few adelie penguins, but no large colony. There was also a large Weddell seal lazing around at the edge of the snow.

On our zodiac cruise, our guide said she wanted to search for a whale skeleton she had seen a few years back. Due to visiting different spots with every trip, plus covid, she hadn’t been back to Portal Point since and was intrigued to see if it was still there. We followed the bay, hugging the shoreline and eventually were rewarded with some small bones, followed by a large bone, possibly the spine, then a few other bones. They were clearly whale given the size of them. The bones were further spread apart from when our guide was last there, but it was fascinating to find any of it.

Back on the ship, it was confirmed that camping would be taking place that evening, back on Portal Point. After dinner we collected our equipment – sleeping bag, sleep sheet, sleeping mat and bivvy bag – plus a few essentials and headed ashore. This was to be the only time that we were permitted to put anything other than our feet on the surface. First job, was to “stamp a pit” in the snow, almost a shallow grave, just big enough for our bivvy bags. These were largely in two lines, across from each other, with a path between them. Behind one set of bivvy bags, hidden down in a dip were two toilets. The word toilet may be slightly exaggerating – it was two buckets, each with a padded seat on top, one male and one female. Two bags with toilet paper and hand gel were put in a hole made in the “wall” of the toilet. From the seat, you had a view across the bay and over to the ship – a very long way away, there was plenty of privacy from the ship! Definitely a toilet with a view! At the entrance to each toilet, were two sticks. When placed upright, this indicated the toilet was free. When placed diagonally crossing, this indicated the toilet was in use.

Once our sleeping area was set up, we took a group photo, then walked up a nearby hill, for more views of the point. Around 10.30 or 11, people slowly began turning in for the night. Although we were not far enough south to officially have 24 hours of daylight, sunset and sunrise passed with barely a hint of recognition from those on land. It was basically light all night.


Day 3 - Spert Island

2022-12-06

Plan:      AM: Sail north through the Gerlache Strait

              PM: Spert Island

Actual:   AM: Sail north through the Gerlache Strait

              PM: Spert Island - 64°07’ S, 61°26’ W – at the 3rd attempt!

Described by our Expedition Leader as the “Holy Grail” for Antarctic guides, Spert Island was first charted by one of the other great Antarctic explorers – Otto Nordenskjöld, who led the Swedish Expedition between 1901 – 1904. It was named for Sir Thomas Spert, a vice admiral and Controller of the Ships under Henry VIII. Visually, it looked very different to anything we had seen so far.

We woke early at the campsite, partly because it never got dark, partly because it wasn’t the most comfortable night’s sleep and partly because we had an early start to get back to the ship. Most people managed to get at least some sleep, though mine was interspersed by some very crazy dreams. At 6, the zodiacs came from the ship to get us back aboard, where we went straight to breakfast, then returned to our cabins for a bit more sleep and a hot shower.

Meanwhile, the ship sailed north and out of the Gerlache Strait – the area around which we had spent our time so far. The strait is named after the leader of the Belgian Antarctic expedition, Adrien de Gerlache, who some say sailed his boat deep into pack ice in order that they would get stuck and be the first people to overwinter in Antarctica. During the winter, he banned the consumption of penguin and seal meat, leading to all the crew getting sick, both physically and mentally. Roald Amundsen and the on-board Dr secretly fed meat to the crew and, after seeing how it improved their health, Gerlache relented and allowed everybody to eat meat again.

After lunch, we had arrived in the area around Spert Island. The water here was much choppier, in part due to the wind and in part due to the natural conditions. The area is made up of lots of cliffs and rocks in the water that you can sail around. There was no landing here. Instead, we aimed to take the zodiacs out. We were the first group in the mud room but we had to queue for a long time on the starboard side to get on the zodiacs. Eventually, they told us they were switching to port side as it was too dangerous to board from starboard. We traipsed across to the other side and queued again. Again, they told us it was too dangerous. In the half hour we had been queueing, they had managed to get 3 people onto zodiacs and all had fallen over in the zodiac.

They decided to abort the afternoon’s trip. As we were removing coats and shoes, a call came from starboard side that, as the main ship had moved slightly, the waves were not as bad and we could try boarding again. So, we put shoes and coats back on and went back to queue for a zodiac. This time, we were successful. It was a slower boarding process than usual, but we managed to board a zodiac and head away from the boat. The ride was definitely bouncier than we had experienced up to that point, as most of the previous sails had been basically flat.

We sailed around the rocks, many of which had snow on the top but were clear on the sides. Some of the rocks had eroded, leaving archways underneath them. One had turned into a large cave, with a really high ceiling. There were plenty of birds nesting on the cliffs – terns, sheathbills, skuas, cormorants and some chipstrap penguins.

On returning to the ship, reboarding was a bit easier thought still bouncy. The evening was a quieter affair, as the lack of sleep the night before was still catching up with people. Our evening briefing confirmed that we had 3 covid cases on the ship and that there were already 2 mobile phones lost overboard.


Day 4 - Gourdin Island and Brown Bluff

2022-12-07

Plan:     AM: Gourdin Island

             PM: Brown Bluff

Actual:  AM: Gourdin Island - 63°12’ S, 57°18’ W

             PM: Brown Bluff - 63°32’ S, 56°55’ W

Tuya are flat-topped, steep sided volcanoes formed when lava erupts through a thick layer of glacier or sheet ice. Because of the unique set of characteristics required to form, they are very rare and are mostly found in the far north – Iceland, Canada, USA or Russia. In the Southern hemisphere, they are found in Antarctica.

We woke up early the next day. Due to expected high winds later on the in the morning, the expedition team took the decision to start the morning’s activities earlier than usual. Consequently, I decided to skip breakfast, grabbing an apple from the coffee station just before we headed to the mud room instead. By this point we had reached the tip of the Antarctic Peninsula and had arrived at Gourdin Island. It was discovered by the French Expedition of 1837-40, on ship Astrolabe, under Jules Dumont d’Urville, who named the island for Ensign Jean Gourdin. The island has a huge amount of wildlife, including a colony of 14,000 pairs of Adelie penguins, 550 pairs of Gentoo penguins, Weddell, Crabeater and Leopard seals as well as a variety of flying birds.

The island didn’t disappoint for wildlife. Although we only did a zodiac cruise, we saw plenty of penguins – adelie, gentoo and chipstrap – mostly in independent groups but occasionally mixing. There were also a group of leopard seals, chilling on the beach. The levels of snow were noticeably diminishing here, replaced instead by brown rocks and brown ash sand, which would continue into the afternoon.

However, our route to the afternoon spot of Brown Bluff was delayed due to sea ice. Instead of arriving at 1.30pm as planned, it was nearer to 3.30pm. We did see the Argentine base Esperanza from a distance, with everyone’s phones picking up a network for the first time in a week! From a distance, it didn’t look much more than a collection of huts on the edge of the water with some high mountains and a glacier behind.

Once we arrived at Brown Bluff, they took only half the group with the rest of us waiting on the boat. When we did get to the mud room and onto a zodiac, we began with a short cruise. The highlight (and I use that word lightly) was watching a leopard seal catch a Gentoo penguin. Once it had it in its teeth, it flailed it around, in the water, from side to side. You could see by the colour of the water that there was a fair amount of blood and the penguin was clearly no longer alive. By using the thrashing motion, seals attempt to de-skin the penguins. Then other sea birds appear, attracted to fresh meat.

Landing on the bluff, the beach was made of black ash, with lots of pebbles and the collapsed caldera of a volcano behind it. The pebbles are important to the adelie penguins who build their nests out of stones on snow free land. Some of the adelies already had small chicks and could be seen feeding them. The beach also had a scattering of penguin and seabird carcasses, so clearly the seals fed well here.

As we walked along the beach, we often had to pause on our marked trail to allow the penguins to cross in front of us. At the far end of the beach, up a small hill, we got a great view of a huge, adjacent glacier. There was quite a freezing wind whipping off the glacier, so we didn’t hang around too long.

Because of our delayed arrival at Brown Bluff, we were delayed getting back on board the ship, which mean the evening’s briefing and dinner both had to be delayed. After dinner, there was an opportunity in the lounge to share your travel stories with the rest of the boat.


Day 5 - Devil Island and Herbert Sound

2022-12-08

Plan:     AM: Devil Island

             PM: Herbert Sound

Actual:  AM: Devil Island - 63°48’ S, 57°17’ W

             PM: Herbert Sound - 63°55’ S, 57°40’ W

In 1901, when Otto Nordensköld set out for Antarctica, he put Carl Anton Larsen in charge of his ship, Antarctic. He, and his party of 5, were dropped at Snow Hill Island to over-winter, whilst Larsen returned with the ship to the Falkland Islands. The following spring, November 1902, Larsen returned to collect them but his ship became trapped in the ice. He put three men ashore at Hope Bay and told them to travel over land and sea ice to get to Snow Hill and bring Nordensköld and his men back to Hope Bay. However, they were unable to get to Snow Hill and so returned to Hope Bay to meet the ship. However, the ship had gotten itself free of the ice and had left the Bay. So the men built a small hut and prepared to over-winter by living off seals and penguins.

