Torres del Paine

Our trip to Torres del Paine began at 6:00am, when Laguna Azul tour company collected us from our hostel. We drove for nearly 2 hours until the guide stopped to show us the beginning of the end of the Andes .... Aka the Patagonian Andes. Truth be told that first stop came rapidly as I slept most of the trip up to this point.




About an hour later we arrived in Puerto Natales. To get there we had driven through the narrowest part of Chile. In Puerto Natales, we stopped at The last watering hole of our trip, a gas station. Then we drove just outside of town to the water. There we saw the hand and the Milodón statue. The latter will become clear momentarily, but the hand was ever clear. When I asked our guide about the hand, he couldn't tell me what it stood for or why it was there, only that there were several of them. In Chile.




About 15 minutes later we arrived at Cueva del Milodón, the Milodon's cave. This cave, carved out by water, was discovered in 1895 by Herman Eberhard, a German. Eberhard not only found the cave, but in it he found a fully preserved specimen of the ice age, a Milodón. Today tourists can follow a path into the cave, which is constantly reshaping itself via water erosion, and to a semi-cheesy fiberglass replica of the Milodón that Everhard found.







We continued on our way to Torres del Paine. The view was amazing, we began to see glacial mountains and blue waters. The drive became more and more like a roller coaster ride. Twists, turns, ups and downs....we put our lives in the (capable?) hands of our driver.
Before reaching the official park entrance we drove over Lago Porteño. This lake is a fisherman's dream, full of salmon and trout.
Then we drove on to Lago del Torro. This is the largest lake in the area. Our driver told us that the other name for this lake is Lago Maravilloso. The water of the lake came from two sources: Glacier Grey and Rio Paine. The main section of the lake was as blue as the Caribbean, but where the glacial water entered, the water was a green-grey color. This water carried bits of sediment from the mountain.




And then we entered the park. In Chile, it is typical to have a separate price for foreigners. In Santiago last summer some of the museums were free for foreigners, but the parks here are a different story. For example, at the Milodón's cave, a Chilean paid 400 CHP (about 1 USD) and we paid 3000CHP (about 6 USD). At Torres del Paine the cost for a Chilean was 4000 CHP (8USD) but for a foreigner it was 15,000 CHP (30 USD)! But it was truly worth every Peso!

Our first stop in the park was Lago Grey / Grey Glacier. The short hike 1,5 hours with lots of stops for photos) began by walking over a suspension bridge. The bridge shook and moved wildly as we walked over it. Fun!




Then we walked along the beach. There were some floating icebergs that had broken off the glacier. Some bits of ice broke off of those and floated to shore. The icebergs themselves were so blue in color, translucent and beautiful. It was said that the blue on the Argentinean flag was meant to represent the colors of the icebergs. We continued our hike across the beach to a lookout point on the hill. Throughout the hike the sun was shining and the temperature was warm, but the wind blew with amazing force and strength that one expended tons of energy just walking.

After Lago Grey we drove to a few other places in the park, stopping to take in the breathtaking views. Each of the lakes around the park varied in color... grey, green, blue and black - they were all amazing. Our next big stop and short hike was to the waterfall at Lago Serrano. The waterfall was beautiful! In the spray of the waterfall, mixing with the sun was a perfect rainbow.







On our way out of the park we finally saw some wildlife of the park. Throughout the day, we had seen birds of all shapes and sizes; but on our way out we saw guanacos and ostrich. Guanacos look a lot like Llamas. Later, outside of the park we also saw rabbits.







Our final stop on our way out of the park we saw the Torres for which the park was named. Truth be told, seeing them from a distance was a bit anti-climatic. I hope one day to return and really hike throughout the park and see them closer.




Then we drove back to Puerto Natales, traced our route back to the gas station and then onwards to Punta Arenas. We arrived back at our hostel at nearly 23:00. A long day, but an enjoyable one!


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Location:Patagonia, Chile

March of the Penguins

Today started with uncertainty on the penguin front. We found out that the ferry might not go, because enough tickets hadn't been sold. The ferry was scheduled to leave at 3:00pm. At 1:00pm we found out that we were in luck and the ferry WAS going! I must admit to being amazed that the ferry actually went - there was no more than 30 of us on board!
The journey across the Straights of Magellan to Magdalena Island was sunny and windy. It was warm in the sun and bitingly cold in the wind. The journey inboard lasted two hours each way, but time went by quickly.





The trip to the island was for the purpose of seeing penguins, but I got a bonus included that I didn't expect - dolphins swimming next to the ship!




Finally we arrived at the island. The penguins were smaller than I thought they would be. These penguins, Magellanic Penguins, are no taller than mid-calf to lower knee on me. They are migratory and spend their summers here. They are currently molting and feathers were blowing everywhere.

