tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-90520236575341428402024-03-13T07:34:50.291-04:00On the road againTwo retirees and their travel storieshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13942287905877288793noreply@blogger.comBlogger108125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9052023657534142840.post-38488342742332669172023-09-18T18:38:00.001-04:002023-09-18T18:38:19.263-04:00The Most Luxurious Safari we ever took (Thank you Barbara) <div><br></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_d9a1_80c2_bc60_4278" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-y5VPMyDtsfxtiYGRfDDiMz_Uj_t6j9qNCzLIptwk2L1cnu9S7DxP6iH8jBcf16N-gLEobcXdrWvRNXWZfj4lnTNEPz" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 723px; height: auto;"></div><br><br></div><div><font size="5">There are times in our lives that happenstance - a question during dinner -</font></div><div><font size="5">brought us a vacation we never had and may never have again. (Although Sandee does refer to it often when I start a new project)</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_fbe2_1181_72b4_538b" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-xK4-kZG29Ptvi-gKsrjWcVPJOO5d-v0voEpD5eD6-oyEIbf-3Oh2ng0YX23ol377yL6u36JNLB8rpe0DMtnwPHnZU7" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 607px; height: auto;"></div><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">We asked our friend Barbara during that now very memorable dinner what her dream vacation would be and she answered: a “luxurious” safari “first class” and organized by Erik, to which Erik replied: Barbara, you realize that that would cost us twice what you would pay. To which her answer was: And???</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_6301_a402_1a41_f5c0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-weNqXTsXCX9o73YezUQIpaXg5L_97GjUnHClFUGRvV6slQmLmZoXuQKIYPMtFDlsXYdGxovFoTDfbbm8gwmhptTJejKw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 632px; height: auto;"><br><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Well for you readers here follows, mostly in the form of pictures, the story of that safari in June on 2022.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">As mentioned not much text and more nature and animal pictures with explanatory text. Thus here follows the itinerary we had:</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Flight from Amsterdam to Johannesburg. Limousine from Joburg Airport to our hotel in Pretoria (2night stay). Limo to Rovos Railwaystation in Pretoria.</font></div><div><font size="5">4 Night train trip with excursions and Tuxedo dinners on board to Victoria Falls, a </font><span style="font-size: x-large;">1 night stay in hotel near the falls with guided tour of falls and an evening boat trip on the Zambezi River. Flight from Livingstone Zambia to Lusaka from where our private guide collected us and drove us to our first camp for a weeks stay. Then </span><span style="font-size: x-large;">a privately chartered bush plane flying us to our 2nd camp and after a week there flying us back to Lusaka airport. From there we flew to Johannesburg for a one night stay and a guided tour, before flying back to Amsterdam.</span></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Well here are the pictures that go with the above itinerary:</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_d2bb_c1bf_c9cd_5980" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-x0zZgWrBRYmGNTpZ3IGUEkfyhaD1QboN9daMW7EIQgHWvmI9NHMT9wYoQe6hJJ272psx3fb4pfWbw8xwVc8CNxmTnZtQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 456px; height: auto;"><br>(We had lunch at a golfcourse in Pretoria, with Ibis birds below)<br><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_8480_ea89_44e9_78b" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-wclX4CleMu8L0eMKFCspIAMYU_LqUOy89cyFhyoSyYQVgRLvJCkaehSZ6OuoszLVVgM-sloW3CGfUlKB-w7-FfoW6mfg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 434px; height: auto;"></div><br><br><img id="id_cb0b_a57d_1822_e533" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-zj3ROPWFnVDCvvVaVo5RU2Fx3hZFQkpdnjHgKhMXIJMt581S45FUJ4NcoxsaLVFAGbHurad7eIAt9ie_Y7Uf4BzoMP" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 447px; height: auto;"><br>(Next day to Rovos Station in Pretoria a private railroad owned by the Vos family)<br><br><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_4b79_c069_11de_95e6" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-xtZ1h5rqhHwAYDrrSoC_V64DlqjgDNBtmoxuqpSbGefD0gzAZxq1ZQN-opXG6QEk3hsne9OPXw-eBePOgbitu6Li-M6A" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 432px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(From here this company does tours throughout Africa)</div><br><br><br><img id="id_8d71_cb56_b2cf_2608" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-w38SUOsrU79h78yQ5bFPMHG-F8ojNwIabRCAKhYzUarMjUYZhpkF2vmkV77tL3bDCdAkHWtipLtB4MmM6M6BtB40si" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 431px; height: auto;"><br>(For breakfast and lunch no specific clothing requirements)<br><br></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_ba7b_eefa_803d_cc8f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-zg1wwxRE1mxZ0P1QCjzdOf3mqjE99vPtgOqs6FaTCIIkANUSUeYQeJt77AGMIWfR1gsu_wcyIgWsc7rI8vP1UgaRBdLQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 433px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Last railcar was an open “vista” car for more expansive views)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_b92d_72d5_2b1f_bb55" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-wmYuW7YPYhGkfRLQf7nTvZPH0ed9jFnuwfZr5oDm84U2ncbrV1Syitx6abWyulfE631OZfwsjfTDLDCnJCiO9ONX8geg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 453px; height: auto;"><br>(As we rode northwards these were the views, cows or baobab trees below)<br><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_1e28_4b34_d14b_5ad0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-zRIPRa6Q1cEhE7HZ0FnatvgPQ3k_zwQAu_5mTYDrqhoWMs76Pe94g-HaG-NEHXRNCvUtiiRdI944UWGMgnNaCwrk76nA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 365px; height: auto;"></div><br><img id="id_e01b_bb9f_82d_936a" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-wt5VlhsF_OpF63RUscG42uETZ6d3Nx1Jm-6MT4BI9vjyb7WebAcDtXsfgVIyELUt5hBf3xc-6obr3ivzK25ocCrqO0gQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 401px; height: auto;"><br>(Dusty villages that seemed empty)<br><br><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_a148_dc02_c6ee_1e25" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-w4lVvR3Xyqa9hUEvcbmyJVnK-KoBluZ1UUstAjHq9XRKmYi7V61Od2gjrTDZfaPqwUvllrTcymJu9LUxJCGFQw_9F0" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 536px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(the evenings were a festive affair with open bar and dressed to the nines)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><img id="id_b0f3_eded_38b_ad51" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-yll6OKwQmXa3ykMcYq64iQto3fQRWZg2z1pIC1eVorVe6BdUr_dSJRpa5unt_g9dC2iFQXmpWFLFVVDrZTZe4YFHW6QA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 502px; height: auto;"><br><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_8e6b_fd1e_4d_c456" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-yQuG5Eu05ZNjybDIl4FYDmIF3CIpNJINK6T-Km7ejC7Fc8nMuluL266zvC5BMkPiKmCKk-w1oS-fCE50Rvm8RZNtSG" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 394px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(The next morning we visited the Matobo Heritage site)</div><br><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_88f_6026_9fb5_4689" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-ycjt5gSKnt9EmP1Fp0rMw9W5zRYWuQjulMmbEPO264wuBPVvCuQUOiLgS8fqEn5IAwOWhF5153Q-TvcrLxJB4XsayOwg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 496px; height: auto;"></div>(There we visited the grave site of Cecil John Rhodes. I could have a whole historical episode about him)</div><div><br><img id="id_edab_1207_eb96_ce13" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-weQv_XgMvZ2b7UpgqjNTQbJHqDerxAT5q0_fJZS2rEKOniEQSWMHiHVQzknnDMa00TfICqBDWdKWCLRmIZsj3yEor2Uw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 499px; height: auto;"><br>(We had of course to make a pit stop to a market selling colorful items)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_1a39_16cf_eca3_e050" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-yrE5U-0YyU6kg6qY7Exm-P6wBPCkuA8uP8OftUDk4D61KvCMQiJyPvwcB-tEk8zUnYwAf0aId7DItxH3DBK-3gXnCJMw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 454px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Cecil was buried at his chosen spot high above the surrounding area he loved.</div><div style="text-align: center;">As always one of our tour had to climb even higher to survey the environment)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><img id="id_4d7_272c_cf76_4965" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-zZXKYu0C1YFVsBnmPKHyr0VBk5faAaafAZmrU1-Yfm57NprAjma2FG89ljcOqIyZkAZ0UskBSZAz4zo6Ql-xr9V2cd_Q" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 381px; height: auto;"><br>(His crypt is a simple one with him shown on each side)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_9314_d72_a530_7622" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-wOI2nkOAZIQ4eKeaHonVMs3cdZ_kF412jeV5G_SWZ1QkTRrSppUJCdVZwG1D1W537-yFNRnFPDpJqcIRYGv-RBhvFt" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 410px; height: auto;"></div><br><img id="id_b38f_8186_fa74_1238" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-xVgxQR96BscdqbLV6m_ezfctliWauknywwNKr3F354_T-WEKRjT1Zgg-kkNm9iQERy4HgEkLcG47MkxB3C-INBsEThqg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 441px; height: auto;"><br>(From my viewpoint, all I saw was rocks and bush all around us)</div><div><br></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_33f5_b732_e109_bda2" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-z_Qj8kUDjUH4b_o02WjKfegN5FDeAXYDbe-z-AxEuXL8BjU2Mi2p3f3zQ8nqyw9pMC6KikDIKfVSbUaIiHUlhTHP-k7A" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 473px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(I had the sneaky feeling they carted a lot of boulders up to spread out around Mr. Rhodes)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><img id="id_1fe_bf05_6b46_97c" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-zPzHwxzJTG0lcbYwnjhzVqjM8_mKTrOcRSe2v4B12hxqAGLWeN3f44TPG-BDR292I47TzJoygqwVEJrCdJVsAKC_7oXg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 369px; height: auto;"><br>(the evening set in an eerie color on our way back to the train)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_9f32_78f3_a655_b2c4" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-ym9Kw069uoeSGu_JY6aGVo3r3qgk2jPb67PonBpeyBv43R-l-OU2oKOtYcSr2Z33h3M4tkOQA_KYU5HQFDPga2GDgfuw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 511px; height: auto;"></div><font size="5">The next day after dinner and a restful night, we were transferred for a safari drive in South Africa’s Hwange National Park.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font><img id="id_a86_9e2_a411_5414" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-wvba_tpDr43tXKCF3z4dGDRNBZycLhpsI1FjTOnjBdfeyCCk7EPp_plFe64-xKXfMaPfMKz1HHjz2Swg3ai_elmEH15A" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 380px; height: auto;"><br>(6 people per safari vehicle we spent several hours seeing park residents)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_eefa_65c9_3617_99b6" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-wI4pITWkwyMVdAAFhwK3j_SVPTHPlLb_-IOAurxcaMnrw_CBmiCKs4Hy90Jl431pLD_dgMZx__xAnwoN8_1XHYr45R" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 396px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Drinking for long legged animals is a less than charming stance)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><img id="id_6ff4_9e44_65a4_7b34" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-yi6HGZcfbbn_6R0psA-x7wvKskt_t7QvtoImC7PiUcRK_UuJ_wlZoYbz73YMoWFmU1Qdn6iPnF-cpB3XSsXjzqROICHQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 441px; height: auto;"><br>(Other animals should not enter beauty contests)<br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_c50e_6948_6a16_8c70" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-yH83EuwAFy_C89NlYdEwaAfdkB8SxrPx4kTBi9yZrqUI_s409M8xtB2eITRH-zAUh2p5alkzgKh00_O6-W2i9vOIdOEQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 393px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(But among themselves they seem to have less ugly to almost beautiful)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><img id="id_58f7_906a_4f6a_77ef" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-yCK6Gg8d2PUYTvKqo7QM0GEDFZeG65WzN_aWwgjPvPEFBW3CXkGmQhZn5qWPNiMly09-yPJ56b97YDL4Q6AMFsFJTFZA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 406px; height: auto;"><br>(These guys are hefty but with a certain charm)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_7c3d_c11_db76_4fab" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-wMO1NCqMwusmgU9q9PEvtxAgjlL5npe17lzMpRsWlc89em1SkR9kj4_zToNTtQ-L8K86pK0XPOTqyj04zg261KTIC4pg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 380px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Now here is a beaut)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><img id="id_7c95_7f22_c51f_50af" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-x2MkiPoWxkkF1bT7XmZte4vvUXY5Q_syrI2EwFdlV1ixB69Cw_1gXVN5t00AqSZFn9e3M4PA5uktPR7Hzq2HVXjSldpg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 358px; height: auto;"><br>(and here a shy one- for those among you that ask: a kudu)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_ca39_aefa_c6df_b962" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-wGwl3iJcDkNaksNZWZzW9X099BCtNT7bafv1wHO6NRhGHLz98p-Kw0SnPPj1qGMteoB2pE3nXL7hhI2XEhYWbpFFFjiQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 448px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Family on the move, with right of way)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><img id="id_3a44_f018_2e4f_3066" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-xXUSMhQ6WYQanpBOfNd-dwu201KkNiNbb-wN8qOGLFMDxSxDHTHU72Fy4-PxSfkVR5zciWNTSQmGhC6UD2Q7HwKnIEfw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 298px; height: auto;"><br>(We ended the day with drinks in the wild near a watch tower in the park)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_1435_b8e1_3d68_5ea1" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-y52x5Ete3Mf4dhkcOvtIxDmxNEDkmoTPSL3qvwTragpxdBM7WcuAM-jyOWB_T8p2vmANThXA2qENobEvQ8DtSEkAvkvg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 368px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(final evening with celebratory dishes)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><img id="id_1373_8e8e_b0ab_d168" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-yMMLfCS7Xd_yjY-UQ7479oPF52i-8n9z_hGS7RAh7mzIokLERjaz3K7mxePk__ScBq-6im7-SD9K2AIi0LagbIIl0TGA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 517px; height: auto;"><br>(we are nearing the Victoria Falls and hear the roar and see the misty spray)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_747_20dc_64ab_a195" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-y0L960mSpgW78tmuA_wQ8s6XN4Lnc7JVgLaTul95rv-TnFF7mU9M0ZK-C9c7I3jyJsmU7IjHFpzRhKqOGYllG2_uqG2A" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 517px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(And there she is - do waterfalls have gender?)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><img id="id_a25b_8716_d63d_caf9" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-zxaHnAne7CrmHiNh9uTyAUv-u0FzV1wbSrKp9TOTX5W3lLA3IujQ2xdqGDbjfRV9QTt1O4bOhn1FYG9xZ_g7Jr7JyFtw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 492px; height: auto;"><br>(I need protection against the spray and maybe earplugs against “her” thunder)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_6bfb_1434_b70_2b20" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-w_DDZhRDdg2R8vtbjmsV_kzLrd0snoAhQ7eL1Z7vxA5fOvKf0E9X4VIAfvMKLGVDOjWLSnsomhlBSHuRZy-MtVCUpt1w" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 530px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(She drops 355ft/108m over a width of 5500ft/108m)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><img id="id_183e_594a_3fca_ed89" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-zaOrHOpmuPw79IFXZc_6WHCmWhiF0Wgw7u0aWZZtdoLWYiDcKTj9PkNARY_NvlMNVURMK8NEidTaXzQ6x2SY3w087u6Q" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 552px; height: auto;"><br>(It is difficult to imagine, that in the quiet winter low water time, swimmers are staring here over the ledge down)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_c46_7b8f_9453_136e" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-wJsKFr_1lSmi4X4tWNPiPNYqPG1LJG3UZj8crKMSmpRRWQO1OCHxJy8Z2AwtZ-aC9Z8BnL-XKyQLEmEI4PLkx3WJjh" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 443px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(After settling into our hotel we had a cruise)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><img id="id_f84a_a779_b6ad_2eb1" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-yaCLvnGWGuBuvt9HPH9nhE6U1WwAEgO4axMkYbyPmu2gr0bUUr9SpMLOtHs9Ta29Anos2QH-4R1_KGtoy1Ehe69ULCWw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 434px; height: auto;"><br>(With wonderful sunsets - Africa brings very colorful sunsets)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_46b0_4113_1150_52fd" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-zLYc8H1ewgjTbIB2awAToCBPqn2O-l4i70-Hufc3-mnjuYA4BozwIp1kNu6GvqX8R4GBrqTQO0K_n91a55ZMKSkbdOIw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 404px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Our hotel lobby is sometimes visited by elephants)</div><div><br></div><div><font size="5">The next day we flew to our first camp, where we and Barbara each had our own villa on the premises of the Chinzombo Safari camp compound at the edge of the Zambezi River</font><font size="6">, </font><font size="5">across from the Valley of the Leopard National park.</font></div></div><div><br><img id="id_292f_cb4c_320b_3c77" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-yr6sqGWVN65XB38_2cvdiBFwWDq6HMPruR_ShITslwsGEbb3Lg8aPGoiWuLK3cCbvTCVaj3ud1P1slb57J8YJOPYDdvA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 406px; height: auto;"><br>(Bathroom)<br><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_6979_7603_a436_acf7" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-xHaVkIj_P71mEuahfRHtpkBD8TD-khTH0O_H9JxKWQhrFhBH9fMu0uO6bwPfF0tJ0FScbHXMt_WstxISYU9z6ga1hQ-w" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 500px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Bedroom)</div></div><div><br><img id="id_a5fe_f9dd_664a_38d0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-zzREdOOWDv2n3wovuMIYizCCFmFIfCydxnr_UCuRFtGuywMOVCvWUPNk7_RUF7lHsE2I6Ei7dR5UhYFZ5TVDDyolYCoA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 480px; height: auto;"><br>(Veranda with pool)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_576c_de12_fac5_9240" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-wLjwDL2bMj4IRO9doke63B1lcXGlNFz6JRtP3rKE5V7CmaRRHmNTvxNYLkRS7J3bkIgthCEnNYbuAMR-Mi7mc8FSTq" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 449px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Seating area)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><img id="id_8463_71d5_95f8_bd8a" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-wS0kEPm8jMshB2LpL3N8z3Jg_P8sKhucS4hsxUpCM_GW_NNYwiF2MVygvHtO3-TQfYWSy1EiJqQs8WbnDcj9Lf5dbp" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 448px; height: auto;"><br>(Common Space for guests of the 6 chalets in the camp)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_4661_570f_f032_d887" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-zd2MTrxRLTNEUbDkVuS730BzDHKLl-fkwNcu_OgO0F3fWAH-ehNMjru0RdAPkie7A8uCKqN1KIH27uMx_4JCKOKP4s" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 540px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Evening sets in as we drink our cocktails around the fire pit and enjoy our dinner as darkness comes)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><img id="id_8cea_fbdf_29db_851c" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-z_oelC-iW5P66WxEglRRZDIVFYCZFAkyQ68a8ZSytrTW4XWCO4MpMd8OtrKFC6LDTqDsMwWxEw3WlyDwg4U3g7UR8cNg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 383px; height: auto;"><br>(the melody of nightly noises is revealed in the morning as </div><div>we stare at the Rhinos on the opposite river bank)<br><br><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_ab43_5155_14f8_12ca" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-yNotKPmMgYkqajZVEtPaObj_3s-iPUG4A_WeNIvAcrgIl27zPAGxXrBbYJVi3wqQ8ZoV93p8TGWMOxdqhfrVkIdc0QJQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 297px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(The safari outings included picnics)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><img id="id_895d_6b59_a04b_25e6" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-yxB8RF3Gcm1HW67GPdQU3PIAVxI2W_K7Pakw-zBKgYoBbGP8tRx2GPdJrgNG7dA-4fi8cUOReeZucYjksWlXsZnmjq" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 788px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">(The mighty River has calm flowing water in the dry season)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><img id="id_3417_79e6_9f9f_4e8f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-zNTbEOaTkZOMXS1bK894k_aZmjatgeMq6SSYdi_80NkXoQmo9IHDW9ZpRd_FGHiDUaEadDk1kBUvzTLrC5PyutyYkq" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 418px; height: auto;"><br>(A fisherman in a dugout canoe)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_e9bf_4f46_fcdd_27f9" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-xkHW8ZvwshgvraXIf59ZSL_KGRhsBg5fw_iDDz7KNcXtTH65BjVm7fRWRBvRZ2J7PDgpn-qx6_shJhKfXocr_WH8X6" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 436px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(hippos are everywhere)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><img id="id_28a0_79e1_d7e_83b7" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-w03X_hwtjadLU7yU5X4pMrNkTDnQ-kuoi5TLuVasbq3FP56PQ8gsL3x19TUJsJLNmTSoGdV7uL_1_TL0svoOHZXWum" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 460px; height: auto;"><br>(Parks have a roadsystem developed by the government to avoid </div><div>unnecessary damage to the ecosystem, although guides often veer off )</div><div><br><img id="id_9637_8764_19ff_b5a5" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-zmwX6lw3-Ax69olWXI8Kv4M2fa-38MViAoiJa6dxUYnKT37DnHZZFB2UYAAguMk83a0QTx2xZIrkVHTV3B0n-ytNKazA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 460px; height: auto;"><br>(These birds can catch fish and hold them in their beaks before swallowing)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_51b4_47ce_bcf2_c7cd" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-zxEITLGlejHfPfcQM6zYm1mRGrapoCt3LbG_HYLtG5Fbgococq8mEzTfEdMzcg4wwDEp7udbirAO2_Xl5qkkua52dy" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 506px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(These cannot. And that is most of my avian knowledge)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><img id="id_4ada_7e67_3784_c387" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-yPWqyMubyMxsdPiuv_AMKoKveQ0qtl1ctd1O43B9u5o-RvwFfoNrGr18CjciTnb-p0I6ztvsGiLH_4G0la7BiRc6nx7w" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 437px; height: auto;"><br>(These guys are all over the park and play seems to be their life style)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_dd2_5408_3f8b_a98d" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-xeljFe4Add2qonlHIhfHd47E73C-DkGEjuD3dps5kd3-QZfX0ziEoezcPntI8M22F7aOWqQlWqz5muXsS1K_bygkw3" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 434px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Although the result of play brings motherhood)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><img id="id_21e9_40bf_64a3_d951" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-zTOYv-vRVf4ZIKhoB8HGxVlzTK1B1DjKwqEazkhYD2i5UBxhwmJ8YXC8ly6tMBDqkmCefhalGXjkoOjD22cBsV-puh3Q" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 469px; height: auto;"><br>(Julius our driver and guide during our stay would</div><div> not rest till he found something to tell us about)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_9004_417c_f376_2c6f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-ypTKfbWEE4Rb3jRQKOGMkiDQZXUR0y8IueLADyORsEx1iSFD5TnmH3knDDdIS7bA25T89PNRuhQd24VVIjqwbKAUD3qw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 445px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Like this male warthog - a herbivore- living alone till mating time, unlike the sows who live in large groups)</div><div style="text-align: center;"> </div><img id="id_fc37_ed18_d74a_aa8e" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-zEBSgNQyh419z_uXhUpy5Tjv2Lqts1fWbeR_qQhbM01C9nKoJFNR1vD249hpdd2MNROqC28MMSG5asW2W8ErRixs6bVQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 496px; height: auto;"><br>(Pukus live in groups, their only way to survive predators, as they run for their</div><div> lives sometimes seeing a friend fall prey)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_592f_8782_7423_2fea" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-yZRswg42XNn6OnHW9VMQ4XtJz0R7JdVmRraKY1dMw0rgAv5fEvKsPusYyHR0OlnM130u2At6yWmAKyD4QeU0GQG85aLA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 473px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(These guys are the lazy ones if they have a full tummy. </div><div style="text-align: right;">And when not the females have to do most of the hunting)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><img id="id_c1f4_3169_3159_a90f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-xk1bFLqTSmZ44ciLeVZihTElmeKESoPPhEFeM6dVKSJZGcAU7JyqXVxC7fe8Z36MKgZr4GXU4EvU4dDEVRASRCptyxpg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 277px; height: auto;"><br>(The real lord of the savannah is the roaming elefant)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_1110_23da_10c9_a691" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-w4dh5qXmRGfuT2byJNXA0w8CwZZMFKrWIRvpJTNPbZ0shLPxCpFl86xZthbK3RN5nRlgpomA2mewpGlmI_H36IpWv1Aw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 420px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(This park, The National Leopard Park has this area named after him or her)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><img id="id_56d3_e202_4d61_9991" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-wEfmGk6o-CcFYg0j3hrI_BGwyrtExEPm79eMPDumvpB5yn_6PRWSJnz4xsYVzJ_WvDPJjZPRTYAz5KrbX8WjOnnGkC6w" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 443px; height: auto;"><br>(Kudus are larger antelopes primarily living in southern African woodlands)</div><div><br><img id="id_1cef_47d2_796e_c270" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-xLhEhNk6nTGYezY8aPR3woOLXuYfuRcu5JZHDoYVCA-4-S1NaxqdWcU7Ot4bcjARdWh2iQOM6DYxXOVCosbdpcPlJ8PA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 519px; height: auto;"><br>(The Kigelia or Sausage tree grows a poisonous fruit sometimes 2 ft long and 15 lbs heavy, </div><div>But monkeys, pigs, elephants, giraffes and hippos are known to eat them anyway)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_7b3b_82fc_d41f_b34b" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-xKJt459Liuo6GOyz31_RUAuTLE9Q1aheHXQ2WLXf9EitxOg5OxBjBGwTrQE5Jn0cSKpu13DE0s4KjgLtFoiYSM_62R" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 477px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Leopards were easy to be found here in the park)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><img id="id_9040_bad3_12b0_ef05" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-xHZpBBwlUqBwwvi7pmYyJQ-QeWtL7M4QWjVFgNm0DrCAXvZy5Gzgb15KQtZ5-SwDIBOkY8InlcAKYrC1yUbvPKBT-NUg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 472px; height: auto;"><br>(Crocs were also abundant in the river and surrounding pools)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_5ee4_a636_6f36_932" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-yEYi1kp4PuWT5VfXMFLJ5egnwSFWc8MVIZwpjp0Nq8gBJAfxageT3u3OZwUGjRXRBCS9WJi1mlTFJfEI_YUa4JSxGX" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 490px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(It was baby time in the Park)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><img id="id_2081_5ba7_55db_dbab" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-y6hQDkpG4Wa4P6-KX6AMyG9QDOXBJEz0EN0TuRnzrH-sG0qAjtvAKZzBHykMDCL0dnCfLb7Cvm9R-iViNItOI9_yiv" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 480px; height: auto;"><br>(And we were lucky to spot this African Fish Eagle)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_b585_2e50_5cf3_9629" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-xag9VnXHTn1AKCKeUr7enhGHlBCLGrpA8yBSDMaUMlZ2MYfpGfYla2odXU17-3LSJbmpvF7p5xt-DmaYAZf97WsHlr6g" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 454px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(The white bird on the rhinos are oxpeckers, digging</div><div style="text-align: right;"> into hippo flesh for ticks, bugs or flies and</div><div style="text-align: right;"> they are warning their host in case of danger)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><img id="id_ace7_a1ba_178f_ddbd" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-yO52Hqx7cWK2q0Zx6j5AlNnqe9nG9jdTCQossaZEPzkO_oG833OF34xEJOfYY8fTNqZSzSU5yrBvmDi_yPJTW5NVAnTg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 439px; height: auto;"><br>(Giraffes are almost never solitary)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_ed40_2c8f_d0fd_ee60" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-wa-Qmy3SSO4TdBZ5-yV-1Oa0dTdjctSXiOlpLbG20_KYbNJE6H1GUpDaJvknCz2yPYe8Al_v7Xu3q-c7ZiCXmSx9Uh" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 381px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(this leopard had a puku for dinner, </div><div style="text-align: right;">his table is a tree so others can not easily join the meal)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><img id="id_a782_7194_246e_3fb1" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-yr1tbWTAZBE2zM-o4GvAkz5lbJ-dqqIEno-LmSVtPu4P_gSjG-O_J5ssBnkjqchx85PQSxg-Wk7EOUrV4VZVdosoWwKA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 472px; height: auto;"><br>(At the end of the week Barbara got herself a buddy for life)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_496_2fb9_6bac_770e" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-y9fXT4OiJTNsxc8bB38YG3eRlFLBLJSmg90Kvw_wBaj3EBH6Y50xt5v0VNnFaQ092pV-zUKCsz0H3Nj9yKTcwROKFW-A" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 440px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Just a nice group photo)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><img id="id_a455_ee7e_c742_bde2" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-yM-Qi0opCuc2iRwNLT5PVD_aVQpQQGRagOL6_Zui_OdrkEDiNPP16fQ8O-o-QC9ytqEHpkfdbZb1BgE4Zs8XHQJxYY4Q" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 464px; height: auto;"><br>(The camp staff organized a local story telling performance by nearby villagers)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_913f_27ac_7a9b_737f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-wkrSuAR0U6EjzTMZy9vlmEnZ_xsLQfEnUWIy47Ay3jOuGGPlt7qfacj8qbQqMMsnDdoW299QEVJjK7GkHbxcR7BcJjEQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 443px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(An old bull elephant who had found</div><div style="text-align: right;"> a place to die in peace is being consumed by lions)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><img id="id_6493_416d_aeaa_33ac" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-zlln_HWCyWGq6EeAOCPdSfDEFuGSxP9vytqPEYFDGC-knAisePV_QWp-YXMBFFljtgBm9ZrhQlIZEDFAK9nZhydLrO" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 479px; height: auto;"><br>Buffalo is a common species in Southern Africa, always on the move for greener grass)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_b956_8d5b_3e05_eae2" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-wHpewl5mfOtdksZ9x9lSkeRw6r37oQq3aj6oFtHUjHUC3igXwCO2A43XXYCzXAkzT61rt0dRTi4BnYxktO3pv0e9u_Xw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 325px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(It is baby time for buffalos too)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><img id="id_2059_6fd7_979d_3ce3" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-zZyL7vbtZuywtlcDZq5R0ugnmXmZAmYgCkNETyanqXqdaLE4wrCKUB_MrkMy4VjUP_R2WsR2b6msQveCfHHTD_bPs5Eg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 352px; height: auto;"><br>(Vervet monkeys grooming each other- above and below)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_6e1c_ebf8_2dc9_6309" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-wFLiMOQWP9K7OeaiedNf9mswfc1RmpuiupmUGRJd_sOsNftkUZ45BGLqhClJILxYDt_nekL6UyzI4-rJfaiOiEql4vdg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 568px; height: auto;"></div><br><img id="id_e32a_680b_a073_d6b2" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-zS9oZgDvZAYLmKYR7-ALXYUY-yZCOzhy7PMsOUGPR6gYPpsSDJi91WegCJDYloIzDAqhRoeZgp3xgiDd1QM8M3w2SYRQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 449px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(I do not remember the name of this elegant bird)<br></span><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_6165_f6a5_f08d_d0a5" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-ybc2MGFkplTDE6TRng9azgZRdZk8DWuvW5LL7MOU02Rw2jYRIgJ7kJ-9xssvDSWCTfERdcgDye5Kxh4x5yC394vhm8ig" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 521px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(I thought this was the most beautiful Boabab Tree I would ever see, but no just keep on scrolling)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><img id="id_17c0_7812_d361_d6da" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-wX5YZzhAwJoxqVjNhFfyI36et-2QWskQ4FHSKts5UpjEqTlQZ8S3xePOLEKbGXyf6wViEi7yRK3p_Tl2IuqMZ0VQW1" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 467px; height: auto;"><br>(Hyena waiting for scraps after the big boys are finished)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_1b38_4a5f_fece_a258" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-z2UrttRfWm9Hju-EyH1zr0TLDLlH7v7RXUaQwFTkvoeEXxK8-I8MjcRmfFVZA3UsznBaCezXxw9DFvrGKRjxnE6pnFfA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 397px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Julius took is on walking safari’s, but always with a park ranger)</div></div><div><br><img id="id_2ae7_9665_a3f6_5b69" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-zsMWeRvxpZJ2VbbBNxI7ydg7XSaq_HG5UVLepNr31zxdeuoVr10XNM4KmxmqBrq1HCPoLgrhOjxS82Kf7bgY6j_QAwkA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 399px; height: auto;"><br>(Typical woodland scene)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_4aa7_1566_7a9a_85dc" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-zBVV7pOz87O5s7hOd1O0jT2fMI5VKUfprU9PXBmDvEbo9TYnsoskhP01_fLCfcpDohC2231W8gWr7DMLRkTixTnRXF0g" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 475px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Loved these mama scènes)</div><img id="id_93d9_451e_8d8c_6f2c" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-zqV-xVlJdSL-RAjmyivxgXQh15R_fOi5f1RoknXBBv9M-UOZ1IapPayiUmHMgqJ1LbiuTfDAc51ZW2I7IT2uVTEoh4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 430px; height: auto;"><br>(Antilopes have such beautiful horns)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_a7ea_8e8f_c86c_2b91" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-z3Jffa1CgRhA8XcnUU1SQsLWxyjrEGYyH7R4YNFFaZmjbk8SRf8XVTgBi5gCKwx7S9fgUEDK4hlULzJXNPVUsv-vImMg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 434px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(We visited an orphanage </div><div style="text-align: right;">where Barbara forged a special connection</div><div style="text-align: right;">A story in itself)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><img id="id_28cf_85fc_1cf_f71f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-xf0tul6-i8nVnOs5oEEm-YBxw1IsvE6J3Sce9pC1D0Pi2I1Bh54mRhdE5cX8oqZyrcBlgFeCiaPfzNkimePvfFfbPw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 470px; height: auto;"><br>(A kudu bull)</div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: left;"><font size="5">And then the week had flown by and we were to fly to our second camp</font></div><div style="text-align: left;"><font size="5">Chongwe Royal Suites</font></div><div style="text-align: left;"><font size="5"><br></font></div><img id="id_1ff4_5ec_c075_4d6f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-xscsOS7SwsrhRIaXmKBMVmVqVo-ykS7QtfCqXfMfmHcSa7xzO7DdgG369VIoNLBX_w2ISNYpyBsI1OGq-DBPZQ1jW3Pg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 550px; height: auto;"><br>(Our sky trails plane and pilot ready to bring us to Royal Airstrip in the Lower Zambezi National Park)<br><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_d2fb_be8b_1f09_5313" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-zqkZecxPvsTrYfdti-jd5nPVFyJQUYbgZ7z3SEDAlTqxP6VBAmdNv7LI9nF57mNiARC1TUAEzqmVoa2HjWwJSaqtBx" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 413px; height: auto;"></div><br><img id="id_ef57_7009_85ef_da98" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-yU5s1kvTaXoD8QILZlcDyLJZvqWl3aPfTmrXF-THKZtAB5axQfA8aoTiXFUNyivqivSq8T4A2w-gKay-8TLwkCUhNKPA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 537px; height: auto;"><br>(The mighty Zambezi River Delta)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_fe6e_4975_e547_ec4a" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-zRwJ43MExR_u7JVy7Y5VN2doACrNlOG3uKxKlEWmKGv0SrZvVTafgrCOPxT0st5fwrcULXH_DKQq6YvByfjeSLk6F2eQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 444px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Above and below the Royal Airstrip in the National Park)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><img id="id_86bb_6d5e_6ab0_15f3" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-xyOv0cXgiIdx53RS10LhlubXgyr407ik3IJOhUKbhsP5int6pKzgIun9ygzxX5K7MLbai8qRfkJmt_tQbIH4t7CoURfA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 423px; height: auto;"><br><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_e49f_3613_e84f_bfd3" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-zg1uggBBOTNlHMg-6xqf3R4EY21tLi8YW_B8Uc1OZIdZpQsXa2u0oPTgcX-PbiaNOFAxHMbHkYvCewub0f1Tziamfxyw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 495px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Our first view of the new environment)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><img id="id_4373_4b64_65a7_aeca" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-zjsovEGxttMLgKQbrhLlqMCfSYmTlml9HGd7fqjCIJ2VeUYQ3Kvyy_amFL472lJo6jctdDFzJHX2wMbo52zdgfbBkDgw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 430px; height: auto;"><br>(Sandee and I took a canoe excursion and here was our first animal) <br><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_cb60_b75a_bbf5_cfbd" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-yCPMVi4CHv_aWS55gRaazaGws4LuXxIBaOLZXtzJCt1_Ow98jWZxh0eh2NfepvPxcAkUJIrbDA9-xiPcS4E-yvapeZ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 467px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(We were being paddled past hippos and elephants)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><img id="id_b13a_5670_9c11_5829" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-ypvzXPV-uTc8Zc11XldtDzVJWy5MnMOjd3GhMBzymJ1VVfq8r5hSWrSQoo56NpCLRVsYuayBFT5Ev7qmwEMbvBS_kVsw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 432px; height: auto;"><br><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_b90c_e93e_6c41_77f2" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-x39GZZ7oJz_xjlyW2o4mlw2KBuzixT6Lk3_bnnIoNmYDBWvn1zoICoPn88hyh7J5ZWMp1pPconuXk3VkQRBdF7prlQ5A" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 438px; height: auto;"></div><br><img id="id_6eb6_c36f_bdd6_f91" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-zFLvf52uC2CvbaClCusmPZz2134TwhAFTNyjROQjBraOQj6Sq2rXn4GwXZw4ui3c0wOqEmfQeW2EwS5xDbhi7Dsw1KuA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 366px; height: auto;"><br>(Barbara declined as she feared hippo’s might attack)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_142a_c2a2_ef4_e34b" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-zLh6zkhkAlX8NDpd9A1RB3aKfmQrBKVNAXWAu2M5_M59EysdbkaXDRCAFJVkgyPndF7VcajH0V-FJN-p7mcw6tBDZ02g" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 471px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Elephants ignored us)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><img id="id_478c_5537_c4b3_4b05" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-wRO0FrUTkCAo3DR-m3dDPATVARoQW0V5j1BBKyqWVh8Lh0neB_wcZc3-0WglJTZa3S-jj7JCk9u8W92-tpdJOQaWLz" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 390px; height: auto;"><br><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_5e5a_30ef_ff8f_d38b" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-xD0lfnNU6QTUnVzv2sNicnSvjY6_Tx-M7meRP6gDtZatDhHpiU6m4mqdNLdrjAPQTqWNwmOTV6LHJ2eGM35rQh2BPD-Q" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 317px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Kudus warily eyed us)</div><img id="id_b1b0_afc0_a4b2_60da" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-w2rw_1yc-GcnbIxE2uL6YWF3TJi4k4y5vxHwYkHnHB7Sm_aQzRRGh3oMaQ1t4YpmtNbMnktQFiQsBrfXh-ONryFqhhmQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 511px; height: auto;"><br>(Hippos we “friendly” that afternoon)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_7b62_5433_fd79_7b4a" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-yXGLOgmaUbJwZxrMid_vJXm36iDWjcBQnRNhW7YbKXJpqE5IeFYznjDvae0ZvFcKh4kIeC6ahAhjX-ifzs2H932uVy" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 495px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(During that week we got visited by elephants roaming our camp)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><img id="id_10ab_adb1_1e92_3e2" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-wKS2GlDDTbV5-NZXHwlEaOd5AtyY7_Wfj2u0nAfsD7wyUlqvVnXmzi5gZHCeY2MvCJgKkdSNo7k3VDaRxn4fPykbXLLg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 499px; height: auto;"><br>(Above and below pictures taken from within our suite at 5 ft distance)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_9e88_604b_9488_7d91" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-y8AkidH_e9prZbtptKu-l1a5oCeEX42iIno_aosAU4fIJ-fygSbPCfR_g_gUiyBzebUtxhdCe6jHgzuq0BxWUayRVb" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 516px; height: auto;"></div><br><br><br><img id="id_fc2e_161f_8973_19e7" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-y3bKkcvHZYInPkKOa5uuZV2vOs9WhySka8F4RJ-SPFtoGwr5XcGrD8SzWWG9NJCVVWoSQUPtmgW9mj7e8UULWFyJlaHg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 505px; height: auto;"><br>(Our suite wall taken from the outside)<br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_5895_d1de_1fab_f24c" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-xcM4NzPbr4I93qSYSzhqshgLy9HqAkO83-x3YLnzV7M7iZq6ddSdswDmdXrhM9z7vsjdcXA3fEWDFP-8fQGPg2NAnQkw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 445px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">( this is our private “lounging and dining area)</div><img id="id_3b97_2d00_7d2_8a09" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-w0Tx6vyJ64qDm1gOUdyqKGQPZuc52G95ehlssFEwMDyd1H0tYhiRo75ZSUR0xIbpZZsvNWTyVat-wGzR20mwpPB9ghQg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 448px; height: auto;"><br>(Our en-suite bathroom)<br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_77d1_ad6f_50d3_95f5" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-xdMSs_3Zbyxf3WHWzpk4gVdy7Z6So8_YYJNjgYvkUfR5fOBzgVcj92cc-_K00sTlQH8Ljc4YYLwAm8utyBaBs_xOGKIg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 469px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(One of our two bedrooms each with the above en-suite bathroom)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_6838_8be7_1270_5ab3" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-zrDq--tNkrlvUREgYhEJsXi4prfHQoRn9xfrXJLLjBkcD1tSdsTpKQDDWAtDSfDwWJvnWBMzuD_hnhVio-RsIajJDEzg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 445px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Sandee in our private lounge area)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><img id="id_d66b_5d56_eaa1_8405" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-w1zSIYDKff4L201GjGypjjYLzQUMAYbSt8sLBJrC4R7gz6PZGTEGSXUde6J-eMcoikLks-3OGqWSohekp_R0gYcLul" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 466px; height: auto;"><br>(Our private guide Sam preparing a luncheon stop in the park)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_146b_42e4_2a35_41c" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-xIKn1COZtp2m9XhAg8i-8BUja6zf5qq0KEBYUWVxb2A-f-ldzNlkFOQ4rePHvLBvt6inSsNNNFrac6V_sd6WOZn7DQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 442px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(We often drove off-road looking for another animal)</div><br><img id="id_4203_345e_eff5_b481" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-z0IeZ45IKx7Mkkj35u2M7PRDAYtFOIC9D4flzNVyygVrwYvaiO5-tJKmakvF-9y_wgoJaOhZ8MIfNZwJ_mhbrtQdro" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 450px; height: auto;"><br>(Encountering this guy enjoying a snack)<br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_e036_9fb7_3d64_3d09" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-z_AyjB4bfdpwoU3bDuTVLYLi_3cNXcERvo5vMBoZ0ED2oWWGVqzn4CP2e5eTDggVL8xRoov2SxjR0kZoz45EcTsi_ZEQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 443px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(meeting a rare male twin couple that hunts and mates females together)</div><div style="text-align: right;"> </div><img id="id_1337_aa94_691d_70da" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-zbu4-WHAHfpqhn50OClx2gylO5UlcU0MFIUsvttHuLcLt8Mcs7iwS-u2mS-CKrB5sv9lSM01DhKIedwcBGErG2JELXqQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 418px; height: auto;"><br>(Elephants galore mostly led by matriarchs)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_99af_cd62_e24f_9d21" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-xGmRossj2JoNKr47_YqDCFrNY_2lRQ0mzscqpZ1HNvp6Gt51UuKiPwnj8LwTSzHdKYYseGCbsd6OnQyIIyIff7m8mjBw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 468px; height: auto;"></div><br><img id="id_7c75_92cb_d130_df19" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-zSLBBK5tvwuSVD7ZsPttFLK5fTS45g5MaJ7CxTz2NLPgxj5Vv3g10d9rb1Smhd0vNM_Yg9Nz69wCsfMm7HH5nNe27XWw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 391px; height: auto;"><br>(Zebra’s and cape Buffalo’s stare at us: are we dangerous?)<br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_d4e6_f56d_2aa7_ecf3" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-wBzIt9w4VfzPxZ65Ygbx4-5xjCp5qTauOHcHhyztnaVCLeVgODF2Xh3tZLZT1D5yw7KYqvHf48vZ1YGcxtBqXKz5zS4w" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 434px; height: auto;"></div><br><img id="id_39b6_ffa3_4a59_f0ee" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-y0o5TkdafJ7OrQ-e1H7MGrV5He_pHBKccE_UKF86vSJSp727pubCbrRxNiS8Xt6EEfJVE3V-14L2nbCYzQsXEuxeP71Q" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 385px; height: auto;"><br>(My knowledge of birds is nil but they are goodlooking)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_ec01_11a2_3ed5_ab2b" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-w4JZ5-I93ir4PQLXftvwlQlvM4DxCOlb2sjcLIDJ2pwaa74Bi3y5l7HiEhOJnDCF58g7JWdQajO5J-yV7hu1qLS49JlA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 428px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Lilac breasted Roller)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><img id="id_7cfe_9f7f_8abc_59a3" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-wI7xe_rr8EI2UPQF3NvNHHoxeF_ZYghO3YHRiy9gjowhs0-BrdQpAj-6lYvOj-7k8rm4JN0fZCp5_DTxbCIHvi37Dqlg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 319px; height: auto;"><br>(Guinea Fowl roaming the tracks)<br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_5bd8_405d_25df_37d2" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-wo5dZbZgXTubFf2knOvDDxh9C-BsNAbyTZanDLT3SFS_iI_vvnxzWmQya30O18cWhv8CdA-HTSDF1Vi_y2YwyKSA6l" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 416px; height: auto;"></div><br><img id="id_d4aa_3312_28d4_1816" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-wnr1tMEbHjjhT8iysvBALtZm289ZPg4cYgUyuy93bbo5_UagMc_CJIMkkyLSc-2j13wciJTOJsfLaK6N1_2_T9vv0cCQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 432px; height: auto;"><br>(This one to finds his food in clay ground)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_20d5_b8e7_330e_9b7c" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-y24R64gThASyKfLiztFcSDhPyeqeh_bHnt6G8dl9slM3LeWgbx7ywHy2EOLscH_Q36-9EzkzyajNZgbmMXWavE-hP08A" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 392px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(As does this Nile Monitor Lizard)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><img id="id_142e_82c7_3800_5936" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-xqLxUglaHdYMa_HEGEbXbQsdAKLG4EIPjCVGROdiheF3slPZRKWBjISBS6ZKrV0gCuv1BrOhWuMnUab5iZSYXu_1cmCw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 324px; height: auto;"><br>(Do not know name of this competitor, vying for the same food)<br><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_62d2_7e06_3d76_a695" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-wf_C3rfhFFf6VIkRfgE0olVYEp8LsDIgk1SkRDF28PRucM3azFsfjRbPB-VYxrNdIMFdifTr0AaHHLykSHAa4Agg2uwg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 433px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(The largest Boabab tree we ever saw, </div><div style="text-align: right;">hundreds of years old. All Boabab trees are hollow, </div><div style="text-align: right;">therefore succulents and technically not trees)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><img id="id_e9d1_5c07_429f_8238" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-zmw9-woRRIqDGnhAOQZ1uF1bRB20b1oABEIuouVdF7kvdjE6P_ROTx-UP8QNfnkxEv5By851GQFLoNeuAEG7z2oh3zPg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 398px; height: auto;"><br><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_a4cf_d4e5_7b18_91b0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-x8Chy8MOeJfqr8EzX5B8zYuchkdrgvYnZy1lvDQPKp0uhLeCJCm8Cqk8alv_0t_h97UGOUI5xxn3FusqHF_oBNKKz_fQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 393px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Crossing streams in the park, hoping not to get stuck)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><img id="id_244e_159c_fd81_9547" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-xWeyNN4Jmt9ixiDny39Mc2hik_pPX8lG1krK6Eje2N-u6UxgsiIp0pVststQ7XldSq_qRhEY2fPL7-5dW9Z6hLqFJN" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 457px; height: auto;"><br><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_4edf_3487_8ede_7989" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-xBtogVbArLjSmdG7Y2cnU6V9lNOjTIsGUFfgyGs9VK0FntKJw8qqHqggcSQHoqCyx_imWsQgOCGiBNWIgJjf941crLzA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 473px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(These females are beautiful to look at and from so close by)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><img id="id_4e96_e6f7_de1b_30ea" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-z_IsttJCeP0gD6KjLEHBvvY-AhOEgqycJ_X27oDo4qmbY1NK-rX5khXnm326-IUIkZVPV7jEjgvfSg32UQJJ1FHp6POw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 441px; height: auto;"><br><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_6d96_a68e_1258_f261" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-xeuXDpTj3GVIvR_1yIxXDUqi_qrzY9RuTZXsHfB0q7ptouREOsGEsiFGeOHcMhqPE4d7YDf75AWrM65aA_dRrErPkOTA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 373px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(They absolutely ignore us)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><img id="id_e0dd_5f8b_2e66_1233" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-x37fUe8s-YEz6c_0cV10hbbV6qfQ_fKkVUo65gQotGEk-3rKK0OZGTOTEKLjqbMj7fCHCeHJA2gUbk3NjKPdwIvee0Cw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 409px; height: auto;"><br><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_f208_e15e_d93f_ba9a" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-zN6viEjl7nRJ-NjkqMX1Pdj0vM8O_IE8p6iHiv_JTE_oNy0ORUfE1aQsb7QOfI8Qcnqj5kmOcMwCW9bZEiG0EYha8JRw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 480px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(During the week we took another walking tour, meeting marching ants)</div><div style="text-align: right;"> </div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_ab56_937b_ed9a_49b6" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-xi5KCIOIAdWpqNCeQrxns_k4U5LvF6X_qI3qnZq00X_l47QSRYCgOcljSLN-EiHVyV4EwAShQqqxuOG5pAbgWfMqfv8A" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 449px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Antelopes use a common spot for their “bathroom” in order to mark their herds area.)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><img id="id_fde7_b962_529a_4133" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-yv1zHaLcLmF0AdsHl7nYl-H8tKq3vzpTCcrtefRb_kICVbbOIqIl7qrp1AewrmpycRNreNbdsj8Y_Rb50Ut9NsU2uJNw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 346px; height: auto;"><br>(Sam showed us plants and nuts villagers use for medicinal treatment</div><div>The above thistle when pulverized and eaten causes an abortion)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_8b8f_28db_cc4e_b2a9" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-xapBedeMuFOEm-kXSSsGUtYmvj4GnPOeu3N_uul8E_m2gdHUA9EMaZeWj81FbifaZLtxPsCQk9rnrX5an9Bqovdkbw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 400px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(This hard core dropping contains the seed for new plants)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><img id="id_decd_8078_acc5_2a94" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-wGL_nYsnpkI_KqKbh9y34aMVGkd_uDsIDN6IMr2_J7vDiQhxDEn0jtkxWMKrVOwulijVq8fwgKqFA-0-yuna2irx9sWg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 376px; height: auto;"><br>(He showed traps by spiders woven for prey to loose footing and slide in the hole)<br><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_bcb5_e8b2_be8c_4c8d" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-zs2m3NQIvAp8hmbuWpIEOTf4f-zdtee4r6lk5Gqnyh4eY5BP73O_pUZ3KPW0RTgqqK8EPWlTwZOzIzycA5iKoZCSx60A" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 463px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Termites build mounds the size of small houses, in which millions live till they move for new housing)</div><br><img id="id_e077_f6b0_3152_a720" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-wPcUgTwy87CYY74WCixekTQhIdCSduVntfOZZ584lc9cVHMaWmDzWlE9Cgoz6sS0ewMYOmLsW0sFGyZ6yWNZV8NI1E4Q" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 388px; height: auto;"><br>(Also fig-like berries from the “strangulation fig tree”</div><div> that are enjoyed by baboons and elephants)</div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_60e0_f50d_a9f8_2296" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-xEEU5g57E-j9pKOs5OSv6k_eWYNUUmNn4XZ9AGltiFVaqBmeZIkfcFXH7H7GQDg83PXZaXBDRM4HH5mVrLUErUqAl6Nw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 486px; height: auto;">S</div><div style="text-align: right;">(Here was a fishing village, abandoned after the government</div><div style="text-align: right;"> relocated all the indigenous tribes to create the National park)</div><img id="id_5fda_2e7c_9ad2_69c1" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-x4LNNB-PGAPEPNwlsb0goj1hZfOhLM1ZflwocWGj7631hHZrRylAHyn_MbNaoi0qsyuFgSkb18rxXcxsDbzUzdbC8iRw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 449px; height: auto;"><br>(Our personal chef created a brunch outing at the River bank)<br><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_53e4_14d8_fa53_9c79" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-xV1d-AFvGCdJhoLXkNfismwybqS2OlGh-TQVC_VzDplMMxaR7ZGJLGlonn9HTq0clCqQcTQXNViNVj2vKUQrDvmuaekg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 450px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Of course, our butler Michael came along to serve)</div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_366f_918_d82a_c3b6" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-xWX3aUNbb2MllEdomldxBREFZNBpFKTQWMnqNRBO7lInDCd20v9Olw_z-MKxA7tZAFL5Qx6wh6PnT8g8MjthXsp316" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 468px; height: auto;"></div><br><img id="id_c759_caa0_c99f_f127" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-y8JORDqNcfHX8JXSIGbfOi7vENOqnl9RQN5jaw0uUMW9fkTMhree-Y399f-iEuwpdavl0IaUdf21IU6o25qAcvfGyn8g" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 432px; height: auto;"><br>(In the evening we cruised the Zambezi River during cocktail hour)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_8c78_e94c_abd9_de5d" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-wz9j6wYak5axBATIrSCxYtjXE1rfFj7HsWZkRakdZLNAnSAS7uSeW1C0mTlhx6R3LzaNMImbAw3jyg52Br57yL1ZTd" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 429px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Our guide Sam joined us with a soda - no drinking on the job!)</div><br><img id="id_cfb1_9996_df5b_4d68" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-ziS3Wy41cZp-5QxqwEIB-RfnL7AzOEK_eMHlPSivI6vUFk8wuERTfhRKV_VLNKVjyaQc_iRkIgGM8pLrK3nuZhFceXcQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 476px; height: auto;"><br>(At the end of a wonderful week a SkyTrails plane took us from Royal airstrip to Lusaka)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_906a_2d3b_d791_27a6" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AITFw-zsbOiQISFVL-qWL4BSZPkwxZOuSxSnLwBFZQ3jfsv3ZLHh-DMOKd1z4JvzdfIaHKZJNwnAA8HkpX8ORlYksib-EfJA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 429px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Sam joined us to take a few weeks off to see his family)</div><br><br><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div>Two retirees and their travel storieshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13942287905877288793noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9052023657534142840.post-73642517203103472342023-06-25T15:44:00.001-04:002023-06-25T15:44:17.796-04:00Scotland: The Highlander Caledonian Canal Barge Trip<div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><span style="width: 788px; height: auto;"><img id="id_b9bf_63a0_cccf_d559" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81qCJiY-_A95z0ddWrY0-NaL56B4sh-esH9VculXa1P6Uktho_LCf-AvihlAev791FVskRVr7HSCUExlPJKNyaR640yRaQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 788px; height: auto;"></span></font><br><div style="text-align: center;">(The Gang on their first Night together)</div><font size="5" style="font-size: x-large;"><br></font></div><div style="font-size: x-large;"><font size="5">This is the part of our Scotland trip that Sandee truly enjoyed and</font> wants me to consider as a template for future trips. </div><div><div><font size="5">The Highlander barge has 4 cabins and thus we were traveling with 6 other passengers. Two Westcoast sisters with their husbands: Ed and Ellen and Phil and Sally often travel together</font><span style="font-size: x-large;"> and then there was a couple: Al and Lauren, celebrating an umpteenth wedding day.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_4bc1_3d41_b5e9_9930" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81r4emuSXWZg0CceD0FH4_bmTZwPhHkpWPoofy328VdWy_z1MqMwF2GssslsELdzlj15hH3ZjVJ7WuKFZeVYfEVLANoaHg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 342px; height: auto;"><br> (Sailing can be a cool affair)</div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_5103_a162_3859_255f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81p-qXdClOq52VHI9QyzX8alzuvn2DYd0nrU4pzdxsreYN0Ps-ToWCnawFRPYBQehlG0E0dq8J2FkqRlysvnyi2pMMj9xA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 325px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Our floating hotel)</div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">We will describe the day to day program, we were chauffeured to. Of course each day we enjoyed breakfast and lunch and drinks and dinners together. We started in Inverness and six nights later we reached Banavie, </span><span style="font-size: x-large;">a harbor area near Ft William, from where we were transported back to our cars in Inverness.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_7443_a66c_5ebf_33c9" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81oJIhJk3BLxP44aaKsCZxzWcbh96IybG4Xz0q4dJhfiGxkdcZXXmFBDcRBbWHyK-X9z8-PdD0FIxvg7OKjqVoOpWhWCdg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 262px; height: auto;"><br>(Annemarie prepping the luncheon table)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_7061_1be2_248e_c5d6" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81onQQZytohc6Ud-E3ORTv8E8DZJwv24S_ao67wbvFTFcJMUxCquqqf0qq-AyWbsSiH1IQjKeZuk8trC-GWTz2ZkbZucYg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 321px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Chef Mike explaining his secrets: working in small galleys)</div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">Life on a barge is a relaxed way of seeing this part of the world with cabins being refreshed each day, with </span><span style="font-size: x-large;">chef Mike providing almost </span><span style="font-size: x-large;">Michelin Star quality meals, where hostess Annemarie is lavishing us with drinks and bites between meals and then there is guide Graham with a van </span><span style="font-size: x-large;">bringing us to whatever is on that day’s program.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_1cc5_5360_b7d0_fac9" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81oJK98nuXOj-u3Z2OWqwhgkl-6ySWMdz4-uI9gMg4sCg7JiS9Unzn--aLi_OLMTpAfHyMivCz_d8EnWpK-sPkiUsQEK_g" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 486px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Returning after a good days exploring with Graham and ready for a Scotch)</div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">We all waited at a hotel in Inverness for various vans that ferry their customers to different locations for different trips. Thus the eight of us got to meet each other for the first time in our assigned van and subsequently at our barge, where we enjoyed our champagne welcome, and then settled in our cabins. Al and Lauren had the much envied suite, but then again it was their umpteenth wedding “week”.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_ef29_c8b_1296_cad6" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81qwE8JnFAmRgYJ52exrs1uNqwW7AGjnQDxlyH-bKLhQ_bgIIhBMXB66f9pKRcQudAMoV_jHfUtEJk7zuaSHAT64mH15" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 366px; height: auto;"><br>(Graham on the dock waiting for us to go on new trip)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_fe6a_724a_70a0_366a" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81orQeqydtnu-9sFM3kDQE_U07yzBH7eFTjPM179-UWJc2z4sN4rw8610plUsfpAnKERQ-hLDSDGhKFpFeAKjnVRr7bWXA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 454px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Entering a lock where the crowds await the mooring entertainment I provide)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><font size="5"><br></font></div></div><div><font size="5">The Caledonian canal is for 2/3rd natural lochs and for the rest a dug canal, with 29 locks reaching 106 ft/32m above sea level</font><span style="font-size: x-large;">. The project started in 1804 and finished in 1822, 12 years over budget. (That is another way of explaining why it was more costly than anticipated). The famous Loch Ness is part of the Caledonian Canal and thus part of this wonderful trip but did not reveal Nessie to us. Maybe we did not look hard enough for it.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_be04_32ef_55d5_67e2" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81pyHz4qJzXJbjE45-YPVlpX341RzoeGb8jj3kZVMA48AJQejZpRQ1QCR84R93nFtvIq-ns2LzUA2KYnr5P1KG67jwYtCw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 399px; height: auto;"><br>(Our evening entertainment in the saloon after others went to bed)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_9a95_3c05_5ce1_7a22" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81qW7antfaCuSB9q_QnBU1ukhOrDk7dP_FZadQ7XPhwTYVQRt6tWcCJHPw4AJb0easZk2RDeGVaGdfcebDPCKzZXQJ-9SQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 403px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(The Caledonian Canal has narrow parts)</div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">We were </span><span style="font-size: x-large;">moored and slept that first night at the Muirtown Locks and every day enjoyed breakfast at different times, as some of us sleep longer than others. That first night on board we shared our “bios” and some of us our “bias” on the various travel modes we have experienced in the past. This writer needs to state here, that the week was spent in harmony among strangers who found that they liked each other. (Of course 4 of us knew each other for eons already).</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_3eac_1003_3c94_2745" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81oSXvAuV04Q7vsaqj9v1qezXY12HTxoY-g7geHbrjSKHn4F4emvXD7L1hvvz271dJ0qatFi88nhmruhNuWtNdPuaZI" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 301px; height: auto;"><br>(Graham in Culloden behind his Clan’s memorial stone)<br><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_a5e1_b621_1536_7dcb" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81oMiZi8tiul79cC8Buh3Wp0wgc2B7Wf6Ib2r6nvM6L7Facy1fYwjfIA4utU7Dh5oc3oJJmfPl7nEoAEBDigtY77sSdFWA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 452px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(The Leanach farm workers cottage most likely used as British hospital </div><div style="text-align: center;">is location C on below map)</div><br><img id="id_cad6_b0a4_eca9_88ab" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81r1VfxKCSsH75E87PJ1yrVms1pBL-lS5tGP1pBING2RQoiwcpXxIPFMa7FC3qJKMvjjDoQAoGVtxvrW3k5lNEm7Yy1-Ww" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 788px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">(You may need a magnifying glass to read the details)</div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">After lunch that first day Graham herded us in his van and we visited the famous Culloden battlefield, where in 1736 Augustus William, Duke of Cumberland, the 3rd son of King George II commanding battle-hardened English troops, who had successfully fought the French in Flanders, in less than an hour defeated the Scottish clans and then rounded them up and executed as many as he possibly could. That battle ended Bonnie Prince Charles hopes to return his dynasty to the British throne securing a lasting British Hanover Dynasty, presently reigned over by King Charles III.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_c067_96b3_512e_d903" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81rHrQx1xHVkmkE3ng3xwj_ZuQqo6lJOH67mc1u4pR5eUYgGvQc-beJE2y2zXBHJW0RlMEHvQ4Aa639GIzJjt_lQqJzn" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 248px; height: auto;"><br>(My hommage to writer Diana Gabaldon)<br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_a8fe_a9e_cb67_eabe" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81o-yZD147xeFOJPsnXZNOCtbet_NxVwP1Cr97ideQZZHEwiq2XkxtoNvw34PyxeHUs_mFYjkyeeRWECr4yWxUfZMsc77w" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 397px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Sandee looking for picture options)</div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">And Scottish aspirations of independence ended there too, despite past Scottish prime minister Nicola Sturgeon political efforts. The gloomy overcast weather presented a perfect background for our imaginations.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">I could almost hear the clans battlecries and the booming of the British cannons on the slight bluff overlooking the muddy moor that James Frasier (Outlander) and his clan mates yelling at the top of their lungs stormed forward. </span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_3936_22a3_f0c1_5d53" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81r_Cuj84k_W_uhet4UipifLJ2CSmiYPnsHsgAIZCbV6HuoiFT-UtVM0YpuhZRphip5bKaqbkz580eIdvYI5JJ_rLFOwTg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 257px; height: auto;"><br>(The sun entrance to the cairn)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_590b_b11d_739b_8d63" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81p1ltVzpD9bsZtfVXNqAicVAlQgslAgOQRMctIjlB8r5iulv7IKHX4_P7PrPepOPkYyNdjUzCrspY5mY-Cc65jcxC6d" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 309px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Stone circles everywhere are still mysteries)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_53f_1738_df22_85e3" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81o4VOF35JhmNcrrGAwf7Vn0K2jIIsbLW1wDzUG0JG_LF5SFkL4VHwDqxQeJZUq-dZvkZ7RtTBmBqzbZ-f2lKqpe5aUY" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 399px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Most likely a burial ground for chiefs)</div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">Afterwards the visit to the Clava Cairns was also a sobering visit, burial grounds at least 4000 years old, where pagan rituals were performed by the Pict priests who lived in the area in those days. Like the Stone Henges in Salisbury and on Orkney, early people’s religious belief systems concentrated on earth, sun and seasons in ways scientists are still speculating on. One, to me intriguing speculation is, that, for example, in Clava Cairns, the sun entered the “womb-like” cairns as the “magical phallus of the sun god”, impregnating the female earth deity, birthing abundance to the tribes, which the priests during the pagan festivals had prayed for.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_243e_85f7_ee47_35c6" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81rkSVwiowUDgs08nyzw4fgENoGfmBQlvmcQuE5iZaQ22PwR8tT_L_5Siq4zPHDTyz_5uUYXnBH7neieWfYPnVToLVu5" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 376px; height: auto;"><br>(Cawdor Castle supposedly built around a long gone holly tree)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_cdbe_18e5_1d30_401b" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81rwkoosd2CsUMZl0e5VPH3ilcCN_QqtRC4IESVtrzl5Ca7EcXGQJcp0kDovtxt0Q1zEjJmzf8JixImSW1EhS7nnxb_7pQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 344px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(The Cawdor clan belongs to the Campbell clan but have </div><div style="text-align: center;">A swan in their crest instead of the Campbell Boar head.</div><div style="text-align: center;">Swans are associated with elegance and music and they underlined </div><div style="text-align: center;">that sense with the motto: Be Mindful)</div><div><br></div><br><img id="id_cfc7_c1e4_9107_914f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81oZZw_94iJcxXU7tao2efIDOPut925Wsa67fFCEXnQWVMysa0PlVHs33VsjhEkwxB8eaPl6uL9W9M3GbdPjeX-X1Sq0nQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 319px; height: auto;"><br>(The kitchen area with unused copper all around)<br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_bcee_dcf5_2b25_3496" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81pATLTwN1IKx2Q94rv5Qy1ZWOz36UEN3G16QG4wlLOcyY91uJwfiGLn5H4oddVE0lKWjW1_BGbcHIJIJXcYAEgETgjX5g" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 400px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(The Countess bedroom)</div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">The next day we visited Cawdor Castle used as background by Shakespeare in MacBeth, still occupied by the Dowager Countess of Cawdor as her residence. The surrounding gardens were beautiful and during our visit highlighted by an abundance of sun </span><span style="font-size: x-large;">(not a common phenomena in Scotland). </span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_47c7_4e8b_7d59_f258" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81p9-c4Nb_2Die_2fpV7_zDnUaZOT_HJGTdqYcbyQnA2A8ZLidDHoLbwm-4Rk3iBTj5HvkNQ4BDiCh-OQUoHHNpAyctFBw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 241px; height: auto;"><br>(Castle Gardens full with sculptures)<br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_7323_809b_d8fc_4d76" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81pKRyJ5laSc6QiRQBemHlZNdY_upt6u93nxjv8rRXrhEbyi31DGg2OntRDa1FL5ZbRPMYK6c48dge5ZkgSxpK9zISpkgQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 234px; height: auto;"></div><br><img id="id_3400_5c2e_90bd_6bb9" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81p5CJ6eM4G4aicjj34JZmRz6pmJ5uLSNWCzEnzzfKI-UWFVK3ddq7qidFlEBJA8kwVGp0gzbPCebs8ewz4W3ceWwVn7uQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 357px; height: auto;"><br>(There is even a labyrinth closed to the public)<br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_4e7_de87_c742_186c" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81ob0ubsntxhyMF5c6UhpEgjnoYdw4RL9pYWZ2obLL509umebA22msBfZCMgH1HmRcE67_q5PvUT9HOP-xsi5gGWewS3Vg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 332px; height: auto;"></div><br><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">But the story of MacBeth is being overshadowed by the story of the present Dowager Countess Angelika. The read of this present day tawdry tale is best described in the newspaper article by the Independent. We saw a glimpse of Lady Angelika as she drove in while we left the premises. Mind you the story is from 2006. But since that year nothing has changed to the “ownership” of Cawdor. Enjoy below read:</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/this-britain/curse-of-cawdor-macbeth-s-castle-once-again-setting-for-a-dynastic-struggle-8719213.html">https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/this-britain/curse-of-cawdor-macbeth-s-castle-once-again-setting-for-a-dynastic-struggle-8719213.html</a></div><div><br></div><div><font size="5">Life on board was very pleasant, the open bar had many among us sample the wide range of Scotches on a regular basis. And our Annemarie honored any wish we might have had. Our captain only moved during the day and the evenings were filled with extra guest appearances, such as 2 Scottish lads that performed their lyrics. We found out that they were on Spotify. You can hear them as the Calum MacPhail duo. They also have their own website</font></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">www.calummacphail.com.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_5d9f_b7b3_6f1e_8b48" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81qk6ng65FL0DK2u72c-YoXlQK1iMvTV9xEzmkKPcuG5_LS2K-R68gPl8ZfY82oFpjsgIPcjZex06zKVZ5I9NwHumwaFdg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 350px; height: auto;"><br>(Calum sits on the left)<br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_64cb_9003_f703_1ec3" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81ob-OiNgu3X5kXBprLBkuhhNVaUAGrH0gNFnwozUL3jbO_pjg4oOmegfg21BKnE024ClWmuYqqFA_43hgqtUEAH_H-n3w" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 285px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Al wearing a sheep’s woolen cloak)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_70a_b2d8_db99_14fa" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81r8eGiSF58BX9FlZFf9XMxFQciDKtvSyTk5-E0vve3rE92EJel-1DZXciizBaaiHyudz2nXEgahIk42nG3mty1YihXc2A" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 266px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Medieval shift with Tartan plaids as shawl)</div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">We had another evening a gentleman, a kilt maker telling us about Scottish Clan patterns and materials and used one of us as mannequin to show how to properly drape yourself in the medieval dress code using the many yards of the luscious weaves.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_3bf2_fe72_dd91_6861" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81r8HNdqM729a1oJa3jZbaI3u3lAUByxdzaE43copQzF1sd7TcUf596DRcVleNB5A6xY-Lu_RMt_Mqt0QEE_LQv38Q-M" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 279px; height: auto;"><br>(Surprise bagpiper, discovered by us because </div><div>of the sounds emerging from the forest)</div><div><br></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_1ee_77ac_6c22_6809" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81qlfZj9NEpnIGA5nSwrW0aIgqc6dkfLuktf9p9JLDWSfDHbILprGuQK8FqvYl0ZUIWannteoBHvJ4J6sDDm1zH_SYAtWQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 325px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(We all filed out to listen to his “concert”)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">Not to forget the gentleman walking out of the woods toward our landing spot in full regalia, piping his bagpipe. I believe he is a member of the Royal Scottish Pipe Band Association. </span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_dd00_8094_4869_9e44" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81q5GlC2doGYdThKPgwqaTRv8KiRQEqz_GlWpfH12FQaddAtVVEfWgdt26tOrNI3ZhBTCFzrq0GtxdVQxu_m5ZzqHD7CWQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 375px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Al trying to get a peep out)</div><br><br><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">These evenings were a relaxed affair with many questions being peppered at our guests. Some of us tried to get sound out of the bagpipe, with mixed and definitely unmelodious results.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_c35d_c9e8_17f7_8782" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81osxU_2SxQIIopI6oeuxaMVY_XI6HA-BrabT-fnZn-nmKxQQofw7XPN5YJCkGbx8lNEV6u581485LfuHRUnA0qNbV9k8g" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 317px; height: auto;"></div><div>(Afternoon drinks while lazily floating by)</div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">A Scottish tale teller had us spellbound one evening, as Scottish lore is well served in an original country setting as the wind whips the shutters of our barge.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_32ff_2b3a_ce18_318b" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81oOKquyhDjndqafRb9TudW5UhvplV9QfGNnnx2iHXXbAP2EwJa1F-JssZbnlpIUUaz1RnP9eeECbe9_EDQoAc4ninSzGw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 270px; height: auto;"><br>(Meeting the sister barge in a lock)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_5366_7abc_1aa_4fe4" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81qnzTzL14dDCMOAL6e3ldSVhbcPT6_V2CIILiUuScVyEcHqdOWZVSw-hGwPY5iRLVRP7StoHuIgbsMf5q1k8PVpidEoRw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 401px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_e1d3_4819_6107_753f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81rwcdTeauc75i2Zw0J3mv7rebP3espxV7boNiTPvzYtl89J7gDI_lxj5B8aeiHmYcp1GPmfzuFUCh4yPdHyOcRm1OZ5" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="text-align: start; width: 222px; height: auto;"></div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_806a_f5ae_60ef_2ae8" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81qcfrcf_ltZ3xsDjAr0R-HO4QsF1WV4jSBkHOnfzqTfhP9mx9apkX6YpS9tNoYARl0gPX2vLb5gWbyDJ1gUNsDmpV4Q0g" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 560px; height: auto;"></div><br><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">Our barge with captain Mick at the wheel, seconded by his wife as mate, who often shooed me away as I was trying to be of misguided help while entering or leaving locks, entertained us the final evening at the captains table.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_7b70_8fb1_36ba_b828" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81p5LdzQFuAXrnJQ1bZ4oiw4fqasfHzFrr4rmo6GrUTqlWWfz2gi4ivvdNRkNW6uJ72mOFkhXGxyNUtDQN7j6XMwsDam" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 369px; height: auto;"></div><br><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><br></div><div><font size="5"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">A highlight of the trip was at the grounds of a Benedictine monastery in the little town of Kytra where we a treated to a private Falconry and Birds of Prey demonstration, where we had the opportunity to hold various beautiful birds on our arms. The pictures really tell the story best. It was a best day for me to be able to have a Bald Eagle looking straight past me, a few inches from my face.</span></font></div><div><font size="5"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_1c40_b766_1570_486" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81rt2nSSEpmB0TqzCexkGZzg_e1dWsP92TlSYEHw-qA-n1SciESU_zvo6Cybsh30Zgn3cie5W4Z57l0mhje1GHvSA3B5pQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 259px; height: auto;"></div><br><br><img id="id_60cf_f48e_46ae_af39" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81ptmssVTraaakxycJgo6BiLqM67yZW_1iSMf2e8BrfClqXdP60Z8lpmWfWKSu_Gt_h_XP1xV3i8UpaXhdr1GJs8FyberQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 204px; height: auto;"><br><br><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_7424_cfd7_a975_cad2" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81pv-nSH-rrUTeV9Uvu5QOBwevBrH75eebhQLaPU9p-Xr_kWl58gcmvw5E_vtbfP10xKC7Eh4ZlTUNBjDghu7Ymqj6LukQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 300px; height: auto;"></div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_4c5a_bc78_c106_b288" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81r4dYQ3aBH8zTUrfeMFrNL4tCJcx9tjW6pr25qMvbNKCwf5NRvkBT6NVZCZ8I-361adffAaeYaPgtolD2DRyvyx09JbMw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 256px; height: auto;"></div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_6ba3_c8f4_d5a2_3250" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81qtWMGWQ2hGjbbw0e5MNDiFnNeB9e_1o4XYhx6ouBUP1Kg3WBkty3DZiEfguuHQuJWzzFyFO4MyohQYrmcYoBQHGDyTkg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 248px; height: auto;"></div><br><br><br><img id="id_b115_1312_7b70_5ec8" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81ovoQOaN_qf_Nad64Cws-Ps3XkedYCZTGGCZskYqYJ5QoumiHKQhP7JL9SnPkona-JEtoQSKvdjIU2nCKuSiiKIePXOIg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="text-align: right; width: 307px; height: auto;"><br><font size="5"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></font></div><div><br></div><div><font size="5"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">Our Guide Graham feasted with us at a farewell dinner, while celebrating his years of being the barge’s guide, as he and his wife are retiring to a hamlet in France after our trip. The restaurant thanked him for his years of patronage with dessert and the proverbial candle to blow.</span></font></div><div><font size="5"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_e17e_979a_27d_58f3" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81pHMKWpy6cze4Nd37VIkEVOPJxHOD6YawM9x5LTZH70SYEfCdYGY3Fe_eabinz2Dzof-ilNFmSE6JX0BTMdxkfrvCdKyQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 383px; height: auto;"></div><br><font size="5"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></font></div><div><font size="5"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></font></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">And during our days of driving the highlands surrounding the Caledonian Canal we had to of course visit the likely most photographed castle in all of Scotland: Eilean Donan, featured in many movies including a James Bond movie.</span></div><div><font size="5"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></font></div><div><img id="id_3cad_ba5_92ea_af70" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81pF2PAAhlB0UhgYx1u4DvvB7JHhIo3zYwX_8OckRw2BwNO_reaEclIup3Um7dLyz1FTk0R6E1UBo_VEGUezB_YEH0ZC" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 300px; height: auto;"><br>(Most romantic location: Eilean Donan </div><div>at the corner of 3 lochs)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_b5bc_48ef_9e68_19b6" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81rc_1FfvLezbAdQAtjqdJIrHjIGanCuHkaPqEM8IIa9kv9x7XIqSXQBbewVnopngeqdFf-PrzlnWPfBoviFjgU1e-Jt" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 451px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(A little more realistic picture from nearby)</div><font size="5"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></font></div><div><font size="5"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">The last day we toured from our final mooring place Banavie the famous nine lock Neptune’s staircase, ending with a tasting at the Ben Nevis distillery and getting the tour, disclosing all the gory details that make the distinctive Scottish whiskeys different from other countries dabblings in this field.</span></font></div><div><br></div><div><font size="5"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></font></div><div><img id="id_abf0_a0fd_9eb_6ab5" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81r214cVLPmL5SdsSGhCG83dGRkwN2K6IjWfbbvU9W6dvHuk1dDTVyydvXBB9_TLA7DLmJiH-_FRk8k88jUDniACKhJ75w" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 325px; height: auto;"><br>(Ben Nevis distiller tank holding 2000 liter)<br><font size="5"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></font></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); font-size: x-large;">All in all I will admit that this type of professional form of learning and enjoying of this part of the world was a welcome addition to my amateurish efforts in world exploration tinkerings.</span></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); font-size: x-large;">Here a smattering of pictures taken during our trip:</span></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_a3e6_b46a_5bac_77fa" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81onRY9l_nnFFKqotgBfCVAN_InEe7Rc9G5A6kPCn-_1NhpU5AXeJVhwTA7UMdUT67CXNR2B-cLSO8A3PkPcZOunpvsNNg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 427px; height: auto;"><br><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_3a71_26f8_9114_14cb" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81p_jp5A2AoSY7OP6qr6_PcnPcRTMtE9OLVULVtMKd7n3urvqDOlElmAMWuR39dUDYIDJFmaVnLKteGHc0WBgEW-3Tqpxg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 518px; height: auto;"></div><br><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_a359_908a_43e9_70da" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81qYxlmegWS94QCqJKGuww_zjNv-iLoYGKYsOxZQ695eg-DQJBGjCOQsWmO27HUT2PFm3GNx7E5xp4oyHLmUCo0an-eXOA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 506px; height: auto;"><br><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_e4e9_9d9b_7f9d_918d" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81qf5sEO1BuUnXHusO5eYZBF_KfWygUXyf2h3ULcVGNNOQ5Ng9m-xjORJYuashRvv7lrUx_YETsltPVuo6NzGfQKmt_bLQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 505px; height: auto;"></div><br><img id="id_cdde_f8ea_fdea_cc2" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81r43fjP6miAokwm_6DMsEMtGkAjMEDL_bHkMm4do9hHpvT5rqpiFensBvY-z9GqB0MufF8I6NHKnOeWTyEkBC-PzUpD" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 347px; height: auto;"><br><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_7d53_faeb_7d68_6d5a" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81pVuDiVF-aNuBZQk6DNqDjNL-ApIZaesup_AAEyh-SYqHARzWxHgM0wOUsWtIAaHIPCYLtpbOqk5wiut3L_j7-ZV0KU" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 544px; height: auto;"></div><br><img id="id_9a23_62b6_2e46_3876" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81p2r3J7yXPyzb07c9g2l_KYzoQ7z7a7K3Hu0Cx5_EYvHRkgyC38hiTOoZ92LpqQwRF8m_hd2Ojbr4YD8GY2KSs0cDtU" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 579px; height: auto;"><br><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_fe3a_403d_43a9_6e89" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81qRwVqrfS_bqa5n78lIYg32qbrbgV-8XQDMfIaJpErWV6NWypUtryp65YN7Y0x9W0G6-mAxQFWUrLHmbEy0P1PLfxnV" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 456px; height: auto;"></div><br><img id="id_5da5_87b1_5d28_97ba" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81qrKd3HPsmYtLIHonvmLOTOkTQdAJzQtcGy64I6bqB-w1Aw-SbSZs_Q8CK65chUZE5td6n0CJ-VS2zPRXF2AjeUwGnV8Q" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 511px; height: auto;"><br><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_9bff_8210_21ef_956b" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81qe-6uMFoHv_UcMzbskhCXJdBT8AGYT3hT_ImIDDn9do-2fV6d2scCDsiYGS4SSeSMA05sB7yCVcqfnmT_NkCnPNem2ZQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 381px; height: auto;"></div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_becc_9054_d44c_41f9" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81oKeowCv-XXXu_qbF3Yr6EWArdLUzDWA_RZqpqZuiH431tHRUby-dAoqnjaY7kq6jvx84CEbK6PoJF-llud9z8OFytc" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 583px; height: auto;"></div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); font-size: x-large;">I end with sending my thanks to our mates on this trip: you made it a fun and enjoyable memory.</span></div><div><font size="5"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></font></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div></div>Two retirees and their travel storieshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13942287905877288793noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9052023657534142840.post-25675650003705126582023-06-17T16:32:00.001-04:002023-06-17T16:32:27.821-04:00Scotland Highlands, brooding and full of lore<div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_dd80_e957_f746_2fea" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81qH8Y1phVpsgqL-YBU2k8BAIF1tc8EkwbFMvK5pIFzbFDH7Zrg-YaLfubXBaeyAbTe-qsyC_8R9fzGd9fxsg4UHM1js" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 702px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Typical Highland picture of castle ruins and a few visitors)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><font size="5"><div>There is a Scottish saying, that Scotland has two seasons, June and winter.</div></font><div><font size="5">We visited the highlands in September for a month and found the weather added mystique to the lonesome places we visited. We were prepared for cold weather and infrequent rain, but the low clouds hovering over mountain ranges and driving through areas where 1.9 person lived within a square mile on roads that were narrow and winding, added a sense of forlornness to the trip. </font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_90c5_d166_d8b_836f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81oUgVHqDm_5--LrAU3QiugBBmpgXKwwaz-VQ7CQ9BaA6XGRfwl29L9V4FJTid5IF95esCWT4YjCDFnorZKIKjR1bcyFcA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 465px; height: auto;"><br>(Our commodore suite for the overnight ferry to New Castle UK)<br><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_506d_9041_4f25_7c89" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81qr4pZ_7z1KsAV8JqQzzLbP-jqIQ1JyYtcRX-ZLM5mqIlb__3dbQSHsK7OUeC00dKmawc2-JUwh5mOb4P7AZSkvw2RY" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 426px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(IJmuiden our departure Harbor not too far from Amsterdam) </div><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">Let’s start at the beginning:</span></div><div><font size="5">Sept 5, a taxi dropped us off in the Dutch harbor of IJmuiden, where we boarded the ferry to Newcastle upon Tyne, an overnight affair in a spacious cabin with reservations for dinner away from the buffet elsewhere, where most passengers seem to flock.</font></div><div><font size="5">Next morning we found our car rental agency downtown and started our first day in a Skoda Octavia, a car that served us well during this trip, but often seemed to big for the roads we travelled on. About that much later in this blog.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_f2d7_418_be6a_26a" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81pSCfTTAXBzuNsbtVyAqSX_RwGm9mvIYdEepvpNIqjBbreqw72-f5T_J-I3JXeyJpPu6jjXfXlG3UDYJNqUenKudioZ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 463px; height: auto;"><br>(This is one of the much maligned single track Scottish highland roads mentioned in the blog)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_45bd_e334_5ab7_b186" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81qQl5z8JS3_M-CH-4LXc8UoA0EnTpvjZfs73oxFtuRIe9vB_KQXvK4MMJlAOP0ao1OOTLSD_HHcfttC0WTN3hzH-bdW" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 473px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(sometimes driving in slippery wet conditions, praying not to have oncoming traffic)</div></div><div><br></div><div><font size="5">Personally, my attraction to Scotland like many other visitors, is based on tv series and movies about the centuries before when Scots were pitted against each other by warring clans or against the English as long ago as when the Romans controlled England. On our way up from Newcastle we passed the famous Hadrian Wall and hikers, who follow the remnants of the Wall while learning all about the skirmishes with the barbarians in “skirts” from the North.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_f28d_bc45_1118_bdcf" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81qiyf2i6dCy9TVlClVTaT7DjtdI0wC5tfCjXceSrmip3zDgLy8dC5KBeTrvy3PxClAxozDe8uBfYKo7rqbBRM1LSxva7A" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 483px; height: auto;"><br>(Remnants of the Hadrian Wall, the Roman way to keep the barbarian Scotts out of their empire)<br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">As a devotee of Diana Gabaldon’s Outlander series I was especially interested in finding places where characters of her books roamed and castles that bring those stories to life. Our first day was a long ride to get straight into Cairngorms National Park, to the town of Banchory not too far from Balmoral Castle where Queen Elizabeth was in residence as she did every September month. We spent 2 nights there and were at Her Majesty’s Castle 2 hours before her death with a handful of other visitors lurking around the gated area. The only difference was a camera crew who for some reason was waiting for something that “might”, “could” happen.</font></div><div><font size="5"> </font></div><img id="id_475d_b8d8_cf5e_5f6d" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81pdT_LyzAdyFINy_u-6n8jyJY2Fsrt2Pd1HtHp1Hd37EkQXnImbV5R2k-6EjjY7QalCv-mET3o79kVvXR79BU4xJ5K8Ww" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 323px; height: auto;"><br>(Royal Gates at Balmoral, closed to people like us)<br><div><br><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_1f7c_9129_6211_85ed" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81o_OUmZXRgZqIQbTlN8hcOtBE0D-l_NBISEZ1OpevmVU4A9hQM2fmughbexB9_YKrz47eTBAl3aTIhUZ1KhpaVvAwenAg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 378px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Guard house at Balmoral)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">That day we saw several castles and enjoyed the rolling landscape at an easy pace, as it was our first day in the Highlands. Let the pictures do the talking.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_eed1_3684_d8c3_f406" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81oTwjvJmnOJ8xii3GwXC_zNPBXSkLdwEZP0LNSnAYWdr1aXDU6PDqHmShiAGh9fu0P9-TyZJSgz5qBL4uoEriM_EVcXbQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 235px; height: auto;"><br><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_ad7b_bfe1_f76d_d4b9" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81r6H0z0OnnOUQrtfdwLLVRUmSbLhodwEiBETgyfwxG9kLPYKrRKEVPFySz1UqVTR8zBCGfmaTEZIx97-FKpl4GWvHTMKA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 332px; height: auto;"></div><br><img id="id_4821_ad79_5a0a_76e6" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81qGzRwEE3iehK22cjyZnP5zXv3RQmOHg6qVcy3VoWBH6vpLNjoPxU0k-NShLDCIQCmgC1w7CsiEmyQU6E_Xsj8JuttlvA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 437px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;">(A few of the Neighborhood Castles to Balmoral)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Sept 8: The next day we packed our belongings and drove toward the coast just below Aberdeen, where we lingered around, visiting the imposing 13th century ruins of Dunnottar Castle, impregnable in its time, with first found remnants of Pict artifacts, who seem to have been protecting themselves there between 5000BC and 700AD. Vikings stormed it in 900 and killed the residing king Donald.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_3b0f_e7f4_c188_1fc2" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81r9NeaK1PeRusYWWTcK6zmY1p49IBZepCIQ-zS1D-Rvir45ENxaJDKl6BdQ1Cd-rNPQs2gclC-ixGFb0TVopHPdQcU3" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 407px; height: auto;"><br>(Dunnottar Castle-in Gaelic meaning: fort on the shelving slope)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_ebd6_da04_f92a_bdef" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81oDOt5gsTAjp-sIqQ9raEeiIGEvpf3bLopyO31Sk8he7Hq-OuJHthjoIl9_2hhKcXqh4W0Sq2kYxhrCwncPE_9R-14M" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 354px; height: auto;"></div><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Famous Scottish William Wallace took the castle from the English forces, leaving no survivors in 1297, only to lose it to English forces again in 1336.</font></div><div><font size="5">The Scottish King James II bestowed in 1458 Sir William Keith the hereditary title of First Earl of Marischal and the Dunnottar Castle. Mary Queen of Scots visited, and the 5th Earl of Marischal founded Marischal College in Aberdeen, the second university in Scotland. When Cromwell’s army tried to take the Castle all Scottish crown jewels were hidden in the castle. Luckily he did not succeed. There are many more stories. Today it is one of the most visited castles in Scotland.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_35ef_7982_121d_4566" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81pmUWWwV0UywWuDgGbmj_tiaAKUIOQBId-j74HN62hf8RULbHDREF0-_KR8y_Xzt1jSb2EqZyAvkj6y3cmnYOHfzAJUOg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 359px; height: auto;"><br>(Kirkwall main drag before the cruiseschip unloads)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_31c9_30cb_eeaa_6dc9" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81pINvf9IgAFlulPux1PhsjbRO9tb8FdzfKFWGLVwIUEzPlZA2uZzjo1v3fVd3ASHsiclmAxDo4suQcu2n0OFRZ7WzgP2g" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 388px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(View from our hotel balcony towards the north)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><img id="id_c368_eb06_e4d6_c99c" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81qwIlIMLFp3v1ZjZjHuMOv0lfop0LYAFwrFT6f4x6QzMWqIyZ93S_ByGWIzBpLetWZBlEhhY5_Lwanx4ibVjJl-tDo7zg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 375px; height: auto;"><br>(View Eastwards)</div><div><br></div><div><font size="5">Early evening we took the ferry to Kirkwall, the capital of the Orkney Islands, arriving there around midnight, finding our way in a town already asleep.</font></div><div><font size="5">If it wasn’t for 2 half drunken girls on their way home we would not have found our lodging, where a young lady sitting behind the reception desk was happy to provide us with the key and directions to the elevator, while closing up to go to bed herself, as she had been sitting there for several hours solely waiting for us knowing</font><span style="font-size: x-large;"> when the ferry would arrive.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_1587_e60e_35cd_724" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81rjzN_phoDCuwbALMr61E3bt73l9f7aMeWZYxKEyEyZVUZYtAKcq3QajH0rFhY9JK4C1STUQi6d5t5ulYbWMvUEjgzbVQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 428px; height: auto;"><br>(Orkney is in general flat and grassy with sheep and cattle farms)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_9af2_905_b6e9_38c1" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81rmrTylwp1U04Xsqz4eaiWIa_TRtGSubOD_PuDda5pDE3JUG0AJsuC-_8EqPbrdZfAZ50ESGjndnBY02Hg61MAjUUetcA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 407px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(But with a high bluff overlooking the North Sea direction Faroe Islands)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><img id="id_f936_4b7b_de49_23df" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81qnB9lvDAKBa3JPuweyw5QMlkzYBVq-wXaZkLaIIM8yaWHPLlfWceVKZ3cxhtJ6jajoeJK4roVwsh5qcvHV5DDGjzIMEg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 466px; height: auto;"><br>(In the distance the lone Lord Kitchener Memorial on the highest part of the bluff.</div><div>More about him further down in this blog)<br><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><font size="5">Sept 9: we are in Orkney 4 nights as these islands are unique in so many ways.</font></div><div><font size="5">These islands have been inhabited for at least 8500 years by Mesolithic and Neolithic tribes followed by PICTs and Annexed by the Kingdom of Norway in 875. The name Orkney is an Old Norse word for Seal Islands.</font></div><div><font size="5">Nowadays 22000 residents call it home, 9000 of them live in Kirkwall and many spend their days farming, (cattle and pork as well as sheep) or fishing. Almost everyday in the season one or two cruise ships unload their passengers on the main island, crowding the few streets downtown with a thousand plus gawking people, destroying the true atmosphere of a very small ancient cobblestoned township. </font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_b5ba_2c87_e195_f4d4" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81p-_SGy0O6RLlfxOHWVxYS0FD50sHfnxiGH4LBVLIJByDdDSmO1SQGX8td6O1bU2OuK20SxdyHfbKmlGYa9Y-_1jZr32A" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 280px; height: auto;"><br>(St Magnus Cathedral and it’s surrounding Graveyard)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_8990_1662_42a3_cb57" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81pCAJz1dcRs__HFI2nAmm2xaeEnsRI9EF4Kt4FGX5c9RXJtw6xb2MPiqNhn609_9h-PDpIJRw-SWAYBdjZBV8QL8v3suA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 310px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(The Cathedral is more impressive than it seems from the outside)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Most people visit the St. Magnus Cathedral, surrounded by the traditional very full graveyard you cannot be buried in anymore. Offshore oil drilling is serviced from Kirkwall too. And the islands produce 130% of their energy needs the green way, working on a plan to export that growing excess to the mainland.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_b0f9_1b8_f6fe_ab7a" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81p3gEBAyjD010a5wwLmWTt5IGKJX0TQTTvCL2z_ju54JFeLPtDLR3rx4dvNHjy8NZi9P3MXlVYGFe4NBe62-Da8AzWN" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 454px; height: auto;"><br>(Stromness is not only a ferry port but also a main fishing village)<br><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_a68d_7c06_1e66_7a2" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81om-gEphpejFHvAupWdsZFRAg6MVQXgGA34NOrd0WW8n81iAZ064ZaFWStV9UATPuyR2VZIWJhx1HLjOZjdwFTj5uOS9w" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 412px; height: auto;"></div><br><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">We toured that first day for several hours the main island where 17000 people live. (Orkney Archipelago counts 71 islands, but only 21 are inhabited) and organized a guide for the next day to get more details and visit the main historic sites.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_be15_dfdf_f95a_baad" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81rkzHtwtiZdyrkNZIT8zWwegUKQfg-9LFYR117KbJBU716l0d2cRixvL0F7HAFp_2o-ezE9JH51Co2So22ShPrOwe8kbw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 488px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Aerial view copied from internet)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div><img id="id_e5dc_a1ca_1e4f_86f8" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81rZXUSxQEQnS39oVNQqjdNRzex-V10qQjSYCuDF-PX5q87qanuP5HcZOfovfp3Ibhrf65SDSBPsh-Tk3pKvWXeKV3hF1w" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 343px; height: auto;"><br>(Being at the Ring of Bodgar at sunset was a solemn but also almost religious experience, realizing that more than 5000 years ago the same sun was setting on Mesolithic people, who worshipped here)<br><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_dc5a_2585_1277_45f4" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81qfciYbyYjRJRJPcbRwzXSdkNizwrHVnQj8Th1BmZxoFyo4ppr0D7cSkNoSOOmsWnP41gMbHlg0RPoDzLhJpIDfvwqWag" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 322px; height: auto;"></div><br><span style="font-size: x-large;">Sandee and I made a special trip to the Ring of Brodgar late afternoon to get sunset pictures of these holy grounds for people living here more than 5000 years ago (older than Stonehenge)</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">There is an eerie feeling when at dusk against the setting Sun you walk an ancient temple like environment, where the stillness brings feelings of fire and offerings to mind.</span></div><div><img id="id_e724_ec1f_524a_ffe2" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81pZ2x7we2qlJxBEILaLR4FojdQDLD263O9RsnMaqjH5nYsHuWlxHOzRPxiCkcRm6DDkBeIP_8T14MiATia50sqWNY2K2Q" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 479px; height: auto;"><br>(The people who build the Ring of Bodgar, built this village, underground to be protected against the cold windy conditions)<br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_f285_6986_de25_e56f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81r6d6hRw1h__bFGx2jUU2YGEb-iPYx5WkOUffHT4Dr5cxmnFBaHXwBS0YbtVJHHewaWFYA8MgEbPHO01rJbX5jj_8QYJw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 455px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(This Neolithic settlement is older than the Pyramids, inhabited for more than 600 years by 50 to 100 people living as equals as all home are identical in size and structure)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_e9de_210e_50bc_85a" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81qikf-D-xGV3rOUIh8uyHGtxA8aMiV3-tBZ297el_m3jOuuJX7jvKEuphcJPTyqKZmloi1dgvwvZwyKTp7jtmRNh4wihA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 302px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Each stone house had similar layout, a single room, a central hearth, </div><div style="text-align: right;">a dresser, built-in storage area and beds)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">The other top sights we visited in Orkney were Skara Brea Prehistoric Village and the farm on which land this village was discovered. (Actually by the farmer himself, who according to archeologists did more damage than good, until they got involved.) A seawall now protects this 5000 plus year Neolithic UNESCO Heritage site, from disappearing in the sea. </font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_ec3b_9ea2_2b37_71ee" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81oI4Te3aDmTwQ6wqIP7OlCuvPakf2PBFfN5HCyI_j52xQO141X_HWZhPckigjbB3PJ0Z4_FnrqhmA_DjD08XHFBYh3BNA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 386px; height: auto;"><br>(550 Italian prisoners of war were allowed to built the chapel as per the request of the camp priest.)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_785a_21b8_520d_d712" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81p2-njBsoodyDGPn_4ISHOphbRDsH422Sal8Il_7hARc6Ofcpv7vICvMJCxYinrkwf0tFXjt4fkRZRae8kaPrzxlImQDw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 419px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(2 Nissen huts joined together were transformed into this beautiful chapel)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">The Italian chapel has a nice historic charm: the British prisoners of war were sent here to create sea barriers to stop German U boats from entering Scapa Flow, where the British fleet was anchored when not on a mission. </font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_feb7_cc05_662f_e9a2" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81ob26kKt-ceACieahEVfdkP3yaWRmDl3UCcxvA05Tpw67U2T9Btol9mnerL0zlE0LvCk0FTqACEzOIwu8D1awzZfxa3" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 400px; height: auto;"><br>(Most barriers are below the surface of Scapa Flow, as many scuttled</div><div> wrecks are the the object of scuba diver tourism)<br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">Well German Captain Prien did exactly that in the early months of World War II, before Winston Churchill sent in his Italian prisoners of war to plug the possible entrances to Scapa Flow with boulders, sinking the HMS Royal Oak with a loss of 834 lives.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">A nice read is here:</span></div><div><br></div><div><a href="https://uboat.net/ops/scapa_flow.htm">https://uboat.net/ops/scapa_flow.htm</a></div><div><br></div><div><font size="5">The Italians were allowed to build their own Catholic chapel in their “free time” and apparently had among them able craftsmen as the chapel turned out to be a beauty. By the way as good prisoners of war always should do, they planned an escape, that was very successful. They had however not preplanned a way to get of the British isles. So all of them were recaptured.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_5d7e_f84d_c518_2e68" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81r7H3FM1aQE8Qy6IiAo0AVmzUOfKibmk8KIszBqzVXV9JpV8n7lWi5VGfF6vA0hTR4mNvaRQ7zjbfBTfN2Rb7i9N0dkVQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 417px; height: auto;"><br>(The Marwick Cliffs with the Kitchener Memorial, nesting side for seabirds)<br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">A nice walk uphill through green farmland where numerous rabbits were hopping around (I was told that their capacity to procreate is becoming a problem) we reached the cliffs of Marwick Head, where in season the puffins would house by the thousands, now we saw a few skuas who nest there yearround. A lonesome tower dominates the view here: Lord Kitchener Memorial. Lord Kitchener was in 1916’s World War I the British minister of war, and on Monday June 5, he set off from Scapa Flow on HMS Hampshire for Russia to have secret negotiations with the Tsar. The ship sank under mysterious circumstances in the waters we were scanning high up there on the cliffs besides the Memorial Tower.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_4a96_cda3_c1aa_f9ee" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81qx4DNEmtxiRI4eIp1kElHN7t8zd5A6aICWt9R2YEWALPhrmp3INGIYyJ1JUJnRNeaVrZ54vyE2N12XVpUTq_u_XooO" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 449px; height: auto;"><br>(Typical view of undulating farmland on Orkney main island)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_5fae_ed83_2642_6197" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81pZ4IIYmtbhfa6v721CMCcsfaqdz0zsBwWSMrx1MUwkc0NStDX2359GWEi4ktI-OPKRQkBtUzYxZIFjQ2XxAmr29v-5" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 450px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Sun setting in Orkney)</div><br><span style="font-size: x-large;">We left via Stromness by ferry these beautiful, during our stay “sunny”, islands back to the mainland, to drive the wildest part of the Scottish Highlands, the northwest part where the population denseness is 8 people per sq km or 21 people per sq mile. The road meanders through valleys and mountains, dotted with little lakes or streams, while the vegetation is gradually changing colors.</span></div><div><font size="5">The stillness is only broken by the few passing vehicles during the four hours we travelled to the town Kylesku, our first finding of a town population in these parts of the world. To be truthful we lunched in a reasonably populated coastal village called Bettyhill early on, before turning inland where an occasional farm indicated unseen human presence.</font></div><div><br></div><div><img id="id_b7c7_e559_9dbf_5ad7" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81ruvhqI2HUpElu_-0oKGkmN8NshJl7xG1zLTYdRHJAuy3oAX_JT0QLsEINQo5xcox_Kb6iWtaFPbW794emT48ho1fyQVQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 393px; height: auto;"></div><div>(View from the ferry toward the mainland)</div><div><br></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_2358_5a36_ed39_a9b1" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81oyH3X65qchtPv6ATj8A0jvDOZdj-VCaIdSKh1XmuPswvp7qSSXTn4zeFkqTliZtuXhzxns4iFYfjBsFdB1Cl1vOeE-TA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 573px; height: auto;"></div></div><div style="text-align: center;">(The first hotel driving southwards on the western side of the Highlands)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_b48e_1514_700b_d5f3" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81oaatPIN6VCOoAl5Zb4_UmItMLRHLwdidevf4FxRVa4WzPdMFXJgk4FiCvmB33A-piqv4PWRgi6SbNyIBoNeJzn_PafnQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 423px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Typical 5pm view in the highlands from our Kylesku hotel room)</div><br></div><div><font size="5">The overnight in the Kylesku hotel outside of town overlooking a connecting water between 2 lochs, where in the past the ferry would have brought us across, being the sole reason for the hotel’s location, but now being sidelined as half a mile away a new bridge replaced the ferry. The hotel was pleasant and the food was excellent. Nowadays signs direct you off the main road downhill to the hotel.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_2401_a6a8_4464_9a7f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81qmDSMuuKTUViPG6qSJKBtP0MOG5BvQKmGsoQHbg_3o4Z9emni5bn5nO3rDM5nL3vLhjb_fhEtuD_uNgo46nL_oDztb" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 380px; height: auto;"><br>(Somewhere in nowhere land we are warned for crossing frogs)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_d213_8b7c_5f72_18ec" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81qb2aA2VFmqCj5mp6QhKBpr67s9Y2smKje0hvhdSLl9xJIC0XvIyB2bKXVJRnAeOgOnujWy-j_AJ6DoROVk-mOwzPPiDQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 374px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(We stopped at the edge of one of many lochs at this little church)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_11ab_8861_f018_241e" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81rVDGCyLe33LXIqO3VFVuoX86SFOi1gCZcBPwj0AI_U1baqqMjs2kHDK1J_bTF4f0JDOrDDDco3mEYCqdwtWJ80dj3B" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 387px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(finding it in a state of repair)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><img id="id_b17a_886e_bd32_83a1" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81r_Afa4AL7Z67E5jOCLYxVIpuLHkqSgRejLzF7OFCoiX9QmZqkQ3iZvGJYMfdHHkRfgejsr84gytiTudIcuw0Q3tFX9" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 462px; height: auto;"><br>(But with a beautiful ceiling, finding it was shipped a hundred years ago from Inverness to this side of the western wild lonesome highlands coast in pieces by boat - a months trip by sail)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_fcb8_2f51_d4ef_6b6a" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81ozMrZMcrjs2FOn6FYAwiu7hWEv8t4fF-WFtc47e-N3WnX0hOYxKY0naje7iY-tW7y578-INAGTINLpJ4QXogIEt_Wawg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 472px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(We are getting closer to our next destination discovering below sign)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><img id="id_57b3_1933_7380_283e" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81rREuAKcGFQExcqPluDBA_6mezflb0gue83PrHhiQRXHx5p84duTpTz9v_dxUo0s28Y39VghsKzwVHap6Aimvj_srIxGw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 425px; height: auto;"><br>(As well a bit further down the road a detour to the coastal former lighthouse)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_a95e_2667_85b7_df" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81qidMmY4jlSF3aErE3hDTMstvs7XYNLlDkstWQRAbBRKmZaUY1jY_yYaRFZRao1p-YXDhVkZruqL4lNxeuUtxdD60RB" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 447px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(And after the westward views from the lighthouse the remains of a croft farm)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><img id="id_bdf8_79d_2925_f97b" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81rSC90jSHzoFjT-cQMCBZPjHMhyvVeLQKcsgHDtRKjKXWxy6izMQhYr3PYDLGymzc0yXEk7CgoJjOlLGQIAytauCR0O" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 423px; height: auto;"><br>(Crofting is an agricultural landholding system unique to Scotland since a law in 1886 - worth reading about)<br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Our next stay was planned at the edge of this wild northwest highland area for 4 nights to allow us to explore this Wild West part of Scotland: Summer Isles Achiltibuie, a very isolated 4 star hotel with breakfast lunch and dinner, because there is nothing else around to feed us. It is said Queen Elizabeth in her younger days specifically liked the Summer Isles to visit by boat and have a picnic ashore of one of those islands on a regular basis while in Scotland.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_dc78_3658_af86_5e84" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81q1O9S3QkTlkp27v9Gr9_lCmv9aIN-vO0rr3LhVwf5v07THi6c1Xx5zY71p-oPV7sJqjg8DYKGFEmyNEMYAsbqfeP7mdg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 627px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Summer Isles Hotel)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Well, arriving at the hotel around lunchtime we were told that because the season was over and staffing problems besieged them as so many other establishments there was no lunch service anymore. The village store sold sandwiches we were told. The route towards this part of Scotland exposed Sandee our “preferred driver” for the first time to single lane two way traffic. (She had to study, using Google, the driving etiquette of these narrow often in disrepair routes). Her driving style changed from precise to overhyped, a headache creating mode.