Larsen and the ship had left Hope Bay for another attempt at getting to Snow Hill, but it was crushed by more ice and sank in February 1903 in the Erebus and Terror Gulf. The crew were forced to get in small boats and travel to Paulet Island where they built a shelter and prepared for winter, meaning there was now three separate groups of men.

After winter, Nordensköld and one other man set off to explore more coastline, heading to the north coast of Vega Island. They saw what they thought were giant Antarctic penguins in the distance. As the ‘penguins’ got closer, they realised they were three men. In fact it was the three who had been left at Hope Bay, who realised the Antarctic must have sunk and that no-one would know their whereabouts, so had made another attempt to reach Snow Hill Island. The spot where the two groups met was named Cape Well-Met. All returned to Snow Hill. Three weeks later, two unknown men were seen approaching the hut. These were men from an Argentine rescue ship, Uruguay, who had sprung into action after Larsen hadn’t returned. That same evening, six more men, including Larsen were seen approaching the hut. They also realised that no one knew of their location, had set out for Hope Bay only to find the three men gone, so continued to Snow Hill Island.  The entire group trekked over sea ice and returned to the Argentine ship and were rescued. This is the same ship that we saw in Buenos Aires.

Our morning trip today was to Devil Island, which is an ice free island, about 2km long, 1km north of Vega Island. It is a former volcano, consisting of two basalt volcano necks and is home to a large colony of adelie penguins, approx. 15,000 pairs. The landing was on a fairly long beach, with icebergs at both ends. The penguins were all along the beach and, as always, had right of way. Of which, they have absolutely no concept. So, they waddle along, stop, waddle a bit further, stop for a bit longer and generally take their sweet time getting anywhere. Which means, it takes a very long time to get along the beach. However, this leads to many photo opportunities, especially when they were playing on the icebergs. Above the beach, were many nesting penguins, some with eggs, and there were a few skuas on the beach, looking hopefully in case any eggs became left temporarily unattended. It must have taken us the whole morning to walk up and down the beach, whilst dodging penguins and taking photos. By the time we got back to the landing site, we were just in time for the last zodiac back to the ship.

After lunch, the ship was sailing through the Herbert Sound. This is a small sound, off the Erebus and Terror Gulf, between the southern part of Vega Island and the northern part of James Ross Island. The sun was shining and we were chilling on the top deck as we sailed. The scenery here was markedly different to the east coast – you could still see the pointed mountains on the eastern side of the peninsula, but there were also flat topped brown tuyas which were much younger, being only 20 million years old. Around 3pm, the ship stopped and the zodiacs were lowered and we went off on another cruise. The sea was full of sea ice and the zodiac stopped by one large flat piece, revved its engines and then went full speed up onto it. We all jumped out of the zodiac and were able to walk around on the ice. We had to remain at least twice our body length away from the edge of the ice. We were also able to try a bit of the ice and it wasn’t at all salty. The salt leaves the ice, sinks and causes the currents which flow up to the equator, warm water is returned, which krill feed on sustaining life in the Antarctic.

That evening, dinner was a BBQ on deck. It wasn’t the greatest BBQ I’ve ever eaten, but was certainly the one with the most impressive and best backdrop!


Day 6 - The Naze and Weddell Sea

2022-12-09

Plan:     AM: The Naze, James Ross Island

             PM: Ship cruise, Weddell Sea

Actual:  AM: The Naze, James Ross Island - 63°55’ S, 57°29’ W

             PM: Ship cruise, Weddell Sea

The first dinosaur discovered in Antarctica was found on James Ross Island in 1986. It was a medium sized ankylosaur, an herbivorous dinosaur. In December 2003, the bones of a therapod dinosaur were also found. Little was known of what it is and in 2019 it was named Imperobator antarcticus meaning Antarctic Powerful Warrior. James Ross Island is a large island that was once connected to the Antarctic mainland by an ice shelf, until it collapsed in 1995. The Naze is a small peninsula at the tip of James Ross Island, close to the southern side of Vega Island.

Our morning excursion saw us doing a zodiac cruise followed by a beach landing at The Naze. There were a number of icebergs in the water, as well as some “growlers”. These are small icebergs, or “bergy bits”, that are incredibly clear. Some so clear in fact you can barely see them. The shore landing involved a very long walk from the zodiac as the water wasn’t that deep. The land looked a lot like Mars – brown sand with cliffs at either end, iceberg filled water on either side. There were a handful of seals, adelies and gentoos on the beach.

At one end of the beach, were cliffs which contained a number of fossils, including ammonite, and some petrified wood. This was over 65 million years old and comes from the time when Antarctica was part of Gondwana and full of forests.

The afternoon had no particular plans apart from cruising north through the Weddell Sea. The Weddell Sea has a particular type of iceberg – tabular. These are formed by breaking off from an ice shelf. The largest icebergs in the world are all tabular and are unique to the Antarctic region. We saw a couple of small versions before seeing a much larger one that our captain sailed the ship towards. When we stopped, we were 380m from the berg. It was 1.2km in length and between 35-70m high above sea. When you allow for the amount of iceberg below sea level, the iceberg would weigh approximately 150m tonnes.

That afternoon, whilst sailing, the education programme continued. The most interesting was a talk about the Swedish Antarctic Expedition led by Nordensköld given by the expedition historian. Following this, there was a wedding on board the boat. Two of the guests, who had met 18 months previously on a hammocking sub-reddit, had requested to get married whilst we were in Antarctica. According to maritime law, the captain is able to marry people and the expedition crew donned penguin outfits and acted as bridesmaids and we all celebrated with free bucks fizz.  


Day 7 - Whalers Bay and Hannah Point

2022-12-10

Plan:     AM: Whalers Bay, Deception Island

             PM: Hannah Point, Livingston Island

Actual:  AM: Whalers Bay, Deception Island - 62°57’ S, 60°38’ W

             PM: Hannah Point, Livingston Island -  62°39’ S, 60°37’ W

The South Shetland Islands are a group of over 20 islands lying about 120km north of the Antarctic Peninsula. They are claimed by the UK, Chile and Argentina but are free to use by any nation for non-military purposes. Consequently, a number of countries maintain either summer only or year round research stations on them. The South Shetland Islands are about as far south as the Scottish Shetland Islands are north. However, the southern version of the islands are much colder. Some of most famous islands within the group include Elephant Island and Deception Island.

For our last day of landings, we were heading to the Shetland Islands. This was going to give us the opportunity to see more of the human side of Antarctica, as much as it has one. Our morning landing was at Whalers Bay on Deception Island. Deception Island is a caldera of an active volcano, shaped like a ‘C’ with a narrow entrance into the middle. The entrance is known as ‘Neptune’s Bellows’ and just inside the entrance is a small cove known as Whaler’s Bay. It was named by the French Antarctic expedition of 1908-10, due to its use by whalers. There was whaling taking place at the island from 1906-31 and for 19 years of that the Norwegians had a permanent base here. In the 1800’s, British and Americans sealers were using the island.

In 1944, the British Antarctic Survey moved on to the island, setting up Base B in 1944. They repurposed some of the whaler’s dormitories and an old magistrate’s. Base B operated primarily as a research station focusing on meteorology and geology and later on as the centre for the Falkland Islands Aerial Survey Expedition. In 1960, an aircraft hangar was built here and the island became the centre of the British Antarctic flight operations.

In December 1967, an eruption dropped ash on the island and those present at the base were evacuated along with their Chilean counterparts at another base on the island. The following summer Base B was reoccupied before a larger volcanic eruption damaged most of the buildings. The base was abandoned and no one has occupied it since. The site is now designated as an Antarctic Historic Site and Monument.

The morning started with a short zodiac cruise, before landing on the beach. In one direction, we were able to explore the buildings. At the far end of the beach was the aircraft hangar, with the runway roller still visible outside. As you walked down the beach, you passed buildings for living and sleeping in various states of disintegration. There was also a small cemetery to some whalers who died at sea although it is not known if the bodies are still there or if they moved during the eruptions as one of the coffins was later found floating, empty, in the water. In the middle of the beach were the oil drums and some old boats, now with holes in the hull.

On the other end of the beach was a short walk up a hill to Neptune’s Window. From here there were coastal views of Neptune’s Bellows and the edge of the island.

That afternoon, we sailed across to Livingston Island, the second largest of the South Shetland Islands with an area of 798km2 (308 sq. mi.). Our location on the island was Hannah Point named, sadly not after me, but after a British sealing vessel Hannah which was wrecked in the vicinity in 1820. We started with a beach landing – on one side of us was a huge harem of elephant seals, on the other was a large gentoo colony. The elephant seals were all lying more or less on top of each other, growling often. The growls sounded a lot like farts!

