Parts of Peru, Nov. 5-22,2011

Flew to Guayaquil from the slow paced San Cristobal in Galapagos to a big city in the south of Ecuador. Managed to wander the entire length of the Malecon for the afternoon and evening. Interesting that there is a fence along one side with police manned entrance points and a river on the other side. This has created a safe place for everyone to enjoy the air and relax in the city. We managed a meal here and didn't venture too far out of here for our short stay. A very modern looking city - if you like cities - pleasant for the time that we had but enough.

Then on to Cuzco, a lovely small city at about 3200 meters so altitude can be a concern. Quickly dropped down to the lovely town of Pisac though Clive was less than thrilled by the collectivo that we got there in - he rejected the chicken bus and only just found this acceptable. After this we were able to find a taxi for a day and then tour buses that are super luxurious for the rest of the trip. It just means that you have to be on the tourist route. These buses come with English guides and often the equivalent of an air hostess who tells you what to do in case of an earthquake or fire and then serves some drink. Well, it employs someone with language skills but oh, what a long day and so little to do.

We saw the major ruins between Cuzco and Machu Picchu. I loved walking up and down the terraces that are at the centre of all of the ruins. These terraces had irrigation and various microclimates for various crops including many varieties of potatoes, corn, etc. So Clive liked the historical aspect and I really appreciated that too but probably because so much was intact and I got to burn up some energy.

We found cute hotels and good food all along the way.

Machu Picchu was a real highlight and I loved wandering around especially later in the afternoon after most of the small number of tourists had left. It was then much quieter and you could just enjoy the mountains, the amazing setting that all of this building took place on and some llamas chewing away on the grass. In the morning, I was busy trying to learn about it and wanted to know more but in the pm just enjoyed. Clive had had enough so he went back to town for a coffee. I walkted to the Sun Gate instead. For anyone going to MP, Ollyantambo is a great town to stay in, Aquas Caliente is real touristy and probably good for one night so that you can get an early start on MP. The compulsory train ride for the 50 km is not near as good as I was expecting but the last 8 km on the bus was hairpin turns (like Sunshine in the old days).

Cuzco is a great little city - probably a wonderful place to study Spanish especially if you like eating - so many good restaurants - not really Peruvian but rather an Italian or other European or North American influence. Peruvian seems too much deep fried meat to me accompanied by rice and chips. As with so many cultures other than China why are there so few vegetables? Lots of indigenous people around and lots of crafts and knitting. We really needed another day to see some more ruins but oh well, we got the idea from the several that we did see.

Went to Puno on Lake Titicacca and then a boat tour to the floating island - that's right floating (the reeds grow and maintain a good base to live on for 30 or 40 years and they make their house from the reeds and eat them hearts as well. Nowadays they make money from tourists - all very well organized this country for the tourists. Then to visit another indigenous group who make meals for tourist groups - they do this on a rotation basis. It feels quite authentic and definitely provides the people with a livelihood - it is about the first time that I have travelled and not felt that the people were being exploited or marginalized.

Then on to Colca Canyon and Arequipe where we are spending the last several days - a holiday within a holiday. We will try out small city touring - wandering around this pretty city center and trying out coffee and foods and generally relaxing. Tough this retiring...

Peru has been much more progressive than I was anticipating. It has a well developed tourist industry and it knows how to charge the tourist for various entrances and so on (a good idea) and then it has developed the transportation and personnel to maintain the tourist industry - from guides to bus drivers to the restaurants if you stay on the tourist loop. Education seems important and everyone has access till at least 12 years of age and then there are secondary schools and colleges though of course those are in centres so harder for the rural population. I guess that the middle class is emerging but I haven't really talked to anyone.

I managed to see an afternoon of high school kids presenting dances in an outdoor stadium. There were at least a dozen groups of boys and girls and there costumes were extremely colorful and the dances fun to watch. Parents, grandparents and siblings were in the audience ...and me! The stadium had a partial roof (probably for the sun so you could still view the mountains on the other half. (Unfortunately Clive was sleeping due to diahrrea and intestinal upset probably picked up from the tour to the indigenous island). The cement floor of the stadium was very dusty and they dance in barefeet, socks and shoes and added beer that they would shake and let if fizz onto the ground. Yes, high school kids used a couple dozen beers in these dances (and the occasional boy managed a couple of swigs of the leftover). We had seen this in the street the week before in Cuzco but didn't realize that it went down to school level. And the costumes that were so clean and must have taken an unbelievable number of hours to make - color upon color stitched on. It appeared that every student in the town must have been in the dances.

Today in Arequipe, we saw a peaceful demonstration into the town square with hundreds of people - something about the villages in the north?? and then a university marching band raising money for the downtrodden. So another interesting morning of opportunity in the town square.