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_1233_ab6d_8bac_4d90" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81qmzva93dSpSkOkM3xAvhcOJhToz5x_u0dYzBK2HFJ_N7H16NgKGA7oNQnWkBa0mkeHm2DjCxnS-plG46aeW4Ug9GZpNQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 513px; height: auto;"><br>(Our first night welcome sign at Summer Isles Hotel)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_a994_8524_aae9_6ba9" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81qqmF9myehJgZ2_WNyDN1qwy_oyu4x-n-JLOFGtjMiuFT4rLaOylhDDjADK4922-uI9xD1a1ElXBP7h5mlVnezGNp7xjA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 517px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(The next night it is back to usual again)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">So at last arriving at the hotel and denied the relaxing luncheon she had looked forward to did not improve her mood. As we now had 4 such days to look forward to and the days turning into rainy ones, the only highlight of the day was hibernating in our room where there was a real well wood stocked fireplace to read by. The evening cocktails with other guests (and every night there were quite a few) and very well prepared dinners made the stay during those hours pleasant.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_2e51_df1f_c498_bdeb" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81oYp2_E1JPm7HuMPeg6kv3gC-uqvDKo4VAgLQOaCEdrflbK-cN7uN6O7w9nST8VixzbNNgSzhTClIkKupl_IWm9ghoPJw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 516px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Maybe no lunch, but dinner is always a nice affair and it is good resting with a cocktail or scotch at the fireplace)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><img id="id_52d3_c1d4_6552_98f4" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81oXD7gdzt-iMtZnIxvBGg1tgr-mwKuzOzd6rgTD7YL8dR0gdbdm8XeyIzhzqkku-CuklOvM4fvO0bS1hQstNWhMnWAoTA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 528px; height: auto;"><br>(This was maybe why Queen Elisabeth came here for a picnic)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_eef6_a99a_5783_4ac1" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81oeSEdWqL6jGK-_a2kUt64K340_3e5ByA6smFjJS-zcs-tMfmp0b5OIJ6o5UmwsMLBG3R4oGtim6lbZzvIndhKFo0t7aQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 499px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(We took a three hour cruise with this little boat to see the seals and isles)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><img id="id_e222_365b_40ab_bb34" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81ooFxpIOLhAT9FQwtTUXXpDmagH9Uedx8L1M6uI0dIA31P2ot4rdePK6CIRI5odt4q4SVkHhYybpr8iEvyx3fAL9tnDYQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 472px; height: auto;"><br>(These isles dot the open waters leading to the ocean)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_50d4_f024_dfc8_68ff" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81qCcP5IjQcg6GgJTqCYkB0kme9f-7VsuWF0OucWBHNbyThbYQHKxFsqSo1ugnnSXcwkOBd2cbCfrcD1k5KIM4KrFL7DSg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 408px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(The never ceasing wonders that nature provides)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">The second day we were told by the staff that about 30 minutes driving from our place a bar, Fuaran Bar, served nice luncheons, thus that became our daily trip, rain or shine. We took a 3 hour boat trip around the Summer Isles on a day that the sun shone, but had to race to the Fuaran Bar to be there 5 minutes after lunch closed. The chef was kind enough since we were almost regulars to allow us to choose from his leftover options for that day.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_3bd8_bdef_978e_b08c" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81r22UlxRV7ssqWtUXclY-_yo79_LD3cbaEo0bHXnWBc5kdVlrPm8z-GWAKuyGYgSY03Y_FLKXFsyk_6Li5pLBbBOHNTgA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 418px; height: auto;"><br>(Tanera Mor Island in a state of rebuilding)<br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_c2bc_2ca3_d5e5_bc80" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81qtcrsJnBSIVltMFYHgYkXPRPn2C8NOB7TP0HX1LouV55Zm67jwVT8smLxApc2jiKwWCeEFaROsDSOnj2dkPWW661ME" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 429px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(It’s a work in progress)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">During our boat trip we learned about one island Tanera Mor, that had been bought by a London private fund manager, Ian Wace and was being built up not only for his friends and clients to visit for fundraising purposes, but also to rehabilitate soldiers with PTSD.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_6401_b787_f507_4a6a" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81rMnWSIegxoZiRHK3V7vBjaqcwaVsh_cMU-wH5-H8Ou3_nuy4J4O0BWoyPqKFTRFdyOV81_wLqetFMhCthHmNa9v_uPcg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 451px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Applecross Pass daring single track road with stunning views- for the passenger only)<br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_f4a3_16c_699_6c98" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81ojq3afkVpO0Oba8VCkYuAMGTbijwXi09f_joAg6gN4Ep5xG9qq3mXbBxpTvZ44hIeH1EiiG9SHUaMTPNEXvWTNO431" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 455px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(The driver sees only this while hoping no one is coming toward you)</div><br><span style="font-size: x-large;">Our, or should I say my, next destination was Scotland's scariest single lane road across a mountain range to the isolated village of Applecross, another seaside village eyeing the Isle of Skye on a good day. We had reasonable weather so Sandee survived the trip, constantly gripping the steering wheel as if it needed pulverizing. We waited about 20 minutes looking at a caravan and an SUV trying to pass each other in a bend where they seemed to become one vehicle in their efforts to pass each other. Passengers of both vehicles alighted and shouted controversial instructions. It did not improve her mood, but I had fun watching the scene.</span></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_12ed_69c3_1a3f_26fa" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81rPlJL0wvyjEzE6I9KMUjjHQ5x8bzX3Ef34Wj026fx_CfkioVZNrnypejDfobriRKLw8jXxYXixsPUgjOzgM74R5emsZQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 446px; height: auto;"><br>(The recurring scene from our room is the reason gives this trip a B minus at best)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_1ca1_59d8_f77e_73cf" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81oVqBebjNKk1IDQll4Uaowh2W0Gg4tRDUFxYg5XligWoUyZACkQK94LwniJAMaAnVpfEnY9N9i2l6PqfHd0Q1IZ27MF1w" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 456px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(But I never cease to be fascinated)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">On Sunday we found a Presbyterian church with 12 worshippers and a traveling minister in the next village past Applecross, who had a decent sermon. The announced invitation for tea afterwards must have been elsewhere because everybody left.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_1317_7bca_84d6_c9a0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81rip9ZUZQzlG-XBgSsAtEquTCqc9Ugb_jv44SHl4l7TZc_JNkzTlBkes7ztv9-atuQgveZraIJzOkwxzzmWBQqj-8HH" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 413px; height: auto;"><br>(We were early getting a front row seat)<br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_918e_be4c_ba49_7ef6" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81q76-DIWZzMqIst35TWlbuCbm63R4Cx2oyjw6d8Sk6LSzrsaMrbUS8tdbvxz7wfAOyGaWa5iO2EkHJgyJsKIw43NEjzsQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 423px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(The minister does 3 services on Sundays in churches 50 plus miles apart)</div></div><div><br></div><div><img id="id_f88_7a74_4778_c76" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81r3DFp0LsX_qCFqLxSjXQ0aOejy491iDWitMjG0J4Yzx23Y56M3ewip8jZFuLKNhPxOsKYJp5KDXbA-1GH03ahAkT0O" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 486px; height: auto;"><br>(On the way back my turn driving, less expansive views for Sandee)<br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">As you must have gleamed by now from this epistle, this part of our month in Scotland had mixed reviews from my beloved, who for the first time during our decades of travel, had some critical opinions about my travel planning skills hereto. I therefore will write a second Scotland blog about the part of the trip she chose to include: the barge trip of a week on the Caledonian Canal.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_bb6c_11e2_9df5_b480" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81p9XD6hNlArTK1klsX_2wtSlX4cy-qtt6-EfMtKQZXBIEzSOXoPD4VUYM201gw1eIZi_Z6JleT4banvpna1i6XmjMhkEw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 464px; height: auto;"><br>(Am I boring you with single track roads pictures? This one leads to our next destination on the Isle of Skye)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_8a8d_ca5c_3287_6e07" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81q-mPJxlLkrbA3PHD5r1QuZilKZFbrXOfkoK7AsmD-vnhlGPVBZwbbTN7e5ICMkfJJBLPcuDwhpJHTHMTSHVtFmy6GqaQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 465px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Greshornish House in Edinbane - never saw that village)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_c812_af6f_5187_ebca" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81oF2_cWylcUUPhP2NQtrBpd8eOsq-bigEHu5ARKAUfw0_imBWN_BtogKcTlehlU7DtXYHvPzixVtmLC_643Jxrhd88SLg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 449px; height: auto;"><br>(Beautiful Dinners)<br><br></div><br><img id="id_63a9_520d_44c5_3099" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81rNOu4MYcmwIDz1nXHUW3VkuaXnH7qnxwbdc2P1NXHyb9AwRcyzR7mtFYKCFeNfYPqi53shV5nAkyJpk3lLCy4y4EHzhw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 421px; height: auto;"><br>(Wonderful place to relax)<br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">As I was privileged to drive the treacherous crossover trip back from Applecross, where she tried, unsuccessfully, to not give me driving lessons, we ventured onto the Isle of Skye, mentioned in the opening song of every Outlander series episode, and drove to the other end of the isle, where we lodged for 4 nights at the Greshornish House in Edinbane, a former country home of clearly wealthy Scots, nicely hidden at the end of a lane frequented by wandering sheep above a wide Loch. Places like these offer breakfast lunch and dinner, as there is nothing in the vicinity to be found, unless you wanted to dine at a 2 star Michelin restaurant 40 minutes away in a 20 home one street fishing village, from where we undertook at 6.30 am a full day boat trip to the Island of St Kilda. Another adventure that Sandee invited me to do on my own if such an opportunity comes up in future trips. But about that a few paragraphs below this one.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_98b9_8897_a316_7d74" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81q1RFXW05S50G1FvzPktWgEXeRSdGAu3K5aSXwyibrCzwYH3coevzxurU0CmhCtxBx8s3yktExJepzEQNzkYhKCmyNv3w" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 464px; height: auto;"><br>(On our way to the tour boat to St Kilda we found the Michelin Star restaurant)<br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_64be_bb81_db08_4fc" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81qUpxIGG1jNzVWhY9AEAjN3GvCnapTMcgdN3WoV5HPNR39u31LTJ785T6desWcJgU5xVONTnWhbgghvjm5rrFge00EpjA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 440px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Dunvegan Castle, Hugh Macleod lives upstairs)</div><img id="id_e975_2ad4_e977_ae8b" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81rapeIMJuYXKgc5EVdjFy8gyKdlelfo1csmaRcMT4eHxJuslwWngq4nBRgRYxavbwJ5CFzfk-57fS3LjD-fGb-fn3m85A" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 342px; height: auto;"><br>(Views from 2nd floor)<br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">This area belongs to the Macleod Clan a famous clan in Scotland, who did not partake in the battle of Culloden but sided politically with the English government. Their castle Dunvegan is stil inhabited by the 30th chief of the clan, Hugh Magnus MacCleod. We took the tour of the castle and watched a video spoken by Hugh Magnus, who at that moment had most likely lunch at the top floor in his private quarters.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_e34_a078_ccc9_7d55" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81oKVCN1HV7DY88S4eoFhEcRt4MZDK6a8A6UwtnjGR6YyzBagLtJwPb9DjG7y4rXpy3UBwit--oYmsEZHCP8BgtAx8e8" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 471px; height: auto;"><br>(First view of the stacks surrounding the the main island of St Kilda)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_b338_d2ef_436_6989" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81ozjw-i8c8NBAeRQk6qYGW3co-W2feXUTi-SGC7ZtoeCk5aF8ZMP9cL-QntGovmoFX3u2dlh3mq2A5y_oo6LYj_SzBjZA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 525px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Receding sight of Isle of Skye islets as we travel 4 hours towards St Kilda)</div><img id="id_c76f_2e52_1e1f_83fe" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81psuk4tadoOVtD-YTMY0lsdgn361NKklCMmejzhSqnTz8XQFf-p6fVTzD9Ed9QgRYwPPo7crZjZW9dv6xcYgoZ-MnT0fw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 506px; height: auto;"><br>(Arrived at long last)<br><br><span style="font-size: x-large;">That same Hugh is owner of the Island of St Kilda, the remotest part of the British Isles, some 41 miles/66 kilometers west of the Outer Hebrides, all alone in the Atlantic Ocean.</span></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_3a6e_8283_80a3_2160" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81pHtQMHwbawJWiVRZrA-10byqLnmbsGFYV2BiZshuQApOb1qSo2jz1QWYAksfDdnHw-lrA_6x7VtA3-hbks5sx8aU7GiA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 512px; height: auto;"><br>(landing shortly)<br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_eb58_7ea1_f43d_245" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81qXSYvzSvgtvtMWsqXRiMtLmK_wow0U99D1_d2ouy1h3F6vTO6A3dv69uR8HTaKpSkE_50Um2yFmONo1r6pqcuGX030" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 536px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(It is beyond amazing to wonder beyond unchanged history frozen in time)</div><br><img id="id_9d38_a73f_ab44_f9d6" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81qOAAl3uU-jWMehMAM4wU62A8PH0cK-OZdOfbcOZIydZh3kcvpDAktgDFpKmP_iVOzyKnjVc9Kd7Rsy7Gwh4KtUoaBmZg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 491px; height: auto;"><br>(There is a research team keeping daily records for each other)<br><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Its islands have exceptional cliffs and sea stacs, the most important seabird breeding station in northwest Europe, with a famous story of a 1930 evacuation of its native population, bringing to a close an extraordinary story of human survival who inhabited these isles for over 2000 years.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_bd91_f5db_c009_60cc" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81rEz01fI8GzbwiKmrQLeOoJvzKSaly6MpmMfrF-iSoIF1a1VBalV6td9307nV15MFry67Kgv4DcVOKCFg_pQlLB33zwkA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 531px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Stone built “Cleits” ventilated well and were used to store eggs and seabirds)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Here is the Wikipedia story for those who are wanting to know why I needed to go: </font></div><div><a href="https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/St_Kilda,_Scotland">https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/St_Kilda,_Scotland</a></div><div><br></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_1dc1_dc3a_2322_4632" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81pLkkIWqnvTYUvjai1ItaFk619l-XUkhwYrScPvKJqLxiowtaUK5UCI-24nsr78vRrYUqV5MsYA98BCHU2sfD1s0Qxosw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 534px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Rocks were the building material on the island till better imported housing was provided mid 1800)</div><br><br><span style="font-size: x-large;">I cherished that Wikipedia story even more after I visited and roamed the main island now “scarred” with an ugly research building. The resident scientists live in the original homes of the islanders, so many are not accessible to us tourists.</span></div><div><font size="5">Our boat had 11 tourist who undertook the 8 hour round trip, allowing us 3 hours to roam the main island. I have pictures galore. During the castle visit my eye caught a picture with thousands of dead birds on the beach of St Kilda. The Chief of the MacCleod clan sent each year his steward to collect the taxes due, most often paid by the thousands of fulmar birds known for their high oil content. I relished this visit roaming between the silent remains of a lost culture. But as I mentioned Sandee* afterwards and during the boat trip told me to please enjoy during any of our future trips certain destinations by myself, allowing her a day of relaxation in reading a book. *Editors Privilege - It was 8 hours of a very rough sea crossing in cold wet weather with 3 hours ashore to see an Island that was easily toured in one. </font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_ab34_bb12_6450_1fc2" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81ov_kvVl29YlvY0zkvip8lNNDq6CCuDnHp32g_rAKLs-umNjJYhqQLElutOtA2GS6NC5HQVDtUELgFtFsuQrAMF2j5O1A" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 526px; height: auto;"><br>(Hotel Schloss Roxburghe surrounded by a golfcourse and park)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_fbd8_6be7_3789_9f9f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81pZFNYXKv-BoSPx2DTqWRSG9ctWW7Ox6q7TKs_mOIryg8XYjtpIJuA8xuLpXRSjEamUz8JsfkZZyy_F3UySuN9vPOPj" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 536px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(View from our room)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_7c88_bc7_60ca_f0bb" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81oiIoasVw92pCOovXo7D4DoLpTTFQ7_27asRzT5FBHWd7HbVtnyT9AaACebDzGqupEzGyRyVDQQzAe6-t-CyOm06k4EUw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 531px; height: auto;"><br>(The small town of Roxburghe is a royal burgh, with a 40 plus year old Duke, the 11th in the lineage)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_5e63_3b86_99ea_7d30" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81o57OrMavXvX0RR0sZQR_YvwGaDGP7nP-Rf70itfHIk388FgmjCzpKE4pE1aVHgdg5f0Jj7QlM5EHd26Xk7YIC3RC4ziw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 469px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Remnants of Kelso Abbey one of the richest medieval border abbeys) </div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Our final 4 days were spent in border area below the Hadrian wall in a beautiful Castle Hotel Schloss Roxburghe on the outskirts of Roxburghe.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_d7a9_d906_4dfe_c537" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81pNZ8v85XN9UDZGsN5lIeIL42HFDVaM5BzN8T3hDCoNsQ25NA6D682SullqX_4tbqZTUE4Cd1fV2LLD5L76AGVDkF4W8Q" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 788px; height: auto;"><font size="5"><br></font></div><div style="text-align: center;">(I would be remiss if I did not give you final parting shot of the everlasting mystical essence of the Scottish Highlands)</div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">We undertook a few half day trips to neighboring towns and recovered from our “wilder Scotland” travails.</font></div><div><font size="5">As always: May the pictures paint a better story than my ramblings.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_f0a3_ea5b_8bb3_62ee" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AFGJ81pN0AckPIt2e-WLSUIchi3fBeXtLfHo05PnG__3Y_EQyuFWBeXl22_R69pNfr6EAMJu0e6j6SeNnuVdzcEOtJ5zm-Ourw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 498px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(On our last Sunday a service in the Roxburghe Church of Scotland parish)</div><br><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><br></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font><div class="y0NFKc" style="color: rgb(104, 29, 168); text-decoration: none; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.1); padding: 15px 16px 12px; outline: 0px; font-family: -apple-system, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; display: inline !important; margin-top: -12px;"><div class="OSrXXb NJS5vf RNQ5ae" style="overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; padding-right: 40px; letter-spacing: 0.1px; display: inline !important;"><div class="d8lRkd OSrXXb WQnrNe MUxGbd lyLwlc aLF0Z" style="overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; padding-top: 1px; margin-bottom: 11px; white-space: nowrap; color: rgb(32, 33, 36); display: inline !important;"><span class="yIn8Od" style="align-items: center; display: inline-flex; width: 696px;"><span class="wbJOMb" style="display: inline !important; flex-direction: column; min-width: 0px;"><br></span></span></div></div></div></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div>Two retirees and their travel storieshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13942287905877288793noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9052023657534142840.post-90238019439898188362023-04-03T13:32:00.001-04:002023-04-03T13:34:25.347-04:00Malta, A Dive into Medieval Times<div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_3c28_f5b0_51be_1374" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/V0auizpN1G2XSXS6ZZ0mVVAm0lZvx6mTdB0z2WI61rup6zmfdrBQ-0jWkgzIOMJ9-4U" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 668px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(A view from the Mediterranean of the fortress city of Valetta)</div> <div><br></div><div><font size="5">There is always something magical about a city, let alone an island that precedes Christianity, but which history is shaped by Christ’s followers.</font></div><div><font size="5">Not only is the Apostle Paul front and center in this small island nation, the Crusades although never started from here have left not only wealth, but also a wealth of stories to be told to visitors as well as to the citizens of Malta alike.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_9f52_bb07_8703_1151" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/icTMu4jDPst4SAU4pWTKAuC2qS-ER-NgUBefNKfg2z71-DHJujdiyLrlzaPj-_0hAB0" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 788px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">(This is the view of Valetta from the other- the harbor side- seemingly less protected, but to see this you must have breached the harbor entry defenses)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><img id="id_5b1e_2700_7984_7366" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/qzvgFLricozEbYqsKNXXsEj4O_eAA8pZ93t2eVu43MJ4b62PJsy3NukVuuERXlJs7Js" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 277px; height: auto;"><br>(Our daily climb to the main streets of the city)<br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_783f_9b61_cc07_e911" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/S-NWXKWJRGiCCj12gn06p5__oaBhjjeQ_vOMzEFfj8juJSv1L3iPIRC7qbVe5vGHrkA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 362px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(This poster-like sign seems to protect crossing cats</div><div style="text-align: right;"> over the more often seen “children playing” sign)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">We landed at Malta International Airport on a hot July day and “enjoyed” that weather for the week we were in Valletta, the capital with only 6500 citizens out of half a million citizens this small island nation harbors. </span></div><div><font size="5">If you are not registered as living in this cobblestone rich city as a car owner, your free car access to the city is limited to 30 minutes, </font><span style="font-size: x-large;">monitored by cameras that take your license number and time of entry when crossing over the city limits. After 30 minutes the automatic electronic parking rate applies till the camera registers your leave time. So every licensed car owner is in the system and your bank account is linked for automatic withdrawal.</span></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><br><br><img id="id_a790_9e99_c5ed_3cf5" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/4Ne1aEc4RahVl6Wq4MbfeznPlbpFR6FCDvA72KulWmFvFfc1URKiqoyW8ny6XPl8gbo" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 402px; height: auto;"><br>(The Parliament building seen from the water)<br><br><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_a13b_2c4b_7405_5463" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/_n-P8PRPRPrKzsvpPMXmdzQzD2UnQxUQYKM7oyQaIF1ZbvrFROvkRUWCxdtmnydbQW4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 573px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Another view of this ochre colored fortress town)</div><br><span style="font-size: x-large;">This trip was COVID cancelled for 2 years several times via Airbnb, and during that period released from that organisation and booked with discount direct with the owner. Our penthouse apartment with large rooftop terrace gave us sweeping views across the harbor, and was a perfect place in the evening after being out and about during scorching days.</span></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_7038_33b_c2c0_65ab" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/fLRQtF2ezuUvCHw3x-_VW9h2u60i4nzqrzNBJgqkFPkqizJp_BK4kKqnRR-huEzCd1s" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 311px; height: auto;"><br>(Our guide Anthony and Me)<br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_eba9_50e8_81bc_c51f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/A73Y1k-PAhIBxzjR8IfcxnVUZwFFU0WFdi5jhCOYi7m-O65uL7DwQ3uSWOiaQTECOzk" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 298px; height: auto;"></div><div><br></div>(These buildings represent in a large part why Valetta became the Cultural Capital of Europe in 2018)</div><div><br></div><div><img id="id_4c1d_5612_968a_f93d" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/61tlDfK9bMombP-7OMbF66LKEPaimYgNZ7W4LoNHveCQN_xaZEs0YDAeI6Z6QFPGE6M" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="text-align: right; width: 334px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">We spent our first full day with our guide Anthony walking the city and visiting the major sites with him while being regaled with stories about the Maltese Knights Hospitallers of St John, its 8 langues and its various Grand Masters during the centuries.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><font size="5">As always here is the short story about their beginnings and their battle to survive til today:</font></div><div><br></div><div></div><div><a href="https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hospitaller_Malta" id="id_90cb_957b_63e6_ed82">https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hospitaller_Malta</a></div><div></div><div></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_4ae3_9a75_68fe_1aa1" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/Aj2VTT-AU0Y4s2BIU7zyRw3SRgMq6Ax1Qi0EIv_gtW70HZNUe3lTulSdz8qYlynuZZI" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 318px; height: auto;"><br>(St Paul himself in pure gold<u>)</u></div><div><u><br></u><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_6bf3_234c_2137_c177" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/KKVu_vKDdctAEa-8yJpyTnZHbefDAhK1qKFRm19WPT7yYmF7sUDVpJARj-Na_oAjkqc" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 360px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Just a simple chapel)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_6560_2de_c9f5_f1f3" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/OOZ8xJwub8MqxKD_VfzVnOw0OX0eA4iDGlWSNOG9s1GFUD9761M199npzfgTQaeyXQA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 788px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">(Chapel of the Langue of Castille, Leon and Portugal)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Since I do not want to dish up the story of this order here, but personally always dive into the history of places we visit, I give you a link that in a comprehensive manner presents the past to present timeline well.</font></div><div><br></div><div><a href="https://www.newadvent.org/cathen/07477a.htm" id="id_4573_86fd_4119_d7c5">https://www.newadvent.org/cathen/07477a.htm</a></div><div><br></div><div><font size="5">I would like to confine my story to the major sights we enjoyed in Malta and as always have the pictures do the talking.</font></div><div><font size="5">So here they are: </font></div><div><font size="5">Hal Saflieni Hypogeum</font></div><div><font size="5">St. John’s Co-Cathedral</font></div><div><font size="5">Knisja Nawfragju San Pawl Church</font></div><div><font size="5">Blue Grotto</font></div><div><font size="5">Medina </font></div><div><font size="5">The story about the George Cross, April 15 1942</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_b5af_9951_2b84_ab33" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/_-wMYoGFLcm1pdBGHs1wynCu0CGkqs1pvmUlG2fRnyi-7SG9T_ENrKzG65UAQfjywqw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 287px; height: auto;"><br>(Our boat tour about the George Cross)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_f763_6491_abe1_c630" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/1Gz4IX0WckXMxUw2NSZy_dcoChZvtMbhP74p5o9RONg3sDzrdXN2edGr_yQtxnX9XNk" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 287px; height: auto;"></div>(This watch tower has a special story: the watchman on duty had to tie one leg up, so he could not fall asleep as he would then fall over)<br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">1. Let’s start with the last item, how all citizens were awarded the George Cross by King George VI, at the advice of Prime Minister Churchill.</font></div><div><font size="5">We took a special 2 hour boat tour with about a hundred tourists and citizens organized by Heritage Malta the national agency for museums, conservation and cultural heritage, celebrating the 80st year of that momentous occasion for Malta.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_9aef_3111_fbdc_6983" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/ZzvSBaZwgt6tyhgpaxNjkG7P2jn8e742AtY4oqsdMLP8m4CQWEJm0uI4KG4ldnx4biE" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 428px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(This was where the British HQ was during WWII. Their main defense were </div><div style="text-align: center;">Obsolete Gloster Gladiator fighter planes, dubbed Faith, Hope and Charity and recruited Maltese militia)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><img id="id_6153_960d_3517_8aaa" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/UYraSuLwL3xuhUWqpjb4kBBg7Gq7F4TVUIl73YvS99_qhZTV0w6MAl59FMZsXPM2TWg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 788px; height: auto;"><br>(Picture from the non Harbor side of Valetta)<br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">From the beginning of World War II, the axis nations, in this case led by Mussolini’s army tried unsuccessfully to conquer Malta since it was strategically positioned in the Mediterrean Sea, defended by a small British RAF contingent and the Maltese citizenry. During our boat trip we heard many hilarious stories about the incompetence of the Italian Navy and Air Force.</span></div><div><font size="5">Let me post here a short article about the most bombed place on earth during WWII:</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><a href="https://airmalta.com/en/blog/malta/the-story-of-malta-s-george-cross-and-wwii#:~:text=The%20George%20Cross%20was%20awarded,the%20top%20left%2Dhand%20corner.">https://airmalta.com/en/blog/malta/the-story-of-malta-s-george-cross-and-wwii#:~:text=The%20George%20Cross%20was%20awarded,the%20top%20left%2Dhand%20corner.</a></div><div><br></div><div><font size="5">2. Hal Saflieni Hypogeum. Yesterday Sandee and I watched a show where a maligned expert went to a site on Java to describe a civilization that supposedly preceded the ice age having left a mysterious construction that seemingly was started 22000 years ago. Well on Malta an underground burial complex bears testimony to a lost civilization burying their dead between 4000 and 1500BC. In 1902 a mason was laying foundations for a few houses and discovered the top level of a 3 layer 500 sq meter Hypogeum (did not know this term before and looked it up), meaning underground temple or tomb. </font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_72a6_f942_5bde_c68b" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/Aa2bHDcyPR3YdhBxyXUPOiJHeJaWeiD459qt6b2gmYJhQq3qxyAS3g-0aaqsqFG6NEs" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 788px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">(Posters we saw before entering the Hypogeum)</div><img id="id_7779_72d8_689f_ad8f" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/WVl13b_7TKQC2CupsJ9T_6nl1A6XbvMyK-ia__qx34aw3K0ER0NCpWRDpr40yrrIHdc" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 788px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">(Maquette of the various chambers)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">Our small group of lucky entrance ticket carrying visitors who were not allowed to take pictures were given an amazing guided tour into these catacomb-like chambers, just below a row of nondescript homes in a quiet middle class neighborhood on the outskirts of Valletta. Again since there are no pictures I give you a 12 minute YouTube: (feel free to fast forward a few times as it might be too much information - our tour was half an hour underground)</span></div><div><br></div><div><a href="https://youtu.be/bcZucksD7rE" id="id_454e_a563_749b_a179">https://youtu.be/bcZucksD7rE</a></div><div><br></div><div><font size="5">3. St John’s Co-Cathedral was another monument we visited and were floored by, </font><span style="font-size: x-large;">literally, the floors were ornately decorated gravesites as we have never seen before.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_ba11_6f8a_7a83_586a" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/V6wltkYgfw06RyCrNlw5eCKHb52rSds-yRg7vtziHz0TV-DlAwUj3vj5ixBFrAs_d6o" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 386px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Modest entrance to the Co-Cathedral)</div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_9805_19b4_1130_1128" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-4rHB_HIjXL_LD_26mrR39SODoanL2V0FLQXO6V890qfUBjPMrwz02mOO3AvP8unqnQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 267px; height: auto;"><br>(Magnificent graves galore)<br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_20ff_84d8_3dd2_18c2" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/a1ytV96Z_MPyX1dFWPeVOSXuzhA78-tM9DBJ42H31yH8xCNEdT7LzCd-lH8m4rLazko" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 379px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(The total church floor exists of these gravesites)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_9487_9ed1_10d9_d5" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/FYCSzz1UtsHzDQvqMC3mrwRdu_t8fRhwhxAwDht3OxJbNiKInm3OBaZ4b3QCo2yymZQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 407px; height: auto;"><br> (Chapel of the Langue of Germany)<br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">But first I was curious to find out why this Cathedral was named Co-Cathedral. The answer was this: in the older town of Mdina (Medina for English speaking people) a smaller Cathedral shares the privilege of being the Seat of the Maltese Archdiocese with this Cathedral in Valletta. </span></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_2de7_4292_3133_b4cd" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/M4D493LROLOBZmhbSNHqZc0qpiASvOq2aFmV_x-deiXVLTzAIK_hmlzIKhsULjccAtY" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 314px; height: auto;"><br>(Grandmaster grave side in the wall)<br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_fe0e_6054_3e30_79b5" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/rmRW_9cmCmHbdyEI1jyZabC8goZa370-X-q_itY3kou2CClkDtfXrHOyf9nX7rka4xU" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 302px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Another Grandmaster opposite of him)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_ef63_e8e3_a820_bac0" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/bXnncfXJsLe-podqCK4xwkCdUGFa4BE9-h2WcbTfGiwO1_ZgDnt3d9xrW1JbFzXdMPk" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 406px; height: auto;"><br> (The Main Altar in the Apse of the Cathedral)<br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">This Cathedral and the history of the Order of St John are so interwoven and so fascinating one could write a book about it. The story of the order was a main reason to visit Malta and colorful Valletta, and definitely did not disappoint despite the heat.</span></div><div><font size="5">Back to the picture show here telling my story best, but the write up of its glorified history is best described in below link</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><a href="https://youtu.be/Gp_P7MuBSTE">https://youtu.be/Gp_P7MuBSTE</a></div><div><br></div><div><font size="5">During our first full day inValetta, when we met our guide Anthony he told us 2 things: one, to go early in the morning to the Cathedral before the tour buses come and second, Valetta never in its recorded history broke the 43 Celsius heat record, (he said 42.8C was recorded. It was an unseemly hot day when we met and I was sure it was hotter than 110F, as it certainly felt that way). </font></div><div><br><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_3079_d7b1_3bd5_6a9f" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/i2PsijcF0JsNVEVn3IxD_wwiuW3h8j2rrJeY3uY3BkNWqkvyu_F6DniEZ9SBKYvT2Xg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 438px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Walked in amazement over the colorful graves through Golden Arche</div><br><span style="font-size: x-large;">The compact cobblestone city with up and down stairway pedestrian streets, crossing the main avenues, most of them also pedestrian only, is one big tourist laden place with on the street level restaurants and bars occupying most of the inner city, (Valetta is Europe’s smallest capital - .24sq.mi/.61sq.km with less than 6500 registered inhabitants and 4025 multi purpose buildings) which gives you an idea of type of place you would visit if you ever have the opportunity.</span></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_1171_c21d_5d6d_21e2" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/_b9HWAXBj-nMHvB8bFvytcFa3cjqUkBh_MlvJx3_JFPqg-2OhPP_kxubEnCzelmXavw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 257px; height: auto;"><br>(Knisja Nawfragju San Pawl Church)</div><div><br></div><div><font size="5"><br></font><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_86e5_55cc_2253_2656" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/kr_mQQ-WkEMNpN969UUt6100qkqQpw4VmWPb1eMdOiX0Xg55wFNb69pRQz3VhUA32BY" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 418px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(This church is less opulent but full of treasures)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_5a81_717c_10c5_7407" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/V-ZillAxJL3jNVdOGc5dySCNlLYiYKcSY0AuTSZSW6GtXGTN5yT4umOj0c_2mzeFLOM" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 401px; height: auto;"><br>(Last supper mixed with the story of the foot washing)<br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">4. </font><span style="font-size: x-large;">Knisja Nawfragju San Pawl Church. (Which translates into Saint Paul Shipwrecked Church), was an accidental find when on the 3rd day, we, midmorning, climbed stairs to the center avenues, passing a badly maintained place and peering through the open door saw something like a nondescript chapel. We would have continued on were it not that an older gentleman who came out beckoning us to come in and visit. When we went through another door in the back of the room we gasped and found ourselves in a very ornate church. Here is a link to what we saw:</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><a href="https://youtu.be/mnR57cxT-I0">https://youtu.be/mnR57cxT-I0</a></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><font size="5">This was definitely a highlight during our visit. When we bought a bracelet for Sandee to match her two-tone watch, the 8th generation jewelry store owner Fabio Zampa told us that his family had been commissioned, since 1804, over the centuries to place gemstones in that church of sizes that would not be affordable anymore even to the Catholic Church. His family has been supplier to the Archdiocese for more than 200 years. </font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_17b1_f981_ea60_59e7" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/W3qT0KXc3F_98QuYqYmcXrzSvad6guJbujYCmHHQkD4TeFgb4NkbmwArN6g-HI65nic" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 534px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(This was not the only chandelier in the Church)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">5. On our 5th day in Malta our guide Anthony took us in his car for a day of touring the country side and the oldest city right in the middle of the island Mdina.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_d173_9675_b8e2_cbdb" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/4MudY7EgSLnU7fXpmp6sHvasqn0NZVNGnMNzUiIenDGrjgpwjMiS5MqqD2Wd8t-rQyg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 788px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">(Marsaskala panoramic view)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">First we drove to the fishing villages Marsaskala and Marsaxlokk. (The word Marsa means Bay). Unlike traditional villages, because of Ottoman attacks in the 1600’s the Grandmaster fortified both villages to protect that side of the island. The defensive towers have been in use and kept being restored throughout the ages into the 19th century and gives these villages a unique charm.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_73cc_6ef1_6392_f0fe" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/Fth1impZ-hFiYHZVhK61FNeGFJlDLlf9SHbjjJ_zoxV96OQl9TzQe2jPonCto-4FbWQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 788px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">(View of the island direction Valetta from the south east side of the Island)</div><br><span style="font-size: x-large;">From there we circled clockwise the island coast to the most wellknown tourist trap in Malta: the Blue Grotto. Of course Anthony convinced us we should take the tour as he would await our return with an espresso somewhere. Standing in line with 50 or so tourists we inched up to the ticket office and than herded into little 8 person boats, captained by local entrepreneurs who at the end of the day cash in their collected tickets. In about 20 minutes they bring us into shallow grottos where they point at the water that has defined blue color patches. We could have done without this, but are now in the hallowed group of tourists that went to the Blue Grotto in Malta.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_68e0_dd7_308d_176" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/wNt0y8QtPT_m381kEq5rA_NT1tB6hMQLn-fh26WUY0mSZCV06MT0sQgFGhL9zJ26JgU" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 332px; height: auto;"><br>(In line for the Blue Grotto boat)</div><div><br><img id="id_43f9_c169_a6b8_b253" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/V10ssN12UY7rw4D8F1OaM7-sFB3Wj00PCxpIr0ovIJthd1xlFwG8YdygfA1L3Ja3NF8" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 266px; height: auto;"><br>(One of the Blue Grottoes)<br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_ad20_5d2_3f71_2ad4" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/G9HIcY5DFzplsdQQVayKnxIuALtaDc3_ypCvlb51WIm5y8zv7wPbTgM_jrV8ABF3iX0" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 292px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(The famous Blue Waters)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_d7f3_4f43_92d3_51b1" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/FuS3P47l8eicV5ekmMZtPjZ9ekX8IggVM3Z4i-ZVuR7vIAFDOFCr1EEsRWYeZTpDROc" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 352px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(view from within)</div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">When we reached our final stop that day I realized how much this island has become a tourist centric place and that is not a criticism, but a mere fact. Mdina/Medina showed me this the best.</span></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_27b5_eb2b_f337_f9c2" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/lFqKdooThnxvljA0wLXdQFpdOnWkE7OeMy5kJ-vKDu_EUU4tbYR6jEImZQvnySdNZA8" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 243px; height: auto;"><br>(Entry Gate Mdina, crossing a moat)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_e163_c0e2_edf3_bade" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/9UD3YX2NJeO8R63KehMZKgCM9FfgFe0rn706_GRIkrEwUO8KoUEXAEh0_HTpvbvGV5c" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 356px; height: auto;"><br>(Now a hotel, but in History the Palace of the Cardinal)<br><br></div><br><img id="id_8f50_87d9_5edc_ce4f" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/_S6ggSsf0FHjPySgc2CFElD6ebDiJYXg7dR1W7340pmJIBjucHHbxqLjkzKCSzmu1pk" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 273px; height: auto;"><br>(The narrow streets of Mdina)<br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_a92c_a3ed_f41b_2552" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/BPdlcEqQi4ypTQDu-S3BXsjDgsYuCT3QXax506k1xMtGmNpjC1-lpY5FU78LJnpn8Vg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 314px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Front door of one of the few hundred citizens)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">The towns of Rabat (a town we did not visit) and Medina have a long varied history:</font></div><div><font size="5">The Phoenicians settled here in the 8th century followed by Romans, Byzantines and Arabs. As this former capital sits in the center of the island on a high hill it has gone from 10,000 plus large to now 300 citizens with nearby Rabat (Arabic for suburb) as the major town today.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_f375_57e0_2d63_f0a3" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/iEQi1etYFB_rr75zWB4bpNu5uIhkKjQBp5x741lvldUU_KIw9H3kWt9uh7eZsHVckm8" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 269px; height: auto;"><br>(The other St John Cathedral)<br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_56e3_2593_2e31_33ea" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/CSWYFGyiwaKI0Nhs9wFc-1Yf1mjGHZ2tb3cVrxxX268Xtq46vw_NZZzaxjKaQvAFl6o" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 324px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(The dome unsupported engineering feat)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_3255_46d1_fb59_ef29" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/rpfhUxXkcVcYkT75XkYJsf1W3ftTni-b-ZVa2XvfJFaKljoHdqfdLlEEK-9qwbOLlG8" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 300px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(The Italian bomb that did not explode, another story </div><div style="text-align: right;">of a cathedral miracle, something Catholics are very good in telling)</div></div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><div><font size="5">The walled city of Medina is filled with baroque style buildings and when crossing the bridge and entering the gate it becomes rapidly evident that with exception of the 300 citizens locked in behind their beautiful ornate front doors, there is, just like Venice, no beating heart to this town, just a beautiful place, frozen in time. And more than 750,000 visitors walk it’s streets each year in a town of a 1/3sq mile size.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_a851_3366_99a7_6b05" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/G2iWyuWjyXWANfN5UXgv9MUiVbwMfH_LxzrysHeDBAxfIGIg_ANqIT0JPTPYaNupC6A" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 788px; height: auto;"><br>(St Jerome Writing, by Caravaggio, a violent, touchy and provocative man left many paintings in Malta)</div><div><br></div><img id="id_15d7_3c96_7714_d03e" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/DzH1t4ip-GvCalAJ6cF10F1VuXb9Qbluf47pAJMMtw6r_7M1Cw5N7osU9l7W-8vJqZY" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 788px; height: auto;"><br>(The beheading of John the Baptist, had a separate place in the Oratory of the Co-Cathedral)<br><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">A footnote to the above paintings of Caravaggio: of the many stories about him and the reasons why he had to “relocate” often in his lifetime, his stay in Malta brought him the induction into the order of the Knights of Malta, because of the wonderful works of art he created there, despite the fact that he had no wealth or famous lineage. But he screwed it up again by getting into a brawl during a party at the house of an aristocratic knight in which that knight was seriously wounded and a door of that house battered down. He was thrown into jail and would have been convicted in court, were it not that he mysteriously escaped.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_ab_bc6d_f91f_b2f5" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/GS9l0SKASFfKL95czksbMd6n1aXoZxrWiWN1WvbfnxKql_hT4tOI2YKWBpCu8gbfQIM" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 788px; height: auto;"><br>(Painting with likewise dark and light as Caravaggio painted by Unknown artist in a quiet corner of the cathedral)<br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Although we must have missed many other worthwhile sights in Malta, we will always fondly look back at this trip despite the high temperatures, most likely because of a beautiful well airconditioned apartment, where as the sun was setting we lounged on the big roof terrace and toasted each other thankfully for the never ending privilege of travel.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"> </span></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div>Two retirees and their travel storieshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13942287905877288793noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9052023657534142840.post-70217920682372665362022-08-08T09:11:00.001-04:002022-08-08T09:11:48.333-04:00Seven weeks in Oregon Part 2 <p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><br></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; width: 788px; height: auto;"><img id="id_8125_60ba_4eff_6a7c" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/dLr3oHUKBdSY7T-EyI3ovxPcvp0Vq4kitcYPlRc-qAHPIt3cSrmo15AyFfO6rozDqzM" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 788px; height: auto;"></span><br><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;">(Peaceful Peddling in Silence)</span></div><br><br><span class="s1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><font size="4">The next location we were in love with was Klamath Falls Lake. We stayed at the very rural Harrimans Resort. Very memorable here was having a canoe for half a day peddling all by our</font></span><span class="s1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 18.36px; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"> lonely selves on this beautiful lake, where we and birds were the only ones making noise. </span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-size: 18.36px; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><br></span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><font size="4"><span style="width: 350px;"><img id="id_c0c5_9a0a_1d42_d72a" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/6W5hIVX2_Ler4fShPyF5KVaCk4eYdWHk4v4BWYQNmle0EN0ePRDwqCaJ6GdRmVuZLrQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 350px; height: auto;"></span></font><br>(White Pelicans we rarely see on the East coast)<br></span><br></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"></p><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_baf7_96b7_78a3_d31d" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/wMd47E4fpS5MAR5SlM8b34-SAsqmVEBz1ncspmqmmB3JtaBfMKdWS2rn7jdz_piwx8Y" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px; width: 283px; height: auto;"></div><span class="s1"><div style="text-align: center;"><font face="UICTFontTextStyleBody">(Our famous bald Eagle)</font></div><div style="text-align: center;"><font face="UICTFontTextStyleBody"><br></font></div><div style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px; text-align: right;"><img id="id_28b5_9268_6e0d_896" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/8VN6g7FViL-QGERD9NFZBk5fWpy1BQlrsd687MYd_EjMMDyAncyhdanJyVb59ZebBH0" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 435px; height: auto;"></div></span><div style="text-align: right;">(More and more pelicans)</div><br><p></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><font size="4"><span style="width: 304px;"><img id="id_4fc1_8dfd_8d3b_ef60" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/dYecezlsKs8iJ0dZHvUlkI-P1GRUaBDnA17k0mM-WMszvBkXz6uvBqXSivSgV1fFGdk" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 304px; height: auto;"></span></font><br>(Some type of wading bird)<br></span><br></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-size: 18.36px; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">One of the discoveries there was the phenomena of drifting clumps of so-called elusive Mares Eggs, which only exist in waters that have freshwater springs with a very specific temperature range. The many clumps of these blue green algae are only found in a few places around the world, and not much is known about them.</span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-size: 18.36px; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><br></span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"></p><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_486d_2910_6a7e_ed5c" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/x9LT00GJrycJl-BOBvXRfW84UBG3QMIPixzG6xS9blnVktqksN0mtMiL8S88VNsXXkI" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px; width: 566px; height: auto;"></div><span class="s1"><div style="text-align: center;"><font face="UICTFontTextStyleBody">(A clump Mare Eggs)</font></div></span><br><p></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px; text-decoration: underline;"><a href="https://www.opb.org/video/2020/07/27/hunting-for-mares-eggs/" id="id_949b_e4c6_328c_7e5e">https://www.opb.org/video/2020/07/27/hunting-for-mares-eggs/</a></span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"> Crossing the California border from here, we wanted to visit a Japanese internment camp, which was not open that day, but after reading about that time in our WWII American history, it is still impressive to just stare at its remains from the other side of the fence.</span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"><br></span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><font size="4"><span style="width: 392px;"><img id="id_e471_7bab_c9eb_cdd1" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/RpNZ5OBwfkfcWiUJQOnx6h-4b1dTHbrWE7MBrlwrDkXzXZIxRi_T4TfnYjqOiB-4miE" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 392px; height: auto;"></span></font><br>(Remnants of internment camp in desolate northwest)<br></span><br></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"></p><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_87d9_4b24_16f_3f53" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/ihx0S8Yt3sNivesuOxV14lVwoGn2zcKuVVQxtIiVqvbrQGWue9hyvQ5XHo6A8XJhnbE" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px; width: 406px; height: auto;"></div><span class="s1"><div style="text-align: right;"><font face="UICTFontTextStyleBody">(Fire and drought brings these types of cry for help)</font></div></span><br><p></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">And then onwards to the Lava Beds National Monument, and during our ride towards it, we saw a strange colored formation of clouds in the sky. After turning a corner in the road we saw far away back in Oregon the large plumes of a rekindled forest fire, as a few hours earlier the Antelope forest fire had jumped the line and found new “food” to lick. The pictures tell the story.</span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><font size="4"><span style="width: 288px; height: auto;"><img id="id_1a4f_add2_a699_b3c5" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/uvqfpN3UpFVff5nF2ocm9o-QXi5WIXJEEZ658UUKM5_0--RaO0hwonmrxK3Wb7IZIXs" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 288px; height: auto;"></span></font><br>(Antelope fire clouds above and below)</p><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_6d90_a0d8_64c_b988" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/JYLrb0YilMj7F8PJnHnHIX_QKhfmKQn2ARyhNCVFddteX1IaRKod13ni4IQPwXfnx5g" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.4px; width: 287px; height: auto;"></div><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><br></p><img id="id_4691_7357_9af5_3eee" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/KuirKEoNJKwt8VmVqc-m8Nk8M-IanZqR3G_p2-Df0rPslX7Oco_geXkfTUK576-NLQA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 347px; height: auto;"><br>(We entered this lava tunnel and surveyed the field from above and below)<div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_386d_d4ea_a2db_9385" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/PwU0M2mZe_CQjPiwukrNKGp656cg4mlsde8ui35LyHJ-QRzNonAFiiyEBxkpua8GOK8" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 387px; height: auto;"></div><br><br><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;">We witnessed throughout our trip a lot of forest that was truly and fully burned and which now stood as a silent army of skeletons, </span> <span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;">being the sentinels guarding bare hills awaiting new life some day. We passed base camps for the firefighters who return there after being on the frontlines for recovery time. The devastation of the “fires in the west”, which we only saw on tv before, became very real during our trip.</span><div><font face="UICTFontTextStyleBody" size="4"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><br></span></font></div><div><img id="id_3c73_2c49_9eda_1f13" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/KqcfE-hbKaQRds7eqxvFNrMJRg-K-PdZOX4Ybmp4SHF3QICtMSwI3UgmYu7BgdRqjlI" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 321px; height: auto;"><br>(What is leftover after the ravaging fires)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_84f6_e869_218b_69a6" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/3QFvEBV-PVNA4Iwlue1nhiDC5aBkZJBkfhqInP4MuQC0Q0alMff90yiMAahhs2cxp0Y" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 275px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Boiling tree saps slide down the trunk and gels into these “bulbs”)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><img id="id_7f64_4fe6_e10_a98d" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/bfKl5NMYioTBlUJlCOp52CO4jO_CjPxuxLxB-qR-5LAoUIiK94yLj0obPHIw0Wf1w4I" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 365px; height: auto;"><br>(Base camp for fire fighters)<br><font face="UICTFontTextStyleBody" size="4"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><br></span></font><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">The next vivid memory that comes to mind are the Painted Hills, near the township of Mitchell, where two ladies own a number of very colorful houses appropriately called “Painted Hills”.</span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"><br></span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"></p><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_5a61_e117_3ed2_418d" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/OcrM71lyJQmOnVVu6Ghbk65eLRUQD3isUwFBGXp4SrcG5eQUJKZLPnIm8usnUuuyHpM" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.4px; width: 368px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Our Painted Hills cottage, as maligned by Sandee)</div><p></p><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_f61_825_8480_336d" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/4EuzfYakGPPa9oEDn4HD13fqwOsRP-GVRXMxUu5W55kKVPD6K1lGAaoPZlQ45yv9Lkw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 295px; height: auto;"></div></div><div style="text-align: right;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Our colorful parking lot)</span></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_ff93_85cd_ccc8_8e6b" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/dR7HLR5lPDZQ1i4V8v8t-fZLD32MxKp2z5yJBvats1y6mrUMajt04ecMaeN0lhdXZSo" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 312px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Cute- did I already say colorful? - garden)</div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span><br><div style="text-align: left;"><img id="id_4786_12ac_c6bd_f78d" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/vIUUUqLHMllVsF040N0f3FT6SzYwyWl9EeGhRXbO4qOkpfnjLNgQKJLMTCtDmwogZbE" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.4px; width: 302px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: left;">(Fresh from our garden)</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br></div><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;">Ours had an outhouse, which was the first thing Sandee noticed, when entering the premises. Something she loves to regale anytime we talk about our trip to friends and family and even to strangers. The house had very sensitive facilities, reason why the ladies provided an alternate option. The fruit filled garden was a delight to linger in during our late afternoon imbibing. And we definitely had our required daily fruit intake.</span><br><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"><br></span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><img id="id_b696_65a_3038_2d8c" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/YIK9rUUSTWf1vIro1y6Ot5VSAZIAmTeqsnCpSEvlf9OOmscytKDBXeuVpurVAP9neH8" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 342px; height: auto;"><br>(Painted Hills)</p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><br></p><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_1d4e_67ae_ed95_8ff2" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/u_veldwfh37qcPHthaP256bwMroCaleb2VTTtpWqvurF74OWeTnNlujL-aJgrBJ8Np8" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.4px; width: 381px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(More Painted Hills above and below)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_f820_5951_6432_a788" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/HL2Il3My6wuPbkKcPjquzWYqvb_KYJPzltnDWXCMmemSZ2nDJq8O7t3o_CdSNWhbvXs" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.4px; width: 366px; height: auto;"></div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_7194_8377_8b9a_1348" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/yUXLG6X_VLE2zz2ZWammFUyyPD3Tiy1qQrIplFVc9vbs3VRD4BGD9biCTAUiE2Px3nU" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.4px; width: 399px; height: auto;"></div><br><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">The local brewery/restaurant owner told us that our presence increased the population to 128, which improved his bottom line considerably.</span><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">As many of you readers know, we visited painted hills in the far west corners of China and we found out that the local painted hills here in Oregon were often visited by Chinese tourists.</span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><img id="id_9815_6581_bcff_cc9" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/fNF-fdOTJ705YTZG_1eHmwJIdMGLCM7GeUsLIP-ZJVnrmWR57Jjz9OEijOr8qtDYa64" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 398px; height: auto;"><br>(In comparison here 2 pictures from the Chinese painted mountains in de Zhangye area)</p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><br></p><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_b7f1_90e2_fe6a_a050" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/W0rRCtkisOD2EmBaLuvYxWcL6AExSZnogIL5Wpk6cq1DKqfn9uQC2qdrUdYitioo_7U" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.4px; width: 427px; height: auto;"></div><br><br><p></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">My next favorite visit was the town of Walla Walla, mentioned in the first Oregon blog as end station for some of the Oregon Trail frontier families. This town actually lies in the State of Washington, a booking error I made, as the intent was to stay in Oregon for the seven weeks we were here, but alas I found out about my error after the non refundable deposit on my booking there was made.</span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"><br></span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"></p><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_761b_b6c4_766a_e5e0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/joyfpnrxBTd8RLUazFjY9CfbKdxmPxB9hMruJjdgluynD7d1B-c8ScJ6RA6uFXLSyJ8" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px; width: 457px; height: auto;"></div><span class="s1"><div style="text-align: center;"><font face="UICTFontTextStyleBody">(Chef Colleen and her dishes in which we partook preparing)</font></div><div style="text-align: center;"><font face="UICTFontTextStyleBody"><br></font></div></span><img id="id_7137_a00_5e17_a82f" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/AXkmY8w3vm2tmzC1dN_AEmPrs5QAEjVhiYhCZy2nME-QIcJ4vks_UJpNwy0XYIGMQAo" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 205px; height: auto;"><br><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_5c12_5629_de_e160" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/wOtLf0spluRugu-zazfcuksyX4k3n_50YcuJaDBWNaqUwih1nYqLisgjEegpEnzcbRM" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 177px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Tasted better than it looks)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_5088_4292_32be_60f" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/odLYa0xclFj6TkWMf9UDsW4ZJMXlAauP0ZXjNB9FOM7ThfY4TvjSJ-uFFFR39snjoSU" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 218px; height: auto;"></div><br><br><p></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">It was however the most beautiful lodging of this trip and we enjoyed it even more because we had a local chef here cook us a salmon meal supposedly freshly caught from the Columbia River that day. We enjoyed “helping” Chef Colleen Farnham and the three of us enjoyed sharing a glass of wine during the preparation and of course also with her meal afterwards.</span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"><br></span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><span class="s1"><font face="UICTFontTextStyleBody" size="4"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; width: 788px;"><img id="id_8204_dec_9e12_48fa" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/XrKKSyEuDyIsUz6ySe5fpvy4YC7Wsl-P3K1sWOTxJBSp4Lihd52pKXJcpPrkYjuL5ik" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 788px; height: auto;"></span></font><br></span></p><div style="text-align: center;"><font face="UICTFontTextStyleBody"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;">(Beautiful surroundings of Walla Walla)</span></font></div><br><p></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">From Walla Walla we took during the two following days a trip to the town of Pendleton, which is famous for their underground tunnels and the annual cattle roundup. We happened to be there while both events were keeping locals and tourists entertained. We did not witness the actual roundup which had taken place in the days leading up to the Saturday we visited, but the streets were filled with booths selling their Fair wares. </span><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"><br></span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><img id="id_ddfb_48e_aaef_7983" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/eWYdlRLwYdMiFGQEiIWhx2G8AhHNeTqYrQn_X21K4N5BkLSbN3QKNDeFGsOPx3vb98g" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 361px; height: auto;"><br>(Our COVID rejecting group and guide)</p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><br></p><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_6b87_5cc4_5a66_afc4" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/Zich3JpMtsR8EgR63_j9kj6Eowwv-jf6oZqi-bYnUqXDiCc7OfBQtjiMY5P-T3eV5Rs" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.4px; width: 303px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Intro talk about underground bar)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_245b_244c_3b35_d867" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/8WqwhOmVM-laojUek649YJ_yuvjXqChvzMi5tWNSmycAtN-wI269RHZwbeovKcw9iLk" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.4px; width: 342px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(The tunnels were seemingly endless )</div><img id="id_73bd_9fd7_e2b2_72a8" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/k8GN6sezTo_8l4VvBR4U6UBT6zD0Q3cZj1pxqTwE4vNenE0RB9rijJ5ebrohtHsPK6A" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 371px; height: auto;"><br>(Another bar scene along our underground walk)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_c1d_e93d_d1a6_e135" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/FIwnStzi6psmhUbj7iWSJCPQYWnu5QBzRodcBIT61uQb04DnyyPJ0uCwLCEV3IPxysw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.4px; width: 403px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(A manufacturing site with sleeping arrangement for Chinese workers)</div><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"><br></span><p></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">It should be noted that the group of 10-12 people we joined for our underground tour were not wearing masks, unlike the 2 of us and despite the signs on the door requiring masks. This very Trump oriented part of Oregon (we ate in diners proudly stating on their walls “God is my Savior, Trump is my President”) does not enforce CDC guidelines, evidenced by the fact that the ticket sales ladies and the guides were not wearing masks either. Defiance seems to be the rule in this part of the country. </span><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"><br></span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"></p><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_e932_c6f6_f72f_15aa" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/TBIHmiXrsnh2Iq83G956QPdzoPt-Ytm2ps0iFfkM_Tzax0HUCdFi1wTaB0t9hIGvZc8" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px; width: 501px; height: auto;"></div><span class="s1"><div style="text-align: center;"><font face="UICTFontTextStyleBody">(Statue of Stella Darby, beloved brothel madam of Pendleton)</font></div><div style="text-align: center;"><font face="UICTFontTextStyleBody"><br></font></div><div style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px; text-align: center;"><img id="id_507e_37c3_dbbb_1e4e" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/bsRyswsOK2pQFcowhHURCTNUeayEXvL_qKmEeITqoIAPy1fqz_jasJYPNmaSeL6nURA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.36px; width: 342px; height: auto;"></div><div style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; text-align: center;">(Right above the tunnels Stella ran her brothel in one of the larger </div><div style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; text-align: center;">more luxurious downtown buildings)</div><br><div style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px; text-align: right;"><img id="id_378b_feed_710_b4fb" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/qunmnZE8RZyaPc5ajBT1O0VLTVMqR_wUmASM05aHgQpUsL46vri-f6dQ-0-iX5kAevg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.36px; width: 435px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Stella’s receiving room, the Parlor where selections were made)</div><br></span><p></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"><br></span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">The Tunnel story is well told in this article:</span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px; text-decoration: underline;"><a href="https://www.kgw.com/article/money/business-travel/destinations/grants-getaways/grants-getaways-pendleton-underground/283-5169670a-e264-4a6c-aebd-647b66ec5c27">https://www.kgw.com/article/money/business-travel/destinations/grants-getaways/grants-getaways-pendleton-underground/283-5169670a-e264-4a6c-aebd-647b66ec5c27</a></span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">The next day we were supposed to take an old fashioned coal fired train trip, that was cancelled 2 days before boarding, as mechanical problems plagued the volunteers running the train. So we drove to the beautiful very old <span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>charming “old west” and now tourist town of Joseph, sometimes called “Oregon’s Little Switzerland”. I tried without success to find part of a particularly difficult stretch of the original Oregon Trail along the Snake river here, but it turned out to be further away than I thought.</span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"><br></span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><font size="4"><span style="width: 281px;"><img id="id_e456_51d9_eaef_d7b4" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/nyqVk6m8SwQw0odhBe1zvMSGBH1AxnQ3yCls9XGbLjKVXyg8xKIzj-K44IJf5PaK1nI" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 281px; height: auto;"></span></font><br>(Joseph has one MainStreet full of Statues, depicting its colorful past)</span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><br></span></p><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_a4e0_c97e_f7c7_6ae2" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/4eeDadZlOgpUok3NvTKg-tdbbumcYtgXaFry99wPl3mvEQQWaOyLvdctOUUgvFTW4QI" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.36px; width: 335px; height: auto;"></div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_7e39_2e7_7808_816a" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/dQVNvvvH8je0hFFqpYFIYCrPWQpsv0Xa-iowZ1r4MaAZrlY7caGr3NbOVY6Ymmfk9X8" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.36px; width: 372px; height: auto;"></div><br><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;">But we at least were able to take the Wallowa Lake Tramway up the mountain.</span><br><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">This gondola lift travels 8000 ft above sea level (it must be noted that one starts at 4000 ft when entering the four person gondola) and provides grand views of the surrounding Eagle Cap Wilderness and Wallowa Lake and in season would display at the summit alpine meadows in full bloom as if you were in a mini Switzerland. The lauded highest restaurant in Oregon “Alpine” did not impress, so we took the gondola back down to have lunch in town.</span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><img id="id_ce2_92a7_2a73_d8e7" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/I83MY80qBJzm_C4GN4jnFwXOiF_HM0F67Gj0rS64CAY21fRimfjq70B8OcwQEgaha00" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 384px; height: auto;"><br>(Views from 8000ft/almost 2500m high)</p><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_639f_5f7d_a89_31cc" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/R8_WCLCRzy87qL49mzeKvrscqK-mvYn-9s8cUOlpYYlZYnGWgrSPMm-rXO3NorErnEA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.4px; width: 453px; height: auto;"></div><br><img id="id_3bb4_a097_f35_fa2f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/FjjgTnjiNiD9hT-Ylwt7vk3Pau6srqx6yvjRqtOM-W3HXse2nIKyhDRalQ32ygVoA_M" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 365px; height: auto;"><br>(Our gondola to the top, with views from below)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_a538_dd52_4c85_1b" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/leoBhPZkdG9Gc2D3-IFVUd1nHDO5EP-IuhoNN4WcONeoE4_jqX46fb8ikCrKKLT3p4g" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.4px; width: 609px; height: auto;"></div><br><br><p></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">There are many mountain tops in Oregon as well as Washington state, none is more famous than Mt Hood, because of its mountain side lodging: Timberline Lodge. Constructed in 1937 and visited by President Franklin Roosevelt not long afterwards, as this lodge was built as part of his WPA (works progress administration) <span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>New Deal program. When receiving an extra large room, we realized that our extra large room would have been large in those days, but today the postage size room with a 3rd bed, making it uselessly extra large, would not have been a reason to stay there. A more comfortable Best Western at the foot of the mountain at Government Camp was the alternate option. </span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"><br></span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><font size="4"><span style="width: 425px;"><img id="id_f8cd_64cd_1cec_fefb" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/iOiegfZAIGMtfJpTzsLgezmJblJlUvQbJ2QdahAXX4dQrbf25pD_WnJhvG2MD5-oeps" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 425px; height: auto;"></span></font><br>(2 different views of Mt Hood)</span></p><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_e5f7_87f3_38d5_716d" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/VwM-w2eSR7NR2e0ZdMAVPAPRVyKpvuxjqUc3NBtLCO43KVqVTKHc8nKdqvsBMT42yFc" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.36px; width: 338px; height: auto;"></div><br><br><p></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><font size="4"><span style="width: 513px;"><img id="id_327c_9784_7466_8ffe" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/yfrUWo7VxoYxs-3yqay1mTAvFVTHbi8837mn8DjVQdZWOBhqEnmoIEGiL0hqVeMh_Hc" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 513px; height: auto;"></span></font><br>(Timberline Lodge at 6000ft on the slope of this about 11,000ft mountain)</span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><font face="UICTFontTextStyleBody" size="4"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></font></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"></p><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_54da_8b4f_b81d_5aab" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/F_zHrnlMdR1iShcQacHWMSBiDKLLQUnHalnDC2Ouf4Nvc6m6JF4JWD7lmDv1RHOsRag" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 343px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"> (Our<span style="text-align: right;"> extra large room)</span></div><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"><br></span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">But being here at the storied Lodge with vistas from our room down the mountain was reason enough to stay here. We toured the area of forests and lakes, with town names such as Zigzag and Rhododendron, returning to a restaurant that requires reservations even by hotel guests with mediocre quality food, but enjoying the sights with a cocktail in hand was the better memory.</span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><img id="id_5a6_d5c3_2a87_867e" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/SiPJxZEQxiy3tOBW0enQOfneQJCNICkLc381X8x5fghCJYYWOggFmI8tI9cLUcWU9GU" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 753px; height: auto;"><br>(Picture from Astoria of the Columbia River reaching the Pacific. The Lewis and Clark expedition camped out here)</p><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_8570_54bd_c2bc_75cc" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/zL8WiEjJl95EXkn9uCQBd1j81WgwyoD3vpam_afvz-oOhISUD3DbsBvjWcMwM26kn0I" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.4px; width: 413px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Astoria Column 126 ft/38m built in 1926 clad with Oregon’s history as murals,</div><div style="text-align: center;">sporting a viewing platform we did not climb up to)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><img id="id_6534_8139_a796_69ba" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/oXAx1asiZmdlZ6g4qaaoxagazAha5wahaDsMOMwsGVMTw9IFyYxGqejEQFIIWtr0H_c" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 375px; height: auto;"><br>(Sandee took numerous pictures of these state wide drive to Coffee</div><div>Shacks dotting the state in about every city, village or hamlet)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_95b0_8ef8_faa_6fc3" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/LLrtAjctKyaSIqKnNbvFBe9THuGTDutxO52ZyhECWORBvXiyHeTgl2PfjkLS8iGNFDI" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.4px; width: 443px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Astoria does not want to fatigue their tourist, thus this trolley </div><div style="text-align: right;">runs up and down the board walk which is a 3 mile track)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><img id="id_30f4_c9bb_786b_e29e" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/GxNlwkHeicpvs2kBZTA1reaH50o0FdoYt_RC018_pmc1ZdAOkmiaikap3g5LirY1Iuo" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 442px; height: auto;"><br>(Pilot gets on board of a freighter ready to sail up the river)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_faf7_55b9_5479_cfc8" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-xamYW74a_bPCbXhuGLGBNC5cltniCf5uQO9IV6--ArHgBrqAGShO4je1xGEmLgGoB8" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.4px; width: 442px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(A beautiful hotel right on the mouth of the river, but above our price range)</div><br><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;">Traveling from here to the storied seaside town of Astoria, where we got our first expansive views of the ocean just like Meriwether Lewis and William Clark saw it after their arduous 8,000 mile journey, we really only found the breezy sea air and the well advertised column at the top of the hills, that allow the various rows of homes on the slopes grand views of the harbor and the faraway skyline, of interest. </span><br><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><font size="4"><span style="width: 352px; height: auto;"><img id="id_222f_ee6b_710f_1a26" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/zcQbvTfZ7FTSkN0MBaslnQVOGX17LIL3RWzDZgmCiucJKZcYH0RTpcH_ARnJ79VyM_4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 352px; height: auto;"></span></font><br>(Traveling down the coast we cannot rest our eyes, the coat is very very picturesque)</p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><br></p><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_689a_1c9e_8c4b_7f15" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/VU9DtMUoZYGv_IAzH9vrc3EsjWEgdMJUY6-nEvilkdDSeaZlD6P-esTuM0SmvMBZ6R4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.4px; width: 380px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Sampling of the views we were afforded)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_a713_a2ad_ae18_aec0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/5Da58p4rQEgkliwfcaHPOBedohjrNBwDYYBNYn16LyZhdySRD7ml_a13lQo7bvrirXg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.4px; width: 328px; height: auto;"></div><br><img id="id_113c_1af5_46dc_7893" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/Govd2dUJY4pY0Hb9zTJ-hkkGBmk_JQhdvpKMyKeJ-8ozG0fv_m4Evo-DyZBhA4acA5c" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 401px; height: auto;"><br>(If ever traveling the west coast this should be on the program)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_683a_6aad_7777_2c92" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/To5eCaYihX9IGQPXBunZ4DFrZhg1kFR_gega_0z3MqMxQqy5fOPZTWYcZnuqIlpywM4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.4px; width: 411px; height: auto;"></div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_d7b7_7262_d14c_54d2" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/bX6Bsq-KMfnyl_7yxf0XA5jDGQA4407nS7oKeIOkzKQ_Is4JrOFQkWG7zFLBhD8sQOI" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.4px; width: 390px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(The varieties of views is endless)</div><img id="id_6c01_b467_46e_6923" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/57d1DdIFyBIJt5Agb3scTbchlEtbyH22zvShk4P7m5YqjhjX1I6AYX9RbJStxEHgFnc" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 445px; height: auto;"><br><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_c70f_9760_cac4_ff4c" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/ZuvRCC6kSm87tNlNe5s9OS57Qg2oy1Xf9jHNFGQgK_J1f9IZGdwrwDQJ_KIiVH7E8gk" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.4px; width: 401px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(And the sunsets magnificent)</div><br><p></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">After traveling down the sometimes stunning Oregon coast we turned into southern lower part of the state where the Rogue and Umpqua rivers were the early gateways for weary Oregon Trail travellers, that were convinced <span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>by a man named Jesse Applegate, who lost his parents in the Columbia River a year earlier, and which story became the famous Applegate trail story by its first group led by Jesse Quinn Hornton and his wife Nancy, who lost most of their possessions navigating and at times creating an almost impossible trail along the Umpqua river. But that is a story that could have been read in part 1 of our 2 part blog already. </span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"><br></span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><font size="4"><span style="width: 283px;"><img id="id_8ce4_1611_2c8d_1a2c" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/NLABBcMJluOn058UC2Gdk7OUxgKjgZ9Bp0MU71zb_Jdu8OE7bYX6I-8W_CFq1RKEBnM" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 283px; height: auto;"></span></font><br>(Turning inland we met a curious deer)</span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><br></span></p><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_562a_f9ff_384a_5357" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/KshT9HtDz1JXZEbmNKJtAvBK4dBdIo0yfARvS0TiTw2a85DA_LyYpq2HvxIoi_nt2BQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.36px; width: 324px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(And saw our first of many covered bridges that dot the south west of Oregon)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_2086_a1b6_3686_a334" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/AQJyXidJu7oDDOofKHzYqFoV84NqpgNRYjRla33zOqrsv0b7gvcbTxDXHiWdL_IE1is" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.36px; width: 333px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(And of course more raging streams down the Cascade Mountains)</div><img id="id_1aea_8522_8846_88df" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/a_DzzQhChKhZoghlv2HCgzZ8K29bgwj8uveCO7rPCkTlN3ukBmy3YylvvlycK6-9kU8" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 360px; height: auto;"><br>(These pictures show what Jesse Applegate and Pioneers encountered)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_7484_c4e5_11ac_e35e" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/Aoh9XVkf9XRx1TO2JxMiUkChUD056Y2EGnv3tAj3iLY2C4ojKnsLxJqvnO_yMji36Aw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.36px; width: 326px; height: auto;"></div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_26b5_17ec_1da1_23c5" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/U_XmiBoCvh_HIr5fy2xBzgj3-YX5-5UZq1s0F32W_HfORRBT4QzOM0j-9OqNKpxegas" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.36px; width: 321px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Another covered bridge)</div><br><br><div style="text-align: left;"><img id="id_4168_1a11_21fc_2525" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/1MSJREz0dD5nAxkVm5TtH2BIh4H8uvdcwCbEA3AxTmTBgEqt7Es6vZqkSmQeySO1kus" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.36px; width: 197px; height: auto;"></div>(Another coffee shack)<br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_b2b0_17a3_a1c4_cd65" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/C24613QUhi0ZfDZmotGKPG_iVrHPlHA5BUeX6qK8VnFuuT7O9YDbQMjh-4jcfsvHXW8" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.36px; width: 300px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(And another for Sandee’s collection of pictures)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><img id="id_ccee_6bc2_8223_35ea" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/b6XoDQHpb52I5rfy8nfrMKOpaGN4X58t9e7BWtTuzgZOcLtK0IMYm0cv6sALLkgQmUg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 304px; height: auto;"><br>(And again an encounter while traversing the Cascades)<br><br><p></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">We “camped” out at the comfortable Roseburg Inn facility and used our time here to drive along these rivers ravaged by fires, stopping at spots where impossible narrow fast rapids would have stopped the early caravan of Schooners dead in their tracks, where these early settlers to be had to scatter trying to find an alternate route to reach their promised land.</span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"><br></span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><font size="4"><span style="width: 377px;"><img id="id_ce7e_9a3e_42c6_20a7" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/qDgu8KBIA4Ar9bOaQWRpYjma7HuL3WlUXDdaKZ4W71mMMlpmmC-KiSMem3yutG4GqfM" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 377px; height: auto;"></span></font><br>(Parrot House Restaurant in Roseburg, great memories)</span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><br></span><br></p><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_b5a0_56a4_d47a_5b01" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/SLjxLeRRGU9fPeKMOmPioCUKxMTOZ4KF0rp53lxQYfrlB_g-SI6nEPhkENjgkQqT7JE" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.4px; width: 392px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(The surroundings of Roseburg are littered with remnants of the deadly fires)</div><br><img id="id_42be_8794_727b_54a9" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/YI3nG4urCbSP0BJazqr5ckrSmPfAh1tjWjsLjYBVIUKv19pZLHMfR19FLG6VjYHdTMk" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 298px; height: auto;"><br>(The Cascades have many waterfalls)<br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_bde7_a435_57f9_2f66" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/w1mNb177_X_Z6KKPyNHOezH7LZ6irF-JU-2aG9inUFfa7QsZOFRUizjmYmto8Nbpj70" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 382px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Coming back from the waterfall above we met this couple making pebble towers, they definitely were not Jewish. Do other cultures have these habits.)</div><br><p></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">This mountainous area is wild and wonderful, the sound of the rapids enchanting and when not ravaged by fire with trees of unbelievable heights towering over us. </span><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"></p><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_36e9_981_1357_bda6" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/okumV4q5znumYr3gYe7VWxGe60SszQMsDA4DmlzXMNxTZETg2TcuQ6JSvY8_6__TR7s" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.4px; width: 531px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(A first view of the Crater Lake Rim)</div><br><p></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">It is in this area where the tour books direct you to Crater Lake a few hours eastwards, a volcano whose top was blown off eons ago and now a caldera filled with deep blue water almost 2,000 ft deep and with a 33 mile Rim Drive, with as many as 30 overlooks to stop at, managed and maintained by the National Park Service. This was another moment for us to flash our lifetime senior National Park passes, purchased during our early senior years for the measly sum of $10.</span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"><br></span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><font size="4"><span style="width: 368px;"><img id="id_f38b_c513_b609_3aa6" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/z9gxSUnFN-jhes-TJ9phrskdvq2g4eNmgopbXre6i3yMBfhBRPSWVY2U4U394swAap8" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 368px; height: auto;"></span></font><br>(Peering into the Crater filled with smoke)</span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><br></span></p><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_c1b1_38cd_617f_a478" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/UvGPwBdO7lXUXvTYdvpTOUTe-XmS5N8WMEGPdwY_XEBtzclR7bYjDhqiORFFEuNj_Sw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.36px; width: 382px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(A short view of the lake as the smoke parted a bit)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><img id="id_55ea_c1d5_c466_be62" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/mjl1dlchAXn-hlKYkyuXpoHdQAHOBMz3ydhd9VHK5z94ENMldUeJcXpJZSPfOu0iXds" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 402px; height: auto;"><br>(What is that down there?)<br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_9b09_aa3a_bbcf_b34f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/Om33QT6kafMRkBwLnovKqmJ7pZXnXo2p4Is6w4PguGEBBil6Uo5qso-YBWwgDVGPRiw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.4px; width: 370px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Oh, one of the brochure lauded sights:the Pumice Castle)</div><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">Unfortunately the wildfires on the slopes, although extinguished, brought heavy smoke fog that had descended into the crater, making the views of the lake sketchy at best and what we saw was not very blue. Not having many views to look forward to we visited another phenomenon.</span><p></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><img id="id_2ce8_219f_5b69_1833" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/A41BkdpKZSY_c-Zp2aNLFLDSz5BqqyOec2cqTeDPkTqUS03O67AH7sGCUkfvLpLcIC8" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 234px; height: auto;"><br>(The Pinnacles)</p><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_1a0e_9712_29ef_cd9c" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/7RkkaFQOpW9AKhSUav7YCLZ0JKX-LNNpdGsaE5Vq1DfPiZ5joOi1MF8IgY2N63ZTg7E" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.4px; width: 397px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(These Pumice pipes were formed spewing ash and </div><div style="text-align: center;">in doing so built itself higher and higher)</div><p></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"></p><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_ddb5_5e53_17b_a5d9" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/SS3ic_n4NbTljTF91v8VRYGs2i2FuJYnjW249G_A9TScONyjKQLEXOTzhWsnB3gODhU" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.4px; width: 342px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(These look more like Chimneys)</div><br><p></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">Driving a few miles down the mountain side across the aptly named pinnacles trail, we found a group of volcanic pumice spires in various shades of grey and brown or fumeroles, formed by steam and volcanic gasses of magma, that surfaced but not erupted, emitting sulfur and carbon dioxide gasses, gradually building their walls higher and higher. Some of them a 100 ft high. Returning on that trail back to the rim we encountered many other disappointed tourists, so many actually that we couldn’t be seated at the restaurant of the Crater Lake Lodge for lunch, requiring us to leave the mountain early in search of food in this sparsely populated part of Oregon. </span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"></p><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_c46e_a43_a0ea_5ce5" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/v0vUOtmwkN7TTlvvyWdZUWYGPn0jwT_xGxSVvLEOysAXSKqd3riD2vODRnV1Mg6q8Uw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.4px; width: 646px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Found by accident as we were touring the country side)</div><br><p></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">There are 2 more locations to rave about: Our stay in the city of Bend and the beautiful Eagle Rock Lodge on the rural western Cascades Mountains side in a locality called Vida.</span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"> </span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">The fact that I list them last and not earlier should tell the reader, that each and every place we stayed at, was equally enchanting and made us a bit sad that our trip was coming to an end. Only one location turned out to be a “dud”: the “Charming House” in Port Orford, which was less than charming and in an area we should have skipped. The house had also internet issues, requiring the leasing agent to drive an hour one way at night to visit us and resolve the issue.</span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><img id="id_577e_3fe9_4aa6_f56" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/1EPy9sK0_uG68dWJ05emcxY-ix-2Dt3RQYEuqwjgP5lOM4GaQsgGEOU9R2TONHb0xYA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 313px; height: auto;"><br>(Classic front office of a motel)</p><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_ac90_16a0_f5ad_4909" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/aw0g67wdLLYfs5cQbOdwzFSJBzvpecy9q3ILAvuyJ-gk_f7Dmd7f5lAbZ21QqHJpssU" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.4px; width: 290px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(But every suite had these large bed and sitting rooms)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_bd60_7e8_f595_d69" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/2R4d5Vhs1Zm8z6QF8-1cy7PuuDntdja9N5XYHwwVyCXwE6rfxQaZOm_GSC4ASzPG6FI" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.4px; width: 347px; height: auto;"></div><br><br><p></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">Wall Street Suites in the city of Bend was not only one of the best old fashioned motels we ever stayed at, located less than 5 minutes walk from the “old town” area with all the restaurants, and the ladies on duty there were a trove of information, directing us to places we should definitely see. This was a place we selected to stay at because of a scheduled hot air balloon ride, that because of thunderstorms and lightning was cancelled. But that mishap turned out to be bringing us to an area of unparalleled beauty. Again see the pictures.</span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"><br></span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><font size="4"><span style="width: 334px;"><img id="id_5677_f755_2998_b54f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pBVppLvKblz0jE9FbRocjOvgIlm2z-27TaQDmRSDImANTtboWURVi1uIMGWIvAopJKY" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 334px; height: auto;"></span></font><br>(They told us to visit this nature wonder: Smith Rock State Park)</span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><br></span></p><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_675d_19d3_5814_92a4" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/CYGGkHma-5LT1kJdhey8avurIKAh-QpUNnuhgq05PNazwwqszZ9BrfK6xzSx89GanKI" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.4px; width: 398px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(If you look closer, you see people walking up and down the mountain walls, </div><div style="text-align: center;">And on the below pictures climbers making their way up, side by side)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_4b74_f98e_e804_3427" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/riBvCoJrAXNtYCTTl68D-n2yvYqalS6A6bk_wwIeEuKgrqqEN_p4LDqQRiCgu2FEmTo" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.4px; width: 325px; height: auto;"></div><br><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;">Chancing on a tightrope walk a thousand feet above us was just amazing luck.</span><br><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><br><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span></p><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_36dc_53bd_94a5_2796" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/VUsAU8rJmqB-rcFSKK3VVtKX2SJq5w9ykAnkqxOLlMgvulrCdJqkINGK4iCe3jcvxMw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.4px; width: 417px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(This was scary, amazing and we saw him fall a few times and climb back on the rope)</div><br><p></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">Our final days scheduled in Oregon were spent, whiling away at the premises of the Eagle Rock Lodge, with wonderful breakfasts, staring at the feeders constantly visited by beautiful Steller Jays and sneakily attacked by squirrels. Grilling a steak in the evening, lounging in lazy chairs at the meandering McKenzie river, and hardly leaving the premises, was a perfect ending to our weeks in Oregon.</span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"><br></span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><img id="id_6646_15ea_bf9a_35ca" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/c0D_vzYnH676ySeAwcvIRHyOchOKSoxRAlQYLq0H36NhmH_vLO8HLYI9zLVmksmPx7Q" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 346px; height: auto;"><br><br></p><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_bbae_8898_33bd_d7a7" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-PQ-YcnJfWjoaVUPP6fDkWn5thD7K95634UQwKyik13d2ZDChQsldmIEGAF3zJNlUPI" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.4px; width: 323px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(These Jays were observed thru the window of the breakfast room)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_12a_3ce3_baac_4d2b" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/k0jLyyUGtRoeoakLMtX79mGTviozTugy0i_FaHLgbT0y4dD-2EWNfBXVjCGFw7GnwBA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.4px; width: 286px; height: auto;"></div><br><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;">Here I have to digress. As I am required by my “only client” Sandee, for whom I serve as tour agent, to always have bookings of lodging before any trip is started, (there is a history of 2 disasters of not having bookings in my early career as her tour agent). I convinced her this time that there might be a location she would want to revisit before leaving Oregon. So there were 5 unscheduled nights after the Eagle Rock Lodge to be booked during our trip. We were tempted to return to Bend, but were lured by the University town of Eugene and a guest at the Eagle Rock Lodge convinced us to go there.</span><br><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"><br></span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><font size="4"><span style="width: 252px;"><img id="id_8514_d898_ad9e_61e8" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/GunVpfaJ3YKXao33YX54X2_NFzpkMJn5UKQW7DNL6fxkHuPwrHvxftOEK7faTefIrvQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 252px; height: auto;"></span></font><br>(Don’t ask me to do the tree and leaf exam after our tour, but we liked the campus with their magnificent trees)</span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><br></span></p><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_5044_c33a_99e4_1a85" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/pnJHUCHVYQ83c7ZspBEaWCw2YnP4QyT4Jk4F8LM9vbZNPsMlzdmx7sHlA5aZS6DwSRc" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.4px; width: 372px; height: auto;"></div><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><br></p><img id="id_946d_9fe7_bf7e_3ac8" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/iNwWrFr-TuncngcFLR6qcXvfMjqLSvbJ7rM3LYM5YlBWnSsmJXPv7-7kLRmLiUnap-Y" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 384px; height: auto;"><br>(And we chanced in a volunteer talking to students about Christianity</div><div> in a humorous way. He kept quite a few of them to hang out and pay attention)<br><br><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;">A downtown AirB&B this late in the season was available so there we went. As Eugene did not get us enchanted, we used our days visiting wineries in the area around the city. And we found a Tree Walk on the University of Oregon grounds hosted by Kelly, a professor at the School of Landscape Architecture at the University, which was eye opening to us who that can hardly identify tree types, let alone seedlings, cones and leaves, which are part of the student exam.</span><br><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">Thus ending this saga here, we advise you to skip the city of Eugene and find another location to enjoy wine in that part of Oregon.</span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"><br></span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><font size="4"><span style="width: 491px;"><img id="id_91ca_c74a_ebfc_b0b4" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/YPe3DdVcrIaqagxY8VpNbxW2oBAQf1_i3fcQyiFG9VSqBQb0lDeaAiIFXeq20wLK4OU" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 491px; height: auto;"></span></font><br>(One of the wineries we visited on a 6 winery tour day)<br></span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"><br></span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"></p><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_360a_b9c5_6caa_690c" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/lXdUjPrBDqqzb3cG-dM8w1ZuPEDGf-E0zexuJfo2mvbNpGMOm967-FmWzi_o2JEBpt4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px; width: 355px; height: auto;"></div><span class="s1"><div style="text-align: right;">(This squirrel hung around the winery terrace to get nibbles</div><div style="text-align: right;">Till a waiter told us not to do that)</div></span><p></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><br></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">Our itinerary as promised: </span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">Arriving at the airport in Portland Oregon on August 17, 2021 and leaving from that same airport October 4, 2021 we resided at the following places on the dates listed:</span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">8/17 Marriott Downtown Waterfront, Portland till 8/21</span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">8/21 Columbia Gorge Hotel & Spa, Hood River till 8/24</span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">8/24 Timberline Lodge, at the slopes of Mt Hood till 8/26</span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">8/26 Astoria Rivershore Motel, Astoria till 8/28</span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">8/28 Inn at Arch Rock, Depoe Bay till 9/1</span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">9/1 Charming House, Port Orford till 9/3</span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">9/3 Riverfront Inn, Roseburg till 9/6</span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">9/6 Harriman’s Springs Resort, Klamath Falls till 9/9</span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">9/9 Wall Street Suites, Bend till 9/12</span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">9/12 Drovers Inn, Frenchglen till 9/14</span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">9/14 Painted Hills Vacation Cottages & Retreat, Mitchell till 9/17</span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">9/17 Wine Country Getaway, Walla Walla till 9/21</span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">9/21 Imperial River Co, Maupin till 9/24</span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">9/24 Eagle Rock Lodge, Vida till 9/27</span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">9/27 Downtown Retreat, Eugene till 10/2</span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">10/2 Marriott Downtown Waterfront till 10/4</span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"><br></span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"><br></span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"></p><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_6d9f_f6fc_e206_e61a" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/B8n3viO6mfvs9yxnu9CpYfPkbsETpKOpfRJUDV-5D0vaY8sy6x34XTdEOw-WATrIiHk" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px; width: 594px; height: auto;"></div><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><div style="text-align: center;">(2 beautiful pictures I personally liked)</div></span><img id="id_e1f1_1a86_2297_36fb" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/4mlzIjbxCuN2XM-dV1qJy5BM18iKJ7Kk_7E7tZK2f43_-aZyOxHJpRXdPXDlOAmsQ5w" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 514px; height: auto;"><br><br><br><p></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p> </div></div>Two retirees and their travel storieshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13942287905877288793noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9052023657534142840.post-76992078122685354022022-07-05T13:35:00.001-04:002022-07-05T13:35:28.825-04:00Seven Weeks in Oregon part 1<p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><br></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><img id="id_7c20_fa1_3d11_f6cc" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/0HXpnDoo5CHJz0lAHQl394aonmT2RZzoz4gOntZxpI49DJVh-bmjZ84utXTMSaEoiu0" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 788px; height: auto;"><br><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"> </span><span style="font-size: 18.4px;"> </span><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">(The Cascades looked the same during the Oregon Trail times)</span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">I cannot recall how often I said to Sandee within the comfort of our Subaru Outback: “Wow imagine, this was once a part of the Oregon Trail, without this road the trail must have been brutal.”</span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"><br></span></p><p class="p1" style="text-align: center; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"><img id="id_9724_dd86_9fa1_4f62" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/LxtrAhtg49pzYWgQQe50XamuOzmfHtyB9QPGoP1hC8-BPnwaLpReffxtIngMmni0AQE" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 559px; height: auto;"><br></span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"> (Instead of Dams there were 20ft falls here requiring overland portage)</span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">The famous Oregon Trail was used by more than 350,000 men, women and children between 1841 and 1867 (the year when the first train arrived in Walla Walla), while leaving 10,000 shallow graves along the 2,000 mile trail.</span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"> </span><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"> </span></p><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_38a_f4f6_aafe_4efd" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/NwbvRsFjyYp2GkGKyhxodJ4vcpi6nm7eJPD-XIrpof9FtcAWxX3ktJ-JamLf_BG5CEQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 477px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"> </span><span style="font-size: 18.399999618530273px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"> </span><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">(This may not be exactly what one saw on the trail in 1848 but it must have come close to that type of views)</span><br><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"><br></span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">Because I am a history fan, I will digress for awhile before getting to our September 2021 Oregon trip on paved asphalt or plowed gravel roads, where we never got bumped out of our seats, as happened every few minutes on rough terrain to the 19th century wary travelers seated on the bench of their $100 (in today’s dollars $30,000) “prairie schooners”, which had no suspension by the way, behind a span of 6 oxen or even more mules or horses, traveling 2 miles an hour in average and in doing so making each day at most 20 miles. While the average time calculation for the trek was 100 days, many schooners took up to 5 months, since crossing desert areas with oversized boulders or trekking through the gorges of the Snake River, often needing to cross that river several times because “the road” continued on the other side, with the ever present risk of a rock in the river capsizing the schooner with all its belongings, making some days as little as 6 miles an accomplishment.</span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p3" style="margin: 9px 0px 8px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"></p><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_6690_971_9481_ade4" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/3TNZF4rpdCdhS6k8I125bnZe8WAO-AdV5lY8MTmOVnpoYA4CPbVrgxEavTmZ8duUFag" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.4px; width: 469px; height: auto;"></div><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">(This is not a schooner, but a shepherd camp wagon used in the last century, but you get the idea)</span><p></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">And when all that was behind, you would be arriving in now The Dalles or Walla Walla, and you still had to cross the 1 mile high Cascades mountains for about 250 miles or traverse the roaring Columbia River Gorge by boat for 230 miles with multiple fast flowing steep rapids. </span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"><br></span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><img id="id_b74d_cbd6_f2fa_f476" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/zEEtIeD3nn6WqwcGEFBSM1t_eKNBhf9u78Ju0gEcF9ULl3Qv8oxL8wulmOea3yP1OLo" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 788px; height: auto;"><br></p><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">(the tranquil Columbia River today in all its glory)</span></div><p></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">And if a party chose not to cross the Cascades by land, they had to leave their schooners behind and bundle their belongings to a size that would fit canoes that could traverse the rapids of the Columbia River. (An extra problem to overcome in those days, were the 20ft falls near the opening of the Deschutes River as it flows into the Columbia river near the now The Dalles township. And that required overland portage, before they could again continue by canoe)</span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p3" style="margin: 9px 0px 8px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"></p><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_26d2_7e94_f57_c9c5" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/Rm-6itti5J4HvPoNgHakpwwMq3L2wVVM-gMIJ2vYNre-hR_rnMo55FlHFgm1Ri1G4xs" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.4px; width: 535px; height: auto;"></div><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">(Agriculture is a major income source for Oregon: $8 billion in berries, nuts, grass seeds, Christmas trees, wine)</span><p></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">All that effort to reach the “promised land”: the Willamette Valley of Oregon.</span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p3" style="text-align: center; margin: 9px 0px 8px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><img id="id_5280_97e3_cfcb_b84" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/6cF5QyuvkmM61iHRVGiCVCb-1QYh0e9E7sd5IzJvHS9dCa0oIDqLED9fXIeHU5UIuzU" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 596px; height: auto;"><br></p><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">(Did I say Christmas trees?)</span></div><p></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">The very first recorded group of trailblazers started in the spring of 1841 from Independence MO, led by John Bidwell (22) from NY and his 18 year old bride and baby. 68 people in total he gathered to join him. (including 5 women and 10 children). The group was led by beaver trapper John Fitzpatrick, who needed a new profession, as the beaver trade was running on nearly empty by that time.</span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p3" style="margin: 9px 0px 8px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><img id="id_2483_8e79_f4c6_713b" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/A1wMU4NgRnl2zrgOSmcqeFtn9SHpmjbw5RKmETUQW4VHreAR0qnp-7Et-KqsxTp2Vpc" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 788px; height: auto;"><br><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"> </span><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"> </span><span style="font-size: 18.4px;"> </span><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">(Another shot of undisturbed Oregon nature whether you see this in the 1800’s or today)</span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">It took them 6 weeks following the Platte River in Nebraska to travel the 650 mile trek to Fort Laramie WY. (Today we drive that along interstate 29 and 80 in 10 hours) After that the 1350 mile remaining journey took about 3 months.