The penguins at the other end were nesting on rocky ground on a slope. Towards the top of the slope was a faint layer of grass, the first vegetation we had seen since leaving Ushuaia. As we were watching the penguins, one adolescent elephant seal came in from the water and flopped his way onto the beach, stopping halfway between the gentoo colony and the seal harem. He was clearly very aware of the humans and watching everyone intently. Because of his position and the width of the beach, he basically blocked the entire beach and consequently no one could walk from the seals to the penguins or back again. The zodiacs were on the seal side of the beach, so those that side were fine, but those of us at the penguins were suddenly stuck until the seal moved. It soon became apparent that he had no intention of moving so the decision was made that we would move as a group, through the sea to get round in. If we had gone solo, the seal might have tried to attack, but by going as a group it was safety in numbers, plus we would look like a bigger predator. En masse, we negotiated round the seal and back to the zodiacs, where we went on a final cruise, looking at the penguins from the water.

Back on the boat and it was definitely time to hit the bar – a glass of wine and a whisky to toast successfully visiting Antarctica. After dinner we had a quiz night, hosted by our Australian celebrity compere. Our little group finished a respectable mid-table.


Drake Passage, Ushuaia

2022-12-11 to 2022-12-13

One of the most unusual comments from our expedition leader, when he was discussing our return to Argentina, was that he likes to go out on deck as we approach Ushuaia, take a deep breath and smell the trees. Given that visiting Antarctica does not impact on your sense of smell, and given that no one really thought the trees smell, we were all a little confused by the comment.

It came on the first day of our crossing of the Drake at a briefing re disembarkation. Both days had been overwhelmingly smooth sailing. We didn’t need any sort of motion sickness tablets at all. Inside, the education programme continued, whilst outside the hunt of wildlife continued. Whales were spotted in the distance on the first day, along with numerous seabirds. The educational talks included a series of small presentations on topics such as the IAATO treaty, an Antarctic murder mystery and ships’ mascots, including a pig. In the evening there was an auction with all proceeds going to a polar science charity. Items included a pack of cards, which went for $70, and a large map plotting the route we had taken, which went for over $1000.

The second day of the crossing included a talk about Living and Working in Antarctica, an update from the Kolossal Squid team – they hadn’t found any, but the equipment was working well – and workshops including knot tying and a Q&A with the expedition historian.

James had become the talk of the ship, as he was now sporting a giant headband. His ear swelled up and neither the expedition Doctor, ship’s Doctor nor a passenger GP were able to identify the issue. They’d tried anti-histamine’s and draining it over the past week, but none had worked so they had tried draining it again and bandaging it tight, in the hope it wouldn’t swell back up again. However, when asked by fellow passengers he was joking about frostbite or an evil doctor.

The evening consisted of goodbye drinks with the captain and the expedition crew, along with some speeches. There were further speeches at dinner from the ship’s crew – housekeeping, wait staff etc. We went for a final walk out on deck, by which time we were entering the Beagle Channel. This meant foliage – trees, plants etc. And unexpectedly to us, despite the warning, was the smell of them. You could really smell the trees. It wasn’t so much that we’d lost our sense of smell in Antarctica, just that there was no smell down there. Nothing. Not even guano. This meant that, when we returned to a land of smells, our noses were initially much more sensitive to them. We could literally smell the trees.

We awoke the next morning to find the ship docked at the port in Ushuaia. Disembarkation happened in groups based on location i.e. airport, hotel etc. By 9.30 we had arrived at our hotel for the night. We put our bags into storage, waited whilst our phones caught up on two weeks’ worth of texts, emails and notifications then headed into town for a coffee.

We visited the Museo Del Fin Del Mundo – split across two small buildings, 200m apart. One part contained stuffed animals and information about the sea life in the area, along with the obligatory maps showing the Falklands as part of Argentina. The other part was in an old Government House. The rooms here showed the city as it was 100 years ago. After a hot chocolate and some Alfajores (chocolate biscuits similar to a Penguin), we returned to the hotel to check in properly.

That afternoon was an important one in Argentina – it was the World Cup Semi Final. Argentina v Croatia. The six of us – Melissa, Rosie, Matt (just diagnosed with a detached retina), Cheryl, James and myself – all headed to a bar for beers, empanadas and football. Argentina won 3-0, which resulted in a lot of honking of car horns, blowing of air horns, waving of flags, parties on street corners, banging of drums and general merriment. Despite the match finishing around 6pm local time, the noise and parties went on long into the night. We had wanted an early night as the long days on the ship had caught up with us, but the locals were having other ideas.


Montevideo, Buenos Aires

2022-12-14 to 2022-12-18

The Admiral Graf Spee was a large German armoured ship launched in 1934. Before WWII began, she had sailed to the South Atlantic. In September 1939, at the start of WWII, the British Navy spotted her in an estuary off the Rio de la Plata (River Plate), near Argentina and Uruguay. A battle ensued, which damaged three British ships plus a small amount of damage to the Graf Spee. She entered neutral Montevideo harbour for some repairs and whilst there, the Brits fed false intelligence that an overwhelming British force was being assembled. By the time the Graf Spee was ready to leave, they were convinced that their meagre ammunition would not be enough to get them out of the harbour, let alone back to Germany. The captain of the ship scuttled it in Montevideo Harbour and three days later shot himself in his hotel room. The ship now sits in situ at the bottom of the Rio de la Plata, with just the anchor and optical rangefinder having been recovered. Meanwhile, the Battle of the River Plate, the first naval battle of WWII, has been immortalised in movies and re-enactments.

As I had visited South America before, I asked James where we wanted to visit on the few days either side of Antarctica. He had replied that he wanted to see the Graf Spee.

Leaving Ushuaia in the morning, we flew back up to Buenos Aires on a slightly delayed flight, then sat in the airport waiting for another delayed flight. The second flight was a quick 30 minute up and down and soon we were in Uruguay. Despite being after 10pm, it still took 40 mins in a taxi from the airport to Ciudad Vieja (Old Town), where our hotel was located. Eventually, shortly before midnight we got into bed.  

Despite just one full day in Montevideo, we slept in a little leaving the hotel around 11.30am. First up was croissants and coffee/juice in Plaza de la Constitucion. Then we went exploring. First stop was Museo Andes 1972, run by an eccentric Scandinavian.

In October 1972 a flight took off from Montevideo, bound for Santiago, carrying a rugby team and their families. Due to bad weather it was forced to stop overnight in Mendoza, Argentina. The next morning, the planned route was for the plane to head south, cross the Andes, then fly north to Santiago. Due to the weather conditions, the pilot was flying based on timings. Unfortunately, he got his numbers mixed up. Whilst crossing the Andes, the pilot turned north too soon and began heading north whilst still in the middle of the mountains. The plane struck the ridge of a mountain around half 3 on 13th October 1972. Of the 45 passengers, 12 people were killed instantly, although many of those still alive were seriously injured.

Chilean Search and Rescue were up and looking inside the hour and were joined by Argentine and Uruguayan aircraft over the next week. However, due to the inhospitable terrain and the heavy snow cover of early spring, the search was called off with the expectation of returning in December after snow melt in order to find the bodies. Over the next few days, more of the group died, whilst the survivors found that they had very little food or shelter. Knowing that the search efforts had stopped, they had no choice but to resort to cannibalism.

On October 29th, an avalanche hit killing more of the group. Eventually, the survivors realised that the only way to get through this was to climb over the mountains and find help themselves. Three of the group set out, with meagre rations, though one returned to the main group when he realised the trek would take far longer than anticipated due to the crash not occurring in the region they initially believed. After 9 days, the two men had reached the bottom of the mountains and were by a field with a stream and cows. On the other side of the river, they saw a farmer. This farmer returned the next day with paper, attached to a rock and threw it to the men. The men wrote a note explaining that they were Uruguayan and had been in a plane crash. In their daze, they did not sign their names. The farmer threw them some bread, then rode on horseback for 10 hours to get proper help. The Chilean Air Force sent up helicopters to the crash site and 23 December 1972 the last of the survivors was brought down from the mountain.

The story has been retold via stage, screen and books and via a small museum in downtown Montevideo. The museum contained a timeline of events along with interviews with the survivors and artefacts rescued from the planes.

Our next stop in Montevideo was the harbour area, home of the Mercado del Puerto. This is a small market area, with lots of food stands and souvenir shops. From here, we walked along the coast, around the edge of Ciudad Vieja, until we reached Plaza Independencia, the square linking the Old Town with the New Town. The square contained the usual statues to fallen heroes and government buildings. We stopped at Plaza Zabala on the way to Museo del arte Precolombino e Indigena – a museum for Pre-Colombian and Indigenous Art. By this time, it was dinner time so we returned to Plaza de la Constitucion for food.

The next day was the start of our long journey back to London. First up, was a 3 hour boat ride across the Rio de la Plata. The port of Montevideo contains the anchor and rangefinder of the Graf Spee in a small display, a short walk from the check in desks for the BuqueBus boat. The boat itself took just under 3 hours to sail across the Rio de la Plata back to Buenos Aires. Here, it then took us another hour or so to pass through Argentine immigration. They could really learn from the Eurostar procedures of clearing immigration BEFORE the journey.

Our final night in BA was fairly chilled – a last ham and cheese empanada, dinner and then bed. The next day should have been straightforward, but the traffic to the airport made it anything but. We sat on the motorway not moving for quite a while, then saw the air ambulance land on the road head of us. When we finally got moving again, heavy traffic closer to the airport stalled us again. We eventually got to the check in desks 45 mins prior to departure. Just enough time to drop our bags, clear security and immigration before getting to the gate at the scheduled boarding time. But the plane did not board and there was no info. Eventually the crew arrived at the gate, having also been caught in the same traffic issues as us.