So South America is a pretty doable country on your own - and lots of older people here without tours - pick them up as you go and go as you please. Good hotels, transportation and food. Met quite a few solo travellers as well. South America or at least the part that we have been in has lots of tourists - this has been a good time of year - every hotel has space and many offer discounts and there is space on the tour the next day. The weather has been superb - rainy season starts officially in Dec. but that apparently means that it rains and night and is still nice in the day so anytime seems a good time to come. It will be greener after the rain starts.

The Andes are definitely a mountain range that is relatively smooth, wide open and has lots of scrub - no resemblance to our mountains.

Ecuador and Peru

Susan as Superman on zipline

Sea Turtle








Susan on Zipline


















Galapagos Beach





Giant Tortoise












Galapagos Penguin






Frigate Bird mating Display






Cowboy dressed for mountain weather







Clive on Zipline












Oct 13 - Nov. 22 2011 Ecuador and Peru

Soooooo……excited about this trip especially the Galapagos cruise. I am expecting it to be the highlight though
I am sure that it will all be very interesting. I have perused information for quite a long time to come up with this itinerary and then squashed it somewhat so that we would both be happy with the outcome, hopefully - and no major bus rides (local) that Clive has to now endure….me, I still enjoy the movie screen of relaxing on a bus for some time… so only 2 bus rides of about 4 hours that will be quite interesting and then a few of less than 2 hours around Quito.

So how is it working out so far - we have been in and around Quito for a week and then the Galapagos cruise aboard the Endeavour with Quasar Expeditions and now a relaxing week in San Cristobal one of the Galapagos Islands.
The first week was exciting - for both of us and of course I liked all of the activity - as did Clive. We spent one day in Quito wandering the Old Town and that was about right. We took a taxi to the outskirts and found ourselves at the bus depot for Otavalo, the most famous market in Latin America. I guess that it was ok - not very interested in the stuff but enjoyed seeing the dress of the indigenous population - wool hats looking quite Austrian, long skirts of blue or black wool fabric wrapped around the waist and colourful very white blouses with lots of embroidery and a scooped round neck. We enjoyed the small town and the music….and then catching a bus to another cute town 20 minutes away. Of course, we found an interesting and delightful place to ear in the inner courtyard of some hotel that used to be a convent. Also managed local foods like the potato soup that is always - never too salty and often topped with avacado slices and insipid cheese. Also had amazing berry pie (and I don’t usually like pie), great fruit drinks, great ceviche (fish or seafood marinated in lemon or other acidic juices and spices instead of cooking it - it is like room temperature or cooler broth and seemingly cooked fish - definitely a speciality of some Latin countries). The beef is pretty iffy to choose - often like shoe leather. Fish is great and rice or fresh big fresh fries and a small salad of cucumber, lettuce and tomato. The food has been a pleasant surprise though Clive is always searching and testing coffee to his if it meets his standards. I think that we hit that today where organic freshly made coffee happened. I actually bought a leather coat as we wandered the shops in a town. It seems that Belgians or Dutch have established schools to teach leather making as a viable livlihood - much better than trinkets that are so often sold.
I really have been impressed with Ecuador - the friendly people, the large middle class so that we are consuming the stuff as well as the local population. It looks like a lot of aid projects seem to have been successful here - or at least I am appreciating this large middle class. They seem to have established co-operatives for the taxis and I see credit co-operatives so those kinds of things help the locals help themselves. The streets have been clean and in old town Quito there has been a large police presence so that you do feel safe wandering the streets. Transportation has been great and easy to do - getting to the right bus station. The trolley is easy to use - it has a turnstile process to get on so pretty organized and then they have a dedicated lane with large curbs so cars can not enter even if they wanted to.

Then we bussed back to Quito, changed bus stations and straight to Mindo. Found a great little hotel run by an American/Ecuadorean couple and Clive found some more organic coffee beans! We had two wonderful days with a bird watcher - breakfast at 5am and then out for the biggest part of the day. We saw so many birds and he showed us constantly on his tripod with a magnification of 20x. The colourful beaks of the toucans, tangers and then of course the humming birds. It was really a wonderful experience - and I gained some appreciation of finding birds. We also saw numerous cock of the rock - leks the ones with red crowns that dance make noises to woo the female - and they are reputed to be difficult to find but of course the birding guys know exactly where to go - and the birds are pretty much reliably there. Our birding guide ended up as a guide because of a gov’t program that trained him in his town - after his potential soccer career ended due to a broken foot in a game. Must mention that we went zip lining and Clive was amazing - he went across one of the lines as Superman, that is face and chest downwards and his legs wrapped around the guide - I don`t think he realized until they got him going what was going on and then he said - oh well. After all, I had the opportunity to do each zipline in a different position - upside down, face up, face down, sometimes tandem.