</span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p3" style="margin: 9px 0px 8px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><img id="id_7e68_a9ba_499c_2209" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/8P0P4mPnqtuRrYjLLX_C3TTgS3tc30a20vi-0E03H4jGA3-5ORcSHO7-Ma9KB-KFPnQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 788px; height: auto;"><br><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">(The settlers schooner most of the time followed river beds. In the Cascade Mountains the rivers were at best difficult. </span><span style="font-size: 18.4px;"> </span><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">We today walked a trail from the parking lot to these sights)</span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">Then there was the southern Applegate trail a trip we made along the Roque River, seeing where at various spots the goings in the mid 1840’s must have been extremely challenging as we witnessed the fast flowing waters thru narrow gorges.</span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p3" style="margin: 9px 0px 8px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"></p><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_a994_9f92_6daf_5e30" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/NozHCn3ohFMDS0wEh1gYyCdSBRRfj4hnX-KIkGRICZUdFLfk7svsu0Ho6_i-cUSxnrI" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.4px; width: 604px; height: auto;"></div><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"> </span> <span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">(The forests here do not only stretch on seemingly forever, but the trees are imposingly tall)</span><p></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">All in all for those of you that are interested in more gruesome details read the Applegate Thornton Story.</span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px; text-decoration: underline;"><a href="https://historicoregoncity.org/2019/04/02/the-applegate-trail/">https://historicoregoncity.org/2019/04/02/the-applegate-trail</a></span><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"> </span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"><br></span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"><br></span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><img id="id_403_dcda_7eaa_6e74" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/FyyZPLWOrHOhfrq6s33k4QEqZrEXU-KZUjkgqcRjZmc8y8uF7tfmhzg1mzvymnS3Mb8" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 444px; height: auto;"><br></p><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"> </span><span style="font-size: 18.4px;"> </span><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">(Portland view from above)</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"><br></span></div><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">But let’s move to mid August 2021, when we arrived at Portland International Airport trying to find our Lyft ride location. Confusion all around and almost missing our ride in looking in the wrong places.</span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p3" style="text-align: center; margin: 9px 0px 8px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><img id="id_63a_d4cc_1025_f39f" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/4bIuKHOiWBngPVRfSAjvzSnFcG-biE9-Te8GO43b2BdwUA1mQsN4yYAFJWGYIaASTYY" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 686px; height: auto;"><br></p><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"> </span><span style="font-size: 18.4px;"> </span><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">(Nob Hill in Portland)</span></div><p></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">We camped out for our 4 nights in Portland at the riverfront Downtown Waterfront Marriott, with the intent to explore the city so much maligned by our friends when we told them that we were traveling Oregon State. Almost everybody exclaimed sometime during our “Going to Oregon” telling: “You’re going to Portland?” or “Stay away from Portland!”. </span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p3" style="margin: 9px 0px 8px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"></p><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_80b1_5847_b2c5_b777" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/qi86blLDqqQBNhggJX3MV-3F0QPmBmwICSrV-PTIJRB2TKxKl_8FedjwrrSuGU7TVQU" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.4px; width: 554px; height: auto;"></div> <font size="4"> </font><span style="font-size: 18.36px; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">(A sample of the beautiful homes here and below the homeless crisis, compliments of City Council)</span><p></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">Well they turned out to be wrong on the implied dangers but they were definitely right about the horrible state of affairs in that city, which best personifies how horrible homelessness is as well as how homelessness creates situations of down spiraling urban demise, showing hundreds, maybe even thousands, of tents everywhere in the city and sleeping bags all over downtown on the sidewalks and in the parks, with closed, boarded up storefronts and trash piles.</span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p3" style="text-align: center; margin: 9px 0px 8px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><img id="id_5a55_3fa_fd7c_7b57" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/BUrEUS5ULooQLuWbYNd588RidxT_qDIn0x7_YNP3iVTWIWr48KVxFy4Tis-2J-T6yKQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 523px; height: auto;"><br></p><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">(Downtown street scene and below boarded stores because of it)</span></div><p></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">I have decided not to bore you with the sequence of daily events over the 7 weeks that we traveled this beautiful very diverse state with coastlines, wine country, lakes, mountains and deserts, (I will list on the bottom of this blog our itinerary), because I feel that this blog’s pictures will do the telling better than my endless listing of daily details.</span><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">Here are highlights I wish to describe for you in a sequence of listing my Aahs and Oohs and in doing so hopefully also describe Sandee’s Aahs and Oohs, although maybe not in the same order of ranking.</span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p3" style="text-align: center; margin: 9px 0px 8px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><img id="id_60e6_1caf_94c1_2c1b" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/5Jfem8sMQP3cKyQYEo9jGRRhwzh_T4xTaHsuXrTbqCqXI_s4UosLzdSIeXNXFx2h3fE" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 574px; height: auto;"><br></p><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"> </span><span style="font-size: 18.4px;"> </span><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">(Don’t remember the name of this synagogue at the edge of Nob Hill)</span></div><p></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">Our first day was spent with Tanya, our guide, while walking the Nob Hill neighborhood. (Yes there are more cities with Nob hills). Even in that chic neighborhood did we find homeless tents on sidewalks. A chance encounter with a resident of Nob Hill, who described his disgust with the present mayor and council is maybe the best succinct memory for me of how politics can destroy a city.</span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p2" style="text-align: center; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><img id="id_fb99_6fda_da7a_86b4" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/6JyivTWpWSj16P4UcgyEEtt1Ftrm8RhqxKGUYXWtgPZvMuUx7rtRBEw6MGtuJduYVlE" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 462px; height: auto;"><br></p><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">(It was a small plane for max 3 passengers, but we had it to ourselves)</span></div><p></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p3" style="margin: 9px 0px 8px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><img id="id_944_cad2_a351_4bb3" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/WsZUh3v7um2mzv_tCc7wZT9pgF7mGO5QnOaSkg9DKtEKsugdzKvwiVSCrhvSE0IEohM" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 494px; height: auto;"><br></p><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">(landscape looking southward on the </span><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">escarpment is the Vista House)</span></div><p></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p3" style="margin: 9px 0px 8px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><img id="id_a6cc_693c_aa6d_4438" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/Y7zO40w9rHnWSWE80Srj7yfgHoreSaBMzHQPt4VDod29XMhbF4lHT6oyboYp866uMJg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 788px; height: auto;"><br><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">(Built in 1917 on the scenic overlook in the picture above on the historic Columbia River Highway, German Art Nouveau architecture) Can you find it?</span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"></p><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_3bd5_af8e_69d7_1071" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/z0SXvrhEB9UsAKrqD8fXESqZux0n4wLXxvdD0LglRuZlmmKbwW2hEpg_y2-O5RcQRIs" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.4px; width: 462px; height: auto;"></div><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">(The beautiful inside of Vista House with stairways up to the balcony for majestic views of the River)</span><p></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p3" style="margin: 9px 0px 8px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"></p><div style="text-align: left;"><img id="id_cd3d_805d_9f24_e51c" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/LEb2yfi0pnHfHTtcyKbLvQX4Mv4B4I_oXx_VjW1mgCN4YSm6xe9jpNkVThuvq1jr8IM" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.4px; width: 486px; height: auto;"></div><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">(Famous Bridal Veil Falls with very little water this time of the year)</span><p></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p2" style="text-align: right; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><img id="id_6e8b_b1f5_2c4e_b2c5" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/J9kaa71oxusEl59B1KHHhme5635K1nWdUGY5SjrR977k2nK1_wf_aDPGGW-PUlaS2-o" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 502px; height: auto;"><br></p><div style="text-align: right;"><span style="font-size: 18.4px;">(Port </span><font size="4"> </font><span style="font-size: 18.36px; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">of Portland </span><font size="4"> </font><span style="font-size: 18.36px; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">before the </span><font size="4"> </font><span style="font-size: 18.36px; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">dam</span><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"> with several little falls seen from the east)</span></div><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">We had a 90 minutes airplane ride over the Columbia River, Portland and surrounding country side as the sun was setting for the day, and a nice food truck walking tour while in Portland the next day, before leaving eastwards for the Mount Hood area, staying in a wonderful hotel Columbia Gorge Hotel and Spa, facing the Columbia River near The Dalles, in a part of Oregon where orchards with their abundance of fruit dominate the landscape. </span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p3" style="margin: 9px 0px 8px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><br></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"></p><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_890c_9e4_5607_2c6f" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/ESdSeVNJDl9syogmiD1Tn7UQdRsY3k0TNpQt_4wbsVDvWbB0eahrzdCsLQi-IdZ37DI" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.4px; width: 535px; height: auto;"></div><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">(This is the entrance to a food court in a former asylum compound. Book a Lost Plate food truck walking tour if you ever visit Portland. We used the same organization in China for food tours)</span><p></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p2" style="text-align: center; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><img id="id_68a3_2104_30f5_e041" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/cRTK0Pju2XpHADoz4FEYJ_3VIkgmuwP6mx_5dE0DXsFM6Puk4gH7FdwUERzvd6TUPm8" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 558px; height: auto;"><br></p><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 18.4px;">(Columbia Gorge Hotel and Spa)</span></div><p></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><br><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><br></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><br><img id="id_ee10_cc37_c83d_2039" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/iGDuCnFbwIkqMKrFWpA-sj3ynZZwv_nBCLsW3bQQeTPa9rEy0Ihe_-oPuOX_jdZibMU" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 788px; height: auto;"><br></p><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">(Beautiful view from </span><span style="font-size: 18.4px;"> </span><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">Hood River eastwards up the Columbia River )</span></div><p></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">The next major memory for me is our trek all the way down to the Steens Mountain area and the little, eleven residents large town of Frenchglen, where we stayed and had communal dinners at 6.30 sharp. We stayed at the Dovers Inn right behind the historic Frenchglen Hotel built in 1923 with 5 rooms, presently run by the Oregon State Parks, with John Ross as concessionaire since 1991.</span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><br><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><br></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><img id="id_2059_dd41_bf9e_5a4c" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/0HEnz8t_5GUuCU6CIbfi_2LDgxzhDIk16Pxqd2G-5cSstNQqSISRBM0g9xZj4ndrGIc" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 446px; height: auto;"><br></p><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">(The 5 room 1923 Frenchglen hotel with porch for breakfast)</span></div><p></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="text-align: right; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span style="font-size: 18.4px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><img id="id_41d4_d62a_1b19_7dc8" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/JuuaB3q57b8sVKZrDpBijnRw8dyNXlCx12TkzeUSe9qk4Wy2ysv7LgjTpO1CI1sTteY" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 447px; height: auto;"><br></span></p><div style="text-align: right;"><span style="font-size: 18.4px;">(</span><font size="4">The Dover Inn with en-suite bathrooms <span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">Unlike the Frenchglen Hotel</span></font><span style="font-size: 18.36px; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">)</span></div><p></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><img id="id_7c96_6018_f34f_dc44" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/cSU4joJIO9heOj7623jJZ2i3dL41A0yQ23vlHgA2QStM7n0VFOZgdElEX5nFW50MYPs" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 312px; height: auto;"><br></p><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">(Rabbits lived under our porch)</span></div><p></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"> If you ever reach this way out of the way sparsely populated area in Oregon, book at the Drovers Inn and enjoy the commeraderie at the dinner table in the Frenchglen Hotel dining room, visited not only by hotel guests but also by camper vacationers, that come for a great meal, being tired of their self cooked meals. By the way, this is the only meal option for many many miles around. You ask me why the Steens Mountain area? </span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p3" style="margin: 9px 0px 8px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><img id="id_978a_5011_8f9e_ff1" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/q3pGw08lflH9D6rwHHCIIn4q0IPElKKqpoeqVt0AS8qMQb12aah8H_0-Ynxm_AMDtdk" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 788px; height: auto;"><br></p><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">(The plowed gravel road </span><span style="font-size: 18.4px;"> </span><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">towards the top)</span></div><p></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p3" style="margin: 9px 0px 8px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><img id="id_bf84_bb23_8ae7_1f01" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/V1Ldzaqqj9Wet9v5ql2A-lIR25RjzXy3FyFSSJiHnXWxvx-wZvJoF7ox63m5KgkEQhE" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 388px; height: auto;"><br></p><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">(Getting close to the top, seeing the first deep canyons)</span></div><p></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><img id="id_7a93_b7c8_2a31_4562" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/lrml96kHbopa9d6uZprxvzBLwSpbc5B8S-Sf83lYmoIGajUh0bK7G5JCqA_TDxZgbz4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 788px; height: auto;"><br></p><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">(The top of Steens Mountain is flat)</span></div><p></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p2" style="text-align: right; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><img id="id_57e4_aba9_c15a_b037" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/8RGc9s5_hBmreoN0uxKNsrygDdOeWurYcWDHEyWmtA54N96L1gMszvrR4O5R7KHvquk" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 481px; height: auto;"><br></p><div style="text-align: right;"><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">(The canyons trenched into the escarpment are deep)</span></div><p></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">Geologists will tell you that here you find the largest fault-block mountain in the northern Great Basin, which as you look at the map below spans six states.</span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">Between 15 and 8 million years ago successive flows of basalt accumulated in layercake fashion and created the Steens Mountain. We were just below the word “Lake Abert”, which is top left on this map because it is a shallow very old Alkali lake bed.</span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p3" style="text-align: center; margin: 9px 0px 8px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><img id="id_65c4_d251_734_7709" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/Ln32MSadbcD1DGx8XtfTw8xQxwarN60IADHUKxKoVrbHgXkzZ_t-MHefz_jwG6LuK0U" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 572px; height: auto;"><br></p><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">(The Great Basin stretches from mid Oregon into Mexico)</span></div><p></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">Driving up a plowed gravel road eastwards to the top of this 40 mile long north-south mountain, reaching an almost 2 mile height, and definitely a 3000 meter height (for you Europeans), a height where you are already eye to eye with bald American eagles and then when you get as high as you can go, walking to the edge, you see a surprising 2 mile straight drop into the desert valley below. </span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><img id="id_154c_5b74_70c5_455e" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/9K9zJ3cwOTkvVfxRyquxyIJCcZI5pDu5ESmihhJ0pxt7bjG28WatwRIqRgEwwESDb9s" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 788px; height: auto;"><br></p><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">(At the top of the escarpment)</span></div><p></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p3" style="margin: 9px 0px 8px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><img id="id_7d18_11ab_7500_b81d" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/ia9g1E3oaNsaQNppSFp-bw2IdNuUyeyydmqTUDJYWm6arW9oQUBvhuUDMh32NcHlBYM" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 449px; height: auto;"><br>(Life is enduring even in this very dry and hostile environment) </p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">These images will never leave me and my pictures do no justice to the vast unbelievable beauty of these environments. One of those sight from up there is looking at the Alford desert a 7 by 11 miles dried up lake formed 3.5 million to 15000 years ago, that left crystallized minerals behind as it dried up, making it a glistening area in the bright sunlight that attracts drag racers and campers alike in the dry season. </span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><img id="id_7857_dc9c_66d1_32db" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/K8anykHj1RSzUk_JrJX44b-zS6Zxfq8oBrmVDJxR4LvXutmKiihuQGnOt8B6sW2hKkk" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 534px; height: auto;"><br></p><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">(Alford desert, we did not try our Subaru on it)</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"><br></span></div><p class="p3" style="margin: 9px 0px 8px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"></p><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_fea5_55c1_8f05_aae7" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/J5SLvlSEgjOuJq8Y4G_TEyEsN3tQfsi1j72ncOROwNNsbaoLtLYp3WEqd4GTMXz4odA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.4px; width: 474px; height: auto;"></div><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"><div style="text-align: right;"><span style="font-size: 18.36px;">(Cattle roundup season is starting)</span></div></span><p></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><img id="id_6432_c841_1707_6578" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/uMjrYVPGBwJZlwuufOEDZ3mpghX2ulKwrxYT7ZzjyahgvhvTQkBJGOf5gPGgNwb6FHs" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 317px; height: auto;"><br></p><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">(He stared back)</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"><br></span></div><p></p><p class="p2" style="text-align: right; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><img id="id_93a5_4cc_340e_8307" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/LG5C7JWVRGN9gKkfUMAXscuh4g5hLgo71ydGHsghNV6PVKr6fsUNCc5FsGmRiKtrqsg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 428px; height: auto;"><br></p><div style="text-align: right;"><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">(Rounding cattle up seems easy</span></div><p></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">And then there was:</span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">The whale watching, that we did, not only from the zodiacs of the Whale Research Center, but also from our window at the Arch Rock Inn in Depoe Bay.</span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">About 10 to 15 resident whales there stay close to shore feeding from June to Mid-November. Our zodiac drivers/guides knew them by name and assured us they returned year after year. While trolling around there we visited seals also in love with the food supply in the Bay.</span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p3" style="margin: 9px 0px 8px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><img id="id_4d51_c849_70d_4fcb" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/OvvkHwE60kb9v-hZtVDXRw_Ja20OFnuO613w2_jo1XBQWg1sDKSzL16JhKDNScXELBY" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 788px; height: auto;"><br></p><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">(Our Inn with a Bay facing window to spot whales)</span></div><p></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><img id="id_a5a2_6eae_27ce_4e5f" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/MXl9M1V5upFaWcKkkzCEpU3pNrhofv2jYri3AdpXU5Dj7sDgnZwkAEQRLSrQ96ReppM" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 404px; height: auto;"><br></p><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">(Whales galore in Depoe Bay)</span></div><p></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p3" style="text-align: right; margin: 9px 0px 8px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><img id="id_daa0_dc3e_5218_3068" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/DidYc5ZfQv6jESUy8DLfIycscB4EIacsuEzhyGkiwSwJdkFmqmAYf3xq_UmrZOJDP5U" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 426px; height: auto;"><br></p><div style="text-align: right;"><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">(As well as seals)</span></div><p></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><img id="id_887a_1d6f_4f30_40cc" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-MU_83-wemzwNvN7ZGUFMSayuOakh7S8aWWjOKYzFzs2MQ25ARLkxvv2jaKxK7uk4Qw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 440px; height: auto;"><br></p><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">(Another tour boat, our was much smaller)</span></div><p></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p2" style="text-align: center; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><img id="id_1110_dc50_210a_645b" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/9Q9hBYY3eNILQzZZQ2saifOojKsPY4X4g1wmdEk7zq2VOA4f_DobkAKP4t8PV6xm3Ks" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 610px; height: auto;"><br></p><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">(Close encounter therefore a bit blurry as I clicked as fast as I could to get the shot)</span></div><p></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">While staying there we drove back up the coastal road to ride an ATV for 2 hours in the Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area, famous for that activity, and Sandee will always rejoice seeing me get stuck within the first 10 minutes on my ATV trying to scale my first dune. </span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p3" style="margin: 9px 0px 8px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><img id="id_913d_a2e7_5f1b_74e2" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/B6zFViWobt9a0kC4kRNeOoJTkZ2eb9osR2I7ZzMw7B8sx_CZzbCHeBJrF2WQCm1rLdE" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 314px; height: auto;"><br><br></p><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_7ac_d29c_7fdb_8987" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/2UYAh7Z9lhf61G93CWgLFSTyp7f9AF7kg4dCB8GpTJl2kQsZN1PdbD-mGuRlg34jHHw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 18.4px; width: 434px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;"><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px; text-align: center;">(Stuck and don’t know how to get it free)</span></div><p></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">Not just stuck but in such a way that a crew had to come rescue me, which they did in less than 90 seconds by mounting my machine and wriggle it somehow out of its predicament.</span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">She will insist on having pictures here.</span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p3" style="text-align: center; margin: 9px 0px 8px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><img id="id_648f_b85d_2bd6_fd2" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/GdX_iM3g952iWMDOFU-wi642t4ESJlRKc5niwg7hNw9NUXuy8wARfmk6zBKoRso-okQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 567px; height: auto;"><br></p><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">(Posing as we are ready to roll in the parking lot of the Park)</span></div><p></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><img id="id_4997_d041_92a9_2ebb" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/uqJGHqDcTK4-iTqFB0G4kNZIgykVYbgUTtDv07yOdXYHG4KFhkXX4T0NKdUU3KuXBP0" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 788px; height: auto;"><br></p><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;">(Sandee never doing anything outside the rule book)</span></div><p></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span></p><p class="p2" style="text-align: center; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><font size="6"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"></span>Up to the next edition of Oregon in Seven Weeks</font></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 18.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 23.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.36px;"></span><br></p> </div>Two retirees and their travel storieshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13942287905877288793noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9052023657534142840.post-50652351569719667902021-02-19T07:21:00.001-05:002021-02-19T07:21:47.142-05:00Israel and Jordan (A Pilgrimage in February March 2020) <div><img id="id_88fa_a556_b41c_6cac" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/9aDfB-kxPUEr4l27qRTmT41qNxQ53hal23s0f8eUK9NaNKWRGTf-ijwmieygxTw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 402px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(One of the typical alley ways in old town Jaffa)<br></span><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_3951_36b7_dfb0_97ee" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/T7JtuZtw6qMHjass--VT1SF7kk6iG41oJScQsNhQ8S24xNU45_yoRme64ArHY6Q" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 384px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(View from Jaffa heights towards Tel Aviv beach)</div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_15b8_9c4d_6a08_3f8c" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/lU6hq32caUHEtvyFqT6MWct3BKvUIFOpphLfaLicQfXajtPDolEJXCOtGKPLQo4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 354px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(I get never enough of those views) </div><font size="5"><br></font></div><font size="5"><div><font size="5"><br></font></div>I am a Christian, born and raised a Presbyterian, (all be it a Dutch branch) in a world torn apart by a multitude of religions, who’s leaders over the centuries have preached love among men (some of those religions even include women on equal footing), while in practice waging war against each other. </font><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_44ca_8c2a_936b_f6a8" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/Ve5yNE_xnc8rkzs-imGiO9t0LR6s8k9cWo6-9zgB8hNQenXFMONw05Lw-JR8Z7U" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">(cypresses on Mt Nebo site we visited with expansive views of Israel/Westbank)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">I come, as they say in the Netherlands - the country of my birth - from “een goed nest” (a “home of good upbringing” is the closest I come to translate that). We (the children) had a strict principled father who ruled “his” household as a benign overlord and partook in public political life as he believed in serving God and Country, and a loving mother who saw that her role in life was: serving her husband and loving her children and in being who she was, trying to soften to friends and neighbors and to her children a potential range of negative images about her husband.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_e5fa_f044_40a2_d1e2" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/tTVV0ave6XHeu4qR5O0Gmv2zdRc2LPnlTiWB6hLmOu45VBeGPR8dTKwZSNlqaQg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">(Israel is lacking a lot of easy arable land, but it gives grand vistas in return)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">As a first born there are expectations. Youth roles in the local church, as well as in society, hopefully using the stepping stones my father paved for me. I will never know if on the scale of expectations and realizations for him I ended up to be a small plus or a big minus. </font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_11fc_db27_56cf_3dac" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/y5jc-29DLrwCkFJqGLO8RPhfm8Yzrkv5LpL4VXL4DW8L0gr3X_Z51eaMXPEL9kM" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 502px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Tel Aviv open air markets string along across many streets)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Let me temporarily halt these musings in concluding that my religious upbringing resulted in who I am today, a Christian who lives in the knowledge that his place is awaiting him and although he does not have a clue what that really means, he believes, that he and the only wife that met my father’s and mother’s approval, Sandee will be welcomed together to whatever awaits us at the end of this life.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_9813_828a_ebfb_b34f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/5CL0c3A9Q9GMOxs5bBf_7n7WbvBabztYYCpLZymkJ4NNEmzLIs_Y-EkwPMzuRls" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 502px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Those colors kept mesmerizing me)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">So with all that heavy unburdening in mind our seasoned traveling team, being the six of us (Linda, Gary, Marjolein, Herman and the two of us) arrived in Tel Aviv a few days ahead of the main group of predominantly Norfolk FPC (First Presbyterian Church) members, led by our minister Jim Wood.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">As this is a pilgrimage story more than a travel blog, Sandee’s and my story of faith will shine throughout this blog in very different forms (I hope my dear Sandee to do you and your retrospective of this trip justice in the way I write this epistle)</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_884b_e6b9_c3bb_43e9" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/3uKN7AKDIcI9IH_iPlVRdZE31us4k8WR9tQYFLxsKkrsF6CkVk6mn3lzK8wg0O0" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 514px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(A sunset in the making in the Wadi Rum desert)<br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_3b8b_5527_ee44_7bf2" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/J9lGmx8hiHjp6kMT9JIcSJLz3TRjUAbOvNtFgzJc41PS6eOVoiAnJy-4jGJ0R_s" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 529px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(the fantastic shapes of thousands of years of eroding desert)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">It was in 2015 that we joined FPC, not because of my Presbyterian background (Sandee was raised Methodist and early in her adult life became a Quaker), but because after a few months of visiting different local churches trying to find a “home” for our spiritual side, pastor Jim Wood sealed the deal.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">For Sandee FPC is a community that heavily concentrates on, as Sandee says it best, “good deeds”, being all the things a christian lifestyle can demonstrate in this world, like soup kitchen, jail ministries, offering overnight stays to the homeless in the winter times, raising funds to provide meals to the poor in our city, gathering our church family members for different projects like restoration work on homes in impoverished areas and painting in neighboring churches. </font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_53ea_97e6_5493_8651" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/s6nHreMjUe8TsupMpqHGlOngbu2eO59AsqQUZakxDaDVAXyrmpgPTRx1116fieY" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 482px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(the Souk in old Jerusalem)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Our own contributions concentrate predominantly on a children’s home and the scourge of HIV in the surrounding area of Nairobi, Kenya, as this mission has touched our hearts and we are able to easily combine it with our traveling lifestyle.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">For me, Jim’s sermons, unlike so many others I suffered through, speak to me as he brings my responsibilities in life to the fore in ways I not often ponder.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_f363_86e6_be9d_f7b8" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/1Vsu4bwvMBIfZBweKM6Yu8d4OPdTwoERAA0cAnkN_gMlYc19KT-K2PySfikoO6o" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 483px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Walking the remnants of the Greco-Roman city of Jerash)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">You see (and here I am going “heavy” again) we Protestants left the Catholic Church centuries ago because of diverging belief interpretations. The 5 pillars of our Protestant personal connection with God are based on a private relationship while seeking Him:</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">1. By faith alone, 2. By finding Him in the scripture alone, 3. By His Grace alone, 4. Through Christ alone, 5.Giving Glory to God alone.</font></div><div><font size="5">(I had to find these “Solas/Alones” again to remind myself why Jim “spoke” to me, as he made me realize he would become in many ways a friend who would guide me back to those basics in my spiritual life, which I had abandoned over time in various ways)</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_2192_c7f9_4ef3_6a4f" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/fSqAnZowwvS0CoA85FIOJPgRtjR3P5zH_g5Zjd1FRPyy3bHcjV-UtYMiT0ojvoc" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 395px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(those beautiful colors of cavelike sights in Petra)<br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_8d17_4e56_2f7d_6204" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/08nxaPn_FaTEr_-2rFWJ2dhrMn9rLvJsZuIHs1Qe3d5B-NtPk0l4wTVPAiBwlSM" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 363px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Shadows on the walls while walking towards Petra’s Treasury) </div><br><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">So after reading all this, you would think: “Well the 2 of you are THE prototype of pilgrims.”</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">So here our travel blog starts:</font></div><div><font size="5">First the bad and then the good. </font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_2455_3b4e_ad4b_941b" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/I4nF5SE8zYOlX4wb0SjWe_lE2JusMDnshgjyi231Cxh0n95Zm6F9Chlmy4V0AYY" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 467px; height: auto;"><br>(Despite my aversion to all those churches on top of holy places, there</div><div>are sights to behold in many of them)<br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Christian pilgrimages are a booming business in Israel, maybe even as much as Saudi Arabia profits from the Mecca goers. So if you visualize the iconic picture of that large open space filled with the 2 million annual hajj goers circling the Kaaba, realize that Israel receives about 3 million tourists each year, of which at least half of them are Christians booking pilgrimage tours to the holy sites, to which one can also add most of the other tourists, who visit most of the same sites such as the Wailing Wall in Jerusalem, Bethlehem and the Sea of Galilee.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_381e_6768_5e13_fd71" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/C5j_LJoOB1TJjcxj91PuQpUPEJfjNvMglYFI8AbyCzWsQh-O2Lz9eD4RbQ9si5g" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 612px; height: auto;"><br>(the mighty Jordan River is sometimes giving you a less mighty perspective)<br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Had I researched those numbers ahead of time, I would not have had my first disappointment:</font></div><div><font size="5">Being herded from site A to site B, arriving in parking lots filled with dozens of buses all filled with Pilgrims wanting to see the same sites at the same time. </font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Disappointment 2: all those buses congregate during lunch in likewise large parking lots herding the masses to communal tables in convention-like halls, to be fed buffet style in 30-40 minutes before being herded back to the bus.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Disappointment 3: Roman and Orthodox Catholic Church denominations have claimed sovereignty of the religious sites, which celebrate one of Jesus’s many stages in life on earth as we find written about in the Bible, by firmly building a house of “their” worship on top of it and in doing so are “consecrating” their version of the celebration of the event, which pilgrims wish to re-experience in a physical setting. For me that “destroyed” and if I want to be nice “spoiled” the experience most of the time.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_35d0_c7b_f139_31a1" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/IpH8PVjSvXE2ty7uhs8Dhtwc7rWLVV9RutRzfnM14Sf7g8mZEiu7Qz6q375bVqI" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 352px; height: auto;"><br>(One of those rare moments: Gary and Herman</div><div> have nothing to say to each other over lunch)</div><div><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_96e5_9216_cc3e_66db" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/htj2m9RzBCeaggy0a-UwmZ4SdoQi-Ar__rZXHlI-slRwVWayxkgyLVlv54GcU90" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 624px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(souvenir shops are big business)</div><br></div><div><br></div><div><font size="5">Note here, that above disappointments reflect my feelings. Sandee although sharing those feelings from an factual point of view found opportunity in deepening her faith experience like most of our travel companions, who come here to visualize their bible readings and teachings. </font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">As you my readers know by now, the blogs I write are about pictures more than my musings, which are predominantly written as a homage to my spouse for her to re-read in future years. Most of you don’t know that there is a print edition of all my blogs (5 volumes and counting) with a published quantity of 1, gracing our bookshelf in Norfolk. And I for the life of me do not understand why she wishes to share these ramblings with all of you.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_8397_f674_9c2f_3166" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/VA77UZ0v68UN9Q2mHiWiRf5UapVTdWhGjnzfkNXPUYrK047oXHcn4sawOHs9ieU" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 515px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(This cart full of freshly baked bread is maneuvering thru the narrow alleys of the Souk)</div><font size="5">So let’s start:</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">ISRAEL (somewhere in China a corona virus is killing people in alarming numbers)</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_ee29_d88b_ad08_1ace" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/s9R8UTTIkOYFk6XTrY3mtcWrc1sBGw0aCTO8x3DJrly_-B1VwgH7y-mInI7F1dA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 336px; height: auto;"><br>(Modern Tel Aviv near our B&B)<br></div><div><br></div><div><font size="5">The six of us had a beautiful sunny day in, as named by Israelis: “unreligious” Tel Aviv, staying in an AirB&B near the beach and wandering from there south to the old district of Jaffa, a township that existed long before Tel Aviv was built, as an Arab fishing village. After 2 nights in sunny Tel Aviv, we relocated to the north meeting the US group in the town of Netanya (Israel’s prime minister’s name indicates he should hail from there.)</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_fb5e_8a7e_6ba0_759c" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/Mjz_rWfyzeLKMaE75yLg_ZoJFS-rN9mNsarO1pJDTSJFVrz8PM3jUEG-6FYZhrQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 519px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Miriam’ Grill is our first Kosher Lunch in Netanya)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">Our first destination was the Sea of Galilee, to which we traveled by a bus that could have accommodated twice the size of our group, led by a funny and very knowledgeable Israeli christian tour guide named Joseph (very appropriate name for a guide), who knew his bible better than most of us and was very good in linking the Bible stories to the physical locations we visited, sprinkling facts and fiction throughout the day. Somebody should have recorded the whole time he spoke.</span></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_1964_f6da_7be7_c902" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/xm9wl5X8vfdEkjlgBr-rrwgEXHCxbHLD_P6wMCHullnMIvuQdzjVjGZabzpw5ao" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 581px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(I have forgotten when the first arched roof constructions were used without mortar)</div><br><span style="font-size: x-large;">And here I need to digress again, so that you know that this blog will not be about this place and that place where Jesus did this and then that place where we were visualizing what Jesus etc etc etc .....</span></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">I include at the end the itinerary of this trip for those that want to know all these locations and visualize biblical representations of his roaming on earth 2000 years ago.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_3cf7_45e4_9de7_6910" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/fl5zMuVcEOwwXyf2PzaPdKoTUZVtL332NmgPJ-bUthyHo-R5AIIGTV_dZO-scMw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 477px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Archeologists placed this beauty high up there to prevent touching)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">The benefit of the two of us having the luxury of traveling the world is among others, the growing realization that we humans in our evolutionary tract from “ape” to “social media overload beings” were able to see not only the natural beauty this globe has to offer, but also visit many different cultures steeped in manifestations of different religions, Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, Judaism, Shinto, Sikhism etc etc. And we saw the edifices of earlier religions in Egypt and Greece and Rome and many places in Asia. Not to speak about my earlier days in Africa where still many people practice some forms of indigenous religion, dealing with cosmology, traditional practices, symbols, gods and goddesses surrounding their tribal settings, as much as Incas and Inuits have done so over the centuries in which we humans have roamed this earth.</span></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_454c_fe59_2380_4eb1" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/hdwYkq8FgDtOjAZArWhNd98oQaslm-QegCqkYfsj6CvDZy64AIcwhxuOV7EHPs0" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 477px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(My first of a few parking lots showing tourbusses)</div></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Every human carries within him/her eschatology, those personal thoughts and concerns with death, final judgment, destiny of soul and humankind.</font></div><div><font size="5">And this explains all those religions as they sprouted all over the world, in those early days in regional form, since people only roamed so far by foot or on animal, and now via the “microphone” of internet and television, with the added confusion of our growing knowledge of a universe and secular science.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_cfd_8327_7d95_d69f" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/8ufz8lwBxud727hl9MDQA2As3Gup-ir1oEvRz1sZwP1yPsJQInqohweIzZgjDl8" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 488px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Did I say lack of arable land?. Well here is arable land, but don’t ask me what for)</div></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">So forgive me as this very different blog will not be about Jesus my savior, but about the country he roamed in his days, especially since I had a hard enough time to visualize those days and happenings being confronted with the “monstrosities” created by good meaning fellow Christians. My take away was that I experienced this voyage more as confirmation of the inner conflicts I have always had in my communications with my Jesus, in that like in the Gospel of John my upbringing, my spiritual relation with the God Jesus I know, brought me that happy feeling that I was privileged to walk where he once walked and to imagine how different the countryside must have looked in those days, and that I must refrain myself from judging how others experienced this trip, almost exchanging secret smiles with John (the one Jesus loved) as we watched all the circus like activities around us, knowing I behave badly by just thinking that.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_6e40_ce26_3f3b_576b" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/9wcZcD_BPaRrIry61EHqAe30q_bpnR2rbwi8oN_PvogAuMpoWRRKIQBX-xQV9_Y" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 445px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(We did a lot of waiting in line)</div></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">So from hereon forward only pictures with explanations and no further ramblings.</font></div><div><br></div><div><font size="5"><b>Ceasarea Maritima</b></font></div><div><font size="5"><b><br></b></font></div><div><font size="5">22 BC King Herod began building a harbor for his empire to compete with harbors like the Greek Piraeus and the Egyptian Alexandria.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">He chose the worst of places: a city in those days called (in the english of today) Strato’s Tower, a city Emperor Augustine had recently given him for his loyalty to the Roman Emperor. This city on the Beach had no natural breakwater and was sandy without any rocky sea bottom base. He built a palace for himself, and of course as was the requirement of those days, a half moon arena or hippodrome for games and theater performances and called it Ceasarea Maritime. Within a year the harbor piers started to crack as sand under the construction washed away.</font></div><div><font size="5">So the engineers imported from Sicily a Vesuvius volcanic ash to mix in with sand, lime and gravel to create a compound much like concrete in order to reinforce the sagging harbor. It became a very expensive reconstruction, to bring that miracle compound from Sicily in very large quantities, especially since right behind Ceasarea that compound could also be found in the Golan Heights. </font></div><div><br><img id="id_75c0_868a_ad40_c427" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/UqMiMCjkzqq01e7bldfBezrw-OXp5iNyR5pzZhyJ5Ian5iuaoqzNYt0ClDGbu9w" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 436px; height: auto;"><br>(the reconstructed amphitheater in Ceasarea)</div><div><br><font size="5">But there were no labs that could prove that the material from Golan Heights had the same elements. So since the Sicilian variant was a proven entity, it had to come from there.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">It was from here that the apostle Paul started his journey to Rome to be facing the court of his peers, which he requested after his arrest as a troublemaker spreading the gospel of Jesus.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">After getting back on the bus we proceeded that afternoon to Megiddo<br></font><font size="5"><b><br></b></font></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_881f_6e09_1c17_f437" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/5b4cHuhOeEN-oc-o1MhTaD3uSoc8WgglQHXkJD5owNXhnJBG4qndNUbYYwISvEE" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 500px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(the Mediterranean Sea where once a harbor must have been) </div><br><img id="id_a6d6_2e64_3991_a9c2" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/Uh_issWfWRYP6Sh0Zjtb-77CPQE29YJPD7xj7xGbToVOUBak8NRTV894g7BMTTs" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 536px; height: auto;"><br>(supposedly Herod’s Palace was here overlooking the Sea)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_67ec_7038_4c9f_a343" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/dEqt6tXL-8F_ZYkP89LrubUAwBJUdRVoHkHr-iwJiVkVb2S90uDsh-_QebLHgAM" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 557px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Paul’s Journey to Rome started here)</div></div><div><font size="5"><b><br></b></font></div><div><font size="5"><b>Megiddo</b></font></div><div><br></div><div><font size="5">Megiddo is today a dusty kibbutz in the Jezreel valley, but it has an illustrious history, located near a narrow pass on one of the ancient important trade routes linking Egypt with Mesopotamia and the rest of Asia Minor. Major battles took place in Megiddo: Joshua fought here f.e. and Solomon demanded forced labor from this town to build his temple and the word Armageddon means literally “the hill city of Megiddo. In WW1 the allied troops battled the Ottoman army at Megiddo.</font></div><div><br></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_85fe_51e9_7767_aa8d" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/TSXXJWuGGfE_NhGGHSvZ28YU0AzZC2H7ycFep23qkPmS4Yo13wZMpm5uAb8cyWA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 631px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(This aquaduct although not in use anymore is in remarkably good condition after a few thousand years)</div><br><br></div><div><font size="5"><b>Mt Carmel</b></font></div><div><font size="5"><b><br></b></font></div><div><font size="5">We saw Megiddo from the viewing point of Mt Carmel, traditionally called the vineyard of God, but in actuality with its many caves in the hillside it was often a refuge for criminals in hiding. It is often also called Mt Elias, the place where allegedly the prophet Elijah defeated 450 Baal priests/prophets in a battle to light fire to an altar offering without the use of fire, an altar Elijah doused in umpteen gallons of water instead before having his God light it. One of the many fun stories in the Bible, with a gruesome ending for the Baal prophets.</font></div><div><br></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_8274_84af_a2e5_8e1c" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/q-Nt4XDOEvdWz_aELmcB5YdMRTfwBtEGTYZZNJpjLKmrkKbB3dNBWX8Aav5y-BE" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 444px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Excavations do not stop beautiful trees to claim their own territory)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><img id="id_503d_3b9a_9d7f_adb5" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/fLZIAfsmI9PUTid170QkY5g-JP8jNq914sz92rjqtB_tI2RnHUlQhl-Xi5WFhaU" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 378px; height: auto;"><br>(Prophet Elijah at Mt Carmel where he challenged 450 Baal Prophets)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_15e1_40bf_82d_3d0e" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/D2EwkW6ZVciwe9358eLQwPCfuQTv_0VAOhC21N_GatI9V6ZJYg0IFfKwoy4SCik" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 441px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(This supposedly is the altar site where Elijah offered is soaking wet</div><div style="text-align: right;">Bullock (steer) with fire from heaven) </div><br></div><div><font size="5"><b>Nazareth</b></font></div><div><font size="5"><b><br></b></font></div><div><img id="id_c18a_e900_a66_f035" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/7XVVdSQWSvypEac85OVQZlKLFI9YQLkipg_o8xjpT6iX6tknHQ7CsIQqhjmXCg4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 423px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Nazareth wouldn’t be on the map without this large church “Basilica</span></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">of the Annunciation” and a few other competing churches)</span></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><font size="5">Nazareth is nowadays one of the larger cities in Israel with about 75000 citizens whereas in Jesus’ time it supposedly had about 500 citizens, who all knew each other fairly well, making Mary most likely a subject of conversation to be seen pregnant and unmarried. Joseph must have been a good guy in keeping his promise to marry her anyway, as I so well know from my past. </font></span></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><font size="5">Well you all know the story of having to travel to Bethlehem to be counted as per the law issued by Emperor Ceasar Augustus. Joseph and Maria returned to Nazareth after a long stay in Egypt to remain out of the hands of Herod the king, who would have loved to kill them, when Jezus supposedly was about 4 years old.</font></span></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><font size="5"><br></font></span></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><font size="5">In Bethlehem, which we visited later, a massive basilica, Church of the Nativity now covers the Grotto of the Nativity, where supposedly Christ was born. Emperor Constantine already in 326AD ordered the construction of a Basilica over the Grotto. I will spare you my reader the stories about the multitudes of destruction and rebuilding of the various churches and basilicas on that spot.</font></span></div><div><br></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_447d_219c_2fbd_5430" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/3giXgJIjLGiDkq-GzOMP6PwsFumCJjxzTonvBFc53RoRF7j8GCKwiNRwaIKIppo" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 376px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(the Christ Anglican Church in Nazareth we visited)</div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_b11a_c514_2692_d6eb" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/_w7-5P9OF73iYZKsTBqEDJuUBaqfyueC3lS2ygBpNr_Bi7W0gi9Ig8EwxLOmbnE" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 473px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(the walls were filled with gifted art from all over the world)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><br><img id="id_4229_9145_e527_1749" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/_FdiLtX_CyMV5V0ei_bgEVPZZA1CZtPHXyOY-S0J2074F5Ok-U7vJCmcNySAL8Q" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 488px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(I am minimizing the number of pictures of churches and the interiors we saw)<br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_2bb0_d7d4_c75f_4615" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/MV7-d3Vbr5jMetwBphcJnpeqxfS2pB560AtyH1mev3KMlvoIKLZRbBBELNXs0Rc" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 476px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(the size of these churches in a country with few Christians </div><div style="text-align: right;">tells you that they are here for the pilgrims)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><font size="5"><b><br></b></font></div><div><font size="5"><b>Tiberias and the Sea of Galilee</b></font></div><div><font size="5"><b><br></b></font></div><div><font size="5">The Sea of Galilee receives its own water from the Golan Heights and from underground springs as well as the Jordan River passing through it and is often also called Lake Tiberias. The lake most likely is the result of the friction between the African and Arabian tectonic plates. Earthquakes are not uncommon in that part of Israel. The lake is at constant danger to become the next Dead Sea as saline levels increase. The Israeli government has formulated a plan to create a tunnel from the Mediterranean Sea to pump desalinated water into the lake. Tourism here is for the largest part depending on Christians wanting to relive at the lake the manifold of miracles with Capernaum on its shores as a main destination.</font></div><div><br></div><div><img id="id_4560_112e_38af_9df4" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/RgobyEc6svlhuPPFYVoFSWWr7YeXB4Lv7kE_RgjC5dbnXDq4EaKJHFSVD1P8Gmg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 500px; height: auto;"><br>(Tiberias Dock in the early morning light from our hotel room, from where </div><div>Pilgrims take tours to experience the Sea of Galilee as it was in Jesus Times)<br><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_2a86_82ff_45c6_3692" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/vzGpId8N6UrzLNkUg01kdWRBb_ZU8gXKLmkc8-MUUS8fM2g7hat5-f2_47g-ua4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 187px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(The raising of the American</div><div style="text-align: center;">Flag ceremony)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_ba73_6edd_3a9c_44c1" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/DZ1_j8wGdPctMrkIEcnAIQ-7-y_HSJZWpdzd7A0PRJRaISB9Sk25UMN5eck5_bo" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 436px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(A view from the boat towards the shore in the dimming evening light)</div></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><font size="5"><b>Bethsaida and the Mount of Beatitudes and the niche of the god Pan at Banyas</b></font></div><div><font size="5"><b><br></b></font></div><div><font size="5">As one drives around the Sea of Galilee up north towards the border with Syria and Lebanon but still firmly within Israel as the Golan Heights are solidly under Israeli control, one cannot but marvel about the size of this lake and imagine how turbulent the waters can be on stormy days. </font></div><div><font size="5"><b><br></b></font></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_71af_30e6_e4b8_940f" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/QAgseD9-sHyC3EfDaup7H8LKqu68bOx_4IIftMTunYI7F3WtnlP7U0ZMms5G9Hc" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 561px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Banyas archeological park with a view at the parking lot as I do more often in next pictures)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><img id="id_6c9f_ae53_e0af_e468" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/pvE0anD716pkWAoaQRuQBxc7EKC9Gv2GjIYBwN1wfTpvzr3QFnBlvfnA2OiaE64" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 493px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Sheer cliffs house caves and remnants of ancient buildings where the God Pan </span></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">once was prayed and offered to)<br></span><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_bbf8_5296_53d4_f54e" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/89G4EXTlrDUn324aMkz0CxCJ2Tkp_CUbSlMub_u6KaP97lNFb_0VsuzlUNkMYyE" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 401px; height: auto;"> </div>(Above and below pictures show the remnants of what once was a thriving city called Ceasarea Philippi)</div><div><br><img id="id_99ce_4a9e_c20e_3966" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/Up_joyswLYd-K8KFj7c8p5RW-MERv7KCZ4wMH9lOrkV3CuUw6ivAvlGFG78TRv4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 430px; height: auto;"><br><br></div><div><b><font size="5">Tabgha</font></b></div><div><br></div><div><font size="5">Tabgha, a city at the northwest shore of the Sea of Galilee has had chapels and a monastery as well as presently the Church of the Multiplication. So a lot to visit in a small town, all because of what happened here. </font><span style="font-size: x-large;">Below the Church courtyard.</span></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_3ea8_cc82_f27d_5285" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/RpreP2xQ09C3r_W5OxbfCQYRuVWx1-yfPA1cObaYEpRtuQoxefgwS74anUm1lI4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 251px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Olive trees are sometimes older that the surrounding buildings </div><div style="text-align: center;">like in this courtyard it is the center of attention)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><img id="id_eaae_e12e_2098_616c" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/k6T-coMUQ0KWr_GghrGCZMdQlhig-rGAvYm_p3KYJvfCA2E5T8U7MZxyFNHztDI" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 564px; height: auto;"><br>(The mosaic floors were still in perfect shape after so many centuries)<br><br></div><div><br></div><div><font size="5">On this location Jesus fed the thousands with just a few loaves and fish, one of the most known miracles in the Bible as he preached on the nearby hill: “the Mountain of the Beatitudes”. A 5th century mosaic was to me especially impressive. The church here is owned and maintained through Benedictine monks under the supervision of (you would never guess) the Bishop of Cologne, Germany. However at the lakeside is a small church named the Primacy of St Peter, celebrating the fact that Jesus, appearing for the fourth time after his insurrection conferred again on this spot he primacy on Simon Peter.</font></div><div><font size="5"><b><br></b></font></div><div><img id="id_df3c_c3f8_f7c9_57b6" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/YcUbGfrmv4jz6-HuEQHwbZTGX4BaTn9KgC2bzfwRf_lt9pK-PmYqkP03uDFcPCM" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 628px; height: auto;"><br>(Primacy of St Peter Chapel on the lake)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_7cac_ae7a_cff5_a11c" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/4woGsqEv0LMu0miL8GlPWPLNPIrlk2nK3TINgiQuO5BJv7Up3PGpc3bCfvXWtCk" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 336px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(The chapel has beautiful windows)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><img id="id_1ffd_84b_c392_cc92" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/MbWLcQlj2CfiMC5UdJYUpgIGKjjIRqfTSgPWgBEZpZct3c9aQF1YT5BJemCoe48" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 485px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Archeologists are still at work in the chapel)<br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_a5f4_ac67_b670_6fe4" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/7lwmudtvKTkPmLORgRud_BnNhVzEe3vpwXsz-nmk8XMS4TLZ-vPjYznLqS_-pVs" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 431px; height: auto;"></div></div><div style="text-align: right;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">( And of course the parking lot is filled with buses,</span></div><div style="text-align: right;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"> even at the early morning time of our visit)</span></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><font size="5"><b>Capernaum</b></font></span></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"> </span></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><font size="5">A few minutes away from Tabgha lies Capernaum in Jesus time a thriving fishing village and home to apostle Peter and tax collector Matthew, which is close to Bethsaida the home town of Simon Peter and Andrew, James and John. Capernaum is such a big part of the pilgrimage tours, because Jesus started his public ministry here and spent a considerable time here. Many miracles were recorded as happening in this part of his time on earth.</font></span></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><font size="5">He also cursed these towns in the gospel of Matthew because of people’s lack of faith in him, by stating “you will be thrown down to Hades”.</font></span></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><font size="5"><br></font></span><br><img id="id_894e_2b23_9eb3_f26f" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/UogFCk23_TWa0R9o7GbDHu1KI3iYXY81Kvo6CPqqpZi8Xi_HzppZX_5nQT4Tmpg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 417px; height: auto;"><br>(Outside the real town you find the archeological park of Capernaum)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_ff0c_94f1_3e82_9c39" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/Xs7NDjsZTGcAmlHVrtSPowvnTS-Rxm7SmqYdcArxPXzcu8sAGYOo-rtIe2iFs2g" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 380px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(The only “new” building here is of course a church, </div><div style="text-align: center;">which I do not show in this blog)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_9d04_db65_557f_696e" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/qAfYs63l_cF7rAEBZiKe4zGQkgwchYH9UKpLwiRFYXr2qOuTPDPOxxL3Z6zPK-s" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 427px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(And it is definitely not certain whether the town looked like this in Jesus times)</div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_1662_175b_ff22_5fbe" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/8V1d4zbTbJQERVPk7WILuRo1JYkfSVD5eMDYKxFCg1QvhSIb1acOKcpjPb3HjyQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 327px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Statue of St. Peter, 12 foot tall and a fish at his feet</div><div style="text-align: center;">and the key to heaven in his hand)</div><br><img id="id_53fe_cd17_18a1_5ed0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/8U-QhWoz7qDeYGoGmaBS1dGpQqeYQI6TQvml-qy9YHjznfpxMgdaIu-6zFq-SjI" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 390px; height: auto;"><br>(the Church has placed these kind of tablets in many languages </div><div>on its grounds. The interesting element is here that it is paid for by the </div><div>UN high commissioner for refugees with the following text:</div><div>“ This stone is placed in gratitude for all the countries that followed</div><div>the BEATITUDES by rescuing hundreds of thousands of Vietnamese </div><div>Refugees on the Pacific Ocean after April 30, 1975 as they escaped </div><div>from the communists”)<br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_c2f_6c9a_a296_8472" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/MMrOzLYLypFLW74nU_btLG_Z4cIqqD-bh7c_6grIkJBQlr1Plj4OhZ5SWjzdi9c" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 306px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(celebrating 800 years since St Francis</div><div style="text-align: right;"> pilgrimage to the Holy Land)</div></div><div><br></div><div><img id="id_767_b6ce_7dee_a1e4" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/0T-ykK8Cx5ipu8LXvLJShG4tpSm2sr0x9czZ476pAXwasp3XvNMAfWNwN4ZSofA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 447px; height: auto;"><br>(walking down towards the Sea of Galilee as we hoped to see the meadow</div><div>where Jesus preached to the Multitude, only to find a sandy road past </div><div>-see below- banana plants)<br><br></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_17e8_7a36_6c04_acd" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/Lze2ExKgyDX58Pg9rnm-QSrGDLMO2fiDvkksXShMACTRR-bk2hsHKZr8g86k0NI" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 342px; height: auto;"></div><br><br><br><br><img id="id_bc3d_db7f_9c22_36ba" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/yFEoSN8TW5J6vq0Zrtm3WxUIwE-nEapSvabIlebykLe9SkBTio4t5PlQ_VylE7U" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 474px; height: auto;"><br>(I couldn’t get enough of those mosaic floors, so perfect after so many</div><div>Centuries)<br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_b0cf_cf9c_466c_2368" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/H1cXR4FMXJjveXMYH-I5n-0vO-38kxpHwQD3b1bcr3WHRIgAv8WIzsfUP3Zs1Mk" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 342px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Just a picture that gave me pause: a quiet corner)</div><font size="5" style="font-weight: bold;">Jacob’s Well</font></div><div><font size="5"><b><br></b></font></div><div><font size="5">Traveling down from the Sea of Galilee to the Palestinian city of Nablus one will find under a massive church and down in a cellar Jacob’s Well where according to Genesis Jacob returned to the promised land and pitched his tent (another way of saying “bought the land”). The question is whether the well was there or whether he dug the well after he settled there. From a pilgrims point of view the visit relates to the story of Jesus asking a Samaritan woman supposedly near this well for water as he rested from a tiresome trip. In those days that was a faux pas of enormous proportions. But it is not up to me to give a sermon here about the how and why of Jews talking to Samaritans</font></div><div><br><img id="id_c648_1e75_119_ac64" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/1HArDir1gWbWytEcd4qRRFSeTITIapTuC4Uulu7EJCSEZ9SNpVJKquZCeYq-FrU" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 544px; height: auto;"><br>(We arrive with our tour during a sermon and almost have to pass through the gathered to </div><div>make our way down to the well in the cellar)<br><br></div><div><br></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_6eeb_a4a1_cd81_e41c" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/X0E4hqLmCHYUmVILh0xL5HN2vfs0jBpU1ID7rOoVgLDEx2VgxFsgmLtD4nL_MSE" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 360px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Clearly an old well being well preserved)</div><br></div><div><br></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_7203_1542_82d0_5076" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/WBy5XLTn5WPvtfY5W-KGrVNHjZc3nuA4GBUFr5_yjqEgT_mjLh_S5AEsMAylapA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 388px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Tourist women bringing up water. I will hold my tongue</div><div style="text-align: right;"> and not comment on the thought I had with this re-enactment)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><img id="id_1513_1417_d94b_90a7" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/CEoXkJcuGPdrk2It0hKQvT0zBEQCRjHk_4cTLSD1736g17M5wHbnWlDY9fln124" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 435px; height: auto;"><br>(the courtyard outside this church in Nablus was serene and peaceful)<br><br><br><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_7083_7a11_347_ffd4" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/GnLt52jIG1VMElZ3Vr9JoqsuftMUFTH5xAPiqpXr3M5-5__fwpA60HodGb3iUNY" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 457px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(A typical example of a Palestinian town above as well as below)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_797_dcd_bf35_9283" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/rkx8Z5yrQBh4bdSWe-HkzSsew8EZJGL95SWaZDrCd6dtNLpC_Z5uRnRYTWhW6SI" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 480px; height: auto;"></div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_2e7a_b8cf_9f3a_6ffd" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/Sl_S6P90DmjlkM2W3AdFW5bfaV26WiyJ5OwDRBhyqPj4TOhxEkl1CZAim-wRVSc" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(As we travel by bus through Palestine - the West Bank, beauty is not to be found)</div><br><br><img id="id_db71_2b0a_5138_a884" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/Jwkhp7g2-NfQlvBO0rUFXrkZcNCcXC8YQSJcCUqJiJvy8l_p2hoQAc-1O1OvvTo" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 475px; height: auto;"><br>(the side road that forks off from our highway leads to an area with below sign)<br><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_bf1b_3d03_43a0_e1b6" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/o53Zv1u4ySXxSnaZbPzj_MBltpTJ6wEL4tm28MToxykeIkGVsMTJbASkPnk6oq0" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 415px; height: auto;"></div><br><b><font size="5">Monastery of Saints John and George of Choziba</font></b></div><div><font size="5"><b><br></b></font></div><div><font size="5">A large monastery high onto a clifflike barren wadi was lastly inhabited by Father Germanos, a Greek Orthodox monk, who lived there from 1993 till 2001when he was killed during the Second Intifada by Arab terrorists. Tradition suggest that the prophet Elijah was hiding here and fed by ravens. Since it’s rebuilding in about 1100AD hermits have lived here on and off.<br></font><br><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_569d_6dd3_ba3e_2364" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/uFN3cAHvpwI2nAdAbXV0SakZf0jrYSmoqrj0ow0TxE37joBF8o6XcVxOzS5DP8I" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 672px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(this monastery empty and high up the mountain cliff was mesmerizingly beautiful to me)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_e02b_df5b_9a4_f067" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/Zxr-GuMiEUwWebkdkKJ001YHlpkE78h2dlaR1sDrRbCwBqgL1qzbHvmcQm_xPjk" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 395px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(a tourist stop gave some of us the chance to sit on a camel)</div><br><b style="text-align: right;"><font size="5">Jordan River Jesus Baptism by John the Baptist</font></b></div><div><b><font size="5"><br></font></b></div><div><font size="5">An unimposing site on the Jordan River where supposedly John the Baptist was known to baptize many people and among him also Jezus. Nowadays many a pilgrim uses this spot to wade into the River to be baptized again. According to lore as this was a common spot to wade across the Jordan, the Israelites crossed here into the promised land and this seemed to also be the place where the prophet Elijah ascended to heaven. I chose, out of respect, not to take pictures of the re-baptism ceremonies in the waters of the River Jordan here.</font></div><div><br></div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_8c11_6312_52d7_ad5f" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/KeEDjm9ltIWNcuvQkCf3Jc9rcdQwsD3GIjVcTYu2eBM70xAWtGdOLoA69BbgBWs" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 484px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(above and below pictures show a drab place and an unassuming River Jordan)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><img id="id_bc85_f7d4_643d_33ed" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/dIEvMTzf8OW4BvOGXOMqEczlf97vXjVHcyCtFuZYn62iD5Sq1NnW5EeDqXprm5c" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 418px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><font size="5"><b>Dead Sea</b></font></span></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><font size="5"><b><br></b></font></span></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><font size="5">The Dead Sea may be dead in a few decennia as it recedes its water levels with about 3ft/1m per year. It is already about 1400ft/425m below sea level one of the lowest if not the lowest point of dry land on earth, with a salt concentration of 32% or 9 times saltier than ocean water, and lethal to ingest. But floating on the water was fun and the main reason for people to come to the hotels here bordering the Sea, touting spa treatments and selling Dead Sea salts in many forms.<br></font></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_4880_96bd_f7f2_b325" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/sJ00S7vO5ZiBf6OdrJwDjSMgM9F8V_BOaaO0mcxAGxuXV2TzE9QXktER2DHm-FQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 453px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(views from our hotel room over the Dead Sea )</div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_c44e_a120_ee4e_8cb6" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/GdDMYHob8Dscr6JJMRQFzomO-sblc1T_nF-1pFImPLJ6QFth4JZA-ELaFfoIAQo" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 391px; height: auto;"></div>(a few more)<br><img id="id_eed3_322_b5f7_cf1a" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/ZZEviueB6F3q85D3lAXKhrab5aqTKZyPGnlJbNLpyPZH4blQ6NkyrOcLp7j0gOQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 397px; height: auto;"><br><br></div><div><font size="5"><b>Masada National Park</b></font></div><div><font size="5"><b><br></b></font></div><div><font size="5">Also overlooking the Dead Sea, we visit the next day on our way to Jerusalem the Masada National Park, a fortress on top of an isolated rock plateau, difficult to climb, reason why about 35 years before the birth of Christ, Herod the Great had there a fortress with Palaces built, to assure a safe refuge for himself and his family in case he had to face an uprising or invaders. He knew that he was not beloved by his people. We took the cable car to reach the top. </font></div><div><br></div><div><font size="5"><b><br></b></font></div><div><img id="id_347c_730e_feeb_c9f3" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/RTLcSkekSPulb0zoxHzYBvvyFdCBwoID4nwt3_y15YD6gf0ZoiGQaFd4fFgp3nE" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 480px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(entrance to the park)</span></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><font size="5">Masada is famous and a definite tourist attraction for anybody visiting the Dead Sea, for the lore of the Siege of Masada by Roman troops in 73AD as that army was wrapping up the last remnants of resistance to end the first Jewish Roman war (yes there were more, but that is an entire different story). On the 400 meter (1300ft) high bluff according to the history books as written by romans were about a 1000 Jewish rebels (men, women and children) holding out. It took 15000 attackers about 2 to 3 months of siege to eventually creating an assault ramp and a battery ram to breach the defense walls that Herod built long before to conquer the bluff, finding supposedly mass suicides ongoing.</font></span></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><font size="5">Since the 1960’s archeologists have uncovered the ruins of Herod’s palaces and fortifications, which Israel at great expense has restored.<br></font></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_7c33_6400_b116_9fee" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/baScuAJYDbKjde4CGA2L4Zz74MoZDnaRovULMZLLhKw-ll3J3SreTSmVbmXMPgQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 469px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(in the visitor center at the bottom one finds a model of Masada)</div><br><img id="id_fbec_cee6_57ed_2353" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/bjlifi3CYrK9ubahHKdZueR4aIE4nIE22Kq5k5rtaSOcgzDovrK-I-4_KTatT20" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 436px; height: auto;"><br>(the cable station below give the best view of the Rock)</div><div><br><img id="id_9d63_74a3_1bd1_e28b" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/fu46-YUvPjuVOU_nIychHeNk70Ry32Z4ElGagZvWhZl3_ca-MnFfHriRAgsQInc" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 548px; height: auto;"><br>(arriving upstairs we view the surroundings as does this black bird that has found his habitat here)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_3f61_5c0_3a2a_a8b2" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/A3dndgwDtwKp7dv_n3urVSnvIVZPyInSCfcXhIwT2bKnW-PzOYzIVhdNpFyzOGo" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 445px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Tablets describe the buildings that once were here)</div><br><img id="id_ef39_37f6_d7d9_a529" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/AZAuHF9y3J1aKr0yWhAUR5NUbSGPzB95L9OmesJPKbc8sgyBteeC9Y7Wo1STho0" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 501px; height: auto;"><br>(A selfie with the help of a stranger shows the plateau in the background)<br><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><font size="5"><b>Qumran National Park</b></font></div><div><br></div><div><font size="5">In 1947 a Bedouin goat herder went into a cave he had never visited yet to discover the famous Dead Sea scrolls and later excavations in that area uncovered about 900 of them with writings on papyrus or parchment and even leather. There are tales that he used some of it to make shoes for himself. But scientists reject that notion, as the material is to brittle for that purpose. He tried to sell his finds without much success as they were labeled forgeries, until a few years later archeologists became interested when other Bedouin’s found more caves with content. The present story is that in the century before and after Christ a strict Jewish movement “The Essenes” settled in the Qumran area and created a library of their documented views outlining their conflicting opinions with mainstream Jews and especially with the Pharisees of those days. The Essenes believed they were living in a time where God would soon establish a kingdom of peace.</font></div><div><br><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_5214_acfa_60b3_6984" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/ZO0E5IvnRq-YU-4Cd0D4JGcrh-3SIM_pLU9c6-fmSLspLITeDgmPhdtqCDa7Y6k" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 480px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(the cave hole on this picture could have contained scrolls)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_885f_c6d3_6a42_6fe3" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/5a4O5FBqwzRRRQ2Yi4QNmRrPp428qFU8U4icMenmeaQywWsjaDImQGqLynED26k" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 434px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(a pitstop allowed everyone off the bus to walk to the edge of a bluff ) </div><font size="5"><b><br></b></font></div><div><br><font size="5"><b>Bethlehem.</b></font></div><div><font size="5">I think the least interesting part of the trip was Bethlehem an overrated place to visit with big overtones of commercialism. With a massive church built over a possible birthplace of Jesus in a dirty Palestinian city, that has nothing to shown for, than that it’s very name “Bethlehem” makes it famous.<br><br></font></div><div><br></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_312a_d55d_e416_f385" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/ix73jLEkXbGm3vGY4WbgQ98JjB3C7toAhczAWo5Ud0tB9LNxo2yXcYeyYTQOIQQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 509px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Don’t know why I took this parking lot picture across from below Bethlehem Souvenir Center, where the group wandered among, in my opinion, horrible stuff for a long long time, allowing me to walk out in disgust and shoot pictures outside )</div><img id="id_5fa5_fc48_2c84_5339" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/1DX0UtjYG3h2QUluls0kx3yIbnjQbe9OJbki6Gn9n7XXmEtnZvXUh1jEwvPibYs" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 409px; height: auto;"><br><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_4197_b395_f9ee_f6ad" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/JD_uw4witbXTJPkgo7fU4umrkCA3zGWBBtCAAwS3_IXVqS7XsIrKiztd4qXD7lI" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 464px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(should I say more?)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_6cb6_4bbd_7a79_9761" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/m5fdiopL_BkO_Osr1hV7-HENpTtER1DAkl2KTb2XN9rRx64pP7huD0G_X372l3U" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 580px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">( what I found however a hundred yards from the store is this wall)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><img id="id_5cb5_221a_6d4a_b6d5" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/doWwKGJyRNwUCnIbe2ggUilLzcxLZLM2DOZPcI5U_fuTRyXJ-o2Crs91vtgksz8" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 406px; height: auto;"><br>(interesting isn’t it?)<br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_7987_da46_a7_429f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/mC5YB7xeUIklRO8-dYNC52f8xEhgg98zS6MRw0L1oLqUMhCTk0qhC0tcToxMxqI" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 432px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(and right beside above poster on the corner this sign)</div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_878_7c30_148b_19b0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/ULeWPreoIx4yToVlds1TZCqPK4n-30JdrDSMwPFhVkzoI4x9bOh4RbBdfew-SDY" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 347px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(and turning a 180* a view of the city center)</div><img id="id_6260_4be3_da0c_c6b" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/Y-k3QWhgqtk_FMVb4WZlfaXEBq47aKZiDlpY_WXVGOCIDWgZLUNSJQGrkv464K4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 379px; height: auto;"><br>(the later visit to the church of the Nativity with the grotto below where Jesus supposedly was born)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_c301_fc0e_842e_c92d" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/CvuA234S2kVgOU6X_1mOpNfb1bQLzJO6MPWVW9dFUaR4w432-kfUYZaH3kcOcOE" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 340px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(talking about large churches on top of assumed locations</div><div style="text-align: center;">above as well as below)</div></div><div><br><img id="id_8917_6db9_fe6_de08" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/KOTZQmH3etYgSwG1RxIpwLIxBeqIUhQEqK7y5kYS-SNvQwYT3cy8HqVQ0mG1mj4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 463px; height: auto;"><br><br><br><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_bbe1_d0d0_7e4d_e2d3" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/IkfHEEJ0SFkCyNcvvtBCpoeWorV6WJvDCTDZLgf_d2Me0zcs61V5NM0SiQbUWUw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 503px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(the courtyard in the back of the church brought some serenity to me)</div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div><font size="5"><b>Jerusalem </b></font></div><div><font size="5">Jerusalem is a city which name has a ring to it, a city that without a pilgrimage is worth a visit in its own right. A clearly middle eastern capital, that like other major middle eastern towns displays a charm of present beauty as well as historical significance, which its displays well within its ancient center. From a distance, as it undulates over its seven hills it does not seem impressive, just very large and widespread. Now as a matter of trivia, there are reportedly more than 19 cities in the United States claiming the title “on Seven Hills”. Moreover the most famous one claiming that title is Rome , but also Moscow, Tehran, Lisbon, Amman and historically Babylon, all want to be known as the city on Seven Hills. </font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_2a16_c981_7577_3c12" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/AtNlvqga6eOGG_HE3kpvzHq7KPPGaF3VdkFaYmtMvn46fND4udk38e5FmMqKiMo" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 373px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(a first view of the city at an overlook)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><font size="5">For me the visit to the Wailing Wall was the most impressive moment during our stay in Jeruzalem. The underground catacombs and the Via Dolorosa not because of the stages of Jesus walk to the Golgotha, but because it wanders straight through present day Arab souks, which is always a unique vibrant area of trade and smells and sights as only Arab countries can display, whether you are in Morocco or in Egypt or here in Israel. </font><br><br><img id="id_1ab8_1a56_a584_878e" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/J_2MURhpGSnmRP-_fcGzmLrIdJdlJmLREnZYM61R-kQYMJZdVvxOfwX1pmi4Yww" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 402px; height: auto;"><br>(thousands of cemetery crypts at the edge of town sloping down a hillside)<br><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_f5b8_64b6_5496_6d89" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/JxhWp28tGYGswAxcyYMHfHSfhsEP3JymSrCW5k0UBHTWl0szDSWzoX1JHDXo4MQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 438px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(a view of the golden turrets of the Russian Orthodox Church</div><div style="text-align: right;"> outside the walls of the city just below the cemetery)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><img id="id_18e6_8c1c_f7ee_844" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/J_rUh76X9QNZQJokF8iDzjRvZgIWSgMglg2igvWzysXMVnuC2sfnrMuIld--wg4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 551px; height: auto;"><br>(how old is this olive tree? Well scientists say that in Bethlehem the Al Badawi Olive </div><div>tree is between 4000 and 5000 year old. This one very looks old too)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_c04b_219c_afc5_52d1" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/dNA9K5bV5DxuIcpludfWfUxqrphn1mAcH4O8oFSa8lzAQmxm3l3iOYbBmEY0_Bs" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 453px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(entering the old city of Jerusalem)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><img id="id_2ddc_f8db_6e15_85b9" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/gvkgRFu0645UQMIwZBYpB-uMA2tjZLr9MlYbNlg62ffoXJXfpCAr6Da1LsPn1M4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 581px; height: auto;"><br>(a first look at the wailing wall or western wall of the original Temple Mount location)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_5cf6_87ce_f7dc_5a94" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/TDriR1LedmJnsWsCavwQhYBq7T9S8Sm81HmPAS25wcJDYvKxEwzhzzmcABTrjiY" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 512px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(on the Temple Mount one finds a gigantic Building The Dome of the Rock, although not a mosque , it is one of the holiest places in Islam, a place where Mohammed supposedly ascended to heaven from)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><img id="id_ad25_6750_ce07_db11" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/EhDwLlG4q1Pjm9baxkoKvHjU3CHLH_r8qGbBlKnepaZD9J2s9PDUzIKFL_ynj8o" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 420px; height: auto;"><br>(it was a rainy day with few tourists giving us an almost forlorn view of </div><div>the Temple Mount)<br><br><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_7eda_4690_3516_5df6" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/sPU9iUD2yy7I_u75_d4UwJIW0f6utIZdpTT_dUv8YxgKR3w-N74ZwniyzElLU-w" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 378px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(the next adventure is walking the tunnels under the Temple Mount)</div><br><img id="id_d0c5_b4db_38d7_9c0f" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/BTKrRyaH6b1k2ZAuTiQww6OPE-jqfmr49NRZ8yuY-8vflswKsftp4FYKgi1h8mE" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">(It was interesting to see a maquette of the walled city of Jerusalem in brick)</div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_7b82_9cb4_96bd_f32b" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/ndgp7-NwlVIjeVkJtKNxyuYCPYRSMfxDiAEd5uAHYc4smpS8RypLq86OAT36CSw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 426px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(excavations are an ongoing business in jerusalem)</div><br><img id="id_4631_c7fc_3ef9_3077" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/xkT3ysM1f8TAGhzoPKlRm_rmsjzvJucSNPvnwDoi0qS3X-uNtxE89gTSskRXJ00" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 522px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: left;">(a shot of an almost empty souk alley on our way to the Via Dolorosa)</div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_6e9d_22ca_866b_c458" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/4fHTiHTvJRcBOjVYVo1dXYc_uPUFhA9prsy_b32Q9ET5vjmwRhS1sr6pKkJ29c4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 442px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(the entrance to the church of the Holy Sepulchre with inside the stages 10 to 14, </div><div style="text-align: right;">describing his crucifixion, his death and the burial sites. For me the story lost a lot of its historic veracity </div><div style="text-align: right;">right here in this ornate Greek Orthodox Church , covering the area where all these stages of his crucifixion and death and resurrection supposedly occurred)</div><font size="5"><b><br></b></font></div><div><img id="id_2933_c690_303f_989d" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/3wHcj1hbk7j2I702fBGo1pZmwJFQoROYpuYPaGO_Bk5M2nRRsDAZSdkQz3g3e4Q" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 541px; height: auto;"><br>(altar of the crucifixion at the spot he was crucified?????)<br><br><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_e8c_4107_94fe_604e" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/9UNZx6-uaeyu_Gog0-WOsMWBfh0W4xrNsD1hAvgNqXznQ_EMKO8s5tVaz5QTCl4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 402px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(there is a lot of “touching places”going on here)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><img id="id_a60_e1ad_b53c_cd45" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/r_zNwvct9Y5zi87vdTT9sVYQQ_dao63ejAwdnyzCHHUwIUKgF4ttQomewpDeHlE" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 502px; height: auto;"><br>(the atmosphere is subdued and at the same time too ostentatious)<br><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_824e_c74a_ea62_5fb7" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/s0RWvOkWBC49-kqL-9fX3I1g7V4yJN11ETky3iCghcUflvgvIt4TwpNBY52tpUE" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 399px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(walking the Via Dolorosa brings you past these signs , this being stage 3)</div><br><img id="id_6ecd_ebec_8ae6_a02f" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/QEBhzbfLFQVwJi4c39SDQNtpSD-WTBj7uN2Z8sxZRUlbt4HvUMooqlEgA5UdSUA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 468px; height: auto;"><br>(what touched me more was the Wailing Wall, as it is a present day experience </div><div>daily performed by Jews from around the world)<br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_dcf8_1c05_20ed_a65a" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/H2oQKcIZlhVCke0fIL5pubogOaDAomZiNihxxdM25X7sVg8gIJimAMNxd4VYOT8" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 405px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(it is a place for reflection)</div><br><br><img id="id_aeb6_70da_d38d_22a0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/f4Zv4_FGzzUeVS6F1VoKy25nCfh7YxIx7zl4bisP9dle5PBkKVq9Mcns9Mp-YhM" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 533px; height: auto;"><br>(the women’s section was less than half as wide as the one for men. Here are</div><div>boys placing written notes of prayer in the wall ‘s crevices)</div><div><br></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_ac51_cc2a_9e99_1d25" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/ZWMI7OiuOfbvHtE-KhorNAXS20CcMdYFG_2u-MP__-s7tMIweweqYGpkvKwlylM" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 509px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(So I took a chair and sat there for about half an hour ,taking in as much of it as I could )</div><br><img id="id_24c1_cabf_bc19_b8ef" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/dh8MXtMLRhBx6o0PXu_l0s39mwswQNE0oHZQfDV0ucor8VY_ECMJUb6-eU0Wl38" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 569px; height: auto;"><br>(our last stop of the day was visiting a burial site where possibly Jesus</div><div> could been placed after being taken off the cross)</div><div><br></div><div><font size="5"><b>Jordan</b></font></div><div><font size="5">A much smaller group of us continued to visit Jordan for a few days. The itinerary is below, as is the one of the Israel journey.</font></div><div><font size="5">A bus took us to the King Hussein/Allenby Bridge crossing, to undergo a process that is an experience in itself, since the immigration services of each country do not share facilities. Just like in the olden days, when I had to cross from West Germany into East Germany, one had to travel about a mile through no-ones land. A bus service takes border crossing clients, that have been processed at the Israeli site, to the Jordan processing facility and coming back the process is vice versa.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">We made an error here, as our group was processed not to come back here but to leave by air from Amman airport, which was the tour organization’s official plan. However out little band, Herman and Marjolein, Gary and Linda as well as Erik and Sandee had arrived earlier from Amsterdam into Israel and were planning to leave later from Israel again. Our Jordan guide had quite some phone calls to make to correct our official papers in order to let us back into Israel. </font></div><div><font size="5">The other interesting detail was, that for the first time we experienced the COVID crisis as it started to spread all over the world, because we were welcomed on the Jordanian immigration site by a person standing at the bus exit door with a thermometer taking each passengers temp before letting them into the building.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Only after having been processed and after having been able to find our luggage again from which we were separated in Israel, we found and were welcomed by our Jordan guide, whose name I have forgotten.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Our first destination is the famous Wadi Rum desert, made famous f.e. by British officer and writer T.E. Lawrence, nicknamed Lawrence of Arabia, who wrote The Seven Pillars of Wisdom around 1920, in which de described this “Valley of Airborne Sand” as follows: “The hills on the right grew taller and sharper, a fair counterpart of the other side which straightened itself to one massive rampart of redness”. I could not have said it better.</font></div><div><br></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_94c7_50bb_124c_f8b6" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/JzPCHSFCgxRiVSes9p4n1W7UlrVynjaZYef9RZtAKxZLh7qKgQaANi2DLicNIqQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 447px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(but first you have to get there in a 2 -3 hour ride</div><div style="text-align: right;"> passing this type of rock formations)</div><img id="id_7077_6632_7020_c2c7" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/dRUGPhagoZfDIpphcyY7N6AU7s7RJ6dbS_eNUqhf34WfZURA5rvDk_GyJei5YdI" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 445px; height: auto;"><br>(and this type of barren land, which covers most of Jordan)<br><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_2bd3_7293_e0b_2843" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/m8hJ62UVxwYuhRtLWtUx9hpb7fiW9Ae4EwEkxfFIC2J_5kQGSWzdSn5ULRbNMXM" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 410px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(To reach our destination, a luxurious camp site</div><div style="text-align: right;"> with nice white airconditioned iglo like structures) </div><br><img id="id_537_a73c_1243_e7cb" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/gXRx7_4shyuZKlMuG2AAh9nssTu0CHjcMvcwFI_iqx31bQAJQIt0KTP7z98qqV0" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 484px; height: auto;"><br>(the welcome center and dining room area)<br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_806d_a6bb_e21b_43c6" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/cy9CKjG7f4Z8zTojmbxcFsHzjQZu7CbTTkAVQyIyUN4S0dfM2LTKV-kuG8QJanA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 449px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(individual domes with bed room, sitting area and en-suite facilities)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><img id="id_a7d5_1d74_37cb_6da3" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/8iLQ6lYAn1JdGTzND9ZuKykDCykbOlHMcw7K6AyzGZ1qZVkNic5aVVBCN_pLPXA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 478px; height: auto;"><br>(Our tour through the Wadi in the late afternoon and a bit later a setting sun)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_ef18_30f7_8824_d9b" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/DkIc3uh0OTVOO6sln2FaJM0_dtvDrGH_aa2Lg-Qtc3HNfPth2r58Qc5gIGiGlm4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 485px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Sun and erosion will over the next centuries flatten the landscape and these</div><div style="text-align: right;">rock formations will gradually disappear)</div><img id="id_cf39_ef7e_7064_2aa0" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/5BQl-FOBj9cxAp1JyJhaaHdOfKiDol8kWIfkb0M_mspl0iycNuaUeK1_04MLF4M" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 483px; height: auto;"><br>(UNESCO put these 12000 year old petroglyphs on their World Heritage List)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_90ce_c23d_b057_691c" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/b6kKGq-Xy55QgGUYfE4-1OkCree5EA6vW9vHdUd_XaVEF-Y3nrG9tv02y1kyHok" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 450px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(This iconic view is getting rarer in the Arab world)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><img id="id_6d63_47d5_f867_ca37" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/pJJXkwET8wNEVS2LZLIc8vYhgaqqpjvmvXo9w4qLoDhCMNHxzOUQ1PS-bKm5ZW4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 398px; height: auto;"><br>(carving of the face of Lawrence of Arabia)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_76b2_cf6e_a5c9_7715" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/WBfHcrH0-Uon_pGwEVVsKRofIVKDuFnNQE7o-R9H3c8ft6cIXccw7slR2NL3vbs" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 551px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(on the way back up towards Petra the landscape changed to barren rocky countryside again)</div><br><img id="id_e64_f50c_abdc_70a2" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/37alrw30mGPEz8mXLiW0ng43kwFXzfncWwFstVEOWnPyhWWkPX1CM-_OGAnFQ38" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 338px; height: auto;"><br>(remnant of ancient cities near Petra)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_ae65_aac0_191d_2985" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-26F9UC2Canc81DbufRKz3Uit5_0vP49775YhRvt_uirmr5DnUioqbcj0BfjBDM" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 548px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(a 1km/2/3M walk through a meandering Siq (shaft), with 8 meter/26ft</div><div style="text-align: right;">high walls is the access road to the city of Petra)</div><br><img id="id_b219_3f3f_708b_74ba" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/fDZK58gkc4HZ4QF64hah-fN2IA2o42Gs3lNslSIisrxBwuMh6yC_7evjlgmBQC4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 467px; height: auto;"><br>(when you reach the end the “Treasury” building appears)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_28ac_791c_b977_16a2" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/pH7YSVyA6IGE9OCtwdlIJspVIFkdonWJIaZ4OP_iC0rrVUiQ6E5sd8f9gJtN0-8" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 478px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(the city of Petra dates from 312BC as the capital of the Nabateans </div><div style="text-align: right;">and the Treasury is one of the New Seven Wonders of the world)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><img id="id_e458_d87b_879a_dbd2" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/340jCwvbhRkyrMv4TFNygCHHwmMZ-Wlpeu8eXmpfeADfauq-0TUhzCideqDDUPg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 438px; height: auto;"><br>(Nature’s composition that humans cannot dream up)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_3407_2072_1b00_a68d" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/Mv2RMIXOHA2Jwm8PYEu5FcXFl8VoAX5-YOmszj_f6fM-UBALBUF2A2qIxWaQncw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 499px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(the remnants of the amphitheater here in Petra)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><img id="id_3922_eea_92df_74a9" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/cvEJGeuqg-HiyP0i2eVQ8baAJYi3bko98qUKF7vC4wRpJchYbDYhu4ubCDdKb2U" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 467px; height: auto;"><br>(tourists mulling around in Petra, where not many restrictions</div><div> exist for them to climb these rocks)<br><font size="5"><b><br></b></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_b75_a27b_8227_aa41" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/1i2veK5AgezEobPZJDGmxe2_NNEBbaOMnwBYFqYzhnt1XH3rlAGuZ4ydHZbRf7o" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 356px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(at the entrance of Jerash the original flatbread/pizza provider)</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br></div><div style="text-align: left;"><font size="5"><b>Jerash</b></font></div><div style="text-align: left;"><font size="5">Since the Bronze Age (3200BC -1200BC), this walled Greco-Roman city with origins as old as 7500BC has been a major metropolis from before even Alexander the Great, who supposedly was here for awhile after defeating Egypt and having his sights on Mesopotamia after that. It is known as one of the largest and well preserved Roman sites outside of Italy, reaching a size of 800,000 sq meters/200,000 acres. It is ironic that despite’s many invading armies, who held this city an earthquake in 749AD made it what it looks now.</font></div><div style="text-align: left;"><font size="5"><br></font></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_6caa_a68_a50d_adf4" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/vb72Fk6eazlZqMaEinRrHOt0tgOTHnYKqZo1GthBuu8HpZHPIocZSj95qEsaL5g" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 568px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(“Main Street” in the days of glory)</div><img id="id_4120_fb35_10f_de41" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/jPcFbynZjX-mmwBrZdfG06E9MjInAmRBBNQDWs06DtX2QVw834-jWnRSFjrG510" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 444px; height: auto;"><br>(One of the better preserved buildings on Cardo Maximus or Main Street)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_1e34_fbe5_eae2_8ca1" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/V5kgteSPMRcfdwCIj37GFNQDYB3qOIcPBvspMvvcd6TycCfa3BGvSrSIUymxhoI" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 446px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(excavations are ongoing, with in the background the present city of Jerash)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><img id="id_3460_896f_11a0_103" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/bOSdxwzj055pXNO_gCi6W-I4UfLfN26OVT4yHrH4RXqSOIXUk46tJj3rBVOpvXE" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 400px; height: auto;"><br>(This building had a different building style, maybe much later?)</div><div><br></div><div><font size="5"><b>Mt Nebo</b></font></div><div><font size="5">This is the claimed spot where Moses saw the Promised Land, and still today one has great expansive views of Israel from here. Already in the 4th century a church was built here and beautiful mosaic floors can be found in the present structure here managed by the Franciscan Order. Although never found, there are two places claiming Moses burial place and this is one of the contenders)</font></div><div><font size="5"><b><br></b></font><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_daf1_e187_cbe1_5c27" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/2A2c2vQ9QWHE2_vW2HgJzofL-b3UhegAHom7QFdlPROt-OZO_CX-vrTjyimmy2E" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 355px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Mosaic floor in Diakonikon Baptistery)</div><br><img id="id_46bc_aa02_43bf_779f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/QKoMlOfpg1jkEOb7PPnOxJXVQwcMQapWaH1q_ajEaFoHJairSVskBLga3rnfCrA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 420px; height: auto;"><br>(the text under the staff of Moses with the brazen serpent)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_babf_be16_1b3e_392b" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/NfG0dRzdaqBVEhtJCZkT886JzLqXUd4EA0izkJeZXvQwswqVl4bQETOrk75o2Zs" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 457px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Italian artist Giovanni Fantoni created this bronze serpent)</div><div style="text-align: right;"> </div><img id="id_4148_8af4_a41_14f7" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/eL5F_n28V_FovBTwoVklfMpoTbShYt1LYBV8UFRUlQ81RchvvXQrZhp4NFXxCi4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 347px; height: auto;"><br>(sign at the entrance of the park)<br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_16f2_263a_2484_82fd" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/08IB-bkf675Yb5KzqevRNPfNqonNi_Ose-s8Esk_PfoljMzpSokG3HOVbi9IlOs" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 352px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Back in Tel Aviv we visited one more time the market area</div><div style="text-align: right;"> and finding these gigantic deep red paprika towers)</div></div><div><font size="5"><b><br></b></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_659_e94e_6393_4eb9" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/QdWMkJnn4JEwLasIXYJllybvBPiKSRl-YeQpn9Jk2coM3zuzFLN2h5qGMMcyRNU" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 453px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Netanyahu is present everywhere in Israel, even in the market alleys)</div><font size="5"><b><br></b></font></div><div><font size="5">So at the end of this saga you found out that despite my promises halfway this epistle I rambled again since I just cannot stop myself. Not sorry.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">And here as promised the official itinerary which I did not follow chronologically:</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_d095_a05d_d48b_bfc5" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/f9dmphirXd5ymBwv7o-dVXOyfZPpW5DuRYeG3u62hDtSHycel0Mw3KVFUm5Xijs" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"><br>(Copy of the tour brochure we received long before our trip)</div><div><br></div><div>Followed by a description of the added trip to Jordan that we took</div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div>4 NIGHT OPTIONAL JORDAN EXTENSION </div><div><br></div><div>DAY 09 – WED. FEB. 26 – FAREWELL DINNER / LAST OVERNIGHT JERUSALEM</div><div>After our farewell dinner with the group, the folks who are ending their tour head out to the airport while we remain in Jerusalem for one more night.</div><div>DAY 10 – THU. FEB. 27 - JERUSALEM / WADI RUM</div><div>Following breakfast we depart Jerusalem and enter Jordan by way of Allenby Bridge. After completing border formalities we’ll meet our Jordanian guide and board our Jordanian vehicle to cross into the Kingdom of Jordan. We’ll travel southward as we make our way to our camp in Wadi Rum. We’ll enjoy a two-hour desert jeep tour, dinner and overnight under the desert stars.</div><div>DAY 11 – FRI. FEB. 28 – WADI RUM / PETRA</div><div>Following breakfast our journey continues to the ancient red rock city of Petra, skillfully carved out of the sandstone mountains. The city was cut from solid rose-colored rock. It was built by the Nabateans and Edomites, long before Christ and is thought by some to be one of the Cities of Refuge for Jewish believers during the Tribulation. We will walk through the siq for 1250 meters till we reach the 1st monument, The Treasury. While walking through we will see the water system; idols carved on the siq walls; and the paved road from the Roman period. The Treasury is the most fascinating monument in Petra as it has art decorations from the Hellenistic, Greek and Nabatean periods. Then it’s on to the Nabatean Theater, which accommodated 7,000 people. The theater is carved in the mountain of the high place of sacrifice, which suggests that the theater was used for rituals and not just plays. Further down we get to the most fascinating tombs of Urn-Silk-Corinthian and the Palace tombs. A walk up the stairs brings us to the urn tomb, which was turned into a church in the middle of the 5th century AD. We proceed downhill and come to the Roman remains of a cardo-Nymphaeum. An evening spent next to Petra gives us the opportunity to watch the sun set and rise over this magnificent city, dating back to the 4th century BC.</div><div>DAY 12 – SAT. FEB. 29 – PETRA / JERASH / AMMAN</div><div>Today we depart Petra and travel through the Decapolis region to Jerash. We visit one of the most complete and best- preserved Roman cities in the world. We’ll see colonnaded streets, the south theatre, and many Byzantine churches with beautiful mosaics. Further south is Amman, where we’ll see the hilltop Citadel and 6,000-seat Roman amphitheater. Dinner at our hotel in Amman, one overnight.</div><div>DAY 13 – SUN. MAR. 01 -AMMAN / MT. NEBO / DINNER / AIRPORT</div><div>This morning we’ll have a city tour of Amman, including the citadel, the Old Souk and the Jordan Museum. Next, we view the Holy Land from Mt. Nebo, the traditional spot where Moses viewed the Promised Land. After you see the view and the Serpent of Moses (which is a monument on the top), we will walk to the church that has been excavated and restored since 1933 by the Franciscans of Italy. You will see the beautiful mosaic floors dating from the 5th century AD. Mt. Nebo is also said to be the site of Moses’ death and burial. Afterwards we’ll have some free time before traveling back to our hotel to freshen up. Dinner in a local restaurant and transfer to the airport for our late evening/early morning flight home.