By this point, we were taking off an hour late, which didn’t bode well when we had a 45 minute layover in Madrid. In fact, most of the plane ended up missing connections in Madrid which meant we were met at the gate by Iberian ground staff who had re-printed everyone’s boarding passes for later flights. Instead of departing Madrid at 06.50, we would now be departing at 09.00. That second flight was half empty meaning we could stretch across the three seats. James also got talking to a couple across the aisle who had also been on our BA flight. They had been in Argentina in order to go to Antarctica, had sailed from Ushuaia to the Falklands and South Georgia, then their ship had had a medical emergency and the captain had made the decision to return to Ushuaia. Consequently, they had never set foot on Antarctica. It summed up how lucky we had been on our trip with weather, crossing and actual landings.


Summary

2022-12-19

Summary

How to summarise such an epic trip? Well, I’ll give it a try.

Days: 23

Continents: 2

Countries: 3

Nights in South America: 9

Nights crossing the Drake: 5

Nights in Antarctica: 7

Nights camping on ice: 1

Seabirds seen: countless

Whales and Seals seen: hundreds

Penguins seen: thousands – literally

Empanadas eaten: plenty

Different hotels slept in in Buenos Aires: 2

Different hotels slept in in Ushuaia: 3

Flights taken: 6

On time flights: 2

Boats taken: 2


Scotland - the return

2023-06-13

After our visit to the Scottish Highlands, James has been desperate to return, both to the Highlands, but also to other parts of the country. This summer, we are heading out to the farthest Scottish archipelagos for a 10 day adventure.

Starting once again on the Caledonian Sleeper from Euston, we head first to Aberdeen, where we have 11 hours to amuse ourselves, before a sleeper ferry to Lerwick, the capital of the Shetland Isles. Once here, we have 3 days to explore the islands, from the Viking Broch’s to the puffins. Our next ferry takes us to Kirkwall, the capital of the Orkney Islands, where we spend 5 days discovering the prehistoric settlements, natural scenery and taking the world’s shortest scheduled flight, timetabled at a minute and a half but usually taking closer to just one minute.

When it’s time to leave Orkney, we fly to Aberdeen, cross town to the train station and catch the overnight train home, arriving into Euston at 8am on a Monday morning and heading home.

Will we be as lucky with the weather and midges this time around? Probably not.

Will this change James’s mind about wanting to move there? Doubtful. 


Aberdeen

2023-06-15 to 2023-06-16

“Get a train to Edinburgh”.

The less than helpful suggestion from a friend, who used to work in Aberdeen, when asked the best way to spend a day in the Granite City. It wasn’t the most useful response I’ve ever had!

We were lucky to have a nice, sunny day greet us on our arrival off the Caledonian Sleeper from London, but it was early and, despite being a weekday, there wasn’t much going on. After a quick stop for extra coffee, we headed out of the station. Whilst we had a couple of things on our To-Do list, it certainly wasn’t enough to fill the 11 hours that we had.

First thing on the list was to lose, temporarily, the large bags we had with us. Luckily the ferry terminal would allow us to leave them there for the day and once relieved of them, we headed back to the centre of town.

As the weather was on our side, we decided to take a walk down to the beach – a beautiful 2 mile stretch of golden sand. The water wasn’t too chilly, though no more than our toes went in it, then we sat on the beach and had a short nap to catch up on some of the missed sleep on the train.

Heading back into the centre, we visited the Aberdeen Maritime Museum – dedicated to the relationship between the city and the water. It covered ship building, the fishing industry, the offshore oil rigs and more. It was very interesting.

By now, we had killed 5 hours and it was lunchtime. We found a small street that had numerous cafes in, picked one and settled down to a delicious lunch and a caffeine intake.

One of the things James wanted to do whilst in the city was visit the memorial to the Piper Alpha disaster. In 1988, the Piper Alpha oil rig in the North Sea exploded and sank, killing approximately 75% of the people on the platform. The disaster led to reforms in safety and maintenance on board off shore oil rigs. The city has a number of memorials, including a stained glass window in a local church. This is what James was keen to find. It took some googling to identify first the correct church, then its location due to the church having changed name, but eventually we identified it as being in the Ferryhill district, a 20 min walk from the café we were in. Sadly the church was not open so we couldn’t see the window from the inside, but we were able to see it from the outside.

Returning to the harbour, we partook in some window shopping, before another coffee break (that early start was killing us!), then we headed down to the harbour to be reunited with our bags and check in for the ferry. We were expecting to have to wait but were actually allowed to board instantly and so, two hours ahead of departure, we were sat in our cabin. We had booked ourselves an inside cabin – the outside ones were all fully booked and we didn’t fancy a chair as were weren’t sure how much sleep we would get on the train. As it turned out, not much so we were grateful to have the flat bed.

As we had two hours before departure, this was enough time for James to shower, us to explore the ship and spend plenty of money in the gift shop, mostly on maps for the islands. As the ferry left Aberdeen, we headed out on the top deck to watch and enjoy the sun, then headed inside for last orders of dinner – a fish and chip supper. We soon retired to our cabin to watch the England football match, then have an early night.


Shetland

2023-06-17 to 2023-06-19

The Shetland Bus was the nickname of a clandestine special operation between Shetland and Nazi occupied Norway during WWII. The aim of the operations was to transfer men, weapons and other supplies between Norway and Scotland, to help supply the Norwegians with what they needed in their fight against the Nazi’s, but also to get people out of Norway who were in danger of being arrested by the Germans.

The “bus” was actually a fleet of small boats, disguised as fishing boats, with the crew disguised as fishermen, who had to travel at night across the rough North Sea, with no lights and constant risk of being captured by German patrol boats. The boats left from Scalloway in Scotland, heading for Bergen in Norway.

Our arrival into Shetland was a little less covert, arriving on the Hjaltland ferry – a name which means Shetland in Old Norse. The islands were part of Norway from the 10–15th centuries, only becoming part of Scotland as part of a dowry for the marriage of Princess Margaret of Denmark and Norway to James III of Scotland. They have remained Scottish ever since, although the Norse history can be seen all around.

The ferry arrived around 7.30 in the morning but, for those without vehicles, rooms did not have to be vacated until 8.30. Given that our car hire company didn’t open until 8 and was based at the port, we choose to head to breakfast at 7.30, before disembarking at 8. Once we had the car, and knowing that it would be too early to check in to our guesthouse, we headed out to explore the islands. The ferry port was just to the north of the largest town, Lerwick, on Mainland – the name of the main island.

Our first stop was Tingwall, home to Law Ting Holm – the site of Shetland’s first Parliament. The name comes from “Thing” meaning assembly and is the same root as Þingvellir, in Iceland. There isn’t much left to see now, merely a small promontory in Loch Tingwall.

From here, we carried on to Scalloway, the former capital of Shetland. It contains a castle, which sadly is temporarily closed, and also a memorial to the Shetland Bus. Carrying on past Scalloway, we crossed onto Tondra and Burra islands, via road bridges, down to the Minn Beach just beyond the small village of Papil. This was the second beautiful beach in two days, with white sand and crystal clear water. The beach was on an isthmus and I’m fairly certain there was a seal swimming just off shore, although it wasn’t close enough to see for sure.

We returned to Lerwick to visit the Shetland Museum and Archives, which traced the history of the islands. By now it was lunchtime, so we went to find somewhere for lunch. This was easier said than done. The small number of restaurants on the island all seemed to be fully booked. Eventually we found somewhere to eat and also found somewhere else that we could book for dinner.

Heading to our guesthouse, we checked in and chilled for a little, playing the game of Hnefatafl that we had purchased in the museum. This was a Viking strategy board game, sometimes referred to as Viking chess. The white team are defending their King, whilst the black team are trying to capture it. It is certainly a game that you’d need to play a few times first to learn the rules, then to understand the best tactical moves. In the end we called it a draw. I had James’s King surrounded but not in the correct way to win.

To end the day, after dinner, we took a long walk around the water’s edge, past The Knab and back to the guesthouse. We wanted to see what time it actually got dark in Lerwick, IF in fact it did get dark, given that official sunset was approximately 22.30. At that point, it was still very light outside and we didn’t last much longer before going to sleep, so we never got an answer to the question.

The next day we set out to explore a little further afield. We figured we’d drive all the way to the bottom of Mainland, then work our way back. This took us all the way down, past Sumburgh airport where the road crosses the runway, and to Sumburgh Head Lighthouse. The lighthouse serves two purposes. First, it is a working lighthouse, which is home to a foghorn, sadly no longer operational, and a former WWII radar station. Secondly, the lighthouse is also an RSPB reserve, home to thousands of puffins, albatrosses and other seabirds. Having never been up close to puffins before, I hadn’t realised just how small they are. Such adorable little birds. On occasions, orcas can be seen offshore. Sadly we saw none, despite there having been a pod there yesterday.