On the island, rules were very stringent:
- visitors have one hour only
- no food or drink (even water) is allowed
- do not stray from the marked path
- do not touch the birds or disrupt them in any fashion

The penguins were incredible. Some were boldly out in the open, posing for visitors, marching across our path and making loud noises (mating calls?). Others lay sleeping on the ground, groomed each other or just flat out ignored us. Some stood in their holes and others curled up deep in their holes - snuggled tightly against the wind. Some swam in the frigid water, others strutted along the shores.
The hour on the island passed by in seconds. I loved every minute of it!




















One penguin tried to board our ferry and travel to Punta Arenas in style, sadly he was denied boarding and sent back off the boat:





And a bit of penguin video fun....

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Location:Isla Magdalenas, Chile

In the center of it all

Take a look at this map of Chile... Now think of the answer to the following question:
"Where is the geographic center of Chile?"

Map of Chile here: http://www.mapsofworld.com/save_image.php?id=http://www.mapsofworld.com/chile/maps/chile-political-map.jpg

Let me guess.....you answered somewhere around Santiago - maybe a bit north of that ....right?

Actually, that would be absolutely wrong!

We often forget that Chile has a claim to part of Antartica. That means that the geographic center is actually much further south ... South of Punta Arenas near the Strait of Magellan. It's just a bit north of Fuerte Bulnes and inland of Puerto Hambre.
If these places aren't ringing any bells take a look here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_extreme_points_of_Chile#Geographical_center

As this point is marked, we stopped at it today on the way back from Fuerte Bulnes.












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Location:Angamos,Punta Arenas,Chile

Anyone have an ark I can borrow?

Punta Arenas averages about 2 inches a month - rain that is. BUT about every twenty years the rains come, the river overflows and the town floods. The last documented flood: 1990. The most recent: March 12, 2012. I'll let the pictures of Punta Arenas today (March 13, 2012) do the rest of the talking.....



























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Location:Angamos,Punta Arenas,Chile

Taste of Chile

Im a bit behind on blog posts, but here we are to recap about the cooking class....
My Mom and I took this class, it was my birthday present. Also in our class was a couple from New York and a German girl. Our chef instructor was a Hungarian-Chilean.
We cooks a lot of delicious Chilean foods. My only complaint - the spicy stuff was not was not spicy enough for me. There was sooo much food that I felt like I might never eat again!
We cooked:
Matchas Parmesanas
Pebre
Tomato salad
Pastel de
Empanadas
Ceviche
Platanos with Palm Tree Honey (those I didn't eat)
Pisco Sour

















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Location:Valparaiso, Chile

Vamanos!

Today I'm headed back down south .... To Chile! Spring break begins after work today and I'm making the most of it. My suitcase is packed:
It's small
It weighs about 20lb
There is space for bottles of Aji and maybe some Pisco!
I'll keep this blog active and promise to post pics of penguins!




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Location:Fort Worth,United States

I love Windsor

I love going to Windsor - its a treat for me. My friends Vee, Katherine and I went for the day on Dec 29th. As it was just after Christmas, the sales were on. We went in and out of a number of shops, just looking and seeing what the people didn't buy for Christmas. I find it amazing the junk that people buy for the holidays, no matter what part of the world they are in. "Schrott" as the Germans would say is one of the privileges of being in a first world country with a fairly stable economy .... We have money to waste on this junk, this Schrott. But we three were smarter than the average bear and were not easily lured by shiny baubles and such. In fact we found our best finds in the charity shops. The charity shops in England never cease to amaze me, one can find all sorts of things there. Often they are high quality and even designer label, but the prices are minuscule. Last summer for example I bought a GAP miniskirt for £3. It looks as if it's brand new. ....... But back to this most recent visit. I found a cute little seashell turtle, a perfect gift for T. <3 After we tired of darting in and out of shops and bracing ourselves against the cold wind, we headed to our favorite cafe for the ultimate hot chocolate. The Theater Tea Cafe makes a cup of hot chocolate to die for. Vee had the Penultimate, which is hot chocolate with whipped cream (hand whipped) and chocolate shavings and a chocolate mouse. I had the Ultimate White, which is a white peppermint hot chocolate with cream and shavings. I shared a rocky road bar with Katherine who had a Cafe Latte. We were in chocolate heaven! It was amazing!






Our day wrapped up with a walk along the Thames back to Vee's car. Whilst walking along the river, I saw a sight like no other. A flock (?) gaggle (?) herd (?) of white swans were running along the water to take off into the sky. As they begin to rise, they truly run along the surface of the water. The sound of water churning, air and feathers rustling mixes together into a symphony that could only belong to this spectacle. As I said at the start, I love going to Windsor.