The next highlight was El Porvenir which we ended up at quite by chance as we got no response from our email. We were the only guests in this hacienda place just outside of Cotopaxi Park. It was marvellous…the whole experience. I went walking in the hills and loved every minute of that - a rather barren countryside these Andes are. Then we had a half day of horse back riding wearing heavy wool ponchos and chaps with sheepskin exteriors. We never saw Cotopaxi but enjoyed riding and seeing the mist in the distance ever changing but not elevating to expose the peak. Clive was able to walk with the horse and I managed to trot and canter around the fields - so we were both satisfied. The lodge had a fire and fresh roses everywhere, wood floors, old Persian type carpets and so many things to look at. Dinner was an amazing experience as we were led into the dining room where there was a wood fire burning, a candle burning on every table and roses everywhere - and we were the only 2 guests!. I soaked it all in and enjoyed every moment. The food was good with soup, main course and a choice of desserts. We did have a steak before we left and certainly awful. But the whole experience was wonderful - indoors, outdoors, walking, riding (I managed to enjoy a little old lady that spent the day picking something like saskatoons in the highlands - she graciously posed for a picture for me) and the ambience and wonderful staff. …and this was a cheap hacienda!

Then the Galapagos - everything went perfectly. We enjoyed every moment of that as well though I expected it to be a highlight - I mean how can you go wrong when everything is laid on and all you have to do is indulge. It was relaxing and so busy. Every day included at least one snorkel experience and one or two walks and there were a couple of dinghy excursions. The guides were enthusiastic and fluent in English. They keep a real handle on managing the environment and the tourists - you can only land at these places if you have a guide and you must stay with the guide at all times. Of course, they give explanations and share their enthusiasm as well as a real slant on environmental protection and little human interference. You get very close to the birds, sea lions, and iguanas. We saw an egg in a nest, young birds in their nests, male frigate birds blowing up their big red throats to attract the female, a newly arrived sea lion (saw the placenta), tortoises, albatrosses and various boobies (red footed, blue footed and nazca). We saw turtles and sharks - attracted the sharks by the lights at night at the back of the boat. The other people (32 total) on the boat were a mixture of European, American and Canadian and a surprising number of young people - nearly half. The boat was roomy, the food excellent with lots of salads and fresh fruits. A buffet with interesting stuff including lots of local stuff and always fresh juices after the excursions. The snorkelling was excellent and the wetsuit pretty much necessary - saw lots of big fish including white tipped sharks, turtles, a couple of smaller rays and the regular stuff. Also nice to look up at the rock walls with birds so close while snorkelling along the walls. The walks were so close to the birds and tortoises. I tried stepping a little closer to the tortoises and watched them draw their heads and front feet inwards and a hiss to start off before the retraction. We learned that the alpha male sea lion is to be given a wide berth however it was fun on occasions to swim with the sea lions as they went around and around in the water. Sea lions everywhere, every island unlike many other species which are prolific on one island and possibly not on any others - or in a very small number elsewhere.

One thing that I am reminded of everyday as we practice here is listening and looking for any movement. It takes patience and observation - so you have to slow down to appreciate being in nature. It is a quiet pursuit - almost meditatitative in nature thoug here everything is often only a few feet away.

We are relaxing in San Cristobal at a cute little hotel overlooking the harbour. There are lots of beaches with sea lions, some good snorkelling and yesterday we biked up into the highlands - good for Clive to have achieved that plus a little hike upwards! - his least favorite direction. Today it is back to the beach. Restaurants do not have the variety of the mainland but we are finding pretty good stuff. Electricity sometimes goes out here - so no toast yesterday, no internet on many days. The island does have 3 wind towers and so they are reducing reliance on diesel.

Staying here for a week is possibly a bit too long - but I am interested to feel the difference between and cruise and staying on an island. The cruise puts you in a bubble and this does not. We are at the edge of tourist season so many hotels and cafes have very few customers. The sales job for the Galalpagos has been very successful. Many tourists are bringing in lots of currency and all of the boat staff is supposed to be from the Galapagos so the people are managing a reasonably good livelihood and learning about the environment and taking pride. They are trying to let the endemic species thrive and not introduce others. On one of the islands they got rid of the feral goats by having the female with extra hormones to attract the males - they then got rid of the males and the population. Feral cats and dogs are not so easy to manipulate the numbers though the vets are spaying some of the animals at no cost to the locals. So if all goes according to plan the Galapagos will be a wonderful place to get close to various birds and sea lions and so on and the local population will also thrive. It sounds win-win to me.

Well, so many words - partly because I have the time now to do this and read and yoga and stuff. No tv or internet or telephone to distract me. Blah, blah, blah…its great. ...posting this 2 days later as there has been no internet for the past couple of days and even the electricity can go out for hours at a time. Still pretty civilized!

Hong Kong, Southern China and Macau April 10-27, 2011

Why? We were supposed to go to Japan to visit Andrew and Yui but with the catastrophe in Japan that didn't happen. We had an awesome fare because of Jim and Denise and when I asked Air Canada if they would change our destination instead of a refund or credit to Tokyo, they hesitated and then said yes. I was so excited - disappointed about Japan but then so excited with the prospect of a new discovery. Clive was keen on Hong Kong and Macau and agreed to Guilin and Yanshou, China....not too much moving around and not too much travelling for what turned out to be a 17 day adventure.