From here, we began the route slowly back north to Lerwick. Nearby the lighthouse was Jarlshof Prehistoric and Norse Settlement. A storm in the late 19th century blew away part of a beach, revealing part of an ancient settlement. Excavations throughout the 20th century revealed relics and evidence of buildings. By the time excavations finished, archaeologists had found evidence of human occupation across the Neolithic, Bronze Age, Iron Age, Pictish and Viking ages. This covers the period from 2500 BCE until the 17th Century CE. Buildings were built on top of one other, so excavations were completed to different levels in different places. Today, the site contains the remnants of a number of buildings, including one with a first floor, farmhouses, a smithy, a broch and wheelhouses.

Next on the list was Old Scatness Broch and Iron Age Village, situated right on the edge of the runway of Shetland’s main airport. Sadly the Broch is only open one day a week and it wasn’t that day. We continued on to St Ninian’s Beach, a sand tombolo linking St Ninian’s Isle to the Mainland. The beach was a beautiful golden colour, whilst the water on either side was a clear blue. Over on St Ninian’s Isle were the remains of St Ninian’s Chapel. The beach was so lovely and it was sunny, albeit it a little cold, so we spent some time enjoying the beauty.

On our way back to Lerwick, we visited the Broch of Clickimin. A broch is an Iron Age drystone hollow-walled structure only found in Scotland, mostly in the north east and northern islands. The broch sits on the banks of Loch Clickimin and had more than one wall, with entrance holes to reach the inside.

That evening, we discovered that pretty much every restaurant is shut in Lerwick on a Sunday evening. Never mind, we found a chippy with a long queue, although they then ran out of fish, so it was battered sausage and chips all round, sat by the water’s edge eating under the watchful gaze of a hungry seagull.

The next day, our last on Shetland, we once again headed south. First up, we visited the Catpund Norse Historical Place, which took a little searching and climbing in order to find. There is a quarry here and next to it the remains of a Norse house, where you could see the outline of various rooms.

We then drove to Sandsayre Pier from where we caught the Mousa Boat. This boat takes you across to the island of Mousa, home to breeding colonies of storm petrels as well as the Broch of Mousa. The Broch is the best preserved in Scotland. The boat ride took around 10 minutes, then we had 3 hours on the island to look around. There was a 3km marked trail around the main part of the island, which went alongside the petrel nests and then along the edge of two large pools. The pools are home to common seals and their pups. Sadly, whilst we could not see any seals, we could certainly hear them. The final part of the trail took us to the Broch. It was 13m high, but has one of the smallest diameters of any broch as well as the thickest wall bases. There was a single spiral staircase to take you to the top, for views across the water and the island. The base of the broch contained a couple of small storage rooms. We sat and ate our lunch at the base of the broch, with a seal bobbing in the water just offshore. Heading back to the boat to the mainland, we returned to ferry terminal in order to drop off our hire car and board our ferry to Orkney. 


Orkney - Scapa, Papa

2023-06-20 to 2023-06-21

The world’s shortest scheduled flight is timetabled at 2 minutes, has a record of 47 seconds and reaches a ‘cruising’ altitude of 250ft. It operates between the two Orkney Islands of Westray and Papa Westray. When we first started booking the trip, James had mentioned that he wanted to visit Papa, so we had looked into combining a visit to Papa with the flight from Westray. However, we couldn’t make it work as a day trip with the ferries to/from Westray and neither could we make a day trip direct to Papa work with the ferries. So we decided to fly from Kirkwall to Papa and forgo the world’s shortest flight. Only after booking the flight, did we realise that the route of the flight was actually Kirkwall – Westray – Papa Westray, so we would in fact get to do the flight. Twice. In the end we did it three times!

Unlike Shetland, there are slightly more land arrival options into Orkney, although from Shetland there is just the one. The ferry that arrives at 11.00 at night. Due to our late arrival time, on our first day we got breakfast at our guesthouse at the last possible opportunity, then headed into town to get our hire car and dropped it back at the guesthouse before heading back into town for some lunch. Kirkwall is at one of the narrowest points of the main island in Orkney, also called Mainland, which meant we could walk 40 mins and completely cross the island, arriving in Scapa. Here, there was a beautiful beach looking out onto the Flow, a sheltered harbour and the UK’s main naval base during WWI and WWII. Just next to the beach, and the purpose of our visit, was Scapa Distillery. We had booked a tasting which we turned out to be the only people booked on. It also included a tour of the facilities, before heading to the tasting room, decorated like a Viking longboat, to try 5 different whiskies. Some were definitely better than others! We walked back to Kirkwall, to our guesthouse, then into town for dinner and discovered the same problem we’d had in Lerwick whereby all of the restaurants needed pre-booking. So, dinner from the chippie (who did have fish this time) eaten by the harbour it was.

We woke up to find heavy fog all around Kirkwall. This meant the flight was delayed. The inter islands flights are all operated by one plane – an 8 seater, Britten-Norman Islander – which bounces around the routes. Ours was due to be the 3rd route out that day and since all had been delayed, it meant that we knew we had awhile to wait until we could go. Eventually the fog lifted and a flight headed out. We could overhear conversations between the ground staff and passengers waiting for one of the other flights stating that there was still heavy fog on the island they were aiming for and so the Westray flight may go ahead of them, but that the decision would be up to Colin, the pilot. When Colin returned, he indeed wanted to go to Westray first. However, due to air pressure, temperature and wind speeds the plane would only be able to take 7 passengers. So they needed a volunteer to get off. Luckily, a solo passenger volunteered, so any bags larger than a very small handbag were checked into the hold and off we trotted to the plane. Inside the plane were 5 rows of seats. The front row, obviously, was for the pilot and co-pilot (which we didn’t have), then rows two and three boarded via a door at the front right of the plane and rows four and five boarded via a door at the back left of the plane. There was limited leg room and no separation between the cockpit and the passengers. Don’t even think about cabin crew. The safety briefing consisted of the pilot looking over his shoulder and saying “right, I assume everyone has flown before, so you know how this all works. If you haven’t, shout now and I’ll do the full demo. The only difference are the emergency exits… “. After a quick explanation of the emergency exits aka windows, he asked if we were all strapped in, then off we went.

Usually, the flight would go Kirkwall – Westray – Papa – Westray – Kirkwall and of the seven passengers, we had six wanting Papa and one wanting Westray. There were also two people waiting on Westray to head to Papa. Due to the weather conditions limited passengers to seven, this meant that the pilot wouldn’t be able to do a straight forward trip. Instead, he told us he would head first to Papa, drop off Doug, who was one of the passengers and seemingly a local and frequent flyer, then head to Westray, drop off one and pick up two, then return to Papa to drop off everyone else. This would mean that we would do the shortest flight twice. The flight took 20 minutes to get from Kirkwall to Papa, then a mere minute and a half to get across the bay to Westray. The return to Papa took a little longer as the direction of the runway meant that the plane had to take off in completely the wrong direction for Papa.

We finally touched down at what was definitely the smallest airport I’ve ever visited. One small hut that contained a waiting room and a toilet. At the last census, the population of Papa was just 90. Consequently, the locals take up multiple jobs. The desk agent was also the island post lady, the two airport firemen were also farmers! The main reason for our trip was to visit the Knap of Howar – a 5,000 year old house, thought to be the oldest known house in northern Europe. Conveniently, they built the house right next to the airport, meaning only a short walk to get there! It is solidly older than the Pyramids and was right on the waterfront. It consisted of two rooms, the entrances to which, plus the passageway between them, required some serious stooping to avoid banging your head.

From here, we walked across the width of the island, a full mile, past the school, youth hostel and town shop to South Wick beach. This was a beautiful white sand beach with crystal clear waters. It was a lovely place to sit and eat the lunch we had brought from Tesco on Mainland. There were a couple of seals playing offshore, a family of ducks with their ducklings and some terns on the rocks. The sun was shining, but it was a little windy and we were still wrapped up in fleeces.

After an extended lunch/beach stop, we headed to St Boniface Kirk, dating back to the 8th century. Nearby are Iron Age and Pictish remains that date from the 6th century BCE to the 12th century CE. The church was small, but then with a population of 90 it didn’t need to be big. From here, we returned to the airport to await our flight home. It was delayed 20 minutes leaving Kirkwall, but was soon with us and we could do the hop across to Westray for the third time, before continuing back to Kirkwall. We returned in plenty of time to head for dinner at a restaurant that we had booked the previous night.


Orkney - Hoy, Mainland

2023-06-22 to 2023-06-23

Prehistoric Orkney consists of a number of ancient sites, from the oldest preserved stone house in northern Europe, to northern Europe’s most complete Neolithic village, to cairns, standing stones and tombs. The oldest is some 1200 years older than the Great Pyramid of Giza. In fact, many of Orkney’s most visited sites are older than the pyramids.

Our next day, we were again off to explore a different island, this time via boat. We drove down to Houton ferry terminal, from where a 30 min boat ride took us over to Hoy. The ferry skirted the edge of Scapa Flow and upon arrival, our first stop was a museum of the same name just 100m from the ferry terminal. Due to the Flow’s shape and shelter, it has long been a good place for fleets of ships to stay in safety. The Vikings anchored their longships there, whilst more recently it played a huge role in both World Wars.