</div></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div>Two retirees and their travel storieshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13942287905877288793noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9052023657534142840.post-25036241487132623182020-07-27T20:08:00.001-04:002020-07-27T20:08:23.203-04:00Around The World for a 3rd Time (South Island of New Zealand)<div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="font-size: x-large; text-align: center;"><img id="id_4d6f_b51d_c7cd_69dc" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-Wfm1zblNjoXXALiJtVlFIwsUFyJCiZwN4iyo-UzlxDez6rRcE5ZZ_gHO6DfEiM" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(South Island is one big nature park with expansive views like this)</div><font size="5" style="font-size: x-large;"><br></font></div><div style="font-size: x-large;">This is the tale of a November 2018 month long trip on one of the most diverse as well as beautiful islands in the world, during which we experienced typical weather phenomena normally only encountered in the northern hemisphere in March or July or September or December, but never all of them in one month’s time, as we had the pleasure to witness this time around. November in New Zealand is like May in our Northern hemisphere, so one has certain expectations of springlike conditions with the gradual forewarning of summer to come. Reading this blog and looking at the pictures will illustrate the weather surprises we had.</div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_675c_fde7_7d1d_2593" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/vkHRjzRr2DTNHPUKtqNyqhfXcYnPRhojxXalig-V70rNvO1wS-4kaCm3xml1PYE" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 471px; height: auto;"></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Its is a very green island with the whole range of greens)</span></div><br><img id="id_7a3c_4365_186d_4921" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/dQkP5HLvCo1_f0hxW2C8NTrRxcqAleq5AicJE9HsjsVfxNXWBGX65ZFF5dcgMjg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 443px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Filled with mountains and lakes)<br></span><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_a6b6_9bc4_ed55_fc0f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/Bo3aq_NwK_qll4f3S_h2Zu_N7y5d7ifAUczsPrfrEk51cEPW0Xpc5neuveOApko" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 343px; height: auto;"></div></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(And flowers everywhere)</span></div><br><br><div style="text-align: right;"><font size="4"><img id="id_6b60_aaad_aafd_1328" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/izCWzUmhF-pelgg3PbRM2ACyISqA7CWm3wbVaD68E-LDra8Kf6YIK8kDCkIbAZw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 423px; height: auto;"></font></div></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(But nature can be brutal and unpredictable too)</span></div><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Our third time around the world was inspired by the desire to see two countries again: China and New Zealand. As I write this now, I would add for future reference: Japan is also a place I won’t mind returning to.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_9010_6618_b384_9705" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/oGlKaCvapboeGsW3xuMJK_U_tBZzZqJz9VIQgOkT9WkAgOQ6Mkc-dLdB2_AcWyM" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 594px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(But the lasting memory that stays with you is green, very green)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">In 2014 we visited the North Island of New Zealand, but we heard so many stories about the natural beauty of the much less populated South Island, that we decided then to return one day to this wonderful but far away country. Of the 5 million inhabitants only 1 million live on the larger South Island.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_f090_7609_4bfc_97c2" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/7-mun6haktTc3kVkWnirfLrliD1u_ilmuaV9Yixs-nmU6IRF0Q_qOkIduiKibwI" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 317px; height: auto;"><br>(Agriculture and husbandry is the economic driver]<br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_3ab5_e67e_9f33_d79b" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/QQYFG4wkvRU8VNYa5SSXlpClQjsB9u9u8-wNf0M9tBsao3EWHngH8ztuYKGvJPU" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 395px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(With more exotic animals in the mix)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">It was a beautiful sunny spring day, when our Kia rental car left the airport at Christchurch, which would also be our last stop before leaving for Abu Dhabi and Dubai. Our aim that day was to take the scenic drive north to Kaikoura town, where we expected to take a sperm whale watching boat tour, since Kaikoura is THE place to see whales. </font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_4638_5213_7395_7fd1" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/sH9KjEBmkuseQ52YcYUIurwXrL2YnIFz5t-OdS73aFblpigaqV6YCVqrjPB84ic" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 372px; height: auto;"><br>(Vineyards and viniculture is big in New Zealand)<br><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_d161_8ad1_cd07_fb9d" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/1G_qt1PSrXxHei7TwsnmkCs343EDvgvXdYskemzbIYdzpQz4c5A8EcVvELz1NYs" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 303px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Nicky’s parents are the caretakers at the property)</div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_f1d1_3df2_e73b_1a66" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/a7TblHJJQgqJqbgOuZ07r9yeOYCJfCrkxJrY52Z6M0ro2hAjau53S70BNA4XbsQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 349px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Beautifully maintained vines in the early stages )</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Our lovely drive had us stop and visit a vineyard that produces wines Sandee and I drink and we were looking forward to meet the owner Nicky Parris. We were welcomed by her father Peter who gave us the tour. When he waved us goodbye, he did so with a bottle of his white wine for our later enjoyment. </font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_c6aa_b533_e032_7e54" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/L7HddcS3s-UetI5oOGfT2YyoA53BuJEPHnCYqnbJ2xlkVPPQRt0Sr7yRf3DW2oc" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 428px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Did I already mention that there are more sheep than people here)</div><br><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_23fa_2ce0_15b3_a958" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/_-gMli-tOtaXlgL-Yo2W4nbaw8iiPpCdnIkvFR-iq9p-18xJ6Tc-tl4D4O-oK-Q" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 438px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(This farmer displays a former occupant of the land)</div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_b27e_e7ef_ffe3_af59" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/3JpKcKT6b2M9yN5wfVcNxtfPMBQ9cdfhaXNV-tmZXC4_TE2dX4BDrYW2vo44wUQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 690px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Deer meat is big too and they turn their heads, like soldiers during a parade: all eyes fixed on us)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="blob:null/243e1218-bc6f-4a09-967c-939ed4c4de31" width="1088" height="801" id="id_9e48_827f_6800_dc9a" style="width: 1088px; height: auto;"></div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br><br></div><div><font size="5">The pictures of that day’s drive best tell the story of our first encounter with this part of Kiwi land. The whale-watching tour was cancelled due to rough weather. </font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_b1ef_a2b2_b822_40af" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/k9O4UwUAP0vbKS4FQWyH6aBgyOmGItfvXeYQ-othU6RZzJijB3I1q14z8UGM610" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 595px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Vista’s and low hanging clouds)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><font size="5"><br></font></div></div><div><img src="blob:null/a9e1de4c-d784-4090-a9de-073441ac89fd" width="1088" height="801" id="id_1a76_ec32_5fa2_98dc" style="width: 1088px; height: auto;"></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">So the next day we went earlier than expected on toward our next stop: Ruby Bay on the north west side of this island. On the South Island most people are living on the coast or in the only 2 big cities here. (And the numbers for biggest and second biggest city on this island is telling: Christchurch has 364,000 citizens and Queenstown number 2 on this island has 10,400 citizens) The midday stop for lunch was in the even smaller town of Picton where the ferries to and from Wellington on the North Island are.</font></div><div><br></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_4077_53d4_8753_6b4" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/C130g0xf452hxxe3EB_tvZSvHOLovy-FNccwYrml39AW2eJnUGr0mpwzSgLqDtw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 591px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(He showed us)</div><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_c2ea_282a_84df_1f2c" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/mqsbfBocBvTWAg6Dl4egrFIKR6dE2I0StvuK1LK-P98bQU1dEMWfB4qCjZ8MCZ4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="text-align: center; width: 746px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(All those shades of green)</div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></div><br></div><div><font size="5">The weather had turned clammy cold and rainy, but that condition landed me a very expensive nice gift from my sweetheart: a merino wool and possum fur sweater, that only can be bought in New Zealand and sometimes in Australia.</font></div><div><font size="5">The possum and the polar bear are the only animals with hollow fur, that captures and holds the emitted heat of one’s skin.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_3da3_68cb_4c4b_4379" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/V8Z6ut2TqW5dxEVAkRqo887qOi-8L-UFokABb9_tAG6JCHfwFuMEld2q71_EQUU" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 435px; height: auto;"><br>(End of day drinks at the beach with a fire made of driftwood we collected)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_e1e3_b513_f219_512c" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/aaitk5gYnzE9qC1dtHenZWin-oq6MNNpzR33ewl2Pmnl7hOGgznV4dHD_1VN8CY" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 467px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(The delights of an well placed AirB&B)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_a074_cebe_d020_6fef" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/7upyQjRc2agoCe5HYKxjiMGAgvQJ5MKlWn4MHtxXLwb6QTptE7ogYiN0JEEsdvI" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 460px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(We took a boat tour in the national park)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_b02b_a81c_3500_b107" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/iU7Fer3alGt5-Cq71d_ZtH7Kzr9PBdzeQGlUu0ugwqB7XNrQw4pmLvoarTa-Hcc" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 455px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Had views like this)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><img id="id_61cc_2ac8_263d_2b6b" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/SXavwh9qr1AasvsC1V1jgsWFJtbB66QBXba7UhyIG5sNT0Kwpp_tE9Zb596mgOA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 454px; height: auto;"><br>(Same views from afar on a beautiful sunny day in paradise)<br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Our lovely Ruby Bay Air B&B gave us the opportunity to not only enjoy a fireplace, the beach and the outside fire pit kept burning with our trove of dry driftwood with views of the Bay, but also served as our base to visit the Abel Tasman National Park and Farewell Spit, the most northern point of this island. Highlight was the walk towards one of the loneliest beaches we ever set foot on, where the wind swept away our footsteps in seconds behind us, as if to stress that nobody was here before or after our visit. we also saw the famed Split Apple during our water taxi ride in the Abel Tasman National Park towards Tinga Quarry from where we hiked 2 and a half hours back to Medlands Beach where the water taxi collected us again to get us back to our car.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_357_9b30_6e8a_276d" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/Ufr4ccYf63vzV72b0JcwPE1HYk9S57iPzg_Z5a1MHg-KNjmKM_PjQ4vUpd4DtZs" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 557px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Above and below pictures of nature’s wonders: a perfect smooth split)<br></span><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_d973_f641_4a5_de0a" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/3N-FG_s6CeJlJdXoPKqKvYCbaFszJsIkxqs2AbyiMCtkS8Bc9yT4Qtq_yC3cs8g" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 534px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_7547_f892_8be8_63ee" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/qJSo3T2-rr-gOqfCS7rDGr9GiHVWP6UgcgrV5LBJ9Ko46qe3aykczU8m9bhCj3c" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 696px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Our path to the beach at Farewell Spit)</div><br><img id="id_3189_7d66_faf8_842f" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/6_kykjJ_MWISyzvz3qXX9MoTnRYyUlJ9YmrI1gwQXu9Q0WwWTcWTE2Nyll4o-9A" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 553px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(The wonder of being alone on a wide open beach)<br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_b456_afcf_4f5_e07b" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/Xw9AcLIp92kg1k_QD7yUudyPaFLlU7qiV6BNrE0FlVcEX8Q4eOxwOCTAnp98ksY" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 545px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">( No footsteps anywhere but your own, which the wind erases right behind </div><div style="text-align: right;">you in a few minutes)</div></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">After 3 nights we drove off to change locations and vistas to the Bealy Hotel near Arthur’s Pass. I dearly wanted to take a stop to visit an old miners cemetery named Lyle, where I hoped to find 80 graves. When we drove into the large parking spot where many a caravan had overnighted, as it is also a starting point for a trek into the mountains, a sign warned us not to go direction cemetery since there had been a “slip”, the NZ term for landslide. Stubborn as I am, I walked to see where and how bad the slip was and although half the path was gone we inched ourselves to the other side finding a badly maintained desolate cemetery with only 6 headstones from the 1850’s, 3 of which were women and one had strangely enough a flower blooming right in front of the headstone.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_ce32_bcdd_2c1e_51b2" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/W5qp7XzC_wJZJjdWUC6aJo_5moBuKMDGgrsoroGQ_oZ4QuTeDDbE3csN-RZHuLA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 487px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(No dogs allowed on this bridge. More forest on the other side]<br></span><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_4975_3b4c_8126_900a" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/TIW3cZLf8dLhVBR8V3UmyV6cLI_kkXX_2u2EU9D2ahtOevvO__cUPtV_CsQmOZU" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 481px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(This is not a rainforest but water streams everywhere)</div><br><img id="id_32e2_72e5_6ef6_b60a" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/5-MU0ht-9GBfSXChkxydHT5LGKjoOviPdtFSklnHYjWpuuSRsRQmZkedNT-ZQdU" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 444px; height: auto;"><br>(The cemetery I had to see despite the dangers of getting there)<br><br></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_57bd_34f5_7d54_e336" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/TnEBmpsJ01FKQo37BGAAF0bWUbUqVvBWoPYel64UBY8N8UlcQ4eIc-ycbMX3ahk" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 493px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(More than a century later nature still honors her)</div><br></div><div><font size="5">After passing the town of Westport we saw a sign directing us to Faulwind Point, where it indicated we would find a seal colony. The wind had increased a bit but the sun stayed with us as we walked among other visitors staring at an angry ocean, passing a local rare endangered bird that cannot fly named Weka. The fur seals we saw from above sunning on cliffs were worth the detour as was the Weka, a chicken-like brown bird, which we never saw again.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_7124_1e38_1bd5_16c9" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/0lsRkQyGdwm2j0XvRk1jz25_F4b54goyKnRkecZe-fqynp_yarzFf-gUnPkFAHA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 372px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Seals from high above)<br></span><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_b81e_a131_9acb_3d3f" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/i6FmBFRSmp8kT-Ibg5eSqP3xgFwE-A-6e0vI7Qz_Ya1k219_HdgKbd80l_uXfxY" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 342px; height: auto;"></div><br><br><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_c8d7_e29c_50b3_e18a" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/IR9nBhXGsQe0f9UofhMRn_nuFwdnEcRZ6zeNvPkZFSxzi7W7FHOVhgar8kfdYM4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 383px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(The elusive Weka we encountered )</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">The island has a mountain range (Southern Alps) straight in the middle from top to bottom, with 4 passes that allow for crossing from one side to the other. In the middle of the island is the most visited Arthur’s Pass crossing, connecting Christ Church with the small town of Greymouth. (There are no big towns on that side of the island). In 1864 Arthur Dudley Dobson was commissioned to find a suitable pass across the mountains. The treacherous pass he found lies 940m high and was often used by Maori hunters. Later the stage coach brought 8 male passengers for an average monthly wage, during a 35hr road trip from East to West and vice versa. (it could only take 6 women because of their skirts).</span></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_1bd0_6b34_8dfa_8bf" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/CvCBel4NjRDwZyx8j7AH60B4Z25HOtC2JBywH9osCpKemdMJYfIwekP7WzwghDo" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 457px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Today’s easy option to cross Arthur’s Pass)<br></span><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_b205_5404_9b55_a88d" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/c79HHxq9t0sHjkPWhkpaU6RR_vKY9orIdsk3pyLG6bZthk6I_o_Kenwpyt8NuPY" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 398px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Pictures of boring the Otira tunnel)</div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_fcee_bd79_f741_7cc" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/CdPMfRRltigwtORL9XDo_2x1CaN8YrC-y0yXSk6odMoZdnOqGPfo6E4fO3s6YGc" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 413px; height: auto;"></div><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">In 1908 construction of the Otira tunnel started from both sides where crews of 60 men earning $1 a day were hacking away at the rock, advancing, depending on its hardness, 60cm/24inch to 4 meter/158 inches a day. The camp where they lived did cost $2 a month and they had to pay $2 a week for food being cooked by women who maintained the camp and cooked and laundered (I did not find out at the little exhibit in the visitor center of Arthur’s Pass what the laundry price was, nor the potential</font><span style="font-size: x-large;"> cost of nightly female warmth). It took till 1923 to complete this 8,529m/5.3 mile long tunnel. In those days the worlds 7th longest tunnel.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_9365_29bd_4b9e_28ce" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/fbKj1uFB8iT7k1StaWaSKQUF98kUGtb841PGQVwYd_w3Vrngi-XaR3XjJoNaIFk" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 437px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Where did those rocks come from? Those little ‘dots’ far up on the</span></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">path are people - gives you some idea of how gigantic the stones are)<br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_29c3_f3fb_9578_503e" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/tojTMwOtqJ0tXTHnysTgTVld57lQpsFpmOsA-EqsnbzBIHE-blTMLRxcMDpzErg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 374px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(These trees were covered with white lichen )</div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">The Bealy Hotel is a few miles away from the village of Arthur’s Pass where 21 people live to staff the visitor center, the post office and the cafe. It is in the cafe, that we camped for a whole day as the weather was stormy and awful, but mainly because we had internet unlike at our hotel where lousy internet was for sale for $5 per 50 MB that lasted a few minutes max. </span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_9735_5b2d_af15_53aa" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/SoH82kx2YsQI6RQUr2egW6TLLVLEEkgMaw803bkzQi7_c1XsR-SRKk9n9ewSaww" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 325px; height: auto;"><br>(One of the pleasures of visiting New Zealand </div><div>No other tourists most of the time)<br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_d40e_3749_577d_7a04" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/FGwDXV8pKMjKWzK-ky_YZT01UamOw8yR7jzIMv3EsC54JZvZO7XRjNlqYtSEVOg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 423px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(This is nature that never ceases to fascinate me)</div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">But our first full day there was spent driving toward Coleridge Lake and stopping along the way at Castle Hill Rocks a limestone rock formation phenomena, that is a complete anomaly in the landscape with towering spire like rocks, 300 million years old, where you can freely play hide and seek among them. Then onwards onto a gravel road toward the lake, where we met no other vehicles for 15 to 20 miles, but a group of campers on horseback composed of 5/6 guides and several pack horses for maybe 5 or 6 vacationing customers. </span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_61c_9d88_87aa_1627" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/DTyn_Vc5WKfDEH42c91KvRoa_wUtBWlXRMClPB5JLnx1cVRTWWb6fJq5OTPnkSc" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 350px; height: auto;"><br></div><div>(Oh well, there are sometimes other tourists)</div><div><br></div><div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: x-large; text-align: right;">I often thought about them, as we passed them on the last good day before several of horrible storm laden cold days, that swelled the rivers, doubling them in size making roads impassable. But that day we enjoyed the crystal blue sky and lake edge solitude, where we noshed our brought lunch, after which we took the long way back to Athur’s Pass through Victorian like villages such as Darfield and Springfield where, while having a beer basking in the setting sun, a local hillbilly spouted his knowledge of alternate currencies such as ripples, which we had never heard of. </span></div></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: x-large; text-align: right;"><br></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_74f7_e9de_7769_69fc" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/ZnBGz974JlRp0cOQ3zmxy6VZN-Whe9Wcfn1nR2UGEoOVS3JdMzfVJ7LW43dBRXo" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 526px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(The weather gets worse during our escape from Arthur’s Pass)</div><span style="font-size: x-large; text-align: right;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">The evening in the bar at the Bealy Hotel we enjoyed lambshank and watched a local downing 32oz beers one after the other, amazed he was still standing after 6 of those and never visiting the loo in the meantime. When we retired to our room down the hill we hoped to see the resident fox to no avail.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_cb1c_1a8a_efa2_4c88" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/LcVQ9ggz_cVmd9_YMBD8_IOdN6A7XJKxA11gMca7h6qj9mwUXFnSBHCNlWFsQWU" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 247px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(We found one eye Tuhura and reported him as requested)</span></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_7d72_a0d0_6823_a435" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/rrMmJA04GrKJ8Rg2kx7-XLbLlgs_4VkdWAVMPmatoEOA_WUrOTx6xHZxCcdPtJk" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 476px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Kea’s are getting rarer in numbers, but stay too curious and this can be found </div><div style="text-align: center;">where people congregate like parking places)</div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_a14f_3a67_b890_6824" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/H-2qdnFzEPJPZsDsnJKLVR863K3rjjkYhvadk0kKUbmu8Oz5vUu6FaUTdDv9TbM" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 231px; height: auto;"></div><br><br><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">It was the fateful next day that pictures are needed in order to tell the story. The day we were supposed to drive to the Franz Joseph glacier for a one night stopover on the way to our next base Queenstown. The mountains around us had disappeared in fog, rain and howling scary storm winds that shook our car, constantly trying to hurl us off the road. The river alongside the road had swollen to a raging turbulent foamy swirling vortex of water, ready to have us disappear forever if it ever entrapped us into its mighty flow.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_240e_95ed_4406_4f55" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/eGP2kKZXNv2uWz-yh2M7kBUx4_A3ZYXb53GYUMlZFw1vlc6MLYE3JcwchlwVS0I" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 430px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(These pictures miss the sound of howling wind shaking the car)<br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_abd1_c57f_1026_3003" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/6Azj1loo7vr4X4TtfLZqVYOtK4gLJXKeFZZAFexp4icS3n4CphY9ywzDvsO4DmQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 503px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(And a picture does not show the speed of the raging waters)</div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">We were very thankful to be alive, when we ended our mountain descent onto the two lane ringroad and were in definite need of a coffee stopover when we drove into Hokitika village that late morning. </span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">The weather here was rainy but less windy. As we continued south toward our next stay we saw a lonely camper half underwater as we crossed a bridge. It had apparently overnighted at the river’s edge and was caught by the doubling in size of the swollen river. </span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">A few miles further down, a flag man stopped us and informed us that because of a “slip” the road was blocked till crews could make it passable again in “maybe a few hours from now”. So please turn around and have lunch, before trying again. Long story short the road was never cleared that day and in the meantime there was no place in the area that had beds for the night anymore. So cancel our hotel in Franz Joseph by phone and we found a B&B in Greymouth on the web for ridiculous money, only to find nobody home when we arrived. So onwards we went in northern direction in search of a place for the night. As luck would have it, the place we had lunch at had one room left. There during dinner we met several day trippers who had taken the daily steam train tour from Christchurch to Greymouth also stranded here, the primary rail/passenger bridge which crosses the pass had washed out just after the train came through - us too!</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_8835_ac56_ec8f_b56e" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/r7pyHwXeulSPdl44FenIsANJJWkabRV5uuwCb7InuCgyWZsNAHGL2bYgMQi2tos" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 475px; height: auto;"><br>(Told you that we had spring, summer, autumn and winter all in one month)<br><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_df1b_1a3e_7a42_808b" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/BrMul1IxEeiMFBYbfg8ICp7B5afUJhqhwo0J61K8KxYxbSzuPS0l1UVXO8bi1rs" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 555px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Leave it up to you to put a season to this picture)</div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">The next day the latest on the “slip” being cleared, still unknown, brought the decision to cross over the mountain ridge driving the 11 hour long way to Queenstown. It was then, that we found that a few hours after we crossed the day before, one of the bridges in the raging storm down the mountain had collapsed taking a local mother of 11 to her death and making it impossible to use that pass. We drove one more pass up further north and made the arduous trip, having us arrive to a setting sun in beautiful Queenstown, where nothing suggested we had ever endured the weathers of the days before.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_5661_2be6_df4f_efa5" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/rlKWHy5BORXHXZ6ShfPMdSt-M-IjXdkh9XpGFnKR00p68egwpM-0W1kHz3aTBi0" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 536px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Views from our AirB&B balcony in Quernstown)</span></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_402b_e4bd_7add_dd95" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/Rb7GaCLjvlrFZwTcfUR3yt37WA23UXE-rUkZj3oZjRlfjvBBnayzkkCZq9FvLhk" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 622px; height: auto;"></div><br><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span><span style="font-size: x-large;">Little Queenstown is a cute town on a lake surrounded by steep mountains, rising straight from the lake, so that many homes seem “stapled” to the slope, each above each other, all seem to have balconies so one can savor the views. The picturesque little downtown mall invited us to have grooming time, laundry done and culinary adventures. Since it was shearing time for the largest population in New Zealand, the sheep, Sandee emerged with shorter hair than I have ever seen before, leading her to complain about the dominance of grey hair. </span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_f47_2c6a_4811_6a7c" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/_49d182m_JjjNfgeE-xBvnXPCXVgXnz7J6rPTp2nDGKFwEJAobGguNgFavSLw7Q" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 536px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Downtown statue of first city settler and his money maker)</span></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_634c_fd45_9b_f273" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/j7XrXchCDZqZ0d-ocgD9_r_lPfylBf1kPwUsJN8pc0gHFPBuIjwUcNEwYE7BGB4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 551px; height: auto;"></div></span><br><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">We visited an underwhelming Kiwi preserve, where one tries to discover the famous national animal in the pitch dark as they are being fed. We stood in line for a cable car ride to the top of the surrounding mountain ridge above the city center, till we saw the ticket price of $80 pp. and decided to spend that money on a tapas lunch at the lakefront instead.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_56f1_a452_5174_d1e7" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/H7LHvbaxBkYokYY2Sm2TAGfJHU1gwuyIAxm5W1b-ZO4NR1XVD0HBs-gWULdcPfQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 525px; height: auto;"></div><div>(We spent our days here just relaxing and less touring)</div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_ee6_a89e_4532_1c4d" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/8FtEVwAVCvw3LKCCBvwQbiUsgFThcoeKxlQyX5mDn56Exb74UdREV1Ju9p_4oBQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 369px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Made me smile)</div><br><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_9c7e_2b0_afe4_d9bc" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/Wi9ndGYHtAQdubCMSC6sLXAzBiJPsVHCU0kInVrFfC1uxI2uRhYMxhXG1hN3ljs" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 508px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Didn’t I say earlier that nature never ceases to amaze me)</div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span><span style="font-size: x-large;">After 2 of these “vacation days” halting our touring, we took a day drive to Wanaka lake, stopping at one of the many wineries for lunch, to see the “famous” lone tree, a 70 year old “most photographed” crack willow tree (I had never heard of a “crack willow” tree), ending that beautiful spring day with a six course tasting menu at the not easily found Bunker restaurant. </span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_5769_58e1_3b8a_6313" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/deVXJpm_3KKrRJmlqCgy7-PqmZeopN1bljdJdcBrMH2LgE1JAgtFRYRQSc7ouQY" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 407px; height: auto;"><br>(Drinks before dinner around a gaslit fireplace during our </div><div>Queenstown visit)<br><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_ecb5_c812_1ff4_f9cc" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/5lG_Qu5eW9R8hblaFugFkZN67XUAVFBpNCDIGmnQdsK2OtFR14kPK46r-4g5hH4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 461px; height: auto;"></div><br></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_b80e_df30_8d1_d789" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/YMIymxT8BcXWup6lkrGhfccm3q7JhcPfguE-e9anUNRexuUOY44vrz0erIpKaP0" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 471px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(On the one day outing from Queenstown we encountered this monument </div><div style="text-align: center;">against breast cancer)</div><br></div><div><br></div><div><img id="id_e3a3_456b_4557_5c3b" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/TVWK7Gep7UkQ-q934VOkHDGPOeu22WPSwxondApDWtyJJwlV88gZhZR_QgHSjks" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 530px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(And we encountered another now two-eyed Kea when stopping to see below)</span></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_39c2_739e_acef_52e5" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/W6L8EEKOJ9TjiXWO7ypt5THfcomIzUyrbN6N5s5xSCdpIRvDPEPH8wlDCATW2j4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 525px; height: auto;"></div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Raw imposing nature)</span></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_1022_e62b_8503_a2a3" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/_HZDTPaREsRE4O3iq5O2unEfwqV-6EuQIBmoJ-hNpqJqhShR3o-sQVjjaPrqdhs" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 576px; height: auto;"></div><br><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span><br><img id="id_1714_2db5_9715_96f0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/o1F7k1ff_11_kiv1xmhZmKTTmdmZX9HjS9A8FEs0h6hmGLw9ViQu0UkmXA-HzIA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">(The crack willow tree that was the reason of our outing day from Queenstown)</div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">The next stop on this nature trip was to Te Anau a township in the Fiordland National Park in the most southwestern part of the Island, famous for its 2 well visited sounds, the Milford Sound and the Doubtful Sound. Less than 2000 inhabitants cater here </span><span style="font-size: x-large;">to tourists. </span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_9990_d71a_f9a_5993" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/mK7foqmezoDT8KGNPw2v63h_G7iC1iMmOiuf0f9j4L7RzQTvqDzKO8jBPSmyEuc" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 495px; height: auto;"><br>(Milford sound on a cloudy but still sunny day)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_7f18_93ea_d25f_24e7" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/uJawfjFwnVFo5tkoBvE6SWa3xgejyp7asR6_RdfeOCoe5jt5fMLQYIUqTvPnx_E" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(The low hanging clouds gave Milford Sound the feel of being a more the lonely place it is)</div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">We started very early to reach Te Anau late morning to have lunch and afterwards continue for a one and a half hour drive to Milford Sound so we can make a boat trip that afternoon on the sound, to then drive back in order to make dinner that night at the Distinction Hotel.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_2416_a333_88b5_ff76" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/DU6_mHfl-8d1LK8jMwUWe9H_85Eh3ZfHWIPrTDo4FFFp6dzcRRsgsLEiK8VYKdw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 415px; height: auto;"><br>(Doubtful sound from a distance)<br><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">The highlight of that part of the trip was an overnight boat trip on the Doubtful Sound next day. To reach the sound we crossed Te Anau lake to a location called Maripou, where we had a bus trip over a high pass to the landingspot of the ship Navigator at the Doubtful Sound. </span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_8e63_5bb4_df6c_8c46" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/1lK-tm91uXbK-hZMbd_kVlG7DIoK2d5H1AD7YN_JBVjfLsVGSBFoHNLI2tS68ag" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 245px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(This overnighter was more eerie)<br></span><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_c4a9_adb2_3081_e10d" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/vjAXbSMroxJT1AhvoYInMv6JlB415TLFBBwffwE-nYXyz554Sll32Lri_WeKJh0" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 314px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Low hanging clouds as sun sets)</div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_6dc5_919e_541f_3d96" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/wcgvIo-fMjS8UxHew97rAQBdXPILjt2DEaEcNI0U0JD9kkvQ7paMLD_UQqqi5cw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 277px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(An earlier more bright picture)</div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">I will never forget the deafening silence for 2 minutes, when the captain turned of the engines and asked us to turn off any sound making piece of equipment as well as to stop talking, in order to listen to the sounds of nature in a mist laden Doubtful Sound, where no humans live and where all that one senses is, being surrounded by mountains steeply rising from the water all around us, allowing us to hear only birds, water and rustling trees moved by the light sound of a breeze. I am so grateful that I have pictures that may give you that sense.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_311a_7768_9bec_c838" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/Gt3HvXG_V5sX6olMCiQytue3LLfqeYHB3H_G_yJz_4Et1l9T__fpcfhCE1BZwuc" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"><br>(Thousands of glow worms (a native fungus gnat) hang from the ceilings making the eerie look of starry nights as well</div><div>as shiny bead strings)</div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">After we returned the next morning again by bus over the high pass and boat in Te Anau we took the other highly advertised tour: the glow worm cave trip, where 10 plus tourists glide by open boat into a very dark cave to look up towards the ceiling, expecting thousands of little light points as twinkling stars: worms in that stage before becoming amorous flies, destined to die in less than a few days as a consequence of exhausting indiscriminate copulation.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_5b50_639c_c2ad_ade3" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/r2QfeR8gYJcwnBC8wuXUhCLElbujtDb1sFtUppwnc_8hfl_TwN7QUQDsDE6wDYY" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 418px; height: auto;"><br>(As we were not allowed to make pictures in the caves this one</div><div>And the one above come from their website)</div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">To our disappointment the number of twinkling lights was not as numerous as described in the brochure. But as the guide explained the phenomena is seasonal in this 10 plus months cycle of life and as it was, we witnessed them in the early stages of their season, where most eggs had not yet developed into glow worms.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_b3a4_b91f_2cfb_cb71" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/Uzm0lzTi-hYCWjPDI99cYL8frBraoCtfEZPOoG-2PfQMZyE_3dae2EmSNYM8Y6c" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 544px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(A small village of Cromwell where we stopped for lunch meeting farmers John and Joy)<br></span><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_24ab_103_193e_d63b" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/v5scCWdgayXnCnNUZvzTZ9Lg4IfJOW8lztvZvufkvgG_RFgkM2pxOFLUIjoOGck" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 367px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Lake Tekapo in all its beauty)</div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_52ac_6859_27c4_136e" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/ZnMTMGib950hywjvXHkeciR2dRy_4_x493hPfLh_cx2jOixhE5LvbIWJB-XCkhg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 392px; height: auto;"></div><br><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">The fore-last stop in our tour here was our stay in the highlands of Lake Tekapo, a truly light milky-turquoise lake, colored by the fine rock-flour (that has been ground over eons of time) ending in the lake, drifting suspended in the top layer of the clear ice fed waters of the lake, as it is positioned right at the foot of snow capped Mt Cook the highest mountain in New Zealand.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_861_f8d6_ceb0_da7c" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/lAYEiKxs89a2TN-xHz2IWA9xFTQMv283BYhEmIzQG7795uOx3Vi7jj-RSq_g50g" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 407px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Our rental in Lake Tekapo)<br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_be61_831_31e6_11db" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/TXa7ipWbF30XImY846VPc4Sc_igFoRHZRfqNCU6zJuqQJmuPIo5xN_y6WeuKkEU" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 445px; height: auto;"></div><br><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><font size="5">Lake Tekapo is also famous for its Dark Sky Reserve, where stargazing is best done on this part of the globe. Unfortunately during our visit the clouds covered the stars every night, but those clouds brought us an unexpected blanket of snow to awaken to, a winter landscape not often witnessed during this time of year.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_d11_f1df_7524_709c" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/tVpJw15wXFCVm69Fj3Qqc35mYWaXXSwPYIFYRBmn2GTRKk5lQPDuK8NhP-EfV7k" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 472px; height: auto;"></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Next day “winter storm” bringing snow)</span></div><br><img id="id_7de8_f953_5806_c6f9" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/FZyN4LIaZbiPtkXJyx9sG5gjokD6prER-KJkDrhbd9ciTtRPjwVl-oQzU6Wpk3Q" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 541px; height: auto;"><br><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">The drive towards Lake Tekapo is one of those beautiful drive through valleys and past lakes such as Lake Pukaki, past cute little villages like the village of Cromwell where we had a nice chat with local farmers John and Joy, both in their seventies, about sheep and shearing done by roaming shearing pros able to shear a sheep every 2 minutes. (The world record we were told stands at 37.9 seconds). </span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_419d_72b8_261_7fd8" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/PHyjnkUp7O15wxAdrn1h6n_WHnFGsvfPLALq8oE_IglV4FMwhXfhYwcvs3rSKc4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 499px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(The day before the snow exploring Lake Tekapo area)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><img id="id_f6a7_1c9c_b0a1_d466" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/CmJT1fDThbkcIhmxP5WLrSrt8_ERNxEZjQOBkaitButBFLUkGs3KnfTJZst-vOE" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 451px; height: auto;"></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_ba0a_12ae_9479_a9" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/523bCZ250jn7xalabVDps9HeVNCq06DYAnVUzZKzfnCpYHJn6wUg43sMMUYFPZU" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 539px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Irishman Creek overnight hut for New Zealand at $5 a day travelers)</div><br><br><br><img id="id_f1d3_8ed5_988f_dfb3" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/qYujr_WKmmAcWiYLdUd-uRzOYbX4eVA0Im6N7VyqTdD8Ai_kHdXLlHiO3Htwjeg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 283px; height: auto;"><br><br></div><div><font size="5">The drives around our rented one bedroom bungalow here in the highlands brought us not only to the bottom of Mt. Cook, but past historic mail drop shacks and an “Irishman Shack” still used by vacationers, who trek on foot or by bicycle these highlands over multiple days, for them to overnight in. Lupines color the roadsides, named paddocks and unwelcome signs with death threats are posted at the entrance to large farms. All in all idyllic drives on sundrenched days on gravel roads off the beaten track, till the weather turns ugly with wind and hail dropping temperatures to near freezing point.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_a8d3_1aa6_305f_510d" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/db2iwAVRKwP3T3MoXV5WgQIdzj-aEVLRnZR0e8xbJPsW_C7vqEOAy_PlnU9nxGs" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 381px; height: auto;"><br>(Sandee has been taking roadside pictures of flowers for as long as I have known her)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_dd20_b3ec_659c_b0b7" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/GtpT1ocvP73Fwo_NheobYLn_bDzkav71RX7_JhO09ZzPFogILESwb0sfaxqZVeE" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 419px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(The farms here are humongous occupied by farmers who treasure their privacy, as this sign attest)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><img id="id_64af_9e36_9dfd_f60c" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/ZvZT6Fx2fGarlP7Gzc_6BpZXaiS5pRyn7Xo-ND0-S6Nblakem7SCOCp-lXh7_F4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 429px; height: auto;"><br>(Lake Tekapo and lupines)<br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_ffdb_4f09_d72a_8449" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/5yNQZcLi6Bunl8gPf7Rk2oongs6QPAgxAoixOw4g7lhgq3FF6lMKoSzIpbn-eo4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 422px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Prairiegrass fields teem)</div></div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><div><font size="5">As already mentioned we awoke the day to leave for Christchurch to a snow covered wonderland, making me worried that the pass we needed to traverse to the NZ capital might be closed. That fear turned out to be unfounded. The only calamity was a passing truck spitting gravel onto our windshield resulting in a reportable crack.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_255d_552d_aa2b_a11e" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/_97k5pOFBluVibAsxFfOCtyv7GMeH1i2-V--nrbmJu7YfMcXWFjtYN25dwrAv9E" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 388px; height: auto;"><br>(The empty road down the highlands to Christchurch)<br><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_3e6c_489f_9435_c687" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/oM9bjhZyKworSPfUaw9-RyGNfHxoBY0Pg7KQxR56MESfTr-4MkHPX2hmB63V5NU" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 269px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(“The Cone” beside Cathedral Square)</div><br><img id="id_75aa_71ab_caaf_1841" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pHVXiHQRyxer8e6NHffp6MEoGJzGx6SIpyLRC0N10vRLnMZdgmThhI92tHEu9i4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 350px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(The ruins of Christchurch Cathedral today)<br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_9a3a_c337_a4cc_1450" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/bI9G7d8CXa3DYcvQECmBNARQ84IZqciRUlxRRsToofj6RkocSH-eIx-HSwPHd8I" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 456px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(The iconic tram - now tourist only- in downtown)</div></div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><div><font size="5">Christchurch is a city still showing ruins of the two earthquakes it endured.</font></div><div><font size="5">The first one shook the city on September 4, 2010 with a 7.1 magnitude. But it was the second one on February 22 with a 6.2 magnitude that destroyed the weakened city causing 185 death and thousands of wounded people. And 7 years later during our visit we witnessed a very slow rebirth that was somewhat architecturally muddled, and made us wonder who was in control of the planning commission.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_f000_537d_c0b0_a923" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/w1u72-02LLCDj-ikkjO8snzUk6wgsdr-7As5o3EOFjIXTUGRa9qyaSaPCiIsUwg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 365px; height: auto;"><br>(Our AirB&B located in this historic Heritage Building)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_f8b8_77a0_9c55_6e94" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/cCEC0q3VMSLdTYIGiwY-DoUqyJM9EVwipblfb6v-qV1XJ_Ou-_d3gXKiq5eTZ7w" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 400px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Restored Street one of the very few)</div><br><span style="font-size: x-large;">We had found an Airbnb inside the Heritage Building a surviving structure from 1913, housing a hotel and apartments smack in the center of what is left of downtown. The visitor bureau sold us a multiple day pass to all one wishes to see and do in this city and we booked a walking tour with a retired architect named Gordon. Vintage trams from the beginning of the 20th century, connected us to many a sight ranging from ruin to rebuilt streets and the beautiful botanical garden from where we also took a gondola over the Avon river, poled by period dressed guys as if we were transferred to Venice.</span></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_dc86_7c14_a96c_7337" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/yBX9GA6N0AuA_MbZhrmXOLvC4gFsPLJcj4TMka6pPS4Ij63avA_fVjQpjuaBL9I" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 475px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Botanical Garden Beauties)</div><br></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br><div style="text-align: left;"><img id="id_4159_faaa_61a0_747" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/UTqT1hJNEEyUygFHwzoFqvCbbdfHO33p9Jk3tClxRfVuzlVKnE09CIMq5F3X6V8" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 503px; height: auto;"></div></span>(Bordering the botanical gardens lies the little river Avon)<br><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_12c1_66ae_c333_385c" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/laiGU0_qS_kubE-oqhOjqP8zCyifq17wQBITQwNReD0nPI_EIs5UeTc_xIrDOpc" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 420px; height: auto;"></div></div><div style="text-align: center;">(We also got peddled on the river Avon)</div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_ff21_cea8_6b90_4da3" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/NFiWtUNVZUrcYX6qgxOtY0HVLryXCSBJ-sn9CoCRGwHP5DJXbTE9-P8asHg8vYo" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 429px; height: auto;"></div><div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(The other must do in Christchurch is going up by cable car </span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">to see the other side of Christchurch)</span></div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_8f2d_9559_8f38_59d8" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/9sZrU-BSCOD_lbH-CdfoJlek6QTF3FktZSsHpFKmYaMWpCWdSXzTGAymzqAjeh4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 434px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(The other side of Christchurch borders a volcanic lake </div><div style="text-align: right;">with open access to the Pacific Ocean)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">A gondola cable car brought us up a surrounding mountain ridge where we had beautiful vistas over the city and the South Pacific Ocean, as well as the oval natural harbor only to be reached by a tunnel, which turns out to be a former caldera that lost one side, thus opening itself up to the ocean and becoming a nicely protected natural harbor. The views from above were magnificent.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_de81_a9db_28e_ec4d" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/LpO82xtppdADWIrBwROORg-BB1EaUShRPs62Q1RzDPKISrdq36lY4VUuZdA7Lak" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">(University Courtyard highlights the provincial feel of this city)</div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_15ab_d55c_36b7_dced" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/9m4U57jSBR6zI_p7bNfOg3lgkB2X4Y-2eqPWiWLmgKeHFYIlGAfuMaiC1uF1dQ8" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 358px; height: auto;"></div><br><span style="font-size: x-large;">The walking tour with Gordon, gave us the nitty gritty about restoration of the city, with battles with insurance companies still putting projects on hold, about the new requirements to rebuilt on earthquake resistant shock absorbing foundations as is done in major earthquake prone cities such a Tokyo, using technologies developed by the university of Christchurch, but never applied in New Zealand till after the earthquakes</span></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><img id="id_de0f_dafd_ee7f_aa9" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/nYE0EQoE73CuXcRDWAQaYmDnrhX_fHhQTBB9M-Cac8mAgl2SKktycNcqpOeZJfg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 484px; height: auto;"><br>(A result of the earthquakes was creating this seismic resistant cardboard church)<br><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">. </span></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_3601_c9b2_7dad_4c9e" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/J9Z7lUbvtK6Wm2QCA61iY1PI-HItuu0ZLqS-tlLiU6gqTTLBJEEqfOcCsXjcLnQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 346px; height: auto;"></div><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">About the political battles at city levels that created the hodgepodge of new structures rising up on empty parking lots that blanket this city, where in the first year only demolition crews roamed developing these “parking lot” spaces, where maybe yes maybe no new structures would rise. The Christchurch cathedral still in ruins symbolizes the incompleteness of this city, as it is slowly, too slowly arising out of the ashes. And then Gordon suggested at the end of our walk we should visit the outskirts of town where before the earthquakes 10,000 plus homes stood on soil so liquified by the second earthquake that there will never be any building built there again, as the soil is so soft no structure would be possible there, as of now that land is like sinkholes in waiting.</span></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_3888_65cc_6454_8985" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/SPU_-wAiJRwbRksPz9JbeTwRpH3nzP_ziwqEeCsbTIFg-dyb9isqZDi7UBSUF8M" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 471px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Land that before the earthquake had thousands of homes lay bare as the</span></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"> soil is liquefied also named suffers from liquefaction)<br></span><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_d8ed_1e4a_fa0a_a220" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/QlIJUudOhBzuJK3LrrEihBCJWUX_uw6rktCL_vUX7gFMbd_ShFFQ92bvy9IdYew" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 549px; height: auto;"></div></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Below and above the results of liquefaction or soil prone to getting sinkholes]</span></div><br><img id="id_e0a_31f3_bc65_3e63" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/veXco7bsEMLx3YKzQKHf4eKH9II3SMtRXLALg6dM3nJ9p2PwAAYRST1HQ3PfVXc" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"><br><br><br><span style="font-size: x-large;">We drove to that edge of town before turning in our Kia rental at the airport staring in solemn amazement at a green landscape that less than 10 years ago was dotted with homes and gardens, schools and shopping centers and now all that was gone to never come back again.</span></div><div></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">I hereby add an article with a video showing before and after as no words describe the disaster as well as arial pictures</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><a href="https://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/news/84993221/five-years-of-rebuilding-christchurch-as-seen-from-the-sky" id="id_7f68_9441_57a2_33ff">https://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/news/84993221/five-years-of-rebuilding-christchurch-as-seen-from-the-sky</a></div><div><br></div><div><font size="5">As always may the pictures do this story justice</font></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div>Two retirees and their travel storieshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13942287905877288793noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9052023657534142840.post-41215619831016815772020-01-08T16:32:00.001-05:002020-04-07T07:11:26.669-04:00Iceland land of Fairies and Boiling Mudpots <div><br></div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_4e97_c9e3_f3dd_3bba" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/LOGHTWmcFSNnGtH2NFMUeywyZEM5UFJ1r5GtOklZn0GVMlorrok59xXMg-s" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 525px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Group photo in front of waterfall; in this case Djynandi falls</div></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><font size="5">Icelanders have, after 10 plus centuries, still a lot of Viking genes in all of them (the first Vikings landed in 870AD), and they give a lot of credence to the Sagas, that formed the minds of children during the dark long winters, as they listened to their grandfathers, who, as the fire crackled and grandpa’s pipe was billowing fumes, told the grisly stories of Ogres, Giants and Elves and old cackling Hags, who brought disaster or wonder to the lonely farmers of Iceland. And as far as the tale is being told, they still do, reason why superstition is still very much alive.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_3cda_7f92_e665_8596" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/lQpc9dof9XrlH0sGmayeI6SvY6XMI6IEnm7MwuSSpvUcrEhCcXFSsUMnXN4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 670px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Seljalandsfoss (foss stands for waterfall in Icelandic)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">In September, the month that our traditional band of travelers, Gary and Linda and Herman and Marjo and the two of us visited Iceland, winter had of course not yet set in, although the rain often obscured our vision and stymied walks in the autumn colored fields, but the sense of the mystical world described in the Sagas was evident all around us.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_f665_997e_e842_b66c" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/GrhjldBvYG8LVm0MApqVTQxfl7xYs6lKZWL_Ddqp4_wZt7yoMuFjfr-g1sc" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 420px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">Sunset behind the Seljalandsfoss<br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_4ff_1c4a_18a5_d0a6" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/gBzRwAtfhmqjMfAWdsvkHuZb9MdCYj5pqPSsnFQWlCu3ZYDhUaz19hxomks" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 435px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">Winter is coming and the horses are being brought from the mountains to stables</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">The 350,000 Icelanders have a difficult language, that nobody should try to master, not only because their alfabet has been expanded from 26 letters to 32 with curvy items, that allow for sounds we hardly ever use, but</font><span style="font-size: x-large;"> also:</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">meeting a real Icelander is not easy, as the hospitality industry members, that serve the 2 and a half million annual visitors, come from everywhere (Poland, Rumania, Switzerland, Ukraine, Russia, France, Spain, just to mention a few we met). Icelanders prefer to not have to deal with and or serve those visitors in the establishments they own. So speaking English between all those foreigners is about the best language to use while there.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_a9a1_1bf9_272b_62b9" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/fwLfr2Kt7VoUD_VjnBIES05uFJ1CCWI-f9DIz7yQh7REAe6rZlbO5pwLbm4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 480px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">Ferry trip to Westman Islands a early view of the harbor </div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><img id="id_acba_eeb3_81fd_a313" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/PEQGdof-WyIo_rbFt7EBL9-M6jewzMMxmAl70RQhcRS28lPfOoufqKvF18M" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 392px; height: auto;"><br>Almost there <br><br></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_26b3_d099_a666_48f5" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/YKzlsMOu7mGYji-RRPDE1kDgUvn4vFM8WBOnq_XIkeOiclcygD76ruEFgRo" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 516px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Bonus is THE grocery store island wide. “Ekkert Brudl” translates to “No Breach” ?????</div><div style="text-align: center;">Anybody has a better translation?</div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_3d5_667d_2d21_c2bf" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/ikGHpG2Rozf2_zrO0Ho5Pao0NsdJdFwxwukogg22x9S_XnJ9DEanjKlIKmY" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 366px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">A volcanic island for sure with perfectly shaped cone</div></span><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_8a0_e3f1_d348_7530" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/CEXaEWuQ9XZ_umbHDWUHX4ojzCnN5W8CMdWwvPFrzUQr2e3TfZNSTWWeZSg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 389px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Tour guide pointed out the elephant in the rock formation</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">We circled the island, the size of the State of New York, being about 40,000 sq m or the same size of </font><span style="font-size: x-large;">Cuba, being 103000 sq km or if that is easier to visualize: 25% bigger than Ireland and we drove</span><span style="font-size: x-large;"> the island in 25 days with an 8 seater fourwheel 2011 Ford Expedition, a vehicle size not too cozy. and since we had a wifi gadget in the car, it allowed many of us to entertain themselves during stretches of less interest, or for some of us all the time, because, one cannot live without the electronic gadgets of today.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_4986_767c_65a2_4c99" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/B3ABbAjaITLNNCubDExxezvoxu0PoVYfA05Tm40cjstPlTejViTHQ_FXLPg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 429px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">Black Lava Ashes from 1973 eruption covering 20% of the then town</span></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">Now about 4000 people live on the main island<br></span><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_1cf6_da9e_9579_74ed" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/JwsKue1ujFlUmtwyOv2_Iktg9D1pjWd-TzYBmjYwdK1OwtzTLEnOEiMQhlA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 404px; height: auto;"></div></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">Museum showing a dug up house in its original state</span></div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_5fa6_1840_f250_65cd" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/8LoVGzFtqF2mmngIGNGDho1Pe2GSi6-Wsg_Wt0Rr8u3qUlsQTlWjUU9b1fA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 399px; height: auto;"></div></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">The original owners left on time</span></div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_4427_66c2_5e83_bfcd" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/Hji1foUsSsV65lqwYzIi7Oe0wooTmRsKTAqWqii7bFXYqj-o8Yqm28X9sm0" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 390px; height: auto;"></div></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">The island was the only place we saw puffins and this is Hafdis the resident puffin of the Saeheimar Aquarium </span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">I add a nice blog on the museum Right here</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://guidetoiceland.is/connect-with-locals/regina/the-vestmannaeyjar-saeheimar-aquarium-have-you-ever-met-a-puffin-up-close-and-personal" id="id_8ee5_875a_aa02_ac27">https://guidetoiceland.is/connect-with-locals/regina/the-vestmannaeyjar-saeheimar-aquarium-have-you-ever-met-a-puffin-up-close-and-personal</a></div><br><img id="id_8bd7_dd1a_5362_395f" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/4CsftM29MwuJXnXND-bv0gs0ezUzYrqq-J6UMAE39MLT-svJDwgs0LpUjMw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 361px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">Young boy holding a lost pufling in his hand at 12.30am found on the street to be released the next morning.</span></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">We joined the midnight vigil looking for stray puflings that were disoriented by city lights on their first flight and landed on the streets instead of on the ocean surface outward.<br></span><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_b454_5ec6_b075_b017" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/i9MevuLS0IoEZErsmoTvL8D7Zm3idLIc5ruxg85Yny5GSkSiGQhIUmMVryI" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 385px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">If you blow up a plastic bag and use them as a soundmachine pumping them between both hands the sheep will come running expecting food, like here and being disappointed.</div><br><img id="id_df5b_1923_5c70_1fc7" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/STekuCqRdSioqu6HIRq2mJOciLCtwkUetfz9vWM9LfX_P4JkNXZFtXi53R0" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 383px; height: auto;"><br>The lava fields on the border of town.<br><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">The actual reason we had that gadget, was to have our Ipad be our gps, since the car gps required typing the destination in Icelandic to guarantee leading us to the right place. our Ipad and IPhone however are intelligent enough to translate our English input into Icelandic destinations with greater accuracy.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_53d2_2a12_4724_85e7" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/wLVri-U1xdgp4RM473HTNKPz3vjEqQLUFd6bl5jvYbb4PSRJBilJJDf-5FY" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 404px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">Skogafoss never ending water stream falling 200 ft/61m down<br></span><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_56a6_4a0d_51d_988b" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/tqKX3JqL2B5nVaQS6-b9lW7ekfwfijgs2n9JMHWFSTs2i2lSMzVZZoCT55g" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 462px; height: auto;"></div></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">Black beaches of Vik</span></div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_5d12_4217_2183_e4a4" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/J14lVj4KqKe6C7gaH1G0ZUe1HEoLadiaqLdFdzv2B-wOs0PtrpBuNtMgc8M" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 442px; height: auto;"></div></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">Our bungalow at Hrifunes nature park, with almost nobody around</span></div><br><img id="id_2725_4a93_95f7_a196" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/UrbbMWocG_1aZZxD7-6oosyCVdkMJ9kSTsSy_hU6QA8Uf0_2Q-p9jDbIuNQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 405px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">That is to say, behind Herman in a wood fired wooden hot tub,</span></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">is another bungalow. The evening skies were often these beautiful</span></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">low cloud </span><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">covered colorful sights</span></div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_4a65_ff09_52fc_5e05" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/kIlqhgJNQe_BbjpjCRBkITtPi5C8xQD6Jy3BSqaClc6DHrQNA_p8EPe74Qs" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 450px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">The one lasting Iceland impression will always be these </div><div style="text-align: right;">black lava hills surrounded by colorful fields rooted in same black soil</div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">We shall not bore you with a tale of all our days and what we did and or saw that day, but we will try to give you a feel of what a vacation to Iceland will come to mean to you, not by what you can visit and see, but what at the end, in doing all those things, your short version will be to the people at home, who will ask you about your trip. At the bottom of this blog I will include a day by day recount, which I prepared for the six of us, after we all returned home, including a map of the locations where we overnighted at.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_59d7_44d9_e9f0_7769" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/kHaYDS7n7sH25YPertckIAzOi6em-fT2B_ffIQUOl5jMXPg_0nyvmVtH7e0" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 466px; height: auto;"><br>This is truly Iceland as you drive for hours in this landscape<br><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_cd41_df2d_8488_a8a5" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/50NfjCsJ2OIdCALZYY4-AH9e_lBcvDTdru68bek26P95Nit-lZcF74FJ3eQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 389px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">We let other cars go first to see how deep the water is</div><div style="text-align: center;">And where to best cross</div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_b0ed_ed99_e886_1a68" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/w0ThWYI1NZtAYjrJ5u0-J-cZa7GFNoAZTSpz7n5_HXNOFRSlrkxOSBwArVk" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 472px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">Just another of those empty vistas that are so enchanting</div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_b7d5_c61c_29fc_51cb" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/O_4XyaO8tJZiDvDLF6l5_qvVjoFnaVZsygjdxyuROd7m_b6-ersqECgtl7o" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 431px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Iceland land of trolls and giants that leap over these hills</div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_dd12_9819_8931_488b" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/0lG6MvdtLhbSm85_qbRM_2BqaAUVzEWspw31704Lkc6T5pml4DJRziFsXFg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 399px; height: auto;"><br>Sandee got us to almost do a flip-over<br><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_15a5_286b_b26c_fca0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/NOaOlNJlbP5hldkRGpGF-k9gLDYd2gBw4fHE1zvU3qsZwJ1sjAwIEtp2POw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 464px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">We left her in the car to “balance” the heavy ford expedition while help</div><div style="text-align: right;"> is on the way. Those Spanish onlookers came from the passing bus, who </div><div style="text-align: right;">pulled us out</div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">So if you ever go or if you already have been there: Iceland is as you know surrounded by icy seas not far below the arctic circle, visited in its spring and summer season by birds, many many different birds, who leave when the weather turns direction winter. There were originally no land animals on this island, with exception of the artic fox, who most likely traversed the ice during one of the ice ages. How they fed themselves before humans brought husbandry is a mystery to me.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_98_c81b_632c_f24d" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/dDZQWLpKMbzG2I8_FnFlCHzLMgqIU_qb4XE0PPKa7mrNg-9pYn_PO3q_Dlg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 323px; height: auto;"><br>This truly Iceland off the beaten track<br><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_106d_a65e_63e8_60a2" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/vdep4TAuGEA8IjFudkGQaODAUh44w5xoX6aSWSw2t4CN9ulzBj0qar8gV3A" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 359px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Sorry just another of those pictures I will treasure</div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_c5f3_2ce2_8cfa_f90" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/9MefEf5MmAWK8WdJwmCSwC1gjXyqiZr-oIRmeYNF8DAeEAJwLVBIW1VocbI" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 433px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">The sun was missing to highlight the blue blue colors</div><div style="text-align: right;"> of this Ljotipollur crater lake</div></div><div><br><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_bc2b_6be5_5856_d500" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/DyoQx8Yop99n43PYUy1A6xKdKflwLtxZE980HCQEoooqtoerTi9_Z1ryRs4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 479px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Bathers in a hot water spring in Landmannalaugar </div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_2394_e637_5a9f_667d" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/TJCHWIRVPJGEQIqzgUuLLWTICkGW57MVeM9BZyuNDQTxgn9Eb6t2Qyb3NzA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 471px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">Landmannalaugar camping area surrounded by a few colorful hills</div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">Iceland is a volcanic island that tolerates only few species of vegetation.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">Imagine a misfit of an apple pie on a stove, topped off with too thin a dough cover, that the cook has mistakingly slit through the middle, and then put the heat on high while he left to go shopping.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">The pie is bubbling under its thin cover and spews regularly black burnt liquid, which scars the top of the dough layer and also creates holes in the layer with its spitball eruptions, from which new bubbles emerge covering the pie dough.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_71ae_fe03_c7bc_78a3" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/puqny_ItDKhBB8If7MkfpGMhKVdf3MTU_KMWDG8dhCsS13LotvzGXsc3poc" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 557px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Godafoss or the waterfall of Gods, the place where in the year 1000 lawspeaker </div><div style="text-align: center;">Thorgeir Thorkelsson (kind of President) threw his statues of Norse Gods</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;">this waterfall to signify adoption of Christianity as official religion of Iceland </div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_eb38_4330_ec91_5244" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/22S27mBhx2fN5fftwwr9-IqetWFZXXE_MtMZG90UuxUh9mNantqBivnJj44" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 448px; height: auto;"><br>Hverir mudpots near Akureyri showing the blue colors of elements spewed up<br><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_affa_2d33_ab55_86ea" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/TbEELPUmfWhhIQJ3WP3rTPz-b8jvdlSZMXNbhlbwFouow1FrLPqXfNcWoTg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 474px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">A few hundred miles away from the mudpots one could find clear bubbling water</div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_c6cf_1dfb_3238_622b" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-LVRvoREvgvs9ZMH2bDfRQJF-c9ulu15gmhxFXm1AT4nje7cSBiJ4oAlYEo" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 441px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">This volcanic activity creates a desolate feel to this land and the realization dawns on you that you walk on waferthin soil with all consuming heat just below you. </div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_c727_4e6f_179e_875a" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/VgRMdbgDak6iv83I3bzZkhZWCCkc9Fm0REqJsAyMOvN5VBO3If3wdSFON9s" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 405px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Again this lake is steaming hot, this not fog but hot steam </div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_a176_4078_cd5c_bce1" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/UgaVTvKn7h4STt90wQSKpUpiKB29jarxea_MvCF6ne6ieu8IRMOTP3gPCic" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 358px; height: auto;"><br>Erupting Strokkur Geysir <br><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_3e82_2428_9f6b_ddfe" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/ATJ0k0gWUxQHN2TT3bcXER9xGw0eMDA1VtwsJ8F4KdqdIAQ4MSWik0iN1lI" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 509px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">When will this one erupt?</div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_f8_3c53_1309_a4ec" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/ppbct7gFg2BE0MphF5V-lrmB-M5-OxWndm8TUCfbBXwcQutP-4NYfsPXrdk" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 452px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">Built for tourists so they don’t accidentally stumble</div><div style="text-align: right;"> in the hole that was here before the pile of smoking rocks</div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><font size="5">Okay, enough of this “apple pie description” and let’s tell the volcanic facts of Iceland. Every 3 to 5 year somewhere on this island an eruption will occur. Herman told me that he was stranded at an airport in China when the Eyjafjallajökull volcano (one of the many long long tongue twisting words here in Iceland) erupted on April 14, 2010, which blew miles high so much lava, ice and sand up in the atmosphere, as it blew of its ice cap, that it created a 2.5 km wide caldera, also resulting in ash plumes that stranded airlines and caused air traffic turmoil for months and flooded the southern coastal areas of Iceland. It is funny, but Icelanders have meticulously recorded all eruptions since the early 10th century, so we know that this specific volcano erupted the first time in 920AD and most likely many more times before that. I said there is an eruption every 3 to 5 years, but already one year later in May 2011 the Grimsvotn volcano erupted and darkened the skies 5 days.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_9786_169d_630_f5a6" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/bkmITGD4l9IgaeSNZTWirL5xcRNp6d9WANEh5q1lQ3IwXv_oON4Bq8IobWo" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 398px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><font size="4">Fjadrargljufur Canyon is 2km/1.25mile long and 100m/310ft deep</font></div><div style="text-align: center;"><font size="4">Amazing views in lush deep green colors</font></div><font size="4"><br></font></div><div><font size="4"><img id="id_72e0_b724_c01_df0d" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/pjHabMd5cMSEX_a5tJzpOAZSppfoXSrGFHiQ5bB0cBsuiIK-jDo585BtaPQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 477px; height: auto;"></font><br>Another shot of our opening picture of the <span style="text-align: center;">Djynandi falls</span><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_e764_54bf_791d_90ff" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/Nl7nIBj6ZZ_RW_VEpcFe0Jfh70XaC_3weNMWAfHl6K_jPPQhh_BZCLkAMvw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 508px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Gullfoss or Golden waterfall drops into a gorge and seems to disappear underground.</div><div style="text-align: center;">It only falls 32 meter/100ft but it thundering noisy fall sprays misted water on every visitor </div><div style="text-align: center;">wherever you walk.</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_2786_522e_a368_582e" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/cyznglWcpijkC-Afu3O0tvnIEZA6Mm6UxaUjNNdI5P8EjvOPw-IA__ibQXI" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 520px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Gullfoss from another angle</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_4863_f74d_ab63_296a" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/9jEoakCibVn6SpuVJxg3nnVJ5ewaJdLT1H2QoGaW9a7crKhrlnSaI7RO4lE" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 436px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">A little waterfall in the Thingvellir national park </div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_c5e2_1865_8f5c_95f1" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/cd-htKvLAQcz16Eobfuzea2fagYodEWc8iXmIStu_mfj2CJR5jDB-fB5eBk" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 395px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">I don’t know the name of this one.</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_20a9_46b9_a785_c8b5" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/o2_E3yiTGOBMZ9cWIgltgE-KFWRorXwJOIcClw33Mw6tLTgKdW5rugN3R04" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 461px; height: auto;"><span style="font-size: large; text-align: center;"><br></span></div><div><br></div><div style="text-align: center;">More<span style="font-size: large;"> </span><span style="font-size: large;">Fjadrargljufur Canyon</span><span style="font-size: large;"> sights above and below</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br></span></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_bfe1_5b38_cb8f_129" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/v7h2tH1-gDju8Y0BVjnEsbLwPwsAasBAObmvfozP5V_MtTffj0GsHiNnGpY" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 424px; height: auto;"></div><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">So besides this volcanic awareness: that anytime you could have been blown a few miles in the air, there is also the awe of water cascading everywhere from cliffs. Beautiful waterfalls galore, each competing for the title of most, best or highest to be found all over the island.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_8ff7_7f30_f176_d169" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/aVLbXFb_c13yImTGwsVOnj24POJExVs_ltsDdQc2d1TQQK2QB--TJ9i3ui0" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 472px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">The beginners class at their gletschers walk on crampons (herman was doing the advanced walk)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_93d2_f123_1994_3c7c" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/pMG8t3dxlQeRw6F8pN6rhYIQ77-UKxQ6AZnUX37SgzrnzlkfI5wbMgdMmDk" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 449px; height: auto;"><br>Nothing white about shrinking age old gletschers<br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_4bd3_f181_ed1b_e639" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/OF6559LAV9cEI91X53Wyzmu7v5am2wZTwB0hGG7574FX_m4eDwQHPozOuUo" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 431px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Gary posing, but our guide does it better I think</div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_4c98_6159_a2ba_7b20" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/nMoiXpeImrVV_HMFU0hvQNlTAntuE7mhZ8Dxh6Vz52zPPRP10kVU6vnTTVw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 493px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">The gletscher lake with blocks of ice drifting oceanwards</div></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_2c10_f693_c831_a136" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/Uk5PoDZ_RJ7k9Md29PCiYTuzWhVALDlrwFrc-SZjcgJvg7NnAvTbLVrAY94" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 405px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">this gave the name to Diamond Beach</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_dea4_6b8b_77ef_6762" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/W2hemuNrmptHYvssa9uvK8TgT28r9cGfF6WcxXh_pqX4k3nHl9pqmLlomBg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 418px; height: auto;"><br>marjo posing with one of those “diamonds”<br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_474e_d647_b75e_cd80" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/EDtJ_5jvc5D7CAwonFpmfxTuMONcN4L72juHLmh2BqZU2m0rlP5f-GG-Mso" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 553px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">the gletscher showed some unaccessible areas </div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">The next awareness you will have, is how few people live here, (350,000 Icelanders vs almost 5 million Irish people on a smaller island) and two third of them live on the west side around or not more than a few hours driving from Reykjavik, where everything feels and looks like any small modern town in the western world.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_b9e1_e637_c994_6de8" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/skKt3zGyq1VcAimcuwP5vTqedhJRP_17nX6LXsSsEkqXjJGyfZekLlhlFwk" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 507px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">housing for Icelanders in the olden days when heat was body heat of human and animal in winter times</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_e1eb_58e2_f617_a2e2" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/6jt1iTwG9mmpw9PBt3l1ErWP5cLDZ7JwMW9Xkw9duxEcM2-HUnauX7ruPHs" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 402px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">a closer look</span></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_87a1_a7d7_63fd_ff38" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/aXLywfnEx-xU8zcxF-la6GzOYYJAlufpas9F4YvpVOCWewBD_idXnelg-tw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 463px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">A better picture of those olden days houses </div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_8180_7a68_329b_4f79" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/iUc1icyX61pWnfDeW9n8PF7cWahB4qRbcWA1QTSspihRPGTgq2AQmg8mH9o" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 412px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">Above and below ancient farm structures of the more wealthy farmers</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_9f86_776e_69ae_2c85" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/U0_bOw1EdoN7CCJ4cqHOrP5Sck5s1n2LzylX7jEJetDx7Bwc1VTsHB_JHUA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 395px; height: auto;"></div><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_4726_9227_ad9d_10a3" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/ZfsTLQs8xFefOGwfqkXMdrxIvX2MO5cqjhdcQkcHz-it6gjl6Ok3hdByG-E" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 428px; height: auto;"><br>Lava fields adorned in fall colors<br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_99ed_c9be_a632_9f60" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/ZU6dtGbdf2k39LsMBUZjEAUVmqDQjgSVA2YRYL8yL4P5NYW05p6LmwOHZWI" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 451px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Beautiful fall colors </div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_6324_3f80_d3d1_50af" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/mNbe_V59U3JTgvAZ8YXFjhtVMvR-iMqI5gyBRqVTe3JZNikHv0DKXexznu0" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 415px; height: auto;"><br>The best proof that nature can teem even in volcanic rocky soil<br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_b968_be77_6c17_194a" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/J9655YAbv4n_g247TnA6VKcKvIoHTly2v7SUOlebTRUFD39haCVkKVSa8qY" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 402px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">I can not stop being in awe with these colors</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_573e_af26_d57c_7a23" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/Sxnudv7Yr7nOqIwG_YSZAARUYq6-fYcHzQ08S4C0GbzA4eNtINDRrfmReow" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 414px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">And with the rocky water filled wilderness all around</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_351c_5ab6_9ce0_fa5f" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/yJgxcuXxfaSB8jFTCK2SeZiyQCBlfNI5AGa9tr7Py7axnr_dwUN6BPeXe0A" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 389px; height: auto;"><br>Did I extoll about colors and tenacity of survival here<br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_725b_b4f_59fc_a08c" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/yGzDSumuJ8QrZYZC_wYGNXJSHCur9L_JOIk-4n0xcUHPFB7K_eLvIRHGG34" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 442px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">And here</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_5b1d_8f59_4455_96c4" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/6dnvAGIdPECBsUcSrrt0U96VZigLujQZ8bgmtg4TYm1DkAqGudnbdEvXQt4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 392px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">And here</span></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_6891_705e_6e72_c713" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/Z0cVAzjU64X7UtezTDGHxzMtGXGI-X-4zKki1I9iz6sCCIAa2vscqfgxcG8" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 464px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">and not to forget here. This island of fiery destruction keeps amazing me </div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">The “let’s see Iceland in a few days” vacationers get the tour of the Golden Circle, where all Icelandic phenomena can be sampled, but what you will miss is the lonesomeness, the solitude, the silence, that envelops you, as you turn off your car engine and get the sense, that there is no one around but you and some sheep in a magic world of (in our case) fall colors, which dot the silent mountains and valleys, with here and there in your viewer an abandoned farm or hut, and if you just drove through a 15 houses village, a steepled little church with maybe 10 benches and a pulpit.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_36d7_6c73_5564_14fd" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/N-LQh3fpgZHTtg75xVexth-_mX8favqNzNzWZV3j4xSiIOGEAMH1Uv8Y5qU" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 468px; height: auto;"><br>Iceland is dotted with small churches, above modern with steel sheeting <br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_fb2d_a426_d79f_45f1" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/fIEbKQO2zBUZcSaJN2mlsdACmz9DOzdxiyeIdX1O1PAlY1HMMmEJb_G5ONo" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 443px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">And here traditional</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_d66c_2a61_3834_cac8" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/xih_Vw9H2u9wx3rVO_Z9iLl9hQQifHdZ0NWQkJA_vXFiDHibUCOwfIncetA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 430px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">And here at the end of the multicolored “yellow brick road”</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_a0fa_4134_2f4b_7e6" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/1ZuUgHrxlkpvtgCKUj4C64rjxFIGCyt9qH57aBvuH0MMvtEc9rYPyXl7HBU" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 417px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">Where does the congregation live?</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">These “Vikings” are predominantly Lutheran, who became catholic in the year 1000, after the Althing (Here over later) decided to declare Christianity the official religion. The Njals Saga describes how the Godafoss (waterfall of the Gods) was the place where Thorgeir Thorkelsson, the Law Speaker of the Icelandic Parliament decided in favor of the conversion to Christianity by throwing all the statues of the Heathen Gods worshipped in Norse Paganism in to the raging waters thundering 37 feet down over a 370 foot wide horseshoe formed fall. When later the Norwegian king converted to Lutheranism most Icelanders followed.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_1ff7_bced_a981_ccce" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/UZK0yUkEBYbDp1AF5JTvt7EXt4j8F-Ak6G0bmBIQJrouvjghtEWWtZuA1mU" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 466px; height: auto;"><br>Small townships dot the countryside, often with50 plus homes with</div><div> 1 store,1 church, 1 general store, and a pub<br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_3688_6c1b_5769_f66b" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/QhCQNkqfMiLCQdgOzWX3obx1SB0aFHs1fp-0NxXE4ACW_lByZozxMGIn3vU" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 392px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">But often one sees just a few homes along a dusty road</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_185b_88b0_f7_bbc5" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/VF-NdwVztvDiYgK4JpIFLyfYH4k2nvzDQxGz0tj1d9htaflxWErTIU_ElJY" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 522px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">A BIG harbor here</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_e5ac_8730_587f_d349" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/TuxP-Hz4O-qkPRxV4du7k7shtokYXHa6PITGeLTvchdx_5aNf3pwuRXg5KA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 462px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">No apparent zoning restrictions </div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">The next sense that overwhelms you is seeing sheep everywhere and I mean everywhere even on the steepest slopes that rise up around you. These sheep have little flock sense and are kept for meat. They are feral thus rams can charge you occasionally. The September month is the month where all over Iceland the communities get together on an arranged day for the Rettich, or the sheep collecting drive, to bring them in for the winter, a festive affair that we happened to run in on. Each owner will collect its own flock and keeps it out of winters harms way till spring. The island is littered with bales of hay in many colors of plastic coverings to feed them.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_fef3_e165_526b_3dba" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/2g3-iISz7lFSelHB0Bip6VrnT6h72wbiw02C1CVDWyeDdVnt2dkc9ts2t_c" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 566px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">“Junk” (that is his engraved name in his left horn) the ram stares at us loaded in his owners truck after the fall roundup</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_fe4b_275_7337_8d1d" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/PDxQ-yYKZ-5rwCly0t-riDqTTELbvsRRvpyXlaUTXN0dvT-PATj8yceblYQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 505px; height: auto;"><br>His ladies in the pen we bleating in unison<br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_5c44_fede_69d7_4bd4" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/D1dLGUQstQaHYMtIQ_m-4_Ujx3KuJnYqqEmbDiHOupkVloXrKsJfCaN0DAQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 482px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">This “lady” would not win the beauty contest with 3 horns</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">The September month is also blueberry picking season. Wild blueberries are everywhere hiding between other low shrubbery. This brings me to the next sense that will still you, as you gaze upon the bright fall colors from small lichen on rocks to mosses, dwarf shrubs, here and there some fungi. You see some birches, low willows and some types of Aspen.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_aa5b_aba_83_9c35" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/3CIVUtRBOgZJx1HCV-XOWV1fdswvCbU2J1uGdkzSPDjayaprBjKoJ1nkf4w" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 453px; height: auto;"><br>Dried remains are great for fish stocks and actually an export article to Africa<br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_34a4_20da_f2c_5318" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/EuIFrvAXOM_1fT5uDzFnjrS_xRB6COCxvxwpb71x0_VAPK23dUwbj4LJO-E" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 426px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">I think this is a dried monkfish head but I maybe wrong about it</div><div style="text-align: center;">The many teeth impressed me</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_62e1_2c19_133b_d030" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/w0i6k0U2M3M4bvJ6yjfa0GNJ8pfhy5fzh2Lgmx66lVtI1NmBLgRMuuMrpQA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 422px; height: auto;"><br>5th and 6th generation owners of a restaurant quality cod processing plant</div><div>explain to us the finer details of their trade<br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_eb5_a5da_d66e_9200" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/FtzCA20rl1O30YuATGqD7wZJSeMXXJot5gaHRV4DIous7U_tAcvBTDhgRbs" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 567px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Lunch in the famous Fridheimar tomato restaurant in Reykhólahreppur Iceland.</div><div style="text-align: center;">Having lunch in the greenhouse surrounded by tomato bearing vines</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_3f24_7ae8_fdf_f080" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/ModmY1YpFmt_y64PHbR3G0uC3GgUB_W8vkttjufuKV5HwJQUAhHcGFCdYgU" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 390px; height: auto;"></div><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_7d60_14e2_dd09_142c" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/MaUg1jHv2egVrbJCwoApimUaCqzAHR4SUKPfD2UX66RUeNuM1wL9pXZ1lb0" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 488px; height: auto;"><br>Reservations required throughout the year.<br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_7a7a_9a1d_6b41_9304" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/3X7ZzPzezJA1fH5GYFQo_ec72OuTLujRqf_eahKNq9ZtpCOu5OIrCgBuzCU" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 423px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">Pizza or soup or interesting salads </div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Those plants were showing their fall colors and the total picture is in one word awesome as they are surrounded by black lava and black sand and bare black hills. </font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_e14e_2ee9_e235_e7aa" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/R5HZrFBWRkKnyQPmv7lltoZXo4ayUddaWTqDOdm9JudfOKmaxXu8iLF6KqU" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 465px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Another shot of fall nature at their best</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_b980_94e6_d756_4b9f" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/5KrtTBLWCN-yh67rKwU7ZJIBDDRLF6jl08tK3ojq3EC00SRjc9ZgCdKPvWE" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 456px; height: auto;"><br>Barren but eerie beautiful when you are the only vehicle here.<br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_d37c_4f95_ba52_93fa" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/pgZ-YhQCbtvxgqI0tp8xnsTaG8TmTrwwxCMyZ8mHfUfLdU143r_AQAC8cw8" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 491px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">Latrabjarg is a Europe’s largest seabird-cliff now devoid </div><div style="text-align: right;">of birds after their childbearing season.</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_28dc_bc2d_861e_dca9" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/S6p0F3KIDpuCzOmKYO9s57p4OT8rRXdHb9TIDK2hnWvsy1ihLyd_MrfwQKQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 438px; height: auto;"><br>Little fjords galore all around Iceland <br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_d141_7168_1c99_569c" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/3TqqrlB4gqlabow7DNJRiodtBKnK2XYXs1R7QLVzkZYc7B6-KZdey_MYEKs" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 417px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Could not resist: another fall color picture</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_f324_9332_5f0a_3fb4" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/U8-03rz-bmEDFSSF3lQ57OIY9ADQdwHtVtugxLH8Di6zpbO3z4mKGuiksGA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 448px; height: auto;"><span style="text-align: right;"><br></span></div><div><span style="text-align: right;">Latrabjarg, only people and no birds</span><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_3a55_6724_639a_cac7" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/T85OO4iFUHR7trTJsc5fUqENcxa0omB13JoDGm1XQnxVWjD8J0erV0mINPQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 438px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">shot to create memories</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_888c_6343_d3cf_13ce" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/zJrL3-Y30563IwPjAspTGjXnuUSAU4WXhCJw2IWMqNe_QNdyXwOMFwGevls" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 440px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">another little desolate church</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_4bea_feb8_b635_89b7" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/5qD5NmetIKpNMVzahPnel1njXhHzZrnleOaUgwVatKHK5w3twGIPvCeUpvg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 394px; height: auto;"><br>I could repeat myself<br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_a441_43b6_e346_7e88" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-kJrM5QiIT8boh1JV96NIdaZklRHywfgGgB49_j_2KDFMwEbs1PC9kbEdEs" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 419px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">but I won’t </div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_e913_c5c0_2d25_c361" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/XyY7D5j-_7Cp4dlGKdn5w8GR1nVR-jTPcoch2tBaUiCH2xxRmUP01-GLoMI" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 493px; height: auto;"><br>just let you gaze at the sights <br><br><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_6d6d_153d_464a_c079" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/XjG-rUkTw-hM1Zm9XmqkHYK5YFwmYTIG_weqQ8o2Va-pGuI5bIwXQIuj0M8" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 473px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">that sum up the word Iceland trip</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Whereas the six of us spent our time enjoying the sights together and in evenings of banter and good food and as we drove about 3 to 4 thousand kilometer on good and bad roads, through streams and across single lane bridges, as we could have done anywhere on this globe and feel after awhile that enough is enough, the fact is, that the nature we traversed, captivated us almost everyday, with exception of the 20hr plus raindays, which stymied the sense of exploration and made the car an internet based cocoon, till the next stay-over or next luncheon spot.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_916_ee5c_9001_7e2f" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/B9wLhFpmXbJEknmQW08RIYtlnMN9lA_yXMmf_5YKsQzWoWU39Zwb0Pv-yco" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 395px; height: auto;"><br>these people dive in the waters that divide the </div><div>island in 2 halves by the tectonic plates. Don’t ask me why?<br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_fc60_8a1e_63f3_347a" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/hWlKyNPT64VRFOvafDaHD6WFMsYzDlTd4lRzWUUt_Q-HG2FMl_PnbRd5fIs" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 476px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Sandee walking a path that is 11 centuries old leading </div><div style="text-align: center;">to the annual National Assembly spot or Althingy of the ruling chiefs </div><div style="text-align: center;">in the Thingvellir National Park</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_9a12_25e4_480e_d18c" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/LKuJuQJKSfwaO_CdUKKk5-SFKb7awxJ8mOJyYFdg8-x6x_Mjp4UV1zx8vl0" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 470px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">The divers are under water now</div><div><br></div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_95d_dc05_b2f_4e74" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/Vn553n1tzqRJINDnnceNQHOlP9pZjY6ovRkq2Tw3EbiXHVB8CYJsc6CTPtA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 441px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">those green stings seem to hold the rocks together</div><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_cf42_4da2_d887_f79f" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/PaDWvUJY3Cr0ppwK__1keiZ2TbLVn42X_oeC5WNY4pcNiC2jQ-Zr163MOGM" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 459px; height: auto;"><br>Did I show you these miraculous forms of live before?<br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Highlights: Every waterfall in the tourist guide book is worth visiting.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Our trip on the F208 gravel road to the Landmannalaugar inland, which crossed multiple streamlets. These always make you every time wonder if we could get stuck in the middle of one them. Since there are few vehicles passing, we realized too late that we had no towing equipment on board. This was our first time experiencing true empty wilderness in all its stark beauty. We saw hot water baths and crater lakes, and multicolored mountain slopes.</font></div><div><font size="5">And Sandee managed to slide us off the road for a photo stop ending the vehicle in a suspended angle, where the question was: will or will we not topple over. A passing bus with Spaniards pulled us back on the road.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Joining a tour to walk a glacier. Walking with crampons under your shoes is something to get used to.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">The Hverir stinky bubbling mudpots, which fascinated some of us more than others and later on the Geysir and the neighboring Strokkur geysers spouting up at irregular intervals.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Diamond Beach and the nearby ice lake, where ice rocks glittered against black sand.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">The Latrabjarg Bird Cliffs on the most western tip of Iceland, almost bare of birds, but what an amazing view</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">And as “piece de resistance”: descending in a kind of window washer lift 120 meter down a dormant mountain to a rock strewn crater bottom, where we gaped in awe at all the colors on the walls displaying century old metals that spewed up (but not high enough, so we now could admire them) once a long time ago. While there, an artic fox pup danced around us hoping for food. Apparently a hunter killed the mother and the orphan was left here to be spoiled by the staff.</font></div><div><br></div><div><img id="id_8cf5_3cc0_f00_f78a" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/0CC7dvmUeL41vauq4Va2Sjapc_ToarwZRZ26l_joGw79J-Mft2D_KIhoV7s" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 500px; height: auto;"><br>here and below in silence the amazing colors of the volcano crater we descended into<br><br></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_637_ec86_de21_22c9" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/r5YJFPSsIqU_dTnkHjvjmxd0n8R_1ivJbEUq-dWxN82N8HbRay-wqslMf_Q" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 425px; height: auto;"></div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_ff0_d8fb_68bb_d25c" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/SAEehBQ2i8y9dyzpNgfbks9C9ln5dCxuJtOlORdTTGq3xI3mbDP-cLjDdG4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 475px; height: auto;"></div><br><br></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_c2a1_89af_acd0_c96" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/X_DlJgeQoeS7XrKWfbn6V4Ndzkl36lbjgyxEYHzcvQ20_zFIPbg4K9pHfNU" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 521px; height: auto;"></div><br><br></div><div><img id="id_d59f_8b52_3822_f126" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/yVk6fdoF7Kd2IrI6z00iIqQse3VkS5AQFmigdvvOnGDjMEIX90PtXdVgOI4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 486px; height: auto;"><br><br><br></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_7b24_9f5_7836_dda8" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/G-pggcWHL__5XYSzfYWQ1WKZTS4LBWfOIyyNZ8nPw7Xr9mFBRY5IHK-ahNE" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 477px; height: auto;"></div><br><br></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_f412_acb3_7368_e311" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/r9qLIvWGrEoieDC9lgMgdt3Dl7MvYg3M659NKE0W9LrTa33kfQ53HYM6Hv0" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 496px; height: auto;"></div><br><br></div><div><img id="id_8e0_b333_79a0_7d36" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/N0NN6MA8LFn9hYfWAjVSJq8dcjrieeQOuWUBiKoMMy5goOIhpUyW3v7h0As" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 421px; height: auto;"><br><br><br></div><div><font size="5">This brings me back to the Allthing I mentioned earlier. As the island became more and more populated by settlers, that could claim as much land as a man could circle in one day lightning fires on its perimeter and where a woman could do the same, making as wide a circle, pulling a cow behind her. (Women and men had equal status in those days, which begs the question how did you manage to lose that right feminists?). </font></div><div><font size="5">As all this happened, the local chiefs created the Althing, a national parliament, the oldest legislature in the world in 930 AD in the now called Thingvellir national park, where they created laws and settled disputes and held court. The stone walls and pillars, we saw, witnessed the proceedings in silence during more than a thousand years and here one can also visit the place where the convicted were hung. The park is also the spot where the “cook slit the apple pie”, being the area where the North American tectonic plate hits the Eurasian tectonic plate, aiding to the volcanic activity on the island</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_f143_cb23_297c_3114" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/jYYOuZnYdTH6RjLV5f03al8scXQSVcdc_WegBAiF2eZ56vAaOAmVuC-IyD8" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 423px; height: auto;"></div><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">All in all my story is only here to enhance the story o</font><span style="font-size: x-large;">ur pictures tell. May they inspire you to also visit one day or visit it again</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_a125_3917_dcd3_88b0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/WkLkT4Ydp4xoeUxUj5EZPDsfO2wgvXFbX0yHIEfYi64ifCs_CQ0neMbq6ms" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 424px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">our Icelandic Artic Fox puppy </div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Erik</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml><w:WordDocument><w:BrowserLevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel><w:DisplayHorizontalDrawingGridEvery>0</w:DisplayHorizontalDrawingGridEvery><w:DisplayVerticalDrawingGridEvery>2</w:DisplayVerticalDrawingGridEvery><w:DocumentKind>DocumentNotSpecified</w:DocumentKind><w:DrawingGridVerticalSpacing>7.8 磅</w:DrawingGridVerticalSpacing><w:PunctuationKerning></w:PunctuationKerning><w:View>Normal</w:View><w:Compatibility><w:DontGrowAutofit/><w:BalanceSingleByteDoubleByteWidth/><w:DoNotExpandShiftReturn/></w:Compatibility><w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom></w:WordDocument></xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml><w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" DefUnhideWhenUsed="true" DefSemiHidden="true" DefQFormat="false" DefPriority="260" LatentStyleCount= >