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Location:Windsor, England

Playing Tourist

"I'm going to England for Christmas." To me that sounds like a statement as normal as "I'm going next door to borrow a cup of sugar." (Actually, truth be told, the former comes more naturally than the latter for me) and yes, I know I am lucky, but this is my third or fourth Christmas in a row in England with my friend Ruth and her friends and family.... My extended British family. Much of the time is spent at home, playing with new toys (this years big hit with 4-year old Oz was the Gruffalo game from Oma), drinking tea, eating delicious foods and enjoying a moment to relax. Inevitably, a big household project begins - this year, Ruth's husband Jamie has chosen to rip apart and redo the kitchen layout. The goal: create a more efficient kitchen with more workspace. But after a few days we find it necessary to get out of the house, and not just to run to Tescos for milk.




This year Ruth and I thought we might go to the Bluebell Railway, a favorite place for Oz. when we suggested it, he said "no Mummy, I'd rather go for a walk on the beach." {who is this 4-year old and what have you done with our Oz?!?!?!??} so we headed off to Brighton to be tourists for a day. Along the way we collected Susan and Karen to join us for the day. Oz was in Auntie heaven!
Like any good tourists the first plan of action was to find affordable parking. We parked at the marina and from there we took our walk along the beach. A romantic stroll it was not, sometimes we raced (somehow Oz usually won - even when we were ahead!) other times we collected rocks and sometimes we just played a bit.
After about forty minutes of walking along the rocky shores of Brighton Beach in the cold, biting wind, we found a snack shack and stopped for a hot cup of tea. It was delightful. Then we continued on until we reached The Brighton Wheel.
The Wheel is a new attraction in Brighton, a bit like the London Eye. It is a large ferris wheel with capsules that allow you to see out into the distance, towards Brighton and out onto the English Channel. Oz was scared of the wheel, Susan and Karen did not wish to go - so Ruth and I went alone. The queue was short, yet we waited a while. During this time, Oz went into the arcade to spend "an extra 2£ that Susan just didn't need" and won a motorcycle - toy of course.


The ride along the wheel was smooth, narrated with information about what one could see. We went around three times. The capsules were designed to hold eight people, but Ruth and I had one to ourselves. We enjoyed the freedom to move about and take photos. We of course tried to take the ubiquitous "photo of ourselves holding out the camera in front of us" first with the pier in the background, and later with the wheel. All I can say is: epic fail! But we had fun doing so.




Afterwards as good tourists do, we went onwards to eat lunch out. Our favorite restaurant in Brighton is Donatellos. Great Italian food at a reasonable price. Wonderful! I had Fusilli Arabiatta, but the most loved meal was Oz and his Spaghetti Bolonaise. He ate every last bit and practically licked his plate clean!
After lunch, we joined other tourists looking around the shops. We first visited the Kath Kidston shop and the much to Oz's delight, the Lego shop. We finished up our day with cookies from Millie's Cookies and then a bus ride (top deck, front seat for Oz) back to the marina.




Being a tourist for a day was great fun, but incredibly exhausting!



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Location:Brighton, England

A Mainz Minute

I have visited a number of cathedrals around the world. They are gorgeous, but they start to blend together after a while. Today I visited St. Stephan's in Mainz. It was simplistically stunning. The stain glass windows were the works of Chaguall or his students. The ones with more color at the front and back were his and the others (all blues and clear) were his students. I was told that they were so positioned, that when the sun shines through, the whole interior is bathed in a blue light. Unfortunately today was overcast, so I must take their word for it. There were however two windows that I did not think went along with the rest. They were much brighter and cut differently, they simply appeared new. Accompanying me was Y, the husband of my friend S, and he agreed that they did not appear to match the others. In fact he said he'd never seen them before, despite multiple visits to the cathedral in the past.







But there were two really unique things that caught my eye (other than the stained glass). First off the organ. Upon first glance one may think the organ stands there majestically, but on second glance one feels as if they are simply being duped.




No they are not trying to pull the wool over your eyes, a new organ is in the works, to be completed in 2012. It is being erected to the tune (pun intended) of 900,000€. That's nearly $1.2 million.
The other unique thing that caught my eye was this cloth covered object (pulpit maybe?) at first I thought it was one of those street performers who dress up like statues!




Oh yes, when you open your eyes, you might just be deceived!
But all in all I had a great short visit to Mainz, and I really do hope to go back and visit one day when the sun is shining through!