In WWI, the Flow was chosen as the main base for the British Royal Navy fleet. Thanks to blockships and submarine nets, they strengthened security in the area and two submarines who did try to breach the Flow were both spotted and attacked. At the end of WWI, following Germany’s surrender, their fleet of boats were interned at Scapa Flow whilst the Allied Powers decided what to do with them. Rear-Admiral Ludwig von Reuter, in charge at Scapa, grew listless whilst waiting for the Allied decision and, not wanting the boats to be vulnerable should the armistice fail, sent word to all boats to scuttle the fleet. At 11.20 on 21st June 1919 he sent a signal to his fleet whereby valves were opened and pipes were smashed and slowly the boats began to sink. Word reached senior British naval officers an hour later, who rushed to the Flow, but by the time they arrived, many of the boats had already sunk. Only the largest were still afloat, though listing badly. By 17.00, the final battlecruiser was sunk and 1,774 Germans had arrived ashore in lifeboats and were being taken to POW camps. In total, 52 out of 74 boats sank, the rest were towed ashore and beached. For a while the sunken boats remained there, but in the 20’s and 30’s, some of these boats began to be salvaged. Today, 8 boats remain at the bottom of the water, mostly used as dive sites.

By WWII, Scapa Flow’s defences had fallen into disrepair, yet it was still picked as the main British Naval base, partly because of the distance from German airfields. Efforts began to improve the defences, but not in time. In October 1939, a German submarine penetrated Scapa Flow, fired two torpedoes at HSM Royal Oak, then left the Flow. The Royal Oak sank, killing 2/3 of those on board. The shock at what the German’s had achieved forced the Navy’s hand at strengthening the defences of the Flow. Today, the Royal Oak remains underwater and has been designated a war grave.

The Museum had only reopened a few months ago after a refurb and was very informative. Consequently, we spent a couple of hours there, then stayed to try out the new café for lunch. Finally, it was time to explore the rest of the island, after all Hoy is the second largest of all the Orkney Islands. However, at the last census it was home to just around 400 people, meaning most of the island is fields and countryside. We decided to start at the furthest point we wanted to visit, then work our way back to the ferry port. We wouldn’t have time to hike from Rackwick Beach to the Old Man of Hoy – a 3 hour return trip – so our first stop instead was the Dwarfie Stane.

The Dwarfie Stane is a chambered tomb, carved out of Devonian Old Red Sandstone. It is a glacial erratic, meaning it is not native to the area, but instead was brought here by a glacier. It is probably the only example of a Neolithic rock-cut tomb in the UK, most being built by stones rather than cut from them. It is 5,000 years old and has many myths and legends connected to it, brought to Hoy by Norse settlers. One legend tells of a giant who punched his way out after being trapped inside by a rival. Another myth speaks of Norse dwarfs who were the right height to live inside the tomb.

From here, we headed towards Moaness and Braebister Broch, viewing the mound from a distance. There were a few different viewpoints to stop at and admire the view back across to Mainland island across the Flow. Then we went to visit Betty Corrrigal’s Grave. Betty was an unmarried 27 year old, who fell pregnant and was abandoned by the baby’s father. She ended up killing herself which, in the 18th century, meant she couldn’t be buried on consecrated ground. She was buried in an unmarked grave outside the parish boundary. She lay here until 1933, when two men digging peat came across a wooden box and decided to open it, hoping for treasure. Instead they found Betty’s body, preserved by the peat and looking so fresh that police came across from Kirkwall to investigate. Eventually she was reburied and lay undisturbed until 1941 when a group of soldiers digging peat found and opened her coffin a second time. She was buried again, but curiosity meant she was dug up several more times by other soldiers. Officers got wind of this who moved the grave 50 yards and covered it with a concrete slab to prevent her being disturbed again. In 1949, a visiting American minister put up a wooden cross and erected a fence, before a fibreglass headstone was added in 1976. At last, Betty could rest in peace in a proper grave with a proper gravestone. She has a lovely view down towards the coast, with a small lake next to her and her only visitors now treat her with respect. This ended our trip to Hoy. We returned to the port at Lyness to catch the ferry back to Houton.

Day 4 on Orkney was the day where we would finally explore Prehistoric Orkney. First up, was the main reason for James wanting to come to the Orkney’s – Skara Brae. This 5,000 year old village is one of the best preserved in Europe and was only discovered in 1850 when a winter storm stripped the earth from one of the knolls, exposing the outline of a village. Locals began an excavation, but abandoned in 1868 after uncovering 4 houses. Excavation began again in 1927, the results of which are now open to the public. These days the village is right on the beach, but 5,000 years ago it would have been a few hundred meters away, erosion having played a big part in the change of landscape. The village consists of 8 houses, although house 8 has a very different style and could have been used as a meeting place or similar. Each house has a small hearth in the middle of the main room and many had small storage areas. Next door to the site was Skaill House, the home of the Laird who had first discovered Skara Brae, whose land it sits on, and whose descendant has opened the house for visitors.

From here, we headed to the Ring of Brodgar, via a detour through the village of Twatt. We were hoping for a signpost pointing the direction to take a photo next to, but sadly they seem to have all been removed! The Ring of Brodgar is a henge and stone circle, in an almost perfect circle – something of a rarity as most henges do not contain stone circles. The stone circle is 104m in diameter, originally comprising 60 stones, but just 27 remain today. In addition to the main circle, there are other stones at the site, such as the Comet Stone – believed to perhaps be an entrance to the main ring. There are also a number of mounds around the site, such as Salt Knowe and Plumcake Mound. It is not fully knows the purpose of all these mounds, as they have not all been fully excavated.

From here, we headed over to Maeshowe. Having overheard a conversation at breakfast about needing to book in advance, we had booked a slot at 2pm. Or so we thought. Turns out I’d managed to book completely the wrong day. Apparently this happens a lot. Luckily, they were able to fit us on the 2pm tour anyway. The mound encompassing Maeshowe is 35m in diameter and 7.3m high. Inside is a Neolithic chambered cairn, full of Viking graffiti. The entrance is via a 1m high, 10m long entrance tunnel. Once out of the tunnel, you arrived in the middle of the Cairn, where you could stand up fully. It was believed to originally be a burial chamber, but upon opening in 1861, there were no bodies to be found although these could have been removed by the Vikings. The whole tomb is aligned so that the rear of the chamber is illuminated on the winter solstice. There were a couple of small chambers to the sides of the main chamber. Most fascinating of all was the runic graffiti – a lot of them were the person’s name followed by “carved these ruins”. A Nordic equivalent of “Hannah was here”. Others included "Ingebjork the fair widow - many a woman has walked stooping in here a very showy person" and "Thorni fucked. Helgi carved". There were also some drawings carved into the walls, including a dragon. It was a fascinating place, but sadly no photos were permitted inside the cairn.

From here, we headed to Unstan Chambered Cairn. This has a lower and narrower entrance and, upon first opening, human remains were found both in the main chamber and the side chambers, as well as some animal bones.

Then it was on to the Standing Stones of Stenness – another stone circle. Only four of the original twelve stones remain, each one 6m tall and 30cm thick. These stones are much larger than the stones at Brodgar and, unlike Brodgar, you could get right up and touch these ones. It’s possible that this site is the oldest henge in the UK. Meanwhile pottery found at the site during excavations, links with similar finds at both Skara Brae and Maeshowe.

Our final stop this day was at Cuween Chambered Cairn. This had the smallest entry tunnel of all, to the extent we had to get down on our hands and knees and crawl into the central chamber. The first excavations showed that the cairn was also used to bury dogs, as well as humans. After a long day, it was finally time to collapse back at our hotel and eat our lunch (despite it being 6pm!).  


Orkney - Churchill Barriers, Kirkwall

2023-06-24 to 2023-06-26

Back in October 1939, when the HMS Royal Oak was sunk, it highlighted a major flaw in the security of Scapa Flow. The First Lord of the Admiralty, Winston Churchill, ordered the construction of permanent barriers between the small islands to the south of the Mainland. Construction began in May 1943 to connect Mainland, Lamb Holm, Glimps Holm, Burray and South Ronaldsay on barriers which would also serve as roads, giving hundreds of people easy access to Kirkwall for the first time. The barriers were completed in September 1944, but not officially opened until May 1945, four days after VE day.

On our final full day in Orkney, we used the road barriers to explore a few more of the southern islands. It was very foggy at breakfast but it was slowly burning off. However, when we arrived at the first Churchill Barrier, we couldn’t even see halfway along it. We headed all the way south, down to South Ronaldsay. We were hoping to visit the Tomb of the Eagles. It is a chambered cairn that, when excavated in 1976, contained 16,000 human bones from at least 324 individuals, but also talons and bones from between 8-20 birds. Sadly, the site is now permanently closed to the public and we couldn’t even get close enough to see it from the outside.

Returning slowly to the north, we stopped first at a viewpoint before arriving at St Margaret’s Hope, in the north of South Ronaldsay. The village is often cited as the most beautiful in the Orkney’s, has a waterfront location and was full of small cobbled streets, a hotel, a few shops and a café. Sadly for us, a coach load of cruise ship passengers arrived at the same time as us and somewhat took over. Thankfully, they didn’t stay long, meaning a little more peace and quiet for us.