Hong Kong is a city of skyscrapers with many mirrored exteriors, interesting shapes, richness (lots of these buildings are banks),towering heights, close together. There are pedestrian walkways (virtually plus-15s winding through shopping malls and over streets). There are often outdoor elevators to get you up to this level. The window shopping is amazing with all of the displays. Fashion in Hong Kong must be world class. We didn't even go into a department store as we are not really shoppers but I feasted on the window displays. Cappucinos and bakery goods are available everywhere. We tried a couple of dim sums that were great adventures....getting to one that Denise recommended with no English at all. We loved it.
Between the skyscrapers are bits of greenery and flowers. Hard to believe but they plant stuff in the smallest little areas - and I guess that the office workers can sit for a few minutes in the green. The density of people living in the high rises and working in nearby highrises is beyond my comprehension...so much humanity. We did take a bus around to the beach at Stanley one day and enjoyed watching various bride and groom photo shoots. They apparently happen one month before the wedding and they are obviously rented dresses - sometimes running shoes underneath or jeans nearby or in one case the dress didn't do up in the back. Saves for photos on the big day, I guess.
We stayed in the best little spot in central Hong Kong Island (Putman). Very small but floor to ceiling huge window and a massive bathroom. I enjoyed a couple of early morning yoga classes across the street at the fitness centre. Not great classes but that smug feeling of having the opportunity to act as though I was living in Hong Kong. Then something else that I never do on vacation - I read the morning South China News and that was pretty interesting reading about the odd civil rights China issue and then issues in Hong Kong. All that wealth and the minimum wage is just about nothing..immigrant workers. By then it was latte time and time to start the day properly (jetlag can allow me to rise pretty early). I enjoyed wandering around Hong Kong and remembering that 30 years ago it was all little shops and I remember it feeling quite closed in. It looks so ultra-modern and busy.



Then we caught the metro to the border and walked across to Shenzhen, China where we started by standing in line for a ticket for Guilin. When we got to the front of the line, we discovered that we were in the wrong line. No-one that understood English to ask but we got the right ticket soon - a soft sleeper that go that evening. So we walked across the street to a pretty nice hotel and found ourselves in wonderful surroundings enjoy dim sum on the China side of the border. We had no desire to go any further. We loved it and it was our first experience with a pretty full blown tea service so that was fun too. Then we had a wander around the mall that was underground and one floor up. There was the usual stuff - jeans, purses, shoes and then a few fast food places with duck head bones, chicken feet, organs (I saw nothing that I thought edible at these places).




The train was great - 4 beds, clean linen, a good sleep and less than desireable toilets. Woke up coming into Guilin and found a hotel. We found a pretty nice place to stay and had Chinese breakfast (dim sum) but had no idea what it was. Western breakfasts suited us better for the rest of the trip. We decided to move down the street to a smaller hotel with lots of Chinese character though the clientele tended to be Western (a Lonely Planet gem) - quite the opposite of the last hotel.
Guilin is a favorite spot for Chinese vacationers and they are travelling by the millions (probably not exaggerated). There are outcrop mountains that rise like domes that are tree covered in all of this area. Guilin itself has a wonderful wind slow river that has dream-like bridges, flowers, plants, etc. So peaceful and relaxing. In the morning tai-chi happens all around here and later you can hear relaxing music somewhere. And then you can have coffee and just savour the setting. I am always looking for cultural entertainment and it was tough to get the info but eventually we got ourselves tickets to some ballet, gymnastic, acrobatic production. There were even 2 dance skits in there with a couple of kids pushing chairs out from one another and trying to get the seat in one of them. It was hilarious and I enjoyed how much you can tell a story without words. It was amazing - colorful, amazing physical movements, pleasant music and an all Chinese audience. Of course, I loved every moment from standing in the lobby to taking photos after. The difficulty is seeing some very young children being groomed from such a young age to be dancers or acrobats.




We got ourselves to the Dragon Terraces about 3 hours by bus from Guilin. Dragon Terraces are the terraces that they grow rice on - some of them are half the size of our small front yard. They form such nice patterns on the contours as the light changes.