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</w:LatentStyles></xml><![endif]--><!--StartFragment--><div dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-size: 17px;"><br><br><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 10.5pt;"><b><span style="font-size: 18pt;">Summary Iceland Trip</span></b><b><span style="font-size: 18pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 10.5pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="x-apple-data-detectors://0" dir="ltr" x-apple-data-detectors="true" x-apple-data-detectors-type="calendar-event" x-apple-data-detectors-result="0" style="text-decoration-color: rgba(127, 127, 127, 0.380392);">Sept 2</a> , Keflavik airport to location 1: Hotel Anna.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 10.5pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">We saw Seljalandsfoss Waterfall (our first of many) and ate in Selfoss on the way in and arrived late at the hotel, but before the bar closed.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 10.5pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 10.5pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="x-apple-data-detectors://1" dir="ltr" x-apple-data-detectors="true" x-apple-data-detectors-type="calendar-event" x-apple-data-detectors-result="1" style="text-decoration-color: rgba(127, 127, 127, 0.380392);">Sept 3</a> ferry to Westman Islands (location 2) and stayed in Lava Apartments AirB&B for 1 night and had best fish and chips lunch and a 20 person van tour around the island looking at Puffins, and one of Europe’s best golf courses and an open air music venue for their annual festival and the lava area of 1973 eruption over town. That evening we dined at Gott restaurant. Next day before taking the ferry back we visited a museum showing a house covered in lava and ash.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 10.5pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 10.5pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="x-apple-data-detectors://2" dir="ltr" x-apple-data-detectors="true" x-apple-data-detectors-type="calendar-event" x-apple-data-detectors-result="2" style="text-decoration-color: rgba(127, 127, 127, 0.380392);">Sept 4</a> and 5 at location 3, Hrifunes nature park bungalow, where we cooked our first pasta meal and fired up the hot tub with wood. Next day a tour over F208 road crossing streamlets to Landmannalaugar an inland area looking at crater lake Ljotipollur (meaning ugly pond) and colored mountains and hot water bathers. Sandee had our Ford Expedition run off the road and it needed to be towed back on the road by a passing bus with Spaniards, who we met again when having a communal table dinner at Hrifunes Guesthouse. On the way to and fro we enjoyed the beautiful landscape and crossed many waters.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 10.5pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 10.5pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="x-apple-data-detectors://3" dir="ltr" x-apple-data-detectors="true" x-apple-data-detectors-type="calendar-event" x-apple-data-detectors-result="3" style="text-decoration-color: rgba(127, 127, 127, 0.380392);">Sept 6</a>, 7, 8 and 9 at the Blue Glacier Foss Hotel (location 4). First day rained out, second day walk at Stokkness beach, and when returning stopped at a cloudy Diamond Beach to see the ice formations on a black beach. Next day a glacier walking tour, booked one class above our capacity, but enjoyed by Herman, while we took the basic walk, followed by a trip back to Diamond beach. </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 10.5pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 10.5pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="x-apple-data-detectors://4" dir="ltr" x-apple-data-detectors="true" x-apple-data-detectors-type="calendar-event" x-apple-data-detectors-result="4" style="text-decoration-color: rgba(127, 127, 127, 0.380392);">Sept 10</a> a rainy travel day along the east fjords to Seydisfjordur for an overnight stop (location 5) in Lonseira Apartments right by the 48 hour ferryboat to Denmark, enjoying a dinner nearby where some of us had breakfast the next day.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 10.5pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 10.5pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="x-apple-data-detectors://5" dir="ltr" x-apple-data-detectors="true" x-apple-data-detectors-type="calendar-event" x-apple-data-detectors-result="5" style="text-decoration-color: rgba(127, 127, 127, 0.380392);">Sept 11</a>, 12, and 13 to Akureyri (location 6), visiting Dettifoss and Selfoss waterfalls, the Kerid crater lake, passing hot crater electric power factories and the Hverir mud pots on a rainy day, which we revisited the next day while also visiting the Grjotagja Cave, with blue hot water. We walked a beautiful trail trying to find the Cave, but gave up and found it by car later, and we had several dinner visits through the only toll tunnel in Iceland. Here we had to change a tire rim that caused a leaky tire, and refilled power steering oil with no noticeable results.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 10.5pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Next day a sightseeing drive to Siglufjordur visiting the herring boom area museum.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 10.5pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Enjoyed in the evenings the well appointed AirB&B facilities and had pasta dining-in again as well as electric sauna and hot tub</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 10.5pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 10.5pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="x-apple-data-detectors://6" dir="ltr" x-apple-data-detectors="true" x-apple-data-detectors-type="calendar-event" x-apple-data-detectors-result="6" style="text-decoration-color: rgba(127, 127, 127, 0.380392);">Sept 14</a>, a horrible rainy driving day to location 7, a stopover to the Westfjords area at Stadarflot hotel, a no staff hotel till breakfast with dinner at a N1 gas station.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 10.5pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 10.5pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="x-apple-data-detectors://7" dir="ltr" x-apple-data-detectors="true" x-apple-data-detectors-type="calendar-event" x-apple-data-detectors-result="7" style="text-decoration-color: rgba(127, 127, 127, 0.380392);">Sept 15</a>, 16 and 17 at Hotel West in Patreksfjordur (location 8) where we had our Icelandic Wild West adventure, driving to the most western point of Iceland at the Latrabjarg Bird Cliffs, where in season birds are nesting in the cliff walls, with a stopover at the famous red sand Raudisandur Beach, for an invigorating walk, as well as driving the second day through spellbinding views of mountains and fjords, never reaching our expected destiny but spending a sun covered time at the Djynandi waterfalls. We ate 3 nights in a row at the same Stukuhusid restaurant nearby our hotel.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 10.5pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 10.5pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="x-apple-data-detectors://8" dir="ltr" x-apple-data-detectors="true" x-apple-data-detectors-type="calendar-event" x-apple-data-detectors-result="8" style="text-decoration-color: rgba(127, 127, 127, 0.380392);">Sept 18</a>, 19 and 20 staying on the Snaefellness peninsula at Kast Guesthouse (location 9) in Lysudalur, midway exchanging cars with our rental company at Budardalur, where we arrived in streaming rain. The next day we continued in streaming rain driving to the main town Stykkisholmur for a Nordic House museum that some of us visited and a bakery for others to stay out of the rain and visiting one of the few open churches. Taking the long rainy drive “home” stopping for lunch at Grundarfjordur.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 10.5pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">The next day was spent at our Guesthouse staring at the rain and since it did not stop raining we moved a day earlier to our fore last location in the golden circle area.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 10.5pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 10.5pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="x-apple-data-detectors://9" dir="ltr" x-apple-data-detectors="true" x-apple-data-detectors-type="calendar-event" x-apple-data-detectors-result="9" style="text-decoration-color: rgba(127, 127, 127, 0.380392);">Sept 20</a>, 21, 22 and 23 we stayed in a 4 bedroom cabin with private bathrooms for each couple and a full kitchen living room area as well as a in-house hot tub and balcony overlooking the valley below at Uthlid Cottages (location 10) Laundry facilities were utilized there.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 10.5pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">We were a 10 minutes ride close to the Geysir area with 2 main spouting wells, the Strokkur and the Geysir. We visited several times and only Herman and Marjo who more frequently went there, saw the Geysir erupt.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 10.5pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">We took a full day to visit the Thingvellir National park to visit the great divide rift area of the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates and the area where the annual National Assembly of over thirty ruling chiefs and their vassals took place since 930AD, the Althingy, where each year laws were passed, crimes were judged and disputes settled all by collective decision making. The highlight of the tour was most likely the rainy 2 mile walking over lava visit to the dormant Thrihnukagigur volcano and take a tour down inside this volcano descending 120 meters in a kind of window washer carriage lift, gaping in awe at the colorful environment, while standing at the rock strewn bottom of the crater. Of course the only Icelandic fox pup dancing around us, that we ever saw on this trip, was a bonus.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 10.5pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">We did some touring in this the most populated golden circle area and visited the impressive Gullfoss waterfall as well as had a special luncheon on our last day at the Fridheimar tomato restaurant in the nearby town of Reykholt, where we had a meal in a hothouse, surrounded by tomatoes and having tomato dishes.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 10.5pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 10.5pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="x-apple-data-detectors://10" dir="ltr" x-apple-data-detectors="true" x-apple-data-detectors-type="calendar-event" x-apple-data-detectors-result="10" style="text-decoration-color: rgba(127, 127, 127, 0.380392);">Sept 24</a>, our last night at the airport, Aurora Star hotel in Keflavik (location 11) gave us the opportunity to enjoy one last wonderful dinner in Kaffi Duus in Keflavik village, before leaving early next morning home. </span></p></div><p class="MsoNormal"><img id="id_d49e_4378_a3e1_2035" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/SsOjTTkhtX118pzPVQg5FMCjMWjWnd7mv0YZbzkMCuW5S_MMwz4p4cZSTwc" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"><br><br><br></p><p class="MsoNormal"><br></p><div dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-size: 17px;"><br></div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 12pt;"> </span></p><!--EndFragment--></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"> </font></div><div id="_blog_touch_end_br_for_reorient"><br></div><div id="_blog_touch_end_br_for_reorient"><br></div>Two retirees and their travel storieshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13942287905877288793noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9052023657534142840.post-46010232037971751152019-12-23T19:13:00.001-05:002020-01-01T20:45:27.237-05:00Around the World for a 3rd Time (Melbourne and Port Douglas Australia) <div><img id="id_f1a0_9d95_b62_f830" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/tVQ3oo7AJKR-ldWTYTzjpaDtnI6N568VsqyDPZm-JbAUEVhf0LmI2wS_Ruo" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 426px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">You know the country your in when you see this road sign<br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_9bc9_2a6d_e4a5_4bbb" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/QqRXpdH457XGNIDaWIioNkDyB4Wjbrh0mnteQcgMrlWwWXlGu01nd3VMg-s" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 396px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">Or this road sign</div><img id="id_3178_ab57_13e_892e" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/bigjtslQmcRUz93BpOPyezdAH7BcJxHtPuuE9ZyDgcmknqa8SY67-vrB58s" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 398px; height: auto;"><br>This sign may be less familiar as to what it is or where you are<br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_9f53_6742_1f08_67bc" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/vcMlRFvpwX39FoFV2yk0L0ksO_B7_k9GhJ3-LJGcUyEr74Cu80CG0SITZ6A" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 289px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">And this could be anywhere, note the complimentary bottle against the itch</div><br></div><div><font size="5">Australians being the descendants of the penal colony prisoners sent here since 1788, have their own internal way of dissing each other. Every state (6) and the 2 territories have monikers given to them by their neighboring state citizens. We landed in Melbourne, Victoria where the “Cabbage Patchers” live and when we landed in Port Douglas, Queensland we were surrounded by “Banana Benders”.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_a7d6_d888_5709_b487" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/PNaiyuCR6eZMvAr9Y0Ke5DhpiHb7bhsbb0kH7ZHspRLN2ZrrQI6wT_qyOrE" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 599px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">And this was the live boy we saw. Don’t ask me why not a girl? An Aussie told me: boy</div><br><img id="id_79a3_bc8d_cf8f_244f" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/wpadZTqvRt2iwEO61m0zprsuzy2dbi57eLAzaW2fujEgVDUOPOC-jtuMiFo" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 537px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">This is an emu; we never saw a cassowary. Those two are very very Aussie.<br></span><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_bc43_3a15_2db0_3f5b" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/rV5MEnl40JLq36p8HRNbS6SOVPZphEbigcdyebjBGyme347Sgsq6b6YsTVE" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 408px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"> Our first and only sighting of a wallaby</div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div><font size="5">Our last visit to Sydney had been not impressed us enough to at first impulse bring us back to Australia, but since our flight to New Zealand landed us in Melbourne, we decided to give Australia another fairer chance.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_beff_b69a_b757_bc6b" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/attaE67dJE-cvG46-CTmr6lQ2WOCmDQ0XXthM-cqdBc38Ydl38WWvzb9CjM" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 366px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">Walking the beach along the ocean near Port Fairy </div><div style="text-align: right;">with the cute bay name of Daisies by the Sea I think</div><br><img id="id_9834_2b02_c45a_bea9" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/jcrpHYvjfdUjaokJJ1r0lptLaIQW_jbX8tqzFH1f1yXCu0-EAoDv8bbux-Q" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 384px; height: auto;"><br>Sandee and Rose clearly not talking about horses at the race course.<br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Also we met during our boat trip in the Inner Hebrides a couple from Melbourne and stayed in contact with them and also bought a water color painting from Rose, that now brightens one of our living room walls in Norfolk. So at their invitation we drove to their vacation home at Port Fairie, where Rick and Rose we graciously had us stay overnight and showed us their wonderful seaside environment. It also gave us an opportunity to drive the in every guidebook recommended Great Ocean Road, where many scenic stops entice photographers to record nature’s beauty during the drive.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_61b5_ef25_f703_d087" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/i-CIqtiFKtP9BebunS5Axb8-Ia4S0SerPF3V1bZ9aDeL7Rd7CXpUzDu3e3o" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 423px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">The Great Ocean Road had many surprising sights along the scenic drive<br></span><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_9e66_bee3_9f08_6c85" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/_DTGChL4s7VufDtcYDviLtif9tMUsqYGj0cjT-JeK9T5xFOMDp-zzjZvPqg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 488px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">And a true scenic drive it is</div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_9f09_493e_a3d7_79b3" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/rhnYLS7a_qKmrad1BoNYUNMzhzHi3pSjXRq6TyhXegwDv6vDWqhHwUi5c5I" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 491px; height: auto;"></div><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><br></div><div><font size="5">Melbourne, Australia’s coffee capital, unlike or maybe because of Sydney, turned out to be a charming state capital filled with historical sites. As we had travelled from Taiwan for more than 22 real hours through several time zones, arriving early morning in Melbourne we had reserved our Marriott downtown room the night before so we could recover that day in bed. We programmed the gps to the street address and drove and drove and drove getting the feeling that we had left the city behind us ending up in a residential compound at the other side of town. This time omitting the street name we searched for hotels and had the car redirect us back to town, where we got stranded in an ongoing marathon that the gps was not prepared for. When we arrived at long last at the hotel we could have gotten an early check in for the next day.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_e62b_bf17_68fe_24fb" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/gxkSewWQwYz3WrOKuadp_NuZpNM6kEQy1pT4PHJeo5c0hmXvWs914KhIaJc" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 325px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">We never cease to be in awe of nature<br></span><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_6c05_8de_8dc9_5401" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/K-DeUIWHB4W4fD7RvoDuP7_LBWELQfjTjTj9GKj7QyYR8eenbGUIWovIaZM" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 489px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Even when it is as simple as these little ones</div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_1489_1da2_6fdb_a59" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/RqDsaUOVZmJtN2TIvtusR0iYoWStxWcBaZBIWPckr6HyyBzOBq8cWuW4CGA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 448px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">Or this work of art compliments of the ocean</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Melbourne turned out to be a city where a tourist could easily spend a week and not leave with the feeling they had seen and done it all. Highlights the little old city tram tour for every novice coming to town and the Immigration Museum with many amusing stories, but for us the greatest experience was the invite by Rick and Rose to join them in the owners circle at the Caulfield Racecourse at the edge of town, as they are proud owners of several horses. </font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_af18_dc_4c8a_d795" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/0-Y0EdMvBSZHimNogHolW6vDNJy0iJR2IXNtVA1p2l96b8InIbMoo138lDk" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 396px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">Owner Rick and horse Strategic Demand having a power talk<br></span><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_39cf_1c42_41c7_66c8" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/t-5Z3-wjK46zspTOGqvgWHA3yTJfjXu7rhoE1HYMthlx8ZRVTlZii0itNuE" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 415px; height: auto;"></div></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">He lost but was still smiling afterwards</span></div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_ad2_cdff_a257_671a" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/jF7Ux6XKcVnX1EYSDNJSuHflsbWMiCAOazMNxFBU-RJZup9ErBbqW3_-hzo" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 454px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">The Races: The Brits left a few fashion habits behind </div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">We were duly impressed and honored to be among the elite, although we never were allowed to the owners club room as this guy did not wear a jacket and a tie at arrival for the event. However being able to witness the ladies in their finest with heads that could rival any horse race scene back in Britain, meet the jockey and Strategic Demand, who was not supposed to win and because of the rules had to wear the most impost as the thin lead weights in the saddle are called. Well he almost placed, meaning to say he finished number 4.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_6916_b3d9_b40b_1817" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/8POvCJZEsSLVGDAt-4lm4H_tYJzPrcRvRfWCtT_7b6dMrNJalc9LX79JLb4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 380px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">It was a privilege to be in the owners ring<br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_3be_2877_f48b_d74f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/8y8xkmkEdZo-oAMpPCDKWeKuJKgC-txK-mHKDwjHfIYxEdigfw4btL1blX0" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 418px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">Had to show you guys this beauty one more time</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">It was fun to bet money on just funny names, I even tried to bet on a race that had already run, but the kind and patient lady at the betting window was most helpful to this money wasting idiot. After the race the jockey came by to report to Rick and Rose. The weather was perfect and the total ambiance made for a wonderful unexpected time well spent in Melbourne, so Sandee and I want hereby again say Thank You Rick and Rose, you made our stay in Victoria State unforgettable.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><img id="id_3c9a_5c65_8882_a7d" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/B0JbZ2_hpBGcV7YU0JOZdhzuD6c2VUilWfVuNrzdDxGRcFDa1NBmJcwszkE" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 392px; height: auto;"><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">Melbourne’s Anglican St Paul’s Cathedral<br></span><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_443f_79f8_ca4a_6f92" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/jdkFnmR2BgRuwYCoNdzuz6TQjttEX0WQu7yqHGBsOZwwJSst9RQXIVGSqL4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 393px; height: auto;"></div></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">Inside St Paul’s Cathedral</span></div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_be0a_47e2_d794_83f9" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/6ThCEAJr5ht3UCnN1fbtlTlaXStXlHj3dNRdwKoidkKlDH6YD1_2JpEzQbU" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 435px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">Especially liked the colored lights behind the 1890 huge British organ</div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">By the way Melbourne strategically situated at the top of an almost circular bay was started in 1835 by a group of Tasmanian businessmen, who swindled local aboriginal chiefs, who had no knowledge of landownership, in “buying” the land for settlement purposes. This factotum amused me, because the then british governor declared the treaty invalid, but because more and more huts and tents were erected in the new town of Bearbass, he sent in 1837 a surveyor to properly lay out the town in the for those days traditional grid plan, renaming it after the sitting British Prime Minister, William Lamb, Lord Melbourne, into Melbourne.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_f091_d3fb_3ce6_c0fe" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/OkZHlTDoCPVYUDjqjI4duhG8JI9EDPQ3UTHh_6EZNNa4okMlamc5n67u1VU" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 433px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">Melbourne’s downtown is a pedestrian friendly city<br></span><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_ff9c_19af_3ecf_c826" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/kFlcxQ98ujraI4o4yAVPexF8bpJW80s_KlVm9qOPQzyNnFKyEJVfn2037pM" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 375px; height: auto;"></div></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">With a modern skyline just outside the century plus old downtown</span></div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_5aa9_d821_d442_4dc4" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/7s1B9DKD27f68vK-XMBBe2qXAzEBFcYFbFz4J1y_elf9hDJDJNr4kGP4c5I" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 270px; height: auto;"></div></div><div><div style="text-align: right;">Like don’t drop your cigarette butts on the street</div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_2948_2840_712f_703f" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/glED3P7l8T0tt7CtcXDSS4YYkpHqvktyFNFwN3xK1ub0vlF3fXF_6WQWcWI" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 424px; height: auto;"></div></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">And it is showing its maritime origins too</span></div><br><img id="id_ecf2_d353_abc2_6996" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/vZXg3k0UWJtW3gcUVMfJPXIuHU06rsMBRaQpW_i96V1wAHrZ13X4Hcz4xlw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 252px; height: auto;"><br>Did I say pedestrian?<br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Up to the Great Barrier Reef and Daintree Rainforest in the State of Queensland and the definitely tourist town of Port Douglas.</font></div><div><br><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_51f0_3be0_2525_a4f3" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/PdoRwSGjIjbwB8MjoKh3bzFAorO7Dxvgrq_mbLQOg-nBr9SizBGSljN8Q28" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 577px; height: auto;"></div></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">Our ocean views from the balcony across the park </span></div><br><img id="id_11a5_2070_76da_d845" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/2Jw1c4yfHAOCBhueMRvjvs6mjm6B0ss7jBUeiVycYoN9EzSxhUXCifm62v0" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 502px; height: auto;"><br>Early morning walk by restaurant after restaurant ready for the lunch onslaught <br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Port Douglas is basically a one main street town with shops and restaurants catering almost year around to visitors. We had a beautiful AirB&B at the beginning of this more than a mile long Macrossan Street, in an apartment complex one level up with a balcony overlooking the bay leading out to sea and the reef.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_1487_bafd_64b7_20bf" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/TtCbVtk7aoL06u7YTVSXWWvJqmcioxaIIgzYIjZA7puQjhGrwTPTp_5CGsY" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 416px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">What is not to like about pasta<br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_d852_c842_6d9c_f419" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/Mg-iyY6axmLoOwDilnd7hBrdie8cu-w9larS28xFtDlqurQM2T6djAvOwZs" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 447px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Or fish</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_fbaf_12d6_6aa2_e176" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/GbybDeskixNXBfjVAItTNUx5hboc7SQUCqaMYYSihj_YFdZW05qJOtrTSpM" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 607px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Evening sunset sail view</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">This part of the trip was basically relaxing about good food, nice sailing and a visit to the only remaining tropical rainforest in Australia, just a few miles away. </font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_218a_6f1f_e03e_a66e" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/xCXPDszMDQj9Bj1uW5mb-4NB-brsEkBFY6tRXSPBz7fgkdmhcfxuykoT7ss" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 443px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">Snorkeling at the Great Barrier Reef<br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_d485_bebe_80cf_53e" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/xGEZ9eyqFiLR-XA8cmxUanso4-GVvq6jh0KglAcpbneHFlffH5K2iV0ytpk" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 395px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">Those beautiful colors</div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_7b6a_3528_dac1_c721" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/llXsEYOAP44WXpOPDIoF6_9nIJneXQY3ZI9KbzWLvXmso7z3cEwxaul6Dpo" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 553px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">But then we are told that dull lifeless colors indicate dead reefs. This blue one is fully alive</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">We enjoyed a sunset sailing with drinking grownups only, a day trip out to the Great Barrier Reef, snorkeling and having specialists talking about the Reef and it present bleaching issues. All of that slow relaxing days. The four wheel drive into the rainforest took a full day visiting a fruit tree family run farm inside the forest. We did not see many of the rainforest creatures, which we encountered when visiting the Ecuadorian rainforest.</font></div><div><font size="5">But it was good to realize that eons ago Australia did not have the desert like climate it had today and understand from the stories told how many creatures from that era have survived. </font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><br><br><img id="id_a5aa_3ca8_8d03_7da0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/wy5nJp3yr6DXKIasKEmwtMH7mlRR2z5UGZtJMMnv9x_guOGwjYKmO10aQsQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 372px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">We heard that since the 2016 “bleaching” colors are returning<br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_c266_142d_c9b1_2a87" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/OLGpqkosy4ft9hHdNdIEMFgzmF0iyM4Udlvry46325Abf6Wzx9ZoWqMOF5E" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 488px; height: auto;"></div></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">But then : these lively greens had</span></div><br><img id="id_37b2_a90a_13d0_afef" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/xGTEna9uTL3YTa8m3v3bir0cKfbI4crpHzAGTpwj9WRntTGn69eEEofSnLk" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 365px; height: auto;"><br>White (is dead) colored neighbors.<br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">If Australia was not that far away it would definitely be a country to keep returning too. From here we took the long trip to American Samoa. </font></div><div><font size="5">A few more Aussie pictures:</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_fac_33b0_43b8_d27" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/p-FdM3rFGUlPSM0bzeqb_fYnLPF4ErZFbRBhR-AdgDN3xEdliRqmLMbEIb0" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 402px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">The edge of the Daintree tropical rainforest abuts the</span></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">Pacific Ocean, actually the Coral Sea before reaching the ocean.<br></span><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_d4cf_e7f9_bc6c_7e90" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/0-pySf0uU4t_Bwhwb7xqfSvcE4CVCCahI49mMdtE-LWvLVEZ-mW2VyCCpMY" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 367px; height: auto;"></div></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">Rainforest has swamps</span></div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_b2b7_fc1e_19d3_9a79" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/b5QPdxOOA9r0j4AVLDISPZVqlzFQfYlTA0aGHe67z7_csGBDat99qKybyXg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 422px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">No cassowary but we saw this orange footed scrub-fowl</div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_396d_9136_f779_6da3" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/3WtognlHdTorTPSXIijHmRxOUyxdn0HQJxPALBYZ3SFqxmzPqKoq-pgozpI" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 416px; height: auto;"></div></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">Even a small waterfall</span></div><br><img id="id_ff60_ec22_280a_ce13" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/sTdM1rVk_rX43xXf3spzcpW4DQTCFRpBv_q_Fvycmplxs4LLUZGWSjwbMhA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 553px; height: auto;"><br>And tropical fruit like these lychee tree</div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_2a3_e438_9778_fda7" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/f1Zs-NCPA6J917CAnNBUudA4ThGRJYRdfiYmD6fYhD4nmLjKu1znaMj_QqI" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 419px; height: auto;"></div></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">And then at the edge of the rainforest sand and trees liking the saline in the water</span></div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_3cac_cf87_43d5_4e03" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/QgWHidhs2MFlKwAt5zkKE3XtFmwrECUuF55HX-ucTibXl357WUWLg73ivGc" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 333px; height: auto;"></div></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">And an Eastern Water Dragon nearby</span></div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_b832_9ab2_fe6_3318" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/_e1aDdQcXy8-xSsvVWBdddda2X2C3tdMFCZ7jVXYKhVsJj_cNrt_pFXyIik" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 353px; height: auto;"></div></div><div style="text-align: center;">And green bananas galore</div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_a69f_d383_a3fd_3d83" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/E5xBsPDAtudggYf3-GSt3J0x4ZS5K_rn8f253SryThanDNTY4IoDe1rrrFo" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 343px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">Don’t forget the Jack fruit harvests over 100 lbs per tree<br></span><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_5a59_7a73_381d_d32f" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/YmoNDaV9Tu-w_fbglUUye9nJ9U3MrUisOc_jSDp8x10lC2IOFKvffADPbnQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 499px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">We were surprised that keeping rainforests healthy requires planned burning too</div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div></div>Two retirees and their travel storieshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13942287905877288793noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9052023657534142840.post-59908420556470593192019-12-23T17:01:00.001-05:002019-12-23T17:01:34.760-05:00Around the World a 3rd Time (China inland visits)<div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><span style="width: 746px; height: auto;"><img id="id_e57c_20a8_1d61_1eba" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/cDF1ChH0egKUTslHk9nSh6z28IRai5TI4SCNX5LMXWIT6PFL3ZwF8GbWLek" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"></span></font><br><div style="text-align: center;">The Danxia phenomena in Zhangye </div><font size="5" style="font-size: x-large;"><br></font></div><div style="font-size: x-large;">From Beijing we flew on an Asia Pass, acquired from Delta’s RTW (Round the World) desk, to the city of Xining on the western side of China, where we had less than 1 hour to ride by taxi 31km/19m to the Xining train station, where we sat in a six person sleeper cabin with 5 ladies and a rambunctious 5,6 or 7 year old child, controlling mama, granny and aunties to hand over cookies, play games and whatever else came to him.</div><div style="font-size: x-large;"><br></div><div><font size="5"><span style="width: 746px; height: auto;"><img id="id_a944_7ee_6fb4_8d0e" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/MqY1w4B4rT9tpHyMdPPA6XbZxmXj5Tq-5a1Y_OOJI6Zssz8mZJDTIz_AfgM" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"></span></font><br><div style="text-align: center;">Xining railway station, huge despite “small” town in western China</div><font size="5"><span style="width: 360px; height: auto;"><img id="id_541_bb18_b388_2338" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/npO-GQZeG4QOYNY7T3ikLEdbyUIq5AqR7vBtPFk0bLBzZP4EjE73ipOhiDY" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 360px; height: auto;"></span></font><br>Waiting room for train passengers only<br><div style="font-size: x-large; text-align: right;"><img id="id_d770_e803_62b7_291b" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/zx9DJgyUuG1QwyONewMbb9Vpsj8JHGQGezMkvUwiUBFKmWxnCmu2qkZ-4AU" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 378px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">One of the many gates: this to platform of rail 12 and 13</div><br><div style="font-size: x-large; text-align: left;">The Xining train station, as many others in China, consisted of an immense glass covered hall, holding a thousand plus travellers (no farewell wishers allowed) with many gates leading to many train platforms. The gates opened 15 minutes before the train arrival as announced on large screens. </div></div><div><img id="id_f6ea_b60a_caef_d01f" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/NUj0Z3LZz7Itr6EaXdmZLa8NE1QyLuj4vopCLACG_KTDG3eJPsVg9129Wh8" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 300px; height: auto;"><br>Train arrival, we are allowed to platform 10m early<br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_c32_f76a_3091_6304" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/B06OWjKvc96_uCz7nziMSEFLkhhMCyq_x-_Vsbb53m3O3UHmypMlM8x6oMQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 318px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">Cabin staff person arrives for duty</div><br></div><div><font size="5">At the gate, electronic ticket control takes place. Our train traveling crowd looked for their numbered section on the platform to enter the correct train wagon and compartment, rechecked by an attendant at each door.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_10c4_7e9d_ef6d_c03f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/fKA63gJuqZLvPlEy9mSdU7wBFulatWLaVY9IZBcB5VYSr-ve3V4qAApMjjo" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 355px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">The fields around the desert town of Zhangye are covered to avoid sandstorms in town</div><img id="id_2975_f5a9_bd2d_5ead" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/0NdoPd8tkFvAHZPnfjVGmAizb1YrnWDb24spuQH5fLMpxwXXbh2okZRhHBs" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 363px; height: auto;"><br>Zhangye is an agricultural town with surrounding farms and covered fallow fields<br><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div></div><div><font size="5">When we left the train in our destination city of Zhangye, we commiserated about the 1 child policy side effects on display to us for several hours, even though the policy had been eliminated in 2015.</font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_7bb1_9a6d_6062_54fb" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/EW8XiqkGEY-Y5aIGigYjcEXYh_0TLZbYVN1agdEBN_gOpsVWTujWhSKWS9o" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 334px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Just a few colorful pictures on the edge of town</div><img id="id_5be6_8f15_f32c_fab3" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/n5lB8YeA9MnigUtqN5ELVzaQJktsfELYj-GGufU_9P8vkU1OE3tDVIB3Bbg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 396px; height: auto;"><br><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_fc7c_5ba6_7acf_e23b" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/9b5HNrsIf9PobIhUBXJywx4jVYmqp9wUUiozXA588WZykqHZkhp1tGnxL7Q" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 346px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">I loved the colors surrounding us</div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_5cf0_4064_2bb8_f661" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/Qes-ugvFimouoQrypDYgzy7BzVe7HmntSElI8LfeDRLZynHC_Ud7gf3jQ_Q" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 425px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Sandstone mountains and tree farm </div><font size="5"><br></font><div><font size="5">Zhangye is a 1.2 million inhabitants district capital in the province of Gansu bordering Mongolia, both sharing the Gobi desert. We witnessed many new high rises being built or completed, but still unoccupied, all built for the new citizens influx as per the planned resettlement programs of the government, because China wishes to distribute its population (21% of the world population) more “evenly” across the country. Actually wherever we traveled in China, we saw ongoing high rise construction and empty completed high rises awaiting occupants.</font></div><div><br></div><div><img id="id_62ff_6384_3893_f2ed" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-G9Ola00dj7B_fJEco-p5WxmAmfxFeEWpQKN57R6kfBpo6G8DE0UfBWLpBw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="text-align: right; width: 380px; height: auto;"></div><div>Central planning of the Beijing government dictated these new towns, still to be populated by people that haven’t arrived yet to this faraway province near the Mongolian border</div><div><br></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_910a_29fb_b0c9_9e78" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/w9TXnwIsJRt-PXGJX4qB3reJl9wu7q4qPAtIOQZ5lFul-cCEFm_29hZceWg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="text-align: right; width: 357px; height: auto;"></div><div><br></div><div><font size="5">Going to Zhangye, was one of the main reasons for spending almost 3 weeks in China: and that was seeing the real colors of the Danxia in the Geopark there. Our desire to see that, gave us the opportunity to also visit Jiayuguan, where the gateway to the west or the silk road’s entry into China, or the most western point of the Great Wall of China, is situated.</font></div><div><br></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_9a3c_6d8e_a648_2136" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/wXitaYJCfSJdX9Ndpz26ynDwZEZ0_OFk3hEYFde8z7OZYQFZH_zHtfLLrac" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 399px; height: auto;"></div>Holiday Inn Express daily breakfast, please note the heart shaped eggs that were brought to our table <br><img id="id_22f6_31e4_4458_4421" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/1Jj_wXaGakADW9uoLjJFRLLVhHnXkSm8YEVy1MVtWBZWZFS11E5AVRdtSH8" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 350px; height: auto;"><br><br><br></div><div><br></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">Our guide ”Lisa” who spoke heavily accented broken English and our driver Mr. Cheng met us at the railway station and brought us to the only western hotel here, the one year old Holiday Inn Express, where we were treated royally, for as much as Holiday Inn can do “royally”, not only because of our IHG status, but also since we were the only non-Chinese guests. Traveling the 3 full days there did not change this statistic, wherever we went.</span></div><div><br></div><div><img id="id_e555_84e6_1bb0_fb54" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/mn4mJyRe3xuztjurzxRNFrQCckXN7L4tAul6EldETL-l-4WAMgTcNvpd4Nc" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 323px; height: auto;"></div><div>The newly opened geopark shows interesting remnants of the gletscher that carved the gully through the sandstone surroundings eons ago.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_173f_b4ac_7fa6_6b5c" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/GPr7fMqnKLz45cVoS5Tp5ZO-3aGsRnWjo9QoiQXEqxR9FbxmY2Ej7NOstbI" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 323px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">All the towering rock formations had names</div><div><br></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_8aae_7d86_af7c_c4d0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/MawFMQd7azZuP_IcyxSXNZFuhavihPc10XzxODyk45MV5OGfKkXwun0Z8Xs" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 363px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">Like the three sisters</div><div><font size="5">Danica (Chinese word for vermillion or sunglow) is a geological phenomena, resulting from the uplift of the earth by colliding tectonic plates, exposing red-colored sandstone and other mineral deposits that create a spectrum of colors, that are often enhanced in photos.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_5130_dbb6_3319_f4d3" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/c_jex-JfGn1yo0Shue-cZjXGg7jkvsb549kwIi9DZUi6PmPxwDJ8qByC4fM" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 395px; height: auto;"><br>This was our first encounters with the colored mountains<br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_58a0_ce9d_9732_19c5" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/v0Z4wkKlz6uZjBGoyYn-jePnDGU02YK4bdWIIIxnSIQhThZ3CgvA_g7OwwA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 458px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">These colors are not “doctored” by me</div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_531a_8b05_74fd_24b8" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/bsz9s17pz1yc7Fk-KGpQzb6n4rbSzzHNk48puV8v-zrXaXYRWSSYUyTVHLY" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 392px; height: auto;"></div><br><img id="id_89f5_8352_21e5_d75b" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/ql2SUVDqjzbhRKFGs-rvtcbxOJSTJececAC-L8-6-52wbgsjxRHmCgpdBtU" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 419px; height: auto;"><br>The multitude of chemical elements in these “pushed up” hills create these wonderful striata<br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_1abb_a6d3_60d5_accb" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/fHVJ4t2yAQWZUg7xJ_GZKi3ClsY2yJ4z-GO8Bv1ivPB10AqgzQiGxtZyrVc" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 452px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Could not get enough of the sights all around us as buses ferried us from platform to platform</div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_1e9e_9966_6a90_3cf5" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/1WvIFxRas6T7rj-LtP4f9mS7jQpwfn5FVcRFHtqxvo0PrU9zpO9RVtknunM" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 397px; height: auto;"></div><br><img id="id_f54f_f5c6_660d_2be7" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/o944MEHqceVTrnmqCehHJ357iUXwPJ6cbzfbrHOKyVKZAtvWa8CaiI8eHb8" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 448px; height: auto;"><br>Miles and miles of undulating hills as far as our eyes could see</div><div><font size="5">Thus our desire to check out the real colors. Our pictures will tell you the real story. In the high season 30,000 visitors are daily bussed from looking platform to looking platform or as google states: in 2018 2.32 million visitors came to see this to believe. Being out of season we didn’t have too many Chinese surrounding us. </font></div></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_19c3_f7f5_bb09_6f49" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/H-0geNbexWGVUQRxsEElZCDKPi6Jzxka2pvoW4n959Es_bs0OXfYt1ei91s" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 370px; height: auto;"><br>A tethered balloon gave tourists an opportunity to see this from above<br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_7b4d_ff63_1d9f_d6ac" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/QFMfNieHBrtQxoOa-_BbsdVvu53HHM3vcy4mMHoCX7DQuqkYJell0v2ikf0" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 368px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Zhangye being an agricultural center is full of colors</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_8a87_1e15_6a1f_e6a0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/DTn4mxJQqrQaf_-qJ1yu6GAQ7NIAXK33IrzJY-OQM_KyRynSZOYwrBHiIhw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 447px; height: auto;"></div><br><img id="id_6a1_22df_b120_a1c3" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/VdgZsmlJMh9MsmJTngASEpB7fhWJankvnSbwDF6jFaT5f5YW0Qsd8uTNXIs" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 365px; height: auto;"><br>And of course historical heros</div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_2d06_4dd3_de00_35c0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/_Ewpyo6AYScFWOBeQcrPikl1zmdTxTOWUn9Cj-Zqj8Lzq5poeEfX3z4Xd7o" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 430px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Our trip even further west brought us to Jiayuguan, the most western gateway to China</div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_3dac_c21b_8321_4138" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/IbvP6yaoKaA-w6MxpCRdqZxJoDrm3ldogfeQYIqiDAes6F9lIALL9Q2HEco" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 418px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">heavily fortified and the end of the Great Wall of China </div><img id="id_a2c6_a89b_8b90_7087" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/FkNAijebv0YTBE8Ayd9CG4-mZR_HX_BBzIz3BKmkB4ciVI115glb_J3xjQQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 447px; height: auto;"></div><div> the Silk Road brought Marco Polo from ancient Babylon to the Han Emperors through the gates here into China<br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_6492_9ea1_75eb_bd2f" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/MdJLkWjfZR3MzromQwU0eqUYNvynbS1EDUdOX8Odmwf_LCLef8PFkHhntCg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 437px; height: auto;"></div>As you can see the wall here is extensively repaired to serve tourism <br><img id="id_57ab_360a_2397_a803" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/PuUhiAQoZZ3EZ3GXgO7FIlnZgvbPKpnqAjjvxIj10GWitnrIeHDCnWC9ksQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 466px; height: auto;"><br>These statues highlight the history of the Silk Road used heavily from 200 BC to 200AC<br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Lisa and Mr. Cheng never joined us for the daily lunch consisting of hot water and noodles or rice with vegetables and a steamed meat. Lisa brought us newly bought fork, spoon and knife, as she expected us not to be able to use chop sticks, and washed them at our table with the hot water from our glasses. Strange enough Chinese meals lack napkins.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_7e7a_70ae_a3d9_186c" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/fq-aNpSCtKi2N82MuyrmFCCgq6Hfpl3aBJiXl_h3PPghJpbotlrhKWb8Uik" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 524px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">On the west side of Zhangye we found the Horse Hoof Monastery or Mari Temple</div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_3857_8423_9a25_6509" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/RqxLbiGgFicq1_Crsq53uhpWW91Iz92zuemnMR30F1J204XBbkPf7aj1_00" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 333px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Important early Buddha Grotto temple compound</div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_bb64_b4fd_b4f_7c92" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/jnFvrN0tS_XLhvYzilFsYejZVIPXFWlc9e8asIaiHLBY5yq3dw8i68MA7x0" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 415px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">With the traditional red ribbon trees</div><img id="id_7475_b16b_4ae7_1bbc" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/0XYnDd_ovXnsTbHrOFRAXqKFe0fEPOWN158h4HldM8wRaehJ6xBTERt_MDk" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 503px; height: auto;"><br>The many monk residences of the olden days, now uninhabited.<br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_3ecd_fa01_6159_e662" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/3rfHZGqp_C2KisDzWk6KNt66kksC-fhJwOSDRaz44sFhKf-kHVSBm-flapk" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 415px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">The rarity of these grotto temple structures with intact vibrant colors keep being impressive </div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_2398_ffeb_aaa2_b245" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/7-Lbg2YMVNY9sWqZvY5W5mGm4x2QvFR2X-r9cZ0x682EbvXdI36fBNNdjjI" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 446px; height: auto;"></div><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Stories and explanations of the other things we saw, can be found below the pictures.</font></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_3714_995a_1662_879c" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/KV7JQ8UIcmzTNWUBS91FNXo6rR1KCLC2B0vB4psVvPJsM2_GFpxJrNrTcPo" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 535px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">A few Chinese “funny” translations with typical “papa state” admonishments</div><img id="id_611f_a13b_2752_6bc4" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/tOj1-WOD64Q0LagbEy2VJMkSsfk_oYX-F3G1YgSa4or14uOjTP4q0kFHxf8" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 527px; height: auto;"><br><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_6788_5318_d8e3_f97" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/LxYsWcOd9HjqtH-GLJ3X58f0j4z-7DErCaPxuWMVD1Q2Vrf371TK8sUHCcs" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 493px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Warning:Pass by Quickly</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Taking the train back, being waved goodbye by Lisa, we found our way reversing the trip to the capital city of Chengdu (translated “to become capital”) in the Sichuan province, famed for its spicy food and the panda breeding center, which has pandas all over the world in zoos on loan. The city was founded in the 4th century BC. So you would expect historic sections of town, but, NO, you need to visit musea for that.</font></div></div><div><font size="5">Luckily, our main interest here was exploring a midsized city as its functions today as well as seeing the pandas while there. </font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_80e5_ba14_83a1_297d" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/3FgEAsW5fW0y6blJucSGc31giPQlVlkLUBCezk-zhaYcaoxgZp6ffJqBRrU" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 398px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">Chengdu is a midsized town in China: only 14 million inhabitants<br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_df6a_3b24_2150_c3d9" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/5T55VUwRaXY-ERMdsEIv96DAE6dK9dqr_tveLQ9brGikzfEjIwoupfMYsYQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 399px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Eastern cities like Gold and Green</div><img id="id_5d61_46dd_3dba_b300" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/tjG5La3SzxU4XYM4IXpUPuMQt_lZ88m76Jr7BcRAxamgL-gagG9NiJma-fw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 370px; height: auto;"></div><div>Interesting temple formation</div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Well, here is what you encounter in 2018 Chengdu: a modern almost western city with the center of the city filled with half the Forbes 500 companies, with all the conveniences of this century: modern metro, nice buses, taxis, terraces, major shopping centers with all the famous brands one expects today in places like this 14 million big city, with a per capita income of 11,000 US dollars, famous for its spicy hotpot cuisine. </font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_66eb_c3eb_1635_17cf" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/o_BpeEnBkNVVxodpygGfoIHqQq8z9UFeRb0fBUfTXT-WS8QSBbEu7OyZExg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 352px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Chinese like congregating in their parks</div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_98e3_afa9_32b2_a721" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/msOCx3DwkXjq-Wqm5npMDXgBfgMxdilpN9l35EVCABPmmWfXCKD-UYSDWdg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 339px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">Volunteers do the performing for ever growing spectator crowds</div><br><img id="id_ee93_631b_73ac_ebb" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/bKIHEcKYqORWAEkoUI0q3EU5qMXqF_hvNqALLaj_pN8D8XQdL3FrM0DFtDI" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 418px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">Question: who brings the props?<br></span><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_3433_66bf_f60f_b9f9" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/TP6a56H-B27xc-rl-YvjDv9alUyXKSvOLNUu6s-Q1fAaWdgmrItksZU62E8" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 347px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Tai Chi, not everybody is senior</div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_73cd_6be2_3604_a878" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/MDPqlmwP36mnUgF7kXdzj9dyrLvdMuORCC0dgFvFf6jDjR3byfpiwTkIzzk" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 398px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">And boating is very popular too</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">And for Chinese aspects: dotted with tea houses and parks with mahjong players and tai chi exercising elders. We were met by our volunteer guide for one day Lydia Luo, who teaches English in secondary school. Lydia brought us to the People’s Park, one of the larger downtown parks, where all day, people congregate to dance and sing. (Electronic sound measuring screens record the volume of sound made, so that people are warned not to be too loud.) Every Chinese park has little canals and lakes with typical, very Chinese looking, stone arched bridges. Again the pictures will tell the story best.</font></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_24ab_504c_dc22_e0af" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/BSgVBFmTyxG77IEKuhNTV81kPnp6FCvhkRyrZvE10f5TECt05It6JihXHOQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 292px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">We found the “Parents promoting their single children for marriage” hilarious </div><br><img id="id_d557_ba66_fc2d_d5cd" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/XuuAdnxNkO8cBLtcFsc9FJ5rG-fRp31Dpv5NX8s_qUkGWvoWORuue2QIWHM" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 432px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">Candy salesman sells colorful hard sugar figurines to lick nearby the “Parents promoting their left over children market” to children too young to be marketed yet.<br></span><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_ac68_510d_1e2e_1718" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/GFvC3_ApYaeH-7azT0Ea4yLfPB8zBYAHRK0YWPq6sxQeTHG1EDnu1Atpfz0" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 446px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">In the age of internet matching options, this is the way parents with no FaceBook weigh in</div><br></div><div><font size="5">A very interesting part of the park Lydia showed us, was the Parents Corner, a place where concerned elderly parents congregated, hanging hand written descriptions of their grown single children, seeking to find a proper match for their son or daughter</font><span style="font-size: x-large;">. Same thing millennials do online now. </span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_dc71_549c_4c3b_6ae9" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/QfGu1Dr5Ij9CuMgIXt5rUktgFVh1SkSEQ-E37b52Nh7uA9ZC39xrsS24W70" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 405px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">As you see there are many opportunities to find new mate with parental approval built in</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">But here it was in its most basic form, a piece of paper hanging from a tree branch or spiked to a railing, with the parent ready to enhance their story and be more descriptive to potential other parents or young people that might show more interest in their kid after reading the “bio”. </font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_66c7_cdfd_4755_a669" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-ui6tmF4srjTbPva-E_sHfDhXBpDtgpFbG-OZSVwuVQLGZxr6SN5p8dbz2I" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 497px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Tea house in a park is a popular outing</div><br><img id="id_9a76_5_4a8c_eb91" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/SHbEijO8sCfZQhHKckw0de-hoE70mbBbsGwTFRQlKB639Y9YT9YGHT8W2pg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 361px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">Testing a new dress for your next party?<br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_22b8_e26e_7759_4734" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/_918vFbWjBdCdVPX7hRlMTwqQI2usoIFXv5v71yIra7-sYl-gtEYoxYcV-c" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 374px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">What I liked most was the relaxed atmosphere </div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_3409_3ca6_d93b_f86f" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/p3KMevf4CQx65NTeR9t7Q-MajP9cXugq6kRs5HHHi0wleJITIg7rAokvN-c" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 417px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Ear cleaning is very popular in China. Note the magnifying lens of the “ear cleaning doctor”</div><br><img id="id_3ee7_32b6_3b11_213d" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/ZKQBOkZDZcMQ0q4gPnOEb1ZNoEfZwpDL3jRZP0bywFL_p9rZWfsMfXEqhRQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 396px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">Finishing touches<br></span><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_51ae_605c_15de_bc5" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/W4i_7GIuws4SqoNTwL6DUlHv44VUEHnfZP0l3_qz5U4PPX_Egvnh1CgmBM4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 476px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Lydia who showed us around her beautiful city</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">After a few hours in the park, we ended in a tea house at the lake among hundreds of other clients enjoying a pot of tea (tens of different tea choices were listed on the menu, which Lydia had to translate and explain to us) and some almond cookies were offered to us by a nearby older group, who had brought their own lunch.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_8661_a280_a651_cdb7" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/ciQjNnt-EWJm-fNQGYOy5fsDgqTfRKwFj49Y0T84e282VYQpGAKOt4TqVsE" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 407px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">A historical touristy neighborhood</div><br><img id="id_c5d2_3085_d4dd_b33a" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/3lhCTTkcNcRokQ7srhxm2t-r2Y_NgCOcR-T9hlOaJsDXc-uH3Dlvft6cbAk" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 383px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_1652_8084_6fc2_d42f" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/8J-A48WnNktKRAa440yUEK96yeuJA84acTAsiIs1sqVQEbUkR4WXZu2jcfY" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 352px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">Photo-op wall: taxi of yonder year </div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_da4_e52b_a27d_be07" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/vkVUTrQn8SfuWQZEifFX_pJr2kX2cxadpSiDncrNm5QvOXZPXFqnhLFwMdY" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 368px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Restaurant invite: Guess the type of food</div><br><img id="id_f198_7c31_b493_8953" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/lZvXnE1O9CV10Cvz0FTLrdM5h4_lG8LhmLocbTomRidg15--rE5pwX5gcAA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 308px; height: auto;"><br>Just a nice view of an alley<br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">The inner city is so modern now that Chinese flock to a rather fake remnant of “old town” full of touristy offerings, which Lydia also put on the days itinerary, before she said her goodbyes. </font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_f5e0_14ca_9978_bc77" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/E2zqKewz-sbaGODhDROTJ-_Q9iIoJxvVwFtkObSylLNuL1sYKi85i_ncUT4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 381px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">The food in Chengdu is spicy really spicy</div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_ba5_2337_2b9a_81fc" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/PQiW6QUpdshJIyNgxPIDw6DtbS7DBbWwTvp0zY8DbNIgffYy8Xxd22M-YO0" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 299px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">But looks inviting</div><br><img id="id_a718_cf81_cd71_446b" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/lcl702aKGwplVzKhM8kHPJ0-yMz95TXunsf5mNu_AMXTYkJzkPU0CGU4G94" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 390px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_c329_4f14_3ca2_43d" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/Bo-UBbFeOTtVJGGDVJdk4IHfEpm61kEj9sKsF_N0SzKcx6IkMuA2ASIVzdM" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 428px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">The small dives we visited showed their stockroom from our tables</div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_f28a_ea1f_bef9_2eb8" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/1eLxq3CtL_jmEvTA9oh91daP6Sz_9AlZZ34tNPvKy9vZ8qsqNhoqW-lGGeE" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 387px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Waiting for our transport to the next dive to eat there</div><br><img id="id_981c_4d73_ef30_7041" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/bN2SSaarSTyrEEn5VZQ6CvL7WPJ_aSbQZJwATGLlgKN9Zipm6Gq1CUDCW88" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 444px; height: auto;"><br>End of the night is floor swiping time<br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">That evening we joined a group of 10 tourists from all over the world for a food tour like we did in Beijing, drinking beer all night and being driven from local dives to little family owned restaurants sampling Sichuan food, like BBQ filled pancakes, “100 yr old eggs”, dumplings and noodles. We considered the Beijing trip being the better tour. </font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_1fd0_8825_1ba8_2a3" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/ycKFKH2ESn4IEfBQyndCOPRhU6ys9vzMMTepi-pX0w0YcKS9IqnLcOWQ2bM" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 344px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">And then there were the pandas that made Chengdu famous<br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_e321_1e47_914d_6cca" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/s2mI5DA9_F7NfGCm7f3ox6NpbuGw87sxLMHbf2eQqj-pFUYE_dZAZWCtLe8" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 396px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">They are cuddly </div><br><img id="id_c35_4577_d94f_6153" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/VPH1tMZ43CP_GtFHlLh8IOcTkT6P0oBMCSRMOLsg6sJEP0LyIZwJlgND3UM" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 376px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">These are pandas too, less famous and less cuddly<br></span><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_4fb_14f4_c80_2858" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/ZmPpC-PZ6_7B2VDM6q7vfn5waBJVIPV9LmBf9w5gHqUAviJdXRwIZtMzCPI" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 420px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_4cd4_c89_4a42_2394" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/yDSI_zHLGRnaQhxilDUCJozVhGrlyAFDo7PDvbpyI-uCFEC-n7xElZgNptQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 417px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">Wonder what he or she is pondering </div><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">The next day visit to the panda park was pleasant and informative. And of course we concluded the Chengdu visit with the traditional hotpot dinner, with so many red Chile peppers swimming in the broth that our stomachs started to protest.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_7cf4_a6a8_8a1f_a5b1" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/2J0vbZdLrwp1qCKh3tEEqnXN-hj1xjQUSG41q8jw8vcCse7plONZyVReepg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 412px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">Waiting for the hotpot to arrive in a “hotpot only” restaurant</div><br><img id="id_90ea_917c_cc11_4fb2" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/ZZZmirKKhLVsBYcxYKcpOCVX5j_PzAEbvEKD8zaEdCazuzWmfSbpE2A1F0s" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 449px; height: auto;"><br>Fiery red and tasting like it<br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Our next destination was Xian, the city every tourist to China has to visit to see the Terra Cotta soldiers, an impressive array of dug up soldiers and officers in various conditions of survival, constantly being restored as tourists gape in awe down on them over a railing. It is a very large hall where they are on display to large daily crowds and we were told that what we were seeing is only a fraction of what still needs to be dug out.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_358d_96d1_a146_e9c3" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/DH1eXYQmrgI54FmsXEne9Ni8i4r2lpk7vaPFGzv2AZL0UnS8Is-aeDWKccA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 707px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">This is the very first thing you see after entering the museum</span></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_bb5a_6c2b_b459_ef05" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/HGhEVarWSPteKVcXh5KD2K-MgNAaWr25-BjbAynmJ2oQcWvwZEvOot9zqI4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 341px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">And even the detail is awe inspiring</div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_7689_2b6_2481_785a" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/9lQBzSKrJ06ah5vVidKqaeF9ShkhW62FhNoziCg9BI6IE4sbUYKQkrAdPnM" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 475px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">And consider this: many more acres are still to be dug up </div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_99f1_8ac9_e85e_79c3" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/wx86HHh8poQBsTB2M2-QmpAp73qLSR6CHJ2YUFrMzxxuD9IwzUF1A9RlRW4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 475px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">The details are unbelievable</div><br><img id="id_d793_fa94_aae2_9285" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/puMweLtv7dQQH58tJcyB14Q70EbBOfLcDRpcxARi3ZPWVmxQMd2nc-R-qx8" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 485px; height: auto;"><br>Heads are always made separable and later placed on the bodies.<br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large; text-align: left;">The other reason people visit Xian, (by the way 7 million citizens - one gets less and less impressed with large numbers here, as it begins to feel like “everything is bigger in Texas”), is the Wild Goose Pagoda, where Buddhist volunteer guides tell you the stories of the proselytizing monk Xuanzang who came from India with elephants and jade figurines “converting” the then Tang Dynasty Emperor from Chinese Buddhism to Indian Buddhism, which he considered the Proper Way. The emperor built this Pagoda in 652, which had since various restorative configurations. </span></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_2296_8cf7_bfde_756d" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/ttjp7Q747u2F4dAT-6Ak64Gu4Kt1WrS6Vdmgwdsv71CfI9lr4cFjykjdTFc" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 694px; height: auto;"></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">Wild Goose Pagoda</span></div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_3c29_3308_7c24_928b" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/GDyIYP8huCjejkcrvLFIuL2B8w6iR4KTWR6EBlWsCVtjaig1psfcrCSVMNc" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 707px; height: auto;"></div></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">The tower is terra cotta built and not open to the public</span></div><br><img id="id_a8ba_a8c9_f057_3e7a" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/6MJ_aUdXEodUAc_cU7TDxWfsHVBtjZeZ-7ZZLAYe1PdBW-uJ6CtkX5NS650" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 471px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">Memes are so so Chinese. Where does that come from?</span></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_953d_a9ac_83a9_640a" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/rmVotPvDQsPt3WYlhXW3pfOTgssUP8_pnQrXZ_uXWpYVnkWKNs05nk3fpI4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 483px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">Statue parks are also very Chinese all over the country.</div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><span style="font-size: x-large;">But the most impressive sight during our Xian visit was the trip to Mt Hua, a granite, as scientists call it “metamorphic” rock formation with 5 peaks about 2100m/7000ft high, reached by undulating cable cars for 4.2km/2.6m taking 26 minutes to the top. Our guide told us, while we pressed ourselves between masses of Chinese in an “airport like security line, weaving from left to right and back again” towards the gondolas, that we should not worry as the cable car and the towers along the way was not Chinese but French built, as if that would make us feel safer during the long ride swaying in the breeze, while going up 2 miles to one of the tops. </span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_bc65_f03a_c1d8_62f5" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/ePKnZaJCZqcotGWeIB5KNP_RP-_V-4OJmxV7cxhlKWe-F6yJTEIVvrGKNOw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 666px; height: auto;"></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">Mount Hua Gondola system: really impressive- not just the system but also the views</span></div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_f40_9292_8200_43a7" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/R3jj-9AjDcPkLVQIb4_LrjCcWeRxfW-pTZOO3jE8f37cs3Kb88E0OHNpd7s" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 374px; height: auto;"></div></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">You can also “walk” to the top</span></div><br><img id="id_80af_c646_5e66_25ec" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/42bzc8pQ_tYOadtDwTg2C9BFv-_-icjMdXbxRbnc1M2jeKyhrz1KecrUATQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 537px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">But as you see some parts are steep climbs<br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_9482_c2e5_f959_504c" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/UlKtxObah0HeGB6M2UuAztyAr20bv30Lt2Mia3aIKQ1UyR-214PZzo5CqtY" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 550px; height: auto;"></div></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">And on top the ridge is narrow and full of crowds</span></div><br><img id="id_62ab_f4bb_acad_974f" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/B2vtR1vs8HDziio-A1muiSKpvpap881za-pDRgvfmJ8-RSpw0_jypmbbvII" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 480px; height: auto;"><br>Almost ready to be getting a professional picture at the cliff edge.<br><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><br><img id="id_41b7_5ec1_30b0_3f49" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/nnQ2M9lGHr8LmXMJ_ahMVwnfh_YnRUJGadqtoosqsTzIBQkPavW2fb86wt4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 463px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">The views make you realize how high up you are.<br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_6624_1042_5bfb_b6d8" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/dBtq4L_2eZFyIlGNppnUL0hdrn21DIPykA0yNFYYxl8yTKyz65pZdVpwn7s" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 494px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">But if so desired you can walk up even higher </div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">I read not too long ago that bad weather halted the rides, leaving many swaying heavily in the suspended cable cars throughout the night, and forcing thousands who were still up on the mountain to walk the several miles long slippery trail down or stay up on the very chilly mountain top till the weather died down the next day for the gondolas to restart their work again.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_41bc_b1f2_7651_563e" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/FL1B4xwm-wHpXSatS7jNGVsFxPfInFKWy4lCFWId9qpYL5BpO2hEgAj4DQg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 353px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Getting to the gondola feels like being in the airport check in line</div><br><img id="id_d5d6_46a9_78a9_7a33" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/nrAZzENdXGZbr79m496YJVGEqNykjUAnREhdkzTGNyqwcqKiJ--9eNpRSBY" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 489px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">Down before going to the top a meme park again<br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_36d1_5f0_d98a_718c" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/8HIYmvyC83jqtK_mmCvNj9eIe1vA62EaahVOV8D42EjE2_fkgwdTIQX3AtI" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 485px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">And majestic gates welcoming you to the entrance to Mt Hua</div><br><img id="id_dfc8_2fb7_d998_546" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/bUBMF89v8mrJYMNoX95kIBSkRGOAu8F8yqTeX6ZrnZNytIYZ4domGHRaljQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">Picture Moments all around us</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">But the pictures show you the breath taking sights.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Here ends our China story as you already read all about our Shanghai visit from which we left China for Japan and later towards Taiwan.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_f7ca_d66a_6686_dee5" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/_tXPmp7MFPHx5kweADeYjXdEB2T3vpxHs7Yghru6ZQk7NJJffTfo17Wip40" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="text-align: center; width: 334px; height: auto;"></div><div>Just a neat picture of a reading girl</div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_13a7_752_54a7_d0fb" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/Ada4DTwrQ5qB7wBEO1ZMUOf5h-WmDMYZbkYQ85mnLaDAiu6OVLh4hn0Jhi8" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 465px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">An old tree surrounded by Buddhist red ribbons</div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_1e27_58a6_9153_7fd8" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/wLPXwEMqg40Vj2Ih9jd09IXfIeM4lrgjwoN8yptcrEanJJg-Ak0qbSUy6i0" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">Diorama entertainment you cannot find anymore in the western world </div></div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div>Two retirees and their travel storieshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13942287905877288793noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9052023657534142840.post-22891855119000893562019-04-24T18:09:00.001-04:002019-04-24T18:42:11.486-04:00Around the World for a Third Time (Beijing, Shanghai and Wuzhen) <div><br></div><div><img id="id_b8d2_3be0_87d0_3356" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/zE9RBVNwAmyCFbUmf8uCIRDPWoD3jb-25RwjxkLGFhSY39sE8ZCytSzUaMk" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">(A Forbidden City vast courtyard in which the masses of tour groups appear less large)</div></div><div><br></div><div><font size="5"><b>Beijing</b></font></div><div><font size="5"><b><br></b></font></div><div><font size="5">We afforded ourselves a limo and driver from the airport traveling throughout China, not only because in that country it is relatively affordable, but also to avoid language problems when arriving in crowded airports with luggage and being besieged by strangers offering to “help”.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_fbb_d7a_24cf_ee3d" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/XH8cJmqmi7ObtWgeDlDCVjRbucbf5NSvoi7vjuAsDqurxBoP_TF2ilIAe8w" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 428px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Police watching is always fun)<br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_9dc3_7821_4b46_f43" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/YnOP9_RkZA9jNn3HegsLCnMGwtXlYr2gRTJtCqrvQvWEMJVfopFYbdWNP0s" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 506px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(another policeman standing like a frozen statue)</div><br><br><img id="id_6c2e_dca6_d5a1_cf40" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/P1iAr5bupEZehvczCLYeIUs7erXBmnRzdd9fAXPmjdeSyeGIOsjnT5l8G2E" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">(China’s National Centre for the Performing Arts changes colors at night as if drifting on water)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Beijing is a very, very large city with “officially” 22 million citizens, predominantly Han chinese, driving 5 million cars within the 17,000 sq.km/ 6,600sq.mile city limits, while building every year 65,000 sq.km /25,000sq.mile new construction, mostly vertical floor space of course. I assume that has to end one day.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_d506_7ce4_a4fd_aa7a" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/ughynOXWib-0vwuDWc-AFR0xho7dCz9wkaKqDVe89JiLOYXaM6aLtKawkd0" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 453px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Inside picture of the Arts Centre)<br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_eef9_9fb2_8cf4_7ac9" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/UIgH5j_ISG76jPIbuamHJ7cJ2DrthouwFwxy_Kr6plpbvkXU_IABpr55a1I" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 467px; height: auto;"></div></div><div><div style="text-align: center;">(More pictures of this building)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><img id="id_12c9_14e1_5816_1299" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/5e2TWFixudozE7-DfYvrv9gIzIErgjubd6WHrIv5zrwKUEEXrjYgp1siWSs" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 499px; height: auto;"><br><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Of course I have to rely on Chinese data and China has learned the art of bragging for good reasons, because the modern world as we know it has arrived in China and unemployment is below 4%, again their official records.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_8ef7_8f0e_45d0_9de" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/WOEaIMU6bcb_4p3WM0ODNuFzPIjUGxRPdG6-KdzrrBGdsJDL8OFeBpvI3Vc" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 479px; height: auto;"></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"> (Flower beds surrounding Tiananmen Square)</span></div><br><img id="id_a6d3_df4b_641a_ee11" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/6VOnlVhXcOkqSukAT5jGo4Mgao425-AuqnHAschbe6Uv4kELSLq9pkRrk2o" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 498px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(The wood construction and the colors never cease to amaze me)<br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_b69c_ecfb_a338_7a13" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/N-QKoiRXs68hMm1_jb5vAXOFUlZnoGYKAVHxhaC0EI-GUFjG5_QHjkYgLKQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 494px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(The first entrance gate to J<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">ingshan park)</span></div><br><img id="id_8f2f_8202_ec71_240a" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/MKZBffo4iehvQI0yA6oAV7PYauVpoVx3NXGy8WosoM69I2m5ybOyOOswPPQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 448px; height: auto;"><br>(Mega Screens galore)<br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Stores carry every well known brand in the world and mega screens advertise these brands downtown making you believe you are in Manhattan, if it was not for the fact that one walks amidst masses of Chinese shoppers.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_ab50_dae8_1f54_4d8d" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/FkmYfk0ePi2rCeu5fTBiUPGyqrWjYQyzbNFE9unma5M6tqLbEFKECvLJEmU" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 447px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(And then less then a mile away thousand year old giant gate doors)<br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_3dcf_bf24_76d1_f6d5" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/eMkl1WYyBlvs43sbu4mPYVtiYvgj5yETLP3r9ye87T2FANaQyN2S2Hn1XsU" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 568px; height: auto;"></div></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Picture shooting gawkers like us within the forbidden city)</span></div><br><img id="id_de9e_e84b_b81c_8d49" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/POiIsWuN0n5nA9K-OHjMj3OY5QW3xrbx14VhDgDb_NyxB-j4wzKELW0ZWns" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 469px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(1000 plus year old water spout modeled from clay, adorning roof tiles of the same age)<br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_1506_38b3_740a_7b75" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/wNEWmarT5arwzKVu5DeCBQRCztPOSsGnD_s2RxqE2DHNW9wbYySFlwSPopM" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 528px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(if there is one thing that one will remember of the forbidden city, it is size and dwarfing height)</div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div><font size="5">We spent our first day visiting the forbidden city, walking from our hotel and getting pleasantly lost for awhile, as we gawked at the buildings, streets, people, cops etc.etc. We found Tiananmen Square closed off, which seems to happen often. This time because in the huge state buildings, that line the square, an international conference between Chinese and African world leaders was ongoing, kicking off the Chinese Road and Belt Initiative, by which China hopes to financially enslave the recipients of their benevolence.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_d20c_ff6d_8114_b4c" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/vLyVdErUr5FVhhB5-XwM_s5UTqmHDfwS0LD9gX0siwZrO2oSSbiaxkoD9po" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 431px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Always struck by the wonders of nature like this century old tree)<br></span><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_7545_3900_f578_6c07" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/6wlBp5q8sSII_fHVhkllYyzbs0JVal7qoU-9AXLIxkM2xctDvZTGXMNKheA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 436px; height: auto;"></div></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Seniors doing their Tai Chi exercises can be witnessed all over China)</span></div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_2a59_df11_a211_bb5b" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/DTzL0PD-DNsI45F1XbL67jFhBL4Vwf-4yLNoTdjuwxUsSsMh5X8FYFpwzSA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 441px; height: auto;"></div></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Bamboo lined walking path in the park)</span></div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_2786_eb2_289a_57c7" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/dfuZqYIWIfw5QRjrpatTXAs1evlaci9D2Oq9q2CLCcoN9lOU8AMsSXbDahE" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 445px; height: auto;"></div></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Jingshan Park courtyard where one can seek solitude)</span></div><br><img id="id_ea51_5c5b_640e_e15b" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/165Ce2NjIJ9f63f0VfA4pSUnz7_y3pusccDBhuDffdqnci0usQIsbr0rZmE" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 449px; height: auto;"><br>(The 52 meter moat around certain parts of the city had to be wide enough to make archery shots and/or cannon ball shots ineffective. China had invented gunpowder before the year 1000)<br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">To enter the forbidden city area, we had to pass a checkpoint that required ID’s, something we had not been prepared for. Luckily Sandee stores stuff like that on our iPhones. We wandered to the entrance of a city park called Jingshan, for which to our surprise even Chinese were paying an entrance fee. Inside the park was an underwhelming orchid exhibition, again demanding entrance fees, which we would not have paid for, if we had known its content.</font></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_18b6_fa2b_1c93_e15b" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/iG_y0wQWTTvomFR6rySRnsQfrqtMhIqi7kPqbKr9uNefR1gmBLibqfg1ags" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 428px; height: auto;"></div></div><div><div style="text-align: center;">(Emperors’ official grand hall reception area with golden throne, in the Palace of Supreme Harmony)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Ambling through the park we stumbled on the gates to the forbidden city, where we found a guide who led us through the vast grounds, recanting tales of Emperors, Eunuchs and Concubines (at times of wealth, numbering 3000 or more, quite a few of them dying as virgin “spinsters”, because the emperor never came around to bed them in his lifetime. By the way, 24 emperors occupied the forbidden city.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><img id="id_f3ba_7072_152b_235b" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/SV9Q3l-TkRJNIej6qbCp9FWw5eoGcJzpjsWixYZgIpZ1ExnufR8UxMB6GUA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 468px; height: auto;"></span></div><div>(The Queens reception Hall and throne, with above her a sign stating “do nothing”, which meant to say that sometimes it is better not to act and to let things progress as they will)</div><div><br></div><div><font size="5">An Emperor, it was believed, would live longer if he had more sex with different women as long as he did not come. Which is wise, because only his Empress and 8 official wives were to give him children</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">It was the Eunuchs who ran the household, scheduling the emperors day, electing his meals and selected the ladies for the nightly activity, while allotting the emperor 2 hours only, because he should not be too tired the next morning for his full workday. Because of the time limit, ladies were sent naked into the emperors chambers. Yes lady readers, the Eunuchs really tho</font><span style="font-size: x-large;">ught the Emperor needed the whole two hours.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_318_549b_7913_3bc3" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/IzVGdWqnxpaj9W42fxxPTUCRP6BdTt0lDjM4EcGsRnaAtgBDBJQjkqgLFEo" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 405px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Scholars rock, a karstic limestone formation, highly admired as being inhabited by immortal beings) </div><br><img id="id_a9c1_826c_79ee_b360" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/P85xTFA5XfrQnFY-sUygsdNMDg0sNqD0RFMCM8yhTpxCZhLUSETUPXv5lX8" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 524px; height: auto;"><br>(Behind the forbidden city is a man made hill of material removed during the construction of the forbidden city that now has a pergola and delivers great views of the compound)</div><div><br></div><div><font size="5">Our guide pointed out heavy stones on the various courtyards, strategically placed to prevent possible tunneling by villains trying to murder the emperor. It took 1000,000 laborers and 100,000 craftsmen and 15 years to complete the forbidden city in 1420. And it burned down one year later, requiring 23 more years to rebuild.</font></div><div><br></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_9c25_b79e_4a0_2a0c" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/t7T89qkVC7UBYfxJ98HUOTvBELr3CXBXTyxyPozpiJXNnQyhoKFngQafA4Q" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 482px; height: auto;"></div><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">She also told her personal story, which seems not to be uncommon in today’s China: being in her late 20’s she chose her own husband instead of having her parents involved or the Chinese matchmaker. He is an engineer in government employ and because of that deployed elsewhere most of the time, so much so, that she sees him only a few weeks a year. So romance waned and she was intending to divorce a few years ago, as her guide profession allows her independence, when she got pregnant of her second girl during one of the short visits of her husband.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_1779_ba79_e0fe_acf5" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/COdKZY6ACpl3xGOYgQgEgvddgBseQ8PN_oIas0_d5Dg8rdG2SdoWxCz76AQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 500px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Above and below pictures of the free tea ceremony, in the hope we would buy tea)<br></span><br><img id="id_afe4_e3b8_3e7b_87d" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/jCwzMKJJNLOvtTFAmVmtRSfRlzSGLCOE_O19BNVOMejHWQlcP8uKljq7fus" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 486px; height: auto;"><br><br></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_6175_c487_35e6_bfce" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/P_4l2RCWiA9PcIyq-p-ji4e-DdfHIN5dN93BdkBisE3U52azQS6A0YcnmPM" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 332px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;">(The resident calligrapher designing our love calligraphy, with my name in small print on the left and Sandee’s on the right)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><img id="id_a8_babf_a324_2d32" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/5_FWMUM8SGoo5T3Zi1fuYwefIlEPTTWLxLZuVT56IuEfI-WeZYXRRgeS3nU" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 491px; height: auto;"><br><br><br></div><div><font size="5">She brought us to a tea ceremony, which is much more relaxed than the Japanese version. Also we met a “famous” calligrapher, who created our personalized love calligraphy, which now adorns our home. We took a metro back and used the metro the next day to visit at the city edge the Summer Palace, which turned out to be a dilapidated disappointment, frequented by thousands of Chinese, as it was a Saturday, picnicking in the park or boating on the formerly royal lake.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_9410_fb10_8d99_379a" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/yVOQSESk-NMDGN7nLJtSXl2P50vKNvnerePHtupllz1C-pFfTDz00IiB52o" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 539px; height: auto;"></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Pictures of the Summer Palace, Above dependencies, Below the palace)</span></div><br><img id="id_c283_7f1d_a1d0_7f72" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/bZD7amEA879yN9XKAWyPce9JSITgQG-OI_QcCWt11mKtbhJszo-MjFm_5Jc" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 548px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_4c7b_746e_f574_880a" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/HIcG5ErscrQ3Uheut2IlyerWDdNZpI4t99fb5SsMdi0VWxGGRY4au3wgRRM" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 509px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(A stone imperial gondola at the edge of the imperial lake frequented by Chinese weekend boaters)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">That evening we partook in a food tour organized by Lost Plate, riding us on three or five wheel open pedicabs through the famous Beijing Hutongs</font></div><div><font size="5">from dive to dive where we sampled different cuisines, like Hot Dried Noodles, Door Nail Meat Buns, Spring Cakes and Mongolian BBQ with “endless” beer, ending up in a brewery, which we skipped in order to get at 10.15 pm the last metro back. The city government want the citizens to sleep in early it seems.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Hutongs by the way were originally stratified neighborhoods circling the emperors forbidden city, with the highest ranking classes within the first circles and the last and furthest out circles of neighborhoods populated by the laborers and servants, but always low rise buildings, as no one should have higher roof lines than the emperor, a symbolism of servitude.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_2682_bab8_f396_2acc" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/7g1QqHxTshlRl9abnrz_9q7KNCsnh3efvUP0D6GAvcDYyPzxPKQ5Snki3CA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 423px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Don’t remember which dish this is)<br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_97f1_6cac_be08_b5d0" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/WITwwTZkImWa3rZoH_IPJJO2qhe86iGQMmU1Oo0LydeWG96BVw0GGxcjJSk" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 494px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Our pedicab)</div><br><img id="id_2d8f_85b0_59e_4f09" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/jRXJIbc9etdC10QC2A6gbbljKkEW4XeUqAwgCb7vvwoPHMLA9x_0JaMQ84w" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 494px; height: auto;"><br>(Another dish)<br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_4d21_e594_5532_8ccd" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/jWfNdU8SHMnkfDazlgkwHk3xNS2lKKVZ4cAXHfNX5v2FhN5fELIG4p0LHgU" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 468px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"> (Walking the Hutong between little restaurants)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">The next morning early we took a taxi to the outskirts of town. Actually only to ring road nr 4 out of 6, which 12 mile/20kmfrom the city center to a Starbucks, where I fatefully had signed up with the Beijing hiking club for a chinese great wall hike, away from the tourist trap everybody visits.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_4188_cc24_8193_e5f6" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/VLMCKLrm9BgLje3BLyuyyTfZZYEW_lMj6UgaLkHy4ogreTMpacldojs5Yes" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 477px; height: auto;"></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(I don’t know why I show you the Hiking Club bus)</span></div><br><img id="id_2028_d48b_fcb1_1d3a" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/bBtExnL6Zyu_X1spFsOlnmO--LVMvrUanTThG7VcqCLYF64kNboG7cGM7uo" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 527px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(The beginning of the Sandee Hiking Saga, walking up to the great wall gate at </span><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Gubeikou)</span><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_209e_dd3b_cb36_2a2e" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/kVpjQmQAZw-FCgZKr7FmObm9PDYVnyX47InhEQDcWRtphZ5fv50AxKmU6B8" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 393px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(The first stairs - they look good and easy)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">That turned out a disaster for us oldies. The 34 participants ranging from 20 to our age (we met a few couples in their sixties, apparently in better shape than we were), took a bus a 100km out of town to the city of Gubeikou, where we scrambled onto a portion of the Panlongshan Great Wall, that seemed in ok shape, only to find out in about 10 minutes, that that was one of the better portions of the wall. </font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_97bb_c33c_42a5_1351" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/wnfGnwNHsWCWO2BSYsbP2_c_RND2hTmqzLBm3bQHd6-TM93iCQt4he9aJ-Y" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 368px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(This is the fourth hill to climb under worsening conditions)<br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_f4e_9a0f_5020_551e" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/8aRSMgSLo2GtY_pBiskDID9CJdoJ_SiIuSKwi8w2TPysqXgLthf6cVJ3ObY" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 517px; height: auto;"></div></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(The big fort on the right of picture is the end goal)</span></div><br><img id="id_3b85_5204_e837_46c6" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/OgwUGVCp9DWxrcYy_8B9mamiPcAOF5yC83n1reTwJauUEY_dgk_lHyNymdM" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 480px; height: auto;"><br>(Sandee straggling on as the trooper she is, mumbling curses at me)<br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">We straggled, accompanied by one of the hiking club members for about 4 of the 8 km, seeing our hiking companions disappear in the distance up and down boulders and narrow pathways with the luring potential of falling of an edge to broken bones or worse. </font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_a6cc_c9e0_b3af_650f" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/ZoC6UqpUaWONlwNfeOD9lfVtLVySW0oMmyqP3gjFGspAASQSAXvncuWPa-8" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 493px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Almost at the first crumbling fort)<br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_d696_9ae8_7cfc_3708" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/E8FNDMVOMQZ9_2s4T6yyUli7kxY4jOVKMmka-N5LQaoxJ7uU-1oZk1xtHvI" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 518px; height: auto;"></div></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(The view around us are amazing)</span></div><br><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Sandee was feeling her legs buckle at times and was not to happy with me. At the 4 km point, there was a path leading off the wall to a restaurant, the designated end station of the hike, which we took over the protestations of the club member who urged us to try a bit further. </font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_c4f_86ec_860e_c314" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/rEJC_KZqoR_Z7FT8_Q57ptRJfZnTPhgFH35ZEmjZ6rU1fkwEJSkQ1tqEgoc" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 433px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Back in the civilized world longing for the bus)</div><br><img id="id_5bab_5ea0_e81f_19b0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/o9loIPb-H8lPRf4U3NEsnkCfCW2sb7AUea3B2QzartBeiCsC71oAzFinQwA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 506px; height: auto;"><br>(A Hutong View Street)<br><br></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Well in the bus on the way back, as is the prevailing logic of these times, we also were awarded the pin “I climbed the great wall” like everybody else. It now features on our safari hats.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_389d_b5e2_f7d1_41ec" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/cy39EvQuHlNv2KGYpi0bcoaILMRjx9EO7dgw_q-9FZe0wyxagczMEBq7Emg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 463px; height: auto;"></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Tiananmen Square)</span></div><br><img id="id_ad75_a2a1_81ab_1810" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/cQF8yB828a4qFQk5vZGw7hDEk8disvvU1SIw5uzUzGPeqyZS3hIt-jc4P60" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 461px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Garden border around the Square, highlighting the Road and Belt Initiative)<br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_e0c8_9f4c_1d5f_267d" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/6g9G6m4RKA7rTNfdZ-4rPnWEdW6RQ5hUr1DYyXeAewjHg8Q2zoSaopp96YA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 327px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Collapsible Crowd Barricade Barriers, that prevented us earlier to walk the square, always on standby)</div></div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><div><font size="5">Our last day we rested and walked the now open Tiananmen Square and had the famous Peking Duck for lunch in the same restaurant Mao often frequented with his guests for the same dish he so dearly loved.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_56e4_f008_1fb4_b018" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/ldBeaKi7IJpL_NbRhtZX2PvxLLE2J6y352I8dyPUAPzNuSFe8zang0WRa-I" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 458px; height: auto;"></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Tribute to the “liberating workers”)</span></div><br><img id="id_75c3_e2ea_dbf1_4a9d" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/My6klnITcJU7byQiuZkxnu5FEGtjXKAzk5AXoutPrjwzqRr0Cy8hGJGnv0Q" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 458px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(I love those flowerbeds)<br></span><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_ce88_7bbe_f4fd_a922" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/t51dlkZqErogMv2tvr1aECYhL0l6Q7QsRbvcbTxWg_HZpsd8LjHLU_ovj_w" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 496px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Another policeman at work, at least he can walk up and down)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">We wished it would have been less fatty, with the crispy skin it clearly lacked, to only find out, that after we ate some of the better pieces, a deep fried carcass arrived at the table for gnawing. Apparently we had to finish the whole duck. But canines we are not, so we stared at it and asked for the bill.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_865a_7bac_3b7a_9379" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/Wog2fpnCfqJdgoWOGy00L5FSH4C_lIrFBn0SpaY89F1ezY-uCQMjCIveE78" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 453px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Peking Duck being cut for us)<br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_6d74_b748_9c28_fb1c" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/TBF8Usc-MCenP_Sqtp7lHf1NtSCpogU_ZeLshH7WQlBw_Wfcos6m8KG0Zok" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 501px; height: auto;"></div></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(The presented Duck dish with salt and scallions)</span></div><br><img id="id_ef78_ef6e_d091_3e56" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/wxQ5cwpHKgdm-jcrhzVFRlHoxoautCxN9HNDjs8W6QXg7nM9gruG5TFsOLE" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 520px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Waiter showing is the obvious way to eat the dish, without touching the food)<br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_65d5_a83b_eacf_7b15" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/P5VNF3iROfMTilsT-_FSVtNcUCOWhbPzX81Oa-CjKXOybjeqJW1eWFPkE1E" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 501px; height: auto;">I</div><div style="text-align: right;">(And here are the bones to gnaw at)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><b>Shanghai</b></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_a78f_8f3c_b039_ad24" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/xGMo30bWGuxZWHo2CFzQvtbnUwx8T4iCCeCNYzccUenGplSlfMKpNBI7kqA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">(Modern Shanghai seen from the river cruise boat)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">The city of the mile long Bund, where every tourist must go, alongside the river Huangpu, is known for its imposing early 20th century architecture and offers a pleasant stroll on sunny days. This is the city where we took a hop on hop off bus which we rode for 2 days on all routes, to get the best overview of the city, that is showing a mix of very sleek modern buildings to the old almost haunting style districts of yesteryear. And we took the obligatory river cruise.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_b46b_b0df_c696_e9b4" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/sjyU2TD0xnY5ub2tHiwsRbGeIo6jZPrEilliSIt3VjtBj8B8f5sD-VVo6gY" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 640px; height: auto;"></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(The Bund lines the river on the other side of the boat)</span></div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_420a_ffc_bc87_642d" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/2s06qisWFLm-MTSjK_cLkXQmvEvTeh7gDjqQwOZxGXVrAsuwDyalXdu5k7s" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 543px; height: auto;"></div></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Above and below the 20th century imposing buildings of the rich trading houses of those days)</span></div><br><img id="id_f819_2b53_dce_f4af" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/lWdgO8zHh6oqzUijd6KMIZscw8m9ZZS6L7C1pPUTVRbhEBu_IlZ8NHg1uow" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 573px; height: auto;"><br><br></div><div><font size="5">Lunch at the “3 on the Bund” restaurant, outside on the rooftop was a pleasant surprise: they served carpaccio, decent spare ribs and broiled sea bass. After weeks of Chinese food, it tasted better than it most likely was.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_b19a_1661_64a0_b52b" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/7iTUYiFd_F0e-Xv3w5kU4d5RwG6_G81yMHVRd7DI-ylmeO70U85g1u6W9tI" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 526px; height: auto;"></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(City view from the hop on hop off)</span></div><br><img id="id_638c_8105_96d5_8caf" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/jxRYUFEyqf6qOYzH5FGI5cqXiFxrMjbDO351Gb-GZRKHgSihIp5T3O-XsyU" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 509px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Heping Park or Peace Park Shanghai)<br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_78dc_9ddf_6b16_b522" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/5Pab2z6BnH8TqZIG6TGuGZMMgTauePb0zREAhc4TtupIAkvXjPxJQ4bw3Mk" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 540px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Don’t have a clue what it is and why it is there)</div><br><img id="id_6fb7_daab_d0eb_4d9" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/N7WTV4n4xi1GFnT3ejeMoHL0gh7S2ZerrBiDtoCPAksUL4ZxCXn-w2VpySM" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 474px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(More Park pictures, that are so asiatic. Still don’t know how to distinguish Japanese from Chinese park)<br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_ab1a_2e7f_5e08_c417" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/aoPeM9yaXv5NW7q0AddeXe7_10_c2yVmnZgw3j3x1FlFRsEcT-PsZPhnSmw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 463px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><br><img id="id_f2af_7bfa_dfce_43dd" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/WmdMWR8RZivrmNaesZJQ-fF1V6ECx-f5qMphLWfeIwTNVqhUbHwFQ6jNCE0" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 445px; height: auto;"><br><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">The most interesting part of the visit was the 5 floor Urban Planning Exhibition hall, with a whole floor dedicated to a 1/500 scale model of the city. The exhibition shows the present and future Shanghai and was the most interesting part of our visit to Shanghai.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_8178_2b49_90ba_d3ea" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/6zrqiYoDFzE_4VeoUD1vHyirW1-kUSopcgY2jDe4AO3UeKtPellnZlJ-dFM" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 498px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(The Urban Planning Exhibition maquette; just amazing)<br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_2058_a6ee_9482_7472" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/EVuW_9-__E6oRKSt47Zx15_uV7Qi3nLWO1vW5COhPuSKJr_xCZEeNod5am0" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 503px; height: auto;"></div></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span><br><img id="id_6868_5ca6_e1fb_e563" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/pe3Aja_FNHiAGeRWn5A2aUD1O3MgnCqUhXtL6w21hE2Wac63noZlt8DSVP4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 544px; height: auto;"><br><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><b>Wuzhen</b></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_c280_e538_c947_ef18" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/wlIiAz1iEoeLiz4AqdeARjEH37M5CIk4XxAcT3g89Fm7Ix2h2Ge6Yj9VoOM" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 460px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Our fast train to Wuzhen, with reserved seats and all. You are only allowed on the train platform a few minutes before train arrival)<br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_1242_d294_8fbf_b9d1" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/iU8oUV9S3G6Z5oiJkQY9fA6P2NC_ys5j_NirxQTG2Sq5ID89RzagPwjQeQs" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 488px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Wuzhen during the day was full of Chinese tourists enjoying sweets and ice cream)</div><br><img id="id_453c_8e54_827_a2ca" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/ENZeKPmyZXEP4Ugr4tKIvIv1B5ZTnippNJ3aqVWs4jkEsBpGGukVMrMvl30" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 536px; height: auto;"><br>(The thousand year old wooden buildings clearly show recent upkeep and are occupied by shops)<br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Since we were close to the ancient water cities region, we decided to take a train to one of those cities, Wuzhen. The “Golden Triangle” of historical towns also known as the “Venice of the East” has more than a thousand year history. Many of those cities lie along the Grand Canal, which connected the city of Hangzhou with Beijing in the North. The canal was build around the year 600 to provide grain to Beijing to feed the army and its citizens there, as they protected the country against marauding Mongols.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_f54b_9bf8_9ab8_ca2f" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/Timyay9vZ6NK-oJ_dASM3QA0yzYjcFHs369pTDlBmpxaK3YPWRT_bpUF5jI" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 400px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(More views of this 7000 year old town with a patron saint of Tea, and famous for its silk trade)<br></span><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_1df0_8ddf_8eec_4aa" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/kt9qtg8H-6u8EtPJf3N8TQsFO-H_vN9_n5FZJqofKsOr9MNrlHJVA6-2P8M" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 380px; height: auto;"></div></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Wuzhen is a UNESCO world heritage Centre)</span></div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_4ca9_1dc9_52c0_f2aa" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/8ZC8hH1sNgLotpL3uEotA41MD7Jn9o888fziOGdinkevDWO8JwqkynM5fDE" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 541px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Found out the school system here during the Qing dynasty produced more successful candidates to the highest imperial examinations for top positions in the empire than any other city in the land )</div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_1252_afb9_c2d2_43d1" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/2KN7jE6wTh0baCj60iv9djuq0fSRxKqzrvDm5IrXUu6RLhH2cB_zXBhxGMI" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 489px; height: auto;"></div><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">The town of Wuzhen feels like a Colonial Williamsburg visit and was overrun by Chinese tourists, although at night with the buses gone, it was very pleasant to stroll the streets and take a chinese gondola.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_9563_1af8_47b_98de" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/IVwwV3AOMpAYK8C690S5LoRMXBmWo5zfhsErzl6wgf0oP0K3R7i2UJDWvOM" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 407px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(My handiwork shown “proudly” in 2 photos)<br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_c7da_f61d_34b0_8a4c" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/nLUseh4kpV-2josNc0pzO1sPKy7U7CwFi0nCPZpSH64f_QU_2o_Akn46zqE" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 450px; height: auto;"></div></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span><br><img id="id_9f3d_990f_62d7_7121" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/WEzUn819WRs1MquQtWvXIya1nvHpYFouYVk2WQHJ2AbCFyGCbYJiizTqc-c" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 473px; height: auto;"><br>(And here is “miss perfect” and her work)<br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><br></div><div><font size="5">We had a clay pottery lesson that highlighted our non artistic skills once again. </font></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_895b_1e9b_8a23_6f9f" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/deGiyZrNjTz8wZqDwe2fkpeYAmrIdMTcZgIlycznPhA2Xlu5njq93uVVwoo" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 467px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Evening shots of Wuzhen after the crowds had gone)</div><br><img id="id_25ad_4708_f09f_a76d" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/9l4Ohu1-g49JQBc35wZb2HmERgoCQceRIcTK242ANlBIiEQcuFjq5S1jKrU" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 359px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_cf78_9f50_6bc5_6e68" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/T4nwsw740WwG-jZP9Ry1oJWRmPXu3afhS-alOyaosY0jKwPKZAPCrlXe82Y" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 451px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(We took a gondola tour at night to get these pictures)</div><br><img id="id_3144_32c1_140a_69f1" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/GvtTTh05lMyvhk6AIs1LwaKlVXJmBXfgaPflVljvTQGf-Sj6_LgogYiAESU" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 416px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_5be3_6bd4_40df_851e" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/2lloJtKRtLin9giIreHzSRQ4Ln0ym_ZAiNXG0-_LEzUbWqcqq5AJWhfKAy0" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 384px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">( the city was serene with only here and there restaurant noises)</div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_d3cf_55df_57da_26bb" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/HdNKOEw0Fh6q2-Y8Y9NU1UnviEYBPhln3DeBFak9NM2YoRUJAChhIPOP6dg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 474px; height: auto;"></div><br><br><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Our return by fast train to Shanghai ended our 3 week visit to China.</font></div><div><font size="5">Most of which I still need to tell you about.