Crossing onto Burray, we stopped at the Orkney Fossil & Heritage Centre. As well as a large collection of fossils, it included a special room where you could see the colours of certain rocks under UV light. The museum also had a large exhibition about Scapa Flow during the war and the building of the Churchill Barriers.

Crossing back over Glimps Holm, we arrived in Lamb’s Holm, home to the Italian Chapel. Construction of the Churchill Barriers required a workforce which peaked at over 2,000 people, many of whom were Italian prisoner of wars captured during the desert war in North Africa and who were transported to Orkney from 1942. At first the Italians refused to work on the barriers, citing the Geneva Convention making it illegal for a government to ask POW’s to help in the war effort. Eventually the Italians were persuaded that the barriers were not for the war effort but would help the locals as the smaller islands became more accessible. Many of the POW’s were housed at Camp 60, on Lambs Holm. To make the camp more homely, the prisoners laid concrete paths and planted flowerbeds. It was agreed that needed a place of worship. An artist, Domenico Chiocchetti, over saw the work and was personally responsible for the artwork behind the altar. The Italian Chapel, as it is now known, wasn’t finished when the majority of the Italians were moved, in May 1945, to Yorkshire ahead of repatriation. Chiocchetti stayed behind to finish the work. His attachment to the Chapel was such that he returned in 1960 to assist with restoration work. The Chapel now is a very popular tourist attraction, receiving over 100,000 visitors every year.

Finally, returning over the final Churchill Barrier, we were back on the Mainland and returned to Kirkwall, where we dropped off the hire car, and spent a little time in the Kirkwall shops dodging rain showers.

For our final day, we figured it was finally time to explore Kirkwall a little more. The centre of town is dominated by St Magnus Cathedral. St Magnus was related to more than one Norwegian King and was Earl of Orkney from 1106 to 1117. He died in Orkney, after which numerous miracles happened. The Cathedral is also the start point of the famous Ba’ game, which take place every Christmas Day and New Year’s Day, between the Uppies and the Doonies. It is a medieval football game, with the aim to get the ba’ into the goal.

Once again, the area was overrun by cruise ship passengers, but we found ourselves a table in a small café opposite for a spot of cake and coffee. Next door, we headed to The Orkney Museum, containing an archaeology collection and contemporary history. It was finally time to leave and we caught the bus to the airport, just as the black rain clouds rolled in. The plane couldn’t fly full, so they were looking for volunteers to take a later flight to Edinburgh and then a taxi to Aberdeen. Luckily, they found some, so the rest of us could fly to Aberdeen. When we did fly, it was a very turbulent hour long flight to Aberdeen, from where we caught a taxi to the train station and waited a couple of hours for our sleeper train home. Luckily, I slept much better on the way back down and we arrived into Euston just before 8am on Monday morning. 


Summary

2023-06-26

Archipelago’s visited – 2

Time on Shetland – 2 nights

Time on Orkney – 6 nights

Time on sleeper transport – 2 trains, 1 ferry

Islands visited in total – 13

Ferries taken – 6

Length of longest ferry – 12 hours 30 mins

Flights taken – 3

Length of shortest flight – 1 min 20

Fish and chip dinners – 4


Malta

2023-10-12

A few months back, whilst we were standing in the Maeshowe neolithic tomb on Orkney, our guide mentioned how the only place in Europe with equally old or older, equally well-preserved tombs was in Malta. James immediately turned to me, his eyes lit up asking the question “can we go to Malta?”

Luckily, Malta is also somewhere I’ve fancied visiting and so, we are off in just a couple of days. We are spending a week on these tiny islands, where the weather is currently 29 degrees and sunny – a solid improvement on rainy, grey London.

We have an itinerary that involves a lot of prehistoric sites, including one we had to book 3 months ago, spread across the main island of Malta as well as it’s small neighbour to the north Gozo. We’ll probably also visit some WWII sites, as well as a couple of fortified cities. And whilst we are there, we have the small matter of James’s birthday, to be celebrated on Gozo, probably at another neolithic site!


Valletta

2023-10-14 to 2023-10-15

Built by the Knights of St John in 1551, at the top of Valletta, sits the star shaped Fort St Elmo. The Knights had been driven out of Rhodes in 1522 by the Ottomans and set up in Malta as their home base. When the Ottomans attacked the island during the Great Siege of 1565, they had vastly superior numbers. However, the Knights had tactical advantage as well as the Fort, which held out against the invaders for 31 days before falling. The Turks had thought that they would take it quickly, but the walls held firm for longer than they anticipated. Eventually though, the bombardment from the Turkish guns meant that the Knights stronghold fell. However, in part due to the toll from the siege, the Ottomans were unable to take the whole of Malta and, after suffering thousands of casualties, they withdrew from the island.

We arrived in Malta, bought our bus pass and found the bus stop. A quick look at the bus map told us we needed route X4. The bus stop we were stood at was the X4, underneath saying Birżebbuġa, which we naïvely assumed was Maltese for bus station or similar. The bus came, we boarded and we left the airport. At which point, we saw two road signs – one pointing left for Valletta and one pointing right for Birżebbuġa. At that point we realised, that Birżebbuġa probably wasn’t Maltese for bus station, but the other end of the bus line! We’re not sure how we never even considered this to begin with!

Suddenly, we had to figure out the best place to get off the bus in order to get a bus back the other way. The first few stops were on a fairly busy road that didn’t look easy to cross and where we couldn’t immediately see the bus stop on the other side. Eventually, whilst keeping an eye on the timetable for the buses going the other way, we jumped off, crossed the road and waited for a bus in the other direction. This took us back to the airport and onwards to Valletta. We finally made the bus station and entered the old walled city of Valletta.

It was already dark and we were hungry, so we found our hotel, checked in, then promptly headed out for dinner. On the streets, we saw a large religious procession coming down the streets, carrying two large statues of Jesus and Mary. Behind it, the strains of Abba’s Dancing Queen rang out from a nearby restaurant, providing a somewhat conflicting situation. We found a small restaurant, where I tried a traditional Maltese dish – rabbit, in a garlic and wine sauce. It was very tasty. On the way back to the hotel, we stopped for gelato.

For our first full day in Malta, we decided to stick in and around the Valletta area. First stop was Castle Square, followed by Upper Barrakka Gardens, created as a relaxing retreat for the Knights of St John. The gardens are situated at the top level of the city walls, overlooking the Saluting Battery, from where the midday gun is fired every day. From the edge of the gardens, there were amazing views over the Grand Harbour and across to The Three Cities. The gardens are also where James managed to lose our Lonely Planet guidebook, less than 24 hours after arrival, never to be seen again.

From here, we headed to the National Museum of Archaeology, which contained sections on the island’s prehistoric temples and the various items found there, the Bronze Age and the Phoenicians. The next stop was Fort St Elmo. The Fort now contains the War Museum, documenting the Ottoman Siege, Napolean, two world wars and Maltese independence. We managed to spend a few hours here exploring the exhibits and the fort itself. Next door to the Fort, is the Siege Bell War Memorial symbolising the plight of those who fought and died for Malta during the second world war.


Gozo

2023-10-16 to 2023-10-17

The Megalithic Temples of Malta are a group of temples, most of which are now UNESCO world heritage sites, that date from approximately 3600 BCE to 2500 BCE. For a long time, they were believed to be the oldest free-standing structures in the world, being older than the Pyramids, Stonehenge or any of the sites we saw in Orkney earlier in the year. Only since the discovery of Göbekli Tepe, in Türkiye, whose excavations began in 1994, has any structure been deemed older. The temples are spread out all across the Maltese archipelago, and were one of the main reasons for visiting the country.

At 1/3 the size of the main island of Malta, it’s neighbour to the north, Gozo, is a much more relaxed island with a much slower pace of life. It has been inhabited since 5000 BCE and, similar to the main island, has been occupied by the Ottomans and Brits at various points of its history.

We arrived in Gozo via the fast, passenger ferry from Valletta. We were hoping to be able to get outside for views of the city as we departed, but sadly it was an inside only ferry. We arrived in the Goziton port of Mgarr at 10.30, from where we got a bus to the capital Victoria. It was too early to check in, but we were able to dump our bags at our hotel and head out to explore the city.

The main attraction in the capital is the Cittadella, which sits on the highest point of the city, affording good views of the whole island (which is only 67km2). There has been a building on the site since 1500 BCE, but the current fortifications were built in the 15th century. It has served as a castle, a fortress and an air raid shelter. These days, it contains churches and museums, along with a number of narrow alleyways that make it easy to get lost in. We got some food in a café on a very windy rooftop, before heading back to the hotel to check in. The rest of the afternoon was spent wandering round the small lanes of Victoria, before having a drink in a bar in the small town square in front of the cathedral.

We only had one full day on Gozo, and our main intention was to visit the 5000+ year old temples of Ġgantija – pronounced Geegantiya – situated in the small town of Xagħra. After a very filling breakfast at the hotel, we headed to the bus station, where we boarded the bus for the 15 minute journey to Xagħra.