But stepping back a bit. Finding the right bus here was a bit of an epic. We got ourselves to the wrong bus station and finally figured out that we were at the wrong bus station. We got ourselves into a taxi and someone gave directions and got us to the right bus station and then we quickly got onto the right bus. In all of this, you never are quite sure if you are getting the right info. All we had was a Lonely Planet with the name Dragon Terrace (probably in Chinese) and our white skin. Then of course one is always a bit skeptical of taxi drivers...and others. But yes, it all worked out well and we were off on our adventure. I like the bus ride going up into higher elevation - it got really great after we changed buses and got the tourist bus up to the terrace - most of the tourist were Chinese but a couple of Westerners on the bus as well.
Then we needed accommodation. The village reminded me of Nepal, local people with hotels built of wood as we wound our way up the hill. We looked at 3 but we were really looking for a place that a couple of Americans had recommended. Never mind, the next place was like a dream. The wooden dining and reception was a relaxed darkness of wood looking out over the valley, the staff welcoming (and we did have to bargain for a bed), and with all of this the sun was shining. The young gal wanted to show every room (lots of space!)and which would we like. Any was fine. So we had the Japanese room with a raised floor for the futons. But so little time in the room. We zipped out and had a beer at a place with a propietor down the street who could speak English because he had been a cab driver before he had retired here. I loved wandering around here - in the village and out on the terraces. I would have loved more time here. By the time we had 3 meals at the hotel we stayed at - the staff was asking us to join them and try their lunch. It was a special time - great place for a honeymoon!

We had had fresh bamboo shoots and of course I loved all of the food in China. So many veggies and so little meat and steamed rice. I loved the diet - one of the best in the world and hard to get fat on despite the liberal use of oil in stir frying. Of course, we had lattes every day and then the bakeries are pretty amazing - I found stuff that even I wanted to try!

Then the boat ride to Yanshou - a 3 or 4 hour ride down the gentle river admiring the karsts (those domed mountain outcrops). Of course like everything and everywhere in China I am constantly amazed at how many people are moving about. We saw hundreds of these boats holding a couple of hundred people each.





The number of people that move about is unbelievable. When we entered China I went to the washroom at the border - a good time as there was a washroom and a long line. I come out of the washroom and the next metro has just arrived (all of 3 minutes later) and the same line again. So I guess that they process people quickly (much quicker than the line buying the train ticket). In Yanshou we went to an evening show on the water choreographed by the guy that did the opening ceremony of the Olympics. They have 2 shows nightly with 4-5000 people at each show! The show was ok though everywhere it was touted as the best. I was blown away at the organization to get the people in and out. The people just move - mind you the Chinese do travel by buses with a leader. We had trouble finding our ride back and stood in the street. Within 30 minutes every single tour bus (and there were tons of them) were gone and our ride found us. We thought that we would be making our own way back but not so.

Arriving in Yanshou we wanted somewhere to stay for the next 5 nights. We had a little difficulty as several hotels seemed to be filled up on the Saturday night. So we found a place for the first night and then had to find another for the remaining nights. We looked at numerous hotels and we discovered a couple where Westerners stay and they are great (but full on the Sat.), and we checked out numerous cookie cutter Chinese hotels. Just as our previous trip to China 10 years ago, they have pretty nice lobbies. Often the carpet in the room has a big spill or the hallways are dark and carpets need replacing. Anyways, we were being fussy as we wanted to be comfortable for the next 4 nights. As we settled on one, we just checked out a small hotel and thought it was amazing. I have to wonder how it will do but never mind, I enjoyed talking each evening with the receptionist - a Christian who thinks that Falun Gong has some to do with self inflicted injury. The room had a 4 poster bed and the bathroom with short side walls had a shower with a rain head and a jacuzzi and a Japanese toilet with all the options. A balcony to boot! and half a block from the centre of town.

We enjoyed our days riding bikes to the rice paddies, villages and wandering about. Always a good lunch spot - always idyllic - on the river or in a local village. Sometimes meeting someone, sometimes not. One day we chatted with an old Aussie gal with an art store in a village - how does one choose this for a life? The town had lots of vitality - they call it a Western hangout -well, maybe a bit but tons of Chinese - a sea of black heads and yes, the odd Westerner - especially in certain hotels. We are discovering that lots of Westerners are living in China and go on-line and book properties in this holiday area. In fact, Airbus is apparently building in China and has lots of overseas staff. One day I spoke with a 70year old from Ireland who travelled 3 weeks in China using Lonely Planet. She even walked the Tiger Leaping Gorge trek! So people can do things that they dream of!

I managed Chinese massage before we left Yanshou. They pressed around the base of the back of my skull for several minutes. They also pressed across the bottom of the lower back. I wondered about meridians, etc but anyways I enjoyed the experience - so much so that I went back for a foot massage a little later. They were really afraid that I would not come back. Our hotel was practically next door. The foot massage was also an experience. They lined a wooden bucket with plastic and filled with warm water and some brown powder. I had a upper back and skull massage again while my feet were soaking. Then on to pressing my feet - toes, arches, ankle point and even just below the knee at a couple of pressure points. Definitely felt therapeutic in nature and pleasant.