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"> </font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"> </font></div><div id="_blog_touch_end_br_for_reorient"><br></div><div id="_blog_touch_end_br_for_reorient"><br></div><div id="_blog_touch_end_br_for_reorient"><br></div>Two retirees and their travel storieshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13942287905877288793noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9052023657534142840.post-28834880117175750292019-04-10T11:26:00.001-04:002019-04-10T11:52:48.299-04:00Around the World for a Third Time (American Samoa) <div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_e80c_2f42_57df_2731" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1SxtJtjvhOIIdbgpGhp6n3BuJ35340x40" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 740px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">American Samoa</div><br></div><div><br></div><div><font size="5">As I mentioned about this series of blogs before, the stories come out of order to you, any time I get in the mood of tackling another country that we visited on our 5 month tour.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_8f2c_e92a_402_c337" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1j59eLmwjOxTtOWo21oETKBmIZsQ1gVez" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 572px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); text-align: center;">Kingdom of Samoa small airport to American Samoa and other islands</span></div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_a3c2_3d06_451_eb99" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1b2IFE3T56l_nUkY3RJtSJwvOjHCG6aHX" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 610px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Weighing in for the flight</div><br><img id="id_eee8_1d8d_780_34b7" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=13EJuLw0a5XMUTsDFd2oLELRncghbB0Pz" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 562px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">Our plane to “yesterday”</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">I have always wanted to visit the pacific island paradises, because of the lore of waving palms and bare breasted ladies, waving a welcome in front of their huts, on golden beaches.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_149d_552e_ba9_b1c4" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1KsT9CMR82jyAzkjNRcN8NJI8q3-cs3o9" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 612px; height: auto;"></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">On our way, photo taken from our back row seat</span></div><br><img id="id_5cef_54f7_7cf_1568" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1Wz7KMUdFPrOgSqBve4EEWDfkyCVkcGVU" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 612px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">Sadie by the Sea taken from our balcony looking at the former officers club now hotel restaurant<br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_aef6_9f38_b04b_5ff4" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1wDlmmsMj1HaN8kkZVsiTDrwHuTo3SYdA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 516px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Pago Pago’s Bay </div><br><img id="id_512d_31bf_465b_b0d3" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1JpTxdnc5ueFmqT5ri7Ug8MBHtTZYZ5qf" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 557px; height: auto;"></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">Night is Neigh</span></div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Thus, the South Pacific was through out my life my plan B. If my marriage or career or both would go south on me, I would go South Pacific way and become a beach bum with a coffee stand, to just make enough dough to drink the night away.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_b2b1_4015_77d0_ebbd" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1Wn_MFK5ZDNDHpjVYPzLbpL7trmmTeToB" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 562px; height: auto;"></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">Local private $1 public transportation system</span></div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div></div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_b547_51db_27b2_f9f3" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1XniaAlLh4mBdo7h6JIZMDRh6Z7pWJtCP" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 585px; height: auto;"></div></div><div style="text-align: center;">Driver, operator and $ collector</div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_ee83_1bdb_5ff6_4e67" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1RHOS777al2aM_D34afykrjc2J3fiJ1dV" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 580px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Could not resist giving you another shot at Pago Pago’s transportation system</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">So in planning the detour to this part of the world, I eliminated all tourist traps, such as Tahiti, Bora Bora and the like.</font></div><div><font size="5">There were many choices left, but in the end I decided we should visit Pago Pago, the capital of American Samoa, where I hoped to find the real Samoa as it was in the time of my youth or even before that. Also Somerset Maugham’s short story “Rain” nudged me in that direction (a missionary reforming a prostitute?!!!?).</font></div><div><br></div><div><br><br><img id="id_f8e9_3df9_2f05_f37a" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1gyCiTj8596GmUeOechcPB6jFW4i7YWvM" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 471px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">One of the many churches gets a make over<br></span></div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_b7b9_5a4f_8c5_464e" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1yp7tza6r_xMo7j_5ZOdXXeQ_Efrdaq2M" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 549px; height: auto;"></div></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">Another Church</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></div><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><img id="id_ba09_dd70_8f07_e0f6" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1NiXxcJn-vnSCvl0_zUoov9qPowBiug7B" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="text-align: right; width: 603px; height: auto;"></span></div><div style="text-align: start;"><span style="text-align: center; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Downtown Pago Pago</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">It takes quite a few hours from Auckland NZ to fly to Apia, the capital of the Kingdom of Samoa, than a cab drive of 45 minutes to a little, one runway airport on the other side of the island, where after luggage and passengers have been weighed in, we proceed to a two propeller 8 seater plane of American Samoa’s national airline Talofa (translated as Welcome), where we are carefully and strategically placed by the pilot in our seats. Skinny foreigners in the back seats and local heavy weights in the middle to front seats. The seat besides the pilot - seat nr 8 is for a lucky skinny person. Then we fly 22 minutes to Pago Pago International airport to arrive a day </span><b><font size="5">earlier</font></b><span style="font-size: x-large;"> than we started.</span></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_af9f_18e_cdc_92ef" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1rQCGEf-540KuxBiB_udU17UUpXGi7gTp" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 525px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">This is the Pacific at American Samoa during the tourist season<br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_feb2_8d73_c4d2_57a8" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1mJqYI6HGnMRcS-atwKbqsSGir4gn34Y3" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 587px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Golden beaches</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">In 2011 the kingdom of Samoa changed time zones from their left border to their right border crossing the date line. On top of that, the kingdom adheres to daylight savings time and American Samoa does not. So we also had to change our watches.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_82e_675a_472d_7001" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1O6KyGOy5r-o4C41Ipcfthn5jW_nA4oni" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 471px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">Ocean all around you see above and below pictures<br></span><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_f855_1a5f_e14b_57ef" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1XEpz32fxEG4BWb478bj28H0HHc_4by_m" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 527px; height: auto;"></div></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_d9e9_db9f_6706_3a01" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1rqHODgztkyNGo9KDaVyfcttql--7FUSq" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 604px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Tutuila island, the main island here is 17sq miles/44sq km</div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div><font size="5">The sizeable Samoans are the friendliest giants I ever encountered. This is where “island time” and “talofa” or “malo” dictates life. Where everything slows down, like maximum speed on the island’s roads, which is 25 miles/hour and in the city only 2<span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">0 </span></font><span style="font-size: x-large;">miles/hour, thus eliminating the need for Porsches and Corvettes.</span></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_2462_bf71_4a50_428" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1YxG9wHqo2nLaIMBs1X4q93Iz7CdO68fH" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 482px; height: auto;"></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">A “Fale” in the national park is basically a Samoan house with open sides and thatched roof for welcoming and socializing purposes</span></div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_4213_a3f3_af76_de3a" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1lVjfPsDdZvNzaTjLdMBPY5QxuheynbPy" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 459px; height: auto;"></div></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">Nature is abundant and lush in a climate that ranges from 84F to 86F or 29C to 30C</span></div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_6d76_5fdd_6c27_2268" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1A1KHd30vE5SoMR7c_lwQmGWbiEn9Pj5K" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 541px; height: auto;"></div><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">We stayed in Sadie by the Sea motel, the location of the characters in the aforementioned short story by Somerset Maugham.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_c125_ef1b_aec2_5596" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=144aOjj2cOI3PbnP-8dCw8WpBiGeT8hTn" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 432px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">Had to take this picture<br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_d7c5_d004_7182_7f88" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1zVk573Q3USI3XqEw1hGznyL3zrFivD08" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 444px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Remains of WW II</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Samoans here are not “US citizens” but “US nationals”, which allows them to have their local governing system to remain unchanged, such as communal property ownership and the rule by “talking chiefs”, representing their community in a council setting chaired by a chosen “high chief”. </font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_fcb9_29fb_541c_e445" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1kFOy6rv7DDFyh2UypCpSY2A0rhbBRGXg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 500px; height: auto;"></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">Christianity has been the only change here in more than 3000 years</span></div><br><img id="id_6e9a_c226_ee7b_d8c1" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1d0-Ny8TmCCxKHSCpVRsrJ7WdMz9StyCG" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 580px; height: auto;"></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">Another Fale in use this time</span></div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_e204_24da_7af5_ffbd" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1_3FH33rMJQnoTNxyqXAazGHkWjxfOGaG" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 472px; height: auto;"></div></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">Tata our driver guide and Sandee </span></div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">During a day of being driven around by our taxi driver/guide Ata, we learned that now already for years the council has not been able to elect a “high chief” and as a consequence the US federal funds have not been distributed, as the government only pays to the “high chief”.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_d0de_a0d2_72e9_e9ba" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1qJCP_NAIqkWbPFbGH9NWkw-QO072AjAe" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 529px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">A WWII remnant, looks like a US landing craft or LCM<br></span><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_a64c_7116_f863_b8b1" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1VT7PrBmoqjfOFm17gDXSLHEQgnb3uH4x" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 518px; height: auto;"></div></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">Leone Healing Garden, commemorating February 25, 2012, when the Leoni Tsunami hit the island taking out to sea 11 people</span></div><br><img id="id_f503_91dc_4cc8_c2ac" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1sLwvf9hWIDINePvJs7Kxq6LXRRPzySLT" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 548px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">A roadside vegetable stand </div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">This highly religious island of 45000 Samoans, earning an average 6000 US dollar a year, is dotted with churches, many of them shuttered for some reason. And they do dress up with hats and all for Sunday service. On our return flight we encountered a group of young men of the Latter Day Saints church on their way to Utah to start their missionary service, being waved out by women and men all dressed up in their finest.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><br><img id="id_a7d4_78c0_cafe_4938" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=11rWFJ_jeoVgcK2hETFTzBwGncgodoZUn" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 454px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">A Communal City Center Fale with beautiful wood carving pictures<br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_4d9b_86ef_c4c9_f335" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1eHuuOUEew71shzU6-bCClDfn7nARZz1Q" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 512px; height: auto;"></div></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span><br><img id="id_9e54_1890_514c_2136" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1lbDetjvJKg57GMPwucKNhPkoI8ohxbH5" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 518px; height: auto;"><br><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Pago Pago lived up to my expectations of the real Pacific, with beaches, wonderful tattooed people (not bare breasted any more, although I saw bare butts - see pictures). The only modern day pollution, such as the Starkist factory and McDonalds are unavoidable blemishes this day and age.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_bd3d_e12d_ea59_b316" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1A4dPIE6Hua0B1NF6_0qDPKkBkCA057W6" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">McDonald’s Samoan offerings. They love spam in these regions</div></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Talking about tattoos, the word “Tatou” originated in the Pacific, where this tradition rivals the Egyptian pyramids in age, we were privileged to witness the annual Tattoo festival at Tisa’s Barefoot Cafe. </font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_b98c_23fd_d804_b88c" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1Vx2pl5fnF3-L9hwc4nZIAmMevqRMPzJO" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 573px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">Tisa’s Barefoot Bar<br></span><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_cb5e_cede_16d1_ab28" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1HRp8XsfR6qFxoKzsmzaYKnsHMZRHWYG8" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 505px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Chief Tisa </div><br><img id="id_225d_2e0b_1d70_a5d3" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1498awOYY1U3qH6rRHB7XaI9tItA5YLWP" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">Was very painful in the olden days without the electrical aids of today. We were told there are many older people with unfinished tattoos </div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">A half hour out of town on a small cove with a sandy beach lies a bamboo erected cafe built by Tisa, the talking chief for her community and her husband Candy Man, where every year the island’s Tattoo festival is held.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_d332_b32c_10d1_365c" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=15v1ItL5iMtm3JqNAdET6hH_I7-2YDHhD" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 457px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">An overview of the festivities<br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_dff4_946f_2a1b_2326" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1ACHDJg1113LONKLpF0P68vsjq3trs0Ef" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 509px; height: auto;"></div><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_a37d_2f62_e94d_c56c" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1tRpzibnKAk4Ifh-ShnvsxkVOWkVEYFFm" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 505px; height: auto;"></div><div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">Here is the butt picture of a newly inducted chief</span></div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_8871_b732_b9f8_e27" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=12fReto425h0T5S0BS9wijdrwEv8nFyoo" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 455px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">Still showing his butt unlike the other two</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">It was our privilege to be included as guests at this very local event, where new entrants in the society show off their tattoos and where swaying local dances are performed and local arts are displayed. It is here where I was confronted with the butt of a new young chief that was a passenger on our flight in, as he returned from the States after completing both his bachelors degree at the university of Oregon as well as his missionary period in Utah.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_7e6b_4ed3_a4bd_3e07" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1WsG5SKlQX5l5WxKq4DfVFmYiz03CHvVG" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 465px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">Island atmosphere pictures <br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_a737_dcf1_4da1_c458" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1XZN8bFzZQNjzxktD-R8FO2y7On83Lo9k" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 530px; height: auto;"></div><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">There we also met a never ceasing talking New Yorker, who came here 20 plus years ago and stayed writing now his fifth unpublished book about Pacific historical mysteries. Unlike my plan B, where I would have had to supplement my lifestyle selling coffee to tourists, his social security check sufficed here to allow him the profession of undiscovered writer.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_e234_48a7_646_eb2" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1kR6Ew7PEDccOLIo382g0Y6Ly6WPN5Acu" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 506px; height: auto;"></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">Starkist Tuna in front of factory</span></div><br><img id="id_ce00_a2c9_5481_1dc5" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1fOJV1s4AyQWbxwT2Af-rQQ28pWBgGLod" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 474px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">The biggest employer here<br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_df28_1e0_9701_d2ad" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1p66xzX5cTs_eAbI1q-jp-77tngM_EO_K" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 475px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Having a break or waiting for public transportation at the end of shift</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">I think the last paragraph aptly summarizes my life’s successes, as unlike the New Yorker, I visited this paradise late in life.</font></div><div><font size="5">This was also where we had the pleasure of consuming after many weeks of Asian cuisine our own American cuisine, such as a baked potato with a 1 lb ribeye.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_2413_e67d_9415_d583" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1e5Z9IGue3jq9tlUcMtCGuBFl8uAqO-ww" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">Just another picture of down time leisure </div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">After all we were in the good old US of A.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_4b93_7d9e_bfc3_3954" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1beGcSkHr-c5_y6btyMdA7GQuJ0Opi0vc" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 392px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">On the way back we flew above a rainbow<br></span><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_b8f0_fbfb_b75d_82b6" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1hembrlWF26kcbvYt-qOY4VX2G0kpERFJ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 373px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Cloud formations drift lazily below us</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_7884_edca_2b50_2d45" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1s0bv8AxlimTP-nz3wZQprCUWV4vpWA_S" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"><br>Forbidden activities for visitors in American Samoa: 1. Study for credit 2. Employment 3. Work as a foreign press, radio, film, journalist, or other media. 4. Apply for residency. 5. Apply for extension of stay in American Samoa, except in emergency situations.<br><img id="id_e29d_c49f_2586_e2b8" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1A3jgz6wdqpcphqI-C5_3xsXdXU6T65Mj" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"><br><br><font size="5">Thought you might find below copied info from their visitor website interesting</font><br><br></div><div style="text-align: left;"><header id="header" class="sqs-announcement-bar-dropzone" style="width: 834px; position: absolute; top: 0px; z-index: 8001;"><div class="title-nav-wrapper" style="display: table; width: 834px; margin: 0px auto; padding: 25px 41.6875px; vertical-align: middle; box-sizing: border-box;"><h1 data-content-field="site-title" class="site-title" style="margin: 0px; line-height: 1em; padding: 0px; display: table-cell; width: 225.1875px; vertical-align: middle; z-index: 8002; position: relative;"><a href="https://www.americansamoa.travel/" id="top" style="text-decoration: none; caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><font color="#000000" size="3">VISIT AMERICAN SAMOA</font></a></h1><div id="desktopNav" data-content-field="navigation-mainNav" data-annotation-alignment="bottom left" style="display: table-cell; width: 525.4375px; text-align: right; vertical-align: middle;"><nav class="main-nav"><div class="nav-wrapper"><ul class="cf" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; list-style: none; line-height: 1em; position: relative; z-index: 8002;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><li class="page-collection" style="display: inline-block; position: relative; z-index: inherit; text-align: right; margin: 0px 0px 0px 30px;"><a href="https://www.americansamoa.travel/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="line-height: 2em;">WELCOME</span></a></li> <li class="folders-collection folder" style="display: inline-block; position: relative; z-index: inherit; text-align: right; margin: 0px 0px 0px 30px; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: pointer;"><div class="folder-parent"><a aria-haspopup="true"><span style="line-height: 2em;">EXPLORE</span></a><div class="folder-child-wrapper" style="position: absolute; left: 32.265625px; margin-left: -100px; z-index: 11; margin-top: -5px;"></div></div></li> <li class="folders-collection folder active-link active-folder" style="display: inline-block; position: relative; z-index: inherit; text-align: right; margin: 0px 0px 0px 30px; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: pointer;"><div class="folder-parent"><a aria-haspopup="true"><span style="line-height: 2em;">EXPERIENCE</span></a><div class="folder-child-wrapper" style="position: absolute; left: 44.234375px; margin-left: -100px; z-index: 11; margin-top: -5px;"></div></div></li> <li class="folders-collection folder" style="display: inline-block; position: relative; z-index: inherit; text-align: right; margin: 0px 0px 0px 30px; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: pointer;"><div class="folder-parent"><a aria-haspopup="true"><span style="line-height: 2em;">VISIT</span></a><div class="folder-child-wrapper" style="position: absolute; left: 18.3828125px; margin-left: -100px; z-index: 11; margin-top: -5px;"></div></div></li> <li class="folders-collection folder" style="display: inline-block; position: relative; z-index: inherit; text-align: right; margin: 0px 0px 0px 30px; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: pointer;"><div class="folder-parent"><a aria-haspopup="true"><span style="line-height: 2em;">SUPPORT</span></a><div class="folder-child-wrapper" style="position: absolute; left: 33.4140625px; margin-left: -100px; z-index: 11; margin-top: -5px;"></div></div></li></span></ul></div></nav></div></div></header><div id="banner-wrapper" style="position: relative;"><div class="banner-image content-fill" id="yui_3_17_2_1_1554907282367_220" style="position: absolute; top: 0px; left: 0px; right: 0px; bottom: 0px; overflow: hidden;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><img data-src="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5890c98acd0f685b13dd0594/t/5977b3de440243cbe4e708da/1501017057487/Pic+15.jpg" data-image="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5890c98acd0f685b13dd0594/t/5977b3de440243cbe4e708da/1501017057487/Pic+15.jpg" data-image-dimensions="1271x833" data-image-focal-point="0.5,0.5" data-position-mode="standard" data-parent-ratio="2.0" alt="Pic 15.jpg" class="" src="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5890c98acd0f685b13dd0594/t/5977b3de440243cbe4e708da/1501017057487/Pic+15.jpg?format=2500w" data-image-resolution="2500w" style="border: 0px; left: 0px; top: -63.79740361919744px; width: 834px; height: auto; position: relative; transform: translate3d(0px, 0px, 0px);" id="id_ed5c_2c33_f18a_b83f"></span><div class="image-overlay-wrapper" style="position: absolute; top: 0px; right: 0px; bottom: 0px; left: 0px; z-index: 9; transform: translateZ(0px);"></div></div><div class="title-desc-wrapper has-main-image no-description" style="margin: 0px; padding: 135.6875px 41.6875px 41.6875px; position: relative; box-sizing: border-box; z-index: 10; min-height: 180px; overflow: hidden; display: flex; -webkit-box-align: center; align-items: center; -webkit-box-pack: center; justify-content: center; top: 0px;"><div class="title-desc-inner" data-collection-id="58bcedebebbd1ad2e8e610b9" data-edit-main-image="Background" style="text-align: start; max-width: 800px; z-index: 100; position: relative; padding: 80px 0px;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><div class="page-title-wrapper" id="yui_3_17_2_1_1554907282367_206" style="display: inline-block; box-sizing: border-box; width: auto; max-width: 100%;"><h1 class="page-title" data-content-field="title" data-shrink-original-size="82" style="margin: 0px; line-height: 1em; max-width: 100%; display: inline-block; box-sizing: border-box; position: relative; z-index: inherit;">FA'A SAMOA</h1></div> <br></span></div></div></div><section id="content-wrapper"><div class="content" style="width: 834px; position: relative; z-index: 50;"><div class="content-inner" data-content-field="main-content" style="max-width: 960px; margin: 0px auto; padding: 100px 66.71875px;"><div class="sqs-layout sqs-grid-12 columns-12" data-type="page" data-updated-on="1505687146356" id="page-58bcedebebbd1ad2e8e610b9"><div class="row sqs-row" style="margin-left: -17px; margin-right: -17px; width: auto !important;"><div class="col sqs-col-12 span-12" style="float: left; width: 734.5625px; padding-right: 0px;"><div class="sqs-block html-block sqs-block-html" data-block-type="2" id="block-0c56409f1c6cdcb0c5fe" style="position: relative; height: auto; padding: 0px 17px 17px; outline: none; box-shadow: rgba(128, 128, 128, 0) 0px 0px 0px 1px inset; transition: box-shadow 0.2s ease-in-out; clear: none;"><div class="sqs-block-content" style="outline: none;"><h1 style="margin: 0px; line-height: 1.2em;"><font size="3"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">EXPERIENCE OUR CULTURE</span></font></h1></div></div><div class="sqs-block gallery-block sqs-block-gallery" data-block-json="{"hSize":null,"floatDir":null,"methodOption":"transient","existingGallery":null,"show-meta-only-title":false,"newWindow":false,"design":"grid","aspectRatio":null,"auto-crop":true,"square-thumbs":true,"aspect-ratio":"square","show-meta":true,"thumbnails-per-row":4,"padding":20,"lightbox":false,"collectionId":"59079b342e69cf90845eeb3a","vSize":null,"transientGalleryId":"59079b342e69cf90845eeb3a"}" data-block-type="8" id="block-yui_3_17_2_11_1493666592474_30416" style="position: relative; height: auto; padding: 17px; outline: none; box-shadow: rgba(128, 128, 128, 0) 0px 0px 0px 1px inset; transition: box-shadow 0.2s ease-in-out; clear: both;"><div class="sqs-block-content"><div class="
sqs-gallery-container
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display: inline-block; opacity: 1; left: -53.333333333333314px; top: 0px; width: 213px; height: auto; position: relative;" id="id_b33e_6856_7a94_fe7c"></span></a></div></div><div class="slide sqs-gallery-design-grid-slide" data-type="image" id="yui_3_17_2_1_1554907282367_115" style="float: left; width: 180.140625px;"><div class="margin-wrapper" style="position: relative; margin-right: 20px; margin-bottom: 20px;"><a class="image-slide-anchor content-fill" style="padding-bottom: 160.140625px; width: 160.140625px; height: 0px; display: block; cursor: default; border-bottom-style: none; overflow: hidden;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><img class="thumb-image loaded" data-src="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5890c98acd0f685b13dd0594/59079b342e69cf90845eeb3a/59079b683a0411c14afc10b1/1493670816177/tau_fale_michael_larson+copy.jpg" data-image="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5890c98acd0f685b13dd0594/59079b342e69cf90845eeb3a/59079b683a0411c14afc10b1/1493670816177/tau_fale_michael_larson+copy.jpg" data-image-dimensions="1280x852" data-image-focal-point="0.5714285714285714,0.5408163265306123" data-load="false" data-image-id="59079b683a0411c14afc10b1" data-type="image" data-position-mode="standard" data-parent-ratio="1.0" alt="tau_fale_michael_larson copy.jpg" src="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5890c98acd0f685b13dd0594/59079b342e69cf90845eeb3a/59079b683a0411c14afc10b1/1493670816177/tau_fale_michael_larson+copy.jpg?format=500w" data-image-resolution="500w" style="border: 0px; display: inline-block; opacity: 1; left: -57.357478202548606px; top: 0px; width: 240px; height: auto; position: relative;" id="id_db1f_a402_5295_bb59"></span></a></div></div><div class="slide sqs-gallery-design-grid-slide" data-type="image" id="yui_3_17_2_1_1554907282367_116" style="float: left; width: 180.140625px;"><div class="margin-wrapper" style="position: relative; margin-right: 20px; margin-bottom: 20px;"><a class="image-slide-anchor content-fill" style="padding-bottom: 160.140625px; width: 160.140625px; height: 0px; display: block; cursor: default; border-bottom-style: none; overflow: hidden;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><img class="thumb-image loaded" data-src="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5890c98acd0f685b13dd0594/59079b342e69cf90845eeb3a/59079b942994ca873d7f0e89/1493670852475/_DSC6417+copy.JPG" data-image="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5890c98acd0f685b13dd0594/59079b342e69cf90845eeb3a/59079b942994ca873d7f0e89/1493670852475/_DSC6417+copy.JPG" data-image-dimensions="1280x763" data-image-focal-point="0.6326530612244898,0.48863636363636365" data-load="false" data-image-id="59079b942994ca873d7f0e89" data-type="image" data-position-mode="standard" data-parent-ratio="1.0" alt="_DSC6417 copy.JPG" src="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5890c98acd0f685b13dd0594/59079b342e69cf90845eeb3a/59079b942994ca873d7f0e89/1493670852475/_DSC6417+copy.JPG?format=750w" data-image-resolution="750w" style="border: 0px; display: inline-block; opacity: 1; left: -89.8130366170059px; top: 0px; width: 268px; height: auto; position: relative;" id="id_6fed_7f11_ec27_2c5a"></span></a></div></div><div class="slide sqs-gallery-design-grid-slide" data-type="image" id="yui_3_17_2_1_1554907282367_117" style="float: left; width: 180.140625px;"><div class="margin-wrapper" style="position: relative; margin-right: 20px; margin-bottom: 20px;"><a class="image-slide-anchor content-fill" style="padding-bottom: 160.140625px; width: 160.140625px; height: 0px; display: block; cursor: default; border-bottom-style: none; overflow: hidden;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><img class="thumb-image loaded" data-src="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5890c98acd0f685b13dd0594/59079b342e69cf90845eeb3a/59079bf5e3df2803a2723605/1493670964046/LANDSCAPES+44+copy.jpg" data-image="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5890c98acd0f685b13dd0594/59079b342e69cf90845eeb3a/59079bf5e3df2803a2723605/1493670964046/LANDSCAPES+44+copy.jpg" data-image-dimensions="1280x853" data-image-focal-point="0.4965986394557823,0.5102040816326531" data-load="false" data-image-id="59079bf5e3df2803a2723605" data-type="image" data-position-mode="standard" data-parent-ratio="1.0" alt="LANDSCAPES 44 copy.jpg" src="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5890c98acd0f685b13dd0594/59079b342e69cf90845eeb3a/59079bf5e3df2803a2723605/1493670964046/LANDSCAPES+44+copy.jpg?format=500w" data-image-resolution="500w" style="border: 0px; display: inline-block; opacity: 1; left: -39.230247784928736px; top: 0px; width: 240px; height: auto; position: relative;" id="id_a234_2617_b7a5_b1b2"></span></a></div></div></div></div></div></div><div class="sqs-block html-block sqs-block-html" data-block-type="2" id="block-yui_3_17_2_11_1493666592474_30510" style="position: relative; height: auto; padding: 17px; outline: none; box-shadow: rgba(128, 128, 128, 0) 0px 0px 0px 1px inset; transition: box-shadow 0.2s ease-in-out; clear: none;"><div class="sqs-block-content" style="outline: none;"><p style="word-wrap: break-word; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">American Samoa’s islands make up the eastern part of the Samoan Archipelago, whose people are Polynesian. Archaeologists state early Polynesians traveled from South East Asia into the Pacific populating the islands of the western Pacific from Papua New Guinea to Tonga and Samoa. It was from to Tonga and Samoa sometime later that they migrated east and populated the Cook Islands, Niue, Tahiti and Rapanui (Easter Island) before heading north to Hawaii and south to Aotearoa (New Zealand) on the last legs of the great Polynesian migration. Today Samoan’s are regarded as the largest full blooded Polynesian race left in the world. Fa’a Samoa or the Samoan way is the foundation of Samoan society culture and heritage. Aiga or extended family is the core of the Fa’a Samoa, where at the head of the family are matai or chiefs and each family member has their role to play in their tautua, or service to the extended family. Our customs and culture are over 3,000 years old and has changed very little over this period. The most major western influence accepted into Samoan custom has been Christianity which forms the spiritual basis of our society.</span></p><h2 style="margin: 1em 0px 0.5em; line-height: 1.2em;"><font size="3"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">FA'A SAMOA</span></font></h2><p style="word-wrap: break-word;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Fa’a Samoa or the Samoan Way is the foundation of Samoan society culture and heritage. Aiga or extended family is the core of the Fa’a Samoa, where at the head of the family are matai’s or chiefs and each family member has their role to play in their tautua, or service to the well being of the extended family throughout life. Christianity is also a major foundation block in Fa’a Samoa.</span></p><h2 style="margin: 1em 0px 0.5em; line-height: 1.2em;"><font size="3"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">CUSTOMS & CULTURE</span></font></h2><p style="word-wrap: break-word; margin-bottom: 0px;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Fa’a Samoa customs and culture are over 3000 years old and have changed very little over this period. The most major western influence accepted into Samoan customs has been Christianity which forms the spiritual basis of our society.<br style="word-wrap: break-word;">Our culture and customs are based around the mutual respect given to our elders, the church, visitors, and the extended family.<br style="word-wrap: break-word;">Matai or chiefs make up the heads of the extended family units and each person has their duties to play in the well being of the family and its members and come together when ever needed.</span></p></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></section></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br></div><br><br><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div>Two retirees and their travel storieshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13942287905877288793noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9052023657534142840.post-48625994595811505222019-03-29T14:36:00.001-04:002019-03-31T18:59:06.183-04:00Around the World for a 3rd Time (Japan and Taiwan) <div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_ebd_6bf8_7576_3e55" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1oROwt2jCUsn4p-QPEkx0xoaobMJUbr_9" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 605px; height: auto;"><br>(Chipmunk in Shiretoko)</div><br></div><div><br></div><div><b>JAPAN</b></div><div><b><br></b></div><div><font size="5">Japan is our favorite Asian country, most likely because it is so well organized and so sparkling clean. So much so, that I am now making an awful statement: “you can eat from the public bathroom floors” in of all places, Tokyo, the largest city in the world with 38 million inhabitants.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_fd63_431d_16c0_437d" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1W9mpRplh3Zk--1o4rSHU0dBjPXGBcV3f" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 498px; height: auto;"><br> (lake views in Shiretoko were abundant)<br><br></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_de37_cbe0_cc82_4461" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1PYMYxUpMDYpWRaQKkipdLkZspIb8ixZv" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 590px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Sea of Okhotsk from our hotel window direction Russia’s Sakhalin island)</div><br><img id="id_d393_7680_ed28_f4ce" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1xa7rfV1nP_GeDQRFl82xL0P0fnV0eD3W" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 603px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">(another Shiretoko lake view)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">When we started our 3 month trip we bypassed Japan and flew into Beijing, </font><span style="font-size: x-large;">although we planned going back to Tokyo for a few days, with as our main destination this time Hokkaido, to see the highly lauded fall colors and the timing for that allowed us a few weeks to do China first.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_fa6d_984a_236_1a5" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1NS7pljfxawuauPRv7fWaf1BDotpkzulN" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 505px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Our guide Suganuma acting out Bear droppings, we refused to do that for a picture)<br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_9103_f15_1d17_29ce" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=11rZkoHM9lz4KedgBJh_pTIEaNgfpsBJZ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 475px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"> (Sandee acting’s out bear scratching)</div><br><img id="id_fdbb_bb8e_b754_5303" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=14GtX97zQm1kje--sC0999o8f_ImVBl4z" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 544px; height: auto;"><br>(Do not know anymore what scene this is supposed to be)<br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">In the most eastern top of the most northern island of Japan lies a peninsula called Shiretoko, a national park heralded for its fall beauty.</font></div><div><font size="5">Well the plan to see the colors did not work out. We</font><span style="font-size: x-large;"> came too early, or this specific year was a bummer year with no colors worth mentioning.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"> </span></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_5f04_190c_3fd1_7afd" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1K6AXoIAU45_PhKPdmtYMLvdjiTQWqPHc" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 436px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Size of bears still roaming here, found many signs of their existence but did not meet any)</div><br><img id="id_c414_98f_6f52_e56a" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1uGoiWY3jg4wEg7M2yuFsVMi1slNwZFiI" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 498px; height: auto;"></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Deer were abundant)</span></div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_ca8d_b1b_36a9_b694" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1CtJT_pqzg2a3p9r7XG8V0bvATJEuhLp5" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 464px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Bear made hole to seek honey or protein hiding in trees )</div><br><img id="id_dcee_c83e_8605_a85a" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=10NQllfh49NhhsMo4nSOqXBYA6_TaOqF7" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 527px; height: auto;"></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Obligatory picture on the highest point in Shiretoko)</span></div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_3a48_4f5c_c4aa_ab35" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1AlcWorZheCVs7Xe75wLHUoTM1VSQ0l2f" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 531px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"> (Bear claw imprints; makes you look around for bears)</div><br><span style="font-size: x-large; text-align: center;">However our guide Suganuma was giving us value for the money and made us do more selfies than we normally do in a decade. The whirlwind trip in Hokkaido gave us 3 nights in Shiretoko and 2 nights in Sapporo, the capital of Hokkaido, also home of Sapporo beer and the highest quality of cold water seafood in all of Japan, like uni, a reputation not easy to be bestowed in seafood loving Japan.</span></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_143a_e7f3_1532_ae39" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1OSYQ4wJz6AwdEy-AfenlPePl-B4qzvq8" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 638px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Sushi luncheon in Sapporo)</div><br><img id="id_a4c5_3c7f_4851_5ae7" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1qnqC7M6FFfz0tZMk7Njv3rLitZQ6qfZg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 353px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Brewery visit of one of the beers we liked)<br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_f1fa_bf6f_c2ed_12f1" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1sZcvT4t5cH2M-_s494Si_m1osPV0pbS2" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 486px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Sushi sample very very fresh fish) </div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_b9d9_b78d_4790_d019" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=19Vsu-lsUfGf0v5ia6mIoKxY7vwTpZsjd" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 480px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Sei Amici dinner picture)</div><br><img id="id_520_df3f_ae2c_2057" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1zMcBgNxCWTJgl7cHX6BwBJWdIWY1DBsw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 528px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Some people cannot keep their hands to themselves)<br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_7985_939b_2653_e4e8" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1Vxadqn-1ttQsGlq28agsXqUKL8w9eYUO" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 495px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Above and below samples of our dinner)</div><br><img id="id_2ad7_597c_21d8_7f3e" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=12fiTZK8JPx4cn0ZMRP74jznb3m1Dua6r" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 464px; height: auto;"><br><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Back in Tokyo, we had a “Sei Amici get together” with Olie and Margot. World travelers make lasting connections along the way and Sei Amici was conceived in Italy on a three masted schooner seemingly eons ago.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_23e8_94d2_bf88_df7d" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1ATGXSaCt_leJxoXe8T9Y_qLPiq4sM2N1" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 483px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(So Japanese, these soft drink vending machines all over the country on the streets)</div><br><img id="id_97d_5519_8f67_79ae" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1IqSi2z5p8easqoISo7BLdFtMfuK0tXbX" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 458px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Tokyo neighborhood street scene)<br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_349a_f8c4_2d90_81b" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=13LCkm5X9_8dDDvc0Qi6JesmuESjKmZ8k" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 535px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Tokyo park scene with obligatory bridges)</div><br><img id="id_ebb2_7d3f_20c8_7ded" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1MHe9YqGZKn5ucG3A821Aew3CfrH5_T_U" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 497px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Not only in America does this event occur)<br></span><br><img id="id_2329_eb8d_8919_e7fe" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1G8KUgD6XePzgnKxrvbx0D2vKQ_qUQf6L" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">(SoTranquil, So Japanese)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">As you are till this moment in your reading not getting much of interest, it must be said, that being in Japan after an exhausting trip in China, we were here first and foremost to reconnect with the old and familiar and to catch our breath, while looking ahead to new countries and new sights to behold. </font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_4844_5981_42e3_b7ed" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1OjCpGpU-B69zeY_1C7BEWLOE3jBs4NZv" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 452px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(3 scenes of the same place above and below showing the seasonal change- above what we saw in Autumn)<br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_7284_1b3c_1f04_da34" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1y9w9GEGABN3asagmlgRQq6mj_1rEgzdv" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 486px; height: auto;"></div></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Spring time scene)</span></div><br><img id="id_9c78_c130_d6b_a8b5" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=19ngS4u7iOfV4KJtPfcxDmiN5Xmt80FYn" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 433px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Summer scene)</span><br><br><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_3184_10e0_8b91_2919" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1mX5L5VYZ6q3DT8BJCs-Ubd-HWr2Ayi2-" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 586px; height: auto;"></div></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Another guide directed picture - possible safe place when bear charges)</span></div><br><img id="id_31e9_338f_49b5_59db" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1zL-WcXOY-MlLZJplSP7ifr-Q3yVnFuR0" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 513px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Fishing fleet in harbor as they do night salmon fishing)<br></span><br><img id="id_76e4_4d95_4789_9661" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1AhGp7EcDspZlqn-7TjOg-t-F2Lab56Xp" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">(Finally an expansive view of a Shiretoko fjord)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><b>Taiwan</b></font></div><div><font size="5"><b><br></b></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_3928_5baa_c9df_f704" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=16VRXX78xVjsXmAzffAROVyS4shioCkEU" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 535px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Street side vendor)</div><br><img id="id_3391_2ee4_6cf5_7f05" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1JDzQxFUxvfbn2I55f58RhpQcxAKQq42V" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 481px; height: auto;"><br> (Zhongshan street scene in Taipei)<br><br><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_274c_842e_fa5b_7377" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1-yiUZai32F7MM68BM0qSreKUKl3gGEb5" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 512px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Taipei park)</div><font size="5"><b><br></b></font></div><div><font size="5">As our journey continued to Melbourne, the airline decided to stop over in Taiwan. Thus we decided to stay in Taipei’s old center for a week, also because we wanted to celebrate a 25 year anniversary of sorts. I say “of sorts”, because that specific date celebrates the day we laid eyes on each other for the first time, meaning to say: it does not really count for normal people, but we put it on our calendar a long time ago as the “day of providence”, that brought the “miracle of us” that we daily celebrate today.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_c09b_bfc3_df77_f8bb" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1Dm1Kpc7nJWJY8l8cB_sdkeG_nh6luFKf" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 583px; height: auto;"></div><div>(Burning Josh money/Ghost money venerating the departed family members)</div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_8160_e07f_1a1d_63cd" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1-xWakK060ZggoZW4yHObqVd5q4q5Mu3q" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 555px; height: auto;"></div></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(the burning of the money takes place everywhere in the city consuming piles and piles of them)</span></div><br><img id="id_8aaf_e09d_ade5_2403" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1S-IYs-sKmeTa3CEudflGvDvHvZ18GIzP" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 579px; height: auto;"><br>(This vendor sells his food while also having piles of Joss money to burn)<br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">And Taipei provided in abundance. We ate almost every few hours those days and you all know exploring food is very important to us. Well Taipei’s streets provide at every corner and we were not alone in the sampling. At any hour of the day we found Taiwanese eating.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_c7a1_15c8_7b89_5a22" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=19BB2mmx3GpYO-KEhaioP40hfODxTY2f4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 560px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Chef Vanessa and husband in Ephernite)</div><br><img id="id_8558_e240_91c2_1e7f" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1lhcNP5AsRoBClMSw8Byk-ISkd-enlp4B" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 397px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Above and below samples of our celebration dinner)<br></span><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_10c9_10d7_eb81_99f0" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1ChI99zxHsYdohFE7QyE0RRGy9lfYJLzK" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 349px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><br><div style="text-align: left;"><img id="id_9bc1_91c0_d9e8_9c96" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1P13mUYS9R3RgKc1DSoCOBXFYRw0v_dSH" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 330px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_20ae_d634_6fa2_2f9d" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=12y2O53n8ESdG4iSzO4wrO50nHjXNYkNL" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 359px; height: auto;"></div><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Our special dinner was at a Michelin star rated French restaurant named Ephernite, owned by Chef Vanessa Huang aided by her husband Claude as Front of the House Host. I hope the pictures will do justice to the beautiful creations Chef Vanessa created that night.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_b886_fbc8_7867_d099" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=19n4IDGB8xaDMDWq1RkQG2oLYIf-_TM2P" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 570px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(We loved roaming the old city center turning corners to find what is next)<br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_3786_4ef6_695_a28f" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1xiKuDzv0C80JnIHAVcd0joRDY3Mm-F4I" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 518px; height: auto;"></div></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"> (This looks like a temple entrance but it is a restaurant)</span></div><br><img id="id_5086_f7d0_dd93_15c" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1O2Wk9wumuujvDBSHWAuW_C9_8e1z2v0_" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 534px; height: auto;"></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(More street scenes)</span></div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_7d11_35e7_f4c4_73ed" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1D0HvW8Q9O01-DQzFPbpnakGsmEhodp_y" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 466px; height: auto;"></div><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Then, we found right besides our hotel a Belgian bistro, Merlot Cafe (when in Taipei go there, unless you want Taiwanese food) although the chef and his long term lady were not Belgian at all.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_c35c_1ec7_e9_8f6b" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1Q0goGLPPtXQvNgnjWIzijLdodPehZTky" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 495px; height: auto;"><br>(We had to sample the xiao long bao <span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Michelin star rated </span>dumplings in a department store)</div><div><br></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_8433_f1d6_b19a_284d" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=14syCTsxFujyukSgVSO6Sm5QYafo3Wggx" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 288px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Lining up in front of an department store, like during airport screening, but for dessert)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_d42a_a4ea_751f_22b2" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1FxnrJFQvSJeb7IOnZz3_aI4Cxtu4kDRT" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 561px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Starbucks has competition)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">We had such a good meal with fries and had such nice conversations with the chef-owner couple, that we arranged for the next night an “after dinner service get to know each other” date. Thus, we came later in the evening for a surprise dinner and after that talked and drank the night away.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_54db_24e9_adf8_d1ad" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1kctaW9sCu6Fjt7Af2zWqIWvkrJapEz1q" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 503px; height: auto;"></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Merlot’s Chef Bob and Vicky)</span></div><br><img id="id_11cf_f614_b323_8b49" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1vOP-B_Hvj8wBnxcwCGBbdoXDDmhQAEbM" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 385px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Good old European food stands out in Taipei’s food scene)<br></span><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_7751_181c_27ba_1a3e" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=111taxdibDV-359lsTCS7KXJzd_esX0gt" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 405px; height: auto;"></div></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_978f_7e5e_1964_5c6e" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1By3bIjYNguFP6tzq5uLCMjwOdCg9G_Wj" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 487px; height: auto;"></div></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_93c1_f11b_c73_99a7" src="https://alexdenk.eu/blogtouch?id=1Q_nVZnPGbnv3PSgwoRAX-aZy1xHL2DBn" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 554px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Bar scene in cafe bistro Merlot that evening)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Thanks Bob and Vicky. We look forward to hear from you when visiting the US or the Netherlands, because catching up again will be great.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">This boring intermezzo blog does not contain much content, so may the pictures save the day</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div>Two retirees and their travel storieshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13942287905877288793noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9052023657534142840.post-51596033410691207632019-03-16T20:23:00.001-04:002019-03-16T20:26:37.849-04:00Around The World for the 3rd time (Abu Dhabi and Dubai)<div><font size="5">A note of intro to my readers:</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_af06_3c29_b872_88b" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-0tvhkoCsFQ8/XIqxP8TZhCI/AAAAAAACnBo/xincZYJ2YJkorFF8po7_P_j5yfXlTOjYwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 747px; height: auto;"><br><br><div style="text-align: center;">(The magnificent <span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque)</span></div></div><div><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><br><font size="5">It has been awhile since I wrote my last blog. But since September 4 we have been on the road from one country to the next and I simply cannot conceive blogs while traveling, as during those trips a whirlwind of encounters and sights besiege me.</font></span></div><div><img id="id_12b3_124a_1dd7_ffa5" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-L0f2afdefYM/XIqxQZn7DII/AAAAAAACnBs/t4DNsIow89cm-_c8hWD35mas1CGMhaUugCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 530px; height: auto;"><br>(A globe on wheels in a car museum somewhere in the desert)<br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_8518_53d_9431_f961" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-jS_DyGA50aA/XIqxQ7ST_fI/AAAAAAACnBw/RBhLSDwQqO0f75EsAdJDt41w5XY-0WxYQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 371px; height: auto;"></div><div><div style="text-align: right;">(Oversized cars that the museum owner Sheikh has built by himself)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_79cf_bd95_cf25_51bf" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-3cfT5X17oic/XIqxRJF8S5I/AAAAAAACnB0/BcGEgNtHuCQXygz5waKW9t7BExKonB5nwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 413px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Our guide Karim has a love affair with camels)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">You may find this strange perhaps, but the following blogs will arrive out of order, as I recreate in my mind, sights and smells that come to me out of order. This blog happens to be about the last country we visited before reaching Amsterdam for the December family festivities.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_a31e_84e8_b654_9a0f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-f4COpJCygqo/XIqxRrajC_I/AAAAAAACnB4/aE1Di7u50XEU7B_bKis6Ze6_xIJwmHAMgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">(Abu Dhabi city scape)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><b>Abu Dhabi</b></font></div><div><font size="5">It is after midnight when we lug our carry-on suitcases into a cab, driven by seemingly the only Muslim woman in a sea of waiting taxi drivers, speeding towards a trusted Marriott hotel nearest to the airport in Dubai, where we are guaranteed a late checkout.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_ec35_edb6_397c_193b" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-piLk6uMo3TM/XIqxSL_lj7I/AAAAAAACnB8/T1oyAMFNqhAxDuN3BYA7yeWR7DXftxZSgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"><br>(Across the water the royal palace complex. This is as close as we can get to it. Picture taken into the sun - sorry)<br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">We are just coming of 2 grueling 12 hour days of travel from Melbourne to here, which we wisely cut into 2 legs, because we chose staying over in an Intercontinental hotel in Guangzhou where we had a checkout till 4pm after the first 12 hour day flying. Nevertheless this midnight arrival creates the involuntary feeling that one is worn out from traveling time zones.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_926c_716c_dc1e_5f6d" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-yPa_oQN7H6c/XIqxSV84kXI/AAAAAAACnCA/OnGVBELae9APjJQPSlrA7H2fY7xkqzO7ACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 399px; height: auto;"><br>(Abu Dhabi fishing harbor just outside city center)</div><div><br></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_d46a_aa21_f9b7_2609" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-ZwREhBm-hwk/XIqxS0WeC7I/AAAAAAACnCE/2bAhB7_eofMCtDmDkeADfQ7ZX5uUoDXHwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 443px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Examples of Emirati homes. Here families spanning several generations live together )</div></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">I am heading this first chapter “Abu Dhabi” as that is where we head the next afternoon, after a very lazy morning, with another taxi for 93 miles/150 km. During the 2 hour ride, we are getting our first glitzy highrise glimps of Dubai with prominently displayed banners, stating that this the Year of Zayed accompanied with the number 47, then follow industrial parks surrounded by desert, till we reach the almost modest looking city of Abu Dhabi, reaching our hotel on the other side of town, where it sits on a little hill, that offers us the expansive views of the Persian Sea.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_7d52_4fde_3cda_e5fe" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-ApvVXrVXhjc/XIqxTUJJqvI/AAAAAAACnCI/zNTvMtIWaHI6hglvI6w7UIxguSHBHh7nQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 368px; height: auto;"><br>(Signs celebrating the founding and the founding father of the UAE)<br><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_52d_9682_823e_ff90" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-qdHzqP3IOg8/XIqxTyTvf-I/AAAAAAACnCM/SYXKlPlaeYs5Fy8GzQ2pSw1qQC6jRsi7wCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 420px; height: auto;"></div><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">A little history is maybe needed here:</font></div><div><font size="5">47 years ago seven emirates (a nice word for Arab tribes) forged a union, creating the United Arab Emirates with the Abu Dhabi Emir, Zayed bin Sultan Al Nayan as the founding father of this oil rich country; a country where only white clad “born within the tribe” Emiratis and their fully clothed in black women are citizens. These Emiratis basically live a charmed life, receiving their apportioned monthly cut of the oil revenues, surrounded by, as a resident Egyptian German explained, 3 categories of “slaves” to support their lifestyle. </font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_a65_1d7c_c711_b0f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Tq_AdKLMfEU/XIqxUfjZAyI/AAAAAAACnCQ/C6i-dc8uI94gK3UwT0Sxh2IMf8NIDJVjwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"><br>(The second jewel of Abu Dhabi the Emirates Palace Hotel - cost 4 billion dollars not listing “rooms” but 394 residences)<br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_e83d_ea6e_6975_70e8" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/--qtW-cVFheA/XIqxUrMhJPI/AAAAAAACnCU/I3jkEi9ZOTMK2F8GiEc-999nT4XOlfhGQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 463px; height: auto;"><br>( gold and marble wherever your eyes wander)<br><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_7199_ea04_8f7d_6dc1" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-4E-i0c8AHc4/XIqxVLOQ-nI/AAAAAAACnCY/K9wekYGVgjco68fvjT5O4zjRYlFYn0f1wCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 475px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(The great hall shows for this special year a replica of a traditional dhow)</div><br></div><div><img id="id_9547_b702_988f_2a7b" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-n4NnPWaQmpc/XIqxVgVz3mI/AAAAAAACnCc/U2MY7TNOS0EfKDe9hUtIa98I7h2qTqyRwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 450px; height: auto;"><br>(Another peek at opulence)<br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Non Emirati need work permits to reside in the UAE, and must leave when their work ends or they retire. </font></div><div><font size="5">Category 1:</font></div><div><font size="5">The menial jobs from laborer to service people (working in restaurants, hotels, housemaids etc) are predominantly of Asian heritage and live most of the time in communal low rent residences.</font></div><div><font size="5">Categories </font></div><div><font size="5">2 and 3: </font></div><div><font size="5">Range from technical or supervisory white collar jobs to the highly educated, running businesses or teaching at universities.</font></div><div><br></div><div><img id="id_91cd_c8b_1e25_2593" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-quwvhpSXcXI/XIqxWL1qh_I/AAAAAAACnCg/4HtgIveHAF0vTfhlR5x0OVsEWx1Cw4gDgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 437px; height: auto;"><br>(The grand mosque changes color during the sunset hours from white to blue and gold)<br><div style="text-align: left;"><br></div><div style="text-align: left;"><img id="id_1170_6f4c_2d20_59d" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-rjQRJ0i9UF0/XIqxWRGuXhI/AAAAAAACnCk/BkDch0SpGHQr4zp0Q0hqvdbaJ4PdxEcKwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 397px; height: auto;"><br>(Sandee ready to visit the mosque)<br><br></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_dc2_7aa0_8e74_bfa3" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-jixqvwah2Zw/XIqxW8gQpsI/AAAAAAACnCo/jHdRmVZpGr8jX7JA8mdNgQ6cVgwHQrFqQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 467px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Every hall in the mosque is different)</div></div><div><br><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_142a_a6fd_d73b_2a51" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Qu4aKItm2DM/XIqxXajPndI/AAAAAAACnCs/IyPtnQCI9TY2xv0iAhzfY4z3BKRvu1LLQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 417px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(The big courtyard flooring is magnificently decorated)</div><div><br></div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_cfa0_ae73_62ef_ed04" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-phWl55x2RKA/XIqxX3kRnOI/AAAAAAACnCw/kinRz-j_LYAhfq60J3Vp87cNFUJ2xP8iQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 449px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(The outer hall leading to the grand prayer hall) </div><br><img id="id_4b18_5081_c08_1c2f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-3yHEo9seXps/XIqxYKDxd8I/AAAAAAACnC0/hsdLZ1iJtSkvAT8NcIjk0xgqbFethBqyQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 460px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(The main prayer hall can host 7000 worshippers on its carpeted floors </span></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">lit up by 7 Swarovski chandeliers dotted with 40 million crystals)</span></div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_ebdd_c4fa_6a92_ffa8" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-20TvS3dP9Xs/XIqxYt5G8iI/AAAAAAACnC4/eR3kHsKALzUXBPKsu5AEXpsDuJ652JhCwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 392px; height: auto;"></div><div><br></div><div style="text-align: center;">( above and below a few more pictures)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><img id="id_f6f7_21d6_e51c_1839" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-9uKMLqxgz3U/XIqxZGHOMoI/AAAAAAACnC8/_AGd0dUd7tMJi6pzi8-4lPGIWCrpVN5pwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 458px; height: auto;"><br><br><br><span style="font-size: x-large;">We never spoke with an Emirati although we sighted them in upscale hotels and restaurants or being driven around in cars that are unaffordable for anybody but the one tenth of one hundredth of the world population.</span></div><div><font size="5">Fun fact: when you arrive with your work permit in hand to live here and have another “slave” called realtor find you a home, you will find at closing that you are handed 2 sets of keys: one for the home you bought and one for the free car that comes with the home ranging in value depending on how much you paid for your home, like from a Mini Cooper to a Mercedes or a Bentley.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_bf7b_6afc_edf9_2311" src="https://drive.google.com/uc?id=1SNXQBO6gRgxmcdpmKqhI5A2nZkIrdtV9" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"><span style="text-align: center;">(Desert Rose, see below explanation)</span></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_dc28_e736_a209_1f06" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-yyokrkGYvfs/XIqxZfGXVWI/AAAAAAACnDA/_dNkhvYkIM8OkBI3FPU4601M9AMYru4_wCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"><br>(desert rose a 250 year old crystallized sand formation, as shallow salt basins dried up and gypsum deposits, sand and salt clumped together and dried into these very fragile rosette like formations)<font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">A few of my thousand empty quarter pictures below </font><br><br><img id="id_a570_db35_cf7b_52ba" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-SQJIp19aaUM/XIqxZ_pTilI/AAAAAAACnDE/4Sqgb7KCVOcRq_tCfPVGvts7Ew91dln8wCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 485px; height: auto;"><br>(Color is the first impression accentuated by the dry heat of the day)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_1302_9d9b_d8a4_90a6" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-0sAjcPDha8A/XIqxaP1KeOI/AAAAAAACnDI/yddSZYNsL1srMYqf2asVDfGltaOcw3YLwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 556px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Camels can be found everywhere where a camel shepherd creates a homestead in the desert)</div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_6e57_af3e_7eb2_a2ae" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-ods1JIcUN2A/XIqxas6HFdI/AAAAAAACnDM/C-6pxyXp9XIJoN9ynu4uDBGfqacwoJhQwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 408px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Color defined by time of the day)</div><br><img id="id_c278_2f7a_5f31_d5ae" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-DK-dxqCKfho/XIqxbKXOXdI/AAAAAAACnDQ/1A-oQFbtuqUUBdKAJbAK1aEiFRQw2tU0wCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 544px; height: auto;"><br>(Sand patterns as only wind and sand can create together)<br><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_cc67_dd90_a5f7_294" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Klifk6jMu3c/XIqxbp9LgMI/AAAAAAACnDU/v-muXiPcb_c6PRV-mnSltpzfpigTs2ZYACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 514px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(It seems as nobody has been here before)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_63_601f_ea6b_e0dc" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-5Ee_4A_gb_4/XIqxb8-lR9I/AAAAAAACnDY/YS4TvkpRMYoUNgpvCEIf9KeZZMFuwdBxACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 482px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(A not so great picture of a hill we careened over sliding down creating a subsequent avalanche)</div><br><br><span style="font-size: x-large;">Back to my cluttered memories of Abu Dhabi:</span></div><div><font size="5">We booked a driver/guide for several hours to see Abu Dhabi. I’ll let the pictures do the talking, but the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque is going to be a lasting memory imprinted on our minds while visiting during sunset hours. We haven’t seen many mosques but I do believe this one must be considered one of the most beautiful.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><img id="id_68cd_8997_14ab_ef0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-7YQKXnc2KAU/XIqxcdzaOqI/AAAAAAACnDc/38Rhdv6-fUoGv-MsghOHpEiGFluouHHtgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"></span></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Only nature can create this for me to picture)</div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">We also had an e</font><span style="font-size: x-large;">xpensive lunch at the Emirates Palace, just to be able to wander through its halls and gardens.</span></div><div><br></div><div><img id="id_f01b_6321_a702_87b2" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-O6cXJnDs1Dk/XIqxcrI5oEI/AAAAAAACnDg/8jTJlS7P7kIXAdQwrfI4k1UqyjYpx92nwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Can not resist to give you a few more)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><img id="id_81ee_4672_2a35_f235" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-D1Ldjw0r3uA/XIqxdMdbNqI/AAAAAAACnDk/nq1PTW6DZ0kGytTPei3p7zl3lCbzu2I7wCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"></span></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">The most memorable event was our private day trip to the Rub al-Khali or Empty Quarter desert which covers 25 percent of the Arabian peninsula, creating the largest continuous body of sand in the world, or so I am told.</font></div><div><font size="5">Just let me to say, “being there” is the experience of a lifetime that pictures can not ever convey. Thanks to our guide Karim for an unforgettable day as we slalom</font><span style="font-size: x-large;">ed our way through the sand creating avalanches.</span></div><div><img id="id_b0f7_8a6f_56c6_ec74" src="https://drive.google.com/uc?id=16YfqX3vXLx95cHZHBgbBtOAih_YRACp0" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"><br><span style="text-align: center; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(</span><span style="text-align: center;">I hope this shot gives you the idea of endlessness - a desert that stretches onwards and onwards)</span></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><b>DUBAI</b></font></div><div><img id="id_fce1_37fb_55f8_2a04" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-jBoEw8eqBhM/XIqxdiEduUI/AAAAAAACnDo/-haVpFTMmlcAI27GgfwlRMjD0lo4M3OygCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 333px; height: auto;"><br>(Burj Khalifa at night - all 828m/2717ft of it)</div><div><br></div><div><font size="5">Did you know it takes 36 window cleaners 3 months to wash the building with its 160 floors and 46 more levels that cannot be occupied.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_9593_3c0a_c23f_6406" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-lEWSvhGO5kc/XIqxd8C6tZI/AAAAAAACnDs/4cVlnKRt-ug351uRlfuNpjuH4hp-IWRfQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 500px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Nr 2 famous building the Burj Al Arab)</div><br><img id="id_ffd6_d029_3ac6_da80" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Vf0mIVqlaFk/XIqxeShIaPI/AAAAAAACnDw/s07UyW-OszQYJ8OiZ8KYRaqMEeQdugu9wCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 511px; height: auto;"><br>(Atlantis the Palm on Crescent road, the top road of the man made island The Palm)<br></div><div><br></div><div><font size="5">The seven emirates are still being governed individually and generate their own income. Dubai being less oil rich has a major portion of its income from luxury tourism with glitzy hotels and over 70 shopping malls, including the largest in the world which houses the Dubai aquarium, and hopes to host over 65 million tourists next year.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_626f_88db_a719_dbce" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-f2G5ViXFsQE/XIqxe6sNLFI/AAAAAAACnD0/rZbZLjAs-0oVyRdG0WA8aR7oAw3Mp-GJQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 426px; height: auto;"><br>(Sandee riding the Metro in the women’s section)<br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_1651_504a_3b6b_baf0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-l-hfUjTJIEY/XIqxfTztBJI/AAAAAAACnD4/z0hFz9TAimsaxyEMdru9jnZJhcJpbwy0ACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 380px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(The Dubai Mall, 1200 stores on 5.4 million sq ft/ 1/2 million sq m)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><img id="id_9693_5860_fbd4_3af6" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-8qSl6hEN1a4/XIqxftYPFCI/AAAAAAACnD8/E_0Ck3UkovAvpSohZMrPCLmPHIDe3dagwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 441px; height: auto;"><br>(Construction never stops in Dubai personally overseen by </div><div>Sheikh Muhammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum ruler of Dubai and VP of the UAE)</div><div><br></div><div><font size="5">Our taxi ride from Abu Dhabi to Dubai brought the reality of regional governments to light, when just before the almost invisible border our taxi driver got into the last gas station before crossing into Dubai to fill up. He explained that he could not get gas on his company card in Dubai and he could not pick up any customers in Dubai as his license was only valid in Abu Dhabi and that the same applies to the Dubai taxis.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_c032_cb9d_8598_4943" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-emBxazVdmNI/XIqxgNpSHHI/AAAAAAACnEA/nYrRGv1XIcIO0WRRvFDXI3HFk0fIiRbzACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 534px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Beach life in Dubai, if you peer closely you will find bikinis in this very Islamic city; </div><div style="text-align: center;">A tourist city has to a tolerate certain “unpleasantness”)</div><br><img id="id_a8b1_4f0e_a706_1a4e" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-gLqiG5qSy-I/XIqxgWeEI8I/AAAAAAACnEE/aHXzQbwJkfQrES3xBQx_iWqIkH2G3eZvACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 395px; height: auto;"><br>(Dubai street view)<br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_8e95_a10f_bcd4_4729" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-C4XGE7emkAE/XIqxg_pDxJI/AAAAAAACnEI/x4RfZIKWerYabb_bARNlqXbMKHqxi8elQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 359px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Burj Khalifa by day towering over the Dubai Mall, which houses the aquarium and a little zoo)</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><br></span></div><div style="text-align: right;">A </div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_e34f_8dd5_3545_91ea" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-uX9N6ZE7C-M/XIqxhTlLqWI/AAAAAAACnEM/OjVjxvY1zj0UgJOKBXZB-Kbbsc5VDYmEwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 388px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(A rare thing I learned there: the Al Farooq Omar Bin Al Khattab mosque above</div><div style="text-align: right;"> wishes to preach the meaning of tolerance)</div></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">We took 2 days of hop on hop off to make the most of getting to see Dubai and rode the metro enjoying the fact that the domed walkways are all air-conditioned. The metro has a women only section where Sandee first thought she had to be seated and glared at me as I put my shoe over the line into that area while keeping my body out of it. Later we realized that each train does have cars where men and women can ride together. </font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div>(Below pictures of the aquarium in the Dubai mall and also in the Palm hotel)</div><div><br></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_1c85_bcf5_ff9c_2369" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-7PRg1mh8m24/XIqxh0JNrPI/AAAAAAACnEQ/-I06rzJT5aIse3NHfSGj-I8snvhfzMUcgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 360px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(A picture of whole aquarium walls inside buildings)</div><br><img id="id_f20a_64d1_8867_bdda" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-_8f0qV-XEno/XIqxiDlCXAI/AAAAAAACnEU/CtcjRWT_3pwXGzkQOhvYR8uh1wT_j1dCACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 410px; height: auto;"><br>(Above and below pictures of the aquaria we visited in Dubai)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_2fbf_4f40_8993_60e1" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-43ANW-KpsfA/XIqxiabdt_I/AAAAAAACnEY/gL-4pjY-GUo8oPmMnQMHW3qQ3QX2QWSPwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 461px; height: auto;"></div><div><br></div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_7155_4a92_1284_94df" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-JRzZNuv8PmU/XIqxi9_iqpI/AAAAAAACnEc/UwoqewY994YcWD01IxAWr_cgzNP9YShUACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 556px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(This guy likes to get dry sometimes)</div><br><img id="id_99b8_89cd_ddb2_de4f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-3UWeOFcGmLg/XIqxjddTtBI/AAAAAAACnEg/vsCen4sya2ocjonV6KIkp6YscEKKCB7yACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 522px; height: auto;"><br><br><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_9e34_a5c5_7c26_8130" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-IWI8nfaGb5k/XIqxjnzHRPI/AAAAAAACnEk/SrVbQr4XIUU8KCUw3TItp71wSJDoRVN8QCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 395px; height: auto;"></div><div><br></div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_5819_d4ec_97ea_4e9e" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-4D4iNSwoFes/XIqxkANDorI/AAAAAAACnEo/pvg1uYIy_-4eJ7uOM7RUwLhA2YKw2DCXQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 561px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Parrots were loud and combative with each other to have the trainers attention)</div><br><img id="id_9660_1887_a2c4_b3ee" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-6ePA1ny4lTY/XIqxkx5QPrI/AAAAAAACnEs/K44k6FZbsWcsNLPNSPzhu2i6n7OpwBw2ACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 524px; height: auto;"><br><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">I hope the pictures will, as always, do the talking better than my ramblings. </font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_8717_d91c_8984_9535" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-0z6yOQ9J6R4/XIqxlb94RkI/AAAAAAACnEw/hCjsG_R82So59CPfpDCvfO9SnpdWGhNvACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">(Dubai city views are often hazy because of the desert sand in the air)</div><br><img id="id_9cb0_e277_e753_520f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-iwwY922ieAg/XIqxlgAt2rI/AAAAAAACnE0/FpM8lkfDVcsNkVeO4d2Zop9JPwfrjohzQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">(Evening sunset view from our Abu Dhabi hotel towards the Persian gulf)</div><br><br><img id="id_166e_e8cc_a839_7816" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-QsSfyDPgTq8/XIqxmBPbzAI/AAAAAAACnE4/xT62jjTVIHY18EUDtGRzwwnPLYeWvjOkgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">(Another view at Burj Al Arab)</div></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div></div>Two retirees and their travel storieshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13942287905877288793noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9052023657534142840.post-62929224264653151712018-08-25T15:04:00.001-04:002018-08-25T15:04:45.791-04:00Marrakech<div><img id="id_2bae_77e1_8856_a210" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-0Aojg90kle4/W4B4IGCpDBI/AAAAAAACK_w/bQVuz34VDWcKT4eZYoekmfuBb0BulxLwwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">(Famous Central Plaza named Jemaa el-Fnaa, almost empty because it is Ramadan)</div></div><font size="5"><div><font size="5"><br></font></div>“What is this?” Sandee shows me a Dutch Groupon ad touting 5 days in Marrakech for 499 Euro, flight, hotel and breakfast for 2 included.</font><div><font size="5"><br></font><div><img id="id_eedb_4606_1fdf_6bb8" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-AascI6GRKQU/W4B4IEguUiI/AAAAAAACK_k/ozb5ZSJxwfU-L-EuLSsqV7jUDnxAupBAACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 309px; height: auto;"><br> (alley leading to our Riad Amira)<br><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_c297_de00_3e25_3b52" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-jSydYz8lWoE/W4B4IHlxI3I/AAAAAAACK_s/KcBaTMwLzH8EGNvmYNvUzZxMdemulUDxACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 261px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Roads have beautiful doors)</div></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">One of the nice things about living in Amsterdam is the nearness of lots of destinations at very reasonable rates. But in the scheme of things this offer was really cheap.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_c219_1172_3b4a_c099" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-v7a5Tz1i2VQ/W4B4ILcxcDI/AAAAAAACK_o/PJE6L95U6xgq8dfGRojrBpzs6ZtJvQNDACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 264px; height: auto;"><br>(our room with a view at the shower)<br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_e854_7703_5917_6101" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-wmyq8Zx9V1E/W4B4IINy_TI/AAAAAAACK_4/jRimxL4NfqMAU5ysMvrpqq_JiWZqAVbqQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 308px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Our bed in the really narrow room)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">So off we went very early on a Tuesday from Schiphol with thousands of other vacationers in a departure hall specifically earmarked for destination airlines with names nobody ever heard of to more than 50 different destinations in Europe and Northern Africa, snaking our way to check-in and then to security.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_548_96a8_7291_320a" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-5EPC96_eXrw/W4B4IB1vdAI/AAAAAAACK_0/5DjsWeIpXPIAh0Ijcir63hDKrk5TNMuuwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 509px; height: auto;"><br>(Every Riad has an inner courtyard with pool and functioned as breakfast room)<br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_ecfd_edd3_c446_d9a6" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-67B2o3hKXpY/W4B4ItF8F-I/AAAAAAACK_8/oCbgROynatQTltpiMkMUn8e_egsU3SMnQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 470px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(The rooftop functions as lounge in the evening)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">On flights like this one, where a return ticket is less than a 100 Euro, one has to pay for seats, checked luggage, food and drinks, but in less than 3 to 4 hours we arrived, compliments of the tour organization, as touted in the Groupon ad, at the door of our Riyadh, a typical Moroccan B&B within the walled city, also named Medina, with, in this case, 7 rooms that all look out at an inner courtyard with the typical wading pool and a rooftop yard from where one can spot the other rooftops.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_3a6f_b46_9903_370" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-HqDKhwGapp8/W4B4JGCH1QI/AAAAAAACLAE/0c73Aq6vtZ8Lq8gAQY3CWPtTJh541d0RQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 391px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Ramadan shows empty streets. The days after Ramadan this street was chaotic)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_6294_78e4_bea0_1143" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-U46IGvgDEFs/W4B4JvEbvnI/AAAAAAACLAM/TWmhNSMCKvoUvOTMk2I_HduRv_Nu5RpqgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 442px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"> (Typical Marrakech street scene)</div><br><img id="id_1b1d_50a7_64cb_9afc" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-rlyvIBXqgbY/W4B4K72KroI/AAAAAAACLAI/2dEGjwXQ0iwrMcJ4QQr6uAK6oqc1Num3ACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">(Everything in this walled town is ochre coloured)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Marrakech, also known as the Ochre City, lies in the center of the country on a high arid plateau, dominated to the south by the High Atlas Mountains. This is Berber country, which population are the original tribal habitants of this country north of the Sahara. Berbers were the nomads in the stories of camel caravans and oasis living. The name Berber was given to them by the invading Arab tribes who brought Islam to these parts. They call themselves Amazighs or “free people”. They had no cities in those pre- Islamic days since they were living as nomadic tribes.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_1b19_224b_ef7c_6b1f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-dzAJ9YYMDqk/W4B4KwLgk0I/AAAAAAACLAA/esf_k0ua8pYVD6rPbBBrx0YJSmZ4HQEhgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 311px; height: auto;"><br>(Berber hospitality in the Atlas Mountains)<br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_335d_2d29_351b_ba9e" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Pt5np0h3Kac/W4B4La2duJI/AAAAAAACLAQ/b0sBtfgT82gE0swn6mdOg8fpSVrtI-kswCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 366px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Chicken potato olives and lemon dish in a Berber mountain village)</div><img id="id_93a3_4d42_5a4b_5a26" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-_MEZmLFoULI/W4B4N44Ai4I/AAAAAAACLAo/x976xw5ByyIjhc3p1aibXTCYFqLq7JLywCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 315px; height: auto;"><br>(Sandee on her way to a mountain top village)<br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_d989_5ec_6b71_d4d0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-KqrcO7ncMbM/W4B4MmJrT2I/AAAAAAACLAY/4NiUapPIQU0SnP6yDQC18u6oq_2BNK6UQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 225px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(A lot of people go to that village)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_b044_babe_751e_aebd" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-QHhqsi2C57g/W4B4MjU5aCI/AAAAAAACLAU/Vmje9jLx118W0lsjBuwW84gLR5JiEeT3wCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 319px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(After the mule trip it is still quite a climb on foot)</div></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">So after thousand of years of Berber tents, Marrakech was built as a Berber capital around the year 1000 by the “Islam spreading tribes” from the east, who subjugated the “free people” and built fortresses in order to control their newly gained domain, creating an empire that spread from Mauritania on the southern side of the Sahara to the southern cities of Spain and Portugal.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_5647_fb94_ca64_9d74" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-rOtOX2KYvTk/W4B4NiRcw4I/AAAAAAACLAc/-cQjXX3PNgQQHuSZSvQWl6Z9XUl4MBCLACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 400px; height: auto;"><br>(The souk in Marrakech is full of these narrow alleys terrorized by scooters)<br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_eed9_2ce_495e_3383" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-iViI1gEdz-w/W4B4NhUGd2I/AAAAAAACLAg/DqNrhizaJYcCDDPIeycwnAfe6z5pFwezgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 366px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(A restaurant courtyard)</div><img id="id_d9fe_190a_cf78_30b3" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-ZWnHlX5W9iA/W4B4N-NqJcI/AAAAAAACLAk/TP9ZJVD8FBsMR8pO_oXnQ07weVSzOz5CQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 320px; height: auto;"><br>(An empty alley in the Medina because of Ramadan)<br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Exploring this red clay walled city full of red clay housing was our first mission. Beau a son of our friend Jane, who lives in Marrakech, had provided us with very useful info on where to go, what to see and what to do. So lunch within striking distance of our Riyadh was easy to find and our first Moroccan couscous meal was devoured. </font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_e384_2296_391d_b60d" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-SA6JuTYt2n8/W4B4QQNqfaI/AAAAAAACLA8/AM7xE0kp7P8ESguFKL8rEY2GVd3bIz5IgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 350px; height: auto;"><br>(Beautiful dish at expensive restaurant in Marrakech: La Mamounia)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_fea5_5b8a_b9e3_6004" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-ugd4am_CUvI/W4B4QU463_I/AAAAAAACLA0/kJMmPEoYZ9YPunQwt_NPnUHggrFpCpPEQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 385px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(la Fassia restaurant)</div><img id="id_86a2_8bb0_8f3b_3935" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-S4M8PyI65kw/W4B4QPmbC7I/AAAAAAACLAs/OfsWwbbIVncE-v5O2cLvzZ6gcUXd7zj3ACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 396px; height: auto;"><br>(La Fassia gardens where we heard the cannon booms ending Ramadan)<br><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">Moroccan dishes are world famous for their robust flavors, as they are spiced with the spoils of a long Berber trading history, trudging their camels through the desert sand bringing to their homeland “foreign” flavors such as cumin, saffron, turmeric, ginger, paprika, cardamom, peppers and cinnamon.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_554b_6251_1d4e_a8a" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-EjulBkxoqDM/W4B4QG5lRUI/AAAAAAACLAw/dtwuh74QFEY6bRKwjkfIrquDgb3I7IL6gCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 394px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: left;">(Fatima our cooking school instructor)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_4e99_1ff0_ecf4_e28b" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-GofNrJGZFak/W4B4QTo7ZnI/AAAAAAACLA4/ICPradEYVeQddamB669M3qJ0yTx0OU6jACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="text-align: center; width: 417px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Food stalls in the Marrakech souks, which we visited with Fatima)</div><div><br></div><div><img id="id_a299_4f4_1333_5133" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Wtvz-2b7aHU/W4CDlmIB5kI/AAAAAAACLCg/PWj-E2tejGETwaM4tFt9WNKrMbphYpd1gCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 543px; height: auto;"><br>(Spices and Herbs stalls: note viagra for women, herbs to smile, rouge for berbers only?)<br><br></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_ba7a_79c0_15e5_841f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-We8oacsE2L4/W4CDlmqwMGI/AAAAAAACLCo/hW4CaBFnmjIKA1d2PcjwhviUBPshTF_GACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 426px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Our chicken supplier)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_d7b1_c926_621d_ce09" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-oI8uFxkAvuM/W4CDlsAB9CI/AAAAAAACLCc/xqgHqT1Mpe8YuJJ0F4NGc9loSylgrZeUwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 387px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(The chosen victim for lunch)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><img id="id_c1c9_819d_cc92_89a9" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Yk8WLyIYy7A/W4CDllv7wLI/AAAAAAACLCk/UHEAipjXuwAkhQ2FB_xZfwmKdHYQA8OhgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 438px; height: auto;"><br>(The protein pen of waiting for slaughter chickens)<br><br></div><span style="font-size: x-large;">As self described foodies, we had to take a cooking class while there and bring home a variety of spice blends like Ras el Hanout. And of course dine out at places famous for their local dishes.</span></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_821e_8dbf_1481_a909" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-BUkbhLw-Wdc/W4B4Ufk3u4I/AAAAAAACLBo/TB64vePP1vwfgL7X4wKGo_gZ8NWX6H4wQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 437px; height: auto;"><br>(Another souk shot)<br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_f7b8_a218_bea2_9c51" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-tLdovm-p6j4/W4B4UC9hRSI/AAAAAAACLBQ/pMnNw9Lfe9oJEfrdzsyX7tSEfR3eNRpSgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 464px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Jemaa el-Fna plaza during Ramadan we had coffee watching people go by)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_f230_ea50_bfe6_b0d4" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-3FIO0fK0ruA/W4B4UFYZD0I/AAAAAAACLBY/5ttw9BDCbbwFn8oLu57ONMbARy_wWBNDgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 396px; height: auto;"></div><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">But before we get there, let’s describe Sandee’s disastrous after lunch Souk visit. We ambled direction </font><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><font size="5">Jemaa el-Fnaa central square famous for day and night entertainment for tourists and locals alike. The gigantic plaza is surrounded by souks, a myriad of narrow alleys, where all the vendors are having their stalls. </font></span></div><div><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><font size="5"><br></font></span></div><div><img id="id_5633_2eb_9f0c_ec82" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-ROcKK3oLX7A/W4B4TbG8M_I/AAAAAAACLBE/Isjvg8DBzSM7CGxcWK958lTWNILBNGDrgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 327px; height: auto;"><br>(Bahia palace-the name means Brilliance</div><div> walkway around inner courtyard)<br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_c6b4_326d_cf03_b21c" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-tdE3vnSl-aI/W4B4TyiQgdI/AAAAAAACLBI/c6bG8JiUVPs1NOnJESs3r-81M7zZmXbrACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 440px; height: auto;"></div>(Bahia palace ceilings - just magnificent)<br><img id="id_ea04_d504_8aec_ff41" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Ifneg4i02i4/W4B4UGT61gI/AAAAAAACLBM/FbvA6iZmyQc4KtyWXZAm3Sn5DEmhLOKOQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 396px; height: auto;"><br><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_8bc7_8866_2f75_a4e4" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Ca-_bWQKjic/W4B4VavaHNI/AAAAAAACLBU/4Wi-_B0TL94JRuh83KTvieapfsMmj81pgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 294px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(View of the gardens from Harem area)</div><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><font size="5"><br></font></span></div><div><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><font size="5">Before entering the souk area we visited the Bahia palace. The pictures of this now palace museum will not do it justice. An hour or so later, about 3 or 4 pm we ambled through the souks, where unfortunately one has to constantly jump aside as scooters race up to your butt before one knows it, which makes Sandee crazy. </font></span></div><div><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><font size="5"><br></font></span></div><div><img id="id_dfb9_2224_d8ca_fcdd" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-P-AOQ-WHARA/W4B4WjJTfTI/AAAAAAACLBk/wbVer_7EMqc1uuvJjn_JgHVFAhcE03w8gCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 423px; height: auto;"><br>(Bahia fountain)</div><div>(The 8000 sq m. Bahia Palace was built at the end of the 19th century by the grand vizier of the sultan for himself and his wives and concubines. The grand vizier or chamberlain to the sultan was actually starting his life as a black slave but rose through the ranks to power.) <br><div style="text-align: right;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><img id="id_bfd_b0d8_9829_db46" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-E2OcPkNR8kE/W4B4WoeEKfI/AAAAAAACLBc/LG2AFAz8j0kKaZ-B_sRfcAWbf4SmRCw_wCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="text-align: start; width: 426px; height: auto;"></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"> (Another Bahia courtyard)</div><span style="font-size: x-large; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><div><span style="font-size: x-large; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><br></span></div>As we saw the plaza open up to us, Sandee asked me to stand still, so she could get her iPhone to make a picture and then she discovered my backpack unzipped and her iPhone gone.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_f5f3_a6e7_5a8f_1777" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-hAoYVUFckbw/W4B4Wnd5OOI/AAAAAAACLBg/JFreHSnKhl8PGDeMfiTCIxFS_VhBApKfwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 354px; height: auto;"><br>(The famous blue majorelle gardens in Marrakech, built by Louis Majorelle in the 1920’s purchased by Yves St Laurent and his life companion Pierre Berger. The walled in villa complex and gardens served Yves place of inspiration for his women empowering clothing line)<br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_4727_ec01_556b_aa3e" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Y0AojdC7k4I/W4B4XtTw1pI/AAAAAAACLB0/fSP48iyDF_4lSJupQhc2TFAK3GQiGO_9wCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 394px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(The villa is now a museum about the couple)</div><img id="id_dfab_98f7_495f_4904" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-tm9BZVSz09c/W4B4XVXk2PI/AAAAAAACLBs/mejR4rnUiBkhWlf_B52Xi9aH16RjMuhFgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">(Water and plants brings tranquility)</div><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><font size="5"><br></font></span></div><div><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><font size="5">After the futile dashing around to spot the thief, we returned in haste to our Rhiyad where the staff arranged for the police to come (and they came with 5 of them) to make a report. A bureaucratic effort to appease tourists who by the way sign their name for the veracity of their statement under a written in Arabic document.</font></span></div><div><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><font size="5"><br></font></span></div><div><img id="id_8489_16fe_e5d2_36af" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-1fJ2RDpgwyc/W4B4Xv7kOFI/AAAAAAACLBw/VQs06XcTkKcZmJXJ7OAY8HKar_7BXEB7QCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 326px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Lemon trees bring that flavor to most of the Berber dishes)</span></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_f0ab_3f06_2327_67e7" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-csGJidTgSD8/W4B4XmSEECI/AAAAAAACLB4/0A-PkL_LznQNMiV_hmAJTor3VsQTYdWXACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 392px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Goats seeking it higher up)</div><img id="id_759b_758b_9c31_4076" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-ndU7LRb1L-8/W4CDmZS4NCI/AAAAAAACLCs/LkjOBGeG-McCDGH6YaqSoZad2FiX0MzWACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 340px; height: auto;"><br>(So do the storks)<br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_c452_4e46_9948_b211" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-tW8GpUwhD68/W4CDmwl1JkI/AAAAAAACLCw/4Pt-7R3ezGcK6uiiP-02PE_zMzLX2laOACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 473px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Another plaza and again “Ramadan empty”. Not eating during the day does stymie activity) </div><img id="id_fdd_9de2_f923_7184" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-KjkWMOMkV8A/W4CDnQ2lTUI/AAAAAAACLC0/82sIt_4gyLYMeoPP3YHlmRhogZcZopoogCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 491px; height: auto;"><br>(Classic inner courtyard hotel view)<br><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><font size="5"><br></font></span></div><div><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><font size="5">We did not see the central plaza until the third day and realized it was rather empty and not as bustling as described, because we visited Marrakech on the last days of Ramadan and the 99.9 percent of Muslims here were more exhausted than ever, eagerly awaiting at home or half asleep in their stalls the cannon booming announcement of the end of their fasting, which occurred on the forelast night of our visit, while dining in one of their more renowned local restaurants Al Fassia in a beautiful well-lit garden setting.</font></span></div><div><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><font size="5">The next two days we found out how antlike busy the Medina is when normal life takes to the streets again.</font></span></div><div><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><font size="5"><br></font></span></div><div><img id="id_3043_2b71_b0e1_988c" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-VP0G7pJP5ik/W4CDo1mh6OI/AAAAAAACLDA/QKc0rNEslw4e7xGEcHiKBujG6RHHrHOQwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 405px; height: auto;"><br>(Our excursion to the sea town of Essouaria shows the main industry: fishing. Although going on these little ones onto the Atlantic Ocean?)<br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_664c_c131_2607_1a88" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-D0gdb4RN-5Y/W4CDo8UAzCI/AAAAAAACLC4/18YAUz7YgdM3MUDLt26hGWDJB8hI_PRlACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 493px; height: auto;"></div><br><img id="id_2211_d599_1515_39cc" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-V-VXHmdhX6o/W4CDoybJkgI/AAAAAAACLC8/8iUVp2ONT1Qqf5b4-LAPqqQjtwfFCnNjwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 406px; height: auto;"><br>(Essouaria is a walled city, formally a slave trade depot)<br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_2a7a_ff4f_d600_c5a7" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-eZ5K8h6ugkg/W4CDo9gKJ-I/AAAAAAACLDE/OQcw27oBHgcIbVpM9AXIIO7AMLPwp91eACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 538px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Blue and white are the city colors)</div><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><font size="5"><br></font></span></div><div><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><font size="5">We took 2 of our 5 days, 1 day trips to the Atlas Mountains and to the seaside city of Essaouira, the respective stories of each to be read below the pictures.</font></span></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_e07b_1bd1_2f94_6d38" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/--qwE_GUnR8g/W4CDpoIWA9I/AAAAAAACLDI/YeoLqObxPlk4YsS7nkq_dGNehtMLHUOCgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 364px; height: auto;"></div>(The Atlas Mountains are providing Amethyst and Agate)<br><img id="id_ee71_6a73_8b06_2e93" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-i-CBModnhDU/W4CDpwIHDiI/AAAAAAACLDM/TOKJ3v82h-QKphVn4-hP3I2sg4PhkfZdgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 327px; height: auto;"><br><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_5154_5c83_7b9b_179f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-U0QazG6KE18/W4CDqVAzDLI/AAAAAAACLDQ/AqjvWDVsvVobTYXCelwlr9KKuzL5iFQrwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 341px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Views of mountain trails and waterfalls in the Atlas Mountains)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_3994_d295_b95a_3383" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-DcATyugOWTQ/W4CDrMcQR5I/AAAAAAACLDU/uzGTgt2cn0AVtLkFkZLi6Fkm9blpURDNACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 371px; height: auto;"></div><br><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><font size="5"><br></font></span></div><div><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><font size="5">On the last day we took a cooking class done on the rooftop of a restaurant in the souks, by a lovely young lady named Fatima. She had us buy the ingredients, including the scrawny chicken, that featured in our chicken tajine. We also were introduced by her to a store owner of spices, who really tried to sell us the local oral “medicine” that would bring me virility, despite Sandee’s apparently unconvincing objections to its seeming need.</font></span></div><div><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><font size="5"><br></font></span></div><div><img id="id_9163_1d90_3a13_8727" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Gzxv2cELF5Y/W4CDr6YfvZI/AAAAAAACLDc/jptNnNfKPz8yuUjo9KeRbdKaAdVQDYGrgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 433px; height: auto;"><br>(Berber mountain forts and villages)<br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_d59e_ab39_f7d3_3d6" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-sOW-aT8-GaE/W4CDrk32ZwI/AAAAAAACLDY/a7wiVB70sHUlmwtGRkvmDHMQVYSiGa1nACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 540px; height: auto;"></div><br><br><br><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><font size="5">To end this story, dominated by Sandee’s bout of forced electronic withdrawal, as we had to return to the US before she could get a wireless provider replacement phone issued, we found that things could have been worse as told by two ladies we met in the airport, as we snaked our way to the passport booths. </font></span></div><div><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><font size="5"><br></font></span></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_2195_fcb9_405e_11c3" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-AggVKm57Kew/W4CJPN1IMrI/AAAAAAACLEA/3QqVFZ3960IUhDhr5tbMytCrS_KaVIvsQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 461px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(The blue and white seaside town has these flat wind resisting trees)</div></div><div><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><font size="5"><br></font></span></div><div><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><font size="5">We spotted a mother and daughter who sported blue Dutch passports instead of the maroon</font></span><span style="font-size: x-large; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"> colored ones eve</span><span style="font-size: x-large; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">rybody else carried.</span></div><div><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><font size="5">They on their first day in Marrakech had a scooter, manned by 2 villains, rip the backpack from the mother’s shoulder with all their documents, including passports, credit cards and cash, leaving them destitute behind.</font></span></div><div><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><font size="5"><br></font></span></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_12ea_1796_9f74_3ece" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-NyFu8ozpNE0/W4CJPEipVrI/AAAAAAACLD4/xPKKHBdqEa0dWbTLzBfjEHZ3Etrzg5DNACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 450px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Typical roadside butcher)</div><br></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">The fact that the 16 year old daughter carried her own smartphone, allowed them to contact daddy back in the Netherlands, who wired money and provided all required info to the Dutch embassy consular officer in Casablanca (a full day travel away from Marrakech), so he could issue them these temporary blue passports, which incidentally gave them extra bonus time with the passport officials at the airport, explaining their story, since they missed entry stamps</span></div><div><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_b240_b3b9_82bc_90c9" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-5gEejia6tD8/W4CJPMDOloI/AAAAAAACLD8/_EHPBbEw6zwGMAAHC5sWZuZ0E37tMOk9gCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 440px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;">(The Ramadan snooze)</span></div><div><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><font size="5"><br></font></span></div><div><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><font size="5">We felt so much better about our woos.</font></span></div><div><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><font size="5"><br></font></span></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_2630_bc98_48f9_48b6" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-DLAHMYEI9yw/W4CJPAyTHZI/AAAAAAACLEE/6VYhivHjuNcRZjJcaSFyS1Ve2pYRX9AvwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 383px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Even the crippled beggar snoozes so he doesn’t notice me)</div><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><font size="5"><br></font></span></div><br></div>Two retirees and their travel storieshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13942287905877288793noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9052023657534142840.post-84547207203725292922018-08-11T15:02:00.001-04:002018-08-11T16:29:18.348-04:00Egypt, Land of Light episode 2<div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_c719_2e2_7a4e_4e8f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-WwQxz5wgaGc/W28ya1jBCzI/AAAAAAACCNY/M0i8dzwfWi8Y52cq0eALOihmoKV7luFMQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Temple of Karnak in Luxor during our private night tour)</div></div><div style="font-size: x-large;"><font size="5"><br></font></div><font size="5">So we land at the airport of Luxor, in what in the days that we are studying on this trip, had the name Thebes, the administrative capital of upper Egypt.</font><div><font size="5">And here we board our floating hotel for the rest of our stay in Egypt.