We visited the temples first – there are two buildings built between 3600 BCE and 3200 BCE and rediscovered in 1826. This makes them the oldest temples in Malta and consequently the second oldest buildings in the world. The structures are next to each other, sharing a common wall, but each has their own entrance. They both have a central corridor, with a number of apses off it leading to smaller rooms. The walls are over 6m high and the two buildings cover an area of more than 40m. A number of the items found at the temple are now on display in the archaeological museum, including the fat ladies – a small statue, just 5 inches high, of two large, round ladies.

From here, we went next door to the Ta’ Kola windmill, built in 1725 at the instruction of the Knights. Today it is a museum, with the sails and milling machinery restored. It contained a central area, surrounded by a number of living rooms. We had a look round the centre of Xagħra whilst deciding what to do next. We had contemplated getting the bus to Ramla, and going to the beach there, but the bus was only every 90 minutes and the next one wasn’t for over an hour. So we decided to head back to Victoria and head to a seaside town on the other side of the island. Gozo being so small, that we could get the two buses required and arrive there, before the Ramla bus had arrived in Xagħra.

We arrived in Xlendi, a small beach resort, surrounded by dramatic cliffs on either side with a smattering of restaurants in the middle. The tide was in which meant there was barely any beach to be seen, just a lot of dead jellyfish. On one side, we took the cliff path upwards, arriving at a small sea cave. The buses ran hourly and so after an hour, we decided that there was nothing else to do and so we returned to Valletta, on a journey so short that we were back at the bus station before I’d even realised we’d left Xlendi! That evening, we returned to the main square for dinner, followed by watching the football back at the hotel. 


Valletta, Mosta, Mdina

2023-10-18 to 2023-10-22

The Sanctuary Basilica of the Assumption of Our Lady, more commonly known as the Rotunda of Mosta, contains the third largest dome in Europe, after ones in Rome and London. In fact, the dome is based on the Pantheon in Rome. In 1942, as 300 parishioners waited for Mass, an 1100 lb bomb fell through the roof and rolled along the ground but, miraculously, did not explode.

Leaving Victoria, we had to take the bus back to Mgarr, to the ferry port. We were aiming for the 10.45 ferry, but ended up on the 10am instead, meaning we were back in Valletta by 10.45 and had dropped our bags at the hotel by 11. We were not expecting to be able to get into our room until mid-afternoon, but the room was actually free inside an hour, so we were able to chill and get a coffee before heading back out.

For the afternoon, we decided to head out and see a bit more of the World War II side of Valletta. 40m beneath the Upper Barrakka Gardens are the Lascaris War Rooms. The War Rooms contain maps, desks and switchboards that were still being used up until the mid-1970’s. The rooms are now a museum and are part of the same underground complex as the War Tunnels, which we also were able to visit. This is only by guided tour and our guide was able to point out the sleeping quarters for the soldiers, the slightly better (relatively) sleeping quarters for the officers, plus the operational rooms, which still had huge maps on the walls. The walls were also decorated with photos and explanations of major events in Malta such as Operation Pedestal, the British operation to resupply Malta using the USS Ohio and without which, the islands would have fallen to the Germans. It was really quite interesting.

The next day was going to be quite busy, with a number of different places to visit and an equally large number of buses to get on. Our first stop was Mosta, however getting there was trickier than we anticipated. We had absolutely no problem leaving Valletta – there were a few different buses we could catch and we were on one fairly soon after arriving at the bus station. As we neared Mosta, we were following the route on Google Maps, but the bus suddenly turned onto the ring road, rather than heading into town as we were expecting. We stayed on the bus for a few minutes, as we took the ring road, but then as the bus turned away from town we jumped off and set off on foot.

As we got closer to the Rotunda, we found that there were major roadworks taking place around the church. All of the buses were on diversion in the area; however, they were supposed to still be going into town. Our driver clearly just decided he wasn’t dealing with it and took off around the outside of town instead!

Upon arriving at the Rotunda, we could see the size of the building. The exterior height is 56.4m whilst the dome has a diameter of 39.6m. The interior height is 54.7m. After paying to enter, we headed up to the roof for a bird’s eye view of the church. Around the edge of the Dome, on the inside, is an inscription translating to “The Virgin Mary is taken up into the heavenly dwelling, where the King of Kings sits on his starry throne”. Below the dome, at the top of the walls were scenes from the life of Christ. Near us was the church organ, which has close to 5000 pipes.

We headed downstairs into the main body of the church, which had a blue, gold and white interior and where you had a better perspective of the width and height of the dome. It was an impressive building. Behind the altar, in a small room to the left, is a replica of the bomb that crashed through in 1942.

From Mosta, we had to find a bus to Mdina. Due to the roadworks and diversions, this was easier said than done. We found what we thought was the right bus stop, then decided it was the one across the road, then whilst waiting at the second one, a bus arrived at the first one heading to Mdina, but shortly after another bus arrived at our stop also heading to Mdina. So, we were on our way. Mdina is an Arabic walled city, made of golden sandstone. The city is entered via a drawbridge, over a moat, from the more modern town of Rabat. The place was utterly heaving with coach loads of tour groups, taking over the small narrow lanes and cobbled streets. The city wasn’t very large and at the far end was a viewpoint which, due to Mdina being at one of the higher points of the island, had views back across the whole island. You could easily make out Mosta Rotunda and even see Valletta quite clearly in the distance as well as the sea beyond. It is easy to see why Mdina was Malta’s first capital and an important place for the Knights of St John. It was clearly a beautiful city, but there wasn’t a great deal to do and after walking all the small alleyways, we moved on to our last destination for the day.

The final stop, after a 30 min bus ride, was the another of Malta’s megalithic temple complexes. This time there were two giant temple structures, just 500m apart, on the same site – Ħaġar Qim and Mnajdra. The two temples are set on a cliff edge and were built between 3100 – 2200 BCE. These days, both are covered with a tarpaulin, for protecting the temple from the elements, but also giving the visitor some respite from the sun.

We started at Mnajdra, further away from the visitor’s centre, consisting of three buildings. The doorway of the South building is aligned with the Spring and Autumn equinoxes. During Winter and Summer solstice, the rays of the rising sun pass along the sides of the main doorway hitting two decorated slabs within the first chamber. Ħaġar Qim, meanwhile, contains a stone block weighing more than 20 tonnes, making it the largest in the complex.

Our fourth bus of the day took us back to Valletta where a delicious falafel dinner was in order.

After our busy day all over the island, we spent the next day closer to home, but with a similar amount of public transport. We began with a slightly later breakfast, then headed down to the harbour and caught a ferry across the water to 3 Cities. The name comes from the three small cities that are located there – Birgu, Senglea and Cospicua – which were once the original base of the Knights of Malta. We were aiming for the suburb of Paola, where our first stop, after an ice cream, were the Tarxien Temples.

The temples were discovered in 1913 by a farmer and consist of four megalithic structures built originally in the late Neolithic period and then readapted during the Early Bronze Age. There is a large amount of prehistoric art visible on the walls, depicting spirals and animals such as goats, bulls, pigs and a ram. There were also a large number of animal bones found in the complex. In the Early Bronze Age, part of the site was used as a cremation cemetery.

Nearby Tarxien, is the Ħal Saflieni Hypogeum. This is an underground burial complex that was in use between 4000 – 1500 BCE and covers an area of 500km2. It was only discovered accidentally when foundations were being laid for a house and the mason broke through underground. The Hypogeum consists of three levels and has halls, chambers and passages all cut out of the rock. There is some artwork on the ceiling – red paint swirls. It is believed that some 7000 bodies were interred here. Due to the delicate nature of the walls, access to the Hypogeum is strictly monitored, with just 10 people allowed at any one time, with 8 tours departing hourly throughout the day. Consequently, tickets have to be booked months in advance and we ended up pushing back the week we would be in Malta because our preferred week had no availability.

Getting the bus back to the 3 Cities Harbour area, we continued to wander round Birgu, taking in the Waterfront area from both sea level and the hill above. Eventually, we caught the ferry back across to Valletta and headed back to the hotel to freshen up before going for a Chinese dinner.

Our final full day we stayed solely in Valletta and took it easy. We went to the western side of town, the area we hadn’t explored the most yet. This side overlooked Sliema, across the water. We stopped at St Paul’s Cathedral, the building whose dome is an iconic part of the Valletta skyline. From here, we walked around a little more before finishing at a pub which was, conveniently, showing the Premier League and who were happy to put on the Newcastle v Palace match that James and I were both interested in. Suffice to say, James ended that match a little happier than I did. I’d rather forget about those few hours!

With a lunchtime flight on our final day, all that was left was to pack up after breakfast and head to the airport.


Summary

2023-10-23

A random collection of facts and figures:

Days in Malta: 9

Islands stayed on: 2

Maltesers eaten on Malta: 1 bag (all melted)

Gyoza eaten on Gozo: 0 (sadly)

Maltese delicacies eaten: 1 (rabbit)

Ice creams eaten: many (most days)!

Maximum amount of public transportation taken on one day: 4

Buses caught in the wrong direction: 1

Megalithic Temples visited: 5

Average temperature: 30 degrees