I didn't make it to the cooking class or back to another massage before we took a day bus to the border with Macau. Another epic journey that turned out quite well, serendipitously. Clive is no longer up for night bus rides (the beds are flat and well space but who when the sheets get changed. So we went to quite an effort to find a day bus (the train seemed a bad choice as we choice as we would need to take a 1.5hour bus journey in the wrong direction first and allow the extra time for combining it with the train. Flying had no reasonable fares left.) Anyways we did not always get matching info about day buses. When a couple of options jived we settled on a deluxe bus and had the arrangements setup by our hotel. Of course, with commission layers involved we got an early ride to a street corner to wait for the incoming bus. We got on the bus and it took us to the bus station (that was a 5 minute walk away from our hotel). So an hour later, we finally departed. The bus ride was great - we saw that the mountain (karst outcrops) went on for hours, there were lots of fast toll roads and very little traffic. After about 5 or 6 hours, I checked with someone about our destination and he told us that the bus did not go where we thought we were going (general right direction but wrong place). So in a matter of minutes at a bus stop we had to decide to get off this bus and wait for another bus. The bus driver was urging us to decide quickly and we were trying to ask why the bus was not going to Guanzhou. No answer, but the reassurance by someone that he would put us on the right bus. In about 10 minutes another bus showed up and this young couple with a few words of English got on this bus with us. I think that we were just outside this city of 14million people (Guanzhou). We rode this for about 40 minutes and then they warned us that we needed a taxi. So we jumped out of the bus and into a taxi with this young couple. Miles later we stopped and they took us to buy a bus ticket to Zhuhai which is on the border with Macau. He even told the ticket agent where we wanted to go. With ticket in hand, he went off with his girlfriend to get his ticket to Hong Kong. Whew!! Wow!!
So now it is getting dark and we have a couple of hours to get into Zhuhai. We asked a young guy on the bus about where we should get off. Well, that was challenging. We arrived at the border and the town centre didn't appear to far away. We had a hotel reservation but how to make ourselves understood to get there. So Clive is his thinking ahead had put the hotel as an icon on our netbook. So this kid waited while we booted the netbook and showed him the hotel name (he did not get the name or address in English). He saw it in Chinese characters and told the cab driver where to take us. So again voila, presto ...we made it. It was a long day but people sure directed us in the right direction. The room was clean and fine and we managed to find a beer and some noodles at this late hour. We were relieved to be comfortably settled for the night.

We got a taxi back to the border but not without the hotel not understanding where we wanted to go. The driver tried to leave at the wrong spot but we had seen the border the night before. This is all within a couple of km apart. So he went to a hotel nearby and got directions as to our destination. We were lucky after the border as our hotel was quite close and we walked there.



We then had 1.5 days to enjoy Macau. We were there just before the May 1 holiday so things were crowded. Our hotel turned out to be close the the restaurant and hotel school recommended in the Lonely Planet. Getting twisted in our bearings (I have never been the map reader) we resorted to a taxi and minutes later we were there. We had the most relaxing amazing lunch here so had to repeat it the next day. In the afternoon we enjoyed the little bit of old Macau that is left and then wandered around the big casino hotels. They call Macau the Las Vegas of the East. There are free shuttles from many hotels to the border with Hong Kong and China. We wandered through a few lobbies and then caught a shuttle to the newest island of Taipa where another whole bunch of hotels have sprung up. Apparently the Venetian is 3 times the size of the one in Vegas and there is a theatre that holds 15,000 people (we didn't see it). So another night in Macau and area to see a show would have been nice and also going up the gondola to see the big Buddha and wandering about Taipa. So it is nice to leave without having seen it all - we did enjoy our time here.

Clive was relieved to be out of China and some of its challenges. Clive was more comfortable in Hong Kong and Macau than China - though even Macau had some language issues asking the cab driver where to take us. And Clive does like to see sights that are historically important. We both had a wonderful time though me more than Clive at times. Clive was a firecracker on occasion and used the F-word more than once. Usually his explosion only lasted a minute or sometimes several before he accepted what was. We both enjoyed all of the good stuff but Clive did not like the energy used to get information and find hotels in China. As Clive says he has had enough of third world places, especially if it is not pre-organized. For me, I like things to go smoothly but I enjoyed the highs and manage the difficulties better. I also still enjoy sitting in a bus and watching the movie outsie. I love travelling with Clive and it has beeb such a good fit. He figures out all of the details, finds hotels, finds restaurants, orients us on the map and concentrates when I just follow and look about. I just follow blindly so often and enjoy what he finds for us. Clive can be determined to find a certain restaurant and I am always content to follow ...cause who knows what you may see on the way and the restaurants are usually great experiences (occasionally they are no longer in business). I can travel in a way that Clive would like but he is no longer up for long bus rides and hauling luggage about. I also need to have that physical component in my day and thrive when we go for a good bike ride or a hike. So I have to think about that as I do not want to do this alone and there is no fit quite like Clive. I really do not want a package holiday either. I like more time where I want and you really get a better feel for the place when you have to get yourself about. We found amazing places to stay, great food, interesting people, good experiences. I am so grateful for all of our wonderful travels...and I do wonder how the future will unfold. We shall see. I already have several ideas in mind. I guess that travelling invigorates and stimulates me and that then I can really enjoy my days at home. It does make me grateful for home - just not enough to stay there full time - while I am able to go about. So thanks Denise for the idea of the tickets because that started it all...and I feel so full with all of my experiences.