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Location:Mainz, Germany

Christmas Spirit

Those who know me, know that I am not a fan of christmas. I don't hang tinsel, decorate a reindeer or wait for St. Nick. Maybe that's a result of a Jewish childhood and a current Agnostic/Atheist adulthood, but I just don't consider it the "most wonderful time of the year". (however it must be mentioned that I support the post office whole-heartedly by sending cards, and love picking out gifts for friends) especially feel the need to bah-humbug when the stores start selling trees and playing carols in August!
But Christmastime in Germany is ENCHANTING! many towns across the country are host to a Weihnachtsmarkt or a Christkindlmarkt. These Christmas markets are a mixture of traditional decorations and modern art, they are host to craftsmen (and women!) from around the world. They are also a place to meet your friends, enjoy a glass of something hot to drink and nibble on something sweet. I love the way each stall and the general area is decorated. I find that nighttime in the Weihnachtsmarkt is the best - one can see the lights and the steam rising off of your Gluhwein.
But it is not only the Christmas markets that are enchanting, German cities take the time to decorate with lights and greenery. Around every corner is something to see. The evenings are filled with warmth from winter coats and soft glowing holiday lights. It's simply beautiful ..... And sometimes one is lucky enough to have a bit of snow.
These last couple of days I have enjoyed, nae relished in this feeling in Regensburg. On any given day I find Regensburg to be positively wonderful, but right now is the time to really experience this city in Bavaria.
I admit it, being here, I begin to have a bit of excitement, dare I use the word spirit of the Holliday season. And with that I'd like to wish you a happy solstice, happy hannukkah, happy kwanza or happy whatever you wish to celebrate.




Weihnachtsmarkt on Neupfarrplatz.



Weihnachtsmarkt on Neupfarrplatz.


Greenery (lit at night) on Ludwigstrasse.



Weihnachtsbaum in front of the Altes Rathaus




Yes we even saw a bit of snow, although it didn't last long.


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Location:Weingasse,Ratisbon,Germany

The joy of the hot shower

Those who travel long distances will relate....
You step off the plane and despite the fact that all you really did was sit and vegetate, you feel dirty. It's airplane-stink.
Look around an airport - you can tell who has arrived, fresh from home, ready to start their journey. You can also tell who has been traveling. They are the travel-weary.
Right now I sit and type this, and I am of the travel-weary class. I just stepped off a long-haul flight, one that I undertook with a head cold and got exactly 0 minutes of sleep. But I do not appear to be a full-fledged member of the travel weary. I was able to utilize the BA Lounge (because I flew over business class with American) and the lounge has shower facilities! The hot shower I took was one of the most refreshing showers. Despite the facts that I put back on the same clothes, I am clean, smell nice and most importantly feel good!
And now it is time for a short flight to Munich --- let the adventure begin, I am ready!


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Location:BA Executive Lounge North, Heathrow Airport, terminal 5

Test

I seem be having trouble with the blogging app, so I am just testing it out



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I"m an unseasoned American, of course I know it all

The year was 1998. I was on my first trip to Europe.  5 days into it.  I had never travelled on my own before and had never been to Europe before. It was only my 2^nd day truly on my own. I was on a train bound for Haarlem, the Netherlands. Why Haarlem? Well, Amsterdam was too scary for me, and I had met a guy on the internet from Haarlem.

Wait wait, its not like that at all….

I had met a guy (and his wife and kids) on the internet in New Zealand, who was originally from Haarlem. He had described his hometown as such a pretty place, I just had to see it. He was no where near the place anymore.

So there I was on a train bound for Haarlem. I did not speak Dutch and had no real travel experience. Therefore I knew it all!  As I sat on the train, an elderly woman (mid 70’s? ) tried to engage me in conversation. Her English was limited, however much more advanced than my non-existant Dutch. Through the conversation she was able to ascertain that I was an American (although I probably screamed it at the time) and that I was travelling to Haarlem. She was very friendly, and most likely we were able to communicate more than I recall. The train approached a station, Haarlem was part of the name. It looked very industrial.

But remember I knew it all.

I was ready to get off. I saw the name of the place, it was the only word I recognized. I stood up, strapped on my backpack, which weighed almost as much as me and began to walk to the door of the train. This was my stop. I was getting off.

Remember I knew it all.

The older woman stood up as well, she ran down the aisle of the train and stopped me. But I was still determined to get off.

Remember I knew it all.

She tugged on my backpack, holding me back, conveying that this was not the correct stop. I was going to get off.

Remember I knew it all.

But I was unable to be rude to this woman who clearly wanted to help. I decided that I could just get off at the next stop and take the next train back. That way I would not offend her. I figured the next stop would be nearby, because this was a local train.

Remember I knew it all.

As the train pulled into the next stop, I didn’t even bother to look at the station sign. Now the woman motioned to me to get off. She said “Haarlem” multiple times. I smiled and thanked her. All the while thinking ‘I need to find a train to get back.’

Remember I knew it all.

As the train pulled away from the station, I finally looked at the sign. Haarlem was all it said.

Clearly the woman on the train knew it all.