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: start;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><img id="id_51e8_4e18_b44d_28" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-YHCNBVEhRHI/W28ybKUtRpI/AAAAAAACCNc/16OAdONAt9Melgx13g1W5Ki1hWF-KLNfwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 362px; height: auto;"></span></div>(our first and most likely last camel ride)<br><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_a21a_dd78_5f70_8e7a" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-6RoTGrKq5ms/W28ybHJAhfI/AAAAAAACCNk/9TN7kBYjZ2g-0i1fhk6EyUt_Ji3rR31GQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 448px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Turning your back to the Karnak temple one </div><div style="text-align: center;">views the lit avenue of the Sphinxes which runs through the modern town of Luxor from Karnak to </div><div style="text-align: center;">the other side of town ending at the Luxor Temple)</div><br></div><div><font size="5">Unlike the area around Cairo, the center of the Old Kingdom, when Pharaohs built pyramids, we now find ourselves in the vicinity of the Valley of the Kings. We did visit the Valley of the Queens, although the story of ancient Egypt is normally about great pharaohs and that is about men with harems full of beautiful nubile women isn’t it? </font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_31b0_2a48_86c2_b13b" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-srxUrUM6zOw/W28ybH4V-SI/AAAAAAACCNg/oYaJVQryrhgQWNqWh5vkundluSZ6iEPtwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 330px; height: auto;"><br>(Inside the temple of Karnak one finds a modern mosque</div><div>built on the ruins of Karnak)<br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_e5f7_4126_d113_5381" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-7bQjx7tBT8w/W28ybAl-6-I/AAAAAAACCNo/snyJsBzTNbgQ8ToLl75dWfCmQBB_p9k7wCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 378px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;"> (The vestibule with 18 meter high columns)</div></div><div><font size="5">Actually, not really. It is a little known fact that men and women in ancient Egypt were considered equal under the law, meaning women could also own property, run businesses and employ men and start divorce procedures if they so chose. Although, that did not change the fact that society was dominated by men as it still is today. </font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_711_4fc6_c13f_cbf6" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-hVGj6opK8GA/W28ybNT0hzI/AAAAAAACCNs/GnihRG5cbSMmhtsP6G4E67t8sKjF8i5JQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 724px; height: auto;"><br>(Those thousands of years old colors are amazing, depicting Amun-Ra receiving offerings from Rameses II)</div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_7d00_89c1_e54_976" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-GghYc5iV2Ds/W28ybqN_qfI/AAAAAAACCN4/LydmASbiwfccXO1NN4Iqk8JP1SZfeAZdwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 621px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Iconic night view of the Temple of Luxor with the town of Luxor on the background. This temple was more dedicated to kings rather than to Gods. The Ramesesses ritualized themselves here and many kings got crowned here)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_6552_37a6_62f1_6ff3" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-x2db4HvFzaA/W28ybudJPkI/AAAAAAACCN0/IzlLbnYOFz8D5USJJkRJ0HTsA3PZnlTCQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 432px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Talking about glorifying Kings: Rameses II slaying his enemies, blessed by Amun-Ra)</div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><font size="5"><br></font></div><div style="text-align: center;"><font size="5">History also tells the tales of powerful women assuming the position of Pharaoh. Egyptians preferred women with the noble blood of the dynasty over men not belonging to the royal blood line, because royal blood was divine and thus had “god status”.</font></div><div style="text-align: center;"><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_826_4114_a40_3aa" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-aqwXGuJfW24/W28yb3OHH5I/AAAAAAACCN8/DrJPccOHmjYNUjTnw6ORf97gSJr8IjnMwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 334px; height: auto;"><br>(Above and below the rock temples of Abu Simbel a Nubian village at the West Bank of Lake Nasser, from which they were saved through relocation to higher grounds. A massive UNESCO project)<br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_4266_ab72_16cd_d419" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-YWNidTZ3aXU/W28ycY9sTnI/AAAAAAACCNw/q48fvbQNMqYTfuL9e_8gWQ__NZe_GfGowCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 407px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Nefertari, the wife of Rameses II, as tall as he - a honor unheard of in those days)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Ancient Egyptians believed that the entire universe was made up of masculine and female elements, perfectly balanced by the Goddess Maat, who was surrounded by numerous deities such as the male earth god Geb, happily reclined on earth soil gazing upwards towards his star spangled sister Nut, who stretched herself high above the sky holding back the nightly forces of chaos and daily giving birth to the sun. Nut bore the deities Isis and Osiris. </font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_7c65_b508_2ef2_4149" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-_Pt5L2bcoe4/W28yc9QQmyI/AAAAAAACCOE/h822iTnjviwfG5YPo8hauVzGP0J5CrXXwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 334px; height: auto;"><br>(Grandiose entrance to a burial site in the Valley of the Kings)<br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_1bc6_df1e_d233_689" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-KeyJe1H5rt0/W28ydGLN_2I/AAAAAAACCOI/bG9mMbw_p846qaGJbwQtcRufaIX7mV2GACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 414px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(No more bending over to enter like in the pyramids up north)</div><img id="id_cec1_7779_619a_df55" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-VoTrFXkJkns/W28ydO2tkbI/AAAAAAACCOQ/7p-udZ9UNTYTWhOn0r5FZOUzA-bCQTCLwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 283px; height: auto;"><br>(Goddess blessing worker)<br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_4b5a_856e_78d3_fde3" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-iUg0X4iZubo/W28yeJZ3K7I/AAAAAAACCOM/-l-6mFSyzVguBJ1L9aSN1aq2Mtwf8QNRgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 409px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Anubis the keeper of the cemeteries sailing a king to the netherworld)</div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_a2e5_8143_b52a_600" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-u_5BsHl7rU8/W28yeAwX6pI/AAAAAAACCOA/FQMjRV9wrTU0yv_ljpuxZkeEGzb_C7ruQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 431px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;"> (The valley of the Kings complex almost devoid of tourists)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">The next chapter of the story is mostly about Isis who searches her slain twin brother, raises him from the dead and have him father their child Horus, seen in the form of a man with a falcon head, protector of the pharaohs. </font></div><div><img id="id_c458_cda7_b06e_51b9" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-JHamk_0wqNk/W28ye-EzdoI/AAAAAAACCOc/Uo67aWVrEjQzlyUArus8nv9WwqLNSfaVgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 365px; height: auto;"><br>(Monto the God of War in ancient Egypt)<br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_2dc1_fb9a_d14d_58d7" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-cacwQfe332E/W28ye3lGv8I/AAAAAAACCOY/Vx0ARbklQG8dSEzAuleLJMOfh4RJBMGIwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 460px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Hathour, one of the most famous goddesses, also called mistress of the sky.</div><div style="text-align: center;">The Greek compared her to Venus) </div><img id="id_bd08_270e_e674_b515" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-t7LMrCfVrAg/W28ye5xRt5I/AAAAAAACCOU/ujzz9MWhG2Ihu8DdMruASs1p0XE_IjP9wCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 261px; height: auto;"><br>(Meen, god of fertility; some jealous person</div><div> tried to make him less endowed)<br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_188f_c6d9_637e_cb9" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-W6_CL_Atf64/W28yfNDC6GI/AAAAAAACCOg/S6f_F31V6vsWsC4FbOoybcri2c9fgbWTgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 432px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Some ceilings have kept their original colors well)</div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_e261_d8c0_4e1_4c66" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-g-nD7BF1cvE/W28yfjKj4JI/AAAAAAACCOk/Iey2IBAJzYUKumxc0VPB2j-phHzIYAXUgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 342px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Temple of Luxor at night)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Actually Pharaohs were considered the human form of the god Horus and therefore a living God in their own right.</font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_cd32_a209_d1e0_b9a3" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-BZISkz9ZFfo/W28ygL811AI/AAAAAAACCOs/l8XjaxAT5ws68VZKkoUft5VgTKVz6o2ZQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 484px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(The grandest of female mortuary temples: the colonnaded temple of Hatshepsut</div><div style="text-align: center;">a warrior Pharaoh around 1500 BC)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Back to those few women who crashed the Egyptian glass ceiling. </font></div><div><img id="id_4642_6b4_bef8_8f10" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-bD3vmX7ZQWo/W28yh5csFaI/AAAAAAACCOo/Qa1stI70C4s6JdKW479fUSx-MG4ece3cwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 350px; height: auto;"><br>(Posing below Horus the Falcon God, </div><div>unifier of upper and lower Egypt)<br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_5b5b_78bc_9928_6460" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-hJ5sQGbN2Tw/W28yiHu6JVI/AAAAAAACCO0/USTOWcB-heYzhmRfQkVAI9-uM16dv1cDQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 401px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(God Anubis, the jackal, god of mummification)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_47b9_a99_c9d0_9f12" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-d_QwV02Fw94/W28yhzHY1TI/AAAAAAACCOw/ZV4pDMMgeEIM-0TXu2PbSgiLkg7LJpzHACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 448px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Have no clue what this means, </div><div style="text-align: right;">but woman on the left holds the instruments of governing)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Many a pharaoh’s daughter married a brother or half brother to become queen. But women who became Pharaoh such as the famous Cleopatra had qualities even their husband brothers (she was married to two brothers, </font><span style="font-size: x-large;">be it sequentially. To the first one she was a queen and the second one was her ceremonial spouse till both were killed) By the way with a hooked nose shallow forehead, pointed chin and thin lips, Elizabeth Taylor did her a disservice. It was her mind and cunning qualities that brought her to the fore. Enough about this tramp.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_c83c_e39d_c368_5b21" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-zA5pArLwMn8/W28yiClerbI/AAAAAAACCO4/Eh5I4nEdLxg7VHo85Oo041YFpL5fv5iRQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 402px; height: auto;"><br>(The camel ride was slow trudging through the desert, I think only tourists </div><div>do it this way nowadays)<br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_d856_9b6b_e7ce_f315" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-ryIlltuEY7g/W28yjECIVnI/AAAAAAACCPE/6GeW1y_x6w8YHNsvby6XIRxVtFQlc98zACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 405px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Water taxis have their own onboard store)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_aba5_ef52_120b_b09b" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-B2UmH45NiEY/W28yi7J2gqI/AAAAAAACCPA/dd2GFyg4P78ODXtN8DkZvr6br-pUA1FnACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 407px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Street scene of playing children in Nubian village)</div><img id="id_5984_ce57_52bc_8fcb" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-op6-mhmTohw/W28yi-LQtlI/AAAAAAACCO8/r44-OCdJZ_AK7faIhCq-MX3gs_dxHeV4ACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 421px; height: auto;"><br>(Everybody had to hold a crocodile while visiting Nubian village)</div><div><br></div><div><font size="5">Myself being married to a present day Pharaoh type woman as consort,(sorry Prince Philip, you are not the only one) might be the reason for my interest in these ancient ladies. And like Prince Philip: walking in her shadow, is the best thing a husband can wish for, because now all he needs to accomplish is making her happy.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_a706_7cb3_2083_c43a" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-xD_HmliPZEY/W28yjX1_ZCI/AAAAAAACCPI/ucOtxP_hWtU3EvF5r4rqGrmOxCfkYuvBgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 399px; height: auto;"><br>(Our guide Ahmed showing a colorful stove in Nubian home)<br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_1d45_1576_63f4_7270" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-97gQc9W_5Q4/W28yl2r4YgI/AAAAAAACCPc/1lf7zHsYOBcjn_hC9m_IWGVMoTC_sckiACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 412px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Only way to cross the Nile in Luxor: water taxi)</div><img id="id_7011_4aed_a6b4_90a2" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-L8G521z4nvE/W28ylFP43iI/AAAAAAACCPU/ACvPGkxgX0YQFtmT2THAkuPZzYNyllunwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 373px; height: auto;"><br>(Luxor tuk-tuk taxis, a concept that came from Thailand and </div><div>India, brought to Egypt in early 2000. Now they are everywhere)</div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_f00c_4485_683b_4006" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-CB-NoFiV8XI/W28ylODbiSI/AAAAAAACCPM/f0Wt639CTHUPh9C2lSGvb_XN20QtyP-kQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 454px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(As are motors, scooters and motorized three wheelers)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_c460_f289_ce8d_954d" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-bjGF6ImbsrQ/W28ylKpspGI/AAAAAAACCPQ/uCAfZ7BSSUU0BAUcx3PpKqh3HAVHcF9EACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 409px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(We were transported in horse driven carriages as tourists behoove.</div><div style="text-align: right;">Although some people ride for free) </div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">There were at least 7 female pharaohs that we know of like f.e. Nitocris around 2200 BC, who succeeded her slain brother the Pharaoh, by eliminating his killers and thus adversaries to the throne by inviting them to a feast in a underground hall she built for the occasion and then flooded the place while the feast was in full swing with Nile water. </span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_45ae_7b09_50c3_d5e2" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-oOS2mdBlyy0/W28ylp9EdWI/AAAAAAACCPY/miJ98HwZgyECyrTedPUoYrvBLGEbIPXEACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 371px; height: auto;"><br>(Our upper deck)<br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_5f92_a8ae_5a91_4299" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-7RFhlfEsZTU/W28ynYRCAbI/AAAAAAACCPs/xeB-AxNEKXAo0If26fpJMmfyeCcqEpC0QCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 427px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(A boatload of cackling girls and their electronics)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_83de_d825_4f26_9cbc" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-vyS9oqQIVW8/W28ynVYgruI/AAAAAAACCPg/zY9hdN71_-0-cnqruXf3mZNRBvhvCqWPACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 396px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Gary after an exhausting morning tour)</div><img id="id_62cc_51f4_9478_917c" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-ZujWpWqy5wk/W28ynZWf8KI/AAAAAAACCPk/C15I4NvJ0ho6bj5DVLJ4PatxjOLVqNSMACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 407px; height: auto;"><br>(Very, very early bus tour to Abu Simbel)<br><br></div><div><font size="5">Or Pharaoh Hatshepsut, whose beautiful tomb or better phrased mortuary temple is located in a different section of the valley of the Kings. She was married to a Pharaoh who made her a widow before her 30th birthday with a 3 year old for whom she became a regent. After about 3 years in that job she decided that her actual position should be Pharaoh and so she did and she ruled very successfully till in her mid fifties. She was the longest reigning female Pharaoh in history and Egypt fostered well during her reign as she avoided the male proclivity of warring and concentrated on architecture and trade. </font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_484f_c59a_179e_e5ef" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-dpAFW3UpLps/W28ynZOLOAI/AAAAAAACCPo/Lgb8w7Yix_8o7DpOMtu_IAvIcki-9XJTwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 361px; height: auto;"><br>(Lake Nasser)<br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_fcf3_6c24_a861_7049" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-vlKe97lj2pI/W28ypTq95oI/AAAAAAACCP4/Mb-jCKhJBEADsll4QbsqIgKgmvo5l06ogCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 387px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Luxor’s Mac Donald lit up at the river Nile embankment)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_6ff1_ca25_d0dd_b1b4" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-hAFUJ0r8zkc/W28yopzEnHI/AAAAAAACCP0/GC0mpSuoyZQ43hLPnXviFIqp8egfGAprwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 429px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(Traditional feluccas sailing the Nile) </div></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Why you ask, do you spend so many words on women pharaohs, who by the way wore during their formal moments all the paraphernalia of male pharaohs, such as the fake straight beard, the short kilt and crown, wrapping their breasts to hide their femininity</font><font size="5">. Hatshepsut even dropped</font><span style="font-size: x-large;"> the female ending of her name to Hatshepsu.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_478b_1dd6_96ae_9a58" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-QhG1uF-v43Y/W28yonMlfrI/AAAAAAACCPw/M3TWpYueihURqMHe_1ImSiVd6MjLK5JnQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 327px; height: auto;"><br>(President Mubarak started to build new towns in the desert </div><div>hoping to resettle people. Many of those are empty towns now along the road)<br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_b664_5410_d71a_4599" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-r3GYSak9V2w/W28yqkMaZJI/AAAAAAACCQI/94KOaLjEX3MblcRmwYM_qn1KJW69oQkHACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 354px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(View from Aswan Dam, South above, North below)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_f173_677f_110_894e" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-GH9OyvKNZCE/W28yqvATJ0I/AAAAAAACCQM/v7Lcg1PvVM0XcoSJXN8TikDeWqYd6PRZACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 360px; height: auto;"></div><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">She is remembered for the obelisks, she had constructed which can be seen in the temple of Karnak. She ordered the construction of the largest obelisk ever to be built, which unfortunately cracked while still in the quarry. We visited that unfinished work that would have weighed 1100 tons.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_2566_7957_ee2f_ede3" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-gQsS5nt_yLc/W28yqSbk0wI/AAAAAAACCQA/UIMAq7fmPZUYcR_Qmhr3ZQ70x7LWSM8KQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 434px; height: auto;"><br>(Queen Hatshepsu ordered the largest ever obelisk- 120 ft/36m high</div><div>and about 1100 tons n weight never left the quarry as it cracked there)<br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_41e4_d351_55ca_d5a8" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-CRAjRo5Kelk/W28yqRnEWNI/AAAAAAACCP8/F4SwbrqLpC4jAI3HUtobuu-gCjWnT6IXQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 459px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(The quarry is surrounded by today’s modern world encroaching on antiquity)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Her stepson who followed her as Pharaoh took up the military campaigning again and went into history as ruler of Egypt, Palestine and Syria.</font></div><div><font size="5">He did not like his stepmother, because he went on a destruction and defacing rant of most of her images and statues.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_24af_dd1a_3d46_e151" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-q5wP6cDVpNc/W28yqtzUtLI/AAAAAAACCQE/ACNRSa6Ptn4TfDcHmNvZHQ_tQzvpdWgGwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 414px; height: auto;"><br>(Could not resist: one plant flowering different colors on roadside)<br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_9e85_82f2_10d0_beac" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-8uQ0GL0XTXI/W28ysCBVjgI/AAAAAAACCQY/BZb1G_hFsaEbpx98PLQ7pXwSd3N7Hx5TgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 397px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Night fall shot of mosque across the river)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Back to the trip itinerary, where Hatshepsu was the only female Pharaoh discussed by our guide.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_afe9_c1bf_e299_2eb6" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-9wHnNOuy4Lw/W28ysECttwI/AAAAAAACCQQ/0qWlX6TOVKkPdHFLoVjRM54jYIe7nakqACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"><br>(Goddess Hathor was the guardian of the valley where Queen Hatshepsu built her colonnaded mortuary temple and the Goddess features prominently on the grounds of the temple)</div><div><br></div><div><font size="5">Let’s now highlight another major Pharaoh: Rameses II, and his favorite principal wife Nefertari (translation: beautiful companion) and his temples in Abu Simbel near present day Aswan. We reached that spot after an early rise and 2 and a half our bus trip. This Pharaoh reigned for 66 years from 1279 BC and died at age 90 or maybe age 91. The second longest reign in those 4000 years of Pharaohs. He fought many wars and lost a few, but you will not find any reference to that on the walls of the buildings we visited. </font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_dfd4_44d_dad8_1e71" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-ZbReYvYPek8/W28ysDF3I1I/AAAAAAACCQU/xFn0EXrDYpIKCfPpxy5ZxlZ8uXQGLCXogCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">(A temple who’s name I forgot, but the lotus pillars are beautiful)</div></div><div><font size="5">The story of Nefertari is, that she was most beloved by him, not easy by the way, when you have a few hundred wives. They were both tall for their time, he 5 1/2 ft and she 5 1/3 ft, but they were almost a head taller than the masses they reigned over. She married him at age 13 before he became Pharaoh when he was 15 years old. They had 5 children and went into the history books as a very happy couple. </font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_58d7_4a4_2ad7_a8b" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-vEl1tJEO4TE/W28yssmt4sI/AAAAAAACCQg/0fxsx0OQ_54blH8avvCnlEByRSV1nI-xQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 394px; height: auto;"><br>(Outside of Luxor the sand dunes are impressive)<br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_2ea9_d45f_4061_d4ae" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-ENpS1X8pFUQ/W28ytJin2II/AAAAAAACCQk/AtV7-42zy3AiHew186iX5J2QyfbZwIC_ACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 449px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;">(The remains of the workers villages)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Rameses built her a temple in Abu Simbel where she is seated in front of the temple equal in size to him, an honor that has not befallen any wife among the 500 Pharaohs before and after her. She died too early in the 24th year of his 66 year reign. </font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_2c8d_cd58_409d_523a" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-ohmsbWUm2ec/W28yuzGzYCI/AAAAAAACCQw/sfNt3LW8S0UpK4OZhfHjnu5Cm35EGEIPACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 488px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(A view of a Nubian village)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">To finish our tour of pharaohs we need to talk about Akhenaten married to the third most well known queen in history Nefertiti.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Akhenaten also called the heretic king, who in order to curb the growing power of priests in his time introduced the concept of monotheism, putting 80 percent or so of the priests out of business. </font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_7c09_bfd5_42e5_6ac6" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-jJKiTKq29pQ/W28yu23ADKI/AAAAAAACCQo/0erce38syTEKytwKy5C2tMgUOqRr15O5QCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 543px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(A city view with lively conversations)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">His time on the calendar of pharaohs is his crowning in the year 1363 BC. His father had been reigning a long time, creating a prosperous nation through international diplomacy, making Thebes the religious capital home to the state god Amun-Re. (A confusing fact that was added to my brain when reading up on this, <span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;">that</span></font><span style="font-size: x-large;"> we now have also state gods in the mix.) </span></div><div><img id="id_2ca0_6f5b_7fa_642e" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-0Z7487gGIG4/W28yuyoxvTI/AAAAAAACCQc/bjiSPlF_SDsrGgrlfc28-LF7dLfPKYlCwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">(Damages on the faces of kings often the result of new dynasties disliking past dynasties)</div></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">Akhenaten was crowned Amenhotep IV, meaning “Amun is Content”. Such an event requires the immediate start of building a new temple in the name of the king, but in the second year of building, sundisks showing his devotion to the sungod Aten are dotting the Karnak area and during this time he changes his name to Akhenaten. </span></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_954b_6bd8_136b_8410" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-cFafTDNvnMo/W28yuyFy35I/AAAAAAACCQs/DC3kKywWSakfd1cnC4f_ZN1eY7hmMcfQgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 525px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Taxis have ride options - different prices)</div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">Now a few sundisks here and there is ok, as there are hundreds of gods to be worshipped. But when workmen are sent out to chisel away the signs of other gods and when worshipping the sun as sole provider of wonders that occur and in doing so diminishing the traditional roles of the other gods, then everybody knows, this is a nefarious business. </span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_b4ce_a6c4_984b_b96d" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/--E-7zmvdaaw/W28yvRLo1yI/AAAAAAACCQ0/eHmbXLAxXQYVpMnle6oPF9UpiqWQIlxGQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 490px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Goddess Hathor on top of columns showing lotus and papyrus</div><div style="text-align: center;">capitals. Papyrus referring to the northern kingdom and lotus to</div><div style="text-align: center;">the southern kingdom)</div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">In going a step further Aknenaten and his wife Nefertiti decide that they must built a new capital uncontaminated with other gods called Akhetaten. </span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_868_c1d8_bfb3_799f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-YJJhcbuyol0/W28yyu7mT8I/AAAAAAACCRM/3g2C9KL-P9U6D2KZ0bErOhd2seN4ZlU_gCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 453px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Coptic signs carved into a temple)</div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">Unfortunately for this radical change is religion Akhenaten died in the 17th year of his reign and the succeeding regents reversed back to the traditional gods.</span></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_c43c_9a05_4aa1_f84e" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-7xDZHtSZSYY/W28yxP0zaLI/AAAAAAACCQ8/TjsEQQOSJn0p5VAVDZHsiI9G7XRXNQ7nACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 383px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Cross later also carved into a temple)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">This Pharaoh and his wife Nefertiti were stricken of the record books of kings and queens and only the discovery of his new capital from under the desert sand brought his famous experiment back to the fore. </font></div><div><br></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_ab98_eb92_b92c_f3ad" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-wZutPrM0OTw/W28yxJh666I/AAAAAAACCQ4/8ztbDJQOKWgbOmwR62koK1ay6brP0ArvQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 400px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Sobek the crocodile god)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Our guide often referenced him, reason why I bring him back to life here. It is postulated that Nefertiti became Pharaoh after her husbands death as she is seen in male clothing smiting Egypt’s enemies and riding a chariot as if she were King.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_7c1e_a933_8347_20df" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Kp4RGuwVV78/W28yyGgs1GI/AAAAAAACCRE/zQpldt_aiScHdbCNbEoXLo1ocgeh50IiACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 398px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(The early visitors could inscribe their names without recourse)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><font size="5"><br></font></div></div><div><font size="5">We felt privileged to wander through the ruins of Egypt, having Dr Hawass lecture us, enjoying on board, for a change, also great food, having an excursion to a Nubian Village and having a few hours now and then to relax on the upper deck of our cruise ship with a beer.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_f63c_2fe5_9ee6_8952" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-u4WeTQkT9fc/W28yyJK3a3I/AAAAAAACCRA/vhpAps9HYAAVYYc8rHWEHq58H7201oZpQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 414px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Evening view of the Nile)</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">But onwards we must go,there are new vistas to see, stories to listen to and cuisines to enjoy.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">And for Sandee below: memories for you left every night by the room service staff: fresh towels.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_a94f_583_b119_57ed" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-NAvpFIA6GRg/W28yybBw0lI/AAAAAAACCRI/mEDxjwNRegUfww9rnia_dYP7iZi_8DGQQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 294px; height: auto;"><br><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_36ff_f006_73d3_fa7a" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-AOtfmys1-aI/W28yy9Nkq2I/AAAAAAACCRQ/K7EiDKjw-o4vGSkCHVINGMSXILqodgY2wCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 362px; height: auto;"></div><br><font size="5">May the pictures as always save my often incoherent ramblings about things I do not know much about.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div id="_blog_touch_end_br_for_reorient"><br></div>Two retirees and their travel storieshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13942287905877288793noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9052023657534142840.post-36706143893801285822018-06-11T12:33:00.001-04:002018-06-14T13:19:12.186-04:00Egypt land of Light<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><img id="id_f66f_eb1a_cb80_d833" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-D-DgwGIuBuU/WvHWYbLpXGI/AAAAAAAB7SQ/MSCeZ_8ikLkkyY42B-84I6P8uBNQRx0owCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"><br></p><div style="text-align: center;">(Waking up the first morning at the Marriott taken from our balcony)</div><br><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><font size="5" face="Times">Sitting in the plane leaving Cairo, I am musing about how I will write my blog. Just before we took off for Egypt I read a blog written by a lady, who took the same organized trip, done by a company called Archeological Paths, in which she does a day by day report. (For those of you who would like to read it, I will append </font><span style="font-family: Times; font-size: x-large;">a link to that blog at the end of mine). </span></p><p style="text-align: left; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><br></span></p><p style="text-align: center; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><img id="id_7f28_f1d8_c7b1_7161" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-8BDscNFymvw/WvHWYXaoVwI/AAAAAAAB7SU/qK0u4vCu8mU05OcLextxmGSYLm91wZeHgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 494px; height: auto;"></span></p><p style="text-align: center; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-family: Times;">(The Marriott entrance with behind it peeking above the pyramid of Giza) </span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-family: Times; font-size: x-large;"><br></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-family: Times; font-size: x-large;">I found it difficult to read after awhile and did not finish it. But that is most likely, because we did the same trip and saw the same things. And I must admit that a lot of her observations of today’s Egypt which she writes about are exactly what I found interesting. And there is nothing more boring than reading your own observations written by somebody else.</span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-family: Times; font-size: x-large;"><br></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><img id="id_f436_52cf_a24e_6e68" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-yRsdmC60pDw/WvHWY709NBI/AAAAAAAB7Sk/Fk9Q5AaJT7IJ4ummoiTsm3dgdVz3JddfACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 503px; height: auto;"><br> (Our daily habit is exiting the bus and prepare for another sight with guide)</p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><br></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"></p><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); text-align: right;"><img id="id_2e97_d2e5_ad66_6287" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-aLT9HoDYMiM/WvHWYUQtarI/AAAAAAAB7SY/y71sIxujQxsKihmXM6WKCy-helrj3wkfQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 470px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><font color="#454545"><span style="caret-color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"> (As you see the tourists are not coming yet, </span></font></div><div style="text-align: center;"><font color="#454545"><span style="caret-color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"> we saw many almost empty parking lots)</span></font></div><div style="text-align: center;"><font color="#454545"><span style="caret-color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><br></span></font></div><font color="#454545"><span style="width: 465px; height: auto;"><img id="id_f4e3_d1b4_45f4_659f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-xVDtvzGXnbE/WvHWY_rY40I/AAAAAAAB7Sg/1WcWT3dnspcYjs1y5_aYTtJjruy-3NttwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 465px; height: auto;"></span></font><br>(The oldest pyramid, the Djozer (the name of the Pharao buried there)<div>in a place called Saqqara from the third Dynasty period - 2650 BC - <p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">created by his architect and high priest Imhotep, symbolizing the celestial</p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">power of the deceased)</p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><br><br></p><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_fadd_41ff_6d8e_58c5" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-RxcHURCA-sM/WvHWY4a16-I/AAAAAAAB7Sc/y9FjM-TFsfANeFJ7jM5T6-hy7xg2X_ALACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 324px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(All important people want to be buried nearby a Pharoah. </div><div style="text-align: center;">Here is the entrance to the tomb or mastaba of Kagemni,</div><div style="text-align: center;">who held 52 positions during his lifetime making him the </div><div style="text-align: center;">real ruler of Egypt in his days)</div><br><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_9452_e4df_9c84_49ef" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-XQwYZKKMCw4/WvHWZAQQO-I/AAAAAAAB7So/MnHWW_DEFa0w9fi2q2s_ujzThGFABehBwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 471px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"> (Hippopotamus fighting. They lived in the Nile in those days)</div><br><img id="id_209a_40cc_feb6_e868" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-QraVhJIHRuQ/WvHWZ0kaw6I/AAAAAAAB7Sw/gxIrOdLmQgEADxthkJ7cJ8yATpqK3zIEQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 464px; height: auto;"><br> (Fishing was the daily life line of the people)<br><br><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_f8b2_e450_9169_680d" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-hwXTh3duI4U/WvHWZ5UagOI/AAAAAAAB7Ss/5FjpiWHWQrEaYDSbVKxdFQ6ZM7NmFXjNQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 495px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;"><span style="text-align: center;">(You are looking at 2500BC or older and the color is still there)</span></div><br><img id="id_9f5f_2dde_8139_4945" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-X5O8Ay5W2dU/WvHWbTFfJBI/AAAAAAAB7S0/NZSW-iX1EMoR1NxFq5QwIdLFV_i-hX9vgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 578px; height: auto;"><br> (As always taxes or “gifts” is the duty of happy citizens)<br><br><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><font size="5" face="Times">I also realized while still in my airplane seat, that I have been exposed to 2 weeks of overload, learning more about pharaohs, hieroglyphs, dynasties, gods, (many many gods), funerals and rebirths during more than 3500 years of fascinating history tales. </font></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><font size="5" face="Times"><br></font></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><img id="id_d020_5586_49a3_7327" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-QTNXZlVIbew/WvHWcN3YI5I/AAAAAAAB7TE/P8k79d7dipYdEo-ZL9r1RMi-4cJNQXgnwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 425px; height: auto;"><br> (Not all pyramids survive)<br></p><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_1350_238a_e4be_8ecf" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-fwYvQaclbQo/WvHWbb6vI1I/AAAAAAAB7S4/KvbrnlcSqSUqfXVEVhcaicjUiYZw90-PACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 460px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"> (the funerary procession require a long gradually </div><div style="text-align: center;"> up-sloping, in olden days fully covered hallway- </div><div style="text-align: center;"> taking many years of building - one day of using)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><br><img id="id_e637_a4b7_a4e8_5b90" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-a_C9Gp9QeKY/WvHWbd6gVPI/AAAAAAAB7S8/WrMg66SqMgEdf9TI0y9EJPK-g7xO8v7cwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 510px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"> </span><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"> (this policeman on his camel hoped for money if you take his picture)</span><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><font size="5" face="Times"><br></font></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><font size="5" face="Times">So unless you want to do the trip yourself or read the lady’s blog, I decided then and there that I would not try to give you a play by play report and or a history lesson. But unfortunately you do need to have some history in order to put this trip in perspective, so here we go with </font><span style="font-size: x-large; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">a short summary of what Sandee, I, our friends Linda and Gary, who joined us and 30plus other people on our bus, did and saw and heard about every day.</span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: x-large; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><br></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><font color="#454545"><span style="width: 746px; height: auto;"><img id="id_b127_cfcd_858f_5729" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-8Z-3PAZSrEY/WvHWb3xs1NI/AAAAAAAB7TA/RHlbXpMh6cY2yAapZAQHozxlZd5Fkv4qgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"></span></font><br></p><div style="text-align: center;"><font color="#454545"><span style="caret-color: rgb(69, 69, 69);">(We tried to have our picture taken and this joker showed up)</span></font></div><br><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_577f_ddf5_8799_18d" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-P0e2Xh7VTQA/WvHWcXUyerI/AAAAAAAB7TI/sNIoKLsJGswyggs8t_pZDsHERw8Izw9FwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); width: 393px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"> (A little museum shows 4000 year old finds -</div><div style="text-align: right;"> A statue of goddess Hathour, with a cow head <span style="text-align: right;">and a solar disc. </span></div><div style="text-align: right;"><span style="text-align: right;">She was mistress of the sky also called by the Greek Venus)</span></div><br><font color="#454545"><span style="width: 454px; height: auto;"><img id="id_7f8c_62d8_9b6b_4f2e" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-0ujfBbdQCPQ/WvHWc36P6SI/AAAAAAAB7TM/-aY3wpr2zq000Vlk6AiO8VlnmarX6_o5QCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 454px; height: auto;"></span></font><br> (Statues of regular Egyptians of 4000 years ago)<br><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: x-large; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><br></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: x-large; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">And to “enjoy” all of that, we often got a wakeup call around 3 or 4 or 5 am so we could commence our day before other tour groups were allowed on the sites scheduled for that day.</span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times"><br></font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><img id="id_a5a6_d4c6_6968_37ab" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-xUn6QMd8zdk/WvHWfnaoIRI/AAAAAAAB7Tk/X3dmpChLQHgXarxpwkLANlBIpGhM3ykcACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 439px; height: auto;"><br>(What you see from our bus going to or from archeological sites</p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><font color="#454545"><span style="font-size: 17.4px;">is Agriculture and unfinished buildings)</span></font><br></p><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-size: 17.4px; text-align: right;"><img id="id_8d92_6daf_fd9e_47fe" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-zAAqmBsJgto/WvHWegJILMI/AAAAAAAB7TQ/CRPjEJTM1So3eYNSvb1NsJxjwgnWume8wCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 17.4px; width: 435px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: right;"><font color="#454545"><span style="caret-color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-size: 17.399999618530273px;"> (Unfinished investments waiting for money to complete)</span></font></div><font color="#454545"><span style="font-size: 17.4px; width: 466px; height: auto;"><img id="id_9ea2_ea62_2328_469c" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-cEb34kg_El0/WvHWejD0--I/AAAAAAAB7TY/TNa3rb-gcccE35mqITzCDPjrELzn39TcgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 466px; height: auto;"></span></font><br>(Cairo street sight)<br><div style="text-align: start;"><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_6ea3_d980_f028_f4e4" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-LTIvV_IDtuk/Wx6j8zGPVII/AAAAAAACBFU/F1iVSqWvgMQ8ACet2F6UTznpenIswxLVwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 484px; height: auto;"></div></div><div style="text-align: center;"> (Almost finished building near Cairo)</div><span style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times"><br></font></span><p></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times">Here is the short version about one of the oldest civilizations in this world:</font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 23.213333129882813px;"><b><font face="Times"><br></font></b></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 23.213333129882813px;"><b><font face="Times">Religion:</font></b></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><font face="Times"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;">Ancient Egypt was fundamentally a theocracy, where the gods had created life and the universe, led by a divine king, who is a god in his own right and a direct descendant from</span><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"> God Horus. To complicate the story of many many gods that Egyptians worshipped, Horus was the son of Isis, (motherhood and fertility) married to Osiris (god of the underworld). The divine king ran and </span></font><span style="font-size: 17.41pt; font-family: Times;">controlled the country’s </span><span style="font-family: Times; font-size: 17.41pt;">organization. </span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-family: Times; font-size: 17.41pt;"><br></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"></p><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_2238_2e0e_9af1_e68c" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-tTvfCVQuo1Q/WvHWfWuCKYI/AAAAAAAB7Tg/Lo6NEMq4oCo3nhUxW01wzNw1ggFk8RtvQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 17.4px; width: 452px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Ramsesses II or the Great from the Middle Kingdom</div><div style="text-align: center;"> in <span style="font-size: 17.4px;">Memphis carved from limestone from 1250 BC</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 17.4px;">Lived almost to 100 fought many wars and fathered hundreds of children</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 17.4px;">with the help of 200 wives -among the wives were 2 daughters,</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 17.4px;">Because as a leader he needed to inspire fertility among his people</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 17.4px;">Although childbirth was high, about one third would not reach</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 17.4px;">age15)</span></div><br><img id="id_7e9a_2781_a7f4_2775" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-c-HrSaXH_ps/WvHWfVPTkeI/AAAAAAAB7Tc/dW-Af27uaKAqU65s42XuNKuWXa65Ol7gwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 548px; height: auto;"><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);">(Statue of Amenhotep III or the Magnificent and his wife Queen Tiye -</p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);">he was 12 when he took the throne and married Tiye his life long love elevating</p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);">her to Great Royal wife, lead an opulent life, was a great sportsman, hunted many </p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);">many lions, while Tiye took care of the Affairs of State. He refused to marry </p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);">Egyptian princesses to foreign kings, “no daughter of <span style="font-size: 17.4px;">Egypt should ever leave her land”.</span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.4px;"> Tiye bore him his successor son Akhenaten, but more about him later)</span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-family: Times; font-size: 17.41pt;"><br></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times">Egyptians worshipped the sun god Ra as the source of all life.</font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><font face="Times"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;">They believed that Ra had bestowed their rich </span></font><font face="Times" style="font-size: 17.4px;"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;">land upon them for their enjo</span></font><font face="Times" style="font-size: 17.4px;"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;">yment as </span><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;">a Land </span></font><span style="font-size: 17.41pt; font-family: Times;">of Light.</span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt; font-family: Times;"><br></span></p><img id="id_44e7_107a_46fc_24dc" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-AfYIxt89NEc/Wx6j85m5woI/AAAAAAACBFQ/V-qoL5i3VhIF4bxhdOOFLUc0B_zks0DrwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"><br><br><p style="text-align: center; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><font face="Times">(Statue of Prince Rahotep and his wife Nofret. He was a son of Pharaoh Sneferu</font></p><p style="text-align: center; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><font face="Times">4th dynasty. Unimportant person he was, were it not that these statues have eyes that follow you </font></p><p style="text-align: center; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><font face="Times">as you circle around them, their eyes are inlaid quartz and crystal</font></p><p style="text-align: center; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><font face="Times">Also during this time frame women start using make up)</font></p><p style="text-align: center; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><font face="Times"><br></font></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times">The gods were powerful but benevolent, and approachable in many ways. The divine king was the hub between the world of the gods and the human sphere.</font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"></p><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_a0a7_bc10_5837_42f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-SUJ2MzF4LLw/Wx6j9PFFubI/AAAAAAACBFc/C8QowgzOGhIWfi9UxYbTBElQMB8OTospwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 17.4px; width: 488px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(The Bent Pyramid one of the earliest pyramids after the Djoser</div><div style="text-align: center;">Started ambitious, but early on they realized they would encounter weight problems</div><div style="text-align: center;">In completing at the started angle so they changed the angle midway</div><div style="text-align: center;">Still compared with Djoser at 330000 Cu. Meter/11.5 million cu.ft.</div><div style="text-align: center;">This pyramid ended up with 1.2 million Cu. Mtr/ 42 million Cu.ft.)</div><br><br><img id="id_fb2_53aa_76d9_29bd" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-KXKKS-2_5XQ/Wx6j9ArqTRI/AAAAAAACBFY/lVPI9-Hz-OQFsPlOgW1rvtdB8dlCnghTgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 490px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: left;">(Take a good look at the blocks the early Egyptians cut with primitive hand tools)</div><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times"><br></font></span><p></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times">The gods were responsible for creation and abundance, the kings and elites were primarily responsible for ensuring that the system ran according to a set order and all people were responsible for clean living and daily work throughout the country.</font></span></p><p style="text-align: center; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><br></p><p style="text-align: center; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><img id="id_1bf4_eb2_dc87_3259" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-nvP8BOpCbN8/Wx6j87JjjNI/AAAAAAACBFM/eW741fFgky00JhZp2Gx4wcSRw7gs-diCwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 506px; height: auto;"><br>(Pharaoh and his first wife were the symbols of god Ra’s </p><p style="text-align: center; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);">Relationship with all Egyptians so offerings and praying was </p><p style="text-align: center; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);">A daily activity for all Egyptians)</p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><font size="5" face="Times"><br></font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><font size="5" face="Times">The high priests knew, that people are only open to knowledge, truth, love, wisdom, and power when Ra’s light and life force is flowing constantly into their hearts, which is their innermost sanctuary. </font></span></p><p style="text-align: center; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><font size="5" face="Times"><br></font></span></p><p style="text-align: center; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><img id="id_7f8_ac2b_618c_f90c" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-EAk9Mpbr8Bs/Wx6j9GgZnSI/AAAAAAACBFg/FAmezbTm10IFjhjHCkZs-PWE0lXjBt1ugCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 494px; height: auto;"></span></p><p style="text-align: center; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><font face="Times"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;">(Is this a God? Or if not, what is the story)</span></font></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><font size="5" face="Times" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><br></font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><font size="5" face="Times" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;">For that to happen, mankind had to consciously open their heart to the sun go</font></span><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><font size="5" face="Times" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;">d, by praying to him at the start of each day and</font><font style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"> </font></span><span style="font-family: Times; font-size: x-large; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">by asking him to make his will clear, so that his work could bear fruit.</span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-family: Times;"><br></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-family: Times;"><br></span></p><p style="text-align: center; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-family: Times;"> </span><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><img id="id_f3c0_5e21_a5bd_1600" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/--Ma0bY6J0Xo/Wx6j92jmPMI/AAAAAAACBFk/r8gG8pp7Ih8ecQLg2rJGcGm5P1e9OeApgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 467px; height: auto;"></span></p><p style="text-align: center; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><font face="Times"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;">(God Anubis -Greek word, Egyptians said Inpw- was the god of mummification keeper of the cemeteries)</span></font></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><font size="5" face="Times"><br></font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><font size="5" face="Times">And as I earlier said, gods were powerful but benevolent, and could be prayed to in many ways, and the god king was the hub between the world of the gods and all humans, and he was therefore responsible for organizing the supply and welfare of his people, and for keeping order.</font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><font size="5" face="Times"><br></font></span></p><p style="text-align: center; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><img id="id_eb07_48c2_eece_dbcd" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-XtIZOLE3WkQ/Wx6j-vhT1BI/AAAAAAACBFo/cb54XLojF0MRdc0CxESt0S6eqzX91edvACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 420px; height: auto;"></span></p><p style="text-align: center; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><font face="Times">(God Set, with a dog’s head and flat ears with a tail of evil killed </font></p><p style="text-align: center; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><font face="Times">His brother Osiris to capture the throne only to be killed by Son </font></p><p style="text-align: center; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><font face="Times">Horus. Why did they still prey to him one asks himself)</font></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><font size="5" face="Times"><br></font></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><font size="5" face="Times">The ancient Egyptian beliefs were polytheistic, acknowledging the existence of thousands of gods and endless deceased humans all transferred to the other world, be it the Netherworld, which was their name for heaven or they were left to decompose in the outer darkness, in the deepest recesses of the underworld, without flesh, walking upside down, exposed to knives, swords and the fire of hell produced by fire spitting snakes, drinking urine, placed in cauldrons, scorched and cooked and reduced to ashes. You get the picture? </font></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><br></p><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); text-align: center;"><img id="id_38b4_6db3_32e2_adc8" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-IpknM37JZR4/Wx6j-v6-agI/AAAAAAACBFs/Kfib7xXsFaURW-FqEbJfSGtXHswT_A1twCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 396px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><font color="#454545"><span style="caret-color: rgb(69, 69, 69);">(This is the dig of the pyramid worker village; a lot </span></font></div><div style="text-align: center;"><font color="#454545"><span style="caret-color: rgb(69, 69, 69);">still to be dug up)</span></font></div><span style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-size: 23.213333129882813px;"><b><font face="Times"><br></font></b></span><p></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 23.213333129882813px;"><b><font face="Times">History:</font></b></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times">The foundation of the Egyptian state in the Early Dynastic period (c. 3100 BC) marks the b</font></span><span style="font-family: Times; font-size: 17.41pt;">eginning of more than 500 kings, belonging to around thirty dynasties, and ending with the Ptolemaic kings and Roman emperors. </span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-family: Times; font-size: 17.41pt;"><br></span></p><p style="text-align: center; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><img id="id_918b_9d21_a0_4f57" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-I7_sakvMSFE/Wx6j_CtmCdI/AAAAAAACBFw/bpRuCNdn3aIH3n7LjU36YLF-8zcwy117gCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 489px; height: auto;"></span></p><p style="text-align: center; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><font face="Times">(Is this the right picture to go with a history lesson?)</font></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times"><br></font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times">These dynasties are grouped into periods called the Early Dynastic period (c. 31st–27th centuries BC), the Old Kingdom (c. 27th–22nd centuries BC), the Middle Kingdom (c. 21st–17th centuries BC), and the New Kingdom (c. 16th–11th centuries BC), as well as three Intermediate periods, and the late Greco-Roman period (4th century BC–4th century AC).</font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times"><br></font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times">Does all of this not sound very stilted?</font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><br></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times">Well, that is what we learned during those 2 weeks and much much more, which I will endeavor to</font></span><span style="font-family: Times; font-size: 17.41pt;"> forget in the weeks to come.</span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><br><br></p><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_dff1_9fb9_1644_5679" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-1-Px2M26qs8/Wx6j_gZve4I/AAAAAAACBF4/Lbhh61V0ZQYMh8VRq02nqrEv93U8cTAXACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 17.4px; color: rgb(69, 69, 69); width: 451px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Present day Cairo - I own an Airco or I don’t)</div><p></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times">The rest of this blog will be about pictures as always and Egypt today as we saw it, and many more very unhistoric observations, adorned with pictures of those ancient times and tidbits of history as it reappears in my cluttered mind.</font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times"><br></font></span></p><p style="text-align: center; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><img id="id_4218_4fe6_7550_c8fe" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-g-VPrc6bOww/Wx6kAufHDSI/AAAAAAACBF8/9VhBxv3B2g002_8ETmwWM5Fo1B-C490OgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 455px; height: auto;"></span></p><p style="text-align: center; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><font face="Times">(Taxi stand in dirty Cairo)</font></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times"><br></font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times">We arrived late late afternoon in Cairo airport and were shuttled to a mini bus that took us to the other side of town crossing the Nile and ending up in the town of Giza, where we were lodging for the first week in a sprawling hotel compound, that on the very day of our arrival had become a Marriott property. I could not even register my Marriott member account, because it was supposedly to be downloaded to their computers that very night.</font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times"><br></font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><img id="id_40ec_119f_f380_c276" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/--HdH0a7_Sws/Wx6kAve56BI/AAAAAAACBF0/_oRn21StpckLg_29yQvv76BtHWDcOSmKwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 349px; height: auto;"></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">(Store display as only developing countries can get away with)</span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><br></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times">Walking the hotel grounds and gazing westwards we saw looming over us the pyramid of Giza, our next door neighbor. In the mid sixties I had wandered around that very pyramid as a poor student on my way to Tanzania, where I was supposed to start fieldwork for my thesis. </font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times"><br></font></span></p><p style="text-align: center; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><img id="id_6446_6bb3_b49c_2b28" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-9o9oT7b7KTo/Wx6kBEXgqgI/AAAAAAACBGA/opet9IjbVt8bIzINBInDBNDcXGIsYyQgACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 408px; height: auto;"></span></p><p style="text-align: center; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><font face="Times">(Going home after a shopping expedition)</font></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times"><br></font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times">In those days I was not “protected” from the hustle and bustle of modern day Egypt. Today we return each night to our “oasis” called Mena House by Marriott, because to enter the grounds cars and pedestrians alike have to pass the guards who inspect cars with sniffing dogs and one has to have a reason to be admitted by those guards.</font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times"><br></font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><img id="id_bdb5_b4fb_ccb9_7efb" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-nURB70p0f3Q/Wx6kBxEdsKI/AAAAAAACBGE/vjIGymzmptA392o2ca6iFafHCaJavq8OgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 444px; height: auto;"></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">(Are they going or coming back from shopping?)</span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times"><br></font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times">During each venture outside the compound, our bus was accompanied by a police car. Whenever we exited the bus to visit an ancient site or a restaurant for lunch at least one unobtrusive agent followed us.</font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times"><br></font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"></p><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-size: 17.4px; text-align: right;"><img id="id_7e3f_4386_7c9d_f1e6" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-nYZW1BpvHoU/Wx6kCf_58KI/AAAAAAACBGM/m4kC-kC_PV8BeknIF0b6dM7auyEZ6ZXJgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 17.4px; width: 458px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Here the water is visible, but downstream the water is covered with waste -see below)</div><br><font color="#454545"><span style="font-size: 17.4px; width: 506px; height: auto;"><img id="id_c0a_454b_e38_96b0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-cekBG-iMqGM/Wx6kCQKRWcI/AAAAAAACBGI/I4cikwgibZY0G3XOciUDw4t39DuZhr2MgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 506px; height: auto;"></span></font><br><br><span style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times"><br></font></span><p></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times">Tourism in Egypt has dwindled to levels that alarm the Egyptian government to no end, reason why they field the tourist police to protect those that dare to come to a world, where radical Islamic splinter groups are trying to get on TV, cutting of heads of preferably American citizens. Although Egypt has less beheadings than in many other Islamic neighbor countries.</font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times"><br></font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><img id="id_67bf_2c70_adac_6550" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-DmbCEl4jSP4/Wx6kDe6-3lI/AAAAAAACBGQ/aaUKjVpp1FU49wL5piJc2wrK-DqpatEZQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 469px; height: auto;"></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><font face="Times"> (Common sight: fruit stand)</font></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times"><br></font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times">Egypt’s main sources of income are the Suez Canal, tourism and natural gas and cotton products. Unemployment is high; joining the army is a career opportunity. (The US still finances a major portion of the military might) the average income is about $11,000 a year. </font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times">The tourist sites feature large parking lots for buses that don’t show up anymore and the dwindling number of tourists have to walk at the end of each site visit via the tourist gadget and souvenir shops with more men then tourists, waving stuff in your face for “only a dollar” or otherwise rapidly lowering their asking price as you try to exit this gauntlet as fast as made possible by all that product waving human obstruction.</font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times"><br></font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><img id="id_c755_d18d_5088_4217" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-SujB4Rmn7fk/Wx6kDejQmgI/AAAAAAACBGY/-WaSAopsuwEsxBizU3c6ppHe9KBflBxvACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><font face="Times">(The Great Mosque of Mohammed Ali - founder of modern Cairo between 1830 and 1848, part of a defense system on a hill overlooking Cairo)</font></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times"><br></font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times">Our trip had two parts to our edification: first week: “landbased and pyramids” with at midday a luncheon that was boringly consistent: grilled meat or “kofta” and baba ghanoush (eggplant), Aish (pita bread), beans and lentils, hummus, and falafel. In itself it is not a bad spread. But unfortunately after several days one craves something different, not that we did get something different during that first part of the trip. The food was one of the pleasant surprises we got when after a several hours flight south, we arrived at our second: “waterbased week” in Luxor.</font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times"><br></font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><img id="id_3df7_4e5e_a6a_a6bb" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-E2QjRTdNdRI/Wx6kEnh5UsI/AAAAAAACBGU/upUG40qpzPs0psB5_gg-qrj-Ar4y2JgpQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 546px; height: auto;"></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><font face="Times"> (The big fountain on the courtyard leading to the mosque)</font></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times"><br></font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times">The pyramids are history now and mastabas take their place: “Graves”, underground, as in the Valley of the Kings or the temple of queen Hatshepsut and Ramses II’s Abu Simbel rock temples. The cooks on board of our river cruise boat had good and varied options every day for us to sample. And the hectic pace of the first week changed to a pleasant slower adventure tour.</font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times"><br></font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><img id="id_73c0_3f3c_d745_92e0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-hM0OztSwAUM/Wx6kEooZ1WI/AAAAAAACBGc/-MKInLqfD0YROkZtUx8QwVnDOVCBMJfKQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 507px; height: auto;"></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">(Inside the great Mosque the immense size is dwarfing)</span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><br></span></p><p style="text-align: right; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><img id="id_847b_7e94_e768_f551" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-AyRjgxT4gHc/Wx6kFoMJE4I/AAAAAAACBGo/nEe-9nYBykU9EXR7dc_wiB5iAUzR6zZrACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 514px; height: auto;"></span></p><p style="text-align: center; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><font face="Times">(The carpet pattern shows praying position for the believers to kneel in the right direction. I gave up counting the number of praying spots)</font></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times"><br></font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times">But back to week one. Driving through greater Cairo is an adventure in itself as 6 to sometimes 8 rows of cars honk their way through the town, snaking from one lane to the next in the hope they will reach their destination faster that way. </font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times"><br></font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"></p><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_1d43_8eb4_5109_6dff" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-AAsRuBWr4lc/Wx6kFgYBKzI/AAAAAAACBGk/0jCtdfYKxj4ODq-5PPIZIzuI5bTv68KBACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 17.4px; width: 352px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Everyday traffic scenes we witnessed from our bus)</div><br><img id="id_1dbb_f223_1240_b0ce" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-u5g9Ig2cx04/Wx6kFWgwwXI/AAAAAAACBGg/M6y3lYq70HEPtsOR1SFtf9fZa8FPTktsgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 517px; height: auto;"><br><br><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times">Mind you the road they travel on was laid out for 4 rows but only the rule of the claxon or horn and a “don’t you dare” attitude reigns supreme in this country, resulting in the inevitable “slow as molasses” traffic patterns that can be observed as far as the eye reaches.</font></span></p><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><br><img id="id_bf74_cb5c_9f63_85b7" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-GJrcZuKoz6I/Wx6kGzjiDEI/AAAAAAACBGw/mjdxgAzfUbwSpAGxUTHmJKTmkbXOgta7wCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 444px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">(Child labor? No we were told. Those children learn to weave tapestry</span></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">And in doing so avoid working in the fields for their parents)<br></span><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_4a3e_45be_709c_17df" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-8THubsrPxzU/Wx6kGeA5w2I/AAAAAAACBGs/8onatdZP5SkA4TtqBwbd_r811aLUH1hdgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 17.4px; width: 458px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(So we visited a Carpet “school” where they almost succeeded in selling us an Egyptian silk carpet)</div><img id="id_47e_4b0a_bd94_799" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-fYyivLK0dLQ/Wx6kHDexm_I/AAAAAAACBG8/yqLYUVk7jhgtEwELl8i-s3vWhfJYV3qGgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 385px; height: auto;"><br><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times"><br></font></span><p></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times">Cairo is a dirty overpopulated city, where 20 million people live, among them 1 million plus people that live in the sprawling several miles long graveyard (without water, sewer or power) that flanks our road on both sides during an outing to the mosque of Muhammad Ali or Alabaster Mosque, on the grounds of the Citadel of Cairo. An almost 200 year old grand walled building complex, sitting high above the city also known as the city of the thousand minarets. This sounds more romantic than it is. </font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times"><br></font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times">Yes by night the lights at the base of the complex highlights it well and creates an eerie beauty, but by day the city is and remains what it is, a ramshackled dirty city with thousands of unfinished building complexes and trash all over.</font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times"><br></font></span></p><p style="text-align: center; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><img id="id_5ed4_87dc_b39d_30ad" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-ecvcfrx6T_o/Wx6kHCthAgI/AAAAAAACBG0/nkRbrKHb4Z48c3-C4c0qVPsL9iGrFQFvgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 468px; height: auto;"></span></p><p style="text-align: center; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><font face="Times">(Camels in Egypt are tourist animals. These days their only reason</font></p><p style="text-align: center; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><font face="Times">for their existence. And there are not enough tourists)</font></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times"><br></font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times">As our guide Ahmed explained, “decades ago every day young men with carts roamed the narrow alleys that lead to the main broader streets to pickup the bags of trash that were placed in front of the homes. The carts were then unloaded on the sidewalks of the wider streets awaiting trash trucks. However the city government in their wisdom “innovated” the system with modern imported trash trucks and “fired” the thousands of trash collectors”.</font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times"><br></font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><img id="id_1ffa_3a98_9571_9b99" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-u7d1WSRvo20/Wx6kHn5-dCI/AAAAAAACBG4/AkV8waa07yMK6TzSbcmOg4AnLyZyjSqNQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 351px; height: auto;"></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"> (Typical entrance to an uncovered temple)</span></p><div style="text-align: start;"><br></div><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><br></span></p><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_d626_ac5c_bb92_391d" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-h2SbrK5PLig/Wx6kIqMHBcI/AAAAAAACBHA/T3Lxeg3g1Us6vEt5A-S_Pqd-sPQsRRA1QCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0); width: 407px; height: auto;"></div><p></p><p style="text-align: right; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"> (Gary returning after an attempt to go down all the way to an empty burial room). </span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times">The expectation was that people from the alleys would bring their trash to the main streets as the trucks were to big to drive there. It seems to me that the new system has even trashed the main wider fareways, or the trucks are not coming anymore. Even the canals in the city or stopped up like non-flushing toilet bowls. (Pardon the expression, but I want you to visualize it)</font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times"><br></font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"></p><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-size: 17.4px; text-align: center;"><img id="id_a007_c678_69ff_938b" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-TvPofcu6D5w/Wx6kI9fpvEI/AAAAAAACBHE/UX8-EmV4h_c_EFLLX-GQjPsL3D9-qGLYACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 17.4px; width: 515px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Tourist police - making you feel safe?)</div><p></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times">As to the unfinished housing, large and small, be it apartment complexes or single homes: as in many lesser developed countries, real estate is a “retirement plan”. Everybody hopes to own one day for their own use or to receive rental income. However the completion of any construction is depending on money being available. And in many of these countries money can become scarce or not available, resulting in unfinished buildings awaiting future completion, when and if Allah so wills, money will be received again.</font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times"><br></font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times">But for us the visitor, it is a strange sight, all those unoccupied, unfinished buildings.</font></span></p><p style="text-align: center; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><img id="id_bc1f_2ad1_ae1d_9e84" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-lmXnDjseyMk/Wx6kJawYJSI/AAAAAAACBHI/gk7D5JPZc5M281PgYBgr6_ni4ehyLrQbQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 444px; height: auto;"></span></p><p style="text-align: center; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><font color="#454545" face="Times"><span style="caret-color: rgb(69, 69, 69);">(Dr Zahi Hawass straight from his PBS show to see just us)</span></font></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times"><br></font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times">One of the reasons this trip rose to the top of our ever growing list of destinations we prioritize, was the fact that Dr. Zahi Hawass would take part in this tour as frequent site hos</font></span><span style="font-family: Times; font-size: 17.41pt; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);">t or evening lecturer. The well known minister, or as they call it in Egypt, Secretary General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities under President Anwar al-Sadat lost his position under successor Hosni Mubarak, but continued his work as self proclaimed savior of Egypt’s antiquities with numerous well funded tv shows and speaking tours, where he features his well known hat. Dr Hawass was very informative, but a bit of a pompous ass, and inclined to speak in the “I” form as if he uncovered everything we saw by himself. </span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: Times; font-size: 17.41pt; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><br></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><img id="id_64d1_718d_d422_cfe7" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-JJ4UZYy9BKs/Wx6kJcWrKxI/AAAAAAACBHM/nuY8XRgHjMwYYzCdXb9r9cGuHDIKYwo0QCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 399px; height: auto;"></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">(Lecture at the famous Sphinx between its legs. No other tourists</span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Get that close unless you take this tour)</span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><br></span></p><p style="text-align: right; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><img id="id_9a5_a76c_c32f_4872" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-OtYWcSkKoeY/Wx6kJ6kOIdI/AAAAAAACBHQ/uNDBl6-1YucgdNwJd18YDkoeJ4EEpflkQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 457px; height: auto;"></span></p><p style="text-align: center; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><font face="Times"> </font><span style="font-family: Times;">(Very very early in the morning a lecture about the pyramid workers)</span></p><p style="text-align: center; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><font face="Times"><br></font></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times"><br></font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times">Also as an extra bonus we had “High Tea” at the home of Mrs. Jehan Sadat. She and one of her daughters entertained us with stories about her assasinated husband and his efforts in making peace with Israel. All of us had our picture taken with her in her living room under the portrait of her husband. She was truly a gracious hostess who took her time to talk to each of us.</font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times"><br></font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"></p><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-size: 17.4px; text-align: center;"><img id="id_1cc_39b5_246e_55f2" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-yvHkpjE-22A/Wx6kKepCN_I/AAAAAAACBHU/YoIOakPOxyQEevcpb5RrwPJBFJQj08_gQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 17.4px; width: 343px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><font color="#454545"><span style="caret-color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-size: 17.399999618530273px;">(Taking time to talk to us)</span></font></div><font color="#454545"><span style="font-size: 17.4px; width: 358px; height: auto;"><img id="id_df97_3f98_2ff4_9d4f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-FmrlwODD2b8/Wx6kK8H8rhI/AAAAAAACBHY/XXU04gPIU0YFoWNVOw930E_KWRna_U9LQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 358px; height: auto;"></span></font></div><div><span style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-size: 17.4px;">(Signing her book)</span><font color="#454545"><span style="font-size: 17.4px; width: 358px; height: auto;"><br></span></font><br><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-size: 17.4px; text-align: right;"><img id="id_a8c4_f39e_1be9_c120" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/--bCSpv-p18w/Wx6kLUvtLHI/AAAAAAACBHg/sgWj83TYEkY67dhWgaxzE2yAZaGEricnQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 17.4px; width: 523px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"> (Reception room)</div><font color="#454545"><span style="font-size: 17.4px; width: 568px; height: auto;"><img id="id_ef0f_1f37_d8cb_a43a" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-pZuxNQuDlAY/Wx6kL6o9qdI/AAAAAAACBHc/Tgl3lloUYOIDtex2HjnhR8j-8yV1JWGwgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 568px; height: auto;"></span></font><br>(Family picture I found while wandering through several rooms)<br><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-size: 17.4px; text-align: right;"><img id="id_1add_29f4_6236_c567" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-1WEoklwFuas/Wx6kNfyXc1I/AAAAAAACBHk/-ZPBbpKMXNEgWA2TUf6lvf-8BAmjehhNQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="font-size: 17.4px; width: 365px; height: auto;"><span style="font-size: 17.4px;">I </span></div><div style="text-align: center;"> (A young Mrs. Sadat)</div><p></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times">Let me end here and attach the earlier promised blog and proceed to my second part of this story</font></span></p><div><br></div><div><br></div><a href="Http://sandyschopbachbucketlist.blogspot.com/ " id="id_e7e7_bff3_823d_50d2" target="_blank">Sandy’s blog</a><div><br></div><div><font size="5">PS. The above link brings you to somewhere in the middle of Sandy Schopbach’s blog. To start at the beginning go to July 2017 on her blog. Sorry for the confusion but I gave up trying to link to that date. </font><br><div><br></div><div><font size="5">Or go to google and type in:</font><br><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times"><br></font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times">Http://sandyschopbachbucketlist.blogspot.com/</font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times"><br></font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times"><br></font></span></p><p style="text-align: center; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><img id="id_5961_ece7_14b0_b366" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-n4zfM2SEpkc/Wx6kNi7UI1I/AAAAAAACBHo/lf9-fx5ph7w7WTllM5D7R-PhlrGQ059cgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 332px; height: auto;"></span></p><p style="text-align: center; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><font face="Times">(A wedding took place here at the Marriott)</font></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times"><br></font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><span style="font-size: 17.41pt;"><font face="Times"><br></font></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><br></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"><font face="Times"><br></font></p><div><span style="font-family: ".SFUIText"; font-size: 17.41pt;"><br></span></div></div></div><img id="id_b0a_392a_b5d4_80df" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-1JUC_Pbeh4o/Wx6kNktvnWI/AAAAAAACBHs/9YdKxtrRLpsupgL4eas_X64IehOVJ_eaQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"><br><br></div><div id="_blog_touch_end_br_for_reorient"><br></div><div id="_blog_touch_end_br_for_reorient"><br></div>Two retirees and their travel storieshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13942287905877288793noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9052023657534142840.post-7630369187537683372017-12-12T13:39:00.001-05:002017-12-12T13:39:34.314-05:00Russia continued - A Volga cruise<div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_3324_5736_f4ee_925e" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-h53-deUjLpU/WixCKuwNLvI/AAAAAAABsDY/eiKyVDCBrPYzw_Qqp1YyITt6TqhAkYUVACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Leaving the Moscow cruise terminal)</div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">On the outskirts of Moscow the cruise terminal awaited us as we alighted a van provided by the Russian cruise organization so we can timely board the Ms Rostropovich with another 200 plus foreigners for an eight day trip to St Petersburg, city of the Czars as well as birthplace to Vladimir Putin the modern Czar of the present Federation of Soviet Republics. </span></div><div><br></div><div><img id="id_e4ce_c50b_558a_50df" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-KEoRUMVNqfw/WixCFsRtpGI/AAAAAAABsDE/_ioEY1OBTVkqnz__7jsrkbZM_lXNv0u-gCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 384px; height: auto;"><br> (Our cruise did not stop in Yaroslavl)</div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_bf68_bcd7_4269_ed89" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-__fzW89paU0/WixCNmMkj7I/AAAAAAABsDo/xydI1kDVWYAVYHZxMqwux6ISgLacuT5VQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 510px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"> (A piece of then suppressed Christianity offered up to the new lakes after the Soviets were installing dams and locks)</div></div><div><img id="id_bcf6_d47_2c62_6080" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-RRmnG2J4YBQ/WixCJZt_UvI/AAAAAAABsDQ/9IlvCwGLzEsiORvHTyYHgKCpGXLSFi1mgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 525px; height: auto;"><br> (Passing traffic in wide wide lakes we traverse)</div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_3d44_9e39_c661_57d1" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-oqE3LCpJ-jg/WixCMyN4rAI/AAAAAAABsDk/MibYywveO3EM8094UhM2kvHEJ2QuFRJsgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 474px; height: auto;"></div><font size="5"> </font>(While our ship rises in a lock, I peek over the edge to still waters below)</div><div><font size="5">The boat trip is interesting in so far that it highlights a remarkable project, the 229mile/368km Mariinsk canal system connecting Moscow with the Baltic Sea, started around 1810 as an extension inward toward Moscow of the work Tsar Peter I did in the early 1700s, with the last leg connecting the White Sea to the Baltic Canal using gulag prisoners in the 1930s. </font></div><div><br></div><div><img id="id_3876_f75_839d_db69" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-golVda6sipA/WixCHVhpPKI/AAAAAAABsDI/T50Em0OboKEByYjKqTBQbmNr6YK2BNZRQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 974px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">(Are these dachas or permanent residences in the middle of nowhere Russia? Don’t know)</div></div><div><font size="5">The trip takes us on five rivers and canals, across 4 lakes and reservoirs and through 16 locks going up and down during the 6 day trip, where we gawked at postcard tourist locations that live off river boat visitors year around, with local guides at every port blurting out the same old story mixing in the rehearsed jokes that amuse the masses. </font></div><div><img id="id_319f_f09b_d85a_e37" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-fTtzO2VbPSs/WixCIKNCuhI/AAAAAAABsDM/8_SJex4BVFAljm0bVnrp06m3TA39U7zDQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 394px; height: auto;"><br> (Our first lock after Moscow)</div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_b0_842b_de36_fcb0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-C2dBswsKaC4/WixCLOcp9mI/AAAAAAABsDc/jFuTVEx7VqA6VkIBKMVA5Xh45UqEarZGwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 490px; height: auto;"></div><font size="5"> </font>(Our Imperial suite on board; would Putin have slept here?)</div><div><img id="id_ac39_b2e9_ad4a_ed6e" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-xpYsy1xkrwM/WixCKEfiNuI/AAAAAAABsDU/hbuMUfKufiUdnXThFsHBBqSXg-PeUktzACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 479px; height: auto;"><br>(Uglich, first stop - a tourist trap - Vladimir my history professor onboard </div><div>tells us that it is famous for the murder of the young heir to the throne </div><div> Dmitry Ivanovich, youngest son of Ivan the </div><div> Terrible. Dmitry was banished here and had</div><div> his throat sliced in 1584)</div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_f4cf_f348_c885_e643" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-kQxWPpp2ye0/WixCO03qUWI/AAAAAAABsDs/JvJKXcH6rt4T5tyhgeEI2qzdMkRKTtbdQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 554px; height: auto;"></div> (The Transfiguration Cathedral in the Uglich Kremlin - did you know Kremlin means citadel) </div><div><br></div><div><img id="id_2fc_234e_8009_1fa3" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-xUtIll8kcJ8/WixCMlonO5I/AAAAAAABsDg/ZUqWMmxB3E0HRi9fQgSkTNLUzp07vyMdgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 387px; height: auto;"><br> (Our ms. Rostropovich in Uglich)</div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_b13_26c2_623c_1c32" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-2nPMy3fyMD0/WixCSfBrFuI/AAAAAAABsD4/kDWIlfUrEOQyK2EyD9ZFlzYsr7Z19jRyACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 382px; height: auto;"></div><font size="5"> </font>(Herman, my brother in law entertains himself)</div><div><font size="5">On board the entertainment ranged from Russian dance and or music performances, Russian song lessons, language class, poetry sessions, bingo, matreshka painting (the famous Russian dolls), treasure hunt, and dress rehearsals for a talent show among the cruise participants. </font></div><div><img id="id_42e2_cb31_92ad_6fd7" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-WhvpSXEUYbs/WixCPKJ4e_I/AAAAAAABsDw/IkGH6wWAMykQbf03QGO7lcdVQUknh8nVgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 315px; height: auto;"><br>(Another lock, sometimes we experience a</div><div> 8 to 11 meter rise or fall)</div><div><br></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_356_8518_ebdc_e560" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-J4LJoOpCXFA/WixCRDEGX1I/AAAAAAABsD0/HGKDSmsOvNYAILn4LjIEI8Exfo3kWJOmQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 426px; height: auto;"></div> (Kishi, Russia’s sacred island houses churches built without nails</div><div> although we saw a few - nails that is)</div><div><font size="5">And in the evening for those of us that did not go to the live performances, black and white movies in the cabin like Anna Karenina and Dr Zhivago.</font><div><font size="5">I attended a vodka tasting session, and every morning Vladimir’s Russian history lesson and to my shame a bingo session. </font></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><img id="id_57b7_2549_7469_d5be" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-u47T1awz2Oc/WixCTqCoFdI/AAAAAAABsD8/0ExYMR3qpD8kcK1DNxcHrqAYKzmLa3iWQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 528px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"> (A Belgian couple doing ballads - his role is to stand there)</span></div><div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></div><div><br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_4f0d_4793_7aab_e21a" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-JMAEkN6dC2E/WixCVQmM8II/AAAAAAABsEE/TiL2lVlSCKcjV_jxV2EGm-Mj-D-WQQnfwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 419px; height: auto;"></div> (These guys were almost funny)</div><div><font size="5">The pictures of the cheesy towns we stopped at will be highlighted under the pictures and were in sequence Uglich, Goritsy, Kishi and Mandrogui.</font></div><div><font size="5">In some of them you will find Sandee seated in her 2 euro a day Dutch wheelchair rental posing for posterity.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_75f1_2416_9b4c_944" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-BM3L8USjoFI/WixCYJjslGI/AAAAAAABsEY/6wvlnJTS5JINo8T2W0HTG87OKf_WWt6cQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 340px; height: auto;"><br>(Staff pictured during Russian dinner</div><div> with loudest passenger on board seeking attention)</div><div><br></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_b7c0_9741_4b3f_be17" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-U4XeW3mz2Pc/WixCTsJlKQI/AAAAAAABsEA/Sf1EAtUTdAc_6NlImyE34qmOdV1TfY9UgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 363px; height: auto;"></div> (Sandee during her “care for me hand and foot days”)</div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_ead5_714b_561a_7d3c" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-6Zp3O9u-Nx8/WixCWNrXZxI/AAAAAAABsEI/o2krGkqRmmMzEyUr2uLQrD3KgWAriDZTgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"><br>(Way outside of St Petersburg we dock at the cruise terminal so on to the main part of any Russia trip: downtown)</div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">St. Petersburg is the main event for any Russia trip you ever might envision. Emboldened by the history lessons of Vladimir, revisiting the city of the Czars is a breathtakingly beautiful encounter with history, showcasing the wealth and lifestyle of the privileged few, fed by the toiling of millions of agrarian peasants and their minions. </font></div><div><br><img id="id_59d3_80a8_bd22_ae0b" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-htfYW-6sj9I/WixCXXZq5qI/AAAAAAABsEM/CPgTIxE5r5ECSmKmytQWsJlZRcH88iRxwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"><br>(The famous Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood; that name because Emperor Alexander II was assassinated here)</div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">Although I have never visited India, I would postulate, that here in St Petersburg in the time of the Czars, life was for the privileged few, more over the top better than anywhere else on the globe. Pictures of and within the palaces are proof of that way of life, that screams in every room one enters: here roamed a Marie Antoinette personality with a “give them cake” mentality. I don’t think even the pictures in this blog can describe that feeling adequately.</span></div><img id="id_ee57_ab8_604f_1e83" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-mIr9BHqB5z8/WixCX0tkyhI/AAAAAAABsEU/9qRtfQbovqAkjvcEeR37n7nvSHJFijXGQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 297px; height: auto;">. </div><div> (St Isaac’s Cathedral)<br><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_ccd0_25e0_d6de_5304" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-LO1Yf86JmU8/WixCX_cydgI/AAAAAAABsEQ/ug-UE_PTPz4QsEGJ56u5lTzcEiZ413E1gCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 330px; height: auto;"></div> (Admiralty Building)</div><div><img id="id_53d3_e128_1bd0_fd15" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Xtzo2SEcpLk/WixCaLJ9pZI/AAAAAAABsEg/sgjsAPryOcE3sSj2EKdX6LoP5pjBsM_5QCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 324px; height: auto;"><br>(Don’t know anything about this 3 master)</div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_28aa_bfd8_7966_7e63" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-62i0OxvG6kA/WixCdLWyECI/AAAAAAABsE4/v4KkmEUKnNoqIPZC90-lglmYed8ynneRACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 329px; height: auto;"></div> (Views across the Neva river on the Kunstkamer complex)</div><div><img id="id_e5c8_b808_36c6_899d" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-7UiGvLegOfY/WixCcnpPznI/AAAAAAABsEw/l9BpbKQMp-sSQNszQtQQi48cwu6NhHtdgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 359px; height: auto;"><br>(Forgot what this building was, being part of a church complex?)</div><div><font size="5">The Russia that Lenin changed to Communism (“all of us own everything for the benefit of everybody”) is actually an extension of Caesarian, Byzantism and Czarism, all absolute power structures, controlled by one absolute ruler smart enough to create supporters (nobility- give them land and serfs- Catherine II gave on one day alone, the 18th of August 1755, 100,000 serfs away) and a bureaucracy to keep them in line.</font></div><div><img id="id_4d63_7d1a_e657_2a41" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-oajcpK3EHhE/WixCZX3ju4I/AAAAAAABsEc/Q1wx_V79myADWdp47AfpfgEJyaLJfu6EwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 351px; height: auto;"><br>(Hermitage overview of plaza)<br><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_5943_3b70_df07_8271" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-vNaIuN9FHVM/WixCcf_ffRI/AAAAAAABsEs/KLbb1Xmjo9MU9sfn6B_Hiy298y5NeSjcACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 550px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><font size="5"> </font>(Hermitage close up)</div></div><div><font size="5">In a period of 300 years of Romanovs 762 titles were bestowed, among them 178 prince titles with of course the land and serfs that come with that. A quick check at Wikipedia tells me that Napoleon bestowed 4000 titles during his short reign for th</font><span style="font-size: x-large;">e same reasons. </span></div><div><img id="id_5558_cc81_3741_d81a" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-LyiT0sSUiFw/WjAiZGNfRaI/AAAAAAABsP0/olDhd78A48YNpeNcWsynfszubnJcr7aBACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 974px; height: auto;"><br> (Enormous wealth was accumulated here during the times of the czars)<br><br></div><div><br></div><div><font size="5">All the money that flowed back to St Petersburg is to be seen in Palaces, princely homes, churches, showing furnishings, gold and glamour. The Dutch who made Czar Peter I a seafaring Czar, who brought industry and trade to burgeoning Russia while consolidating his power, had “modest mini palaces” with courtyards and 10 plus room mansions, amassing wealth in bringing all kind of imports to an awakening Russia, that later expanded its territories to east and west with the provided technologies and European sciences. </font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_1f04_eb6e_ad01_df6a" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-PVAQKELrsz8/WixCbwTJ8QI/AAAAAAABsEk/rN5evWM3edQV5d41nSPt2hW2gc7yRjMiQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 331px; height: auto;"></div> (Former Dutch traders residence during Czar Peter I reign)</div><div><font size="5">Paris became the city to emulate. All this the tourist can find roaming St Petersburg. Where my sister and brother in law took residence in a nearby hotel, we moved into Zhanna’s 4000 sq ft penthouse, riding daily the cozy rattling death trap elevator for 2 or scaling 12 well trodden marble flights, testing our lung capacity and stamina. </font></div><div><img id="id_b030_b45f_cc26_97a3" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-OeV-8SPDysI/WixCcD199gI/AAAAAAABsEo/G-axq-qoUxUdDuPaatij5iIDvbQb8h7_ACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 247px; height: auto;"><br>(Nice hallway from outside to elevator)</div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_eaae_362f_edaf_5ee3" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-qpwzZvHYfkc/WixCdC5aMTI/AAAAAAABsE0/Atym7ySgjFUbTRTt2pTd-nRNwKH6fKC2gCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 258px; height: auto;"></div> (Here is the elevator to the 6th floor)</div><div><br></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_3453_eb89_d308_7011" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-d42MYtJzNjo/WixCeBwPXCI/AAAAAAABsFE/9olk7mw5lRUMMk8C0pa8ZnH6UPwmFAS9ACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 259px; height: auto;"></div> (Are you ready to enter?)</div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_205f_c536_d2a9_6a6f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-HxkNPa-8cOc/WixCdwsljFI/AAAAAAABsE8/errj4OT9dI8q39RykVbZi-KD221KN6G3QCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 260px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"> (Ok push the wooden doors and walk in)</div></div><div><img id="id_f394_c088_3626_51cd" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-fb9uInEgPQ4/WixCd3t8KpI/AAAAAAABsFA/iFnYtff9DdsaqXsVVSn-k79ny0FjGqcQgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 260px; height: auto;"><br>(X’ed out buttons do not work! Last inspection?</div><div>Emergency call button does not work.</div><div> Ride up far from smooth with many </div><div>threatening noises and stop and go shakes)</div><div><font size="5">The wheelchair did not fit in the elevator and leaving it unattended downstairs was inviting unwanted attention, thus in folded condition we found refuge for it in Zhanna’s 2 person Smart, straddling both seats.</font></div><div><img id="id_3704_ab98_ffe6_39fc" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-7JKV1879H80/WixCei3kQII/AAAAAAABsFI/GQdL9SBoMCwSJL5jnB_VJPrtu-pNl41gwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 263px; height: auto;"><br>(The Hermitage we visited the same</div><div> way as last time: admiring the </div><div>building more than the art)</div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_89a0_7153_cb3d_fe6c" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-M6Z58KglJc8/WixCmGCne_I/AAAAAAABsFc/oE6hfzlsbXENdgVL49sgoib-0QOXpuF_wCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 292px; height: auto;"></div><font size="5"> </font> (We marveled at ceilings)</div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_77c2_4157_aa48_774a" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-tB-th52Sj7U/WixChY-OSRI/AAAAAAABsFM/QwdI_uDOLc8RjZxMBxeeRaGJKCw12MrNACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 292px; height: auto;"></div><font size="5"> </font>(We gawked at floors)</div><div><img id="id_8cf2_dff7_2218_8566" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-ia9wx4a7KrY/WixChmWmIZI/AAAAAAABsFU/fKwNxXjdoYgZfRWoEOrW42WdgKLvIP8GQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 364px; height: auto;"><br>(Ceilings)<br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_7e56_d844_2a3d_90fd" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-nIQs0mFQ_J4/WixCmJK-i5I/AAAAAAABsFg/5mgAmR8H5TwXdkdKbm92qKzH-zrIJsFjgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 378px; height: auto;"></div><font size="5"> </font>(Floors - some you could not walk on)</div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_58a7_37cc_6c7e_c882" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-QNRJN8qLXbI/WixCknYjOnI/AAAAAAABsFY/a8vOhK1P23cmrsdiu9lLvJaKcS56-ELEwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 337px; height: auto;"></div><font size="5"> </font>(Others you could)</div><div><img id="id_8a30_e1a9_8a55_6326" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-mWHlce83CGI/WixCmgIrjpI/AAAAAAABsFk/VqxzUKx2IMoSHFNixzAVh_g_J43L3r8awCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 358px; height: auto;"><br>(You get the picture?)</div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_6643_8457_ed0e_6eb4" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-UOjnsFcUYVo/WixCq7c-_uI/AAAAAAABsF8/lrDV3-7khLgEhVxT3L-2grOqIodG5oCfQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 314px; height: auto;"></div><font size="5"> </font>(We did!)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><font size="5">Highlights: revisiting since our first visit in 2002 the Hermitage, and this time the restored Amber room (fascinating story to check at the worldwide web one day) or in novel form: the thriller by Steve Berry: The Amber</font><font size="5">Room<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;">.</span></font><span style="font-size: x-large;"> </span></div><div><br></div><div><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><br></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_7bf5_38d8_1bd9_f892" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-F6JBQkHkyPE/WixCnL0FXkI/AAAAAAABsFo/7__ulyo-dwka-CDdgtaZDb0uiFD46I6wQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="text-align: center; width: 718px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"> (Google picture of the famous amber room in Catherine the Great’s Summer Palace, where nobody was allowed to take pictures) </span></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Wherever we went, w</font><span style="font-size: x-large;">e got special treatment because of my invalid spouse and her wheelchair. </span><span style="font-size: x-large;">Like us, dear aspiring visitor to St Petersburg, visit as many metro stations you can muster, and of course visit the Peter Paul Fortress, the Church o</span><span style="font-size: x-large;">f the Savior, Peterhof Palace, take a bus tour to the winter palace.</span></div><div><br></div><div><img id="id_2c84_d863_9f52_8806" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-5bJ3KGJdFMQ/WixCoSoDF4I/AAAAAAABsFs/7nJOEkUBC2cmQawFPS1psqLWH11YhuV1QCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"></div><div>(This could still be the longest ride down the metro escalator, almost 400 feet to the deepest metro station</div><div> in Russia the Admiralteyskaya; Moscow’s Park Pobedy station wins longest escalator but is less steep)</div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">My personal interest: visit the Kunstkamer with Peter Ist personal collection of curiosa, among which lots of deformed stillborn babies sent to him from all over Russia, copying an idea of a Dutch surgeon he met while in the Netherlands, to show case that nature creates accidents and to debunk the superstitions of his time about the powers of monsters.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div>(A picture here was removed by my editor as she found it “horrendous and very disturbing”. Thus it is moved to the bottom of the blog under various extra pictures. She heeds you not to look at it. So I already know what will happen)</div><div><br></div><div><font size="5">There is so much more to see in St. Petersburg that it could take weeks to roam it and still find new things to admire, not to forget the ballet, which also here was not in season yet.</font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_145b_a967_d9d7_9cdf" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Clxcq0PgMKQ/WixCp7I9DqI/AAAAAAABsF0/b3zD_iOvgTcu7qqNsc3fzXAsrrApOIZ5QCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 370px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(But we did find this a cross walk sign for blind people</div></div><div style="text-align: center;">alerting them (sic) that sound will guide them </div><div style="text-align: center;">safely across the street)</div><div><font size="5">We did attend a concert in a beautiful palace of Grand Duke Vladimir Alexandrovich, son of Alexander II</font><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;">, </span><span style="font-size: x-large;">and had a private tour of his quarters. Unfortunately no pictures were to be taken there. So I show you google pictures.</span></div><div><img id="id_abd9_474b_87cb_f33b" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-AaVaSjrNdag/WixCqDmjxnI/AAAAAAABsF4/TRlB2n2kaaUpdCL40iy_jvYadqkC6r2qwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">(I forgot to take an outside picture of the palace. So google came to the rescue)</div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_e829_136d_e99_282" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-YNfo2SrlyvA/WixCo8Kp-fI/AAAAAAABsFw/9ehXlk4bwRULNuwTeVkMYOt4E8ykFhQTQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"><br>(This is the entrance staircase to the palace residence, compliments of google)</div><div><font size="5">Here follows a YouTube clip of the music performance we attended.</font></div><div><br><br><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/playlist?list=PLWKZM7h-VgB2t2RCFctD1LMNVOeMS5h0y" width="500" height="281" id="y_id_c6c0_a4f1_79e2_8a11" frameborder="0"></iframe><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><br><br><br><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">We end here our blog and add below some pictures that do not need to be part of our story, but we made the pictures, so here they are:</font></div><div><br></div><div><img id="id_6d29_c879_19ea_5201" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-FH5ABLGJ2n4/WixCruxid0I/AAAAAAABsGA/47Lr2NDSZF0zX4g-FCeYc8Eczo4ZEiCsQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 274px; height: auto;"><img id="id_da29_a3a5_4720_8cc1" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-9OsvrsfLNpg/WixCs3cyDDI/AAAAAAABsGE/l2BAzx1fYcoAhOLkMpOx1dirKCGGkWjNACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="text-align: center; width: 299px; height: auto;"></div><div>(Every tour bus in town stops here so that it’s passengers can “relieve” themselves 2 ways)<br><img id="id_dae8_558e_2f4a_9b59" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-YbyPMDx0TQk/WixCvO7ltfI/AAAAAAABsGQ/XdaKGNcEdkwFhGBsUB3gnL3WIkOfrkg4gCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 334px; height: auto;"><img id="id_8d2c_8707_deeb_6c2c" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-L1Z5J8y1sCo/WixCt7K83SI/AAAAAAABsGI/AYP-lXPJT-8Ygu2oc2biOcbdtcDNgzIWgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="text-align: right; width: 296px; height: auto;"></div><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">PS if it was not for the cruise trip, we would never have see</span><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">n the above during our scheduled bus tour of St. Petersburg. Another reason to travel the way we like to see the world: independent traveling without organized tours</span></div><div><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_93ee_ff81_e9d6_6d68" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-VbYlYa5atqo/WjAiY6PUyKI/AAAAAAABsPw/dN4LsdlyAqUCSDvZkKOqfNCN7TQgpD5aQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 974px; height: auto;"><br><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><br></span></div><div><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"> (Street dancing on a regular work day in full costumes down town St. Petersburg)</span></div><div><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><br></span></div><div><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">WARNING:</span></div><div>Below the picture of the Kunstkamer curiosa that Sandee finds very disturbing:</div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><img id="id_e0ef_3027_9021_c174" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-dFriFGhMhow/WjAiYFxMhwI/AAAAAAABsPs/lBUTeW5iL0Yqv7FWvWD4kZWE5RsoyeL_wCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 974px; height: auto;"><br><br></div><div><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">(The museum has many many more of these but also agrarian implements, weaponry etc. In short the wonders of the day in Peter’s times. Did you know he started taxing wearing a beard, so Russians would look more European)</span></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div> </div>Two retirees and their travel storieshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13942287905877288793noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9052023657534142840.post-52172954788145775822017-12-12T13:03:00.001-05:002017-12-12T13:03:34.086-05:00Video test<br><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/playlist?list=PLWKZM7h-VgB2t2RCFctD1LMNVOeMS5h0y" width="500" height="281" id="y_id_177b_52e7_4e3f_579e" frameborder="0"></iframe>Two retirees and their travel storieshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13942287905877288793noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9052023657534142840.post-48080023010016785232017-12-12T12:34:00.001-05:002017-12-12T12:34:17.317-05:00To Russia in a wheelchair <div><img id="id_33f6_c53c_5327_2b57" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Cr3VEmdq8s4/WjASX9ZmTkI/AAAAAAABsG4/iGQyraT9oZsBOoM4Yw1LkuBU43vrXBD2wCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"><font size="5"><br></font></div><div style="text-align: center;"><font>(This is the best symbol of Stalinism - University of Moscow Building) </font></div><font size="5">The trip was planned a year earlier and nobody could have foreseen pushing Sandee around in a wheelchair through airports, hotels, Red Square etc etc.</font><br><div><font size="5"><br></font><div><img id="id_5c41_9149_c888_a85a" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-9aAzU2TfVbI/WjASYDTANfI/AAAAAAABsG8/pgHKMsJK24El_F2TgJI63hEH_991cEySgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 285px; height: auto;"> </div><div> (Isn’t she colorful)</div><div><br></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_7d87_b92_3251_4fea" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-V36-zaxCycs/WjASbQlgzXI/AAAAAAABsHU/iMa1wpDhFoMLW5HUKQsIiYpeHCTjONjKgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 309px; height: auto;"></div></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Sandee all alone - We all went to the bathroom)</div><div><img id="id_3e99_e414_31a_28f2" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-38lNyjNpEY0/WjASZPfF3zI/AAAAAAABsHE/pE-m3LJSetYbocQAJJprMMo-usPL4DTHACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 308px; height: auto;"><br>(Posing with Zhanna - ok enough about her misfortunes)</div><div><font size="5">Today, as I start writing this blog, we just returned from the Emergency Room</font> <font size="5">for a third time, because she landed on her butt during a walk on a park trail and she now flaunts a splint, awaiting a next visit to her now best friend the orthopedic surgeon. (For those that did not know: she fell at home and broke a scaphoid bone in her left hand a week before we were leaving for Amsterdam, where she proceeded to fall at night tearing tendons in her right foot just before we were leaving for Russia. (It must be admitted here that I fell in Amsterdam, missing a curb and dragged her with me to the cobblestones below)</font></div><div><img id="id_5b96_9ca5_1e24_eb65" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-1rw-kzyDgAw/WjASZ62bE7I/AAAAAAABsHM/EDg3ZV6UyXUEwC-_t7av6iuSYzEzL-YbACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">(The most glorified St Basil’s Cathedral in Moscow surrounded by cranes and tents)</div></div><div><img id="id_9b0e_d4c6_5a73_5b09" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-SPzJTGeYQJ0/WjASYnSl0qI/AAAAAAABsHA/8loT4vN5aL013P8pNIStIxSbJg_K2qCVwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">(Kazan Cathedral in Red Square, a beautiful survivor since 1636)</div></div><div><font size="5">Ah well let’s start writing about Russia. Getting to Russia requires visa, and in our case this required us to list every trip we made in the last 10 years with dates and locations. The electronic form refused further entries after we listed the preceding 4/5 years as it did not allow for more than 30 entries. </font></div><div><img id="id_d46d_9aa5_1662_7895" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-4H6Suf2bWwI/WjASc-pQ0SI/AAAAAAABsHc/__Cdywxekps8LFqQN6nTuBfv8DRVfRKywCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">(Left a gate to the Red Square flanked by the Revolution Museum)</div></div><div><font size="5">The unsmiling environment in the consulate forebode a climate of “big brother” surveillance while visiting. And yes, you need to list every lodging location by name and dates on your application. And when leaving the listed hotel you need to receive an affidavit that you stayed there. </font></div><div><img id="id_ca7d_3ba6_4b13_bbf7" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-PbEwLxf1ku0/WjASeXt_kEI/AAAAAAABsHk/AfFSnBBdzXQgSZiipvWckq_BK7TRY90EACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">(Night picture with in the far distance the lit Kremlin)</div></div><div><font size="5">Not speaking the language does not help in overcoming this big brother watches you feeling. We, that is my sister and brother in law and the two of us, were lucky to have a Russian “guide” in Zhanna the widow of my friend Hans, who steered us away from the pitfalls of being independent travelers, who are not being met and shephered around by organized tour operators, as it is with most tourists we saw all around Moscow and St Petersburg. </font></div><div><img id="id_70da_815c_b5e5_b1f3" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-OrIz1XK5uMs/WjASZi9jsCI/AAAAAAABsHI/8wWFJpt3J0QIMC7-FR7v1XlLJWqcTkXpACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 352px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: left;">(We saw this often, construction sites covered</div><div style="text-align: left;"> with sheets already showing finished product) </div></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_f872_2e70_4cef_cc48" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-fdKosXASVy4/WjASb1YAgoI/AAAAAAABsHY/_ImHYG0rpro1mCCmEnA5imcU78vHGJfSACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 355px; height: auto;"></div><div class="designers" style="text-align: right; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; line-height: normal;"><font color="#000000" style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit; text-decoration: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">(</font><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">The Yuro Platonov Russian Academy of Science </span></div><div class="designers" style="text-align: right; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; line-height: normal;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"> building dated 1968 now empty, funding stopped)</span></div></div><div><font size="5">First troublesome adventure: getting a reasonably</font><span style="font-size: x-large;"> priced cab from the airport to Moscow city center. The official cab company at the curb sported laminated price lists for the 45 minute ride to town, requiring us to pay over 100 euro for the trip and because of Sandee being in a wheelchair for us about 200 euro for a van, later “just for us” lowered to 150. </span></div><div><img id="id_692c_763c_130c_e85f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Q-qLpIL52xo/WjASavRqngI/AAAAAAABsHQ/o-jug4Wb7JoXv-h0ah4WbxmasegfPpsoACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 329px; height: auto;"><br>(The Kremlin wall on the quiet Volga river side)</div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_36fa_f6c0_940_391d" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-qHqUGDK5bpc/WjASe46snMI/AAAAAAABsHs/bmZ5kVIHNjAHz6FsMvks-_brx8tEDyMMACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 384px; height: auto;"></div> (Zhanna besides the impassive Kremlin guard)</div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">A phone call to Zhanna, who was waiting at the Metropol hotel downtown, an ordered Uber type van arrived an hour later from the city to get us there for 35 euro.