Iberostar Playa del Carmen (area) Mexico Oct. 2010

...a little belatedly but so that I can remember. Mom, my cousin Leslyie, Clive and myself went together to a top of the line all-inclusive resort just north of Playa del Carmen. It was exciting for us all as Les has never flown so far or travelled quite so far. We were all delighted with the 5 star accommodation, and of course the restaurants. A different a la carte restaurant every night and finally on the last night we made it to the buffet which even had themes every day. We dined at restaurants 3 times a day and the buffets for breakfast and lunch were unbelieveable - the setting, the service and the amazing selections.

We usually started the day with a walk up or down the beach and then I was ready for breakfast. Clive and I enjoyed the beach most so spent most of our days there. We had great warm weather - only a couple drops of rain in the week. Mom enjoyed the pool setting more and Les wandered about. So we each had space and came together for meals though I must say that Clive and I liked most of our time together - walking, eating, beaching, whatever.

We managed to stretch ourselves one day (two for Mom and I) to take the shuttle into Playa. Les shopped and the second visit Mom and I enjoyed a massage.
Mom is a real trooper and she did make it to the swim-up bar and up and down the beach for the early morning walks. Always game for stuff she is! Les promised herself to take a few more risks next time (wonder what they will be?). Clive and I liked walking the grounds and the beaches. After Mom discovered the golf cart would whisk you wherever then that worked quite well for her. Some of the distances were quite large - how can there be so much space and property so beautifully maintained.
It was relaxing and a week was just perfect. We called it a cruise on land but with the liquor included. We enjoyed the shows most evenings though the quality was marginal sometimes. Still comfortable warm and pleasant after a great day of relaxation and a little exercise.

It is a pretty comfortable way to spend a week - no decisions (oh yes, do I want a drink now or later and where shall we eat today?) but so far removed from the reality of Mexico ....or anywhere else that is real for that matter. So enjoy, we did.

Panama Jan.12-Feb.1, 2011

New Panama City from Old City


Why Panama? Why not Panama?
It all started with the idea of Clive wanting to see the Panama Canal, the great human engineering feat. So the possibility of a cruise existed - comfortable, easy...but only one day to go through the canal and experience the wonder. For me, cruises are about the cruise experience and not the destination, though in fact that may be changing a bit. I still think it is about the cruise and not the destination - all of these groups being shuttled around in tours and then returned to the boat.

So as per usual, I picked up from travel books from the library and took a look at what Panama might have to offer. Well, it looked to be an interesting destination - the biggest and most developed city in Central America, rainforests, mountains, two oceans not too far apart and all of this in a relatively small country. Then a world class surfing destination at the end of the road (when I came back I discovered that Jordie had spent 3 weeks surfing here and it had only changed somewhat in 12 years!) and an island that is an extension of the Galapagos only 20 miles offshore (1.5hours in a boat). So why not?
Then the added bonus that we had accumulated 37,000 air points with first North West, transferred to Continental and then to Delta. So it seemed we had Delta points that would evaporate in November. So those had to be put to good use!....and with the new online program it was easy to see that lots of flights were available for our points. Thus Panama!

We enjoyed Panama. The food was better than expected - it was not rice and beans all the time as Lonely Planet had suggested. There was an interesting array of various ethnic foods - one of the best pizzas at a Greek place, French food in the highlands at a creperie run by a Frenchman, a wonderful curried fish dish by a French Canadian with a restaurant in Bocas. Lots of good experiences including the night that it was raining and we ate at a table and bench under an extended roof right near our spot in St. Catalina (the nicest beach on the Pacific so they say - very tidal and grey sand and lots of surfers). A Swiss couple said that it was good. So we ordered fish (choice of grilled or fried) and the choice of chips or rice. We ordered a beer and he ran up to the shop to buy one. It was fresh and delicious and out of the rain. The next day I asked if he could do a coffee for us. It seems not. Only fish and fish or rice. Then I learned he did not even have a frige. So that was impressive that he could serve up dinner - and oh yes, at $3.00 a plate not the standard $7 or 8 for this kind of meal. A local being successful - and the Swiss couple there were all that we saw to entice us (and the rain) to stop. Seems that food is a pretty important part of travelling - from the food to the decor, location etc. We ate at a wonderful little restaurant twice in Old Panama and on both occasions he shortchanged us by the amount of $1. Why? White tablecloths, intimate, great service, reasonable food, awesome frappes. Then the blue cheese sauce on the beef tenderloin at our hotel in Bouquette, the only place that we had trouble finding accommodation. Lots of good food, but as always when you go out to eat, I never get enough vegetables. Enough to make us eat at home! Even the bus stations had reasonable food - fish and rice! But after nearly 3 weeks, food at home starts to sound better - mostly because of the veg. Certainly fun all of these settings.

Miraflores Lock

Through the Cut and the new bridge

We did the full transit of the Panama Canal - and it was very interesting and relaxing - starting in the Pacific going through 3 locks, through the Guillard Cut (we expected this to be narrow but it was wide open) and then across the manmade lake and through 2 more lakes but tying up in the Atlantic in Colon. The lakes put massive amounts of land underwater and even created an island with the mountain that did not get submerged. It took a few years to fill the lakes. We saw where they are making alternative channels to increase the size of ships that will be able to go through the Panama. A great commentary for much of the way. I am so glad that we were able to do the full transit as that only happens about one day per month. We tried to book through a travel agent in our hotel but he was adamant that there was no full transit this day. He told us this several times even when we named the company and so on. So we booked online and yes, the company and booking exist. You do have to get yourself to the starting point by taxi unlike the competitive company that has some kind of pickup service and does work through travel agents.

We enjoyed several days in the north east at Bocas and managed to rent a condo through VRBO - a change from a hotel. Up on the third floor 2 streets back from the water, we were able to sit and watch. A beach town with no beach! It was a bus or water taxi to the beach. Beautiful beaches when you get there!...except 3 weeks later I am still recovering from the sand fly bites. So I do not want to retire here! unlike others.

Beach near Bocas
Surfers at Santa Catalina

Canadians and Americans are retiring like flies in the highland region - no snow to shovel, pleasant climate year round, lots of flowers and plants, cheap housing with everything you could dream of (well granite counters and a gardener) seemed to be the formula, a community of expat friends from day one. Oh yes, cheap medical care, cheap beer, discounts on everything from hotels to restaurants... to who knows what with this residencial card. I guess that the theme is cheaper than home and a lifestyle for expats. Apparently gated communities are springing up in the highlands. The poor locals - who can no longer afford housing and land and who will one day be in the minority if this carries on. These Canadians and Americans are also choosing other places to settle depending upon their personal perferences. If they prefer the coast there are two to choose from - the Caribbean with the Caribbean influence (and sandflies) and the Pacific with great surf, etc., or the cooler highlands,or the developed city with restaurants and nightlife. Take your pick - but the decision as to where is personal but all like the price and apparent lifestyle. Think I'll give it a miss and just visit. I like home and family and that familiarity and those blue skies of Alberta (not today but then today is a warm winter day). We even stayed at a great B&B in Santiago on our way to St. Catalina (going from the east coast to the west coast). This 2 guys had a great place, great meals, good conversation and were great hosts. They arrived here (the only expats in the community) because they needed a place. One was Austrailan and one was American. They could not migrate to either country as the respective countries would not allow the other to stay. They managed for several years in Australia and several in the US but there time together had run out. They had explored Costa Rica on numerous occasions and apparently it is now more expensive than Panama. Then they found this place in Panama. You need a single income of $1000 per month or $1200 joint to stay. Other people explained bringing in so much money and staying, no land tax for 15 years, etc. Lots of incentives. Anyways these two found their new community of their landlord and a few people around. And then they set up the b&b. Everyone has a story as how they arrived or are going to arrive to set up in Panama.

Coffee Plantation Bouquette

Interesting money and development. We found that taxis may or may not want to take you for the designated rate. Often they attempt to increase it severalfold and when this happens they really don't seem to want to take you. For the standard $2 or $3 you could go locally. We paid $6 for a cab ride one way and someone from our hotel paid $30 for the ride in the opposite direction (and same distance). So eventually there will be a two tiered system (like Bangkok).
Another interesting thing happened at the bus station. Clive was in a long line to buy a bus ticket. I was scouting about and the bus driver said that there was space on the bus for me..and also Clive. So we went through the turnstile to the bus (the person there was angry) and we hopped onto the bus. Eventually the ticket person issued us tickets on the bus - so it all seemed to work out - and the bonus of no line. I never thought about it again until we were in another bus line and Clive was in the line that was not moving much and ever so long. I wandered about and then watched the ticket window for awhile. When I realized that neither ticket window was selling tickets (the agents were away from the window) so now I knew why the line wasn't moving. So I went around to the bus and the driver was organizing various single people without tickets to get on and so I got Clive and we got on (since the driver reassured me that there would be seats for us). We paid the correct amount and were issued tickets. We told this story to the guys at the b&b and they smiled and said that corruption was rampant in their experience. So many people had to be in the know for this to happen ...or was it legit?
I guess that there is corruption in most countries. It is interesting that we often seem something when we travel - mostly because people are poor.

We chatted with lots of people
- and the older generation ooutnumbered the youngsters travelling in this country. This is definitely a grey-haired destination - and so many thinking that this would be a good place to stay...and then some like us - just visiting.

toucan - only in a zoo though!













Panama Bus


















Bocas Del Toro

Island Beach Near Bocas


Capucin Monkey