</span></div><div><font size="5">Zhanna getting us tickets, taxis, booking restaurants etc. kept us from many a pitfall we could have wandered into. So, Zhanna thank you for all you did these two weeks.</font></div><div><img id="id_5ee3_f3bb_3fcf_d881" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Q3aP9erGaHE/WjASev90YGI/AAAAAAABsHo/DiCjDQekyqw48jiIkUcrT11Tc4nhTx4owCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">(National Emblem of the Federation: The 3 crowned double headed eagle, the sign of dominion and power) </div></div><div><font size="5">It may at this moment be illuminating for you the reader to know, that the average income in the major cities such as Moscow is about 1000 euro a month and for the country as a whole 500 euro a month.</font></div><div><font size="5">Talking about statistics: Russia today covers 17% of the worlds landmass and has just under 150 million citizens, comprising of 200 nationalities that share the Russian language as the common denominator. </font></div><div><img id="id_4b99_a99a_ea2c_efd0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-mYbEVjSBOzQ/WjAShH1I1eI/AAAAAAABsH4/u93nlq2izSkQVRYRLH3N1V1D7Ga-qeG7ACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 533px; height: auto;"><br>(Bronze Guinness book of record largest cannon cast in 1586, fired once)</div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_3103_7584_68bc_7e39" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-HkKQE7ARHCA/WjASc7LRlWI/AAAAAAABsHg/6WhCdOn3LncGyMjgC213-JAeYSGGYBfhACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 532px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"> (largest bell in the world weighing 201,924 kilograms (445,166 lb) </span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"> </span><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"> and that broken piece weighing </span><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">11,500 kilograms (25,400 lb) was the result of Kremlin fire in 1737 that engulfed the wooden shack that housed the unfinished bell)</span></div><font size="5"> </font><span style="font-size: x-large;">The country spreads out over 9 time zones and flying from one end of the country to the other end, takes the same time as flying from Moscow to New York City: 8 hours.</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_8ef8_a1d2_712b_926" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-iEBbopnqAVI/WjASfmFzOgI/AAAAAAABsH0/vv51-n9u3JYQny1OqDFGP5O_MWisnqFnwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 350px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(My Brother in Law showing off)</div><div><font size="5">I learned a lot about Russia during the 2 weeks we were there:</font></div><div><font size="5">4 full days in Moscow, an 8 day cruise from Moscow to St Petersburg and a 5 day stay in St Petersburg, well documented with the affidavits supplied by hotel and cruiseship and our host Zhanna who registered our stay in her apartment at the post office. </font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_97d8_1edc_10e0_6de1" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-IF2rBu_z1hA/WjASfjLYxsI/AAAAAAABsHw/xCc8vmrCJBMkCPMVvMnBuFuyQp73qpucwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 438px; height: auto;"><br>(The public side of the Kremlin houses the churches complex)</div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_d8ea_2257_cb11_2a29" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-bR7HnzZdMVU/WjASi1VBScI/AAAAAAABsH8/3rj6XaC-4oA6G4NSR06ez9D5H_3Aqk24wCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 388px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"> (Former Monastery at the Kremlin)</div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_4d6e_948e_d1c4_7b33" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-zWS-u6Xw0jU/WjASnfrdrTI/AAAAAAABsIY/iIoiBuh6R088DaglF-zTw9eBz4g7OlGAgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 409px; height: auto;"><br>(Typical example of inside the churches)</div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_4fed_74ad_611b_ccc2" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-rz4f8xHqR9o/WjASjb0EkFI/AAAAAAABsIA/9JIjFGaqmWgnn7aoaZbWvywWRYD4hwZKACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 410px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><font size="5"> </font>(Iconic Kremlin wall tower facing the Volga side of the Kremlin)</div></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_5592_1a6c_4517_a1df" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-LydtkjKxnOI/WjASkE4_klI/AAAAAAABsIE/8BhcyzxNkMALTiTtl4GD3u7uWltdUhr0gCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 352px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(I wonder is it real gold leaf or paint)</div></div><div><font size="5">We needed to have these documents on us in case officials like police officers inquired, we were told. We also should never have our passports on us, but only copies, to not possibly, eventually or accidentally having to “buy” back our passports.</font></div><div><font size="5">It is however appropriate at this stage in this story to mention that we never felt threatened or unsafe. People are friendly and helpful if they speak English and when you are in need of information or direction. </font></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_c15c_11ed_9a68_dda7" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-_TkeZyTcwhw/WjASk6CERUI/AAAAAAABsII/lnCmKbdvvvQqCDmGmOvnCSn8sycFct8VgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 732px; height: auto;"></div><font size="5"> </font>(The Temple of Christ the Savior, the tallest Orthodox Church in the world, built mid 19th century. </div><div> It took 44 years to complete, then destroyed by Stalin killing priests who refused to leave in it, </div><div> for one of his Stalinist buildings, which was never realized. The Church was rebuilt and finished in 2000)</div><div><br></div><div><img id="id_e113_69e7_9800_e555" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-QUwClLWJp8g/WjASoizzG3I/AAAAAAABsIc/vxoHjYvJNDcURoBDmogvLk4kyWQjc5y6ACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 464px; height: auto;"><br> (A city view from the city side of the Kremlin) </div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">It is just that Russians have never lived without “authority”. They always joke: you can ask me anything and I will tell you about us even the bad things “as long as you do not report me to the KGB”. And everybody laughs at this stage knowing full well that there is no KGB anymore, but then again there is the FSB, the new KGB.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_4988_3d24_c12f_63c2" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-ZFXIU4LREEo/WjASm8ouYlI/AAAAAAABsIQ/QIJYEiwsYMUX3b5vIovXmYDcjMndnrFGACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 484px; height: auto;"><br> (Bolshoi Theater)</div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_4f91_4519_d304_1107" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-pG-UFjJmqCo/WjASnRXA2SI/AAAAAAABsIU/4pTD3o-H9psDsS9CkMvT34mK7a8d7AjgQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 483px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"> (A Volga River view towards the Kremlin)</div></div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_8582_e797_ae53_d86f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-twgw0o7nXqE/WjASma6SpLI/AAAAAAABsIM/gzP3EVgs1aE2EoBsEQWTxHKb5i5Yfl3rgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 269px; height: auto;"></div></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Czar Peter I monument in the Volga river installed 1997, voted ugliest monument and allegedly cast to commemorate Christopher Columbus, but no American investor could be found)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div><font size="5">And surveillance is still around and officials can still without much ado investigate anybody anytime anywhere. Russians admire strong leadership. Putin is popular as he creates the image of Russia being an important country on the worldscene. And many older Russians crave for the old days and many admire Stalin for his strong leadership even at the expense of the millions who disappeared to Siberia or were offered up as cannon fodder in World War II. After all Russia defeated Germany and won the war and expanded the empire westwards creating the much lauded and now sorely missed USSR, as some of them say. </font></div><div><img id="id_bbbf_f593_81aa_3a9f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-gYgV5qC8Tr4/WjASpiQnRHI/AAAAAAABsIk/Ki4y4tf7xkYBbPXubAXmQ76Z69m0K02hQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"><br>(During our bus tour I took this picture of New Town, which we never visited. It is Moscow’s financial center)</div><div><font size="5">A walking tour in Moscow with a 30 plus year old girl brought to the fore the “undemocratic” freedom that she enjoyed: being able to travel the world (if she had the money she would do it more often), the ability to tell us without bias about the world she was living in, its pitfalls and its blessings. </font></div><div><img id="id_93c5_68e_3d81_bc0f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-ibY3wNamluo/WjASpdwT9LI/AAAAAAABsIg/dCcINxWT1UYYL_JoXfZe6NYHZmdpzL28QCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 449px; height: auto;"><br>(Bolshoi Cafe, where royalty dined. We could only afford a drink)</div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_32b6_8be8_2f4c_32fe" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/--Uov0aRFUcw/WjASrU5UYPI/AAAAAAABsIs/SvBhE_dmET8XLLFG_mxjKIMaAOFijispwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 478px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Above and below pastries for the Tea service)</div></div><div><img id="id_eda9_2bcf_f1c9_7a59" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-muvd958iEWs/WjAS0PTp8oI/AAAAAAABsJQ/gRKggc5pzmgb7roHSl2KACHPNgLfmEijACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Pittfalls: bureaucracies, low income, limited availability of goods and wares she finds outside the country but not in the local shops, housing in drab apartment housing on the outskirts of town, free health care that one needs to avoid because underpaid staff is not really providing care, so pay for private non governmental hospital or doctor care. </font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Blessings: YouTube, internet, Facebook, in short a more open society that can criticize, maybe not change it and which is fed print and tv fodder one does not necessarily believe, but they are not going to Siberia anymore for the sentiments they express.</font></div><div><img src="webkit-fake-url://96794b66-2b9a-4cb6-8f10-c0d53d6049f2/imagepng" id="id_83a_3eb9_a0fc_ca0d" style="width: 1026px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: start;"><span style="text-align: center; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"> (During our bus tour we often saw massive construction projects)</span></div><div><font size="5">Oh, but then again, you were looking for a blog on what we did and what we saw, weren’t you? Well, we rode the double decker city tour bus and saw a lot of beautiful buildings, we walked in parks, rode the metro and visited the space museum, which tells aerospace stories from the Russian perspective. </font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div></div><div><img id="id_7f04_4afe_c139_c0f1" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-JooWzdgPuTU/WjAStG3BRPI/AAAAAAABsI0/NMENrAB0C0wh5w6ZmfuiMFTnho_wlL8HwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 397px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: left;">(Cleaning is a daily chore with crews doing meticulous work)</div></div><div style="text-align: left;"><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_24e7_b035_bb8f_dca2" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-ba2HcTVKHvI/WjASrfMqHQI/AAAAAAABsIo/tottHMnfwJ8INF7MrNGfVKNHCEDfqrm2ACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 384px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"> (No grass allowed here)</div><div style="text-align: left;"><img id="id_277e_d6fc_7482_115b" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-yZlM58NG7DM/WjASvEdaGVI/AAAAAAABsI4/c8jCtBua8Z05Zt1010T5IFUB4PKKGpeAgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 466px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: left;"> (Back breaking work, hope they get a pension)</div></div></div><div><font size="5">We unfortunately did not have an opportunity to go to the Bolshoi theater as it was still closed (the season opens mid September). However we visited the Bolshoi cafe where in the days before the revolution Tsars and Tsarinas had tea and we gawked at the timeless beauty there. </font></div><div><img id="id_1367_7297_d5f4_c85d" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-0riraJDnqRs/WjASsFDLpSI/AAAAAAABsIw/yZ9VPnz1JKUWXfiOdFPAB5JtqgPnWCMIQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">(Marx the guy that thought Britain would become a Communist Society one day, </div></div><div style="text-align: center;">with his slogan “proletariat of the world unite”)</div><div><font size="5">We wandered around a very disappointing Red Square, </font><span style="font-size: x-large;">where a festival was being set up. In the olden days when I did business in Moscow, you would not find mobile stalls with trinkets being peddled there. The square was empty, spacious and imposing. Not anymore. Another victim to commercialism. Talking about commercialism: We did buy tickets to get into the public area of the Kremlin.</span></div><div><img id="id_f378_8569_4a30_b762" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-7zn9D2RJNfE/WjASwngK1-I/AAAAAAABsJE/pXAZ3O42SUw7N0BKEUyeNGXMIGaWMg5ZgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 381px; height: auto;"><br>(Red Square in preparation of a festival)</div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_49b9_3a44_b5b4_3c86" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-xFkgxIJpltY/WjASwGBQFwI/AAAAAAABsI8/HWpSEWNap3wtmDuq2zoLVb7rS8aETzRAgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 383px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Can you feel my disappointment)</div></div><div><img id="id_d84_d612_eff8_2176" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-LUTLoBasuBc/WjASwG0g6KI/AAAAAAABsJA/6iIrVrEQBF8E6yyHIPcXQkQl5xFg8x1SQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 389px; height: auto;"></div><div><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"> (Lenin’s mausoleum behind the mess)</span></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_d5be_8a48_5f48_a1d6" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-TBckGRg46c0/WjASyd-lv0I/AAAAAAABsJM/XmMHFrVZJ8Qx8Q1BjWb6D2mwSKLkSm6fACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 347px; height: auto;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"> (Musicians preparing for the festival)</div></div><div><font size="5">We took a day of riding the metro from one beautiful station to another, and yes, it is this clean.</font></div><div style="text-align: center;"><font size="5"> </font>(No notes, just marvel at the sights)</div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_d4db_e3e8_e4bf_5082" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-pF7IfBKGFLg/WjAS1wW7h7I/AAAAAAABsJc/FnEgczNf7bsUAiP-hvxnK2x0xPK6oifXgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 337px; height: auto;"></div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_70c4_8252_efbd_3679" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-nJqoH7BYJPE/WjAS1HYkWXI/AAAAAAABsJU/ATFk-cKSWCUHL6Sv3UURfF2R5Afnf7c3ACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 344px; height: auto;"></div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_ec25_c1c9_ff9a_35fe" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-yrmZGwwgcMU/WjAS1j5blJI/AAAAAAABsJY/JhZPCmq6HdEYh8T4Ry42W2UAjkSM21TFwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 342px; height: auto;"><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_98d5_fa50_54f0_eecf" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-x5eeM3OpO9U/WjASxj5B31I/AAAAAAABsJI/_w4VXUTtVw4sAHZSnJBgrUyZ-6t1TGKuwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 333px; height: auto;"></div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_1ee2_51eb_87a4_1882" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-gSpZrlrjW0Q/WjAS3dZspdI/AAAAAAABsJk/wov8QUleijkSChghqB3qlOKZ5JLPPVHHwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 339px; height: auto;"></div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_adf_b8de_173b_614e" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-17pr9Q5MWLM/WjAS7hCYfZI/AAAAAAABsJ0/I4z87PFIA6YCh7x9wJvsjMP8c5K2ATbTgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 339px; height: auto;"><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_1a48_ae82_466a_d1dc" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-_Vrp3kCUXdM/WjAS96NiLMI/AAAAAAABsJ8/aaHG-7QRBoQwGn24-tVd9FC8XvGDoydtwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 343px; height: auto;"></div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">What many do not know is that Stalin expanded the metro system and bulldozed Moscow to lay out wide avenues, oversaw many details of beautifying the city, and in doing so, emptied many a museum to put artifacts in the public arena, such as in the metro stations.</font></div><div><img id="id_d84c_2a28_d4ae_43ed" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-41Pa6S9D6N0/WjAS4YbmzdI/AAAAAAABsJs/fILHEFkSaP8CrSJhIoQWoKGw7QqTAZZxQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 492px; height: auto;"><br> (The Space Museum complex with the mighty needle)</div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_24c6_5485_f143_8e44" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-_CqwAchh8zU/WjAS2wN3ZJI/AAAAAAABsJg/YXhDIH4C69kVCPMKM01jZDZvlEdgvtIEwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 311px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(1962 and 605ft/184m high)</div></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_1aa7_fb39_1d95_c4a5" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-GC7GMgh0Ls4/WjAS4IU_2NI/AAAAAAABsJo/3h6E_qEBWMo2Qk_YXUuYDZKFid-Af74XACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 318px; height: auto;"></div> (Yuri Gagarin statue)</div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_cd5b_9e24_97a5_79a3" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-zU3ifsONCOk/WjAS6hIkrKI/AAAAAAABsJw/2anLhPMIKr4R6tonA8w9o3krZc1XsOf4QCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 395px; height: auto;"></div><font size="5"> </font> (Above and below Museum pictures - a so so Museum)</div><div><img id="id_9002_4397_8416_1a03" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-AEm4PO_wVnU/WjAS9bl_NSI/AAAAAAABsJ4/ndJE564WJo02G9i9DzLCxsONL3Seh6kKwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 417px; height: auto;"><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">There are numerous stories about architects getting their marching orders on how to rebuild Moscow, but getting confused on what his final approved scribbles on the plans really meant and</font><span style="font-size: x-large;"> not daring to ask for clarifications, which resulted in details on buildings that are now delightful tour guide gleefully pointed out. </span></div><div><img id="id_6074_3b3c_8234_37c6" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-GQwzZYSWbSQ/WjAS-RNbH-I/AAAAAAABsKA/H3aeC-C_o7A8JhBGZwAIhQ6ObJKZafghgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"><br>(The present Four seasons hotel near the Kremlin is one of those “what did comrade Stalin want architecturally left side or right side?”)</div><div><font size="5">The hotel Metropol right outside the Kremlin walls is lauded to be the numero uno hotel in Moscow. It was the last stand of the Menshevik (translated minority party) against the Bolshevik (translated majority party) in the eight day battle to take Moscow and the residence of “A Gentleman in Moscow” book by Amor Towles, which everybody should read or wait otherwise for the movie starring<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"> Tom Hanks.</span></font></div><div><img id="id_f9fa_a6a6_435d_b0df" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-pDA0N6FutmA/WjAS-wtiHxI/AAAAAAABsKE/4BrAI8Q9qAI8jPtjhp4jeHpKUNSB86RUgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"><font size="5"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><br></span></font></div><div> (Metropol hotel lobby)</div><div><font size="5">My sister was specifically enamored to stay there because of a famous event to be had there, which features everyday a harpist providing a musical atmosphere during a</font><span style="font-size: x-large;"> morning feeding frenzies called breakfast, an event Sandee and I always try to avoid.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_f4af_9e75_6abc_a622" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-HJKxGbyPqbg/WjATBKmeAUI/AAAAAAABsKQ/aA5nZrlCEsInE4P8hoWR0Yohmh_ubLmtQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 475px; height: auto;"></div><div> (Beautiful glass ceiling of the main Metropol dining room)</div><div><font size="5">Well this time we succumbed and took a jam filled blini and decaf coffee, so that we could be witness to such a lauded phenomena.</font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_ded5_346c_ab64_fd3d" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-DpKaCIUxGE8/WjATBQhgpuI/AAAAAAABsKU/cM-tL3pKKWUbIU2tJQI6tRhEaGWY74v7ACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 511px; height: auto;"></div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Misser of the week in Moscow, was me booking a restaurant on the top floor of one of the highest buildings in Moscow, so that we could enjoy Moscow by night from high above. Well it turned out to be more like a very noisy bar scene attended by apparently well heeled mid thirty year old moscovites who enjoyed hookah pipes. The food was overpriced and of substandard quality and the lights above our tables were obscuring the city lights as they deflected our view into the window pane. </font></div><div><img id="id_7ffd_310_86da_1ef5" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-iZTrFDR3rrg/WjATB1U-mBI/AAAAAAABsKY/viiVPMufzjAo5k44D0-3r5ZFtkzpp_HMgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">(Group photo during our bad dinner at the “60 bar restaurant” surrounded by Hookah pipes </div></div><div><img id="id_b157_3951_8f42_2008" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-dgjGUrxS-CM/WjATEa18pII/AAAAAAABsKk/qRU5zPq80mwVVW5rRePMFoRK9LH36KcFQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"><br> (Not only hookah pipe smoke also our dishes smoked - This was gazpacho)</div><div><font size="5">Highlight of the week there, dinner in a back alley “farm to table restaurant” with young staff speaking very good English showering us with very interesting menu items. In both places the noticeable surprise was that the majority of patrons were below 40 years old.</font></div><div><img id="id_590c_26b5_77b9_116f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-H15glFoMeLg/WjATEppBv0I/AAAAAAABsKo/A_impBEfxq0ZIyD_2HPkuHLdVb2NTQYnACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">(Kremlin view from the tour bus)</div></div><div><font size="5">Ok I have made this blog long enough to stop here and write another one about the Russian cruise to St Petersburg and the Royal city itself.</font></div><div><img id="id_4ca1_c622_eb2a_6cbc" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-uqViIQLTaI8/WjATBBM1CtI/AAAAAAABsKM/cLV9cigW46Q-DHzs_-9MYNdMfRo9I6dKACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><span style="text-align: left;">Worker and Kolkhoz Woman is a sculpture of two figures with a sickle and a hammer raised over their heads. It is 24.5 meters high, made from stainless steel by Vera Mukhina for the 1937 World's Fair in Paris, and subsequently moved to Moscow.</span><span style="text-align: left;"> Compliments of <a class="q _KCd _tWc fl" href="https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Worker_and_Kolkhoz_Woman" data-ved="0ahUKEwi4h6m9xoDYAhUFNSYKHWTOCtYQmhMIiQEwDQ" ping="/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Worker_and_Kolkhoz_Woman&ved=0ahUKEwi4h6m9xoDYAhUFNSYKHWTOCtYQmhMIiQEwDQ" style="text-decoration: none;">Wikipedia</a></span></span></div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><br></span></div><div><font size="5">Oh, one more anecdote as told by our walking tour guide: On the last day of January 1990 the first McDonald opened in the USSR right here in the center of Moscow to long lines of patrons hankering for hamburger and fries US style, 30,000 potential patrons to be precise. One very long line around several corners.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_2057_8ec_dc82_bbf" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-0p8VhGjfCAU/WjATEXU7PnI/AAAAAAABsKg/vIteYS2ycqMAAqBkAO7JFm6tl5NjAGshgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 456px; height: auto;"><br>(Our guide’s pictures of the cold January 31 day)</div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_b9f_bb24_34b6_f8c6" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-zsRtBrvpnNc/WjATFF0sLDI/AAAAAAABsKs/MtLH1pt0D20kADIXIY8Fm7OZdh_HJeTMgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 485px; height: auto;"></div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Only the first 10,000 or so got to enjoy hamburgers the rest had to do it with fries only. The big issue to overcome was teaching the young girls behind the cash registers to smile and greet the customer as they placed their orders. A social grace till then uncommon in the Russian food and hospitality industry, where customers were considered a nuisance in those “good old days”.</font></div><div><font size="5">Again may the pictures do the talking.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_b2aa_68f3_4806_a5c0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-IUldZxTG1Y4/WjATFmkS96I/AAAAAAABsKw/nZpALEDx0ToR7KcujcOpUCDjQJPXXvBigCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 437px; height: auto;"></div></div><div style="text-align: center;">(What are you looking at? Haven’t seen pigeons before?)</div>Two retirees and their travel storieshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13942287905877288793noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9052023657534142840.post-66262815579682262652017-10-26T18:17:00.001-04:002017-10-26T18:17:01.814-04:00A Road Trip to Spain<div><img id="id_be26_2f47_87bb_9b3f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-DDKrB2Jk5rg/WfJeeycddkI/AAAAAAABrx4/AqvUYQovnYU9bh_8uOgwQp232pRyCZ4awCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">French little towns seem always empty during the day</div></div><font size="5"><div><font size="5"><br></font></div>A benefit of living in Amsterdam a few months every year is among other things opportunities to see other places too in Europe for a few days or weeks while there.</font><div><img id="id_2718_bf37_be2e_8d06" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-PLur8d68MFk/WfJeeSmuklI/AAAAAAABrx0/yQtagauSV08x4sKbBOU5EqyJWImZU48RgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">Spring time in France </div></div><div><br><img id="id_d280_39c5_b5ec_f159" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-nQa22i26wtE/WfJed0gP-qI/AAAAAAABrxw/-ZVyZl0ZCjUg3bXdiVaiwWCBCLyJsxigACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 429px; height: auto;"><br><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">Sandee for example is giving me for my birthday a few spa days in Kortrijk Belgium next week, to which we travel by train in a few hours time. Why Kortrijk you ask? Well is is a beautiful medieval town, maybe not as scenic as Brugge, but it is definitely up there. And how many hours can one be in a sauna or on a massage table? This little outing was a spur of the moment thing. (This as written in April)</span></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_8d9b_a672_4dbd_4792" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-jPdh5ahDL7s/WfJee7WTDpI/AAAAAAABrx8/Z--_APJTpEEvlmcBXfIa3PqCNy-ZGIZ2gCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 440px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">We try to avoid interstate </div></div><div><font size="5">The above little trip was planned long ago. Beginning of last year our Denver traveling friends Paul and Sue intimated to us that they were retiring at the end of 2016, and to start off their new life, they were going to spend early 2017 a full three months in Europe. </font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_97af_6dd6_7dd_d0ba" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-r67e4tK5F6g/WfJedhB8eXI/AAAAAAABrxs/ITysaFde1PgymMxLKIiTVcH8gvMr0niewCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 435px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">We were jealous Paul and Sue were taking 3 months so this was my response</div></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Actually it’s a statue by Maurizio Cattelan in front of the Milan Stock Exchange)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div><font size="5">One in Palermo Sicily (Paul has a Sicilian Brooklyn heritage), one month in Rome, 2 weeks in the gastronomic capital of the Spanish Basque Country, San Sebastián and finally 2 weeks in Barcelona. As we had not seen those 2 cities in Spain we begged them to suffer our presence for a few days and they acquiesced. </font></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_a43e_72c9_5e0a_e06d" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-nTtYtQ2GCsQ/WfJee3eiNCI/AAAAAAABryE/sHMn3la9br023KFTv2qun-eULG1AmsHKQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 556px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">A perfect location for lunch somewhere - I forgot the name</div></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">So we took a rental car to travel about 5000 km/3000 miles leaving wintry Amsterdam early April through Belgium, France into Spain and returning through Germany to meet them and enjoy the sun. </span></div><div><img id="id_8246_81d1_cfe_3654" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-YFYPDdqN5Uo/WfJee9u02yI/AAAAAAABryA/cuOr8QKH1v4PnvkMD-PCUyOXPlBmkyJngCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">Pomerol country vines were in bloom</div></div><div><font size="5">The first thing worth mentioning about the road trip is that in April the rolling French landscape is dotted with swatches of bright yellow, as the rapeseed is in full bloom all around us. Believe me, these are unforgettable sights to behold.</font></div><div><img id="id_ea1e_33ca_6c52_1263" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-YQSCmU2AvAs/WfJefBGTUiI/AAAAAAABryI/XjjI4KDYFV09aqjb2YwzX_E9c3gnYA8MgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">These are the sights that make us travel again and again</div><div><font size="5">Our first stop was the privateer nest city of St Malo, made rich by these medieval pirates, although I must correct myself in admitting that we first made a half hour detour to the monastery island of Mont St Michel for quick picture snaps from the overfull parking lot a half mile away. </font></div><div><img id="id_f0bf_8a71_ab70_3661" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-PkAh3hTkv6A/WfJefr1LEPI/AAAAAAABryQ/dzqUpJhZmZ49VtClk4z4syXVEVXg-Lr4QCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">St Mont Michel taken from the parking area</div></div><div><font size="5">If you are ever close by and can get lodging on this small spot in Brittany you will enjoy a night with few tourists as the number of available beds are very limited. We did not get a bed there, not even in the manger. But the walled city of St Malo made up for it with a beautiful sunset on the beach and a good seafood dinner in a local family restaurant.</font></div><div><img id="id_e074_f67_1ab3_1624" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-s6YSsft6oqI/WfJefiuqIsI/AAAAAAABryM/_l3qJUj5p3w5nhxmi9HHJRZA1vmmPUsIwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 454px; height: auto;"><br><font size="5"> </font>St Malo defense walls where we had a glass of wine watching the sunset</div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_3c2a_46bb_167e_34d0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-_Vhu1aheGWI/WfJegKk_sMI/AAAAAAABryU/KM2yBFfq0EccR5adwxD3BcjmIdxpq1YYgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 539px; height: auto;"></div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_4db6_2a9b_b415_13c7" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-8uvzSP_cXYA/WfJegiNVIFI/AAAAAAABryY/fWJryBCnWf08aPUThysX8iestxho8WLEwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 450px; height: auto;"></div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">The next day we overnighted in a little castle in St Emilion, built in those long gone days, when winery owners lived in those "humble" environments to show off.</font></div><div><img id="id_cdf1_219b_671f_605e" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-s3_vRdERwiQ/WfJeiUM6XfI/AAAAAAABryk/yhe8zC8tTmc5CGf3qeknm7CD0B0Z_zexQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">A former vineyard owners abode now a four star hotel</div></div><div><font size="5">I chose that location as I have good memories of the wines from that township, such as Pomerol. A deliberate detour to Chateaubriand showed us a sleepy little village that in no way made us believe that that famous dish originated there. </font></div><div><img id="id_25f1_23d8_f7a4_a283" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-zXcZ_hBpsMM/WfJeiaAuHVI/AAAAAAABryc/8sIH2--2xJ0a5nuxrM9MAgsxuK5gEsvuQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 455px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">Cognac Church seen in passing</div></div><div><font size="5">Another detour to the little town of Cognac showed us that the fruit of the vines around that city are all being distilled, although I did not recognize any of the names for sale there.</font></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_5338_37fa_6b14_1dda" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-iGWnfBLY_OQ/WfJeid_h-JI/AAAAAAABryg/nFtUJsbmTgs8OmWX7dZlMSqFAx003AoRQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 511px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">It is hard to resist taking these roadside pictures</div></div><div><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><font size="5">When we returned to Amsterdam I read an article that stated that when driving in France one should always have in the car an alcohol breathalyzer, an orange highly visible vest to wear in case of a breakdown on the road and a warning triangle, spare bulbs and head lamp converters or otherwise face a high fine. And if we would be glass wearers a spare set. Talking about individual freedoms if everybody by law is forced to outfit their cars with these items. Well we were never stopped and thus escaped the fine.</font></span></div><div><img id="id_d32a_ee97_d147_7095" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-tUgmRRlfPtY/WfJejC-HmcI/AAAAAAABrys/SyBJV2wKz_QLnbOCCVweh-S4qkw06z1lwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 450px; height: auto;"><br><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">San Sebastián beach, every day the water erases and next day new text in the Basque language appears</span></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_6827_6c2d_1921_2eef" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-z0qBd1vmtMY/WfJejAqZt_I/AAAAAAABryo/AScFu4-pTHYCsTRLThIcxWN_38hz0caOwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 464px; height: auto;"></div><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><font size="5"><br></font></span></div><div><img id="id_ac9c_40d3_74a6_6231" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-ZzqlnmrJ6pM/WfJekXx2GfI/AAAAAAABry4/x0BA1JG14gYYOA3ZiGE0BNnConjs9MyRgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 465px; height: auto;"><br>Our little rental in San Sebastián with an upstairs loft with queen bed</div><div><font size="5">France is a country that enriches itself with endless tollbooths and very expensive gas prices. We only realized that we had arrived in Spain, when we entered a gas station with very reasonable prices and a 6 euro car wash.</font></div><div><img id="id_ef3c_a8a5_525e_1c1f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-jzQuUtS3ZTk/WfJej-NyoKI/AAAAAAABryw/I7Qtn2QuUh4dIyFDyebvOJltslUEiZYGACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 425px; height: auto;"></div><div>San Sebastián scenes. Tourism is a year around business here</div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_95d4_8562_6772_9dab" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-qoFc75TQBzs/WfJekf9tAPI/AAAAAAABry0/80c1fkECkNUsOJl4Tc6A72oST-r9GqVrwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 344px; height: auto;"></div><br></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">That evening and some of the following nights we dined on the famous pintxos in places that Paul and Sue had already done exploratory research on, to ensure that we would enjoy the best the city had to offer.</span></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_b249_b2c5_921b_4882" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-kncM_IK5_-8/WfJemnHwD8I/AAAAAAABrzE/lIYwJKNlSAszuY2wev6G3f4GgOUrdNYCQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 559px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">No further explanation needed</div></div><div><font size="5">San Sebastián is a beautiful tourist town with a nice oval harbor and a beach dotted with topless northerners as this form of sunning is optional here. </font></div><div><img id="id_21a8_ab56_a80f_5372" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-GkmycOlBDhI/WfJel067HBI/AAAAAAABry8/otcPMeY7tyctLFcaEWfpbldXZisG94VHQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">The bay of the city center early morning on a cooler day</div></div><div><font size="5">But a few days suffices unless you cannot stop eating 2-3 euro pintxos (the Basque word and variety for tapas) washed down with 2 euro riojas or verdejos. </font></div><div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_75ea_f00_ff04_8d43" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-tmguaCIldWs/WfJemRvxrmI/AAAAAAABrzA/s_30F_H9Uc4PWWDsuVyQ5gMXuxxaCKZFgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 518px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Meat four four to compensate for too many nights of pintxos</div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><font size="5">We took the car for a spin during our stay to neighboring Bilbao to see the majestic Guggenheim museum cramped into an encroaching neighborhood with no appeal. Don't go there for its art collection but definitely marvel at the building. </font></div><div><img id="id_5055_9931_5cc9_93b3" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-6GzykynHsPU/WfJenKgIKFI/AAAAAAABrzI/-5-oep1WtiIn0CVdsLCAlTkhjdZRvpHigCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">Iconic Guggenheim</div></div><div><img id="id_e51c_cfee_dd32_8140" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-IlVBYl7rgJs/WfJenpY_wlI/AAAAAAABrzQ/utLMTeZTAng-jHz82m7aZl_G78W-cAhOACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"><br><br><div style="text-align: center;">Ugly buildings all around</div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_803b_7691_6bc6_afcc" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Jk9B4jOYl2s/WfJenEB7V9I/AAAAAAABrzM/o_F0x4eUpUkzSw4ZJMYeuePBurGyZHvIQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">Protector of the museum entrance recently groomed</div></div><div><img id="id_bbb9_ba0_fca6_e6f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-pbx8oj1jdhU/WfJeoBWD8QI/AAAAAAABrzU/PvW1u4wKh7kw32_B3OcP7M_oooCQ8nLRgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">On the way back we visited the OMA forest, an open air art project of painted trees drawing families with picnic baskets. To get there we had to scale a 700 ft steep knoll that took our breath away before the art project attempted to do the same.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_fc1c_2eb5_2a46_45f0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-pfbZRLf4nG8/WfJepohS5KI/AAAAAAABrzg/aBfb_d_VkmE8NfWGN4txb-e3prGWLQw5ACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">Peacefully beautiful on a sunny day Omaka Bosque </div></div><div><img id="id_d2ae_c890_812a_74dc" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-pfIQGnJ559s/WfJeqgWMsMI/AAAAAAABrzk/6ruV1sc0Vd8IuGCV-1-kVZVkgh2ZXEtogCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Barcelona with its Sagrada Familia, the unfinished Gaudi cathedral started in 1878 and hopefully will be finished in 2026 (100th anniversary of Gaudi’s death year) has many more Gaudi buildings as well as the medieval quarters of kings, great tapas and paella selections and is in short a city to return to even after having seen all the tourist sights since it keeps inviting you to just wander its neighborhoods and observe the locals go about their daily lives. </font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_5eec_fcfd_2542_698f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-iRBcCoZNP6s/WfJephJ6ZSI/AAAAAAABrzY/wTzo-BBTZwkXSGT9s-i3fQ0L21sOE9q1gCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">This plaque shows in yellow what is still not completed</div></div><div><img id="id_4e72_8974_f2ec_4fdd" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-cf78OMIj1SY/WfJepkdE7tI/AAAAAAABrzc/z7_BdfKq5JcDZVTI2ZlUlHEFl31Dho_WACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 586px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">The present stage of construction surrounded by cranes and scaffolding </div></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_25b3_4ba5_6e28_43b7" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-_3EjzLPgUYE/WfJesaL0SVI/AAAAAAABrz4/KdiSra30lnMlKIm95sviPw07DmiRiBLtQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 434px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Details of early last century construction</div></div><div><img id="id_ea3c_d228_2879_d35c" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-V51oEflRjW4/WfJerWVaWOI/AAAAAAABrzo/14n9RCXuJrk2vDl0Opwvuz5wPf8Jtd0SQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">Center Altar area</div></div><div><img id="id_7507_164_358b_ced0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-mWcvVyFiljg/WfJeruzmkyI/AAAAAAABrz0/QSNS1KqJPRI4VANQY5s9juj64kue_QHWwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">All pillars are stylized trees</div></div><div><img id="id_4bb4_941b_c59e_8d6f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-I816U5rpiuI/WfJeroxFJGI/AAAAAAABrzs/ef5jAstDVDgVGHLtiC-kVZhn0EvOHJEmwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 373px; height: auto;"><br>Different Colours in different locations are stunning</div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_9ae2_386_796d_7814" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-wtoYPnKuO-c/WfJerkEwhCI/AAAAAAABrzw/uZpIGhrJZUcGzcLsoVfk_iGzfTUeYwMigCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 492px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Symbolized open heavens area</div></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_4226_6c75_c56b_6f78" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-pmuxu_zdyuw/WfJesioIW2I/AAAAAAABr0A/F7PUO0tqLiYREVdXDqYrlrkVrusTDzXwgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 525px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Different architects over time realized their vision like below heavy inscribed doors</div></div><div><img id="id_d003_61fb_64e8_c00c" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-o_MRdiNTnCM/WfJesmXE99I/AAAAAAABr0E/1PWItSAt0XwRJwFiwv4of7UnZpWBaNdPgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 339px; height: auto;"><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_3d43_133e_a80f_b71f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-99ddUeHzvz8/WfJeskWo3fI/AAAAAAABrz8/nLy7jCw3scQgCT5QyYeJ-Ew0v0S23CEcQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 398px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">More recently completed floor area with stylized Christmas scene</div></div><div><font size="5">We promised ourselves to return one day. Our Virginia Beach friends Len and Brenda met the four of us during our stay in Barcelona as they alighted from a relocation cruise to spend a few days in Barcelona before taking another cruise sailing the Mediterranee.</font></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">The six of us met daily, wandering the city and sampling food and wine.</span></div><div><img id="id_1308_6dff_274a_9e08" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-dS7rPANjlI8/WfJetYSI3bI/AAAAAAABr0I/LwRd-xeziQ49-3ldqd--Q283YNK6mzdRACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 387px; height: auto;">Y<br>Tapas and wine time</div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_14dc_9d29_6839_5886" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-MEKPfd6EJSU/WfJetvNr3EI/AAAAAAABr0M/DDUVHqXne6AqPKCghRiX1rAXKDUZWcmyACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 459px; height: auto;"></div></div><div style="text-align: center;">Famous covered market area off the Ramblas</div><div><img id="id_ab73_f32c_f4a6_97a6" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-gQxpwanEYMc/WfJeuE4BI6I/AAAAAAABr0U/3ypABRh7GdYXixypPxc4RRo8J_djT0YJwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 491px; height: auto;"><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_c331_a756_fbd9_42" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Z4XhpS065sA/WfJewfXk1NI/AAAAAAABr0g/rAw4GYQFi8g-6TPD63IcMFBVWBdEb2y-wCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 527px; height: auto;"></div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_fff3_1cbc_c75e_77ba" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-_7jHbd21VOQ/WfJeujNBCaI/AAAAAAABr0Q/LdrYAin8T-AwL5dIG3KyPgLGDXNAhpMowCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 457px; height: auto;"><br>Did not want you to think we were constantly doing musea </div><div><img id="id_4120_f805_e7fc_89af" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-9M7Upuro-00/WfJew-8WYHI/AAAAAAABr0s/t3ll57FHyf4Cm4n4kCUWzgXKeACjRUuMQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">The famous Casa Mila building designed by Gaudi for Pere Mila and his rich wife Roser Segimon with her money between 1906 and 1912</div></div><div><img id="id_6fbe_f624_80c3_2cd4" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-pu2SFa8IMhI/WfJevd9H6-I/AAAAAAABr0Y/9jqgr60GX18_ZNULIKUEpM0CJ_PndEETQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">Famous rooftop of Casa Mila reflecting a quarry</div></div><div><img id="id_9c32_7f6a_e846_f179" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-QQe1AIkGykQ/WfJeyRnD6rI/AAAAAAABr08/dZKBkgtasvg9TCRaoxwjWppU3nf7eNE8ACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;">Gaudi was not one for calculus in construction; he based all his load bearing requirements purely on curves </div><div><img id="id_7510_98fb_4723_f6cf" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-HAEaGJmA5mg/WfJexgstOJI/AAAAAAABr0w/Gyq9gRILIf0PhjpIQiRIg3tx5oWkZlDDgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_635e_f879_5424_6d12" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-LYCDOtH0zk4/WfJew6QRgiI/AAAAAAABr0o/ZvZv3S50JPMfK7HkReVAGK1-cK6_064BgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">Entrance to this originally 20 apartment complex</div></div><div><font size="5">As we restarted our roadtrip through the beautiful Provence and the Auvergne back home we could not resist a detour to the principality of Andorra one of the oldest feudally run states in Europe, situated high in the Pyrenees mountains. Andorra just recently became a democracy, peddling tax free wares and banking services to those unwilling to declare their wealth somewhere else in the world. </font></div><div><img id="id_b201_cab8_cda9_f289" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-VMaEmqyWrFY/WfJev_FtLOI/AAAAAAABr0c/PoLdSDWkyy0Tl6EVbVLDLQATNysmrU4cgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 448px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">On our way to Andorra</div></div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_924c_10b3_78e6_98a0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-ZBRacmg_MHM/WfJew0Sr4II/AAAAAAABr0k/eczbHvp1imAYZyvp5SUVajMlXa_Qop2YwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 476px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Border checkpoint where we had to prove our tourist status</div></div><div><font size="5">Having been in the capital for less than an hour the Spanish border agents had us open our trunks and show them my billfold to see if we carried untaxed wares or thousands of bills back into the European Union. We were delighted to be selected as potential wealthy scammers.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_5a40_691b_daf0_8256" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Au4Xl-w9J-g/WfJeynfkH5I/AAAAAAABr1A/-EAWJK_CPW0cp4jiAMQTWY-3Ty5z2yzMgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Chateau de la Caze along the river Tarn</div><div><img id="id_6141_a0fa_906c_7d34" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-HhIUiC_9Eb4/WfJeyUO4K6I/AAAAAAABr00/si12Y46jB-gm0e4WLxBZv_sEJHNMYnUTQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_11b7_237_fb36_824" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-GYF6bUBOSEo/WfJezjnEZtI/AAAAAAABr1M/OrVVN-a04c8OzSU4OxnKb6Tik7OUS1O3gCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">16th Century in almost original condition </div></div><div><img id="id_1379_3e79_cf13_ee44" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Bbn0WSAaETg/WfJezZ9ubwI/AAAAAAABr1I/ZqUMlKJ6CBYAfeJw0OAb0kFt4IrtoQvFQCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"><br><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Since Sandee, as a results of earlier trips I had organized, during an era that I had a habit of not booking lodging, now insists, that she knows where she will put her head on her pillow, it is nowadays my privilege to find interesting places to overnight. </font></div><div><img id="id_23ea_4e7d_1b30_1d3a" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-RjnEMA8Zk3g/WfJeyS9_yTI/AAAAAAABr04/VU8wktd1JR8gUmdlf-ESEbH2PznEz1ijACHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 399px; height: auto;"><br>A walk along the river </div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_8412_16cb_9206_4355" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-UEGHDDv12jk/WfJezV7TzWI/AAAAAAABr1E/4KvnQdjt0f0gXy5pCs0qJcw0YRvSpA2UwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 423px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">These trees are becoming increasingly rare; this lucky specimen lives in a national park</div></div><div><font size="5">So my next travel tip for you is to make a hotel stop in Château Caze, situated along a babbling brook on the bottom of an impressive gorge in the natural park Gorges du Tarn. </font></div><div><img id="id_14ce_b82e_565f_7206" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-j0SmpJEdxBU/WfJe0AVuASI/AAAAAAABr1U/4zNfi-I_z4U-OAI63g1qj5fRfUDLQ0S3QCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"><br><div style="text-align: center;">Our bedroom 21 first century accommodation, but the same ceiling one of the 5 daughters stared at every night</div></div><div style="text-align: center;">Gave a me a sense of timelessness and a desire to start a historical novel</div><div><img id="id_8e92_5cb3_ebe7_f278" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-dEP6W2Z1fck/WfJe0lU-TgI/AAAAAAABr1Y/U6R5_24z2lM5m0BYF0GU95Y3m72teCXKgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"><br><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Get a room in the 15th century castle with all the amenities of this century, but with the walls and ceilings of that glorious past of lores about political alliances between feudal lords marrying their daughters into families that benefitted pa and ma. </font></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_7d13_3127_9695_18b8" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-26cvOO1rWlo/WfJe0H0RlfI/AAAAAAABr1Q/cdu4gJFzgyc2FLxasz6JaSUnd5SQSkgxwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 479px; height: auto;"></div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">This castle had 5 daughters to start its history and never saw war and is thus an authentic jewel of historic proportions. The next pitstop was in a Williamsburg type town called Charroux (my European readers will have to Wikipedia Williamsburg VA to understand the comparison) situated in the middle of the Grand Massif, a mountainous plateau, that defines the center of France. A lesser taken road brought us for our last night, before returning the rental car back home, to the city of Heidelberg, where we enjoyed having the Marriott and its concierge floor. One can after all only "suffer" so much foreign experiences.</font></div><div><img id="id_7b29_acff_583a_977c" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-J4lqKoefd1o/WfJe1PS2gTI/AAAAAAABr1g/XSbbyn6Mo1c6ouuIOXLurb3TNzk4V_zwgCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 363px; height: auto;"><br>Approaching Charroux where we stayed in a B&B and wandered around never seeing a tour bus </div><div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_dae6_203a_1b98_4d54" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-iZJUE76DKUY/WfJe1n5oThI/AAAAAAABr1c/X0iNauzmHacuTW22sYQcCcB2v0F3RwsYwCHMYCw/s5000/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 520px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"> Charroux 12th century romanesque church with unfinished tower. Unlike Colonial Williamsburg USA, Charroux is a perfect example of a complete Village from the Romanesque area between 800 and 1200</div></div><div><font size="5">As always may the pictures do a better job in displaying the essence of this trip</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font><div><font size="5"><br></font><div><font size="5"> </font></div></div></div></div>Two retirees and their travel storieshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13942287905877288793noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9052023657534142840.post-64527469802888798092017-06-26T14:16:00.001-04:002017-06-26T16:03:43.679-04:00Galapagos, a journey into a different eco system<font size="5">Let me preface this blog by stating that after viewing hours and hours of National Geographic films, arriving on the islands is a disappointing experience. So if you are not into: getting close up and personal while making your own pictures of the prehistoric creatures, if you are not hoping to be personally walking in Darwins shoes, go somewhere else. </font><div><img id="id_9afd_57a8_88c6_7acc" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-SLtc_AZsnx8/WVFO2p3Pc4I/AAAAAAABlS8/34o1GybqghMk1FGhPo4rgK-bn9BJiM-gQCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">You can cruise from one volcanic surface to another and see some of those iconic creatures from the movies, but the colorful abundance seen at the National Geographic channel will not be found. </font><div><img id="id_e0fc_d10_124c_1fe0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-CcEGcOxo7z0/WVFO1wybvWI/AAAAAAABlS0/wTaiVrC6Q4ADzzEyHqeOYsbXqDPr3gG4wCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">And although I seem to have in the past found the right mating season during nature trips, this time we missed the blue footed boobies courting</font><span style="font-size: x-large;"> dance and settled for a view of birds nesting on eggs. </span></div><img id="id_6612_a239_b187_e761" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-tsKZn2V71rE/WVFO5G9fzWI/AAAAAAABlTI/5tS3t2Z7lL4zuLwZX1wu3_hRHvSSRy4-ACHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <br><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"> <br></span><div><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"> </span> <span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"> </span></div><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"> <img id="id_1990_f553_24a4_20b3" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Td_VW6eJ1tY/WVFO4HF9mQI/AAAAAAABlTA/gGIAxHEZQfA_dADPWKqx1mzEFZbrWP14wCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"></span><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">The sea lions however had their playful young all around them and the fake "harem master" was noisily showing off his command position. The real master, who had the exclusive rights to the ladies, had left the scene as he seems not interested in the aftermath of birthing. He will most likely show up again, when the time is ripe and chase the imposter away.</span><div><img id="id_e7ee_a6c2_ee52_37b3" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-M2nrQ358XQQ/WVFO5GGqKOI/AAAAAAABlTE/nJrmrb4ufAs34_wUBl06heQCmfgNMrW5QCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_a53f_78ab_d28b_6bce" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Euv5Z6wtpv0/WVFO1yI-RpI/AAAAAAABlS4/EjnsaHXjMHEIGpA80Srd7YGMYqCQjqfwwCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">But lets start at the beginning. The same 3 couples who travelled to Kenya and Tanzania for our safari experience a few years ago and who traveled last year to South Africa, found each other early February at the Quito airport, so we could fly together to Santa Cruz Island, one of the two most populated islands in the archipelago. And by this I mean human population.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><img id="id_c152_bd87_6ad2_fff3" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-0bW1J1__Gs4/WVFO6gKklEI/AAAAAAABlTM/RFHCtmKwbic8hIxE7b7e5ZFxp2oo1WCewCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <div> <font size="5"><br></font></div><img id="id_80be_195d_2ca8_c2c7" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-uZknjwjiCEI/WVFO8gXEVyI/AAAAAAABlTQ/U-cZVNuyohwFpJZ2H3mIlMf8KwElqE9qgCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <div><br></div><div><img id="id_d43a_da07_57fb_9e18" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-oj-MowNClMo/WVFO9LtniEI/AAAAAAABlTU/IMOUGoAPIE4vVq47Lg0mXtOWBLyvgCOXwCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">A hotel representative took our luggage and directed us to a crowded bus full of screaming youngsters, which gave me the fright of having maybe booked the wrong hotel. Half an hour later after crossing by small passenger ferry to the main island, that scare passed as the crowd dispersed into different vehicles and we found ourselves being shepherded to our own minibus heading for our Finch Bay eco-hotel on the other side of this second largest Galapagos island.</font></div><div><img id="id_a50e_35d4_14de_6975" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-lRSvWPOKQrM/WVFO-nC8iMI/AAAAAAABlTY/gEHK75wcHhgzYyHFKO6MV9ONrKq5ue18QCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Most visitors are cruising on one of the hundreds of cruise ships with daily shore tours. We were land based with daily guided tours on a bus, or on the hotel yacht. As we were here out of season, the 6 of us were most of the time having our guide and "our yacht" to ourselves, observing, wherever we went, guides with 30 plus tourists, doing what we were doing. </font></div><div><font size="5">The hotel is affiliated with National Geographic, with nice sized hotel rooms and good food, a swimming pool and a very attentive bartender.</font></div><img id="id_83ae_13a_ab_2cf7" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-2VOhKlGJ28M/WVFPEu2u8rI/AAAAAAABlT0/XhOjnHPR91kJTh0jg7p4_PEBF8ucNt2IwCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <div> <font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">In short we saw, what could be seen in the Galapagos, while being spoilt with all the amenities only cruise ship visitors might have on the larger cruises ships, but with our personal guide and free time to go to town anytime after the tour of the day, as well as a 65ft yacht with 5 person crew including a chef which we had all to our selves most of the time.</font></div><div><img id="id_d790_decb_a597_4c03" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-1UCM4kgaWZ8/WVFPAlyCeAI/AAAAAAABlTg/C-VZm6FFAbk_3DPGbJDN3nzSMdo4aZ89QCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">The tours went from the cheesy local coffee plantation, with a donkey that stopped and walked at the command of a remote control in the owners hand while crushing sugar cane to the amazing visit viewing the blue footed boobies and everything in between. </font></div><div><img id="id_bf5b_47a8_b7c5_e446" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-xn91xm6t6-U/WVFPAMZSnoI/AAAAAAABlTc/c6hDCkYIkg0LDaXlm5Og_nDuJuqUtH5AQCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Every time we had a yacht day, we had two times snorkeling that day. For me it was an opportunity to test my newly acquired underwater camera shell. The pictures will reveal that I am still learning how to change the settings to get the best underwater pictures with my little Sony camera.</font></div><div><img id="id_f565_7c2b_3c10_9399" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-NitOWmuZaW4/WVFPCLMTYUI/AAAAAAABlTk/sR5gZAAWB44CAhM54hgj6Vtr-TowyvNngCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"></div><div><br></div><img id="id_fc74_95f5_d2da_65a5" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-YLrFBOlNI6s/WVFPDoRoR6I/AAAAAAABlTs/zGYpOPNU5vYZ-tzh9_AY1AP1-swtlYvigCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <div> <font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_e355_9426_7b76_c641" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-9xZp2zSbNiE/WVFPDr-RTlI/AAAAAAABlTo/LgfxB5FLO4YyIFZ9qV5X7YV7sTTWRbKoQCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Out of the 15 heralded animal species that call the Galapagos home we never saw the largest bird in the islands, the Galapagos Albatross, because they only live on one island too far away from us, as well as 2 other type of Boobies with red and black feet, and the Galapagos Hawk just because we weren't lucky enough. </font></div><div><img id="id_3914_3b3c_f749_a42b" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-eGWVQIYCTks/WVFPEu3YUuI/AAAAAAABlTw/NFpTw0Oo1AkYZZmc9zWO23frREP1L5KCACHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">That may seem as though we came close to seeing quite a few of the big 15 that are exclusive to the Galapagos, but if one factors in that we only saw one lonely American Flamingo in the distance, you will realize that you need the National Geographic series to get a more satisfactory experience.</font></div><div><img id="id_63aa_efdc_c0e1_b0e8" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-8SfxKYEmYkY/WVFPQJ8Be3I/AAAAAAABlUY/gaJFr3a5G000vJwrUW0zMdHQYEhc885fwCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">It may seem to you my readers as if I am complaining, but that is far from the truth. I think I speak for all in our group, when I say that it was great to have the Darwinian experience and get to feel what he must have felt when getting close to these ancient creatures, especially in watching the Iguanas and the gentle giant tortoises, weighing 550 lbs or up to 250 kg, and can live up to 170 years, who were slaughtered for their meat by 16th century conquistadors, when there were 200,000 of them roaming the uninhabited islands, realizing that now after a lot of breeding programs, we are back at say only 20,000.</font></div><div><img id="id_652f_a37c_b585_6905" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-c6OH6mJoLq0/WVFPJm93kGI/AAAAAAABlUA/CS-iAolbZo4Yu8LPePQ42HU8nCWvGW62gCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 721px; height: auto;"> <font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_1d8f_50ce_e5ff_6b57" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Rd-stQOX_y0/WVFPIyCvzLI/AAAAAAABlT8/nLIodS01Pb84EEp_kQjWE7AbCk6VQ4VZwCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">All in all this remote island paradise, that may not belong to the most beautiful islands in the world, born out of violent volcanic eruptions that are still ongoing over an area of 53,300 sq miles. (138,000 sq km) is a once in a lifetime experience, where plantlife has found itself some soil creating species not found elsewhere, mixed with crops and domestic animals that humans who settled here brought. A process that the Ecuadorian government nowadays strictly controls. </font></div><div><img id="id_a383_81c_410f_b27a" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Ynf_0TK8_4c/WVFPH0hCiuI/AAAAAAABlT4/N-PBQzTPR5QFBdJx4oqMr3G90oa-mJ-UACHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Bringing and/or taking to and from the islands is strictly forbidden, as one of us experienced when leaving the islands at the airport. One of us (not going to snitch on a fellow traveler) had a piece of lava in the checked luggage. </font></div><div><img id="id_f849_1b50_1c18_870c" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-gbmOYH7D6Zw/WVFPMA74-LI/AAAAAAABlUI/gPhRlFZv-u4KtDH2MNXITSkqw25nhtLNgCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">And was summoned to open the suitcase and hand over the contraband. His laments that he had collected the piece on the mainland before coming here and thus that the lava was not from the islands did not make an impression on the officials he faced. He got away with a warning and they confiscated the item. His wife confessed to us she had left a shell he had collected on the islands in the hotel room to prevent leaving him behind in jail.</font></div><div><img id="id_ff7e_6d21_9b27_d0ba" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-l9ClsZqFJic/WVFPNq_XkMI/AAAAAAABlUU/vM4_WGr0yyYgA5L3TPQFRvAcVZXo6a-PQCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_e1d3_6b9_743a_c16c" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-bhfvRyDYoBE/WVFoiSPPW8I/AAAAAAABlVk/TvtQOeDwjK4Gm5ILovsByFevQNTZgEAgQCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">One of us while snorkeling with an underwater camera inched in on a half eaten fish only to be confronted by an aggressive sea lion who was not wanting his opponent to get closer to his catch.</font></div><div><img id="id_119a_a0a4_b59c_e488" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-SvGBbi69L64/WVFPLSa01AI/AAAAAAABlUE/oHT-oqbrS-AybFmmLx6R1iBieAzq3i-VACHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">I do hope the pictures and will tell the story better than what you just read.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_d78f_79c0_5fb5_1a6c" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-7RLi_kAn0Ho/WVFPNBYYT0I/AAAAAAABlUM/NOMNF5stYpU3yvrsEiYuf_kVfyMfrTwegCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <font size="5"><br></font></div><div><div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div></div></div></div></div> <img id="id_53f3_9e70_5bbf_5f56" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-pV1_brkuccE/WVFPNnmIOzI/AAAAAAABlUQ/4DK5A00Sdtg8XUPEUVairJCRk_be7RRoACHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <img id="id_d0c7_f32f_70c1_f6d7" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-7ftS2vCSP50/WVFPRsBjGEI/AAAAAAABlUg/4P7NRSI5WkY-55eeU6QLM7ZP87esJEW4ACHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <img id="id_bf21_ec80_243f_3020" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-722uxLQTD_g/WVFPX-UsK2I/AAAAAAABlU8/162MclD-8gUnt_Xeyc1iD4o2umxpEJcmACHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <img id="id_ab2b_b32b_8ed0_ae34" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-1ks2iDWDYI0/WVFPRo6oOWI/AAAAAAABlUc/X6pVI2p0-PorUelbH-bIV-BGJNmIv5j5gCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <img id="id_40a9_d6c6_f55_1c04" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-BkmsW9jHnPQ/WVFPSFO-A3I/AAAAAAABlUk/Uw4AWQNUswQtfpFW-K7pw-BUtW8M8SutACHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <img id="id_22a_7575_f51f_1379" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-UEIcOiwW0_U/WVFPVEU7pSI/AAAAAAABlUo/_6d1qv0gPUAFR5CN3VGOQzcfQVS6NbtCgCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <div><img id="id_bca8_dc23_4a0b_8296" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-_RLwTGmSAsI/WVFPYHvpynI/AAAAAAABlVA/SfPlOJ96_JoY2NNKBTWX2dJw2py-rkCIQCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <br></div><img id="id_bcff_ef51_470d_7b93" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-2YdBl_5bIZE/WVFPWM2qcCI/AAAAAAABlUs/666RXFSwWJgso5NnkuQjGSUx4-JaJ2V8gCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <img id="id_6d66_4128_c808_8c4" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-VLpJNkrcIp8/WVFPWNJ6J6I/AAAAAAABlUw/fte9b_spSH8n9JHfvMo26FVU8ffmp6ptgCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <div> <br></div><img id="id_9bfb_bbd2_21c1_1936" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-nxbREjq8z_k/WVFPWjub_MI/AAAAAAABlU0/AJ2Z0KZwbMciGQCrZmD1p2jx3cLH1YBhgCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <img id="id_f8a3_137b_d99_8f41" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-e4sPxUUtMgI/WVFPZnYcEpI/AAAAAAABlVE/H6v9qc13VHkr40-Aw_NOLP65yUaE92mtgCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <img id="id_d19a_3a36_ce00_2dbc" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-7XmG8tZUpso/WVFPZsVT55I/AAAAAAABlVI/eDUXnxzlvjAfYb-zekOHtk-zDiaYlJvmQCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <img id="id_bccd_fd42_347a_9a00" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-UmhRNpeu7QM/WVFPXx3YxhI/AAAAAAABlU4/Rca1grnN8MUSvVb0PqZ9wah4ck-0khrOgCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> Two retirees and their travel storieshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13942287905877288793noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9052023657534142840.post-76254460864279999162017-06-25T16:39:00.001-04:002017-06-26T15:37:09.693-04:00Amazon Rainforest<div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div style="font-size: x-large;"><img id="id_fdc9_4000_e097_2cce" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-wExF_Lvgkbs/WVAehF2vw-I/AAAAAAABlOk/H9KpeCFd_gYrNE1X7XaxlR0DoI5O9S3TQCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 352px; height: auto;"> <font size="5"><br></font></div><div>(Napo river from 3000 ft as we approach Coco)</div><div style="font-size: x-large;"><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_1501_9df6_7a82_9e3c" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-jYJ56YugyFo/WVAemtyqRUI/AAAAAAABlO0/Ir01pH74xuYtFWzTMs8NMZjpOkq2wGF5ACHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 448px; height: auto;"> </div></div><div><font size="5" style="font-size: x-large;"> </font><font>(The same river as we speed toward Yasuni National Park)</font></div><font size="5">In a motorized long canoe-like vessel, expertly steered by Sixto at high speed, we traverse the Napo River from the left border to the right evading sandbanks and half submerged trees. Sixto as it later turned out became our native guide during our stay in the Amazon forest.</font><div><img id="id_cc3f_9a9_2fb7_9b0b" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-sVavIwz5eGk/WVAeibz5eTI/AAAAAAABlOo/DMQSfuykmMo-d1Gp6ZUyXnIGBCpwt43RwCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <font size="5"><br></font><div style="text-align: center;">(Miguel distributing lunch with Sixto in the background)</div><div><font size="5">Gary, Linda, Sandee and I flew from Quito an hour plus southwest to Coca, officially named on Ecuadors map as Francisco de Orellana, after the famous conquistador that sailed in the first half of the 16th century from the Napo river over the then unknown Amazon river to the Atlantic Ocean, searching for gold Inca treasures, battling with the storied female Amazon warriors (a name he coined) and bringing that new world to the King of Spain to keep.</font></div><div><img id="id_b0c5_d2c6_8c3f_4bdf" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-CZ2h9Ik2B_E/WVAemr0NOqI/AAAAAAABlO4/fv3LhVndbC8DS3jgcoOSdZlcFx3hRZ-TACHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <font size="5"><br></font></div><div style="text-align: center;">(At the edge of the lake looking for its next meal)</div><div><font size="5">The sleepy little town of Coca honors him with a statue and city name.</font></div><div><font size="5">Movies like Indiana Jones were inspired by his exploits.</font></div><div><img id="id_71a5_8168_4488_4509" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/---B0YzYyyzw/WVAenGeGAPI/AAAAAAABlO8/Xf9k6iFOP00CU_qobY8DZsgIH7Qd2h5XQCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 449px; height: auto;"> <font size="5"><br></font></div><div> (Miguel peddles us through the rainforest)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_17e8_d3a7_f2aa_2388" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-UdvIopeoSHs/WVAenlL9lAI/AAAAAAABlPA/d00-rj4e2gEgtjjnxKKPwO4Sv82bGDeWACHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 463px; height: auto;"> <font size="5"><br></font></div><div> (Our first view of La Selva lodge)</div><div><font size="5">About 2 hours traveling downstream (it took 3 hours back) we reached LaSelva lodge in the Yasuni National Park, idyllically situated on the edge of a lake, which we reached after half an hour canoe peddling, when at last disembarking our larger motorized fast traveling expedition canoe on the very wide Napo river.</font></div><div><img id="id_576d_13b9_703f_e61a" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-gSf7cuSfqQA/WVAeri_UtvI/AAAAAAABlPI/vDoBk6-gra8QLBPjVhZwngW0ogjsUqtCwCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <font size="5"><br></font></div><div style="text-align: center;">(A night shot at about 7pm of the lake as we peddle back to get dinner)</div><div><font size="5">Our two guides peddle noise is the only disturbance, as we get familiarized with the Amazon forest sounds, sounds we would get accustomed to in the next days. With big blue butterflies dancing in front of us, guiding us to the next sight around the corner (I never caught one with my camera), and passing liane draped fallen trees, peaking out of the water, we strain to see what will come into sight. </font></div><div><img id="id_3037_c821_b61b_3c19" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-A_TrV0exuMc/WVAezCBe1bI/AAAAAAABlPk/swMg_PUDUvE7AMy0PCZqWKol-4s9R507ACHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 428px; height: auto;"> <font size="5"><br></font></div><div>(Doesn't this picture radiate quiet and peace - but you miss the sound)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_d689_8cbc_2cf8_9aab" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-VyUj936T9TY/WVAeskVflGI/AAAAAAABlPM/FNpePWua2wY1wPja01tmBezEs0nEx0LggCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 443px; height: auto;"> <font size="5"><br></font></div><div> (Is this a crow?. Do they even live in the tropics?)</div><div><font size="5">Our naturalist guide Miguel and native guide Sixto lead the four of us the next 4 days every morning early, when nature awakens and temperatures are bearable and every late afternoon for same reasons over well worn paths carved out by thousands who went before us. </font></div><div><img id="id_e3fb_193d_db16_672a" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-1dBZfUU0g8c/WVAeskIaMKI/AAAAAAABlPQ/MKtz77fCAbQz1pCdsy31UYmZvcjJ3fjrgCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 331px; height: auto;"></div><div> (It's 6 am and Sandee is on the road again) <font size="5"><br></font></div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_bfa4_eddf_b4c3_424e" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-o4gdmL0OMzQ/WVAevWS-LzI/AAAAAAABlPY/qtIbuc_5WRogdWe52TLFHaHTEZEUvhG9QCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 400px; height: auto;"> <font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"> </font> (The stinky turkey is absolutely inedible and very noisy)</div><div><font size="5">The rest of the day people lounge by the lake or on their bed under the overhead fan in their room. Yoga and massage are </font><span style="font-size: x-large;">optional activities. The bar drew always a few. The best way to describe the conditions here at the lodge is the picture of the drybox in each room, where under a heat lamp we store articles, that should be protected from excessive moist, like iPads, cameras and the like. We forgot to store our flashlight and had to buy a new one back home as rust had destroyed it.</span></div><div><img id="id_6786_3ec4_2d5e_3fde" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-pfiMkB3-3zg/WVAevsvywxI/AAAAAAABlPc/saZiH3xrC_EqVxaX_LcjagAf6lOzsVQHwCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">On a brighter note, the trip was totally worth it: almost no rain (the rainy season just started a few weeks earlier) few guests (reason why we had two guides to ourselves) and a fast and furious 4 day education in all that is Amazon, and all that in a semi luxurious environment.</font></div><div><img id="id_c709_8e0d_f1c8_14ea" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-AnhRlSzDKus/WVAetPgc_PI/AAAAAAABlPU/aBvUxo3p0igkzNCrbbvQgUW-PWJ7hzcAACHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 315px; height: auto;"></div><div> (A 100 ft up to the treetops) <font size="5"><br></font></div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_5b65_268e_d496_4266" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-BEfnQTj2wY8/WVAe47cYBLI/AAAAAAABlP4/MBJ21kIBfyYPj0GtTUbd6VP_hHDnSQoWwCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 433px; height: auto;"> <font size="5"><br></font></div><div style="text-align: center;"> (And this what you see on a misty morning)</div><div><font size="5">There is something magical about a rainforest the size of the USA, where not too far away from us, as we were told, the Hoaorine tribe still avoids contact with the outside world. Sixto's Kichwa tribe, having converted to Christianity receives primary and secondary schooling within a day travel distance (a primary school was located in Philchi, his village, which is nearby our lodge.)</font></div><div><img id="id_4870_b036_6473_7427" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-QKeP_K2yr6c/WVAewjnyaOI/AAAAAAABlPg/GNGmitY0yHw924bl-hjWnkNdLW-ohz-MgCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 411px; height: auto;"></div><div> (Philchi village main meeting house with communal kitchen)<font size="5"><br></font></div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_cf61_63d7_383d_b164" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/--51n3KxXCv0/WVAe06i3NpI/AAAAAAABlPo/P9GKPYocAbg6srWdQXWC2vgjJHCJrEU4ACHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 449px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(We all shot 3 times with the blow pipe)</div><div style="text-align: right;"> <font size="5"><br></font></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_c3ee_a83c_4ff7_4315" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/--A6oT_Yt6YI/WVAe36fnkPI/AAAAAAABlPs/zWM0GHA2kY0dZgATO4U2M6ifkraslOI-gCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 346px; height: auto;"> <font size="5"><br></font></div><div style="text-align: center;"> (And the winner is?)</div><div><font size="5">We visited Pilchi </font><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"> (<font size="5">you know, the cheesy "visit a local village routine")</font>. <font size="5">Here</font></span><span style="font-size: x-large;"> I successfully pierced a fruit with a blowpipe arrow, a weapon as well as hunting tool, that is still in daily use by the tribesmen. </span></div><div><img id="id_7d23_c2ae_3ce5_ebf3" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-QZD_xUot-9E/WVAe4XlZIoI/AAAAAAABlP0/joSJv6HqtdAA37b8FTOizOLX2n3ih2C3QCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div> (We were told the anaconda had come into the village a few days ago)</div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">Although, I doubt that many of you have had the same type of cheesy visit, where we were shown a giant anaconda with a clearly visible chicken bump half way its shiny 17 ft muscular body, placed in a hastily constructed wire cage, with his/her next meal prancing around unaware of its fate. </span></div><div><img id="id_fd34_8e72_8658_f81d" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-pahT-EuOqsA/WVAe35FUycI/AAAAAAABlPw/V1PuWsqErxEbjTB2q-zsyknEHSGqu5SEwCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 450px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Monkeys always a delight to watch)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_817f_19ce_5f83_f7cd" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-xx3ppV5j-d4/WVAe9aAMzGI/AAAAAAABlQI/FEyhIZmyDBAYZvNJf_5zKwFe9v2VdBLiQCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 448px; height: auto;"> </div><div> <span style="font-size: x-large;"><br></span></div><div><img id="id_68b9_40be_e75_8cf2" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Z3Un4lLQRDc/WVAe93umhNI/AAAAAAABlQM/9n2zNdt15p8Bo4mCNijkyrnvCS8L-6DbACHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 404px; height: auto;"> <font size="5"><br></font></div><div> (He/she took off right after this shot, diving into the lake)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_ac73_c4cb_2aa0_1df8" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-at53_DHC50c/WVAe53e64II/AAAAAAABlP8/V_XObDNPHOEs_SHz3inCr8WTsouPN_5KwCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 241px; height: auto;"> <font size="5"><br></font></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Beauties)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_49e1_34ee_b376_601c" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Qp8wVBn_bYI/WVAe7rQSsFI/AAAAAAABlQE/0Cy02Vx4_Qcvw0-1tzC5mvgFc54LQh2QACHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 412px; height: auto;"> <font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">The Amazon forest becomes visible to us through our guides, a forest full of macaws, monkeys, parakeets, parrots and umpteen numbers of birds I will never recall the names of. </font></div><div><img id="id_c67d_a2a9_a9e2_3c86" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-xwwTYlCRrkU/WVAe7WCoUTI/AAAAAAABlQA/TEiKPRF2Pe4V2u0z-Il217Qq1E0dX6e1wCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 249px; height: auto;"> <font size="5"><br></font></div><div>(Shot through the lens of binoculars)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_df53_76ba_eb8e_780" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-AC53ndOlVSs/WVAfBUVviAI/AAAAAAABlQU/iKBZeyphMHAdrxWC0QcgNPgrK2ocFwPgACHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 385px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(It's a long way to the bottom) <font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_b63a_8aa0_1ffc_4c69" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-3JAswC75u98/WVAfCM9Ji1I/AAAAAAABlQg/nMsF8ihNivs7I1AZipKpkJGff9bu_ocLACHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 427px; height: auto;"> <font size="5"><br></font></div><div> (We looked at it and it looked back)</div><div><font size="5">We climbed a tower to the top of the tree line and with binoculars spotted birds and monkeys for a few hours in the early morning light, listening to the deafening cacophony of sounds, that the forest produces at six in the morning. </font></div><div><img id="id_5327_30ad_666e_a8eb" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-j0Zl4oVQvUA/WVAfBsWtoLI/AAAAAAABlQY/8qzKQleH7zEj7fvE_y61jTeqUdOK1pC2wCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 501px; height: auto;"> <font size="5"><br></font></div><div> (Resident tarantula about 10 feet from our bedroom)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_75c8_4102_e3b3_c276" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-YAX0QYWmXHM/WVAe-BP-wkI/AAAAAAABlQQ/TYoGnD3Gi0k4QVyZ4fFTUQhrOJHRrG-VwCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 321px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"> (Don't ask me what this is)<font size="5"><br></font></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_d967_5705_4a09_84ec" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-vLSXuNSVb3E/WVAfK__iuyI/AAAAAAABlQ8/HUUMD2Dm-5cZ8quus3Nvq23Jg9E9oV1DACHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 310px; height: auto;"> <font size="5"><br></font></div><div style="text-align: center;"> (A new sprout for the next leg of this walking tree in search of sunlight)</div><div><font size="5">We were shown the resident tarantula just outside our rooms, the marching wasps, insects that beat their wings in such a way that it sounds as if an army battalion is coming towards you as they prepare to defend their hives.</font></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_cd4_9065_43f9_cc9f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-oMY5OILnqck/WVAfHQx4WxI/AAAAAAABlQ0/QP_gFc3aBa8xUpsB-b--WeXiG7GfS4qowCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 474px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Ants never stop working) <font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">We went fishing for the "man eating" piranhas, which Gary expertly caught several of. Sandee had to take as consolation prize only a sardine, be it a large one. In the early evenings as light dimmed around us our flashlights exposed cayman eyes at the waterline. </font></div><div><img id="id_964a_fca6_9e29_f99c" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-fIt4XOcIDUY/WVAfB-55aiI/AAAAAAABlQc/QpB1DcrPfYkMbRWl6p6WYWZTAnoeZA1ywCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 369px; height: auto;"> <font size="5"><br></font></div><div>(Gary and his first piranha)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_1ad6_25d5_ca05_9c63" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Qb6zn4pxsyI/WVAfG2M0lkI/AAAAAAABlQw/i4ywcW2_FYEiCs59J3nFUaiajeDVhTysgCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 428px; height: auto;"> <font size="5"><br></font></div><div style="text-align: center;">( see those teeth?)</div><div><img id="id_9891_e6be_6853_6170" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-h88gc4e0NLE/WVAfGVmNuWI/AAAAAAABlQs/15gjEfs9834bzmlHa6YSgZJPD3aMV0IiwCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 455px; height: auto;"> <font size="5"><br></font></div><div>(Sandee after half an hour of fishing for piranhas shows off her sardine)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_7926_f15b_7685_1619" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-frZWK9hyNjg/WVAfD3uIRdI/AAAAAAABlQk/5sal2YIse14OHd5_BfBfnIUDn3AQF7qHgCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 341px; height: auto;"> <font size="5"><br></font></div><div style="text-align: center;"> (There are more fish types to be caught)</div><div><font size="5">Sixto who did not speak English (Miguel did the translating) brought us his forest expertise, regaling us about medicines that the forest provides like Agouti Tail mushrooms (they almost look like coral) against earaches or the red air roots of a certain palm that reduces snoring in the village bedrooms, which are often communal.</font></div></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_ae95_83d9_f92f_b8e8" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-DhJX65FIFNI/WVAfLArtFQI/AAAAAAABlRA/EiHL6ef_ifAUFe_5Bcp-jzKH6V4O0F0pQCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 377px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"> (A native nut that is waxy and is used as candle material)<font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_fc26_113c_d28d_56" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-hPhfFr2gKz0/WVAfFcUb17I/AAAAAAABlQo/NQzfQ7IY-BsLvO5yJVZeR_rs3-rtbspSACHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 486px; height: auto;"></div><div> (Base of a walking tree- these trees are living in the shade of the taller ones and move to survive)<font size="5"><br></font></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_ddb0_3ce3_749f_33cf" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-cbk1QMPsRTA/WVAfLxGmf9I/AAAAAAABlRE/-meGecsFz0wqJRT5HxluHDECl2oM81rBwCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 523px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">(We saw so many mushrooms flourishing on the rot of dead plants) <font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_39a4_3c5_60c8_92bd" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-LmhWX9-sASk/WVAfIUkeKPI/AAAAAAABlQ4/9I7F0oCcBAkcf0XIDBZwfgbhbvQgcCqVwCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 326px; height: auto;"></div><div>(Wasp nests and termite hills were all around us) <font size="5"><br></font></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_b6ad_5eb0_9d7b_7632" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-5RTsvzUq1uU/WVAfMEMZHrI/AAAAAAABlRI/bbLKPmwdAawMB6FBfFVRzQthxchiksOOACHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 476px; height: auto;"> <font size="5"><br></font></div><div style="text-align: center;"> (Another beauty - I wish I knew my birds)</div><div><font size="5">He spoke to us about the Fernando Sanchez tree, a tree that attracts stinging ants for its sap. The name comes from a plantation owner that found his wife having an affair with his foreman. He tied them both naked to the tree and had the ants do their thing till they were dead. (Never saw the tree)</font></div><div><img id="id_d1be_c343_a83a_2e44" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-eO8pdBFtEd4/WVAfNoW6A2I/AAAAAAABlRQ/1Q89Ip3AzBwY2kfCOpXMERY3HJLyslesACHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 440px; height: auto;"></div><div> (These are also lake residents)<font size="5"><br></font></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_ab99_4ac4_53e6_b901" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-saQeWWDW_9o/WVAfQKAaLdI/AAAAAAABlRY/uMwCrj1HnDcpaGf5MQ6YDEPwTeM3NyzFgCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 346px; height: auto;"> <font size="5"><br></font></div><div style="text-align: center;"> (If I remember well this toad was poisonous)</div><div><img id="id_2815_e7da_cb7b_95cf" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-ysrm45gk3ro/WVAfXxGucfI/AAAAAAABlR0/oS4nDHQroVUBdCb24HV6cxO0Xqcu1wWGwCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 424px; height: auto;"> <font size="5"><br></font></div><div> (At night you heard these bats swarming)</div><div><font size="5">On the Sunday we were there it was Presidential Election Day. We had already marveled over the fact that this country uses US dollars as its national currency with dollar coins that not only sported Susan B Anthony but also several US presidents all minted in the US of A.</font></div><div><font size="5"><br></font></div><div><img id="id_67e3_621e_d307_f22a" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-wy3E0pRmDVo/WVAfNRofrrI/AAAAAAABlRM/5Qc84fEF2cgmUWnfj3uSp8OfcdGiXUQlgCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 447px; height: auto;"> <font size="5"><br></font></div><div> (Another kingfisher drying his/her wings after multiple dives)</div><div><font size="5">We learned that every citizen over 18 has to vote or be fined 100 US.</font></div><div><font size="5">Those like our guides who had to work and could therefore not reach a voting station had to produce an employer provided document in which the employer certifies their work requirement while still paying a $50 fine. Showing up at the wrong voting booth, where you are not registered, cost you 50 US also. </font></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_2d33_c37f_a171_e003" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-SxxS8krBo5M/WVAfRTYlSHI/AAAAAAABlRc/IsPOh6YeVGwWG7O6jsRKztwp-4FkUt7SwCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 339px; height: auto;"> <font size="5"><br></font></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Night pictures)</div><div><img id="id_49f_cb0b_5287_816e" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-k_SbSKur-B0/WVAfOUVa4ZI/AAAAAAABlRU/mT7Y-mRB54EhC5l9C0sKBA9aMeZK-N2jACHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 417px; height: auto;"></div><div><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_a15e_3e3f_51cb_501a" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-fUobczlr_SU/WVFiOcI5hoI/AAAAAAABlVY/XeV2h4m3w0ga7nSvtRisTCydqOEW1_JQACHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 444px; height: auto;"> <br></div><div> <span style="text-align: center;">(Leaves that look like lattice work prove they are food for the many creatures living on them) </span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_cb4c_bfdc_add6_37a7" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-5EKwYxmkjiE/WVAfTj9CqMI/AAAAAAABlRk/Bhg0wvra5cs2cKBgctIwUZjReqdxzmZtQCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 388px; height: auto;"></div><div> <font size="5"><br></font></div><div><font size="5">Voting provides you with a certificate that is needed for mortgages and bank loans you may wish to apply for later. No certificate, no money. Absentee ballots do not exist. We found that a fascinating tidbit.</font></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_47b2_c51f_409c_1b3b" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-t0OE2rARiaw/WVAfU5-y0VI/AAAAAAABlRo/CjWwQV_sZZEUxARcVfRXbNO7in_mXAeFwCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 430px; height: auto;"> <font size="5"><br></font></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Plants living on tree bark - a colorful picture)</div><div><font size="5">May the pictures bring you to do an Amazon visit.</font></div><div><img id="id_28d0_9e3_f1a_e1da" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-jWey-iJlu6k/WVAfXRMjZhI/AAAAAAABlRw/pS93ERL5kEEVzaigrnL0DjjLpTgLlNZ6ACHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 234px; height: auto;"> <br></div><div style="text-align: left;">(Cellphone charging on the playground)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_6e8c_c5c0_9d0d_1082" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-eoSBfjr9yoI/WVAfVTv7GpI/AAAAAAABlRs/0ucSdvCDD8QH0HwQPQV_PDf3cW0vvRuMgCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 393px; height: auto;"> <font size="5"><br></font></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Miguel explaining daily use of blowpipe)</div><div style="text-align: right;"><br></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_c578_86bc_4dac_ed98" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-vZEZQ0kjgQI/WVAfY9rxbMI/AAAAAAABlR4/AfaF62quWMQ7oJwm7RIes6ytVjCHWK-2QCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 526px; height: auto;"> </div><div style="text-align: center;"> (This mushroom shaped itself to catch water)<font size="5"><br></font></div><img id="id_2541_172_73c6_5450" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-fVPpaGeAmVs/WVAfcLjFmvI/AAAAAAABlSE/iVUUiv1RCyk2DWAkYkrlNxMHyzabwIECQCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 456px; height: auto;"> <div>(All that is dead creates new live and this mushroom had medicinal use)<br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_e7c8_f00b_6edd_b39b" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-AtW7Sogo9J0/WVAfa5dWGzI/AAAAAAABlSA/SrPFKs0EmiAyNEfr4BZ1ZxaUcUZ89BWlgCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 417px; height: auto;"></div></div><div style="text-align: center;">( more mushroom varieties)</div><div style="text-align: right;"> <br></div><div style="text-align: right;"><img id="id_6ffa_dd34_1b87_af81" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-zoR8kCYAWnc/WVAfaeam5gI/AAAAAAABlR8/V-tU4VS-SJ0JYXZiRdUIcNHkp6xVsBKMgCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 476px; height: auto;"> <br></div><div><img id="id_837c_ec34_64ae_4df7" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-npqEzsa4TrM/WVAfctZ0TwI/AAAAAAABlSI/L7QnkaNJVjAl3fiz9Yv8MCeSgMKf0GEWgCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 364px; height: auto;"> <br></div><div>(Water lilies covering major swaths of a lake)</div><div><img id="id_6070_abc7_b150_cf0b" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-tHunY5el3Aw/WVAfdD7R6PI/AAAAAAABlSM/3VTTZmtEL88oweorR4FPGnw-N_yPW5YRgCHMYCw/%255BUNSET%255D" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <br></div><div style="text-align: center;">(In closing this picture sums up what we experienced best)</div>Two retirees and their travel storieshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13942287905877288793noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9052023657534142840.post-81391191679953277282017-01-14T16:12:00.001-05:002017-01-14T16:12:52.600-05:00Northern Lights in Finland above the Arctic circle<div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"><font face="Arial" size="6">We have had the aurora boralis on our must see program for quite awhile. So as we were booking our Amsterdam trip for the family Christmas gathering in the Netherlands somewhere during a hot July day, I suggested to Sandee to go early in December and take the opportunity of being in Amsterdam to fly into Sweden for say 5 days, where I had identified a small village of about 200 inhabitants that had a hotel converted from an old military school complex that seasonally opened just for that purpose. I reserved through an internet booking site and got a confirmation number. </font></div><div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"><img id="id_1aa_6244_f606_4dc3" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-udBn5eB3vD4/WHqTxRVQ-II/AAAAAAABkIA/u8Waqs2Psx4/%25255BUNSET%25255D.png" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <font face="Arial" size="6"><br></font></div><div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"><img id="id_fcfa_2372_d2c8_e716" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-jIT7UH1Vs-Y/WHqTza1AFVI/AAAAAAABkII/q89aqIBDq28/%25255BUNSET%25255D.png" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <br></div><div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"><font face="Arial" size="6">Subsequently we booked a plane to an airport called Lulea and rented a Hertz Volvo to bring us via interstates to that village in about 2 hours.</font></div><div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"><img id="id_443e_559_4687_6336" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-xQ6mHEhOxU4/WHqT0dPK-II/AAAAAAABkIM/94ron1Ujvco/%25255BUNSET%25255D.png" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <font face="Arial" size="6"><br></font></div><div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"><img id="id_db83_5bfa_7b6f_9c78" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-uZBXovCJZAc/WHqTzCb1P8I/AAAAAAABkIE/9ND1gAVuWO0/%25255BUNSET%25255D.png" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <br></div><div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"><font face="Arial" size="6">By late October I tried to contact the internet agency for further info to the hotel and have a reconfirmation of our booking. Found out that the agency was out of business and emails bounced back. </font></div><div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"><img id="id_316f_be6c_c8fe_855" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-XisBSr0aGa0/WHqT3TUvXuI/AAAAAAABkIc/e0R7QEfmqJU/%25255BUNSET%25255D.png" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"><font face="Arial" size="6"><br></font></div><div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"><img id="id_99d1_6133_d387_d840" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Py_zik_UWqg/WHqT3P0jiXI/AAAAAAABkIY/W0OkRTIHRqo/%25255BUNSET%25255D.png" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <br></div><div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"><font face="Arial" size="6">Trying to reach the hotel directly also did not succeed. I at long last found the company that developed and sold the booking website and a friendly Swedish gentleman informed me by return email that both organizations had ceased to exist. </font></div><div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"><img id="id_6728_e9af_6364_70b2" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-iif8XWRo4Ew/WHqT3Fd-QAI/AAAAAAABkIU/EybVpdH9PrY/%25255BUNSET%25255D.png" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"></div><img id="id_b4c5_e3e1_b742_554a" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-fgaLzjOQuf0/WHqT21bkqmI/AAAAAAABkIQ/0o4h72wxFO0/%25255BUNSET%25255D.png" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"> <font face="Arial" size="6"><br></font></div><div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"><font face="Arial" size="6">Nonrefundable plane tickets for 450 dollars was the cost offset against the savings of never buying travel insurance. </font></div><div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"><img id="id_259f_2ea3_af3b_8b3e" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-x_ECrU3rBGo/WHqT5wrQq7I/AAAAAAABkIg/miS2dV14JlE/%25255BUNSET%25255D.png" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"></div><img id="id_ba0_aa9_c721_abde" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-I9Un7C8w9v8/WHqT68lCyrI/AAAAAAABkIk/-wjm-3HM5eA/%25255BUNSET%25255D.png" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"> <font face="Arial" size="6"><br></font></div><div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"><font face="Arial" size="6">But the god of auroras smiled on us and we were lucky to book the Muotka Wilderness Hotel for 5 nights outside a village called Saariselka, Finland. </font></div><div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"><font face="Arial" size="6"> </font><font face="Arial" size="6">This time we opted for a taxi service to bring us from the most northern Finnish airport, Ivalo, to Muotka several miles outside of the village surrounded by </font><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: xx-large;">true snow laden Lapland forests.</span></div><img id="id_2229_feaf_d129_76b1" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-GbLGdW5ahEA/WHqT9L74o5I/AAAAAAABkIw/k471V9OXtqc/%25255BUNSET%25255D.png" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"><font face="Arial" size="6"><br></font></div><div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"><img id="id_afab_f0f9_f17d_510e" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-kz6IsWVhABw/WHqT7qLs22I/AAAAAAABkIo/qMJQ2zrukco/%25255BUNSET%25255D.png" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: xx-large;"><br></span></div><div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"><font face="Arial" size="6">The sun never rises above the horizon for 35 days during the period of our stay, giving our premises 4 hours a day from 10 am to 2 pm of spooky daylight, which gradually fades to clear starry nights and around 8 am the dawn light tries to gain ground again. </font></div><div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"><img id="id_6634_2062_e72a_97a2" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-jHQyKbulJvI/WHqT9JjX56I/AAAAAAABkIs/ZEKwuCghLDQ/%25255BUNSET%25255D.png" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"></div><div><br></div><img id="id_a91c_3663_f9c_3e87" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-4OnLe7OQGl4/WHqT-ZiLQrI/AAAAAAABkI0/mHmkXbs0BCY/%25255BUNSET%25255D.png" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"><br><img id="id_abbf_2522_7a88_dc14" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Tw3VHH5a_XU/WHqT_Edt5HI/AAAAAAABkI4/CsfB5fzqBE4/%25255BUNSET%25255D.png" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <div> <div> <div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"> <font face="Arial" size="6"><br></font></div><div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"><font face="Arial" size="6">Your picture show here clearly illuminates the atmosphere in which we found ourselves those glorious 5 days. </font></div><div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"><img id="id_21cf_44bb_262_36c8" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-KziWwcdLD9A/WHqT_Y_wqgI/AAAAAAABkI8/YcQIY_mhTMg/%25255BUNSET%25255D.png" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"></div><img id="id_def5_905a_5834_fd4a" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-D7n9jeBROWk/WHqUCl0GoCI/AAAAAAABkJE/4sBhlb1YDIU/%25255BUNSET%25255D.png" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"> <font face="Arial" size="6"><br></font></div><div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"><font face="Arial" size="6">Glorious, because during 3 of the five nights the lights danced for us high and low all over the sky.</font></div><div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"><img id="id_5d81_9071_4685_8d96" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-CMFq-ZPFjNo/WHqUD0hjMEI/AAAAAAABkJM/ZYLQwsUQQAE/%25255BUNSET%25255D.png" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 701px; height: auto;"></div><img id="id_25f9_924_cc54_867a" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-RaJSWalrwnQ/WHqUDKWBnlI/AAAAAAABkJI/7pLbYHknskc/%25255BUNSET%25255D.png" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"> <font face="Arial" size="6"><br></font></div><div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"><font face="Arial" size="6">Niina the bubbly hotel manager tries always to be the first person to greet you when you alight from the minivan. Her goal is to make every customer as happy as possible, with good quality buffet style meals, a range of activities you can sign up for and providing you with all the cold weather gear you need in a place, where the temperatures while we were there, dropped to minus 32 Celsius or minus 26 Fahrenheit. </font></div><div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"><img id="id_1b15_c626_3bad_dd4d" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-75XeZKeSuUw/WHqUCrU3HSI/AAAAAAABkJA/NHXwogsKvUI/%25255BUNSET%25255D.png" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"></div><img id="id_54ed_c63_f007_8aa0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-QSRtjENykdM/WHqUE9JgAeI/AAAAAAABkJQ/sCEjR7fPa5Y/%25255BUNSET%25255D.png" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"> <font face="Arial" size="6"><br></font></div><div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"><font face="Arial" size="6">Since your extremities define your feeling of comfort, we had bought from Amazon foot and hand warmers to be strategically placed in our shoes and gloves, which amazingly last for 8 plus hours, warming those parts of our body. </font></div><div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"><img id="id_8a4c_ef01_11c3_3366" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-SmuMzsjtX-Q/WHqUHRnBSPI/AAAAAAABkJY/40OX9rF0NIk/%25255BUNSET%25255D.png" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"></div><img id="id_e438_4d6e_d70c_5634" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-HAi_LZetQVM/WHqUG2pvNJI/AAAAAAABkJU/wdOS-dNicxY/%25255BUNSET%25255D.png" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"></div><img id="id_295c_6d59_3b6_f19b" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-xv-s5MhvvmA/WHqUIoXWXoI/AAAAAAABkJg/8Rtju6wsBJM/%25255BUNSET%25255D.png" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <div> <div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"> <font face="Arial" size="6"><br></font></div><div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"><font face="Arial" size="6">We also enjoyed during those starry nights </font><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: xx-large;">the Big Dipper so low in the sky that it seemed touchable, and a moon looming large beyond and sometimes through the fir trees. </span></div><div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"><img id="id_bc2d_e292_3849_28f5" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-NZQPLQobU10/WHqUICSaEVI/AAAAAAABkJc/3r-7zq1ZFyU/%25255BUNSET%25255D.png" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"></div><img id="id_191c_4d91_740f_7b13" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-sa7E9D-gp9E/WHqUJL_R1YI/AAAAAAABkJk/aQrUtWKJfT8/%25255BUNSET%25255D.png" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"> <span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: xx-large;"><br></span></div><div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: xx-large;">We had booked an aurora cabin, which consist of a heated glass roof dome above our bed facing north into the sky that normally produces the dancing lights. It also had a sitting area, an ensuite bathroom and a sauna for 2.</span></div><div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"><img id="id_6b89_d723_eeb9_300a" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Z24zAzXSHcY/WHqUMPChZ5I/AAAAAAABkJs/TNeRk2SbJmQ/%25255BUNSET%25255D.png" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"></div><img id="id_aaec_f9ec_b543_b8b3" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-SirsO1joNw4/WHqUMCwPseI/AAAAAAABkJo/RncZ3TEwI-8/%25255BUNSET%25255D.png" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"></div><img id="id_db9e_dddc_d156_4c8a" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-8zKrbp_vbS4/WHqUM6xoGbI/AAAAAAABkJ0/tUQ3sHJkeZw/%25255BUNSET%25255D.png" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <div> <div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"> <span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: xx-large;"><br></span></div><div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"><font face="Arial" size="6">I must admit to those of you that have not yet witnessed this phenomena in the skies, that at first instance a feeling of disappointment arises, as your eyes view more grayish than green in the dancing clouds. </font></div><img id="id_a243_fac_7d72_5435" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-dAkCe86ojdM/WHqUM-T4zOI/AAAAAAABkJw/PLC-Vluc7uU/%25255BUNSET%25255D.png" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"> <font face="Arial" size="6"><br></font></div><div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"><font face="Arial" size="6">The camera, however, has much better pixel detecting vision than the human eye, and so YouTube and documentaries show much more color, as do the pictures in this blog. </font></div><div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"><img id="id_787a_ddf3_9eef_fcae" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-s_pPCL5HUns/WHqUPtLVr_I/AAAAAAABkJ4/688U-jyt6WI/%25255BUNSET%25255D.png" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"></div><img id="id_35a7_6a22_3896_8990" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-MPf2YELzcUc/WHqURAHkE5I/AAAAAAABkKA/C0t58WwjnHk/%25255BUNSET%25255D.png" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"></div><img id="id_a305_323e_cb4b_8e31" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-QzDAn9kftis/WHqUP8iKTSI/AAAAAAABkJ8/aKE5ilsQmmQ/%25255BUNSET%25255D.png" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <div> <div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"> <font face="Arial" size="6"><br></font></div><div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"><font face="Arial" size="6">The scheduled activities you can optionally book and the 3 meals a day were a highlight as you only leave the compound with one of the booked activities or when calling a taxi to visit the nearby village.</font></div><div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"><img id="id_b1f7_9523_279d_79" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-GhuRTea-9ng/WHqURi9uRkI/AAAAAAABkKE/MQ3GOuMGtZM/%25255BUNSET%25255D.png" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"></div><img id="id_ac67_91b9_2508_2d3" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Lj33BW3aJNI/WHqUTRGLVHI/AAAAAAABkKM/hH-nsiZTF54/%25255BUNSET%25255D.png" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"> <font face="Arial" size="6"><br></font></div><div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"><font face="Arial" size="6">We booked three activities, a sleigh trip to a Kota, or wooden hut that throughout Lapland can be found in the forests, so that travelers can find shelter when needed. The custom is to never lock a Kota and to leave it better provisioned than found with extra blankets, wood, kindling, etc. Therein you find a wood supply, a firepit and bunks to spend the bitter cold nights away from home in this Artic wonderland. For us together with 13 Singaporians it was a nightime outing to maybe witness auroras and place smores into the crackling flames. Well that night we had to stare into the firepit inside the Kota and never saw anything other than a thick wintery clouded snow laden sky</font><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: xx-large;">.</span></div><img id="id_ba29_e28e_8e42_41" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-16vLE8riDV4/WHqUTLLQ08I/AAAAAAABkKI/MBfiOGSWPLE/%25255BUNSET%25255D.png" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"><font face="Arial" size="6"><br></font></div><img id="id_d075_508f_7012_e545" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-e-3FUv9UHpM/WHqUU92tTTI/AAAAAAABkKY/w6pdTyjPv_w/%25255BUNSET%25255D.png" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"> <font face="Arial" size="6"><br></font></div><div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"><font face="Arial" size="6">The next day we did a husky safari trip followed the day after by a full day of snowmobiling with a midday luncheon at the top of a ski resort.</font></div><div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"><img id="id_cc12_8ac4_42ee_1d96" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-O7ipzzHSN-M/WHqUTTBkxCI/AAAAAAABkKQ/B9CC5c_msdE/%25255BUNSET%25255D.png" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <font face="Arial" size="6"><br></font></div><div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"><font face="Arial" size="6">I will leave the pictures to tell the rest of the story, but you can tell Sandee's heart melted while holding the huskie babies.</font></div><div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"><img id="id_ba96_d140_b3e8_28cd" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-kACZwePJxjU/WHqUUmQksVI/AAAAAAABkKU/vg6kFP-epp8/%25255BUNSET%25255D.png" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 718px; height: auto;"> <font face="Arial" size="6"><br></font></div><div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"><font face="Arial" size="6">All in all this resort comes highly recommended by us if all you want to accomplish is an aurora vacation and enjoy the winter beauty in true Lapland style. </font></div><div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"><font face="Arial" size="6">PS My camera had trouble with focus capturing the millisecond light flashes in a very dark environment, so my apologies for its or my shortcomings in photographing all this.</font></div><div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"> <br></div><div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"><font face="Arial" size="6"><br></font></div><div class="quote" style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 0px 1px; line-height: normal;"><font face="Arial" size="6"><br></font></div></div></div>Two retirees and their travel storieshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13942287905877288793noreply@blogger.com1